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.

Jim's Open Kitchen - Solon Diner

I must have driven by Jim's Open Kitchen hundreds of times without ever noticing it. Located just West of the intersection of Aurora Road and SOM Center at 33779 Aurora Road in Solon (see map here), in a small nondescript building it is easy to overlook. Then when I did notice it the use of the words "Open Kitchen" seemed to imply one of the new trendy places that do fusion cooking; well nothing could be further from the truth. Walking in you find an old school 50s style diner done up in a Coca-Cola motif. Jim's has one long counter with the grill behind it and a couple of booths on the other wall. The menu is straightforward and classic American grub, just what you would expect (you can see the menu here). I stopped in for a Sunday breakfast and went with a couple of eggs over easy, hashbrowns, toast and a pancake. One of the nice things about this menu, orders of a single pancake, french toast, or other single item are fairly priced, just about half the price of an order of 2. The order was made quickly right in front of me and was served up fast, fresh and with little fuss. The eggs were well cooked, if a little greasy, but they were tasty. The home fries were very good, with a good ratio of crisp parts to inside, the flavor was rich and I would head back for more. The pancake was freshly made, from scratch and had a really good texture without being overly spongy, it soaked up the syrup and held onto it. Overall a very good breakfast; nothing here that will make you redefine breakfast, but just good old fashion food cooked simply and well. Apparently Jim's is family owned and operated and it shows; the whole family was working and that creates a nice atmosphere with some teasing back and forth; just the kind of place that you might want to hang out. If you are out Solon way and looking for some unpretensious food and some throw back atmosphere, give Jim's a try, just ignore the name.

Grums Sub Shop - Solon

Grums Subs Shop has been a mainstay of Coventry for what seems like forever. Located in a small takeout only store near the corner of Coventry and Mayfield Roads, the shop has supplied high quality subs for generations. Now those who don't get down to Coventry can enjoy these great subs, since Grums has opened a new location at 28500 Miles Road in Solon in the new shopping center next to Miles Market. Grums seems to favor corner stores as it has taken over the space briefly occupied by the revival of Harvey's BBQ. As opposed to the Coventry store, the Solon's Grums, is plain with none of the atmosphere of the original store, which features alot of brick and wood, along with flyers and other signs of the area. The Solon store, while curently a bit vanilla does provide for seating and is clean and functional, hopefully over time they will add some decor. For those who have not had a Grums Sub, these are excellent subs made with high quality ingredients. In comparing them to the national chains, you will find that there are fewer choices and the prices seem higher, but you get value and quality for your money. First lets talk bread; Grums uses large crusty loaves, that are about twice the width of most place, providing a perfect canvas on which to prepare the sandwhich. Because of their size, a half sandwhich at Grums is about the same as a footlong at Subway or its ilk. I usually get the Seagrum, which has Tuna, Mayo, Lettuce, Tomato and Provolone Cheese. Everything is very fresh and with high quality and taste being the key. Grums offers a full menu of hot and cold subs, salads and a couple of extras. When you get tired of bland foods quickly thrown together and want a real quality sub sandwich head over to Grums and see what a real sandwhich should be, it may not be the cheapest, but certain things are worth paying a little bit more for.

Miles Market - Produce Treasure Trove

With the combination of the winter weather and the bad economy I admit that I am not getting out as much as I would like, and especially I am not getting to roam about and discover new places. So I thought I would do some blogs on some of my favorite places, especially places that you can get a good deal on the food. Cleveland is blessed with some very good markets; you have the West Side Market, during the summer you have the assorted farmers markets around town, but the place that I go to most consistently for my fruits and veggies is Miles Market. Located at 28569 Miles Road in Solon, the market has been expanded over the years, now it has produce, wine and beer, bakery, deli, meats, seafood, prepared food and just about anything else you could want to prepare a meal. Lets start with the main reason that I go to MM, the produce. MM is one of the major distributors of produce in the area, so that means that the fruits and vegetables that you get at MM is some of the best and freshest you will find. The selection is excellent, with a good variety and I like that most of the produce is not prepackaged, you get to pick what buy. Being a single guy, I will buy produce and use it over a week or two. One thing I have found is that the produce from MM seems to stay fresh longer then that purchased from other vendors. Generally the prices are good with the weekly specials being very good. In addition, you will often find unadvertised specials in the market. Going through the aisle of natures bounty, you should be inspired to create some wonderful dishes. The bakery at MM is very good, with wonderful baked goods and breads. The prices are not cheap, but you do get a quality product well prepared and nicely decorated. Generally MM will have a muffin, bread and pie special each week. The deli, butcher and fish sections are well stocked and offer fine selections of products. You may not get the cheapest products here, but you will get quality and freshness. The prepared foods section is also very good. MM offers both fully cooked foods, including the new seafood section of the olive bar and ready to cook selections. It is well worth considering picking up a dinner here to have a restaurant quality meal without paying all the extras such as tax and tip. I strongly recommend Miles Market, it offers a wide selection of very high quality foods at reasonable prices. This is a true example of the difference between value and cheap. You will find places that offer cheaper prices, but you probably won't get the same quality. True value is when you get good or great quality at a reasonable price.

Dibella's Subs

OK I am not one for chains, but I am always looking for a good sub sandwich. Until I find a good local sub shop near by, Dibella's has become my current sub of choice. They are a small regional chain that has opened up 2 stores on the east side of Cleveland. One on Richmond Road across from Tri-C East and the other on Aurora Road in Solon. The shops are a bit bigger then the your average Subway or Quiznos, with a long sub line and plenty of seating. Very good subs here. They bake the bread in the stores and it is good, a bit crusty on the outside, with a nice soft middle and good flavor for both the white and wheat. I especially like the everything bread, topped with onions, poppy seeds and sesame seeds. Now the subs themselves, they are well stuffed with proper layering of quality ingredients. I of course have the Tuna and find it to be good quality with not too much mayo. I love that in addition to the cheese, lettuce, tomato and onions you also have a choice of hot, sweet and banana peppers. A couple of other differences you will notice, the hot subs are made on a real griddle the old fashion way, not run through a conveyor belt oven. Also this is a sub shop, salads are not on the menu. For desert there are chocolate chip cookies which may be expensive, but they are yummy. The cookies are just how you want them, a bit crisp around the edges with the soft, chewy middles. Dibella's has a complete menu of cold and hot subs, so if you need a bite give them a try. You can find there website at http://www.dibellas.com/default.asp