Americano

Bratenahl's Americano is tucked away in the One Bratenahl Place residential tower, with a guarded gate and gorgeous views of the lake and downtown Cleveland. Many may not even know that this restaurant exists, and is open to the public. I became aware of them through the food events that I plan for area non-profits, but hadn't been there to dine...yet.

At a charity event last September, I won a gift card to Americano in a dining basket that I bid on. So, I was more than ready to check them out first-hand on Saturday night. We met two other friends there, and were seated right away for our 7:30PM reservation. We settled in with bread and drinks, and started to look at the menu. It was difficult for all of us to choose. I always take that as a good sign.

"R" and I decided to share the Fresh Sweet Corn and Ricotta Ravioli with spinach and mushrooms in a light cream sauce ($10).

Please note that this is only a half portion shown above. They knew we were sharing the dish, and split the plate with no extra charge. There was a lot of filling in the ravioli, and the light cream sauce and sweetness of the corn complimented the smooth ricotta well. It was good, but I think more spinach and mushrooms would have given the dish more depth in flavor.

I ordered a scallop special, that included a corn polenta, diced vegetables and chickpeas, slaw, and a zesty pesto drizzled around the edge of the plate.

For $27, I thought that four large scallops and the amount of polenta and vegetables was a very fair price. Overall, I loved the flavor and textures in this dish-- particularly the pesto and sweet Ohio corn. However, the addition of the chickpeas started to bother me about halfway through the dish. It was an odd texture for this type of dish, and a little heavy-handed in quantity.

We all seemed to really enjoy our entrees (salmon, mac and cheese, and steak), and a sweet treat of their Lava Cake with Vanilla Ice Cream helped finish off the meal. Overall, the food was very good in my opinion. However, our service was not. At least the bread supply was kept up, and our water glasses were never empty very long. But for our second round of drinks, I actually had to call out to our server as she scanned our table and then kept on walking past. She was quite absent throughout the meal, and at one point two other servers were taking orders and helping our table. It became confusing, and somehow we were still neglected with three people chipping in. A busy night is not the excuse here, because while there were several other diners-- the restaurant was never at full capacity while we were there. It was odd. "R" actually labeled it the worst service he's ever experienced. At least the good company and good food kept me distracted most of the time! Also, I appreciated that host and co-owner, Cole, did stop by our table a few times to check in on us. This was prior to long lags in service, or we would have mentioned it.

Would I go again? I think so. The food is all that matters at the end of the day, and it was very good.

Americano
One Bratenahl Place
Bratenahl, OH 44108
216-541-3900

Carnegie Kitchen

Last week brought a couple of new dining finds to me. The first, was a lunch meeting at Carnegie Kitchen in downtown Cleveland. Located just up the street a bit from Progressive Field, they offer their own parking lot and easy access to this breakfast/lunch spot.

The lunch menu offers soups, salads, wraps, sandwiches, a few other small plate items, and omelets all day long. After a little poking around online, I saw a review that said the Tuna Salad Wrap with olives, lettuce, tomato, and feta cheese ($7.25) was tasty. Dining Deals Alert! 

This picture only shows a half portion, and it doesn't do the size of the wrap justice. It was easy to manage and didn't fall apart, and provided me with two meals. Everything tasted fresh, and I loved the addition of olives and feta to a classic tuna salad. It wasn't anything special overall, but it certainly did the trick and I walked away satisfied with my lunch.

The space is large and open, with minimal decor or atmosphere. But with decent lunch fare and private free parking-- this is a good spot to meet for a business lunch, and one that I will keep in mind.

Carnegie Kitchen
1332 Carnegie Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44115

A Crabby Night at Lure Bistro

Last Thursday brought us a fun dining excursion...all-you-can-eat crab legs at Lure Bistro in Willoughby.

Known for their sushi (half-off on Tuesdays), they are running this Thursday special right now and we couldn't wait to dive into some crab legs. For just $28.50, it's one of the best deals that I've seen on AYCE crab.

The meal also included a side salad, which was doused a little too much in the dressing for my taste-- but otherwise very good.

Fresh bread arrived with the salads, and it included a mango butter. I was quickly distracted by the crab when it arrived shortly after, but I didn't taste the mango flavor in it.

With the main event, french fries and coleslaw are served. But those were easily ignored for the most part. Bring on more crab! They were flavorful, easy to crack, and had large pieces of meat in them. Very much worth the work, and the coating of crab smell on our skin at the end of the night.

I do want to head back to Lure for sushi some night. The menu is lengthy, and so many of them were unusual and tempting. I have heard that the quality of the sushi isn't as good as it was a few years ago. The chef left to open his own place. But I still want to try it for myself. Several of the starters also sounded great, like Tuna Nachos, Shrimp Ceviche Tacos, and Seared Ahi Tuna. Our server did tell us that the nachos are his favorite thing on the menu.

We were seated on the spacious patio/outdoor bar area, and it was very casual and almost tropical feeling. Inside, it was a little more formal and had a gorgeous fish tank behind the bar. I do have to note that our server was fantastic, and kept the crab legs coming for us. But I did overhear a manager instructing another server to "get them their check and get 'em out of here", and we were told that we only had our table for a limited window because of other reservations for crab night. They are certainly in the business of getting you in and out on Thursdays. Which I can see why, because they were packed by the time we left at 7:00. You should definitely call for a reservation. Free valet service is provided out front, which was appreciated because street parking can be difficult in downtown Willoughby.

So, there you have it folks. A fun night out cracking some crab. I suggest getting out there yourselves!

Lure Bistro and Sushi Bar
38040 Third Street
Willoughby, OH 44094
440-951-TUNA

Weekend Fun in the CLE

I know that there is still one day left this weekend, but we have packed enough fun into the last two days that I am ready to call it quits. The summer events in Cleveland just don't stop, and we've been spreading ourselves pretty thin the last several weeks. But I just can't say no to some of my favorite events, and some new finds as well.

Friday night, "R" and I attended our fourth Twilight at the Zoo. As usual, the event was sold out and thousands enjoyed live music from 18 bands, buffet food, all-you-can-drink beer and wine, and exploring the zoo grounds. It's always fun to see the animals out and about as the event gets started. We had a blast, and I already can't wait for next year.

I always run into people I know at this event, and the evening traditionally ends with me dancing in the grass with quite a buzz and my shoes off. The zoo sure knows how to throw a good party!

Our weekend fun didn't stop there. Saturday brought the Sausage Fest at Sachsenheim Hall. In my original blog post, I had promised you yummy sausage, all-you-can-drink beer from four local breweries, and great people watching. I'm happy to say that the event delivered all of that, and so much more. It lived up to my expectations, and I'd go next year in a heartbeat.

You should join us! Also, check out their Taco Tuesday because all of their sausages (made in-house) are offered as meat choices. Personally, I loved the Meech, Currywurst, and Ancho Chicken. The many kinds of house-made mustard also won us over. I woke up this morning still dreaming of sausage, and I don't even like sausage very much. (I don't think I've ever said the word "sausage" so much in my life)

Today brings errands, organizing a storage unit, and drafting our wills...the fun is over.

What did you do this weekend? Krusty's Summer Sauce Camp, Vintage Ohio Wine Festival? The options were endless.

Ohio Produce- KJ Greens

On Monday afternoon, KJ Greens came to my rescue. KJ Greens is a small specialty produce farm, located on 30 acres in Andover, Ohio. They offer over 30 varieties of micro greens, 25 types of heirloom tomatoes, and an array of baby and standard sized fruits, vegetables, and herbs. They supple many of our area's restaurants, and often contribute product for events like Dinner in the Dark.

Back in June, they hosted a Twitter giveaway, and I was randomly selected as a lucky winner of one Harvest Basket full of Ohio produce. "R" and I have both been traveling a lot the last two months, for work and play, so I held off on the delivery of my prize. Finally, we were both back home with nothing else on the horizon, so I contacted them on Sunday to see if we could get the basket delivered soon. Monday afternoon--it arrived bursting with goodies!

A huge bag of lettuce for salads, peaches, heirloom tomatoes, corn, onions, red okra, squash, three kinds of shoots for garnish, and radishes. I was so excited, and couldn't wait to play in the kitchen (with "R" doing most of the work, as we all know).

Now, when I said that KJ Greens came to the rescue--I meant it. We had just gotten back from NY the night before, and our refrigerator was EMPTY. We took a look at what we had in the box, added a couple of items...and we made an awesome stirfry that came out even better than we had hoped!

We quartered the scallop squash, cut up the red onion, and mixed in some fresh mushrooms and spinach that we happen to have hidden in the fridge. We threw that all on the grill in our handy basket.

Next? We grilled some of the corn and peaches to mix in later.

I absolutely love grilled corn on the cob in the summer, and this corn was so sweet. Have you ever grilled fruit? We love doing peaches and pears.

Finally, everything was cooked (including some shrimp on the grill) and we threw it all together on a plate. Added a drizzle of Thai yellow curry sauce, brown rice, and a popcorn shoot from KJ Greens, and we were all set for dinner.

For an "empty" fridge and a box of Ohio produce-- I was pretty pleased with what we came up with!

I know that some of you are doing Fresh Fork, or another CSA this summer. Are you loving it? Also, our area has some great farmer's markets every week. Click here for a list of markets in Cuyahoga County this summer. Get out there and try some Ohio produce and other local goods! This is the best season for it.

Disclosure: I entered a free giveaway on Twitter, hosted by KJ Greens (@kjgreens), and was randomly selected as the winner of one harvest box. The opinions stated are 100% my own, and the talent in the kitchen is 100% "R".