The Curse Of Cleveland Is Over

Just in case fans of Clevleand have not heard yet, the curse is over. We finally won the big one! This past Sunday on the Food Network's "The Next Iron Chef," Michael Symon, owner of two Cleveland restaurants, Lola and Lolita won the battle to become the next Iron Chef on "Iron Chef America." If you don't watch the Food Network or have never heard of Iron Chef America, this may mean very little to you. However, if you like Cleveland as much as I do, you have to at least appreciate the prominence this brings to the city.

Most people who live downtown know that Symon owns two of the coolest eating joints around. Origianally located in Tremont, Lola is now located downtown and Lolita has taken the Tremont location. While the food is phenomonal at both these locations, Lolita has one of the coolest happy hours around. Where else can you get happy hour prices from 10 pm until close on Friday AND Saturday nights that include items from the award-winning menu and drink specials. This weekend I went to the Food and Wine show in Cleveland and Symon was listed under "local celebrity chef." Next year when I go to this show, I will be excited to see his name under "national celebrity chef." Now if only the Browns can win the big one, and by that I mean...beating the Steelers!

One Night In The City+One Night In The Country=Day Of Relaxation

This weekend had a little bit of everything. I spent Friday night in Cleveland enjoying the company of old friends while I spent Saturday night in the backwoods of Wooster enjoying the company of new friends. Sunday was spent recuperating from both these events.

On Friday we met friends at The Garage Bar. My friend Alison won a free happy hour, which entitled her to free drinks from 5 pm-9 pm, while her friends were allowed a free drink, though many of us had more than one drink. The Happy Hour lasted much longer than expected as Mindy came up and met us for more drinks after Happy Hour ended. We finished the evening off with dinner and drinks at the Old Angle. We got the wings, and because I was so hungry and a little intoxicated, I would have to rate the wings with five wings out of four, though they most likely should have a three-wing rating.

On Saturday we got up and went canoeing down in Canal Fulton and became one with nature, or at least ran into a lot of nature with our poor rowing. After canoeing we headed to a country home located on 27 acres out in Wooster. We spent the night cooking out, drinking beer out of a can and sitting around a bonfire. It was a true country night.

On Sunday I walked into my house and vegged out on my couch for most of the day. In the apartment below me, my brother was doing the same thing. Now that we are all rested up, I am taking Mark to his first Taco Tuesday tonight at Lincoln Park Pub. It is a rite of passage if you live on the west side of town. After tonight his life will no longer be the same, or at least he will now know where to get cheap tacos and drink cheap mexican beer. Same difference.

The Wing Ranking System

Unless you are new to my blog, you know I love wings. I cant help it. They call out to me, and I consider myself a connisseur of different types of wings and sauces. I have decided to have a little fun with one of my favorite indulgences and create the wing ranking system. Whenever I go out for wings, I will rank them on a four-wing scale with four wings being the highest rating.

Last night we went to the Sports Inn on State Road. Yeah...I had never heard of it before either, but everytime I pass this bar, they are marketing their "Jumbo Wings" on the sign outside. Before even going there, I prepped myself for what might be in store by calling and asking about the sauces (I didn't want to waste my time going there if they had a bad selection of sauces). The woman who answered the phone rattled off sauce after sauce, so I was intrigued. The bar itself was filled with mostly regulars, and even though it is called the Sports Inn, there is only one TV in the corner to watch sports on. I wasn't there to watch sports, so this didn't matter to me. I was there to eat wings. The menu boasted that the wings were "Voted Cleveland's Best Wings" though it didn't say who did the voting, so I wasn't sure I could trust it. We decided to get a sample of the sauces, so we ordered 4 different kinds of wings: cajun, hot, hot ranch and parmesean garlic.

While I will not be ranking service in this blog, it is good to point out that it took us 40 minutes to get our food, and there was only one server for the tables and bar patrons. Also we never got plates or a pop that was ordered. Nonetheless, when the wings arrived, some of them were piping hot and some were room temperature which seemed odd. You could tell the wings had been overcooked because they were quite dry. I also didn't like the way they put the sauce on the wings. Some of the wings had no sauce and other wings were swimming in sauce. It looked like the cook just threw the sauce on randomly as they were being shipped out of the kitchen. Of the different selections, I liked the hot ranch followed by the cajun which had both a dry rub and wet sauce on it. The hot wings were bland and the parmesean garlic wings were too much. These wings were sitting in garlic butter and then topped with a mound of parmesean and then a mound of minced garlic. It was hard to even find the wings at first in the bowl. On top of all this, they came only with blue cheese but no celery and to me celery is one of my favorite parts. By the looks of the place, there weren't a lot of signs of fresh vegetables, so perhaps they didn't even have celery to serve.

Given the total package of the wings and our expectations, I am giving the wings at the Sports Inn 1.5 wings out of a total of 4 wings. They were much too dry for my taste, the meat didn't seem that fresh and the sauce didn't cover some of the wings. On the bright side, the beer was cold.

Apparently I Blog Too Much

I walked down to The Old Angle tonight to get some wings, but the bar was full, so I just kept walking. I think I have been talking The Old Angle up too much and now people are starting to infiltrate my favorite bar. Perhaps I should say this: I hate The Old Angle and Major Hooples and The Winking Lizard (only the downtown and Lakewood spots), and The Parkview and Twist and Touch Supper Club and McNamaras and Lincoln Park Pub and Lava Lounge and Prosperity and Bounce. If you are considering going to any of these spots, you probably shouldn't (unless you are with me).

TGIF-Free Jukebox Style

I should have gotten a picture! I don't know why I didn't get a picture of the view from Major Hooples during the snowstorm Friday night. The view itself is gorgeous (see picture).However the snow made it even more spectacular. It would have been the perfect way to reveal what a great evening it was to live in Cleveland. Friday night started out in a local dive bar with what turned out to be a private game of darts, as my opponent and I were the only inhabitants in the place. Lucky for us that meant we also ruled over the free jukebox and the attention of the bartender. From there we got a fake distress call to go to Major Hooples, which is quickly becoming one of my favorite places . (Apparently my friends don't think I will show up quick enough unless they send fake messages of help.)

From our private game of darts on one side of Cleveland, we headed to Major Hooples located on the west bank of Cleveland to catch up with some old friends. While there we played bar bowling and got free drinks from the owner who also let us play free music on the jukebox. At this point in the evening we also got a message that the Detroit Cobras were playing at the Beachland Ballroom. As much as I would have loved to have seen the Detroit Cobras play, there was something about Major Hooples that made it hard to leave. It may have been my singing and dancing friends, or the free drinks, or the opening day crowd that had stumbled over from Jacobs Field, or the free music we got to put into the jukebox, but I think the main reason was the view of the snow falling on my favorite city. For those of you that were curious, the free drinks were a close second. Kidding...the free drinks were tied with my friends.

St. Patricks Day 2007...

...Or as I like to call it: Amateur Drinking Day at my favorite bar. This year we started out at The Old Angle, and as we found out later, we should have just stayed there. While at The Old Angle we got to watch the Ohio State game, even though they had to keep switching televisions for us, as the bar started to fill up, and we could no longer see above everyone. However the highlight of our stay there was a conversation I was privy to down in the bathroom:
Girl 1: I am so drunk on beer!
Girl 2: Oh My God, I am so drunk on beer too! This is so crazy.
Girl 3 (who stumbled in a couple minutes later): Oh My God, I am so drunk on beer! This is so crazy!
Girl 2: I can't believe how drunk I am on beer!
Girl 1: Me neither. I am so glad I ate first.
Girl 3 (from inside one of the stalls): How did you know to eat first???
Girl 1: I don't know. I guess I thought ahead.
Girl 2 and 3: Oh My God! You are so smart.

That is a conversation I never thought I would hear inside the confines of my bar. Other than that, let me recap the good and bad ideas of the day:
Starting at The Old Angle: Good Idea
Going to McCarthy's in The Flats: Bad Idea
However while we were in line for the bathroom at this bar, this stupid frat boy in a cableknit sweater yelled at the women's bathroom line to make out or tickle each other. At this point, my friend Allison said: "Does that guy know he is wearing a cableknit sweater, and that men in cableknit sweaters should never yell those things out loud because we will know he is gay?"
Going to The Harbor Inn in The Flats: Bad Idea
Going to West 6th Street on the advice that it wouldn't be so annoying because it was St. Patrick's Day: Bad Idea
Going to Cinergy on West 6ht Street: Bad Idea
Going to Panini's on West 6th Street: Bad Idea
Going to The Old Stand in Lakewood: Bad Idea
Calling someone to come pick me up in Lakewood so I could head home: Good Idea
Going to Bed at 8:00 p.m.: Good Idea
Waking up early to go to the film festival: Good Idea

All in all, it was a great four days off filled with a lot of basketball and a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone I spent it with, but next year I am staying put at The Old Angle for the duration of St. Patrick's Day.

There Is A God And He Eats Wings

I am happy to announce there is now officially a wing night in Ohio City. The gods have smiled down upon my brother and I, and now the Old Angle will be serving their wings for only 25 cents apiece on Monday nights, along with $2 domestic beers. These are the same wings that cost almost a dollar apiece any other night of the week there, so it really is a deal. Last night as we left with a bill of only $24, we started laughing because that is usually the tip we have to leave when we normally go there.

Smoking Tour '06...Where Were You?

What a week...what a weekend! This past week was fabulous, minus the fact that my fantasty football team took a turn for the worse, but you can't win 'em all.

Apparently I am on my very own Smoking Tour '06. With only four days left, I have tried to stop and have a cigarette in as many establishments in Cleveland as possible. Actually this wasn't done on purpose, but by Saturday I realized that I have made stops over the past couple days at: The Winking Lizard, The Old Angle, Bounce, McNamara's, Touch Supper Club and Melted and I still have four more days. Four more days. Ugh. Ok, enough about the smoking ban.

This weekend I got to go see the live version of Rocky Horror Picture Show at Cleveland Public Theatre compliments of Mindy. I am not the biggest fan of the movie, but the play was done really well as everyone in the show actually stole the show. Afterwards there were drinks and yummy food from Halite with the cast. Saturday was an adventure as I went to my favorite annual party in Cleveland. This year was crazier than ever with what seemed like hundreds of people showing up to get down. The host goes all out by hiring a DJ and poker dealers while inviting a very funny diverse crowd. I always feel like I am in a movie when I attend because of all the interersting characters I encounter. Sunday was peaceful. The annex cooked steak and eggs due to the fact that The Old Angle wasn't open yet and then I fell asleep after the Browns scored their first touchdown and woke up in time to catch them win in overtime. It was perfect. I should do that more often.

Catch me if you can at your favorite smoking establishment this week.

Let The Smoking Memories Begin

As I walked into The Winking Lizard last night, I saw the saddest sign posted all over my favorite smoking establishment. Effective December 8, The Lizard will be smoke-free. While I know almost every bar/restaurant in Ohio is going in this direction, this one hurts the most. There was always something so special about the smoking section there. This is where you could watch 20 differenct large screen televisions, sit at the bar and ask about all the different draft beers, play pool, arcade bowl or play darts. In the non-smoking room, if you didn't get the right seat, you would have to squint to catch the game on the small mounted televsions in each corner. It was always so quiet in that weird little non-smoking room--like you were in a library or at someone's wake. The Winking Lizard made it cool to be a smoker and they made it a lot more fun as well. It was almost as if they were telling their customers: "Sure you can sit in non-smoking but you aren't going to have any fun."

As Liz and I sat there last night, we talked about how this was our favorite place to go and have a beer and cigarette. We even had a funny memory to illustrate the significance. When she and I came back from Massachusetts last year, after a vacation in a non-smoking state, the first thing we did after we got back from the airport was head to the Lizard for a beer and a smoke. While most people are exhausted from traveling or would rather go to their neighborhood bar, we missed smoking inside and we missed smoking inside at the Lizard. I can only imagine how I am going to feel after December 8. RIP best smoking section in Cleveland.

*The writer of this blog does not condone smoking

I Graduated!

I finally cashed in on my last birthday present and it was worth the wait! Last night I went to beer school at the Great Lakes Brewing Company. It was the coolest thing I think I have done in a long time and I recommend it to anyone in the Cleveland area. For the price of $15, you get to go on a tour of the brewing company, learn the history of the building and surrounding buildings, learn how beer is made, learn how they name their beers, taste their five main beers and then they give you a souveneir glass and an awesome t-shirt that lets everyone know you graduated from beer school. It might be one of my proudest moments and I am sure my parents are equally as proud.

One thing to keep in mind if you do the tour is that you should eat first. I was given this advice by someone who did it before me, so plans were made to go to the Flying Fig. Ironically, and this has never happened at the Fig before, it took our food too long to come out and we weren't able to eat. I am a beer drinker, so I didn't think it would be that big of a deal except for the fact that the beer tasting was more like a drinking contest. While they talk about their five main beers you are drinking each one in a plastic cup (imagine every keg party you have attended but with expensive, good beer). It only takes them about 20 minutes to talk about all the beers, so you have slammed five cups of strong beer in that short time. Hmmm...I wonder if that was why I liked it so much.

Just One More…

Sometimes saying “just one more” actually works out that way, but usually it translates into after I have just one more, I will most likely be ready for five more and this usually leads to a story you tell for the next week. Unfortunately Timmy Tim beat me to the punch for this blog idea yesterday which is ironic because when I left Tim Tuesday night, I was going to meet Mindy for “just one more” before retiring home after a long day.

On Tuesday after I finished my exam, I went out to dinner at Union Station with Maria, had a couple drinks with Tim and then got an invite to meet Mindy and Brent, who was in town from NYC, at Liquid. I have never been to Liquid but I have read about it on a certain other local blog and thought it might be fun. Not to mention, a night out with Brent always makes you feel like a rock star, even though I was only having “just one more”…ahem. I have never been a huge fan of the bars on West Sixth but this one had karaoke with a back-up band and that is always enough to hold my interest. I can’t remember the last time I went out with Brent and didn’t end up at a strip club, so the four of us soon found ourselves at Motion where “just one more” turned into the always famous five more. (Ironically the idea to go the strip club always seems to come from the gay boy and/or straight girl in the group.) After Motion we found our way back to the Ritz where Brent was staying. He gave us the green light on the mini fridge where I decided to have “just one more” while we waited on room service and a nice dinner wine-sure it was 2 am but we were still eating dinner so we needed a nice wine.

The best part of the “just one more” night is the turn of events. What started out as a nice quiet night with a Santa Fe Chicken Salad at Union Station ended up with shrimp cocktail and a stellar pinot grigio at the Ritz Carlton six hours later. Thanks for a great night Brent--I can’t wait until you come back into town in two weeks. Thankfully the next time will be on a weekend. “Just one more” Tuesdays are never a good idea!

Best Week Ever

When I tell you my week started with Barbie in Fairytopia and ended with soccer moms, you may think that it was a quiet, family friendly week. Not quite. In honor of my favorite show ending for the season, I really did have THE BEST WEEK EVER.

If you read my last entry, you know last Monday night out with Barbie wasn’t all that family friendly but it sure was enlightening and the soccer game at the Wolstein Center turned out to be a lot more fun than we thought it was going to be. Couched in between these two events was a very long week of giving back to the community in my own very talented way: through eating and drinking. On Wednesday, my favorite watering hole, The Old Angle, hosted the Summer Restaurant Tour and gave 40% percent of the proceeds from that evening back to the Center. On Thursday, Union Station hosted Martini night and gave 60% of those proceeds back to the Center which turned me into quite the philanthropist. I don’t know if I necessarily recommend drinking and donating after this week. The reason for this recommendation is when it comes to the end of the evening and you ask yourself if you really want one more, you realize you are drinking for the cause and you have to have one more (and one more and one more after that…). Let’s just say I did my part last week.

Thankfully we took Friday night off to take out braids, my new favorite thing-that-I-do-every-three-months activity and Saturday evening did at least start out low-key. I felt like we were back in high school as we went out on a fun double-date that started at Johnny Mango and then headed to watch some soccer with free tickets won only a day earlier. I ended up enjoying the soccer much more than I thought I would because the original Cleveland Force legends played at halftime. I used to love the Force, so to see some of those players now was hilarious. After the game we decided to go somewhere we normally don't frequent and ironically enough we ended up in Ohio City. Touch Supper Club turned out to be the coolest place I hung out at all week with the DJ spinning for our table and the bartender impressing us with his talents. We finished that night off with a trip to Diana's, where a certain Cleveland blogger would agree their coffee actually puts you to sleep.

I do believe I will be taking this week off to recuperate and volunteer at the Center at night to get ready for the Summer Party. As if I didn’t already give enough last week…

By the way, the fun will be starting again on August 15 as Maria and I will be hosting the Summer Restaurant Tour at Momocho and don’t forget the Wing Thing on August 16 at the zoo to benefit Community Shares.

Apparently Barbie Can Sing As Well

It’s obvious I had a weird evening when the first thing I do upon arriving at work is Google the nationally touring play called Barbie Live! in Fairytopia. What was going to be a quick stop at Bounce last night for an appetizer or two, turned into a three-hour karaoke show put on by the performers of the nationally-touring play, Barbie Live! in Fairytopia.

Monday is karaoke night at Bounce. Usually this crowd consists of 10 people including the same two old men singing Better Midler songs, the two young guys who like to sing Kelly Clarkson and the woman who sings Johnny Cash. Every once in a while you might get a karaoke ringer or two, but what we witnessed last night was more like the Haley’s Comet of Kareoke at Bounce and we may never see anything like it again. After the first song, Proud Mary, included back up dancers, we realized we might not be sitting with the usual crowd. Sure enough as the evening went on, there were times we actually thought we were listening to the actual singer or even someone who sounded better than the actual singer. There wasn’t a bad singer in the bunch, though you could tell the pitch difference as they got drunker throughout the night. Or maybe you could just tell they were getting drunker because they started taking their shirts off.

We thought they might be from a local theatre but couldn’t place it. Finally I went up and asked the bartender who they were with and he said: “That Barbie show at Palace Theatre” In fact they weren’t local at all, they are currently on a national tour doing Barbie Live! in Fairytopia, a one-hour musical for kids. I for one am glad I got to see the evening show—I have a feeling it wasn’t anything like what they performed for the children. Look out Louisville, they are coming your way next.

Membership Doesn't Have Its Privileges

It’s about time I started putting my entertainment card to use. Last night I used it for the third time as we went to Pickwick and Frolic. This review is probably three years too late for most people, but I highly recommend the chipotle chicken and shrimp pasta and Maria’s plate was overflowing with the chicken chop dinner. The food was excellent for the price and the décor was fun to look at along with the nice ambiance, considering it was 10 pm on a Wednesday night in Cleveland we practically had the whole place to ourselves.

There is a whole world of people out there who discriminate against people like me. I remember when we went to Klucks and the waitress said to the table behind us: “I didn’t tell you those specials because I knew you would be using your entertainment card.” Also the server tends to look down on you when you say you have the card. They seem to think you barely scraped enough money to pay for the one entrée and you will never be able to afford to tip them as well. Most times I tend to overcompensate for this with appetizer, drinks and desert. In the end, I actually end up spending more money then I would have had I not used the card. If only people would understand how much their discriminatory looks and remarks affect people. Just because I have an entertainment card doesn’t mean I don’t want to hear all the specials or that the wait staff should look down on me. Am I not a human? If I am cut, do I not bleed and feel like everyone else?

Choose Your Own Blog Adventure Part I

I wonder how many times I have started my blog with the following: I planned on making it an early night last night. As a matter of fact, Tim and I specifically talked about leaving after the opening act at the Beachland Ballroom and calling it a night around ten or so. Flash forward to Mindy and I posing in front of a convertible cabriolet outside of Cocktails and Tim and I splitting a City Place 21-piece shrimp basket dinner (with soup and salad included) and a chicken wrap at 1 am.

Apparently our communication was off on more than one occasion. We talked about meeting at my place between 6:30 and 7 so we could grab a bite before the show started at 9. As 7 came and went, I assumed Tim was just running late. Perhaps to put this into better perspective, it is important to note that Tim has no cell phone right now and I have no door bell on the front door of my apartment where I live on the second floor. At about 7:20 I hear a loud knock on the downstairs door. Finally! Tim has arrived. The following conversation then took place:
Me: How long have you been standing down here?
Tim: Oh maybe 15 minutes
Me: 15 minutes! I am so sorry
Tim: Yeah, I got here around 6:15…what time is it now?
Me: Uh…you have been standing out here for an hour?
Tim: I guess so. Does your landlord live across the street?
Me: No that is her sister…why?
Tim: Well she has been staring at me.
Me: You have been standing out here for an hour on my porch, I am glad she has been staring at you. Ah well…ready for dinner?
Tim: Sure

Off to the Old Angle we went where my palate was quenched with the incomparable flank steak (a slight difference from the evening’s next meal at a 24-hour diner). From the Old Angle, we headed to the Beachland Ballroom. Even though we asked for directions at the Angle, we still managed to get lost on our way, which has become our pattern. The last time we went together we got lost as well. We always seem to have the same conversation as soon as we realize we are lost.
Me: Well you know I am not really from Cleveland. I grew up almost 30 minutes from here.
Tim: Oh I know. You know I am not really from Cleveland and I have only lived here for five years.
Me: See? It isn’t such a big deal that we get lost every time we come to this venue that we have probably been to 20 times combined.
Tim: Definitely.
I still don’t think I know the right way to get there. If I was giving someone directions, I would tell them to skip the actual exit, get off at the next exit, get back on the highway, get back off at the original exit and take a right.

To find out more about the show and the rest of the evening’s activities, you need to check out Tim's blog followed by a quick stop at Mindy's blog to see how the evening ended. If you feel comfortable only knowing this much about my evening, you will want to stop here.

Just When I Thought My People Wouldn’t Make Me Look Like A Big Freaking Moron

On Sunday my girlfriend and I decided to make use of my Entertainment Book by going to get dinner at Klucks. (Those of you in the Kent and Bainbridge area should imagine a more vintage version of Henry Wehners. For those of you unfamiliar with it in Cleveland, you have most likely passed it a million times without realizing it because it’s located right on West 117th and Detroit.) I had been craving seafood and I have always been intrigued by this weird non-descript building, so I thought we could give it a chance. Though Maria was a little hesitant about getting seafood at a German restaurant named Klucks.

Once inside, it is hard to say what you might notice first. The unusual amount of mounted fish initially caught my eye, but the tacky nautical decorations, the big picture of Jesus above the front door and the amount of people taking advantage of the Early Bird Specials of schnitzel and fried shrimp are also hard to miss. As we walked in I guess you could say we stuck out as much as the mounted fish on the wall. I am going to go out on a limb and say this restaurant does not see a lot of interracial couples. Yet there we were as I was trying to show her how people of Eastern European descent eat their meals (in several courses with lots of bread) and she was trying not to notice she was the only black person who had probably ever eaten there.

Things actually went fairly well throughout the meal. The food was good, though smaller portions than what you might get at a similar restaurant, and our waitress was incredibly friendly. She seemed grateful to be serving people younger than 55. At one point I may have seen her mouth the words “help me” as if she was trapped in a scary movie, but that might have just been my imagination. Maria even made a joke about having my 31st birthday party at this joint. (It’s never too early to start planning a birthday party around schnitzel.) As you can see, the dinner seemed to be a success.

My people seemed to be behaving themselves. Nobody stared for longer than a minute and everyone seemed to be minding their own business. As we were finishing up, I noticed an older gentleman approaching us with a pamphlet in his hand. As I saw him skipping every other table of people and heading straight for us, I felt my heart drop. I may have even said a small prayer before he laid his playbill from the theatre down in front of us. He never took his eyes off of Maria as he said, “I don’t know if you have seen this play showing at the Cleveland Play House but I think you would really enjoy it. It is reminiscent of Rosa Parks but the woman in this play is from New York.” We were so close to leaving unscathed. He asked her to read over the program and then return it to him before we left. This was followed by the following quote: “I noticed your gypsy earrings when I walked in.” We kicked each other under the table as every word came out of his mouth.

We returned the program to this gentleman and he proceeded to give us his business card and phone number. Apparently he works for a large non-profit and considers himself an ambassador for Rosa Parks. For some reason, this made the whole thing that much worse. As we left, we noticed his wife must have been in the bathroom while this incident was taking place because there was a drink sitting in front of another chair. I made the remark that when she came back, she jokingly said something along the lines of: “you didn’t do anything stupid or embarrassing while I was gone, did you?”

This gentleman reminded me of a man my mother and I ran into last year at this time. Maybe it is the weather. Mom if you are reading this, it was a very similar feeling as our experience in the Chagrin Valley Little Theatre. Just that look of disbelief you can’t get off your face while you wonder if you are on candid camera.

Page 39

I have referenced page 39 of the Free Times 50 times in the past 24 hours. The reason? It is on that page where it was officially revealed The Fulton is going to close at the end of this month. I wish I could say it is all just a bad dream but it’s true. I am about to lose one of my favorite watering holes (I can only imagine how Mindy feels about this…).

Last night in honor of it’s last month, Tim, Liz and I went up to The Fulton and started swapping memories. I have only been going to The Fulton for the past three years but in that short time, there are so many funny adventures that either began there or ended there for myself and my friends.

My favorite story about The Fulton is from before I even really knew what it was. When I lived on the east side, I knew very little about Cleveland and the near west side. I was a typical suburbanite. When I wanted to find Mindy I usually got lost going to her house in that crazy Ohio City neighborhood. I would stop and ask for directions, but instead of asking where her street was, I would ask: “How do you get to the Fulton?” More times than not, if I needed Mindy, I knew I would find her there. She turned me on to this incredible bar and it is actually one of the reasons I chose to stay in Ohio City this summer. My criteria when looking for apartments was: close to downtown and friends and able to walk home from the Fulton.

We questioned our wait staff last night. Hell we even questioned the wait staff at the Flying Fig about it. Apparently everyone involved in the sale is happy with the decision. For a moment this made me feel better. But just for a moment.

It's Not Just A Meal, It's An Adventure

Last Wednesday I had an amazing dinner. A dinner not enough people in Cleveland know about which is so unfortunate. Yes, this entry is six days after the fact, but this just illustrates how pleased I was for it to keep my attention this long.

I went to OPA! last Wednesday for the Greek Fest and I was very impressed with the final result. My dinner companion and I stopped at Dave’s to pick up a bottle of wine and then carried our bottle across the street to OPA! where they gladly let us bring in our own wine for a $5 fee. Considering what a nice bottle of wine can cost you at dinner, this is an incredible deal. We couldn’t decide between the Cabernet Sauvignon or the Zinfandel—luckily for us Coppola makes a nice mixture of the two.

Our next pleasant surprise came when we entered the restaurant and found we practically had the small intimate environment all to ourselves, which means we also had the waiter all to ourselves to explain everything we were about to eat. And did we ever eat. The fest starts you off with an appetizer platter consisting of spanakpita, stuffed calamari, feta, olives, pickled vegetables and stuffed grape leaves. It was a very exciting and interactive dish to share as we tasted and discussed everything in front of us. Once we were done with that, we both were presented with large greek tomato salads which also included capers, onion, green peppers, feta and a greek vinaigrette dressing. Following the salad, you are introduced to your entrees: pastitsio, lamb kabobs, stuffed chicken and the braised vegetable of the day. It was all so very good but the chicken won my prize of the night. It was an “airline” chicken, which our waiter had to explain to us, stuffed with pastourma (a Greek version of prosciutto) and kasseri (Greek cheese). To top off this dinner, the desserts included baklava w/ouzo ice cream and coffee. Because of the food coma I was about to fall into, we actually got to take our dessert to go.

For a fun dinner for two, you can not beat the quality and the quantity of food you get at OPA! on Wednesday nights at the Greek Fest. Your palate, stomach and wallet will all thank you for the experience. (To add even more class to this experience I highly recommend following this lovely dinner with body shots at The Grid for ladies night, but that's just me.)

A Taste of Something Nauti

In the never-ending search for something new and different, we tried the Nauti Mermaid down on West 6th Street for the first time last night. I must say I was surprsied by the quality of the seafood and also by the price range. After just coming back from the East Coast I was not expecting to be impressed, however this place is worth a try. They have great daily specials and the quality of seafood you would expect to find closer to the ocean, not the lake. Also West 6th street isn't that bad during the week as there were only four of us in the restaurant last night with plenty of parking on the street. I don't know if I would attempt this venture on a Friday or Saturday. Just in case it matters, the beer selection offers a nice variety for every taste. www.nautimermaid.com

Editor's Note

Last week in my entry regarding Tuesday nights in Cleveland, I made a glaring omission which I would now like to correct. I left Rocky River Brewing Company off of my Tuesday list and this is unfortunate. They have great specials Tuesday through Thursday and the food there is incomparable to any other Brewery/Restaurant in the area. Every time we go, we are amazed by the quality of the food.

On Tuesdays you can get an incredible burger for $5 and I highly recommend the black and bleu burger which is topped off with a grilled red pepper for incredible flavor. The calamari is the best I have ever had ANYWHERE and I am a huge fan of all of their salads. Last night (Wednesday is martini night) I broke out the entertainment card for the first time (very exciting) and we got the home made macaroni and cheese with chicken and sausage and also the stuffed chicken with a garlic risotto and fresh broccoli.

On Thursday nights you can get a large microbrew for a small microbrew price so I recommend you head there tonight. As far as beer selection, I like the Northern Lights and the Coopers Gold Kolsch but there are so many good selections, it is hard to go wrong. Whatever you do, don’t walk into this place and order a Bud Light because they have a microbrew for every taste--don’t be afraid to be adventurous. One more important variable is that in the bar area they have a ton of big screen televisions which are always playing some sort of sporting event, so I have an even more special place in my heart for this venue.