Brazil Squared

Sergio Abramof emailed me info (see below) about the fun and food he’s got planned for Sarava, his Shaker Square restaurant. I joined the party there last summer and it was memorably fantastic.  Don’t miss this event.  You’ll be talking about what a great time you had for the rest of year to anyone who’ll listen, guaranteed. 

Sérgío’s Summer CARNAVAL! Saturday July 11, 2009 from 9 PM – 2 AM at Sérgío’s SARAVÁ BAR It’s hot, it’s sexy…It’s a taste of BRASIL! 5PM – 9PM Grupo BRASIL plays on Shaker Square, then come to SARAVÁ for the real party… Let yourself escape as you savor the nightlife of the streets of Bahia: taste delectable street food like Churasco, and Acarajé while sipping the best tropical cocktails to the pulsating music of Salvador.

Marcus- the man who gets everybody moving

Marcus Santos, master percussionist from Bahia will lead a Bateria Drum Line with Samba dancers and keep you going  through the night! Bahian Street food stands throughout the restaurant Iced Fresh Coconuts and Tropical Drink Specials SAMBA JOIA, traditional Carnaval percussion line Capoeira Show-Brazilian Martial Arts and Dance $10 Cover charge, 21 and over DETAILS  at http://www.sergioscleveland.com

also 

Churasco BBQ on the patio @ SARAVA every Sunday 5-8 • Chargrilled Brazilian Churasco-Picanha, Linguiça, short Ribs, Chicken • Cooked over hardwood charcoal on the patio • Fresh made Caipirinha and Mojitos • Traditional side dishes and FRESH HOT DONUTS cooked to order!

Larchmere and Loganberry

I’ll be signing copies of my book from noon to 1 tomorrow, (Saturday, June 27) at Loganberry Books, as part of the store’s celebration of local authors. Stop by and say hi.  There’s lots of other  things going on too- details below. 

LoganberryBooks.com
13015 Larchmere Boulevard w Shaker Heights, Ohio 44120 w  216-795-9800
The Local Author Book Fair features three dozen authors this year (complete list here!).

 

Larchmere Flea Market & Festival
Saturday, June 27th, 11am-5pm

The Larchmere Flea Market & Festival returns for a third year of bargains and goodies, of neighbors, festivities, workshops and camaraderie.  Tucked into corners and lots up and down the 10 blocks of Larchmere Boulevard are dealers of vintage goods, antiques, art, collectibles, and a special community flea market lot.  And food, of course!

The Passport Project Global Dance & Music Collective will perform 1-3pm at Felice Urban Café, and the Euclid Beach Rocket Car will ride the Boulevard 1-4pm.  Workshops and demonstrations enliven the festival, including face painting, drumming, and spinning wool.  Important information like health screenings and home ownership resources will also be available.  

This year, we have more than 50 vendors of antique, vintage and handmade goods, including Boar’s Head Antiques, Intuition by Leah, MZ Beads, and Jenny’s Sweets, to name a few.  The bricks-and-mortar merchants on Larchmere will also be in a festive mood, many with sales, specials, workshops, and special offerings.

Bake On

just look at what Michael can do with butter cream!

This morning Michael Feigenbaum, owner of Lucy’s Sweet Surrender, the fantastic Hunagrian bakery on Buckeye Road, sent me a  link to an interesting blog that appeared on Carolyn Jack’s Geniocity  about his efforts to survive the economic downturn. http://blogs.geniocity.com/jack/tag/michael-feigenbaum/ . (It was posted in January but he just found it. The section about him is a few paragraphs in, after a bit about a local photographer).

The most important take away message from that post- and this one- is that if we like being able to eat fresh handmade strudel and authentic dobos tortes, than we must help him stay in business by getring ourselves out to his shop or onto his website and buy his products year round and not just on holidays and for special occaisions.

News from Aladdin’s

Driving home from a downtown meeting I decided to stop in at Aladdin’s  Baking Company on Carnegie to stock up on creamy French goat’s milk feta, kalamata olives, and spinach pies. Although they’re open for business, a major remodeling is underway. The new floorplan will devote more space to tables, making this equal parts grocery store, prepared foods market and cafe where you can sit down and immediately dig into their terrific chicken shawarma, felafel and gyro sandwiches, taboulie and fatoosh salads, bowls of lentil soup, and plates of grape leaves or hummus. 

I also discovered that they’ve added a new bread to their line-up- light fluffy whole wheat nan. It’s delicous. A package of five big fresh rounds  feels like a pillow and is priced at only $1.50.

Happenings

Some events to add to your calendar.

Come see me tomorrow and say Hi. I’ll be autographing books at the Barnes and Noble Fairlawn store in Montrose (4015 Medina Rd) Friday night, June 19 from 7-8 PM.

Two wine dinners next Thursday night, June 25. Both sound wonderful so choosing will be tough. I’ll give you all the info and mouthwatering menus but you’re on your own deciding which one to attend.  If you go to either, please post about your evening here.  

 Michaelangelo’s, 2198 Murray Hill Rd. · Cleveland, Ohio 44106 · Tel. 216-721-0300 · Venetian Wine Dinner, Thursday June 25, 2009 7:00 p.m.   Featuring wines from producer Vignalta. $50.00 per person does not include tax or tip. Reservations required.

Antipasto:Pan-fried eggplant roulade, asparagus, ricotta and parmesan reggiano. Pinot Nero Bianco ‘07

Primi:Char-grilled langostino, baby arugula, and extra virgin olive oil. Chardonnay ‘07

 Pesce: Char-grilled yellowfin tuna, fennel salad, spicy red pepper coulis, and micro greens. Rosso Riserva ‘04

Secondi: Venison tenderloin, cracked pepper, rosemary, and rainbow swiss chard. “Gemola” ‘03

Dolce: Almond pastry, citrus glaze, candied citrus. “Alpian” Moscato NV

 

Lago, Tremont,  Spann Vineyards winemaker’s dinner.

1st Course – Betsy’s Backacher
Scallop and cucumber cheviche
2nd Course- Chardonnay-Viognier
Grilled Maine Lobster Salad
3rd Course – Betsy’s Backacher
Roasted Beet Ravioli with Lamb Ragu
4th Course – Charbono
Cherry Lacquered Pork Belly with Rosemary Risotto 5th Course – Dualing Cabs
Elk Tenderloin au Poivre with Truffled Gaufrites
6th Course – Port
Trio of Choc Truffles 

$70 per person (+tax & gratuity)

Reservations Required ~ Limited Seating

Call 216-344-0547 

Treehuggers Cafe by Beth Yurich

Intrigued by the name, I wanted to try this little restaurant in an unlikely area on Bagley Road. Be careful not to whiz on by, because it is tucked far back next to a fitness club, in a small strip mall. My friend and I went for lunch, but they are open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and they serve breakfast all day. I am not used to having so much choice, let alone three veggie burgers to choose from. Treehuggers Café has a Black Cactus Black Bean Burger, which is black beans and black-eyed peas and on the spicy side. They also serve a Chick Pea Burger, that is ground chick-peas, with spices and fresh coconut ginger sauce. The waitress compared the flavor to hummus. I settled on a White Rhino Old Oat Tree Burger, which is ground oats, nuts and spices. It was served with a mango chutney and a side dish of carrots with a hummus dipping sauce. They usually have two sides to choose from, but they already sold out of the coleslaw, which is vegan! The burger was tasty with a nutty flavor, and with the mango chutney it was light and sweet tasting, although next time I am going to see if I can get whole grain bread. My burger was served on a home-baked bun but was white flour. The menu states that they make their bread fresh everyday and much of it is vegan. My friend got the Rock Hopper Penguin Organic Chicken Salad Wrap, which was free range organic chicken, spices, red globe grapes, candied pecans, in a lemon tarragon vinaigrette. She said it was fresh and tasty, and was able to finish it even though it was enormous. I guess that says it was good.

It will take me months to get through the whole menu at the Treehuggers Café, considering so much of it is vegan or can be made vegan. Seven salads, ranging from fruit inspired, to grain and pasta, plus a marinated bean salad, are part of the offerings. You can order homemade soups, rice bowls and wraps, as well as giant panini’s. And don’t forget breakfast served all day. You can get oatmeal, granola, organic buckwheat pancakes, breakfast panini’s and an omelette.

If you still have room for desert, there is a case full of cookies and cakes, scones and muffins. They serve coffee, fresh, what they call butterfly, iced tea and smoothies. You will not go away hungry after eating at the Treehuggers Café, 1330 Bagley Road, Berea, 440-342-4901.

On a side note, the Treehuggers Café buys in season and from local farms.

Air Time

I talked ethnic eating today on WCPN’s Around Noon, sharing the microphone with host Jim Goldurs, and three of the food folks featured in the book: sausagemaker extraordinaire Kris Krieger of Chef’s Choice Meats in Berea; Alma Alfonzo from Lelolai Bakery and Cafe, the place for Puerto Rican pastry and Cubano sandwiches; and Chef Sergio Abramof, owner of a pair of  fantastic restaurants,  Sergio’s, with a Mediterranean menu, and Sarava, which specializes in Brazilian fare.  Thanks to an exchange between Jim and Sergio, I finally learned how to correctly pronounce feijoada, a traditional stew. Spelled phonetically it’s feh joo ah da.

Back Row, left to right: Sergio Abramof, Jim Goldurs, Front Row, left to right: Alma Alfonzo, yours truly LT, and Kris Krieger                                                    

We all had great fun and got some  interesting phone calls from listeners.  Two people mentioned new places I have to try- an Argentine restaurant  in the Detroit Shoreway neighborhood called La Boca, and Ararat on Chardon Road serving Armenian food. Anyone been to either of these?

But my favorite call was from the guy who told me that he used Cleveland Ethnic Eats to court the woman who is now his wife. He said he picked unusual, out of the way places to take her and she was quite impressed by his epicurean tastes, so impressed she married him. I’m delighted to think that all my eating and writing contributed to bringing them together!

 If you missed our conversation and want to hear it, here’s a link to the audio of the show

Take the Kids

I came upon an interesting article in The Miami Herald  about Common Threads , a group that promotes healthy eating and cultural diversity to kids through cooking.  By making-and enjoying- food from different countries the children are one step closer to seeing themselves as world citizens. I think that’s so important, and have always hoped my book would play a similar role. Eating out with me at ethnic places over the years of their growing up certainly developed an appreciation in my three sons for all kinds of unfamiliar foods, and by extension for the people and places the cuisines represented. So it made me really happy to see a recent post  (June 8th)  about Cleveland Ethnic Eats on the Cleveland Parents Network blog . 

If you want to try widening your family’s culinary horizons start with the family friendly restaurants listed in the Take the Kids section at the back of the book. Once you’ve got them interested in experimenting and exploring, consider letting each kid have a turn picking a place they’d like to visit from among the 225 restaurants and 30 distinctive kinds of cuisine. If your family has a favorite ethnic spot or you know of some that are suitable for younger diners please share the info in a comment here.

Taxel and Tony visit the Sausage Shoppe

I had a meeting at the Zoo on Friday. The moment I scheduled it I knew I’d also be stopping at the Sausage Shoppe, nearby on Memphis Avenue. I adore Norm Heinle’s leberwurst and it’s been among my favorite sources for German style cured meats ever since I first visited back in the mid 90′s while working on the second edition of Cleveland Ethnic Eats. On my recent visit I got three bags worth of stuff.  Ate most of the liver pate, mettwurst, and slices of Sheffler ham that night accompanied by a  green salad, a couple of crusty stick-thin Parisette loaves from Zoss the Swiss Baker and a really nice bottle of Pinot Noir (Mark West, 2007) on sale at Zagarra’s Marketplace in Cleveland Heights for the bargain price of $11.99. Cooked the white brats and garlic sausage on the grill last night. Heaven. 

Not sure yet what I want to do the piece of speck-double smoked bacon.  I almost forgot to buy some but was reminded when I ran into Paulius Nasvytis, proprieter of The Velvet Tango Room, recently named one of the 100 best places to enjoy a cocktail (and its sure to be the best cocktail you’ve ever had) in the country by Food and Wine. He was stocking up so he can offer Tango guests a little something to go with their libations-thin slices of the tasty pork belly on dark rye and serves with sweet and spicy mustard.

 You never know what local-or national celebrity- you’re going to run into at The Sausage Shoppe. Below is a clip from the day Tony Bourdain, star of the Travel Channel show No Reservations, visited while filming an all-Cleveland segment.

 

I was standing just out of camera range when it was filmed, and got to taste all the good stuff too!