First up – lazy at home. Since we just got back from Isle of Palms, we didn’t do much other than coffee and the park in Chagrin Falls. Which spending anytime in this quaint Norman Rockwell-esque village always makes you feel like you’re on vacation. It was a nice surprise to discover that the city finally added swings to this small park. Not sure who was happier, me or Natalie.

The weather was truly amazing this past week – I’d take these fall-like temps year-round. This weather was ideal to take Natalie to her visit to the zoo. Unfortunately, she wasn’t as perfect as the weather. If you were at the zoo and heard piercing screaming, that was not coming from the cages – that was our little animal. But she did stop long enough to stare in pure amazement at the camels, giraffes, seals and reindeer. She actually loved the animals and we loved experiencing this with her – despite her lack of nap. We will definitely join the zoo next year and spend much more time discovering this amazing place.

After the zoo, I made my first visit to The Sausage Shoppe on Memphis and had a great chat with Norm. We picked up some bulk pork sausage, kielbasa, double cheese brats and Jack brats. I know I won’t be waiting until our next zoo outing to make a repeat visit here.

One night was sans toddler as we were invited to the second annual Meritage Gala, a celebration of food-inspired art and art-inspired food within the kitchens of the International Culinary Arts and Sciences Institute. This event helps raise funds for the ICASI scholarship program.

My favorite day was spent in and around my old stomping grounds. First was breakfast at Inn on Coventry (more to come but I have eaten here countless times and still love it for breakfast), then a walk around Lakeview Cemetery to visit my gram but also to take in its beauty followed by the Art Museum. I realize it’s a cemetery, but if you have never been, it really is worth exploring. When I lived in Cleveland Heights I used to walk here all the time. Not only are the grounds beautiful, but lots of rich history. Tour President Garfield’s monument, place money by Rockefeller for good luck, see Elliot Ness, Civil War generals and more. By the time we got to the museum, Natalie was asleep so we just picked up our membership card and decided to come back next weekend for the chalk festival.

From Cleveland Heights to Hudson and Rocky River, thankfully not in the same day. We met friends for dinner at the newly opening One Red Door(chef Shawn Monday from Downtown 140 moved a few feet up; more to come on this as it was for a Metromix review). After dinner, went for some wine and cheese to North End Market, where chef Jeff Jarrett kindly shared some seared ahi tuna over delightful chutney. I really like this place – great wine list or grab a bottle from the hundreds that surround you (the dining room is in the middle of the wine store) and good cheese selection, too. While there the chef was filling us in on the upcoming Dinner in the Dark  that he is working on. The first one benefits Veggie U.

My sister and brother-in-law have been talking about Danny Boysfor quite some time so we decided to join them for some pizza pie last night. Fun little space – I can see why they like it. Yummy pizza, too, and a lot of options – almost too many. Post carb overload, we went to Erie Island Coffee for cappuccinos. This is my favorite coffee in town but first visit to this location. What a great, great space. I think I like it better than E 4^th. Now if only there was an east side location… On the way to grab coffee, we drove past Market on Linda St. Looks like a cool place, from the outside at least.

And in between all of this, we joined Lifetime Fitness. There’s nothing like two weeks straight of good eats, especially like that of week one, to make you run straight for a personal trainer. I do not like to work out, but I think this place just may change that.

Lola // I love black beans. I cook with them all the time and am a sucker for any dish that lists this as an ingredient. I even made brownies last night that called for black beans as a secret ingredient. A few weeks ago I met a client for lunch at Lola, her first visit. I started with the pureed black bean soup topped with cilantro and I believe bits of guanciale. Outstanding. If I wasn’t with my client, I would have easily ordered a second bowl! Incredibly smooth and perhaps the lightest version of this soup I’ve ever tried. I’m still thinking about it. And the best part about going to East 4^th for lunch? Grabbing a cappuccino at Erie Island after. Best in the city.

Shinano // The service is so slow that sometimes I swear they even forget you’re there. But they make a good roll. Several in fact. And that’s why I keep going back. And if you’re not in hurry, it’s a good place for lunch (actually, the food comes out super fast; it’s just taking your order and dropping off the check that they’re fairly leisurely about). The one roll in particular that keeps me coming back is the Volcano – an inside out roll with crab and avocado topped with broiled scallop, octopus tobiko and mayo. This roll is so good, that we ended up ordering a second one for the table on our last visit. The only thing I didn’t care for the first time I tried it was the amount of mayo. So when I get it, I always ask for very little mayo and it’s perfect each time.

Moxie // With its proximity to our office, this ends up being a popular spot for meetings. On this lunch in particular, I met with the coordinator for Flavors, the main fundraiser for The American Liver Foundation (I’m volunteering this year), who suggested we meet here. Moxie has several salads I like off the lunch menu, but this time I opted for something new – the Atlantic salmon with cauliflower puree, cauliflower florets and pomegranate reduction. Part of my New Year’s resolution was to eat more fish (cook more actually, but this counts), and with this dish, I’d eat it daily. I may never order salads at Moxie again.

Phnom Penh // Nothing warms you up during a Cleveland winter like a bowl of spicy hue beef soup with rice noodles, beef brisket and lemon grass. Pair it with their overstuffed and aromatic egg roll, and you’ll leave happy. While my past few visits here have been hit or miss, this place is still one of my favorites and this soup is the reason why.