Cleveland restaurants put a new spin on comfort food
— -- Cost-conscious travelers can enjoy bountiful pleasure at mealtime if they choose their itinerary carefully and order wisely. To help with the planning each month, USA TODAY's Jerry Shriver offers a menu of suggestions from a major destination:
Down-home dining: Profiles of cheap-eats classics.
1. Sokolowski's University Inn 1201 University Road; 216-771-9236; sokolowskis.com
Beginning in 1923 and continuing through three generations and several shifts of fortune in the Tremont neighborhood, the Sokolowski family has served belly-filling, home-style Eastern European dishes to legions of locals, Cleveland sports and polka stars, U.S. presidents, and more recently, hordes of trendy foodies. The eatery includes a workingman's bar, a cafeteria-style food-service area and a warren of comfy rooms stocked with communal tables. The main meal is lunch (there's also a fish fry on Friday evenings, plus Saturday night dinners), where diners pile their cafeteria trays with kielbasa and bratwurst sausages, potato pancakes, cabbage rolls, sautéed pierogies, Salisbury steak and other Old-World fare (most entrees, which include a few sides, are $7.25), then move into the lively social scene in the rear.
•Top treat:Sautéed pierogies, $7.95/dozen
2. Melt Bar and Grilled 14718 Detroit Ave., Lakewood; meltbarandgrilled.com
Given that grilled cheese sandwiches are one of the pillars of American comfort food, why did it take so long for someone to create a restaurant devoted entirely to the concept? Chew on that when you dine at this cheery bar and bistro in the West Side suburb of Lakewood. Opened in 2006, Melt offers two dozen versions of the sandwich (more, if you customize your order with the 14 types of cheeses and nearly 50 other add-ons), all substantially portioned and affordably priced ($5-$13). The most talked-about offering is the $9 "Parmageddon," consisting of 2-inch-thick slices of bread encasing two potato-and-cheese pierogies, vodka-soaked sauerkraut, grilled onions and cheddar.
•Top treat:Municipal Stadium Magic grilled-cheese sandwich (bratwurst, vodka sauerkraut, grilled peppers, American cheese), $9.
3. Prosperity Social Club 1109 Starkweather Ave.; 216-937-1938; prosperitysocialclub.com
A barroom has operated on this Tremont site since 1938. When the current owners took over 3½ years ago and introduced a hipper approach, they were careful to honor the area's heritage. The atmosphere is a mix of bohemian, blue-collar and faux nostalgia (a classic jukebox and occasional live music; $2 bottles of Schlitz and a vast list of boutique brews; a kitschy game room with a bowling machine). The menu (appetizers, $4.75-$9.50; entrees, $9.50-$15.50) embraces quintessential Cleveland comfort food: ricotta-stuffed pierogies topped with grilled onions and sour cream; stuffed cabbage; beer-battered fish; potato pancakes; apple-roasted pork loin; and apple bread pudding. On Wednesdays, $12.50 entrees drop to $9.50.
•Top treat:Beer-battered cod with sweet potato fries and cole slaw, $12.50.
Easy Splurges: Low-cost dishes at the hot new places
4. L'Albatros Brasserie 11401 Bellflower Road; 216-791-7880; albatrosbrasserie.com
Veteran restaurateur Zachary Bruell opened this companion to his popular Parallax restaurant in December in the University Circle neighborhood and has quickly built an audience for hearty and rustic French bistro dishes. The country-inn decor is cozy and comfortable (except for the plastic chairs), and ideally suited to the classic menu, which showcases house-made charcuterie (terrines, savory pork rillettes and coarse-grained sausages), and classics such as onion soup, braised leg of lamb and cassoulet.
•Cheapest dinner appetizer:Pork rillettes with toast points and pickled onions, $7. Others, $6-$12.
•Cheapest dinner entree:Grilled sausage platter, with potato purée and sweet/sour onions, $16. Others, $15-$22.
•Worth trading down? Yes. The $7 rillettes were an earthy delight and an $8 goat cheese tart was tangy and satisfying. The sausage platter was generously portioned. All were fine examples of the restaurant's French country fare.
5. Lola 2058 E. 4th St.; 216-621-5652; lolabistro.com
Chef/restaurateur and hometown boy Michael Symon emerged as a star of the city's upscale dining scene (and the Food Network, via Iron Chef America, based on his work at this flagship bistro, which he moved downtown in 2006. His takes on upscale urban comfort food are straightforward and deeply satisfying and showcase regional ingredients. Pork is king — in the forms of crispy pig ears, braised bacon squares, sausages, charcuterie and smoked chops — but seafood, especially the walleye with sweet-potato spaetzle and pancetta, provides a pleasant counterpoint. A nice bonus is the wine list with plenty of unusual options under $50.
•Cheapest dinner appetizer:Cauliflower soup with almonds and golden raisins, $7. Others, $8-$18.
•Cheapest dinner entree:Pappardelle with mushrooms, broccoli rabe, red wine and parmesan, $18. Others, $22-$32.
•Worth trading down? Yes on the appetizers, no on the entrees. Both the $7 cauliflower soup and the $10 braised bacon with parsnips were creative, soulful dishes. Skip the bland pappardelle and move up to the $22 roasted chicken with boudin blanc and lentils or the $28 walleye with sweet-potato spaetzle.