Heights Eats

We were invited by Scott Kuhn and Chris Hodgson to a preview dinner at their new restaurant Hodges. Sarah is not a fan of crowds, so I took my friend Matt.

The space is large but inviting, with a deep red motif. The noise level was low, making conversation easy. Then again, the place was less than half full.

We started with the tater tots, which are served with every meal the way chips and salsa is at most Mexican restaurants. They were dusted in bacon and served with a sour cream dipping sauce, making for a perfect combination of tot and baked potato. They went down really easy.

The next course is also complimentary with every meal, a cast iron of corn bread. It was moist and tasty with some really good bourbon butter on the side. Matt was not happy with how hot it was, but I didn’t mind so much as it cooled down fairly quickly (3−4 minutes) after being cut.

We were then … continue reading

Sarah and had lunch at Clyde’s Bistro and Barroom, which recently opened in the renovated dining cars on Lee Rd. in Cleveland Heights. Clyde’s is a cozy, unpretentious establishment with very good, reasonably priced comfort food.

The décor and seating are far better than in previous incarnations of the dining cars. The rich reds create an warm, classy atmosphere. The seats are comfortable, and the aisles are wide enough so that one doesn’t feel cramped (as was the case previously).

We started with the Ceasar salad, which was very generous for a lunch portion and had olives instead of the traditional anchovies. The salad was very tasty, and we might try olives in a homemade Ceaser sometime. We also were served bread, which seemed to be the Pugliese from Stone Oven (no complaints there).

Clyde’s has really good lunch drink specials: house wine for $2.50 and PBR or Budweiser for $1.90. I don’t typically drink with lunch, but as it was a day … continue reading

On a recent trip to Columbus we decided to make a stop at Schmidt’s Sausage Haus after seeing it featured on the Travel Channel’s Man V Food show. In general we are fans of sausage and I have German heritage so it sounded interesting.

The restaurant itself is kind of small and compartmentalized. The décor is rustic. The servers seemed to be primarily female and they were wearing German bar-maid dresses. We stopped by on a Saturday afternoon and found the restaurant pretty full, although we did not have to wait around for a table.

We browsed the sausage buffet, but it did not seem too fresh so Ben and I decided to share the sausage sampler and order a side of potato pancakes. We tried to convince Jonathan to order some sort of sausage, but he was more in a cheeseburger mood.

The Sausage sampler was plated on top of sauerkraut and served with a side of German potato salad and apple sauce. The German … continue reading

I’ve been following Chef Eric’s blog from behind the stove for quite a while and was happy to finally get a chance to eat at his restaurant, The Cook’s House. It’s in Traverse City, Michigan, where I grew up, and Sarah and I made a point of eating there during our visit.

The establishment is extremely small, located on the city’s main street (Front Street). Sarah overheard the staff talking about a recent health inspection (which apparently went very well) and the inspector supposedly said that it’s the smallest restaurant in Michigan. There are about six tables (some with four seats, some with two), plus a few tables for outdoor dining during the summer. We were seated up against the counter separating the dining room from the kitchen. The atmosphere was good—warm colors, a few paintings on the wall—but the A/C was struggling to combat the warm weather and hot kitchen.

The Cook’s House is BYOB, which I found out shortly after … continue reading

Sarah and I have been meaning to go to Sokolowski’s for a while. We tried a couple weeks ago, but we showed up the day before Easter and it was closed. We finally made it last weekend, and we weren’t disappointed.

Sokolowski’s is cafeteria-style and serves old-world comfort food, done well and in large portions. Sarah ordered bratwurst and pierogies ($8.95). While far better than bratwurst at most restaurants, I still didn’t find it quite as flavorful as that at the stand at the West Side Market. Sarah enjoyed it, though, and liked the emphasis on richness and subtlety. The cheese and potato pierogies were good and definitely stick-to-your ribs (like everything else). Jonathan had a side of pierogies (which I think were just $1.75) and some of Sarah’s bratwurst.

I was very happy with my stuffed cabbage ($9.95) and mashed potatoes. The beef filling was well-spiced, the cabbage was perfectly cooked, and the tomato sauce was earthy and pungent. Their potatoes are the perfect comfort food, not too rich or too dry. The … continue reading

Spurred on by Doug Trattner’s recent review, Sarah and I went to Vine and Bean Café for lunch on Friday.

The space is really unique. It’s basically a regular house converted into a restaurant. The open feel reminded Sarah of restaurants in Key West, which she used to visit often to see her grandparents.

We sat on the patio, which was nicely but informally decorated with items such as a small wooden gargoyle and shiny metallic birds topping the entry gates. Sarah ordered the iced tea ($1.95) to drink, which was refreshing and a lot like the Cheesecake Factory’s mango ice tea. I ordered a Berry Fizz ($2.95): house made berry coulis and sparkling water. It was very, very good, probably the best non-alcoholic drink I’ve had in Cleveland. The berry flavor is fresh and strong, but the drink is also slightly dry and not at all cloying.

Sarah ordered the Toasted Tuna ($8.95), which comes on a toasted croissant. The tuna portion was large and … continue reading

Based on the recommendations (& many photos) by Fun Playing with Food’s Nancy Heller we decided to try Wonton Gourmet for lunch one day last week. The restaurant itself is small but clean and with a modern décor. The menu is standard Chinese restaurant fare with the exception of the many soup options.

Ben and I decided to share the shrimp dumpling soup with egg noodles, which was quite good. The broth had a nice flavor but was not too salty and the dumplings had large pieces of shrimp as well as some kind of sausage. I ordered the egg roll, Ben the spring roll. Both had a similar filling of shredded cabbage, carrots and pork and were cooked to order. We also split the lunch special, General Tso’s Chicken with fried rice. We were impressed by the spiciness of this dish, as our experience has been mixed with food rated spicy at Chinese restaurants. While the fried rice was simple, it had … continue reading