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 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 Santa's - Heart of Little Italy

Looking back over the past entries it is hard to believe that I haven't reviewed Mama Santa's, one of my late Dad's favorites. Located in the middle of Cleveland's Little Italy, at 12301 Mayfield Road, Mama Santa's has been dishing up very good Sicilian Italian food at incredibly reasonable prices for decades. As the rest of Little Italy has changed, with new restaurants, and even new digs for such old school places as Corbo's and Pristi's, Mama Santa's has remained the same, serving traditional food in a nice dimly lit restaurant. While the restaurant may not be a stunner, it has a certain old time charm. Instead of trying to get a retro feel, Mama Santa's has just kept the same decor through out its long tenure on the Cleveland scene, which is just the way it should be. Walking in today feels like it has since at least the 1970s when I was a kid, almost like going back to your parents house. The nice part about the decor is that it never was very trendy or hip to begin with, so that over time it has aged well. In addition to not changing the decor, the menu has pretty much remained the same for all those years as well. There have been some price increases, but even those have been few. Prices range mostly below $10 and the portions are good without being overly large. If you ask people in Cleveland about Mama Santa's there is almost always an argument about the pizza, some love it, others hate it. I fall on the love side, but understand the other side. The dough is thin, without being so thin that it cannot hold up the cheese, with a good crust around the outside. The sauce is obviously home made and has enough zip to keep things interesting, the cheese is a nice layer, and while it tends to end up a bit greasy, I personally like my pizza that way. Toppings are limited, to the classics: sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, green peppers and anchovies. The one thing I will agree with most is that Mama Santa's does have a tendency to overook the pizza. Overall this is one of the most authentic and tasty pizzas you will find in the area. I especially like to pick one up if I am heading home from downtown at the right time. At $7.50 for a large it is a great deal and a welcome relief from bland middle of the road chain pizzas. The rest of the menu is fairly simple, with sandwiches, pastas (both regular and home made) and some veal and chicken entrees. My father loved the Veal Scallopini, nice sized pieces of Veal in a tomato sauce with onions and peppers. The pasta sauces are good traditional sauces, with real herbs and seasonings slow cooked into the kind of goodness that cannot be rushed. The food is served simply and tastes good, what more could you ask for. A couple of things to keep in mind; Mama Santa's is closed on Sundays and since they are at E.123rd and Mayfield, it is very difficult to find parking most nights. Despite that going there is a trip worth making, you will not find fancy decor or modern food trends, but you will get really good food, cooked well at very affordable prices. Mama Santa's is an especially good place to get a meal for East siders headed to or from Downtown.

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.