It wouldn't be my birthday without...

some of Cleveland's great food and booze spots!  I'm very lucky to have a lot of great people in my life who want to celebrate my birthday with me this year.  I'm going to check out Amp 150 for my birthday dinner tonight and then Chocolate Bar for some lunch and possibly a martini bigger than my head on Saturday.  Tomorrow night, I hope to hit up Lava Lounge to meet up with some old friends.  And my old friend, the foo-foo martini.

But it really wouldn't be my birthday with some of my old stand-bys.  The restaurants I've repeatedly gone to over the years, or ones I've recently discovered and can't live without.  Nothing says "birthday" to me like black bean nachos as Johnny Mango.  I mean, does it really get any better?  (only with a fresh squeezed margarita, perhaps)  Then there's the Purple Parma eggplant sandwich at Melt.  Or a pumpkin martini!  Amazingly good!  And worth every second of the wait!  There's also vegetarian night at Lago...that's on Monday, so that will have to be part of the prolonged celebration.  Then there's the espresso martini at Melange.  Or the chocolate covered brownie from White Flower Cake Shoppe.  Top that all off with a Brownie Monster sundae from Tommy's (I think I've had one on or near my birthday for the last 20+ years) and you have yourself one heck of a gluttonous birthday weekend.  Thank goodness I have to run 12 miles this Sunday, so I can burn off all of my birthday goodness.

What's your favorite Cleveland birthday hot spot?

The most wonderful time of the year - mighty macaroni melt returns to Melt

Ah, December.  Where has this year gone? 

Some people look forward to December for Christmas or Hanukkah festivities.  Or even New Years celebrations.

Not me.

I'm excited about the sandwich of the month at Melt - the mighty macaroni melt.  Have you ever eaten a patty on a sandwich made out of delicious herbed, bread-crumbed macaroni and cheese?  I hadn't either until last year.  It's probably a vegan or lactose intolerant person's nightmare, but it's literally the best sandwich I've ever eaten in my life.  I've been counting down the months just so I could have another taste of this gluttonous goodness.  And maybe, if I'm lucky, this delectable sandwich could become a staple on the menu.  Starting tomorrow, December 2, you can visit Melt's website to vote on which of this year's monthly special's you'd like to see added to the menu.  My obvious pick is the macaroni melt...but there were so many other awesome specials!  How does a person choose just one?

What's your favorite Melt sandwich?  Do you desperately wait for your favorite to be a monthly special or am I alone in this?

What will Santa be bringing you this year?

Ah, commercialism.  That's what seems to rule the holidays these days.  I've never been a fan of "forced" holiday giving.  Just because you happen to be related to me by blood or a common-law relationships doesn't mean you deserve a gift.  In fact, I'd dare say that the majority of people in my life who should get a holiday gift, based on traditional gift giving standards, just aren't worthy.  I know that sounds a bit harsh.  I do love buying presents for the people who mean something to me, but I don't like the idea that someone should feel obligated to buy a gift for someone else.  I like buying gifts that mean something or could be considered useful by someone - not just something random I spotted in the mall.

This holiday season, I plan on only buying for those nearest and dearest to me and also trying to buy local whenever possible.  If you're in the spirit for some local shopping, here are my suggestions for greal local gift giving ideas.

1. A gift certificate to Melt.  I don't think I could be friends with someone if they didn't like Melt.  Heck, even my mom loves Melt.  Note that this gift wouldn't be appropriate for anyone not willing to wait for good grub.

2. A C.L.E. Clothing Co. t-shirt.  They come in both mens and womens sizes and feature fun, Cleveland-related images and slogans. 

3. Any number of cool things from Room Service. This cool Gordon Square Arts District boutique features all kinds of gifts - from jewelery to artwork.  

4. A gift certificate to Capitol Theater.  It took a lot of blood, sweat, and tears to renovate this theater.  Why not see a movie in something other than your local mega-plex.

5. The Cleveland Independents Deck. This deck of playing cards features 52 $10 gift certificates to independently owned Cleveland restaurants.  I'm no mathematician, but the deck costs $30, and you get $520 in discounts...if you eat out a lot and like to support local restaurants, this is a phenomenal deal!

These are just the first 5 ideas that come to my mind.  What are your suggestions for local gift giving?

P.S. If you want to go shopping this weekend but want to avoid the hustle and bustle of the malls, check out the east side version of the Bazaar Bizarre, an indie craft fair.  If you can't make it to the east side version being held today, November 27, and tomorrow, November 28, there's a west side version being held December 12-13. 

Praise Seitan and the New Bomb Turkey November Special at Melt

I have a serious infatuation with Melt.  I like their food.  Their drinks.  And their vegan and vegetarian friendly attitude.  Being a member of The Big Cheese Club, I got an email early Sunday morning to let me know about Melt's November food and drink specials.  The sandwich of the month is the New Bomb Turkey (or for us vegetarian and vegan folk - the New Bomb Seitan) - a combination of turkey or seitan, sage stuffing, butternut squash, Muenster cheese, and a cranberry dipping sauce.  I love all things related to fake turkey, so I decided that I had to give it a try.  

As with most things in life, all things worth having require patience or in this case, an extended wait for a table.  Which was ok by me because it gave me a chance to sample the martini of the month - the harvest apple martini - a combination of apple cider, apple cider vodka, chai liquor, and some "secret" ingredients.  (perhaps cinnamon and sugary water?)  

 

I'm no connoisseur of martinis, but I definitely enjoyed the strong cider flavor of this martini.  It reminded me of a cross of the pumpkin martini that was on special last month and an apple martini.  Those are two things that I enjoy a lot, so I was definitely pleased.  

What was even more impressive was my sandwich, though.  Behold, the glory of the New Bomb Seitan: 

In my excitement, I forgot to get a good cross section photo of the sandwich, but as with all other Melt sandwiches, it was generously layered with stuffing, squash, seitan, and of course, cheese.  I'm a little hesitant when it comes to trying out monthly specials, since I love my stand-by sandwich, the Purple Parma so much,  but being a fan of all of the individual components, I had the highest of hopes for this special.  And it didn't let me down.  This is by far the most flavorful sandwich I've ever eaten at Melt.  Every bite was a little different tasting, depending on the combination of squash, stuffing, seitan, and cheese, but it just kept getting better and better.  It might sound cheesy or cliche, but this really was like a Thanksgiving explosion of flavor in my mouth.  I loved every mouthful.  In fact, this might just tie for my favorite monthly special, along with last December's macaroni and cheese sandwich (which I hope makes a comeback this year!).  

If you're a fan of fall flavors, you have to try this monthly special while you can.  Hurry now, November will be over soon!

Recipe: Pumpkin Martini

Oh, to be an angst-y teenager again.

I was fascinated with the movie The Crow when I was a teenager.  I watched it so many times I could quote the majority of the movie.  ("Abashed the devil stood and felt how awful goodness is.") Lame, I know.  One of the key dates in the movie was October 30, or Devil's Night as it's known in Detroit and any other place where the residents like to set fire to the city annually.  I just recently acquired The Crow on DVD, so I feel like I owe it to myself and the memory of my somewhat gothic teenager self to sit down and watch the movie tonight.  But now, as an adult, I can enjoy the movie with a delectable alcoholic beverage, a la the Melt pumpkin martini:

Ingredients:

2.5 ounces vanilla vodka (if you're a light-weight like me, you could definitely cut this down a bit)

1 ounce Hiram Walker pumpkin liquor

1.5 ounces Voyant Chai liquor

sugary/cinnamon-y water combo (or simple syrup) to take off the edge

cinnamon and sugar to coat the rim of the glass

To all the ghosts and goblins out there, enjoy this spook-tacular weekend.  (and perhaps a pumpkin martini or two - unless you're a vegan - the chai liquor is not vegan friendly) And if you're running in the Bench Bar Run on Halloween morning, I'll see you there!

Happy World Vegetarian Day!

Did you know? October 1 is World Vegetarian Day, and the kickoff to Vegetarian Awareness Month. (And to think, until this year, I never even knew such a thing existed!) I plan on celebrating this momentous occasion with some vegetarian grub at Tommy's in Coventry, my go-to for all things vegetarian for the majority of my life.

Vegetarianism isn't for everyone, but hopefully Vegetarian Awareness Month will bring a better understanding of this lifestyle to the general population...

This month is also bringing another delicious vegetarian monthly special at Melt! They're featuring Mom's Meatloaf Melt, which consists of meatloaf (you can get the real stuff or a "fake" meat option), mashed potatoes, ketchup, and Muenster cheese. Sounds interesting right? What's even more exciting is Melt's drink special of the month - a pumpkin martini! Let the pumpkin loving continue! (If you're a fan of Melt, be sure to check out their new snazzy website, which launched today!)

A Continuing Theme - Margaritas at Melt

Over the weekend I dropped by Melt with my friend to enjoy one of the final days of May's sandwich of the month - The Godfather - lasagna on a grilled cheese sandwich. I mean, as a vegetarian, I felt like I needed to represent for my people and try out a special that us non-meat eaters can enjoy. Since it's now June and you can't get that sandwich anymore, I won't rub in the fact that it was really delicious. Not as delicious as my favorite, the Purple Parma, but still pretty darn good. Something that's always available at Melt that I encourage everyone reading this to try is a margarita.

A fresh squeezed margarita. This isn't your typical restaurant mix variety. No, sir. Everything in this little drink is fresh. Because of that, it doesn't taste like a traditional margarita - it's a little more lemon and limey. But still incredible! And admittedly, I'm a light weight, but after a couple of these $5 drinks you'll be either sleeping (like I do when I drink to much) or dancing around singing the Mexican hat dance. I can't wait until the new Cleveland Heights location opens so I can partake in their bar scene more often. (In case you haven't heard, the new Melt will be at the corner of Cedar and South Taylor roads in Cleveland Heights sometime this fall.)

P.S. If you happen to like Brussels sprouts, Melt occasionally offers them as a side. They're soaked in a balsamic sauce and are pretty fantastic. And really filling!

Melt's Sandwich of the Month is Vegetarian Friendly

Sorry, vegans. It's not friendly for you. Its super cheesy-riffic.

Melt's sandwich of the month for May is The Godfather. It features three cheese lasagna - ricotta, provolone and romano - with fresh made fennel & oregano sheets from Ohio City Pasta. It also has a spicy red tomato sauce and is served on garlic spiked grilled bread with provolone.

I love it when the sandwich of the month at Melt is meat free. I can't wait to try it!

Gluttony Weekend - Day 2

I'm headed to Melt for lunch today. I'm not overly excited about waiting for what seems like forever for a table or food, but at least I'm going with friends I rarely get to see. And the purple parma and margaritas are totally worth the wait.