That being said, it was a good noodle, hearty and savory, not too greasy, but a good flavor balance. A lot of times I find chow mein can overdo it on the oil, but this was alright, if not terribly impressive. The egg drop soup was also very watery, and I wasn't sold on it. I'm not about to give up my loyalties to China Dragon. Sorry, Jackie Chen.
Today is #WorldPastaDay! Or was it the 17th? Either way. I wanted to celebrate, and decided to veer away from the default Italian I originally thought of, and went Asian with my noodles. Today I'm trying the house special lo mein and a cup of egg drop soup from Jackie Chen Wok in Shaker Square. It was my first time venturing away from China Dragon, a little adventure if you will, to celebrate the holiday!
That being said, it was a good noodle, hearty and savory, not too greasy, but a good flavor balance. A lot of times I find chow mein can overdo it on the oil, but this was alright, if not terribly impressive. The egg drop soup was also very watery, and I wasn't sold on it. I'm not about to give up my loyalties to China Dragon. Sorry, Jackie Chen.
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I went out with a co-worker for a bit of late-night shenanigans, and we tried the Barrio Tacos in Downtown Cleveland. It's a local chain of whiskey bars, specializing in a rotation of monthly margarita specials and the BEST drunk tacos I've ever had, and for a damned good price!
One of my usual tests for a new bar is to ask the tender to surprise me. This one introduced me to a Bulletproof, a cousin to the Old Fashioned, and was a house special. The drinks were strong and wonderfully mixed. For tasties, I ordered a Filadelfia and a Spicy Sapanaro, while she ordered a Filadelfia and the Carne Trozi. The tacos were perfect balance of messy, self-indulgent pub food and masterfully crafted pieces of culinary art. Crunchy? Soft? BOTH? Perhaps you want a black bean and jack taco, or a classic one of roast beef, or another of brisket or spicy or mild or... I could go on and on. The Filadelfia in particular had this sweet sauce on top, beautiful moist pork, and a nice heat that sits on your pallette, and was wonderfully balanced. I also tried a Cafe Duro -- hard coffee -- that was basically a tequila-variant of the White Russian. And yes, it was as delicious as it sounds. You can mix and match or get three of your favorite, and I promise you, nothing you order will be a disappointment. The staff is quick, efficient, wonderfully friendly (and even at the end of the night on a weeknight the place was half-full! There was a regular remarking it was the least busy he'd ever seen the place), and better than competent. Our barman was not only a skilled mixologist, but friendly and patient with my curious questions and our indulgent experimentations. The southwest decor was all decked out for Halloween/Dia de Los Muertos, and the owner of the chain has each pub painted by the same artist, a personal friend who decorates the walls with fantastic chalky skeletons in all manner of merriment, and particularly festive this time of year. Tacos are served wrapped individually in foil to keep them hot and fresh before they get to your table, and placed in little brown paper boats for sustainable clean up. The monthly special margaritas are served in mason jars, lined in salt, and the impressive bar has a fantastic selection of spirits for anything else you might fancy, if you aren't inclined to sample one of the magnificent specials on tap at the moment -- yes, even the beers and ciders on tap are cycled! If you're ever in Cleveland, make sure you set aside a night (and morning...) aside to check out this amazing bar. Kind of a misnomer, since it isn't exactly me going out to eat, so much as me making a sammich at work and screwing it up until I have to eat it myself (oh darn...) and I gotta say, best mistake I've made ALL DAY. I don't often post my work sandwiches (I don't usually have the luxury to stop and snap, and they just don't look pretty after they've been sitting in my bag for a couple hours and getting squished in transit), but this one was just too pretty to bag without snapping a pic. Ham & turkey, double meat. Tomatoes, cucumbers, spinach, pickles, pepper Jack, lettuce, onions, sweet onion sauce, honey mustard and lite mayo, all on wheat bread.
Today has been a terrible day. I managed to get some of my shopping done, only to drop my very new cellphone and crack it on the tarmac (because the protective casing still hasn't arrived in the mail yet) and now my PayPal won't work... Hoi.
I'm rewarding myself with some comfort food to reward myself for not killing anyone. A brisket quesadilla, some grilled onions and chips... I'm also amused that they had tea listed as "Eastern" (green tea), "Southern" (sweet tea), and "Northern" (unsweet tea) and it gave me a giggle. I got Southern tea, for those who want to ask. It's a little on the greasy end, but since that's exactly what I wanted, absolutely no complaints. It was good to have something hot and heavy in my belly in the rain and misery before I could call a Lyft. Bloody frustrating day. ...Whoops. I did it again.
Cajun Joe's again! This time, some honey spicy wings with some crisp, delicious french fries, ALSO covered in that lovely sauce... Oof. A good, hearty, sinful little meal, and at a good price! These wings are very addictive, a good amount of sweet and heat, as with everything. And Joe is just an awesome guy. I can't help but come get some when I can. So, there's a shop next door to ours called Cajun Joe's that is a little barbecue spot, chicken, ribs, wings... It's damn good! And the owner is just a sweet guy, a real friendly and helpful neighbor. His sauce is a delicious savory with a good amount of spice that gives a little heat that keeps you coming back for more! Coleslaw, mac'n'cheese, collards, sweet potatoes, cornbread... All of the best goodies, hearty home-cooking. I wish I could afford to come patronize him more, his food is SO GOOD.
So, there's this really cool spot called Steelyard Commons, and, in the most Cleveland of fashions, it's a strip mall right next to a steelworks, the sheer industrialist vibe is pervasive everywhere, from the ex-quarry it's situated in to the architecture of the mall itself -- AND IT'S A NICE ONE! Walmart, Target, Home Depot, some restaurants, fast food joints, GameStop -- lots of really useful things in one very convenient spot. Among those restaurants is a Steak 'n Shake, which I mentioned I had never been to, although my father had always spoken of very highly.
So my roomie decided to help me fix this. I ordered a Jalapeno Burger (because of course I did), and it was a pretty solid burger! The fries were nice and crispy, the aesthetic was FANTASTIC (I'm a sucker for a vintage diner, especially one with an open kitchen) and the milkshakes were well deserving of their praise. Thick, creamy, but not so thick that I feel you gotta get a spoon out to actually eat the thing, but not so thin that you can suck half of it down without thinking of it. WE CRUSHED IT. It was fucking tasty, and I definitely get the hype! The crew were awful obliging and friendly, considering I was geeking out and taking so many pictures. Like, the guy working the expo station especially was happy to answer all of my ridiculous questions and was very amused by obnoxiousness. I want to blame the sugar from the milkshakes, but really, it was the aesthetic I was geeking out about. I really like retro diners, okay? It's a weakness. Mmm... Pizza. We spent the day at the Tremont Arts & Cultural Festival in Lincoln Park -- my roomie's boyfriend is part of a local commedia dell'arte troupe, and they were doing a few performances as part of the festival, and it was a lot of fun! We ended up having dinner after at Rascal House as a collective party, and it's... Well, it's not exactly impressive. It reminds me of Pizza Hut's pan pizza, a fairly economical, easy-to-acquire pizza house that is decent enough, especially when fresh. Service was slow, actually, but not terrible. And it came out fresh and hot, and after a day at the park where I was pretty damned hungry, it definitely did the job, but cheap pizza is still cheap pizza.
And fantastic or not, pizza is pizza! Can't complain. Especially when I wasn't paying for it, hehehe. Now, full-disclosure, I was NOT prepared for this. But as soon as I got to Cleveland and told people I was a foodie, EVERYONE was telling me about the Night Market. Located in the heart of Asiatown on the last Friday of the month, it's part cultural festival, food festival, and crafts market. There's music, food, art, performance, music... EVERYTHING. I was having a very bad day this particular Friday, and decided to just GO to the thing, even though I wasn't prepared, just because I needed the pick-me-up. And it breaks me, because there were SO MANY GREAT VENDORS THERE, and I only got a few shots off before the phone I had on hand died, but I did see a really cool 'tour bus' for Tour de Cleveland, had some AMAZING little bonbons from Sugar Bomb Confections (those ladies were a HOOT), a jolly man from J. Gumbo's selling THE BEST CRAWFISH ETOUFFEE I'VE EVER HAD, a firetruck-turned-food truck from Firehouse Grilling Co., a Korean-style hot dog... God, SO much food, and I only had $20 to really enjoy it, which is NEVER ENOUGH at a food festival, as you well know. I've since bought myself a digital camera, but moments like this were times I legitimately mourned my poverty.
On the loooong list of things to do now that I have regular wi-fi again, working up uploading some backlogs of the food blog. Because I love you lovelies and I owe you...
I also officially started my Tour of Cleveland today, and it would be good to start with a fresh slate. Will be (forever) working on making this more up-to-date, since it's gotten away from me since the beginning, ha! Have to say, though: LITTLE. ITALY. They have an Asia-town, too! The ICHC has an amazing asian grocery store that... just... EURGH. I was a giggling mess. Every time I drive down Little Italy I stare out the window like a 5 year old on their way into Disneyland. There's a crazy amount of diversity here, and I'm CRAZY excited about ALL of the things!!! |
Brunch w/ BlakeHalf-boricuan, half-corn fed Indiana hick. Stir in a taste of the southwest and serve in LA, on the rocks. #BrunchWithBlake #FoodPorn #LAFoodie Archives
July 2021
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