March 8, 201213 yr El Guero in the WHD opens on Thursday. It looks like a carbon copy of Chipotle, but I'm still pumped we have quick burritos in the WHD! Looks like they did a nice job with the space too (former Phoenix Coffee). http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/ElGueroMexicanGrill The link wasn't working for me. Try this... http://www.facebook.com/ElGueroMexicanGrill
March 8, 201213 yr El Guero in the WHD opens on Thursday. It looks like a carbon copy of Chipotle, but I'm still pumped we have quick burritos in the WHD! Looks like they did a nice job with the space too (former Phoenix Coffee). http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/ElGueroMexicanGrill The link wasn't working for me. Try this... http://www.facebook.com/ElGueroMexicanGrill Im not in to Mexican food, but not feeling any company that cannot maintain their website. I see failure but I hope im wrong.
March 8, 201213 yr Give this place a shot. It's actually being run by two guys in their early 30s that both have chosen to live in downtown Cleveland for many years. One lives in the WHD in a condo - and the other moved from his WHD apartment to a condo on E. 4th. This is a grass-root locally owned/operated place. The idea came from a need they saw from living downtown! El Guero in the WHD opens on Thursday. It looks like a carbon copy of Chipotle, but I'm still pumped we have quick burritos in the WHD! Looks like they did a nice job with the space too (former Phoenix Coffee). http://www.facebook.com/?ref=logo#!/ElGueroMexicanGrill The link wasn't working for me. Try this... http://www.facebook.com/ElGueroMexicanGrill Im not in to Mexican food, but not feeling any company that cannot maintain their website. I see failure but I hope im wrong.
March 8, 201213 yr I also had to point out a typo to them on their menu when they posted pix of it to FB. That may have just been the online menu, and they fixed it subsequent to my post. I hope they can cook! In other news, I walked by a brand new looking stand in the Colonial arcade and am desperately trying to find out more information but can't find anything on the internet. I was in a hurry and did not have time to stop and chat with them, but it is a new raw/vegan place and I saw baked goods under glass. I did not see any takeout type menus or I would have grabbed one as I went past. I think it is called something and "Supreme." Anyone have info?
March 8, 201213 yr el guero looks sharp. thats a can't miss menu. gotta love those guys for bringing it downtown like that so you can stay local!
March 8, 201213 yr Clevelanders calling a business "lame" WOW! We have a few potbellies here in DC and they coexist well with independent shops. Let's get over ourselves!
March 15, 201213 yr The Peace, Love and Little Donuts in Kamm's Corners has opened. I had some this morning, and they were tasty.
March 15, 201213 yr Crane out this morning next to 668 Euclid, putting up the new sign for Hodges on the trellis next to the former Zinc space. Wasn't able to snap a photo, but will try later. Simple and classy looking, IMO.
March 15, 201213 yr Crane out this morning next to 668 Euclid, putting up the new sign for Hodges on the trellis next to the former Zinc space. Wasn't able to snap a photo, but will try later. Simple and classy looking, IMO. I'm sure as classy as Hodges can sound. :wink: They will be open for the St. Patricks Day parade. The patio anyway.
March 15, 201213 yr Lizardville, a newer concept from the owners of The Winking Lizard is opening in The Galleria. The restaurant's main focus is beer and whiskey but serves appetizers as well.
March 15, 201213 yr Crane out this morning next to 668 Euclid, putting up the new sign for Hodges on the trellis next to the former Zinc space. Wasn't able to snap a photo, but will try later. Simple and classy looking, IMO. I'm sure as classy as Hodges can sound. :wink: They will be open for the St. Patricks Day parade. The patio anyway. Love that patio, but I think they had a bit of a fail with their sign. It faces parallel to Euclid, not perpendicular like most blade signs. This will make it very hard to see when walking/driving past. I did bring this up on their twitter feed, @HodgesCleveland, and he indicated that there were some regulation issues (based on the size of the one they are putting up it may have hung over the street) and that there will be other signs.
March 15, 201213 yr Buhc of movement on the city sweets front: - Sweet Moses just announced that they will be piloting a new series of old-fashioned soda fountain drinks. - Colossal Cupcakes is scheduled to officially open for business tomorrow (!!!!!) - George's Doughnuts is open at St. Clair and 24th. I'm not 100% it's brand new, but it's either new or underwent a storefront renovation b/c I walk through there pretty frequently and never noticed it. Looks pretty cute ... Old-school doughnut joint-type look. Really hope it makes it ... An obviously big fan of Campus District / Asiatown, but this doesn't strike me as a top-tier place to open a dessert and coffee spot. But make a special trip and support them anyway ... It'd be nice to see more food and retail along St. Clair :)
March 15, 201213 yr Buhc of movement on the city sweets front: - Colossal Cupcakes is scheduled to officially open for business tomorrow (!!!!!) Yes, heres a story about Colossal from Freshwater. I didnt realize it was called Colossal because they were giant cupcakes. Also she moved back form NYC to open the shop. cleveland boomerang opens colossal cupcakes bakeshop and cafe downtown Thursday, March 15, 2012 Colossal Cupcakes will offer generous-sized cupcakes -- twice as big as ones you'd find at a typical bakery, Kandah promises -- for $3.75. Visitors will have 40-plus varieties to choose from, including the Colossal Classic, a milk chocolate cupcake that has raspberry filling and is topped with almond butter cream frosting. Guilt-inducing drinks such as Red Velvet Hot Cocoa will also be available. http://www.freshwatercleveland.com/devnews/colossalcupcakes031512.aspx?utm_source=VerticalResponse&utm_medium=Email&utm_term=cleveland+boomerang+opens+colossal+cupcakes+bakeshop+and+cafe+downtown&utm_content=%7bEmail_Address%7d&utm_campaign=Rock+Pays+the+Rent
March 15, 201213 yr ^Interesting. Personally, I like that I can eat a magnolia cupcake in the middle of the day and not feel disgusting, so not sure I get the allure of making them twice as big, but I wish her well. "I wanted to bring Clevelanders the same thing I saw in New York -- an actual specialty cupcake store, always stocked with a large variety of cupcakes, that never closes early or sells out," says Kandah. "I thought, why not Cleveland?" Don't we have one of these in Tremont?
March 15, 201213 yr ^Yep, but they serve pretty standard sized cupcakes http://acookieandacupcake.com/ - if they can *all* do well, more power to 'em. clevelandskyscrapers.com Cleveland Skyscrapers on Instagram
March 16, 201213 yr Went to the cupcake place with a co-worker today. I am not a cupcake fan but was interested to see it. The space was, in my opinion, really horrible. It's all super pink and frilly like a little girl's tea party. There were several men in line and one guy joked to another guy he saw in a way that was questioning his manhood, what with his pink bag and everything. I'm not fond of talk like that in general but it really was super, super girly in there, even I felt uncomfortable as I am somewhat of a tomboy. They did not have a lot of offerings - a lot of people were in line so I got the feeling they were selling just as fast as they were able to make them. They had about 4 or 5 kinds when we were there, my friend got a "six pack" of them to go. Their credit card machine was broken as well and they were writing people's order totals and card numbers down on a spiral notebook that was just sitting next to the register. I would have been a little uncomfortable with that if I were buying. They should keep it under the counter or something, you know, and assure people they will shred it as soon as the machine comes back up. The cupcakes did look good, if you like cupcakes. They were, indeed, quite large, and the shop smelled good like baking things tends to produce, so that's good. I wish them succes. It's not a place I would feel comfortable sitting in there and having coffee, for sure. I also tried a relatively new vegan stand in the Colonial arcade today, it's across from the Kebab place, where the hungarian place used to be. There is no printed menu and no credit card machine (yet - they say it is coming though they have been open for about a month the guy said). The menu is written on a big chalkboard next to the counter and was pretty hard to decipher as to what was available and what came with what. The guy working the register did not speak the best English. A woman bustled from the back to the front and she was very friendly and offered to give me a taste of their mac and "cheese" and said they make their own cheese - it was frankly awful. I got the kale with brown rice and veg and my co-worker got the falafel burger. They called me back to the counter twice as I was sitting down, once because they forgot to give me corned bread and another time because they thought I needed another corn bread but I didn't so then they finally let me sit down. And the guy had us stand there the whole time the food was being heated up instead of having us pay and settle up. he had no idea how much anything was, the woman had to tell him and I am not sure the prices were right - I don't think we paid tax, for example, and it was not clear if he charged us for our bottled waters since the lady just pointed at our trays and said what the price of each tray was. I had to pay for my friend's lunch since she did not have cash with her. The guy mentioned at some point that he was from West Africa but the lady seemed Jamaican from her dress and manner of speaking, though I'm not the best at guessing things like that. All that being said, the rice and kale were very good - the kale had a little kick to it and had good flavor, and my friend said the falafel burger she had was good and very filling. Hopefully they will get their stuff together and get a printed menu and credit card reader.
March 16, 201213 yr ^Thanks for the reviews! The cupcake place only opened today, yes? So not a huge surprise they're still working out mechanical issues and inventory management. [incredibly trivial, but hopefully they'll even manage to fix their cringe-worthy web site copy http://thecolossalcupcakes.com/?page_id=10]. Downtown could sure use both types of places, so I hope they can get it together and stick around.
March 16, 201213 yr Stopped by the Cleveland Pickle for a sandwich. Pretty solid. Always welcome sub $10 meal spots to town. www.clevelandpickle.com
March 17, 201213 yr Stopped by Colossal Cupcakes and yes, it was opening day and they were overwhelmed I think to say the least! The owner said she was about to cry but she was still smiling! :-D I hope they do great, you never can go wrong with cupcakes! Also here is the Hodges sign:
March 17, 201213 yr ^ Oh man, that side of 668 building...it's just terrible! If I owned Hodges I'd be out there with a grinder every chance I got.
March 17, 201213 yr Am I correct that Hodge's has no Prospect presence - and that this archway (leading to set-back-from-street restaurant) is pretty much it on Euclid? If so, though I wish them well (and though I know folks love that patio) - it would seem pretty much any on-street location downtown would have been better than this one... Am I wrong?
March 17, 201213 yr It didn't work for zinc because the service was terrible and the food was mediocre.
March 18, 201213 yr What greek place? There's like a gyro shack looking place there, is that what you mean? Yes. It looks like a shack but the food is made fresh and is Rey good. It is family owned.
March 20, 201213 yr Dang. Seriously? Will have to check it out. Very good. Not sure who or what "Rey" is.
March 20, 201213 yr ^ took an objective walk on west 25th today looking for the aforementioned "Santorini" spot. I dont see where this place can be going. It states that it is going next to Orale, but i cannot find it. Maggies vegan bakery is there and on the other side is joy cycles/boutiques. Can anyone shed any light?
March 20, 201213 yr in cream-colored building between the (new) Elegansia and the Gateway food mart. (Carved out of the former near-west woodworks)
March 21, 201213 yr Great news!!! Another new Pho restaurant is coming soon on the east side - this time at Legacy Village.
March 21, 201213 yr We had a Pho place on the (s)W side but nobody patronized it and it closed - it was the people that own #1Pho and Saigon. They had an outpost down in Middleburg heights but they never had any business and they closed. I confess I am not a pho lover so I was not a regular there myself, though I tried to go there and order other of their items often.
March 21, 201213 yr My kids are always on my case for Pho when I don't feel like cooking. We were all super excited to see an asian noodle house proposed for Kamm's, but...... months later, no action in the space since the initial construction started.
March 21, 201213 yr There's really good pho at Tay Do on Snow and Chevrolet and at Minh Anh on Detroit, and a totally awesome variety of noodle soups at Phnom Penh on 25th and on Lorain near 150th.
March 22, 201213 yr http://lakewoodobserver.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=10817&p=80481#p80481 more buildup in the old birdtown neighborhood. a fun spot
March 22, 201213 yr http://lakewoodobserver.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=10817&p=80481#p80481 more buildup in the old birdtown neighborhood. a fun spot I've got mixed feelings here...bela dubby is my hangout. It's a small coffee shop/art gallery with beer and couches and cafe snacks and live music. John and Jill were inspired to open the place when they moved back to LW from Brooklyn, wanting to emulate the loungy dives popular in their Green Point neighborhood. I'm sad that both the name and the nature of the place is likely to change.. it's a bittersweet thing. However I am friends with the Crino family and understand the bottom line. I know this makes good business sense and Taco Tantos is just a fantastic place. I just wish our neighborhood could have both places.
March 22, 201213 yr A CWRU article about Uptown posted elsewhere on UO today was the first I've seen confirmed that Jonathon Sawyer's previously noted Italian concept in Uptown will actually be a pizza place... Nice...
March 22, 201213 yr The ladies behind A Cookie and A Cupcake are opening Churned, an ice cream shop in Tremont. It will be in the old Dish spot on Lincoln Park, http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2012/03/22/churned-adds-ice-cream-to-cookie-and-cupcake-co
March 22, 201213 yr The ladies behind A Cookie and A Cupcake are opening Churned, an ice cream shop in Tremont. It will be in the old Dish spot on Lincoln Park, http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2012/03/22/churned-adds-ice-cream-to-cookie-and-cupcake-co This may make me visit my cousins more frequently. And a donut shop?! Oh lawd. I'm not a big cupcake eater, but I love donuts! lawd...lawd....lawd!
March 24, 201213 yr Pretty Cool, I always liked this building. The Bridgeview Cafe (The abandoned white building) on the northwest side of The Hope Memorial Bridge is coming back to life. You can read about it in Doug Trattner's blog section (click "news" then "Scene & heard") on Scene's website: www.clevescene.com
March 24, 201213 yr I always wanted this building too! The outdoor patio seems like a no-brainer. Great news and thanks for posting.
March 25, 201213 yr Pretty Cool, I always liked this building. The Bridgeview Cafe (The abandoned white building) on the northwest side of The Hope Memorial Bridge is coming back to life. You can read about it in Doug Trattner's blog section (click "news" then "Scene & heard") on Scene's website: www.clevescene.com Link to article: http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2012/03/23/historic-bridgeview-cafe-to-re-open-after-decades-of-darkness
March 25, 201213 yr Just saw a Facebook post about a restaurant pop-up at Jonathon Sawyer's Noodlecat on April 20th.. It's a "downtown donuts" pop-up - with Noodlecat/Greenhouse pastry chef "serving up tasty treats on the Noodlecat patio all morning long" - flavors such as "kill chocolate kill", "spicy honey bacon" and "ohio apple pie"... To me, this adds fuel to the fire over potential "hipster donut shop" downtown - as quoted in Crain's last Fall.
March 25, 201213 yr I hope to grab one before running in to work and just be late, but the hours are not great (7-10a) since it's during work hours. But I'm excited! I had a few of his house-made doughnuts last year and they were very good.
March 26, 201213 yr We picked up some cupcakes from Colossal Cupcakes yesterday, and I have to say that I was a little disappointed. I had a blackberry cupcake, and it was very dry. I'll have to try a few more flavors before I decide my opinion for sure, but as of right now, I think A Cookie and A Cupcake in Tremont is much better. Has anyone else stopped by Colossal Cupcakes yet?
March 26, 201213 yr Many times. I love their cupshakes!! Cupcakes mixed into a milkshake?? How could you not??!! The owner says it's been busy....more busy than she would prefer. I told her that's a good problem to have! I know they have been overwhelmed...hopefully it's not affecting the cupcakes.
March 28, 201213 yr Hodge's set to open in the old Zinc space tomorrow: http://www.clevescene.com/cleveland/dim-and-then-sum/Content?oid=2931045 Early reviews are welcome as always!
March 28, 201213 yr in the Horseshoe Casino thread, I posted about the updated website, which hints at a pizza place as 3rd food court option, describes the buffet a bit and notes restaurant hours - and that there will be preferred outside restaurant partners.
March 28, 201213 yr Deli to open in old Local Heroe's/Cooperstown space: New deli option coming in former Local Heroes, Coopers'Town location; another Restaurant Week launches in April: Restaurant Row Matt Creighton, who formerly worked as co-executive chef for the defunct Melange restaurant in Beachwood, has some cool news of his own. Sometime around the Cleveland Indians' home opener Thursday, April 5, Creighton will launch a new venture on East Ninth Street across from Progressive Field. Read more: http://www.cleveland.com/taste/index.ssf/2012/03/new_deli_option_coming_in_form.html
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