The (Hopefully Temporary) End of Our Fun Playing with Food with Dominic Cerino

We met up with some of our dearest friends Saturday night for dinner at Carrie Cerino's. We thought that we were celebrating the safe recovery of little 8 month old Nolan from serious surgery, but it has now turned out that we were celebrating something else entirely.

The following is my own, independent analysis, and has little or nothing to do with what has actually happened - but it is how I see it.

Dominic Cerino was truly touched by his trip to Italy as part of the Cleveland Convivium of Slow Food in October 2006. In addition to the education and experience of the Terra Madre convention, Dominic visited with his Italian relatives and immersed himself in their food culture. Ever since he returned to Cleveland, new items influenced by the trip appeared on his restaurant menu. He seemed a little restless, given the logistical issues presented by the Carrie Cerino's facility's age, size and location. Still - this was a bit of a shocker.

Late yesterday, Linda Griffith announced on the Cleveland Food & Wine Forum that:

On January 29 of 2008 Carmen C. Cerino, Co-Owner of Carrie Cerino's Ristorante & Party Center, became the sole owner and operator of the business. Brothers Dominic A. Cerino III and Michael J. Cerino have decided to retire from the family business, and pursue other interests in their respective fields. Carmen's wife, Jo Marie Cerino, will join in on the day-to-day operations of the business.

While I hope that all of Cleveland joins me in wishing Carmen and Jo the best in the ongoing business of the restaurant - this is a very sad day for those of us who adored Dominic's vision and his signature dishes - the Blue Egg Ravioli, Blue Egg Carbonara, Norcian Lentils w/House Made Sausage and Guanciale, Pulled Pork Cannelloni - the list could really go on. He has not yet made any public statements about his future plans (I personally think he should consider opening a Salumi shop if he doesn't open another restaurant) - but I wish him all the best.

Saturday evening, however, we were all laughs and smiles. Most of us (including me) were unaware of the impending events, and we simply enjoyed the wonderful food. We began by sharing some of the the classic Carrie Cerino's appetizers:


Calamari with Marinara Sauce


Stuffed Mushrooms



Yes - that is a stuffed mushroom on my plate. I must say, the cheese and bread stuffing was fantastic. And yes, I did cut off a little, little bit of the mushroom meat to taste. After tasting - I passed the now empty mushroom cap to Bob.


Stuffed Artichokes


Salumi Board


From-Scratch Foccacia

How we found room for our entrees, especially after the soup/salad course, I still don't know!


The "Regular" Pork Chop


Berkshire Pork Picatta


Side of Pistelli Risotto


Veal Tosca

How ironic that I ordered this - on what was to be my last night enjoying Dominic's touch in the kitchen. This dish - delicate veal slices coated with a cheesey, eggy batter and sauteed with lemon - was the first entree I ever ordered at Carrie Cerino's. I seldom got it thereafter, because there were always so many wonderful specials on the menu. This incarnation was as wonderful as ever.






Pasta with Pesto Sauce

I hope Carmen keeps the house-made pasta, and this fabulous pesto treatment - slightly cheesy, slightly nutty - but never overwhelmed by the stale pignolia nuts one often finds in restaurant pestos.

And finally - though I normally keep my photos to food on this blog - I could not resist taking this picture of Nolan P. - who at the time was literally chowing down on sister Reagan's patent leather shoe while in the arms of friend John



To Dominic Cerino:

Buona fortuna e tutti cosi belli! (Good Luck and all good things to you!)

Fun Playing with Lunch at Appetite

My business office is located near the intersection of Mayfield and Richmond Roads, in Lyndhurst Ohio. Lyndhurst is a small town sandwiched (you should pardon the expression) between Euclid to the West and Mayfield Heights to the East.

For years, 5143 Mayfield Road, a short walk from the office, held Broadway Bagels. Broadway Bagels, in three or four locations, brought a taste of a New York Bagel Store to the East Side of Cleveland. For whatever reasons, however, the Bagel Stores became run down, and one by one they closed (except for the Solon location, which was sold to several former employees and continues making delightful bagels as "D&R Bagels").

My office-mates and I had stopped patronizing the Mayfield Road bagel store, because, shall we say, it just ran down a little too far for our tastes.

Then, in the fall of 2006, Bennett Davis, acclaimed CIA-trained pastry chef at Moxie, teamed up with his fellow CIA graduate brother William, to open Appetite in this location. They scrubbed the space from top to bottom, and replaced a lot of the overly worn equipment. In this revived space, they operate a delightful bakery and deli (and also do catering on and off site). We are "regulars" there now, but somehow, I always forgot to bring my camera. Until today!


The Order Counter

Orders may be placed, and are paid for, across from this beautiful Garland range. Note the two pots of house-made soup (todays were Clam Chowder and, I think, Beef Barley). One of my pet peeves about getting soup is that it is never held hot enough - but by keeping the pots directly on the flame, William has it always piping hot at service, and it stays that way long enough to be enjoyed at that temperature all the way to the bottom of the bowl.

After ordering, I wandered down to the bakery section.


EPI Bread

This is my favorite of Bennett's breads.


Focaccia Bread

Today was my first taste of this delicacy - and it was wonderfully good!


White, Wheat and Rye Breads


Pastry Galore!


Cookies

On to the other end of the counter - bowls and bowls of made-from-scratch salads!


Front Left - Macaroni-Pesto; Rear Left - Traditional Macaroni Salad, Rear Right - Traditional Potato Salad, Front Right - Potato Salad with Bacon


Front Left - Pasta Salad with Olives and Salumi, Rear Left - Broccoli/Raisin Salad, Rear Right - Fresh Cole Slaw, Front Right - Cous Cous Salad


Front Left - Greek Salad, Rear Left - Pea & Ham Salad, Right Rear - Fresh Fruit Salad

So - what to choose for lunch? All of the lunch salads - tuna, egg, tofu, chicken, etc. are made in-house. The Roast Beef and Corned Beef are also made in house - and William tells me that house-made Turkey is coming soon!

Will calls himself "The Deli Lama" - and the title is most deserved! Every day, Will creates a lunch special - an original sandwich, choice of side, plus a cookie or pastry. All of this for only $6-$7 - such a deal!

Today's special sounded so good, both Anna and I ordered it - BLT (featuring Applewood Smoked Bacon) on Focaccia Bread.


Lunch Special w/Macaroni Pesto Salad and a Pickle Spear


Lunch Special with Cous Cous Salad (hold the pickle)


Mmmmm - Bacon!

Actually, we were both making very happy, satisfied sounds as we ate these sandwiches - I don't usually like my bacon this crisp, but somehow, it all came together perfectly in taste and texture. And the bread - it was simply heavenly - cheesey, olive-oily and tomatoey - all at the same time.

I enjoyed mine with the house-brewed iced tea, which is also most refreshing and delicious. Anna opted for DDP (Diet Doctor Pepper).

Neither of us finished our dessert - Anna wrapped hers up right at the start:


Cheese Danish

I neglected to get a photo of my Cinnamon Bun before cutting it - Anna was regaling me with tales of how fabulous they are. I don't often get excited about desserts. I appreciate them and eat them - but seldom do they "wow" me. Well, I admit - this "wowed" me - not only was it the best Cinnamon Bun I've ever tasted - it was up there with being one of the best pastries I've ever tasted!


Cinnamon Bun, cut in half

It has gotten to the point where we (and some other folks in this neighborhood, I think) have taken Appetite for granted - it is truly a little gem of a deli holding out against the numerous chains that abound nearby, and also competing with a few very good mom-and-pop type places. If you are in the neighborhood, stop by and give them a try - you'll have fun with real food made by real people and served with a smile.

Fun Playing with Soup!

I think that a well done soup is the ultimate comfort food - especially in the dark coldness of winter. Over the years, I've gone from the famous red and white label cans that Mom would make, "progressed" to non-condensed cans, and tried Tabatchnick's, which comes frozen and is made with all natural ingredients. When I get sick and crave chicken soup, I've always searched throughout the town I live in to find great chicken soup. Still, no soup is as good as homemade - and at the risk of showing a little ego here - no one's chicken soup is as good as mine! Still - true soup chickens are hard to come by, and sometimes, one just wants a great bowl of soup without the time and work of cooking it. But where to go? And what about other varieties of soup?

Cleveland is blessed with a number of restaurants that make excellent soup. And we have a Chinatown that can dish up awesome soups 24/7. But what about take-out in the suburbs that is reasonably priced and always ready to go? There is a chain that is relatively new in Cleveland, Zoup, that claims it "makes all of its own soups using the highest quality, all-natural meats and vegetables, and the most appropriate (even if they are most labor-intensive) techniques . . . . " I've tasted Zoup's products twice, and while there was "nothing not to like" - there was nothing to bring me back - there was no question that the soups were commercially prepared (as they must be, for this concept to work) and tasted commercial to me.

Enter a new business that opened right in my home town of Solon Ohio: The Soup Pot. The Soup Pot serves 10 varieties of made-from-scratch soup every day, in addition to a small selection of salads and breads. Breakfast was in the original plan, but was apparently not well patronized, which is a shame because I for one would love to see how they prepare kasha for breakfast!

So yesterday was a very strange day - started in such a great mood, then slipped on the sheet of ice that was the bank's parking lot before I could even get out of my car at about 8:15am and wound up sitting on the ice for a while before someone helped me up (it was too slick for my boots to get a grip). Now sore and cranky, I left the office early and hungry, craving comfort and sustenance. It was about 3:30pm when I wandered into The Soup P0t, not at all sure what to expect.

This small store is cleanly scrubbed and bright. But the first element to engage my senses was the amazing smell of soup cooking - not from a mix, or a freezer bag - but from bones and flesh. The smell assured me this was the real deal.

I struck up a conversation with the owner's mom, who's name I didn't get. A pleasant lady with a Russian accent, she encouraged me to taste the soups, and I sampled three of them. Since I couldn't decide, I wound up bringing home 2 8oz containers. I passed on the crackers, and the server apologized that they had run out of bread, which would normally come with the soup.

My husband agreed that these soups were fantastic - the flavors leaped out of the bowl mixed with intoxicating fumes - this is the kind of soup I have craved! Loaded with genuine mouthfeel from real ingredients - it helped to pull my lousy day out of the gutter.


Turkish Meatball Soup

This wonderful soup was accented with a little lemon and wonderfully fresh and tasty meatballs. You could even tell that the carrots were processed in-house and were not from a bag of shreds.




Cheddar Corn Chowder

Not what I'd normally expect from a soup of this name - a very soup-like consistency (chicken broth, according to my server) packed with flavor and just a hint of the cheese. Yum.




The third variety that I tasted at the store was Chicken Paprikash. It was loaded with shreds of fresh chicken and quite tasty.

Now that I've found the family-owned-and-operated Soup Pot (in my own back yard to boot) - I'll be back! They are open 7 days a week and are located in the Solar Shopping Center, a few doors down from Giant Eagle. This independent provider of lip smacking comestibles deserves the support of anyone in the Greater Cleveland Area who loves great soup! Because as much fun as it is to make soup from scratch - The Soup Pot lets me play with great soup without having to cook it!