Trattoria on the Hill

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First a pet peeve of mine: small parking lots where they insist on valeting the car and then park it ten steps away from the entrance to the restaurant. I understand if you want to charge me to park. That's fine, parking is at a premium in this area (not quite as bad as the North End of Boston), but they should be allowed to charge for the parking. BUT, when I finish dinner and have to wait behind two other parties when my car is so close I could fart on it - I get irritated. Just put somebody at the entrance to the parking lot (like they do at L'Albatros) and charge what you need to charge and be done with it .

I ordered the breaded veal special of the evening with a side of veg and pasta. The veal spent way too long in the fryer or pan or whatever they cooked it in. (Judging by the way it was breaded I'm guessing fryer.) Very tough and greasy. The pasta was cooked just the way I like it, but there was a TON of sauce on it. In general I think most of what they serve here is sauced with a very heavy hand. Giving them the benefit of the doubt; perhaps that's the way their customers prefer it, which in the end does have a major affect on what stays on the menu and how it's served.

Dessert had quite the selection: Cannoli, Cassatta Cake and the ubiquitous Tiramisu. With the wide variety at Presti's and the gelato at Anthony's (I recommend trying both), we decided to walk our dinner off and get some gelato.

My guess is the attraction at Trattoria on the Hill or Roman Gardens is that the food is your typical red sauce Italian American fare that everyone here in the US equates to as "Italian". Admittedly, Trattoria does serve up monster portions for a very affordable price. If you like that sort of meal then I think you will most certainly enjoy your visit here. I found the service to be very cordial and attentive - the waiter had the accent to boot If you're looking for something similar to what you'd find in Italy I'd keep looking. I'm always happy when a place is packed. It means some sector of the dining public is very happy with the food that's being served - even if it isn't my thing.

Trattoria on the Hill (Roman Gardens)
12207 Mayfield Rd
Cleveland, OH 44106
(216) 421-2700
www.trattoriaromangarden.com

What about Bob's? (Yeah, that's the name of the business.)

Baby Steps

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I've heard nothing but great things about a little sandwich shop in Willoughby. They were pretty busy when I visited, so I didn't want to bother someone about the genesis of the establishment's name. The only thing that comes to mind is Bill Murray's OCD character in the '80's movie What about Bob.

Though the menu has 10 different sandwiches on it and 10 different wraps the prices are pretty easy to remember: $3.99 for a 12" $6.99 for a 24". As is my usual custom when trying a place for the first time, a straight forward signature sandwich like the Bob's Ultimate Original Sub was ordered.

The crew of four or five work together like a well oiled machine to crank out these monsters. WAB's? does a huge lunch business so efficiency is an absolute must. Probably two minutes after I placed my order the sandwich was wrapped and ready to go. I had to get back home, so I didn't stay there and eat. They have 3 or 4 tables that have a lawn furniture look to them (so do the chairs), with a television running in the corner.

The first thing you notice about these sandwiches is the heft. As I opened the wrapper the next thing that jumped out at me was the beautiful french baguette they serve. I don't know if they make their own bread or not, but the quality of the bread is almost in the same league as Sarcone's Deli and Primo's Hoagies in Philly. (Both make their own bread so it's not out of the realm of possibility that WAB's? does as well).

How in the HELL am I going to eat all of that?

WAB's? follows its wonderful french bread prelude with the guts of the sandwich backing up the promises made by the beautiful bun. On the first bite there's a little bit of everything ...meats...cheeses....vegetables....sauce. Everything makes its presence known as you make your way through this very filling sandwich. The onions are finely sliced so that their essence is evident but not clumsy and overpowering. The meat and cheese is generously spread throughout so as to not end up with empty bread on the last few bites. (Or worse yet, have a quarter of the bun left when you suddenly feel that last bit of meat squirt into your mouth like a small turd.)

I can't say that I understand the name, but the next time I stop I'll ask about it. As far as hoagie style sandwiches go, WAB's? pretty much smashes everything else I've had in Cleveland. If there IS a better sub, I'd like to see it.

What about Bob's?
38233 Glenn Avenue
Willoughby, OH 44094
(440) 951-9700

No false advertising at Compola's Tasty Pizza

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As far as I'm concerned the west side has the east side beat hands down in pizza. Up until last Saturday, Geraci's was really the only pie on this side of town that I would put in my Cleveland top five. (I don't count Crostatas because they're Neapolitan.)

Ever the optimist, I've soldiered on and continued the pizza quest here on the east side. Since we were staying in and wanted to watch the newly arrived Paris, Je T'aime from Netflix (great movie BTW twenty different five minute short films about love in Paris), we wanted something that would hold up to the drive home. I had heard nothing but good things from people about Compola's Tasty Pizza on Mayfield Rd so we decided to give it a try.

Tasty Pizza, as it's commonly referred to, has dine in as well as carryout and delivery. The dining room is a a series of tables with wooden benches and chairs. While certainly not the kind of place to park your ass for hours on end, it is by no means a dive.

Mushroom, Onion, Bulk Sausage on left
Pepperoni, Bulk Sausage and Bacon on right

After paying $15.25 for a 12" with three toppings on each side (pepperoni, bulk sausage, and bacon on my half - onions, mushrooms, and bulk sausage on Regina's half), I hopped in the car and sped home. As is always the custom, I place the pizza in the boot of the car to keep any pieces from falling out during the drive back. I don't know what is, but I usually find one or two slices missing if the box sits on the passenger seat. Don't let this happen to you. Secure that stuff!

We queued up the movie and dug into the box. I like Geraci's a lot, but this pizza had much of what I like about Geraci's and none of what I don't like about them. For me it all starts with the crust. If the crust sucks it doesn't matter what you put on top - the whole thing is going to taste like supermarket dreck.

Tasty makes a dough that has a moderate chew to it, but doesn't have the crunchy edges that destroy the roof of your mouth. (Think age 10... bus comes in five minutes... you wolf down an entire bowl of Cap'n Crunch in three...you spend the entire ride to school tonguing the tattered remains of skin hanging from the roof of your mouth.) The bottom has a brown crispy coating that lends a little bit of crispiness to the pleasantly chewy dough.

The cheese and the sauce are moderately applied. Some people like pizza that is loaded with cheese that when lubed with a lot of sauce slides right the crust - leaving you with a big old hunk of cheese and pepperoni dangling past your chin. Tasty puts enough cheese and sauce to where it clings to the dough anchoring the toppings in place - nice and clean-like.

The toppings were actually very good, too. The mushrooms are fresh (not out of can), which Regina doesn't typically like due to their chewiness, but these were really thin and may have been sauteed. The onions were quartered and thinly sliced which evenly distributed the flavor throughout the slice. My slices were decidedly salty which has a tendency to happen when you have that much cured meat you're half the pie.

I absolutely loved this place. If you look at the list on the upper right you'll see that Compola's Tasty Pizza is the new #2 on my list of "Best Pizza Americana in Cleveland". If you're within striking distance of Richmond and Mayfield Rds in Lyndhurst, you have got to try this little pizzeria.

Update: October 15th, 2010
We ordered a 12", and 14" was accidentally made. Perhaps it was an off night, but the crust was a bit out of control (very thin toward the middle and very puffy and doughy around the edges). I think the 12" might be the best incarnation of this particular pizza. If you do order their sausage, make sure you order the bulk sausage. The regular sausage is thinly cut and tucked under the cheese. I thought the bulk was above average.

Update: November 3rd, 2010
We ordered the 12" and the world balance was restored. The crust was king and the pie disappeared in 20 minutes flat. While waiting for my pizza I noticed the row of coolers against the wall. Tasty has a rather extensive lineup of conventional beers as well as craft beers from, but not limited to, Dogfish Head, Founders, Tröegs, Flying Dog, and Great Lakes ($3 a bottle). If there's one thing nearly every pizza shop across the country lacks, it's a decent selection of suds that aren't created by the Evil Empire. Just one more reason to head over to the this gem on Mayfield Rd.

Compola's Tasty Pizza
5101 Mayfield Rd
Cleveland, OH 44124
(440) 449-1252
www.compolastastypizza.com

Umami

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Most people either love Asian food or they hate it. Of the people that do love Asian food, most people have a definite preference for a particular country. I, myself, am more of a Japanese and to a lesser extent Thai kind of diner. I'm certainly not opposed to going with Chinese, Vietnamese, or a Korean place, it's just that there seems to be a fanaticism the Japanese have about craftsmanship that appeals to me on some strange level.

On Memorial day (night actually), we went to Umami Asian Kitchen in Chagrin Falls. I'd never actually been there so to be quite honest I didn't really have much of an expectation one way or the other. So often you hear (or read) about the original chef leaving and whether or not the quality of the food is going to survive. Is it worth trekking out to Chagrin Falls for a bum dinner? It was the end of a holiday weekend and we had the time to spare; if nothing else we were going to walk away with 1,000 Open Table points for our effort. (My guess is that the points were being offered because of the holiday.)

The first thing you notice is that the small (about the size of Tartine, maybe smaller) tastefully decorated space makes good use of the booth allotment. There are even two bar-type benches in the very front that look through the glass onto the front door a la Greenhouse Tavern; the perfect spot for a couple (who don't have the overwhelming desire to gaze into each others eyes across from across the table), to people watch.

I'm going break the dinner down rather quickly so as not to make you nod off in boredom. Mickey was our server and to be perfectly candid - he was great. Mind you, because the place is so small I think there are only two servers, so you have pretty good odds of getting him. Our crew actually decided to go full on tapas, okay, everyone except me. I ordered the curried chicken which had that refined restraint that I love so much about Japanese food. This was not a mouth full of fire, but a developed flavor that really seemed massage a hint of heat after you had swallowed a few seconds earlier.

With Regina leading up the charge, an armada of small plates started to make landfall on our table. I don't really want to talk about every single dish, so I'll focus on the must haves. If you order anything from this menu, it has to be the Goat Cheese Dumplings. These "dumplings" (10 to be exact) are small (think gnocchi sized), delicate (think gnudi), little pillows of delicious goat cheesed-ness, topped with greens and ginger butter. The only reason we even ordered these is because this people implored us to, as they were walking out the door (and now I am imploring you to do the same). I would also recommend an order of the Roasted Shiitakes, as well as the Togarashi Crusted Fresh Bacon. All three appetizers are packed with flavor, but not of Cheesecake Factory proportions, (and that's a good thing).

We had initially ordered the sushi rolls to come out before the other hot appetizer/entrees, but they ended up coming out last. After the amazing show that was put on by the small plates, there was no way these sushi rolls had a chance. What I did like was that they were of such a size that you could actually stick the whole thing in your mouth without looking like a pig. One other thing I liked was that the soy did not come out in a larger bowl so people could dunk the poor roll up to its eyeballs. Instead the soy came out in a rectangular dish so that you simply swiped the roll through the soy. In a sense, I think it was letting the patrons know that these were not meant to be dripping with soy - nice touch.

If haven't already been able to tell, I thought it was a fantastic dinner. Any more I am more interested in well crafted and thoughtful offerings than I am anything else. While the place doesn't have to have ambiance, Umami does (in spades). It's refreshing to see someone doing this kind of quality at a reasonable price. If you're looking for a quiet evening with a well thought out menu and you appreciate Nippon-ese cuisine than you, but not the kiddos, need to make this stop in Chagrin Falls.

Don't forget to ask for Mickey as your server. If want a window seat or one of the two tables for two outside make sure you request them when you make your resie here.



Umami Asian Kitchen
42 North Main Street
Chagrin Falls, OH 44022
(440) 247-8600
www.umamichagrinfalls.com

Tucky's (rhymes with "Yucky's")

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I was driving down Mayfield Road and decided to grab a quick bite while I was out. Always up for an afternoon dog, I decided to give Tucky's a try.

As I walked up to the front door I noticed a sign thanking Clevelanders for voting them "Best Cheap Eats". This is a good sign, no? I mean, if the good people of Cleveland voted them the best, they've got to be right, right?

I walk into the store and I'm absolutely waylayed by a massive wall of frying oil smell. I'm being completely serious, the place was filled with the heavy odor of deep fryers. I knew if I didn't get in and out quickly I was going to need a shower when I got home.

I hurried up and ordered a Chicago that consisted of a skinless Old Vienna hotdog on poppy seed bun, with sports peppers, emerald relish, diced onions, tomato wedge, pickle spear, yellow mustard and celery salt. What can I say? The hot dog would have been fine sans toppings. The tomato, pickle and peppers are not easy to eat when laid on top of a hot dog. Come on man, if it's worth eating, dice it up so I don't get a solid mouthful of tomato, pickle, or pepper. I hardly thought there was $3.50 worth of effort put into this thing.

Ringing endorsement? Hardly. I don't know what the Cleveland Magazine readers like, but this visit was hardly Silver Spoon worthy. I don't normally pan places outright, but Tucky's isn't even in the same country as Seti's Polish Boy or Happy Dog. As for the CM readers - What were you thinking?

Tucky's
6232 Mayfield Road
Mayfield, 44124
440-460-3871
http://www.tuckyshotdogs.com