Daddona's - Big Italian in Westlake

I have been to Daddona's in Solon a couple of times and remember finding it a nice Italian restaurant that served huge portions of good food, so when a Groupon (you of course can try Groupon here) came up for their Westlake location came up I decided to give it a try and am pleased to report that it was a good decision.   The Westlake Daddona's is located in a relatively new strip mall at 29580 Center Ridge Rd Westlake, Oh 44115 (map here). 

Once inside you find a very attractive L shaped dining room done in green and purple with natural wood accents and complimentary art.  The feeling is very modern, but warm and welcoming with a nice upscale look without being formal, a real step up from what I remember of the Solon location.   The tables are set nicely and many of the comfortable seats have a purple cover to compliment the decor. 

I arrived towards the end of a weekday lunch and am quickly seated and review the nice sized menu (see it here).  With $25 of Groupon to play with I ended up with a ton of food and took home a couple of extra meals.  To start you get the basket of fresh baked garlic balls.  Perfect in so many ways these small pieces of dough have a fragrant garlic smell and taste nicely complimented by some olive oil and cheese, I restrain myself from eating all of them as I know that there is still plenty of food coming.

Next up is an order of Calamari and the portion is huge and could be easily shared by a whole table of people.  The squid is nicely fried in a light breading and sided with Marinara sauce.  While a nice dish, I found the squid to be a little under seasoned, I could have really gone for a bit of herb in the breading to boost the flavor profile.  The sauce was nice and mild with chunks of tomato, I thought at first that the flavor was a bit mild, but the flavors built the more of it I ate.

Next up was the side salad that came with the pasta I ordered, of course Daddona's has to make the salad about twice as big as usual and nicely presented the fresh greens with the house Italian.   I took the whole salad home and enjoyed it, nicely balanced and once again the flavor of the dressing seemed to build the more I ate.

Out next was a small Siciliano Pizza topped with Eggplant.  This was another highpoint, with a wonderful medium thick crust that was crisp on the outside and soft and flavorful inside.  Topped with a zippy tomato sauce with the perfect level of spiciness to wake up my taste buds and complimented by the Romano Cheese, this was different than the common overly cheesy pizza we all enjoy.  The eggplant cubes were perfect, with no bitterness, but just enough firmness and no breading.   Most of the pizza went home with me and was almost as good the next day for lunch.

Finally we got to the main course, Linguine with Red Clam Sauce, which was a huge portion of al dente pasta topped with a silky tomato sauce loaded with tender clams.  The dish was nice and tasty, although once again it seemed a bit mild at first but the flavor profile built as I ate more.  The portion size was huge and despite my best effort I had a huge portion to take home for dinner the next day.  

Daddona's serves oversized portions of good to excellent Italian food in a very attractive setting.  It seemed to me that everyone left with with large portions for later.   The sauces are varied, but even those that tend towards a less bold flavor profile have good flavors that reveal themselves gradually.   You won't go wrong here, especially if you are hungry.

Pizzazz On the Circle

The end of Passover always means one thing, we can eat bread and pasta again after a week of avoiding them, so a group of us headed over to Pizzazz on the Circle to celebrate.  Pizzazz has been around for quite a while, located in Shaker Heights, nestled into Fairmount Circle, right across from the entrance to john Carrol University, Pizzazz is a good solid Italian restaurant.  (The location is mapped here).

The decor of the dining room is a nice simple combination of comfort and modern; simple wood is set off against warm colors with clean fixtures and modern art prints.  Once seated, service is friendly and efficient even with a larger group.

The menu (which you can see here) is fairly standard modern Italian cooking, with an emphasis on Pizzas, Calzones, Pastas and other Italian favorites.  I ended up ordering the Eggplant Parmigiana dinner, which is a nice portion of fried eggplant topped with some Marinara Sauce and melted cheese and sided with Penne Pasta in more of the same sauce.  The dinner was good, but not great.  The eggplant was sliced pretty thin, which meant that much of the meatiness was lost and the flavor was a bit subdued.  The sauce and cheese were added at the end, so that while they contributed, this never came together into a harmonious whole that is usually better then the sum of its parts.  The penne was fine, and the sauce was ok, a bit light on spices for my taste, but bright and slightly sweet.

The big seller at my table were the Calzones, which were well received and nicely sized, both the small sized.  Probably a good idea to go for the pizza or calzones as they seem to the specialty at Pizzazz.

Overall, Pizzazz is a very nice Italian pizzeria, with pretty good food at decent prices, a very nice location and decor and good service.  What I think it lacks is the actual pizzazz that its name implies, I don't think you will be blown away by Pizzazz, but you will get a nice meal.

La Strada - E.4th Bistro

A while back I picked up some discount gift certificates from one of the local radio stations and the one for La Strada on E.4th Street in downtown Cleveland was going to expire at the end of the month so I headed down to check it out. La Strada is the sister restaurant to La Dolce Vita in Little Italy (see review here). Located about halfway down the very happening E.4th Street, the outside is relatively plain, although there is room for a nice patio in the summer. Once inside, which was too dark to get a good picture, I found a very elegant room with a balcony over the bar and the back half of the room. Decor is very nice and upscale without being too formal, a bit dark but a good feeling room with some very nice touches. I got there at the end of lunch, so the place was quiet, but I did get very good service at the bar and the food was exceptional. I ordered off the lunch menu (you can see the menus here). I ordered the Calamari Valencia and the Pesto Omar, unfortunately they have taken the risotto off of the lunch menu, because I was looking forward to trying it. The Calamari was excellent, a very nice portion of squid, lightly battered and then pan fried so that they were tender and flavorful; the tomato sauce with some sauteed squash that topped the dish had just a hint of heat to add to the flavor experience. I would rate this as one of the better calamaris in town. The Pesto Omar is described on the menu as an errorless dish and it was very close to meeting that high standard. The bowtie pasta were cooked al dente and then topped with a wonderful complex pesto sauce. The pesto was excellent, not oily and not coarse, which can be a problem with a pesto. This was earthy and rich tasting, the kind that you have to sop up the sauce at the end. The portion was large for a lunch serving, although probably right for the $12 price. Lunch came with a couple of slices of excellent crusty bread and butter, which is always welcome. The dinner menu is similar to the lunch with some items, such as pastas and entrees going up in price, while others such as the appetizers seem to stay the same. La Strada is a very good place to hit if you are downtown and looking for some excellent food presented in a happening atmosphere. This would be a great place for a romantic dinner and considering the portions and the quality of the food, the prices are not too bad. I may not hitting La Strada regularly, but it is a great place to keep in mind for the right dinner.

La Pizzeria - Little Italy's Newest

During this year's Feast of the Assumption in Little Italy, they were handing out coupons for La Pizzeria, which was suppose to be open by Fall 2009; well it has taken a bit longer then that, but it is finally open this week. Located at 2188 Murray Hill Road (the corner of Murray Hill and Cornell) (see map here) across from the Baricelli Inn, they have taken the corner space that used to be a gallery and transformed it into a nice little spot to pick up some reasonably priced good food. Walking inside you will find a nicely set up small space with four tables and a service counter. The old space nicely mixes the old such as the tin ceiling with modern fixtures and a green and red paint scheme to provide a warm inviting feel. The place is obviously set up for mainly takeout and delivery, but eating at the shop is just fine. The menu is based around pizzas, calzones, subs and gellato with some salads, wings and pastas thrown in. The prices are reasonable and while nothing seems terribly innovative or new, if done well this kind of food is very popular. I had a small mushroom pizza and was very pleased. Cut into 6 slices the pizza was excellent with a thin crust that was turned up at the edges to make it seem almost deep dish. The crust was probably the highlight of the pizza, with a good crisp to the bottom and a very pleasant flavor, no flavorless bread here. The sauce was a nicely balanced tomato sauce, with a fresh tomato flavor that complimented the pizza. The cheese mix covered the pizza nicely and had just the right cheesy bite from the provolone mixed with the mozzarella. The overall pizza worked well together, it was cooked just right with all of the elements coming together well. I probably should have waited on the first piece, since I had a bit of a cheese slide, but once everything had set the other pieces were no problem. There is a gellato case up front, but it will be a little while until they have any to serve. La Pizzeria is an interesting idea, but seems to duplicate a lot of what is available in the area; put this up in Beachwood, or Shaker instead of in Little Italy and it would be fairly unique. As it is, this seems well set up to appeal to the neighborhood and to the Case Western Reserve students, but has a lot of direct competition. They seem committed to high quality food at a reasonable price, here's hoping they succeed and thrive.

La Dolce Vita - Little Italy Bistro

I know that it has been a little while since my last post; been back to some favorites (Tom's for Dim Sum, Ritchie Chan's for Chinese) and been doing some cooking at home. But I was down at Case Law School, my Alma mater for a CLE and I figured I would use the gift certificate I had for La Dolce Vita in Little Italy. I was lucky enough to pick up some discounted gift certificates from one of the radio websites a little while back, so I had $25 to spend, which is a good thing, since LDV is very good but a bit expensive. Located at 12112 Mayfield at the intersection of Murray Hill Road, LDV has expanded over the years to occupy several connected storefronts. Walking in the corner store I was quickly greeted a seated, by my choice, at the bar. The decor is a an eclectic mix of Italian, Opera, a mask collection (which really agrees with me) that all comes together into an welcoming combination of relaxed and romantic. The atmosphere is unique and I liked it a lot. The bartender was friendly and helpful, knowledgeable about the menu and the specials. After looking through the menu and the specials (menu can be seen here), I decided on getting the Lentil Soup and the Clams Tarantino. The soup took a while to come out, but when it did it was a nice bowl of lentils, carrots, onions and cherry tomatoes in a nice vegetable broth; a bit underseasoned, but a nice light bowl of soup. The Clams Tarntino was even better; a large portion of fresh pasta was topped with baby clams, thin slices of zucchini and the cherry tomatoes. The pasta was excellent, the clams were beautiful little (about fingernail sized) that were tender and delicious with the zucchini and tomatoes offering a nice contrast; I might say that the dish was a bit underseasoned, but considering how delicate the clams were more seasoning could have overpowered them. Then interesting thing was that while often the first taste is the best, in this case the flavor seemed to build the more I ate, with the last forkful and the sop afterwards being even more satisfying then the start. Accompanying the meal were a couple of fresh baked rolls and butter. With the soup being $5 and the pasta $19, this is certainly not the cheapest place in town, especially considering that salads and other sides are Ala carte, but the food is very good and distinctive, not your everyday Italian, the atmosphere is very good, especially if you are looking for some romance. While I wouldn't be hitting La Dolce Vita on a regular basis, this is certainly a restaurant that I would recommend especially for the right ocassion or if you are in the mood for some very good Italian food and the cost is less important. Finally, I will remind you that if you like the blog, you consider making a donation to Bowl For Kids Sake for Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters; any amount would be welcome and more information is available at this post. Thank you.

Mama Roberto's - Mentor Italian Good Food - Updated

Update - I was out to Mama Robertos last night and had the Linguini with white clam sauce; very nice with al dente linguini smoothered with a ton of chopped clams in a light white wine sauce with garlic and some roasted red peppers. The amazing thing was the size. I couldn't even get through half of the portion served. Truly amazing. Also had the house salad and it is good and crisp and used as a shredded cheese delivery device. The house Italian was nice and a bit sweet. Another good meal and I have the second half of it waiting in the fridge at home. ________________________________________________ A little confession, part of the inspiration for this blog is Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network. I have to say that while it doesn't fit any of those categories, Mama Roberto's in Mentor fits the general theme of the show; big portions of freshly prepared food. Based on recommendations from friends I have been meaning to get to Mentor to try Mama Roberto's. Located at one end of a small commercial strip at 8658 Mentor Avenue this is a nice newer restaurant. Inside the decor feels light with an Italian feel from the green, red and white predominate colors. The kitchen is in one of the back corners and the overall feel is nice, clean and casual. You start out with an outstanding bread basket that Guy would refer to as 'Money'. A couple of large slices of thick cut Italian bread were joined by fresh made garlic rolls. The bread was all perfect; cruchy crust with a soft inside. A great way to start the meal. I ordered the Eggplant Parimgana sandwich with the side of pasta. For around $6 I got two huge slices of garlic bread around thick cut slices of wonderfully baked eggplant topped with a chunky sweet marianara and melted cheese. The eggplant was especially good, since it was not breaded or fried. Fork tender and not at all bitter, this is how eggplant should be cooked. The portion was very large and with a nice bowl of spaghetti topped with the same marinara sauce, more then filling. Lets talk about the sauce for a minute, rather then the usual marinara, Moma Roberto's makes a sauce that is chunks of sweet tomatos with littel extra seasoning or cooking. The flavor is bright and bold, but you are not going to get the usual herbal flavors, so don't expect a lot of seasoning here. Watching the other tables in the restaurant I was amazed at the size of the portions being served. The servings were more then enough to make two meals, and that seems to be the approach of most of the customers as almost every table left with a sizable to go bag. About the only negative comment I could come up with here was the music playing in the background which seemed to be early 50s popular songs, but even that changed to 60s rock during my visit. Mama Roberto's is certainly popular and with good reason. This is a nice casual Italian restaurant serving huge portions of very good freshly made food. The food is not complex, but it is wholesome and flavorful. Give this a try, if for no other reason then to enjoy the bread.

Bar Cento - Ohio City Hot Spot

So I headed out to Bar Cento on Friday. Located on W25th Street, right across from the West Side Market in Ohio City, this is one of Cleveland's hot spots. The decor is nice, casual but relatively simple, with the restaurant fairly dark and the table set with a bottle of water, a bag of bread, some little plates and a small bucket with the silverware and some paper towels. The menu is also casual and relatively simple but very good Italian. We started with a Margherita pizza that was excellent. A very thin and crisp square crust is topped with fresh tomatos, fresh mozzeralla and basil leaves. The combination of flavors was bright and nicely balanced. We then shared an order of the pomme frites. A big order of twice fried potatoes was served with 3 different mayonnaises and ketchup. The fries were crisp, although I would have like a slightly smaller cut on the potato. The mayonnaise dipping sauces were good, although it started to become hard to tell one from the other. Finally I had an order of the Mussels. A nice portion of good sized mussels came out in an very zippy broth with a couple of long crutton like breads for soaking. The mussels were very good and well balanced, surprisingly once the mussels were gone, the broth was a bit overpowering to be sopped up with the bread. Overall a very good meal at a really fun place. I would strongly recommend the pizza and everything else was good. There is a happy hour with reduced prices on selected items from 5-7 on weekdays.

Piero's Pasta House - Geneva Gem

Over the years I have heard rumors about this amazing pasta place in Geneva on the Lake that was only open during the summer season. Well the rumors are true. I rode up on a Thursday night and was very impressed. Located at 5367 Lake Rd E, Geneva, Ohio on the East end of the commercial strip, Piero's doesn't look like much from the outside. The inside is another story. The room is relatively small with tables packed close together, so I would guess the place seats less then 50. The decor is faux Mediterranean, with with the ceiling decorated to look like a vineyard and a mural on the back wall. But overall it feels like someone had a vision and has followed through. Of course the thing that will really strike you about the room is the open kitchen with the large menu board above it that runs across one side of the small room. You get to watch and even better smell the dinners being prepared. The menu board gives you the full menu. A couple of appetizers and salads are available, but everything else on the menu is pastas ranging in price from $9 to $17. The selections sound yummy and include plenty of seafood, vegetable and meat dishes. I tried the seafood combination pasta and it proved a winner. A generous portion of Shrimp, Mussels and Squid were perfectly cooked and served in a perfectly seasoned sauce with wine, capers and red peppers over al dente pasta. I do want to let you know that the chef takes such pride in his dishes that when I requested grated cheese for the pasta he came out of the kitchen to ask me to try it first. I will admit that the dish was so perfectly seasoned, that I passed on the cheese, the way it was prepared it needed nothing. The portion size was good and based on the flavor and the quality this was a good value at $16.95 (and the most expensive thing on the menu). My only regret about the meal was that I ate one of the pieces of crusty italian bread before the pasta came; take my advise and save all the bread to use to sop up the sauce, it is good enough that you will not want to leave a drop on the plate. This is some seriously good authentic Italian food. About the only downsides are that there is no airconditioning and Piero's is only open for dinner Wednesdays to Sundays from May through October. I would highly recommend that you head to Geneva on the Lake and give Piero's a try.