Adega Brunch

Mr. H and I celebrated our one-year wedding anniversary on December 13th! How is that even possible? The year just flew by, and our anniversary kind of popped out of nowhere. I'm sure that it will always be a struggle, since it's smack in the middle of the holiday season. But, we couldn't let it pass us by without doing something special!

We decided it was easy enough to plan a "staycation" in Downtown Cleveland. Of course, we made a Saturday dinner reservation at Cibreo. We were married in the Cibreo Privato space, so this restaurant will always hold a special place in our hearts. We were fortunate enough to have a server that actually worked at our wedding. She took great care of us, and truly made the meal very special. Then, we headed over to the Ohio Theatre for A Christmas Carol from the Great Lakes Theater. The unseasonably warm December evening allowed us to walk through PlayhouseSquare and enjoy the city's holiday tree and lights as we strolled back to the Metropolitan at The 9, where we had decided to stay the night. It all brought back great memories of our wedding weekend last year.

For the last portion of our Downtown "staycation," we decided to try Adega at The 9 for brunch on Sunday morning. I wish that I could say that this dining experience was as pleasurable as the rest of the anniversary weekend, but it sadly wasn't.

I had to start the meal with The C-Town Bloody Mary ($15). Pricey, and certainly not the best Bloody Mary that I've had in town.

I ordered it spicy, but it barely had any heat to it at all. Otherwise, it did taste fresh and had some interesting flavors from the sweet relish, yellow mustard, and maple syrup. I love a Bloody Mary that you can "chew" on. This one had stuffed olives, serrano ham, and bacon. Not the cubed cheese or blue-cheese stuffed jalapeno peppers that are advertised on the menu though. Hmmm...

Mr. H ordered The Adega ($14) with serrano, ground chorizo, tomato, cilantro, arugula, pickled red onion, manchego, and a basil pesto aioli on ciabatta.

He was expecting a chorizo patty, but the sandwich is made with crumbled chorizo. This did make it more difficult to eat, and the meat was very greasy. Also, our server offered him hot sauce or ketchup...when he had two bites left of the sandwich. Bad timing. 

He also ordered a side of the Chicken Apple Sausage ($6 for 2 links) for the table. The links were unappetizing to look at, all gray and deep-fried. It reminded me of a mozzarella stick. Had little to no flavor as well. We left most of it behind on the plate.

I decided on a Build Your Own Crepe ($8). They have a list of sweet toppings and a list of savory toppings. Missing was any type of vegetables. I went savory, and you can only select from meats and cheeses.

I ordered Bacon and Boursin. There wasn't much cheese in there, and unfortunately, the kitchen uses the same thick-cut, extra-crispy bacon that was featured in my Bloody Mary. Great for soaking in tomato juice, not so great as large, hard chunks in a delicate crepe. Even Mr. H called the bite that he took "terrible." Again, I left half of it on the plate.

I also ordered a side of Marble Rye Toast ($2). The bread was wonderful, but the solid, rock-hard butter was un-spreadable, and it just shredded the poor toast. Can we all agree that chilled, hard butter should never be served with toast or starter bread at a restaurant? Please, stop. 

With an additional coffee and orange juice, this meal ran us about $60 with tax and tip. A very expensive brunch, and not one worthwhile thing about it. It doesn't leave me wanting to run back and try their dinner menu.

Was this meal just a misstep? Have you dined there and had a different (or similar) experience?

The weekend ended with a home-cooked Hong Kong-style Sea Bass dinner, and the frozen top tier of our wedding cake from A Cookie and a Cupcake. I had very low expectations, but it tasted as if we had just bought it that day!

Adega
The Metropolitan at The 9
2017 East 9th Street
Cleveland, OH 44115
216-239-1200