I have a friend comnig in from out of town next weekend, and he's never been to Cleveland.  We don't have a TON of time to spend, but I was wondering what things should be on our not to miss list?  He already wants to go to the West Side Market (he's a HUGE foodie!!), but other than that, I have no clue.  What restaurants should we try, should we do the art museum, etc?  I live in Lakewood, and I'm near a rapid station, so transport SHOULDN'T be a problem.  Any and all suggestions are welcome.  I want to show him what an awesome city Cleveland is!

Will your friend have a car? This might affect some suggestions.

 

If he's a foodie, I recommend taking him to one of Michael Symon's restaurants and one of Zack Bruell's restaurants. If you want to keep things tight geographically, you could do Lola one night and Chinato the next night, both are on E 4th street and are relatively expensive, and reservations are pretty much required for Lola, strongly suggested for Chinato.  Chinato is one of my fave restaurants in all of Cleveland.

 

If you have access to a car and want to go a little more casual, you could go to Lolita in Tremont one night, another Symon restaurant, or B Spot on the E side, which is his burgers/beer type place.  If you go over to the art museum (not my thing, but that's just me), see if you can get in at Zack's restaurant L'Albatross, which is in University Circle, it's fantastic.

 

If you want to stay around the west side market, you have a lot of great options there was well. Great Lakes Brewing Co for the beer (don't bother eating there), Flying Fig for food, cuban sandwiches from Lelolai bakery on 25th, or the great take-and-eat options at the market proper - Frank's bratwurst sandwich, Maha's falafil wrap sandwich (BEST EVER), a crepe and coffee, or dine at the little cafe in the market.  I would also take him to Lucky's for brunch on the weekend, or even Johnny Mango's for brunch if you can't get in to lucky's.

 

You could always do a bar crawl around lakewood, there are a lot of fun small bars there and that's a fun time.

 

I can't help much with suggestions of what to do outside of eating/drinking things, that's what I usually focus on when I travel some place.

We will have access to a car, that's one thing.  I'd like to keep it relatively inexpensive since, although he's MY guest, he'll be paying for everything.  I don't really want to do the art museum, as it's not my thing either, I'm just trying to show him what's around.  He's a BIG food channel guy, and a BIG Michael Symon fan, but the more expensive place is definitely out of the picture.  Thanks for the advice though, and keep it coming!

If he's a big foodie, I def. recommend Chinato and/or L'Albatross along with a Symon restaurant. They don't have to be expensive if you just sit at the bar and have apps and a drink.

He's a BIG food channel guy, and a BIG Michael Symon fan, but the more expensive place is definitely out of the picture.  Thanks for the advice though, and keep it coming!

 

I agree with R&R's restaurant suggestions.  Lolita and B-Spot are both excellent choices if you want to get a little Michael Symon flair without Lola's price point.  Also, any Zach Bruell restaurant (Chinato, L'Albatross, Table 45, Parallax) is a must, although they're all a little pricey (but well worth it, his restaurants are among my favorites in Cleveland).

 

Also, I would definitely recommend University Circle/Little Italy just for touring even if you don't want to go to the museums.  It's a fantastic place to walk around with all the construction going on, seeing the CWRU campus, Wade Lagoon, museums, Severance Hall, Murray Hill Rd. and Mayfield Rd. through Little Italy, etc.

 

Lakewood is great for a pub crawl, but I also really like Ohio City.  Between Old Angle, Dragonfly, ABC, Bier Markt, and Great Lakes, there's plenty of great places all within a block of each other.  Plus, there many great dining options as well.  If you want dessert (or even a very good dinner at pretty reasonable prices), I suggest making your way over to Le Petit Triangle at Fulton and Bridge (across from Johnny Mango).

agree with jam40jeff as well, OC would be great for a pub crawl and he might really like Bar Cento from a foodie perspective, and Flying Fig is a good foodie place as well, and it's a cute area.

 

Another idea is Greenhouse Tavern, which I think is open for lunch on the weekends though you should check. Def. a "foodie" restaurant. Chef/owner Jonathan Sawyer trained under Symon and is nominated for a James Beard award this year - your foodie friend will know what that is. It's also on e 4th.

 

If he is at all a foodie type in his drinking (i.e. not a "Miller Lite" type of guy), I STRONGLY recommend the Velvet Tango Room for a cocktail.  http://www.velvettangoroom.com/  And nearby Momocho chef Eric Williams just got mentioned as a nominee for a Beard award as well.

I strongly recommend Osteria for a fantastic Italian dinner.  It is a very small, intimate restaurant with a "big city" feel.  It is located downtown on St. Clair Ave. near XOs.  To enter you walk down several stairs and the restaurant is slightly below street level.  The food is great!

Take him for a beer (or 3, 4, 5, 6, whatever) at the Greats Lakes Brewery when you visit the West Side Market.

 

I would reconsider the Art Museam.... especially since it is free.  It really is one of our gems.

 

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is a hit with just about any out of town guest.

 

Maybe a show at PlayHouse square?

 

I have to plug Coventry too, since you will have a car.  If you go to Little Italy with car, just drive on up the hill.

 

Also, keep an eye on MuRrAy HiLL's running calendar for events, etc. - http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,22979.0.html

Thanks for all the great suggestions!  We're doing the west side market Friday, with a stop at Great Lakes, dinner with friends on Friday night, Rock Hall on Saturday along with Little Italy.  Should be fun!

Cool! Have fun, Emmie!

Just wanted everyone to know that we had a GREAT time exploring Cleveland this past weekend.  West Side Market was awesome, Rock Hall was great, Little Italy was fabulous, it was just an all around great weekend. 

Glad to hear it. I was in Little Italy on Saturday evening for dinner with a friend. Even though it was pouring rain, there was still a decent amount of people out and about.