Saturday, 04 February 2012

Cleveland Dining Scene

Home to Ohio’s only Iron Chef, certified “green” restaurant, and 85-year-old Polish cafeteria, Cleveland easily can satisfy any taste. It’s no surprise that Clevelanders like to eat. Forced indoors by a winter that never quits, locals consider dining out a form of entertainment. In turn, the city boasts more high-quality restaurants than burgs twice its size. Sure, Michael Symon gets (and deserves) much of the ink, but dozens of New York-trained chefs work the ranges here. A melting pot if ever there was one, Cleveland features the most robust ethnic-restaurant scene between Chicago and Philly. And when it comes to foodie tourism, few locales can compete with the fabled West Side Market.

Dining  
 
Insider's Guide
Eat & Drink

L'Albatros
Restaurant

Lilly Handmade Chocolate
Ice Cream & Sweets

Cafes and Hangouts

Gypsy Beans
Café

Shop

Big Fun
Toys

Music and Entertainment

Grog Shop
Club

Nighttown
Club

Insider Profile

Cleveland's a Plum launched in January of 2008 at the urging of one of Alexa's close friends, who told her to start writing about her life because, "it was way more entertaining than their own." The blog's name comes from a long-defunct Cleveland slogan that stated though New York may be the Big Apple, Cleveland was a Plum.

As chef and owner of Crave, a popular Akron restaurant, Deanna Akers has a pretty good grasp of the local food scene. Naturally, she gravitates to independent restaurants, especially those operated by talented colleagues. Here, she shares a few of her favorite places to grab a bite.