Best Tuesday Deal: Hodge's 2 for $40

If you like to eat out a lot it's good to know where the bargains are. Hodge's 2 for $40 Tuesdays is a fantastic deal! 1 starter, 2 entrées + bottle of wine = 40 bucks Let's not forget that you also get tater tots and the greatest fucking cornbread in the world for that $40.

wild mushroom and ohio city pasta gnocchi

Loved, loved, loved the wild mushroom and ohio city pasta gnocchi. It tasted as good as it looks. The mushrooms and grapes are a great combination with the always fresh ohio city pasta.

hanger steak

I spent about 5 years of my life as a vegetarian and still don't eat much steak or red meat, but this hanger steak is a must order! Having a steak this good reaffirms my decision to eat meat. Everything about it was beautiful. It went so well with the tomato-ginger beans. The potato shards blew my mind! They had that 'just fried fair fries' taste that I go to the fair every year just to experience.

grilled half chicken

What a manly dish! (Just an FYI if you go to dinner with me I will be eating some of your food.) This chicken was so moist and fall off the bone perfect. You can't go wrong pairing juicy chicken with a creamy mac and cheese. This dish went really well with the cornbread! The cornbread alone is worth a trip to Hodge's. It is like a cornbread cookie/cake with a bourbon butter that makes it even more out of this world. I've had some decently satisfying dreams about Hodge's cornbread.

When people come from out of town to visit this is on the top of my list for a good "this is Cleveland" dinner option. Chris Hodgson is all over the Food Network making Cleveland so proud! Viva la Rust Belt Revival!

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Happy Record Store Day

Say hello to the Beachland’s famous Southern buttermilk fried chicken & biscuit sandwich! (Featured in Cleveland Magazine) And yes, it does taste as good as it looks. The local honey was an especially wonderful addition.

I stopped by the Beachland Ballroom for lunch yesterday as part of Record Store Day. There are a ton of great record stores in the neighborhood.

If you haven't had a meal at the Beachland Ballroom you are missing out on something very special. They were just voted Best Brunch in Scene Magazine, which I happily voted for them. There are a lot of great brunches in Cleveland, but the record spinning, pitchers of booze and unassuming atmosphere set Beachland apart.  The first time I stopped in for brunch I was blown away by their food and have continued to enjoy every meal I've had there since.

The drink list is so fun! I always have a blast splitting a pitcher of booze for brunch. It's near impossible not too.

There are tons of other things to do in the area while you are there. Visit the vintage/record store in the basement, This Way Out and the neat shops down the street; Blue Arrow, Music Saves, Star Pop for some vintage toys.

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Recipe: Pineapple Pops

The West Side Market often has great deals on fruit. When it's ripe and ready to go the vendors offer exceptional pricing, especially when it nears closing time. I can't help but stock up on fruits and veggies when I see those sweet, sweet savings. It often leaves me with a lot of fruit I need to use up right away. This recipe is a great one for that extra pineapple you got on a two-for deal.

Pineapple Pops

Ingredients: - 1 medium-to-large pineapple - 1/3 cup Milk - 1/4 cup sugar

Chunk up the pineapple and combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Pulse until baby food consistency. (If you like your pineapple pops a little chunky pulse a little less or a little more for a smoother pop.) Put in a popsicle tray or if you don't have one just use small paper cups with wooden popsicle sticks or plastic spoons (which are way easier to find) and freeze for 4 hours.

Keep in touch with what's going on at the West Side Market:

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Toast! Flirting Through Food

It has been fun following Toast as they have prepared for opening! (Read their back story on Cleveland.com) Of course I jumped at the chance to come check out the soft opening on Wednesday night. The bar is absolutely beautiful! This is for sure going to be a great place to grab a drink before heading to the theater.

I was really excited to see that they make their own bitters. I ordered a Rooney to try the cherry bitters. I don't normally love gin drinks, but I loved this! It was so well balanced with a floral finish. The Old Fashioned was also fresh and well balanced. What a great cocktail spot! I can't wait to drink here again.

Onto the food...

For starters I tired the Start of Spring Pickles. It had pickled beets, fennel, red onions, carrots topped with micro greens. A colorful and tasty dish that you won't feel bad about indulging in!

I am a big deviled eggs fan. I love trying difference chefs' interpretation of this classic picnic food. I knew I had to try the Local Deviled Eggs - beet pickled egg, beer mustard, shoe string shallots. They did not disappoint! Rich in flavor and smooth in texture; they are now my favorite take on deviled eggs!

I'm also a cheese plate fan. It's something I like to order all over for comparison. I find it is often the non-cheese extras and how well they go with the cheese that make a cheese plate. The cheeses were excellent and extremely well paired with extras like apple butter, a fantastic onion marmalade, crazy good and large portion of pork pate, and a rabbit rillette, which I have never had before and found very enjoyable! This is a really diverse cheese plate and they paired non-cheese items extremely well.

I decided to end the meal with a macaroon. Nice balance of crunchy and creamy - it was like they were trying to flirt with the food!

Each item was well balanced, beautiful and perfectly prepared. Each item I ordered was flirting with me a little as the night went on and I am hooked! I shall be back for more! XOXO

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The Very First Cleveland Flea

The Cleveland Flea is a cool event! I am totally trying out one of the makers classes next month. Lots of CLE creativity and love put into making cool works of art. I picked up an Ohio shaped Polka record for my rock'n'roll basement.

What makes it even cooler is the food trucks that roll out to feed the crowd. :]

I grabbed a Pulled Pork Sandwich from Pig Lickin Good Food Truck. It was covered in a sweet BBQ and had a bun that could hold up under all that meat! Great stuff! Check out owner Jim Kuhn on Facebook.

Then I picked up a Korean BBQ Pork Loin from Krav. They said this is their most popular item and I can see why! Big juicy chunks of delicious pork loin in a fresh and warm flatbread.  Follow them on Facebook and Twitter to get location info.

Great event! Can't wait for the next one!

CLEVELAND FLEA - SECOND SATURDAYS ON ST. CLAIR 10A-4P

MAY 11 / JUNE 8 / JULY 13 / AUGUST 10 / SEPTEMBER 14 / OCTOBER 12 / NOVEMBER 9 / DECEMBER 14

Choose Your Own Hotdog Adventure

I love Happy Dog! The concept of this place alone is brilliant! A hotdog, a bun and a list of 50 toppings to choose from, allowing you to create your own hotdog adventure! The list of 50 toppings can be overwhelming for a foodie because there are some outrageously unique creations on the list. Just to name a few:

- Bacon-balsamic marmalade - Oaxacan red chole and chocolate mole - "Alien" pickle relish - House made chunky peanut butter - "Everything Bagel" cream cheese

My trick to creating a delicious hotdog adventure has been to pick one topping I can't go without and build from that. I go with just one cheese, one sauce and two other things. I can craft a 4 toppings creation with a pretty good profile if I center all items around that must do topping. While, I love pimento mac-n-cheese and peanut butter, I don't love them together. Thankfully, those are both excellent with applewood smoked bacon. ;]

My latest adventure was centered around the Andy Cap Hot Fries (pictured up top). I added the Happy Dog sloppy joes, Rising Star Coffee and ancho BBQ sauce, and some cheddar cheese. It made for one badass combo!

There is also an extensive list of toppings and sides to go along with the tater tots/fries. (I am a sucker for a good sauce list.) With a $5 hotdog and $3 tater tots, you can have a cheap and filling meal, leaving you with some cash to burn on cocktails and pinball.

Happy Dog has events or music most nights of the week. I watched Friday the 13th in the basement lounge while the Crooked River Blues Band played upstairs. On weekend afternoons it's a fun lunch joint for families. There is something for everyone here! Try it and you'll be hooked.

Follow Happy Dog for info on music, events and find out about burger night:

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Recipe: Roast Beef Reuben

Any meal gets better when you start with local ingredients from the West Side Market, right?

Let me introduce you to our Roast Beef Reuben!

Ingredients:

- Start with Farmers Bread from Mediterra Bakehouse – a blend of white and wheat flours with a sourdough starter.

- Slather with homemade Thousand Island dressing (see recipe below).

- Pile high with thin-sliced roast beef from Edw. Badstuber & Son.

- Add a slice of Baby Swiss cheese from Annemarie’s Dairy.

- Top with sauerkraut. Thankfully I picked up these two packets of Franks's sauerkraut at the grocery store a while back. I knew they would come in handy some day.

Cook that shit: Pull out a Panini pan and spatula and you've got yourself an awesome sandwich!

Homemade Thousand Island Dressing Ingredients:

- 1/2 cup mayonnaise - 2 tablespoons ketchup - 1 tablespoon white vinegar - 2 teaspoons sugar - 2 teaspoons sweet pickle relish - salt and pepper, to taste

Mix that shit together.

Hot Date, Light Bistro - CLOSED

Thanks to a recommendation from Jen at Why CLE? I checked out Light Bistro in Ohio City. I love the atmosphere of this place. It’s a side of Cleveland I wish everyone knew. Greenwich Village vibes with Cleveland prices – what’s not to love!? I couldn’t pass up the brie and apple Panini. It came with a heaping side of fries for just $8.

My hot date got the chicken special - grilled chicken breast coated in fresh pesto on a quinoa salad. Daaaaaaamn!! Beautiful and mouthwatering (talking about the food here ;] ). I’m impressed when someone can make quinoa edible, let alone actually taste good.

Super nice waiter gave us a rundown of the happy hour specials and I can’t wait to go back for that. They’ve got $1.50 domestics!

Happy Hour Specials Monday - Friday 2:30 – 7:00pm

All Bar Menu food items for $5.00 each. Selected domestic beers for $1.50Selected specialty beers for $2.00 Glass of wine from our wine list for $5.00 Specialty cocktails for $4.00

I’m also excited about some of their upcoming events. I just called and got reservations for the upcoming scotch tasting!

Glenmorangie “Barrel Finished” Single Malt Scotch Dinner and Tasting Wednesday, May 1 at 6:30pm

Three Course Dinner Three “Barrel Finished” Scotches $40 plus tax and gratuity Chef Matt will pair the cuisine to the three featured Scotches.  Joseph Deluca, noted craft cocktail mixologist and lecturer, will speak on the history of Scotch Whiskey, the heritage of Glenmorangie, and our three featured “barrel finished” Scotches.

Sadly Light Bistro is no longer open. :( You can now find the Black Pig in its old building, which I highly recommend. 

I Hate Tacos Said No Juan Eve

Living in North Olmsted, land of all things chain store, you don’t often get the pleasure of having food trucks come nearby. When I saw Fired Up Taco Truck tweet that they were in Brookpark I opted for a Taco Tuesday over my simple salami sandwich. Left to Right – Pulled Pork/Veggie/Chicken

Pulled Pork:Lime Cream, Slaw, Sweet Peppers/Onions, Jackcheddar, Fried Onions Juicy and meaty! Fuck getting double meat at Chipotle. This has all the meat you’ll need.

Veggie: Smoky Cinnamon Salsa, Balckbeans/Pineapple, Jackcheddar, Seasoned Fries Now this is a veggie taco that even anti-vegans could appreciate! It had a nice little kick to it as well.

Chicken: Chipotle Aioli, Slaw, Corn Salsa, Jackcheddar, Fried Onions If you’re a sauce lover you’ve got to try this for the Chipotle Aioli.

Keep an eye out for this bad ass food truck:Website  Facebook  Twitter