Cleveland Foodie

q&a with melt’s matt fish

Michelle V — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 23:35:26 +0000

East siders, get ready to loosen your pants. The Cleveland Heights Melt is officially set to open May 21. Is it too early to call dibs on a table?

1. What’s your favorite thing about Cleveland and what drives you nuts? There are so many things about Cleveland that I love. Putting my finger on just one “favorite” thing would be impossible. One of my favorite aspects of spending my life in Cleveland is the small town feeling in a large metropolis. There are so many “big city” advantages and opportunities
in Cleveland but it still remains relatively small and homey. The culture, the diversity, the music scene and restaurant scene are all on par with any other major city. I love that I can’t really go anywhere in the city and not run into a few people that I know. It is definitely a tight knit group
of people that watch out for each other and defend when necessary.
2. If you could make a grilled cheese for anyone in the world, who would it be? This will probably sound sappy but I wish I could make a grilled cheese sandwich for my mother. She lost her battle with breast cancer in 2000. She was a major factor and contributor in the formation of my personality and passion. I owe her so much and I wish she could be here to share my joy and successes. It would also be cool to make some sandwiches for the
original members of KISS. They all must be in full make-up and costume while eating them. Imagine the photo opportunity!
3. How many people have accepted the tattoo discount? As of today (4-9-2010), we have 101 people who have taken the plunge and joined the Melt tattoo family.
4. What sandwich did you try but it just failed? I have been fortunate so far that every new sandwich I have tried has worked and really been a success. I am toying with a few ideas in my head that just might not be possible though. I have wanted to offer a taco type sandwich for a while but all the crazy ways I’ve tried to approach it hasn’t worked yet. I will make it happen someday!
5. Longest anyone has ever waited for a table? The weeks following our Diners, Drive-ins and Dives episode on The Food Network we were on 3-3.5 hour waits on Friday and Saturday nights. That is definitely the longest people have waited.
6. Favorite restaurant in Cleveland and which one do you miss? I would have to say that Johnny Mango is still my favorite restaurant in Cleveland. It was my favorite before I had the opportunity to run their kitchen for 5 years and it still remains my favorite. There are so many
other greats but I still love eating at JM. The restaurant that I miss the most is Lola. I know what you are going to say – what are you talking about, Lola still exists… Sure the Lola on E 4th does exist and is darn good but I really miss the original Lola in Tremont. Years ago myself and a group of kitchen guys that I worked with had a seasonal pilgrimage to Tremont. The menu would change with every season and we would love to see and try the new items. I have since become a vegetarian so it probably would not be as much fun but I still miss the place. It had a coolness that has yet to be matched in Cleveland.
7. Favorite guilty pleasure? Chocolate, Chocolate and Chocolate!
8. Conan or Leno (these questions first went out during the midst of the late night drama)? Between the two, I choose Conan but I would still take Letterman over them both!
9. Last song you downloaded? Believe it or not I don’t like downloading music. I have actually never done it. I still love going to the record store and leafing through the bins and finding some killer jems. I like the cover art, the pictures and the liner notes. I have friends that burn music for me though so it is probably the same thing. Really into Thin Lizzy records lately and the last
record that I bought was a used copy of the first Baroness record from My Mind’s Eye Records in Lakewood.
10. What TV show do you never miss? I have a standing date with my awesome girlfriend every Thursday night to watch Project Runway on Lifetime. She sucked me into it and now I am
totally hooked. I think I am into it more than she is!
11. Where did you grow up and what’s your favorite meal from your childhood? I have lived in northeast Ohio my whole life spending the majority of my formative years in Parma. One of my favorite meals was my mother’s macaroni & cheese. She made it from scratch and always baked it extra long so the top would get all toasted. She also made these amazing homemade croutons that covered the entire top. Damn, I am getting hungry!
12. Worst part about owning a restaurant? That is a tough question because I really love what I do. But I would say the daily stresses that come along with ownership are the worst part. I love the challenges but sometimes when you have those days when EVERYTHING seems to go wrong it can be a bit overwhelming.
13. Last meal on earth? I am a sucker for really killer authentic Italian food. The richer, saucier and cheesier the better. My last meal would be restaurant hopping in Little Italy and literally eating myself to death.
14. What was your first job and what would you be doing if you weren’t in the restaurant business? My first job was delivering the PD as a kid in my neighborhood. If I was not in the restaurant business I would probably be working with people somehow. I originally started college with the intention of becoming a grade school teacher. I think rock star would be a pretty nice profession to possibly get into…
15. Aside from opening a Cleveland Heights location, what’s next for Melt? I want to concentrate on the Cleveland Heights location for 6-12 months and hopefully ensure its success and longevity. Hire and train the correct people to take it over and continue its (hopeful) success. I would like to then start to work on Melt #3 and possibly #4 in the greater Cleveland area. If that can prove to be successful then I would like to grow regionally.

lolita (and great melt coverage)

Michelle V — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 20:11:00 +0000

I’ve become very indecisive as of late. On Friday morning, we decided to head to Lolita for dinner since we haven’t been there in awhile (yes, I think about what I’m going to have for dinner within an hour of waking up). But then my friend Christina sent me this link to the fantastic story on Melt in USA Today (good for them!). So that made me want a deluxe grilled cheese for dinner instead. However, come 4:30 that afternoon and already falling victim to a growling stomach, the thought of waiting up to two hours for a seat at Melt quickly changed things. So instead of going back to our original plan of Lolita, we decided to head to Flying Fig for happy hour after a coworker said something about the pork nachos. Well, that didn’t pan out either. After driving around for 15 minutes looking for parking (apparently we weren’t the only ones with that same thought – everyone in that area was packed, including Bar Cento and Great Lakes), we threw in the towel and realized we should have stuck with our first thought. And that’s how we (happily) ended up on Lolita’s cozy patio Friday night.

Not surprisingly, this place was crowded, too. Luckily, there was a table open on the patio (thank god because at this point, I was ready to stand by the kitchen and beg Chef Matt for anything I could get my hands on – the joys of pregnancy…).

This was my first time on the patio. It’s really cute, with a great garden and well-covered from the street. The only drawback was the neighbor’s blaring classic rock station competing with Lolita’s music.

For our meal, we started with the beets of course – a must order item if you are at Lolita. Seriously the best in town. Then we decided to share two pizzas, knowing we’d have leftovers for tomorrow. We went with the basil, prosciutto and sea salt pizza and the pulled pork with smoked gouda (a sub for the cheddar that night) and salsa verde.

The beets did not disappoint and I was actually pretty close to putting in another order because they are that good. I just love the honey with the ricotta. The super thin and crispy pizzas were enjoyable as well, with the favorite definitely being the pulled pork. Really great flavor and one I’d happily order again. Next time though I think we’ll stick to one pizza because they weren’t as good the next day as I thought they would be. A little too chewy, as you might imagine, but nonetheless, still made for a good snack.

grilled cheese for dogs

Michelle V — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 18:12:00 +0000

As much as I love living in Cleveland, I wish this city were more dog friendly – like San Francisco. There, dogs are welcome in most coffee shops, on restaurant patios, in stores, etc. And I’m not suggesting all dogs – we could cap it off at dogs less than 20 pounds, like Stella, our Boston Terrier (Ok, I know that’s not fair, but I’m only thinking about my dog).

When Stella was a puppy, I would stick her in my vest and bring her everywhere – from Starbucks to Target. It wasn’t until she grew and started to stick her head out that people noticed and politely asked us to leave.

There are a few exceptions to the rule. Take Cottonwood in Chagrin Falls, where they welcome all dogs to join their owners while browsing for furniture. And where I work – all dogs are welcome and on any given day you can find between 5 – 10 dogs here.

And now you can add Melt in Lakewood to the list. I just read at clevelandmagazine.com that man’s best friend is allowed on the patio on Sundays after 9 p.m. Restricted, yes. But it’s a start.

esquire recognizes melt

Michelle V — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:06:00 +0000

As most everyone knows by now, Esquire has recently recognized Melt for making some of the best sandwiches in the country, specifically the Parmageddon. If you’ve had this gigantic sandwich complete with pierogies, it’s not hard to figure out why.

(photo courtesy of David Lay)

David wrote about Melt, owner/chef Matt Fish and its national attention for today’s Lakewood Observer.

the best sandwiches in america

Michelle V — Tue, 19 Feb 2008 21:11:00 +0000

By way of Crain’s, I came across this article in Esquire featuring the best sandwiches (sans burgers) in America. And wouldn’t you know it, three of the best-sliced bread treats can be found right here. There is also a recipe from Michael Symon for the ultimate breakfast sandwich. And I’m also happy to report that another favorite is from Salumi in Seattle. I can vouch – the porchetta is heavenly.

The Cleveland nods go to:

1. Trailer Park Monte Cristo / Beachland Ballroom
2. Corned Beef / Slyman’s
3. Polish Boy / Freddie’s Rib House

Now having what I would call the best sandwich in Cleveland at Melt, I have no doubts they will find a rightfuly earned place on next year’s list.

melt

Michelle V — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 16:32:00 +0000

For the most part, I try to follow a healthy diet with lots of whole grains, fruits and vegetables 80 percent of the time, leaving 20 percent (typically weekend dinners) for some indulgence. Well, I think I blew all 20 percent (and then some) on our dinner at Melt on Saturday – and it was well worth it.

Melt has been on my must-dine list for quite some time. And since we were heading to The Pub in Rocky River for a friend’s birthday, this provided the perfect opportunity.

Since the restaurant doesn’t take reservations, and the space overall is small (although they will soon be expanding), we waited about an hour for a table of five. The space is more bar than restaurant but it works, especially in that neighborhood. I especially liked the ornate tin ceiling, stain glass window with utensils, quirky decorative items and especially the album covers for menus – I had Andy Gibb. This reminded me of my sister’s bedroom growing up because she used to have that same album cover displayed on her wall right below Michael Stanley and Bruce Springsteen.

For dinner, I had the Wake & Bacon with fried egg, bacon and American cheese. Jamie had the appropriately named Parmageddon, with a potato and cheese pierogie, fresh Napa vodka kraut, onions and cheddar cheese. We swapped a half so we could each try another version.

The sandwiches are enormous, extremely filling and somewhat difficult to eat – but absolutely delicious. I especially enjoyed my sandwich and was craving it the next day. I don’t know how they did it, but it really doesn’t taste like your typical bacon, egg and cheese sandwich. Jamie’s wasn’t bad, but I liked mine much better. By the time I got to his half, I was already full and ended up dissecting the sandwich (it’s almost too much bread) and just ate the pierogie, which was really good. Each sandwich also came with a large side of fries. I only managed to try a few, but they were tasty as well.

Overall, Melt did not disappoint and lived up to its reputation. I will gladly go back, but most likely for lunch or if I know we’re going right home after. Otherwise you’re too full (and feel a bit too greasy as well) to do anything else.