Wednesday, June 29, 2011

NEO Underdog #4

My next Northeast Ohio underdog is not in the nether regions of Painesville, the blue collar neighborhoods of the West Side, or even the southeast corner of the county - this underdog is sitting right underneath all of your noses, in of all places - TREMONT.

I can hear it now, "Oh, BS. I've either heard of it, or it sucks. In all honesty, if someone had told me to name such a place I would have probably said exactly the same thing - but a funny thing happened on the way to Fahrenheit.......

We typically stop in at Fahrenheit (or Fahrenheit's, as some of the older folk call it) every couple months for some appetizers and an order of short ribs. But on a visit late last year I took note of the pizza place that is attached to Edison's Pub, conveniently called Edison's Pizza Kitchen. I can't tell you how many times I've either walked or driven past this spot and not given it a second thought.

Edison's Pub, itself, is what I would consider a local spot for the Tremontonians. (Is that what they're called? Nope, commenter below says they're called Tremonters.) For the most part, many of the patrons seem to know each other. It's a low key younger crowd with nary a suit or tie to be found.

The three headed monster that is the Edison's Pub/Pizza Kitchen/Next Door Deli combines good pizza (I've not had the subs), great beer, and a fun venue. What you have is basically two originally separate spaces that have been joined together to make one congruent space. On the right side is the pub and on the left is the pizza and sub shop.

The bar area consists of a few different sections. The main bar is in the front and is relatively small (15 seats maybe), and has four microbrews on tap and an entire cooler filled with bottles. They do a really nice job of selecting good seasonal micros - over the winter they carried Bell's Hop Slam which you don't typically find at a four tap bar. For such a narrow selection they always seem to choose I nice variety of beers.

As you walk up a few steps you head toward the back of the building. Off to the left is the ordering window for Edison's pizza and sandwiches. If you're dining in, or having a drink while you wait for your food, you can pay for it and sit in any of the booths while they make it. If you call ahead for a to-go order you can just enter through the front of the shop. Cash and credit accepted.
The patio being graced by my pizza eating compatriot Cheesecake

From those same steps, if you go straight back, there are more booths and a room with a pool table. Directly off the back is a fantastic outdoor seating area. A covered shelter in the back offers protection from the lovely Cleveland weather. A grape vine covered arbor runs along the left side of the space, while a fountain dribbles in front of some octagonal picnic tables. The outdoor area is a great place to be on the few days we have beautiful weather. I love me a warm summer night with good friends, good beer, and good pizza.

Bountiful Toppings, Delicious Dusted Crust

The pizza is without a doubt my favorite in the downtown/Ohio City/Tremont area. The toppings are plentiful. The crust is cooked just right (crispy but not tough, chewy but not doughy). And as I mentioned before, they sprinkle that fine powdery cheese around the perimeter of the pizza. One other thing they do is include a couple packets of honey. I'm assuming it's for dipping the crusts in. This pizza seriously kicks ass.

Edison's pizza is for real. The music is good (indy rock). The outdoor patio area is cool. Edison's Pizza Kitchen/Pub should definitely be on the summer list of places to try.

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Edison's Pub
2373 Professor Ave
Cleveland, OH 44113

(216) 522-0006


Edison's Pub on Urbanspoon

Edison's Pizza Kitchen
2365 Professor Ave
Cleveland, OH 44113

(216) 298-4484


Edison's Pizza Kitchen on Urbanspoon

4 comments:

  1. I believe they call themselves Tremonters.

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  2. Edison's does have a cool vibe with a nice beer selection and excellent music. I had the pizza there over 10 years ago--did one of the buildings burn and get rebuilt since then?--and it was excellent. Last year, though, when Sarah and I visited (for my birthday, because Tremont Tap House was packed for a polka fest or something) the pizza crust was doughy and a bit tough, if I remember right. Then again, it was some kind of specialty pizza with perhaps too many toppings. The photo of the pizza you had, on the other hand, looks really good.

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  3. Is Tremont really an underdog? I think it's totally Gentrification City!

    Although I'm totally into Edison's pizza.

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  4. @Ben
    I'll have to update the post to reflect that. Regina and I went there in the spring and had a doughy pizza one time and I suspect it was a classic case of too many toppings. She had ordered her half with ricotta and some other stuff and it was just too many things on one pie. I've had much better luck with one or two toppings.

    @Megana,
    There's no way in hell that Tremont is an underdog, and it sure ain't the same neighborhood that I used to see even back in the mid 90's. No, my point was that Edison's is a relative unknown (ie underdog) to most people outside of the neighborhood. I don't think I've ever read a blog where someone pimped this pizza - and it is totally pimpworthy. I'm glad we agree on the pizza. I don't think there's a better pie in the immediate area.

    ReplyDelete