Cleveland Foodie

cleveland rocks and so does its food (tell me why and win $50 to crop)

Michelle V — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 16:31:00 +0000

Since landing in Cleveland in 2005, chef Steve Schimoler has made quite the impression. After his term ended at Nestle in Solon, he could have packed up his knives and headed anywhere given his impressive background and talent. But no, he decided to stay in Cleveland and open Crop Bistro in the summer of 2007. And that would have been enough for most – but not this chef. He fell in love with our city and wanted to make a bigger impact. He went onto launch Local Crop, an online farmer’s market that connects Northeast Ohio farmers with local chefs, and most recently, Cleveland Food Rocks, a collaborative effort among local chefs to put our wonderful independent restaurants in the spotlight as the Rock Hall induction ceremony finally comes home.

Beginning March 28 through April 4 – Rock Hall induction week – 16 restaurants will feature a special food or drink item centered around the Rock ‘n’ Roll theme and will have live music one night during the week.

Just like the Renegade Lunch, this is another idea I just love — our local chefs working together to promote our city and each other. Chef Schimoler’s objective for this concept was to champion the dining scene to the estimated 40,000 visitors that are expected to take over Cleveland that week and boost business at local, independent restaurants.

According to Elaine Cicora, Crops’s chief storyteller, Steve came up with the idea a year ago. As a drummer and a chef, he is very tuned into the synergy of food and music, and immediately saw this as a natural way to leverage the excitement of the inductions into a showcase for the city’s great dining scene. In addition, he also was committed to developing the project as a truly collaborative, grass-roots endeavor and wanted to encourage the community to come together to spotlight our wonderful city — not merely as a money-making opportunity, but as a real celebration of Cleveland’s great clubs and restaurants.

The Music

The project’s grassroots focus is also seen in some of the music that restaurants are featuring : Sergio’s Sarava, for instance, will be featuring a samba trio made up of the restaurant’s bus boys; Metropolitan Cafe is featuring acoustic jazz provided by their multi-talented servers; and of course, Cream of the Crop (Steve’s band) will be playing at Crop on April 3 featuring Crop staffers and former staffers.

This is really a big deal for our city. The inductions are finally back and it’s great to see so many businesses, organizations and the community in general working together and joining in the excitement.

In addition to Crop, participating restaurants include: Bar Cento, Bistro on Lincoln Park, Brother’s Lounge, Fahrenheit, Grotto, Grovewood Tavern, Gusto, Johnny’s, Lago, Luxe, Metropolitan Cafe, Michaelangelo’s, Prosperity Social Club, Sarava and Wonder Bar.

Here’s just a sampling of what you’ll find:

–Luxe / B.B. King’s Cajun mac ‘n’ cheese

–Metropolitan / Strawberry Fields Forever (spicy shrimp tossed in greens with strawberry shallot vinaigrette)

–Michaelangelo’s / Black Sabbath’s sweet leaf mint martini + Sinatra cover band

–Fahrenheit / April 1, 4-course tasting menu, only $32 + Material Girl martini

For a complete list of live music and special food and drink creations, click here. By the way, be sure to head to the Rock Hall on April 4 – admission is FREE all day.

Win $50 to Crop

So what’s better than all the new treats hitting diners’ plates next week? Eating for free. Playing off the popularity of the six-word phenomenon, sometimes referred to as American haiku, you can win a $50 gift certificate to Crop Bistro. Here’s how:

Legend has it Hemingway was once asked if he could write a story in six-words. His reply, “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” He was said to have called it his best work. In 2006, Smith Magazine partnered with Twitter for a six-word challenge (another brilliant idea). Soon, there will be a foodie six-word book from Smith Mag (more on that later).

Playing off this idea, tell me why Cleveland Rocks in exactly six words and the gift card could be yours. Share your words in the comment section and be sure to include your e-mail so I can notify the winner. Deadline is Friday, April 27, at 9 a.m. Good luck.

For inspiration, watch this video. Even if you’re not going to participate, still watch – it’s that good. And be sure to head out during Rock Hall week to help our chefs show off our city.

$1 equals 40 days of water for a child (cleveland chefs join together for unicef’s project tap)

Michelle V — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 22:48:00 +0000

From March 22 – 28, five local restaurants are participating in Unicef’s Tap Project, which brings clean water to millions of children around the world – something each of us takes for granted every single day. Just $1 provides drinking water for one child for 40 days – $1, something most of spend without a second thought on coffee, the paper or any number of things on any given day.

Participating restaurants include: Momocho, Red the Steakhouse, Moxie, Paladar, Bar Cento and Gamekeeper’s Taverne.

Momocho is going one step further. Chef Eric Williams is donating an additional $250 to the cause, plus extending the restaurant’s popular happy hour until 9 p.m. on Wednesday, March 25. So take advantage of the extended hours and have a great night out for less and do some good in the process.

I first heard of this cause after reading it in the NY Times two years ago when New York City restaurants asked their patrons to donate $1 (or more) for water they normally drink for free. Since then, it has grown to a nationwide movement that thankfully, our local chefs and restaurants quickly got on board to support.

a foodie from la visits cleveland

Michelle V — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 19:22:00 +0000

More and more over the past couple of years, we keep reading about food editors in other cities, from dailies to consumer pubs, thoughts on the Cleveland dining scene. And it’s not just the professionals, but bloggers as well. I love reading out-of-towners views on our city and our good eats.

Here’s three posts from Hobson, an LA food fan that spent a few days in our city this past October:

Hobson on Lola
Hobson on Bar Cento
Hobson on Sokolowski’s University Inn

blogging, bar cento and the food show

Michelle V — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 15:51:00 +0000

Last Thursday, we headed to Bar Cento for a blogger meet up. Fellow Cleveland blogger, Alexa, thought it was about time that many of the local bloggers met. It was a lot of fun to meet everyone, and even better because we were at Bar Cento and enjoyed some fabulous eats (mussels, olives, pommes frites, sunnyside pizza, salumi).

The next night, we headed to a United Way event at the Food Show at the IX Center. The two-hour event featured passed appetizers from Paula Deen, Michael Symon (the lobster pierogies were coveted by pretty much everyone) and some of the other chefs. The highlight of the evening was this champion celebrity bartender from Australia, Hayden Wood, or Uncle Woody as he liked to call himself. This incredibly witty and talented guy impressed the crowd with his mad skills (think bottles flying, glasses twirling). Jamie was so impressed, that on the way home he kept thinking of how we could bring this guy in for a party (granted he was a little over-served himself – sober I’m sure he would have realized flying a guy in from Australia for a party isn’t going to happen anytime soon…).

After the show, we were still hungry and still thinking of the great food from the night before, so we placed an order for takeout at Bar Cento. Of course we ordered the sunnyside pizza (literally Jamie’s favorite pizza – ever) and the acorn squash ravioli and a side of the beets for me. Everest also hooked us up with two wonderful desserts, the apple tart and olive oil cake. Each were so good, I almost didn’t share.

The ravioli, which was generously topped with pancetta, was flavorful, satisfying and just what I was craving. And the sliced beets with breadcrumbs were also fantastic. I liked this version much better than the beets with blue cheese, that used to be on the menu.

The long weekend of good eats continued with dinner at Momocho the next night, but I’ll post about that later. I think I’m trying to get in as many meals from my favorite places while I still can. Not that I can’t after the baby, I just know it won’t be right away.

an anniversary treat for everyone

Michelle V — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:35:00 +0000

On October 9, Bar Cento will celebrate its one year anniversary. To toast the occasion, chef Jonathon Sawyer is giving away one free pizza, your choice, with the purchase of a bottle of wine (bottle prices start at $15 on up). Not a bad deal.

If you’ve yet to check out Bar Cento, this is a perfect opportunity to go. Recently, Gourmet recognized the Ohio City eatery for Sawyer’s thin and flavorful pizzas and wallet-friendly prices. Be sure to check out the sunnyside pizza – it’s hands-down our favorite. Great crust with a sunnyside up egg in the center with tons of pepper (although admittedly, I often ask for a little less pepper) and prosciutto. Yum.

celebrating the premier of dinner: impossible

Michelle V — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 12:56:00 +0000

Cleveland chefs were in the national spotlight last night, and let’s just say they did a much better job than the other Clevelanders who were in the spotlight on Monday night (although I do believe the team is in for a great season).

To celebrate the new season of Dinner: Impossible, Bar Cento held a preview party last night featuring the menu Michael Symon, Jonathon Sawyer (who Symon kept referring to as “Johnny”) and David Lowe created for the frenzy of people at Alcatraz.

The place was packed – in fact, the whole area was packed, with every patio seat taken from Market Street, to Great Lakes and Flying Fig. It’s great to see so many people out in the city during the week. As for Bar Cento, nearly every table was full with eager people happily gathering to cheer on the new season and watch a couple of people from Cleveland make us proud. And Sawyer was nervously buzzing around getting ready – it was obvious how excited he was for the night and humbled that so many people came out to cheer him on. It truly was a festive environment and I am so happy I stayed up way (WAY) past my bedtime to join in.

The menu

dates stuffed with tarragon, marcona almonds and wrapped in Dohar’s bacon
wild mushroom crostini with lobster and chanterelle mushrooms with Roquefort
white and green asparagus involtini wrapped in beef carpaccio, egg and horseradish with sauce Robert
roasted baby vegetable salad with turnips, beets and Humbolt Fog goat cheese
braised beef short rib with polenta and gremolata
olive oil poached salmon with fresh fava and cranberry beans with Avgolemno
strawberry napoleon with lavender lemon curd creme fresh and Chantilly black pepper macerated strawberries

While I (we) enjoyed everything (except the asparagus – that was the only thing I couldn’t eat because of the beef carpaccio), standouts for me were easily the dates, salad (that cheese alone made the dish), salmon and dessert. And yes, Sawyer even meticulously dusted “soap” on each one with powdered sugar.

When I first saw the menu, my initial reaction was ho hum about the salmon and basically giddy for the short ribs. I absolutely love braised short ribs, hands-down one of my favorite meals and have never been a huge salmon fan. Last night was the exact opposite. While I thought the short ribs were good, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed each bite of the salmon – and I liked it much better than the short ribs. Here’s to hoping that item makes its way to the menu as a regular.

I unfortunately never made it to any of the Iron Chef viewing parties at Lolita, but I have to imagine they were similar in atmosphere and spirit to last night. I was really happy we made it there with our friends and got to experience it first-hand. There is so much great stuff happening in our city, culinary and beyond, and it’s really something to watch.

Congratulations, chefs! Looking forward to the rest of the season.

Here’s a link that Chef’s Widow shared to the photos from the premier party, courtesy of Kyle Roth.

dinner at bar cento

Michelle V — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 18:58:00 +0000

I didn’t think it was possible, but there are actually a few people in town who have yet to experience Bar Cento - and our neighbors are on that short list. So last Friday when we made plans for dinner, we immediately suggested this place after learning they weren’t familiar with it.

From the second we walked in, we knew they’d be happy with our choice. They both quickly commented on both the decor and music (from Fleetwood Mac to Genesis that evening) and couldn’t believe they haven’t been here sooner. Which then prompted my neighbor to pull out a sheet of paper which she handed to me so I could jot down my other favorites in town that they need to check out.

For starters, we were treated to the antipasto selection and sliced Ohio cucumbers courtesy of Chef Sawyer (thanks again, chef!).

I’ve had the antipasto plate several times but have to say this was the best version yet. The only item I wasn’t crazy for was the cheese, but each piece of the salumi was perfect. I knew being pregnant combined with the heat I was going to regret all that salt the next day, but I didn’t care and happily finished off the plate. This was my first time trying the cucumbers and they were surprisingly good. I say that because I am not a big cucumber fan but I did really enjoy these. They were gone in about 30 seconds flat, so I think it’s safe to say everyone was happy with this simple dish.

Jonathon chatted with us quite a bit that night (even shared some recent pics of their adorable kids) and completely impressed our neighbors. They were blown away by his skills and just how much he has already accomplished – and that he’s only 28!

By the way, a huge congrats to Chef Sawyer and everyone at Bar Cento for being recognized as the best new restaurant in town. Very well deserved.

For the rest of the meal, we of course ordered our usual favorite, the Sunnyside pizza, and since my one neighbor isn’t much of an adventurous eater, we did also go for the traditional marinara with Parmesan and mozzarella. Plus an order of the pommes frites and baked tomato and bread salad for the table.

As usual, the Sunnyside pizza was perfect. This pizza consistently delivers. And the traditional pizza was rather tasty, too. Actually, I ended up having more of this version than the Sunnyside because I really enjoyed the sauce. It made for a great leftover the next day, too.

Although I enjoyed everything, I’d have to say my favorite dish of the night was the baked tomato and bread salad. Everest, our server, (who is also the beverage director) talked us into this over the tomato salad with poached egg and I’m glad he did (although I look forward to trying that other salad soon). The tomatoes were nice and juicy. And I learned they were baked in milk – a new kick the chef is on. I never would have guessed that or thought to use milk with tomatoes, but it clearly works, and works well, so what do I know! And the bread cubes, which were covered in Parmesan cheese, were simply delicious. They almost had a nutty flavor.

For dessert, the chef and Everest treated us to a few more goodies, including the lavender panna cotta with fennel blossom (I believe this was in it – I actually forgot my notepad that night and am going from memory) and more milk. Plus we got to sample a small taste of the sparkling apple cider from the Rock n’ Roll wine project the night before (the Famille L. DuPont from Domaine DuPont 2006).

If I weren’t pregnant, I could have easily drank half that bottle (ok, probably the whole thing…). It was that good – and different. We actually had a great discussion with Jonathon and Everest on this drink and why this is something Ohio should be producing. Again, without having my notebook that evening, I wasn’t able to capture everything – and they gave us all a great education. Look for more to come on this later with a Q & A with Everest.

One item I almost forgot to mention. Jonathon has been experimenting with a few vinegars to compliment the fries (as if they need anything else beyond the three types of mayonnaise). One has more of a wine base and the other a beer – I want to say Belgian wheat and malt beers, but again, no notebook equals poor memory. I tried both and my favorite was the beer-based vinegar. I’m actually a huge fan of vinegar on fries, so I’m happy to have this addition at the restaurant. The other was ok but I think he was still working on that one.

At the end of the night, we all left very full, very happy and very eager to come back. Bar Cento is truly one of the city’s best and therefor very deserving of its recent recognition.

updates from around the dinner table

Michelle V — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:53:00 +0000

Here’s a quick look at the happenings at some of our local favorites:

Crop Bistro
Crop recently welcomed the addition of Elaine Cicora as the director of communications/official storyteller. This is great news for Crop, but sad for the rest of us that looked forward to her well-written and spot-on food reviews each week.

Thursday-only happy hour / Chef-owner Steve Schimoler and his crew fire up the grill on the bistro’s shaded sidewalk patio each Thursday, from 5 to 7 p.m. Look for $5 specials, including hand-ground lamb sliders, topped with blue cheese, chopped mint, and pickled onions; savory soft tacos, stuffed with grilled chimichurri shrimp; and tender, crisp-edged Tuscan flatbreads, with fresh herb-and-veggie toppings. To drink, the day’s featured $5 cocktail – perhaps something like Crop Punch or the Back Porch Margarita.

Bar Cento
Cook Chefin’ is this Sunday at 3 p.m. From everything I’ve heard about this event, it’s a blast for both the kiddies and adults. We were actually planning to go on Sunday with my nieces and nephews but had to reschedule for the next one.

Women of Rock / Rock ‘n’ Roll Wine Project. Featuring female vintners from Pinnono, McCrea, Stelztner. Women Rockers on vinyl plus Bill Barefoot & Chef’s Widow pouring the juice all night on July 31st.

And if he wasn’t busy enough (I think he’s competing with Symon for who can work the most hours per week), you can hang out with Chef Sawyer and cook at the farm-to-plate cooking class at Tri-C: theme, get your goat.

2-part class / Saturday, July 26, 2008, 1:30-3:30 p.m. at Goat Feather’s Farm in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park for the field trip, and Monday, July 28 6:30-9 p.m. at Tri-C’s Metro Campus Culinary Kitchen.

Description and Menu / This class will introduce and instruct students to the journey of farm to plate. We begin with the introduction of the farm and will see the symbiotic relationship developed between a farmer and a chef and learn about the farm’s 7 grazing pastures and their unique approach to raising the goats. We will then learn about the butchery process and how the animal eventually ends up on the plate in a restaurant. Menu: Goats Milk Recipe: Fresh Goats Milk Cheese; Goats Meat Recipe: Goat Keftedes (Kebabs), Roasted Leg of Goat and Tomato Braised Goat Shoulder. Fee: $120 total.

Cafe Marika / Lucy’s Sweet Surrender
Look for Michael Feigenbaum of Cafe Marika and Lucy’s at four farmer’s markets this summer:
Wednesdays in Lakewood from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.; Thursdays in Twinsburg from 3 – 7 p.m.; Saturdays in Shaker Square from 8 a.m. – noon and Crocker Park from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. He’ll feature 10-12 bread types, strudels, nut/poppyroll, kalacs, angel wings – about 100 different products in total, all made from scratch at Lucky’s Sweet Surrender.

Waterloo Street Fest will be August 2. Check out Cafe Marika during the fest for soups, salads, sandwiches and pastries.

Momocho
The popular patio is in full swing and the place to be this summer. Be sure to check out the taquito grasshopper, which Chef Eric says continues to be extremely popular. And although I haven’t tried it myself, I have heard from several people tat is really is quite tasty.

You can also see Eric, along with Karen Small, Doug Katz, Paul Minnillo, Heather Haviland, Jonathan Bennett, Ryan Alabaugh, Scott and Brenda Kim, Matt Harlan, Ruth and Marc Levine and Rocco Whalen at the benefit for Annie Chiu at Sergio’s on July 28.

Blue Canyon
Speaking of busy, I think it’s safe to include Chef Brandt Evans in that mix. He’s off to Dallas to open another Blue Canyon, with a few more on the way (I think that’s four total locations now). Look for more on this next month. We have been trying to schedule an interview for oh, maybe the past 8 months, give or take. I think we’ll finally meet up on that fabulous patio in the near future.

bar cento / terra madre event update

Michelle V — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:45:00 +0000

Here is an update to my previous post about next week’s event at Bar Cento to benefit the Terra Madre program (from Slow Food Northern Ohio):

Celebrate Bastille Day with Slow Food / Monday, July 14th / Bar Cento / 6:30 – 9:30 p.m.

Join us for a celebration of seasonal specialties prepared in the French tradition by Terra Madre chefs & friends including:
Jonathon Sawyer, Bar Cento
Matt Harlan, Lolita
Paul Minnillo, The Baricelli Inn
David Uecke, Anthe’s
Doug Katz, Fire
Michael Symon, Lolita and Lola
Rocco Whalen, Fahrenheit
Plus more.

The French-style feast will showcase local and seasonal ingredients, heritage meats, artisan cheeses, house-cured charcuterie and other foods produced by Terra Madre farmers and producers.

The event will also feature:
Terra Madre Raffle Kickoff
Grand Prize: Trip for two to Turin, Italy for the Slow Food Salone del Gusto, October 2008
Cooking class by Iron Chef, Michael Symon, dinners by Terra Madre chefs, and more.

Plus meet the 2008 Terra Madre delegates. $40 per person with proceeds supporting Slow Food Northern Ohio’s 2008 Terra Madre delegates and programs. Call Bar Cento at 216.344.9944 to make your reservation today.

chef news

Michelle V — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 22:26:00 +0000

A lot of exciting happenings for our local chefs over the past couple weeks. Here’s a recap:

Terra Madre
This year’s class has been selected to attend the food extravaganza in Torino, Italy. I remember Dominic Cerino talking about his experience a few years ago and sharing his memories. It sounds like an amazing food journey. Here’s more from Slow Food Northern Ohio:

In October 2008, farmers, producers, chefs and educators from around the globe will gather in Turin, Italy for Terra Madre 2008, the third biennial meeting of the Terra Madre Network organized by Slow Food International. The Terra Madre event will bring together food communities, cooks, academics and youth delegates from around the world to work towards increasing small-scale, traditional, and sustainable food production.

The following delegates have been selected by Slow Food USA to represent our region at Terra Madre 2008:

Farmers & Producers
Aaron Miller, Miller Livestock, Kinsman
Cindy & Terry Smith, Goatfeathers Point Farm, Peninsula
Abbe Turner, Lucky Penny Farm, Garrettsville
Adam & Jennifer Gidlow, On the Rise Bakery, Cleveland Heights

Chefs
Matt Harlan, Lolita
Paul Minnillo, Baricelli Inn & Baricelli Cheese Company
Jonathon Sawyer, Bar Cento & Greenhouse Tavern & Restaurant
David Uecke, Anthe’s Restaurant (Akron)

On Monday, July 14 at 6 p.m., head to Bar Cento to help raise money for the event. For $40, the event will feature food and wine of past attendees. Congratulations, Chefs, and safe travels.
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Speaking of Dominic Cerino, he will be heading to Cordova, Alaska next week, along with Regan Reik of Pier W, to not only cook but discuss the eco system and what makes Cordova so special for 100 media and chefs.

“It kind of cracks me up that they are flying in two chefs from Cleveland to cook a seafood dinner for media and chefs from the west coast, but hey I’ll take it,” shared Cerino.

He also added that he will be taking some of Cleveland with him, including his own guanciali, Lake Erie Creamery goat cheese and possibly blue eggs, a favorite of Cerinos.
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I had heard last month that Chef Michael Herschman was leaving his post at the Cabin Club in Aurora. I admit, the first thing I thought when I heard this was, where else can he go? I don’t know if it’s pretty common in the chef world to constantly change kitchens, but in my professional world, you would be labeled a flight risk. You can now find Herschman at Metropolitan Cafe.

Regardless of why he moves around so much, one thing remains constant – his incredible talent! Aside from Cabin Club, I have tried to follow him throughout the city since he (unfortunately) closed Mojo in Tremont. And this latest move will actually get me to go back to Metropolitan this fall.