Fun Celebrating 5 Tasty Years with Food Trucks and Momocho!

This was the scene last evening in the parking lot of Ohio City's Momocho. Chef-Owner Eric Williams decided to celebrate his restaurant's five-year anniversary by giving his staff the night off, and throwing a big, old fashioned, play-with-your-food party in his restaurant parking lot with these behemoth guest chefs. The restaurant and patio were open, and staff from Chef Eric's other restaurant, The Happy Dog, tended bar, dispensing cold Tecate beer, zippy Margaritas, and wine, at celebratory prices.

Chef-Owner Rocco Whelan (Fahrenheit) Surveys the Scene From His Food Truck

Reading Facebook posts about the event earlier today inspired me to corral my husband and just go after I got home from work! And we were both glad that we did. The scene buzzed with positive energy, with total strangers enjoying one another's company as they played with their food.

Since we've both enjoyed Dim and Den Sum before, and I've sampled some of Umami Moto's food, we decided to start with the two trucks neither of us had yet tried. First up - Rocco Whelan's Fahrenheit - the name of both his brick-and-mortar Tremont restaurant and his food truck.


Fahrenheit's Menu


Leoncini Country Ham Fontina Sandwich and Pear Arugula Salad



I'm not always a big fan of ham - but this sandwich rocked! The gooey fontina cheese played nicely off of the salty ham, which had just the right amount of chew and a beautiful porkiness. With the buttery toast around the fillings, the sandwich melted in the mouth. The salad provided both crunch and astringency; a perfect counterpoint to the sandwich (and who doesn't love the combination of pear and fontina cheese?).


Crispy Potato Wedges Basil Parm EVOO

We loved this offering also - creamy, with a little bit of crispy texture, big potato flavor and just enough sharpness from the Basil.


Fruit Satay - Truffle Honey, Cashews, Captain Crunch

This inspired bit of fun playing with food combined warm fruit with both sweet and savory flavors, and a variety of textures. Yum.


Jibaro Menu

We shared a burrito.




Tangy Carrot Pickle and Jalapeno Slices


Caribbean Burrito - Barbacoa Braised Pork, Jibaro Yellow Rice, Jerk Spice, Kale, Black Beans, Mango Salsa

This burrito = simply delicious. It hit all of the right notes - savory, spicy without being too hot, intensely flavorful, cooling sweetness from the mango, and textural contrasts - heck, it even had green leafy vegetables in it that tasted good! This was our first taste of Jibaro, but it will not be our last.


Umami Moto Menu (or what was left of it by the time I photographed it)

The item at the bottom that is blocked is "Vietnamese Meatballs." Speaking of which:





We really enjoyed these flavorful, meaty bites together with the dipping sauce, which as advertised offered a tantalizing combination of sweet and hot.


Fish Taco - Marinated Tilapia, Romaine Lettuce, Cilantro, Mint, Red Onion, Cucumber and Lime Aioli on Handmade Corn Tortilla

I would normally not buy tilapia in a street food setting (I'm not a huge tilapia fan in any setting), but as you saw above, the choices were limited. As Bob had never tried Umami Moto's food, I really wanted us to get two dishes, but we felt that the Pad Thai would have been too much food. I loved everything about this taco (especially the handmade corn tortilla and the Lime Aioli), except for the fish, which tasted like, well, frozen tilapia to me. Ironically, Dim and Den Sum ran out of food moments after Bob placed his order there, so we probably could and should have tried the Umami Moto Pad Thai instead, but that is sometimes how the tomato bounces. (The Pad Thai looked and smelled delicious as two of our impromptu table-mates enjoyed some; our loss).

Speaking of Dim and Den Sum:



Bob tried to get a Beef Sandwich and a Veggie Taco, but moments after he ordered - the white board was wiped mostly clean (BLT sandwiches were the only savory left) and his money was returned to him. Missed it by that much.

He was offered the following consolation prize:


Chocolate Cupcake with Minty Frosting

We tend to fill up on savories and not have room for dessert - but as it all worked out, this last sweet, chocolaty, creamy bite ended our meal perfectly.

Cleveland has spent a lot of time and effort fussing over food trucks lately; it was wonderful for Eric Williams to open up his place and his parking lot to showcase four of Cleveland's best. The perfect weather and expertly mixed margaritas added to the fun, and the food was almost all sold out by 8pm. But more than food and fun, we enjoyed a fabulous sense of community tonight in Momocho's parking lot - and that made the evening all the more tasty.

Speaking of tasty - be sure to get your tickets for a very special Dinner in the Dark to be held at AMP 150 on Monday, May 23, 2011 at 6:30 PM. This event is a benefit for the Matthew Finkel Scholarship Fund, and will offer food from fifteen of Cleveland's premier chefs and beverages from premier micro-breweries as well as wine. The benefit will also offer some amazing prizes for raffle, including the opporutinity to join the audience for filming of Iron Chef America this summer! Please visit DITD's Eventbrite page for all of the details, and to purchase your tickets.

Fun Playing With Happy Hour Bacon at Fahrenheit, Tremont, Cleveland OH

Yes, you read that correctly - Happy Hour Bacon. Let me explain.

Last night was a busy one! After a full day at the office, home to pick up the husband, than up to Ohio City to pick up an order of grass fed beef and pastured eggs from Aaron Miller of Miller Livestock Co, Inc. Since Aaron was in town for a meeting at 5:30pm, and since our dinner date in Tremont wasn't until 6:30pm, we found ourselves pulling into Tremont with a bit of time to spare. As we turned from Professor Street onto Jefferson, however, we saw our friends (and soon-to-be dining companions) Jan and John crossing the street for a pre-dinner cocktail at Fahrenheit. What a splendid idea!

As I have said many times in this space, Cleveland is blessed with an abundance of wonderful eats and drinks. It would take retirement and an unlimited expense account to get to them all with any regularity. Tremont more and more reminds me of Greenwich Village NYC with its myriad of fabulous eateries at all price points, and fun shops and people. Rocco Whalen's Fahrenheit is a place that we haven't gotten to often enough, but for no other reason than too many places, too little time and money. 

And so, last night we joined our friends for a little Happy Hour goodness - and OMG does Chef Whalen know how to rock the Happy Hour!

I present - the bar snacks:

That would be bacon. Forget the popcorn, pretzels and peanuts folks - this is the real deal for a bar snack (and still salty enough to accomplish its primary purpose)! Yum.

And, as if that wasn't enough, Chef Rocco was kind enough to send a marvelous taste to us to sample. It isn't on the on-line menu yet, but if you visit Fahrenheit, it is worth asking for:

Salad with Fresh Duck, Marcona Almonds and Citrus Dressing 

More yum. And had we not been heading to dinner, we would certainly have availed ourselves of the Happy Hour Menu, which includes the following:

Fahrenheit Happy Hour - Monday through Friday 5-7pm

FOOD SELECTIONS

Vietnamese Chicken Springrolls, Bibb Lettuce, Cucumber Salad,
Hong Kong Dipping Sauce 4

“Double Cheeseburger”, Lettuce, Tomato, Ketchup and Mustard, Toasted Bun 5

Butternut Squash, Goat Cheese, Garlic Spinach Pizza, Finished with Ohio Maple Syrup 6

“Mini Hotdog Platter”, 2 Beef Dogs, Toasted Brioche, Chopped Bacon, Tomato,
Ketchup and Mustard, Battered Onion Rings 7

Crispy Fried Chicken and Waffles, Truffle Honey, Scallions 8

DRINKS

Great Lakes Dortmunder • Newcastle • Jose Cuervo “Blood Orange” Margarita •
Cantina Tollo Pinot Grigio • Red Tree Pinot Noir 3

The chicken and waffles looked oh-so-tempting, but an authentic Thai feast was awaiting us, so we thanked Chef for treating us to the salad, paid for our drinks, and headed across the street.

But I've just gotta shout that Chef Rocco Whalen is a genious to supply bacon as a bar nosh! We need to get back to Fahrenheit for a meal soon. Fun with bacon at Happy Hour - need I say more?

Playing With Food With Good Friends, Part II

After the Slow Food cheese tasting ended on Saturday afternoon, eight of us decided that we needed to play with more food and drink, and so we trundled through the snow to Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood, and Rocco Whelan's cheerful bistro Fahrenheit.

None of us was at all hungry, but after all of the cheese we'd had at Baricelli Inn, libations seemed just the ticket. I wish I'd photographed my cocktail - a Mojito variation based with Pyrat rum, muddled mint and fresh berries. Most of my companions opted for beer or wine, except for Kay, who ordered a Gran Marnier from our bartender, Jen, who was celebrating her graduation from nursing school. Congratulations Jen!


Gran Marnier served in a snifter perched atop a mug of steamy hot water. Mmmhhh.

Chef Rocco was in the house and stopped by to say hello. We lost about half of our group as it got close to 7:30pm - and the four of us who remained began to feel a little hungry. So, we ordered an appetizer and two pizzas to share.

Chinatown Chicken Springrolls, Hong Kong Dipping Sauce, Cucumber Salad, Pickled Ginger.


Close Up of the Dipping Sauce


Close Up of the Spring Roll

I had a nice chuckle as we enjoyed these savory morsels - one of our friends had suggested eating at Ty Fun across the street. But this spring roll, and the fabulous dipping sauce, were better, than any springroll we could have gotten anywhere else. And, we could not have gotten pizza at an Asian restaurant (not even Seoul Hotpot has them anymore) and I wouldn't have wanted to miss these!


Margherita, Oven Dried Tomato, Roasted Garlic, 3 Cheese, Basil


Our first pizza was topped simply with luscious tomato slices, cheese and basil. Fahrenheit's pizzas have a nice toothiness and great flavor.

Fennel Sausage, Caramelized Onions, Stewed Tomato, Basil

This pizza truly dazzled us. First, the sausage was outstanding. But the real stars of this pizza were the golden nuggets of perfectly caramelized onions. This pizza was so amazing, I forgot to take a slice shot.

The Sausage Pizza had me ready to try at least one more variety from Chef Rocco's arsenal! But alas, my companions preferred sweets to savories, and I didn't want to be a dessert-pooper. And, we did choose well.


Butterscotch Mouse Topped with Cream and Chocolate Straw


Molten Chocolate Cake with Berry Sauce and Creme, and topped with Ice Cream

I have to admit, I did eat my full share of these two desserts. The chocolate was, well, chocolatety, with a creamy center and luscious accouterments. As for the butterscotch - it is one of my favorite flavors, and this dessert delivered it with gusto.


Chocolate Coffee

No - this was not for me! (Those of you who know me or have read this blog know that I have a complete aversion to all things coffee.) But it looked pretty enough to justify a picture!

The four of us finished our desserts and beverages, but we were having so much fun playing with our food that we just couldn't stop! So we phoned the couple who had left us to join other companions for dinner, and agreed to meet up with them at the storied Velvet Tango Room.

Our host, Paulius, treated us to a taste of his luscious from-scratch EggNog - made with rum, brandy, eggs, cream and spices. Wow. We spent some time playing with drinks while enjoying wonderful music from the piano/bass combo. A perfect end to a day filled with fun, friends, and most important - playing with our food.