Flying High with Local Farm-inspired Cuisine!

Flying Fig located right in the heart of Ohio City on Market Avenue, right across from the Great Lakes Brewing Co., quaintly fits its self-named ‘small eatery and bar’. Modern and sophisticate on the inside with a small patio facing the hustle and bustle of Market Ave, The Fig is a great place to get your happy hour grub on. I first fell in love with the fig as a pre-Indians game destination. If you’re up for the walk, The Fig is merely right over the Lorain/Carnegie Bridge. With most HH items priced at around $3-5, it’s a good way to budget your night out with some drinks and dinner there and then head over to the always over-priced Progressive Field. I mean, why spend $10 on a Miller Light when you can spend $3 on a craft beer? Regardless whether you stop into The Fig around HH (Tuesday- Friday 4-7pm) or any other time, you’re bound to find something delicious on the menu! Almost everything comes from local farms in the area, giving it a real farm-to-table sensibility. The Confit of New Creations Pork Shoulder is splendid, as are they’re Medjool Dates. The Flying Fig also has a connecting Market, which offers up fresh salads and artisan sandwiches throughout the day. You can stop in for lunch with some colleagues during work or pick up a sandwich for your bike ride around Cleveland!

Help Momocho Celebrate Their Anniversary with Food Trucks Galore: Tonight!

 

Make your way to Momocho tonight! Starting at 6pm, Ohio City’s favorite contemporary Mexican restaurant will host a celebratory anniversary with food trucks JiBARO, Umami Moto, Fired Up Taco Truck and Sweet! Mobile Cupcakery in their parking lot. Margaritas and Food galore! This is the perfect end to the case of the Mondays I know you all have!

Light Bistro Offers Impeccable Taste!

Let me tell you of a place located no more than 10 minutes from downtown with a happy hour that starts at 2:30pm and goes till 7pm, which offers fine dining at affordable prices and devilishly good cocktails… ahh yes, I would be speaking of Light Bistro in Ohio City. Located behind Dave’s Supermarket off W. 25th, Light Bistro serves up simple, swanky goodness. Light Bistro opens up for lunch and stays open long after the sun has set. Clean, modest interiors provide a professional and attractive backdrop to Light Bisto’s extraordinary cuisine. While this isn’t a restaurant for everyone, as my boyfriend felt walking in underdressed, during happy hour this slightly prim and proper joint offers a gleam of luxury at a poor-man’s budget. Like I have said, happy hour is the only way I am usually ever able to try such exquisite tastes on my budget and Light Bisto is up there in rank with the greats. For $10, one can get a cocktail and a meal. Light’s bar menu, which changes frequently, offers up a variety of tantalizing flavors for only $5 a pop. Menu items recently included a Pig Buger (pork & sirloin), 2 Fish Tacos, Buffalo Frog Legs and Grilled Pesto Flatbread. Cocktails range from $4-5 with $5 wine pours and $2 domestic beers. Even their specialty cocktail of the week (Roasted Beet Martini) was only $5 and uniquely delicious! Regular menu prices range from $10-24 on average and include large potions. Light Bistro is also known for their tapas and and wine store where you can take a bottle home with you after sampling in the restaurant. Its a great place to pick and chose a few interesting tapas, sip wine and catch up with friends. Light Bistro also does wine and food pairing along with an entourage of other fun events. This place is worth checking out and I hope that you do!

Cleveland’s Margaritaville- Johnny Mango!

With Cleveland teasing us with scattered days of sunshine, why not escape Mother Nature the Temptress and enjoy a tropical experience at Johnny Mango World Cafe & Bar?! Be transported to another climate instantly when you step into J.M.! The décor is warm and worldly and the food is downright ahhh-mazing! But people who know and love J.M. come for their drinks– specifically, their margaritas! $5 Margaritas (HH Monday through Friday 5-7pm) are sure to beat the fake heat. With a wide variety of margis to chose from, why not try them all, especially their monthly special margarita (April is Cucumber and it is probably one of my favorites of all time!) or step up your game with an El Diablo (vodka, Grand Marnier and Silver & Gold tequila). For those looking to take a more sober route, J.M. got something juicy for you too! Fresh squeezed juices come in all flavors under the sun! The food, like I said is incredible! This is definitely a place you want to visit if you or someone you know is Vegan or Vegetarian! There are so many options to chose from, but whatever I get, I always make it a Big Plate! For only a few extra bucks, you get Happy Beans (bean of the day), Vegetable of the Day & Bread and Slather (different every week!). J.M. does a theme each month, hosting particular flavors to spice things up! You can afford to eat healthy on a budget at J.M. as they provide fresh ingredients from the West Side Market and carb-conscious option at super reasonable prices! All in all, with a margarita and a meal with lots of leftovers for the next day, you’re looking to spend about $15 a plate, but don’t be discouraged if that’s still a bit much- their appetizers are large and run anywhere from $2-7! Don’t forget their Brunch or $1 Taco Tuesday either… yumm!

Shake Your Bon Bon!

Cutesy decorum, friendly tattooed waiters, fresh cut flowers on the tables and most importantly, yum yums that won’t break the bank or your exercised bon bon! Bon Bon Pastry & Cafe is pastry chef Courtney Bonning’s baby! After winning Food Network’s Cupcake Wars, Bonning decided to transform her small wholesale bakery, Bonbon Bake Shop (once located in Gordon Square), into a full-on menage a trois of deliciously adorable bakery, belly-satisfying brunch & heartwarming cafe drinks! Bon Bon is located on Lorain Avenue next to Crop Bistro and Penzey’s Spices in Ohio City. I had to check this vintage gem out when I saw them building it. I am in awe of all the wonderful entrepreneurs utilizing old abandoned spaces throughout Cleveland and Bon Bon is a breath of fresh air among them! Lined with prime people watching windows, Bon Bon is great place to order a coffee and cupcake to go, or to sit and share a French press with a friend over some Bubbles & Squeak breakfast or a brunch sammie! The food menu has something for everyone and for you bacon lovers out there– Bon Bon is the place to get your bacon on! I don’t know what they soak this stuff in, but one bite leaves me turning and yearning like a pig in a pen! Their desserts are definitely worth writing home about, as you can imagine they would be, Bonning winning Cupcake Wars and all… Every time I’ve been back I’ve ordered something different and have loved it just as much if not more than the last time! Stopping in to pick up a coffee on my way to work and a cupcake for a post-lunch snack always makes the day a little brighter! Bon Bon is a restaurant that fills my heart with joy! Whether it be Bonning herself greeting guests with a smile or enjoying a bright atmosphere with a great freshly brewed cup of coffee, one thing’s for sure, you have to check this Cleveland darling out– I promise you’ll be back a second time around!

Fill Your Easter Baskets with Campbell’s!

So many new stores and restaurants are popping up in Ohio City and Campbell’s Sweets Factory is one of them! Cupcakes, candies, multitudes of unique favored popcorn and sweets galore can be found at Campbell’s… even chocolate covered jalapeno! Their shop popped up next to Cleveland darlings Room Service and Salty Not Sweet on Lorain and they have a satellite booth at the West Side Market. Especially for Easter, this sweets shop is a must! I walked in on Friday and they were packed with “easter bunnies” stocking up for tomorrow! Whether you’ve had a bad day and need a delicious pick-me-up or your sweet tooth is aching for something yummy, you have to check out this delectable sweets factory!

Take Yourself Out Somewhere, Even if it’s not to the Ballgame!

The sun is shining it’s Opening Day for our beloved Cleveland Indians and for those of you unable to attend the game, here’s a few things you CAN do today!

Hodge’s Restaurant is hosting a Home Opener patio and food truck party that will start at 11am and will run past 5pm when band, Disco Inferno will play a set. Hodge’s is located at 668 Euclid Ave.

Ohio City is also hosting a Bunny Hop Bar Crawl tonight. Join in on the fun, grab a pair of ears and possibly enjoy Ohio City venue specials! Not really a whole lot more info, but sounds fun!

R.I.P. Dragonfly & Garage Bar

 

As some of you may have already come to know, both Cleveland sushi destination, Dragonfly &  the ever popular hipster biker bar, Garage Bar are closed… or maybe? According to Clevescene.com, owner Marlin Kaplan was quick to shut the doors on these local Ohio City favs without any real rhyme or reason. However, both the venue’s websites suggest otherwise. Especially Dragonfly’s, whose website proudly boasts a New Spring Menu coming in this Thursday, April 5th. Fingers crossed it’s just a hoax, but most likely not. A tear is shed because Dragonfly had one of the swankiest looking bars in the OC and a great $5 maki roll HH. Garage Bar, which was always packed on the weekend serving up cheap brewskis and great dance parties will surely be missed. One can only hope these beloved venues can reopen some day in the future!

Read {the super limited details} here.

Help Light Bistro Celebrate 5 Years!

Light Bistro “opened March 2007 with the idea of creating a new dining experience for Clevelanders”… and it has! Although not entirely part of my usual affordable Cleveland, Light Bistro’s Chef Matt will be preparing a 5 course food and wine dinner for $55 which is said to take you on a journey of Light Bistro’s best-of menu items over it’s 5 year life span. Call to make reservations. I’m sure for the food and wine it is one heck of a deal; however, if you’re free tomorrow night around 5pm and looking for something free to do, check out Light Bistro’s Anniversary Celebration happening in their newly designed Carroll Ct. Room where Chef Matt has prepared a buffet of free tapas along with drink specials and their regular menu!