Run Around, Jump Back - PlayhouseSquare Jump Back Ball is happening!

The awesome Allison over at Confessions of a CLE Habitant g-chatted me late last week and informed me of some spectacular news...  She had an extra ticket for Jump Back Ball! I had all intents to buy tickets and the day I tried to purchase my tickets, they SOLD OUT.  I've never been to this party before.  And I use the word party because from all accounts... IT. IS. A. PARTY.

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

What's Jump Back Ball? 

It's a benefit.

Hosted by and for PlayhouseSquare. 

Cleveland's young professionals come dressed to the nines. 

Each year is a new theme.

This year's theme is Through the Looking Glass. 

Here... I'll let the PlayhouseSquare partners tell you the details in this video.

So now I'm in insanity mode of pulling together a fun, flexible (uh, because I'm going to be dancing like J.Lo when she was a fly girl) and fabulous dress in T-MINUS 5 days. 

Thank goodness for girlfriends!  I've had a few open closet offers and will be power shopping tonight. 

Here's what I've pulled together so far. 

My goal is to find a fascinator to pull together an Alice in Wonderland character. JBB has a list of costume ideas and I am all-kinds-of about this!

Yes Cleveland. This. Is. Happening.

And I laughed out loud reading Confessions of a CLE Habitant's post about CLE Shopaholic and Cleveland's A Plum having a fashion show this weekend.  Knowing these girls and so many other INCREDIBLE CLEVELANDERS will be dancing the night away and celebrating Cleveland makes my power-shopping so worth it. 

Do you have a formal dress shopping routine? Check out CLE Shopaholic's rules for successful dress shopping. 

So, seriously, any secrets on how you prep for a big formal event?  Give me tips, friends!

Monday Morsel: Cowell and Hubbard in Cleveland

And IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-e-IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII will always love you.......
I had to do it. It's been in my head for the past two days.

Welcome to a new blog post series, Monday Morsel, a snapshot post on a new or newly discovered restaurant. Let's get Monday Morsel properly christened with coverage on one of Cleveland's most anticipated new openings: Cowell and Hubbard.

Cowell & Hubbard A Zack Bruell restaurant

Zack Bruell's new restaurant opened to the public in February 3, 2012, ahead of schedule, much to the delight of throngs of hungry Downtown foodies. Cowell and Hubbard is Bruell's fifth restaurant in Cleveland: Parallax in Tremont, Table 45 at the Intercontinental Hotel on Cleveland Clinic campus, L'Albatros in University Circle, Chinato in the Eth 4th/Gateway District in Downtown Cleveland and now Cowell and Hubbard in Playhouse Square District in Downtown Cleveland.


Venue and Atmosphere: Respecting History

Cowell and Hubbard was a destination jewelry store, founded in 1861 and thrived throughout the early 1900s.  Cowell and Hubbard's website expands on the history.   Click the photos to see an archived photo slideshow that shines historical light on this landmark building.

Although I didn't scope out the entire space, the mood and atmosphere pays tribute both the past and today's Downtown and Playhouse Square. Lush red velvet booth coverings remind you of the theater curtains and etched window glass reflects the name onto the walls in a unique, almost ghostly manner.


Service: More water or bread?
Bruell must have a military training program for his service staff. At every location, his team is incredible and Cowell and Hubbard is no departure.  For an opening night experience, I expected some hiccups. Our server, Tina, though at times had to leave the table to get an answer for our in-depth foodie questions, was well-educated on the menu and had a few personal recommendations. The wait staff kept our water filled and bread plates heaped with carb heaven.

Food: Solid Execution 
Our table of six each got a first course and a main course, sharing bites and laughs.  The menu IS HUGE. I highly recommend perusing the menu online prior to dining. There were a few items that I'm certain will be tweaked based on guest feedback. A friend ordered the whole roasted chicken and it was a little bloody - quite literally. I was nervous to try the shared sample of the chicken because it was so pink. The issue was brought to light and the manager offered a re-fire of the item and assured us that according to the chef, the chicken was in fact the proper color from the roasting process.

Here are a few items that stand out on the menu.

First Course

• Butternut Squash Ravioli with greens, jalapeño and prosciutto 
• It's one enormous ravioli, large enough to share if you're feeling nice. Sweet, savory with a little kick at the end from the jalapenos
• Welsh Rarebit 
• Welsh rarebit is nostalgic for me. I ate it growing up and this evoked all the same memories. I admit I even are a few spoonfuls of the melted cheese on its own. And it was INCREDIBLE. Creamy smooth tangy goodness. I recommend a few additional pieces of brioche.

Main Course

• Thyme Dumplings with broccoli rabe, garlic and pepperoncini
• "Dumplings" don't do the item justice. The pasta was more like gnudi that just dissolved in my mouth. Each piece was pan-fried which added an interesting texture. 
• Lamb Breast with yogurt, mint, preserved lemon, pine nuts, Moroccan spices
• The flavors are intense and mellow at once. Highly-recommend. 

The addition of Cowell and Hubbard to the Playhouse Square district and Downtown restaurant scene delivers everything a foodie expected from Bruell. Make this place a priority. 

Leaving the City of Your Comfort

I wrote these song lyrics on a piece of paper on January 1st this year:
You see I've finally woken
From a long sleep
I'm ready to jump
To make that blind leap

2010, a year that could have made an epic Lifetime movie or...a damn juicy episode of Gossip Girl. 
2011 has been different. 


I debated leaving Cleveland for New York and California. But things just never "felt right." I turned down two jobs in NYC and admission into graduate school. Instead, I made the decision to make an enormous career change to follow my passion of advocating for my fair city of Cleveland, Ohio.  


Yes. I've had a few HOLY SH*T moments. 

Goodbye cushy corporate America job. 
Hello start-up-environment, economic development world. 


Sometimes...you have to weigh the risks and come to place where you have faith in yourself. And leap. 

The most valuable experiences haven't really been about my "career." Now, don't get me wrong; my new career role has and will be one of the most monumental learning experiences of my career. But, this entire year has.... connected the dots.

I have fostered friendships and forged bonds with some of the most incredible humans I've met. I've realized my role as a mentor. I've discovered the intricacies of new relationships and the depth we have as humans.  I've developed an appreciation for things I've taken as commonplace - coffee with my parents, snuggles from a kitty, sunshine on my face, a meal shared with friends, feeling butterflies when you kiss. 


In short, 2011 has been one of the best years of my life. It's been uncomfortable and challenging. It's been meaningful and more incredible than I knew possible. 

I've carried this quote in my heart for the past year and it's the right time to share.


You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition.  What you'll discover will be wonderful.  What you'll discover is yourself.  ~Alan Alda

Photograph by Fritz Hoffmann, National Geographic

My goal for 2012? Continue the journey. I wish you the same. 

Please, don't go, summer! Patio Week puts downtown Cleveland outside to enjoy.

Please don't go yet, summer.

I just....can not.....bare the thought! 

The rest of CLE - heck, the entire Midwest - shares the sentiment of hoping for a few more weeks of summer sun!

While we can not change the seasons, we can celebrate what we have here. Its no surprise that it's often a "Cleveland holiday" when restaurant patios open and close each season.  Embrace last days of summer and transition to fall with Downtown Cleveland Patio Week beginning September 12th! Take advantage of our last rays of sun and check out Downtown Cleveland Patio Week September 12 - 18.

The EATS during Patio Week
Similar to Downtown Cleveland Restaurant Week, Patio Week will feature $30 3-course dinner options and a $15 lunch option at select restaurants.  A few restaurants are hosting tastings and educational events on their patios. Sweetness. Yep, all the hot spots have menus - check it.

Sample menu highlights from Patio Week restaurants
Lola (lunch for one for $15)
Chinato (dinner for one for $30)
Pura Vida by Brandt (lunch for two for $15)
Bar Louie (dinner for two for $30)

There are over twenty patios presenting prix-fixe portfolios of food. See the full lineup of restaurants celebrating Patio Week here.

I'm dreaming of patio sunshine and Greenhouse Tavern menu already.

Oh, another positive of Patio Week? I won't have to sweat over burning off the fab food because I'm riding my bike downtown and parking at the new Bike Rack. If you're not a bike-type, parking is two bucks.

The GETTING DOWNTOWN for Patio Week
1.) Drive Your Car:  Parking is $2 when you use this voucher which is valid for lots nearby participating restaurants. The $2 parking special will be available to diners beginning at 5:00p.m. each day during Patio Week.

$2 Holler Lots

- Historic Warehouse District the parking lot at 1371 W 6th St
- Historic Gateway Neighborhood: the parking lot at 402 Huron Rd

2.) Do Like The Coooool Kids: Ride Your Bike or Take the Rapid.

Bike It:  the brand new The Bike Rack offers bike storage, showers, lockers and right next to the Q.

Take the Rapid. Or the free Trolley: The E and B lines are free. Yes. F-R-E-E.

To celebrate - or perhaps beg the weather to reconsider? - get outside and embrace Patio Week, our world-class restaurants and, well, our seasons.

Bang for the Buck: Goose Island Smackdown at AMP 150

Sitting on my couch after a 12 hour work day (yay, job) eating *er* drinking my dinner and catching up on my DVR shows, namely The Best Thing I Ever Ate on Food Network.  For those not familiar with the show, the program format is simple: Food Network chefs talk in a one-on-one interview style about...wait for it....the best thing they'd ever eaten.

This episode, paired with a Great Lakes Holy Moses, centered around the best "Bang For The Buck" the celeb chefs ever ate. I found a bit of irony in the idea of celeb chefs discussing value at restaurants - chefs who have NYC apartments rent that is more than my annual salary. But it also got me thinking about one of favorite local restaurants who fits the "bang for your buck" bill: Cleveland's AMP 150 restaurant located inside the Marriott hotel. 


Seriously, they understand "bang for your buck" better than most. They describe themselves as a rock and roll restaurant (get the name? *AMP* 150) featuring "modern American cuisine, built upon foundations of flavor, freshness, and innovation....serving tasty selections all priced under $20."


AMP 150 is a standard in my restaurant repertoire in Cleveland. The team meets my three food commandments every time 1.) exception service 2.) absurdly hilarious banter with customers and 3.) fantastic food (some items are sourced from a small garden in behind the hotel!) Chef Jeff Jarrett, who recently took over as Executive Chef when former EC Ellis Cooley headed back to Florida, is a seasoned pro with notches in his belt from DANTE, Lockkeepers and North Side in Hudson. 


If you haven't been to AMP 150 in Cleveland, consider this the best "Bang For Your Buck" special event in town.


It's a Beer and Wine Smackdown with Goose Island! (See, I told you the have a great sense of humor.)


Goose Islands Vintage Ale line and select wines will be paired with 7 courses of food on Sunday, August 28. For my craft beer aficionados, the Vintage Ale line is stilled brewed in Chicago.  

The Smackdown is August 28th at 6:00 P.M.

Ready for the "bang for your buck" part?  The cost is $50.00. Yes. Fifty bucks for a seven course dinner including beer / wine pairings with each course. 
Only way to get a seat is RSVP'ing via email here.  


Honesty moment #1
I am a fan of beer. By "fan", I mean, I don't home-brew (I rent my home, folks) nor do I possess the ability to describe a beer's "drinkability" (that's a pseudo verb which I find hilarious).  
I have a respectable list of breweries on my top five favorite beers*:
1.) Bells Brewery Two Hearted IPA
2.) Great Lakes Brewing Burning River
3.) Victory Brewing Hop Devil
4.) Left Handed Twin Sister
5.) La Fin Du Monde
*I really like IPAs. 


Honestly Moment #2
I'm intrigued by Goose Island as they begin to expand operations post-acquisition by Anheuser-Busch. Goose Island began as a brew pub on Chicago’s North side in 1988. Goose Island's most popular product, 312, is available in nearly every gastropub in the Midwest. Now it’s one of the fastest-growing small breweries in the U.S. since being acquired by Anheuser-Busch in March 2011. The brewery has gotten some bad PR recently, as they shift brewing operations for a few beers to outside Chicagoland. 


Maybe it's because I just returned from a trip to Chicago last week that I'm feeling some love for their hometown brewery gone commercial.

Maybe it's because Obama is a fan of Goose Island. 

The Goose Island Beer and Wine Smackdown is August 28th at 6:00 P.M.and is the first of their new series of events happening last Sunday of the month.

Goose Islands Vintage Ale line and select wines will be paired with 7 courses. The cost is $50.00 and includes all 7 courses of food and alcohol. 

AMP 150 has provided me with two complementary seats to the Goose Island Beer and Wine Smack Down. I'd totally offer you the other ticket but this event is going to be pretty popular and I don't want to see any smackdowns before the event.  I suggest you snag a seat yourself by emailing Nate here.

There are only 20 seats.  Bang bang. 

Summer Solstice Celebration brings Cleveland Museum of Art to life

Summertime is to Cleveland as Mardi Gras is to New Orleans. 
Maybe that’s an overstatement.  

Photo courtesy of phansticphotos

Anywhere in the Midwest, once we’ve dug ourselves out from snow, ice and wind, we embrace summer with verve. The Summer Solstice Celebration at the Cleveland Museum of Art (CMA) embodies the passion for warm months, celebrating - you guessed it, the summer solstice, otherwise known as the first day of summer - while beautifully intertwining the fine art and culture of Cleveland.


The Summer Solstice Party celebrates the longest day of the year (easy to remember for next year! Mark your calendar now, trust me.) Thousands of guests from across the world descend upon the CMA and kick off the summer season with a night-long affair of art, live music, food and cocktails.  Party guests toast a welcome to summer as the clock ticks to midnight and continue merrymaking well into after-hours.  The event literally takes over the entire Cleveland Museum of Art including galleries, the front lawn and everywhere in between.  On June 26 this year, I attended my first Cleveland Museum of Art Summer Solstice Celebration. It surpassed my expectations, set high by the passionate stories spun by friends.

What To Expect?


Gate Times (or as I call it, Levels of Fun)


GATE TIME #1: Eventide 6pm to 2am
General admission = $175
CMA members = $125 
Includes Mediterranean style hors d'oeuvers and open bar. 
Audience: Refined, distinguished.  Guests feel that they're truly part of a benefit for the Cleveland Museum. 

GATE TIME #2: Twilight 7:30 to 2am
General admission = $60 per person 
CMA members = $40 
Includes Latin American style hors d'oeuvers and cash bar. 
Audience: Younger guests mingle with earlier crowd. 


GATE TIME #3 Solstice, 10pm to 2am
Advance = $15 per person 
Limited availability $20 tickets at the door (Never seen any available at the door. It sells out  every year.)

Includes snacks and cash bar. 
Audience: Look - it starts at 10pm.  You can do the math.








Music and Piazza Party

Photo courtesy of CMA website.

Some would consider the music and outdoor celebration the epicenter of Summer Solstice Celebration.  Galleries are open but the "celebration" is arguably outside. A full-scale stage, complete with intricate concert style lighting and a top-notch sound-system, is constructed at the ceremonial entrance of the Museum.  

Courtesy of CMA website.

There are marble stairs and veranda, providing a perch perfect for people watching.  The enormous patio accommodates the crowd that gathers in front of the pop-up stage.  The space is transformed into a pop-up concert venue and the musicians that perform embrace the nature of experience.    

Music: The best performance was Mucca Puzza. An attempt to summarize their music (if the photos don't visualize it for you): A very cool, hipster circus marching band.  




A full line-up of the world-class musicians is profiled over at my friend’s blog, Cleveland’s A Plum.

Performers took to lighted and raised platforms throughout the audience.

Here's a video of a performance of Mucca Pazza in NYC. Get a taste of their awesomeness.

Gallery Tours
If you know me, you know I love to travel.  I’m ashamed to say I’ve not yet gotten my passport. The Museum gives anyone the chance to travel the world through art.  Cross the globe through the museum’s new galleries of Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Byzantine, medieval and African art.  

The CMA is known as having one of the best collections in the entire world. While transforming the Museum over course of several years may have been seen as a challenge, the results are breath taking.  Summer Solstice Celebration gives you the chance see the CMA makeover of the West Wing in mouth-gaping awe.   Wall Street Journal expounds upon the multi-phase project with more eloquence (plus fabulous photos.) The entire renovation is slated to be complete in 18 months and it will become a beacon of architectural showmanship when the unveiling is complete.  


I've been called Cleveland's biggest cheerleader.  

No, that's not me.  That's the Mucca Pazza cheerleader.

So consider this my cheer to you to join the Summer Solstice Celebration in 2012.  I'll be there. 

Film Feast Series is a Foodie's Dream

It's a combination of my favorite things:  Cleveland International Film Festival + astounding photography of food + a few of Cleveland's most buzzed about chefs. 

This mecca of pro-Cleveland goodness is an installment of Film Feasts, a genius interactive series from Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF is March 24 - April 3 this year.) Film Feasts is a five-part series combining food, film and art in unique locations.   

The installment I'm giddy for is Food For Thought happening on February 3rd at Taxel Image Studios in downtown Cleveland. Food For Thought will feature a few of Cleveland's media darlings in the culinary industry with Taxel Image Studios serving as a picture-perfect setting. (OK, that last bit was little corny but I had to.)

Co-hosts Barry and Laura Taxel will open their studio doors next Thursday to a group of 75 Food For Thought guests.

Barry Taxel, of Taxel Image Photography, is a renown photographer who's snapped images of cuisine that have made you lust aloud.  See for yourself. 
Laura Taxel is food writer for pubs like Cleveland Magazine, The Plain Dealer and author of Cleveland Ethnic Eats.  Laura just wrote about the event over at  Cleveland Magazine's blog, which has me even more excited.  (Props in the  photo studio?!?  Oh, the fun to be had.)


A few of Cleveland's most buzzed-about chefs will share their Food For Thought and prepare bites to share:

• Chris Hodgson of Dim and Den Sum, Cleveland first food truck (soon-to-be fleet of food trucks) and a brick-and-mortar restaurant on W. 25th, opening Spring 2011.
• Ellis Cooley of Amp 150, a locally acclaimed restaurant.  The chef was recently named Rising Star by Restaurant Hospitality Magazine in December 2010.
• Michael Hershman formerly of Menu6 and currently rumored to be opening secret restaurant venture.   
• Kimberley McCune of Vine & Dine Personal Catering. I drooled over the Guinness Stew Kimberley recently prepared on Good Company, the morning show on Cleveland's NBC affiliate, WYKC.

Excited now?  Yeah, I'm excited too.
Food For Thought has only a few seats left for the February 3rd event.

Tickets are available at www.clevelandfilm.org under "Support Us" or just click the link below.
http://www.clevelandfilm.org/support-us/film-feasts

I was provided complementary seats to Food For Though installment. See you there!

Cleveland Indians Partner with Food Network

The Cleveland Indians have been blazing trails this season...
With the exception of playing baseball (sorry guys).

First Tribe Social Deck (which I had the pleasure of enjoying last night)

photo courtesy of Patrick Shepherd


(Lots of cool CLE tweeps including @GfromCLE, @PatrickShepherd, @thegoldfather, @keithmoehring, @jhirz, @tribetalk)




Now, a brand marketing partnership that makes me wanna dance....

Cleveland Indians' Food and Beverage mgmt company, Delaware North Companies SportService, is teaming up with Food Network to launch a new partnership of menu items, with the Progressive Field being the FIRST stadium to launch the menu.

Signature dishes, created by a team of chefs from Food Network's test kitchen in New York City, will be available on menus in Progressive Field's suites.

Progressive Field's Executive Chef James Major, will over the launch in Cleveland and will assist in other SportService chefs in introducing the Food-network branded items at other ballparks in the coming weeks.

Food Network will provide training and marketing support. Delaware North Companies SportService will operate the menu.
The suite menu items will change every few months and eventually will roll out select food items to concession stands.

A few highlights of the May menu include:

- Hogs in a Blanket :: Quarter-pound knockwurst wrapped in pretzel dough, served with bacon-horseradish mustard sauce

(Holy sweet jesus....yes, they tasted as delicious as they look. Pretzel dough is the perfect texture to balance the knockwurst. Bacon-mustard sauce was a spicy addition)

 - Iceberg Wedges with Blue Cheese and Oven Roasted Tomatoes :: Iceberg lettuce with peppery blue cheese dressing, slow-roasted garlic-hern tomatoes, sourdough croutons and thick-cut bacon.

(It's a salad but you might feel a tad guilty eating it. But there's bacon on it so it has negative calories in my book).

- Beef Short Rib Cobbler :: Red wine-braised beef short ribs with spring vegetables in gravy, topped with buttery biscuits


- Buffalo Chicken Mac n Cheese :: Macaroni and cheese tossed with spicy buffalo chicken, topped with blue cheese breadcrumbs and baked until crispy

(Surprisingly tasty. Well-prepared with moist chicken pieces. It's basically exactly what you would expect - buffalo mac n cheese - but Food Network style)


Read the "OFFICIAL" PR with lots more boilerplate mumbo-jumbo!





What do you think of the partnership between the Indians and Food Network? 
Will you try some of the menu items when you attend a game (in a suite, of course)?

Dude - I've hopped on the GAGA Wagon. And?

So what if I'm a pop-culture addict. I like TV, music and *occasional* gossip magazines
(um, I have about 13 subscriptions).

This DOES NOT make me superficial!

I have many other interests.

Like....

Eating.
Breathing.
Sleeping.

I kid.

So - when I heard the Lady Gaga was blessing CLEVELAND with her presence in July at the Q - I literally squealed. Then cured cancer.
See - I have other interests.

Ticket prices were only::

"Lady Gaga tickets"
Floor seats: $ Your.LeftArm
Club Seats: $ Your.FirstBorn

Dude - the girl is FIERCE.
An On the Record special on FUSE TV made me respect her even more. (seriously, watch it. She's a smart-ass cookie, and we know I love smart chicks who aren't afraid to rep).
Living Legend.
Surpassed Madonna at 23-years of age.
Epic performer.
Artist in EVERY sense of the word.

Then I hear those words not often uttered in CLEVELAND for any concert:
"SOLD OUT"

Luckily, I have a few "connections" and was able to find 2 tickets!
FOR. ONLY.
ONE-HUNDRED-NINETY-EIGHT DOLLARS. AMERICAN DOLLARS.

So I sucked up my pride and bought them.

Am I crazy?
Have you ever bought concert tickets and not care HOW MUCH they were?

Most imporant....ARE YOU GOING TO SEE GAGA baby???!!

What's the deal with BACON?!?

I don't eat pork.

But I eat bacon.

I know. I know.
"Bacon is pork. Pork is bacon."

It's the same thing.






So, here's my real dilema.  I want to buy LOCAL bacon.

I'm a huge proponant of LOCAL CLEVELAND BUSINESS.
Support local, folks.
Buuuuuuuttt.....if there's NOT local bacon-eers around.

Do you know of any FARMERS / SMOKEHOUSE / BUTCHERS (from anywhere!) I can buy BACON? I just can't buy my BACON from Whole Foods any longer.










Anyone? Anyone?

("Ma'am, there's bacon on your head")