Those of you who know me have at least somewhat of an idea as to how much I love wine. Vodka is good for a few drinks but wine is the wonderful fermented fruit that you can have with dinner, with friends, sitting around a fire, watching tv, pretty much any situation you can imagine!
My new love...10 for $10 tastings at Battery Park Wine Bar. This is an unpretentious wine tasting that you go through at your own pace. It starts at 7pm the last Wednesday of the month and the $10 is added to your bill. You do need to make reservations for the night. So you come in, grab a glass and start your journey through the wine. Order a cheese plate and for 2 people the total cost is only $18 for the night.
On my most recent trip with my dining companion we were tasting local Ohio Wine from Laurello in Geneva. We started with the whites, moved to the reds, and finished with the sweet Ohio wines. When we walked in we were given a sheet with all of the wines and the descriptions. It was great as we went through each one to see if we could taste the hint of white peach or pineapple. The wines were delicious and for $10 the tasting was well worth it. I do not typically write about alcohol cheap eats and usually my suggestion is to avoid the alcohol to save on the overall cost. But this is well worth a frugally classy endorsement.
Since I love writing about the food...I will touch on the cheese plate. It is a $16 cheese plate with 3 domestic/imported cheeses. On Wednesday the cheeses were a brie, Merlot soaked Parmesan, and a Camembert. Along with the cheeses were french bread, a date tapenade, herbed oil, grapes, strawberries and walnuts. The cheeses were excellent. The wine soaked cheese had a hint of wine flavor and paired well with the cheeses. We did not want to leave any cheese on the plate! I have written before about the quality of the food at the wine bar and the simple cheese plate did not disappoint!
I hate to give away this secret, but it is a great tasting at a great price and so relaxed that you can really enjoy the wines and company of those at the table.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Dante Happy Hour
Tremont is one of my favorite spots in Cleveland, second only to Gordon Square. It is a mecca of foods from hole in the wall bar to upscale Japanese. There is a little something for everyone and last night I tried the Godzilla Happy Hour at Dante. The restaurant is quaint and small but the vibe is great. We sat at the bar and were able to order from the happy hour or regular menu. In true frugal fashion...I went for the happy hour menu.
As is typical, my drinks cost more than the food. This is really where they get you on the happy hour. But the cocktails were well worth it...fresh and delicious. I had two martini's at $5 a piece. The first was a passion martini with passion fruit puree, vodka and proscecco. The second martini was a blood orange martini with vodka and blood orange puree. They also offer many beers for $2 and wines for $5. But on to the food...my favorite part of the meal.
The prices for happy hour vary from $3 to $6 a plate. A few people at the table ordered the fried with a Japanese seasoning. They were crispy with a side sauce that was very creamy and tomato based. I chose one of the toban yaki dishes. They cost between $4-6 and include vegetarian, beef, pork belly, and salmon. The salmon was delicious. It was approximately 2-3 oz of fish grilled and then placed in a clay pot to steak with greens and soy. It was a small plate but perfect for dinner. Next time I would try the beef. they also have miso mussels and a sushi "pop". For under $10 you could create a filling, healthy and flavorful meal.
I am excited to go back again soon to try another one of the toban yaki dishes or the sushi "pop". There was really nothing Italian on the happy hour menu, but the regular menu does offer tasting portions of pasta, rissotto and other items for around $5 each. Dante's fits the frugally classy lifestyle and is a great choice for afterwork.
As is typical, my drinks cost more than the food. This is really where they get you on the happy hour. But the cocktails were well worth it...fresh and delicious. I had two martini's at $5 a piece. The first was a passion martini with passion fruit puree, vodka and proscecco. The second martini was a blood orange martini with vodka and blood orange puree. They also offer many beers for $2 and wines for $5. But on to the food...my favorite part of the meal.
The prices for happy hour vary from $3 to $6 a plate. A few people at the table ordered the fried with a Japanese seasoning. They were crispy with a side sauce that was very creamy and tomato based. I chose one of the toban yaki dishes. They cost between $4-6 and include vegetarian, beef, pork belly, and salmon. The salmon was delicious. It was approximately 2-3 oz of fish grilled and then placed in a clay pot to steak with greens and soy. It was a small plate but perfect for dinner. Next time I would try the beef. they also have miso mussels and a sushi "pop". For under $10 you could create a filling, healthy and flavorful meal.
I am excited to go back again soon to try another one of the toban yaki dishes or the sushi "pop". There was really nothing Italian on the happy hour menu, but the regular menu does offer tasting portions of pasta, rissotto and other items for around $5 each. Dante's fits the frugally classy lifestyle and is a great choice for afterwork.
Monday, April 1, 2013
Wing Playoff
So many of you know I was a judge for the Plain Dealer wings Playoff on Saturday March 30th. It was a fun event and I met some really cool people. They all love wings and they all have a good palate...I think almost all of us agreed on what was the best wing. So it started and we have no idea what wings were from which places. The place chose their best wing to serve us. I do not know the overall winner, it will be announced this Friday in Friday Magazine. Because we do not know the winners, I will try to describe the wings without a lot of my own judgment.
The first round had what I think was a honey mustard with a little chili wing and a dry rub. The honey mustard wing had very subtle flavor. The dry rub was a crispy wing and the rub actually fell off the wing as you were eating it. It was slightly peppery, salty and spicy. A winner was chosen from that round to go to the final.
The second round had a crispy wing with Parmesan cheese on top and a sticky crispy honey wing with a 911 sauce to accompany it. the second wing definitely had two different flavors between the wing without and with the 911 sauce. Ok...I will give some commentary here. The 911 sauce was awesome! I could eat it straight, but it was not what I would describe as 911. the winner was chosen from that round.
The two winners then went head to head for a final tasting and voting was complete. Check out the PD Friday magazine for the overall winner. My one comment on the quality of wings...people...do not vote based on where you live. Try to vote based on the actually quality of the product. There were 2 wings that I not only did not like at all, but that I cannot believe anyone who likes wings would ever order.
Happy Dyngus Day all...I will be down there trying some yummy Polish food all afternoon!
The first round had what I think was a honey mustard with a little chili wing and a dry rub. The honey mustard wing had very subtle flavor. The dry rub was a crispy wing and the rub actually fell off the wing as you were eating it. It was slightly peppery, salty and spicy. A winner was chosen from that round to go to the final.
The second round had a crispy wing with Parmesan cheese on top and a sticky crispy honey wing with a 911 sauce to accompany it. the second wing definitely had two different flavors between the wing without and with the 911 sauce. Ok...I will give some commentary here. The 911 sauce was awesome! I could eat it straight, but it was not what I would describe as 911. the winner was chosen from that round.
The two winners then went head to head for a final tasting and voting was complete. Check out the PD Friday magazine for the overall winner. My one comment on the quality of wings...people...do not vote based on where you live. Try to vote based on the actually quality of the product. There were 2 wings that I not only did not like at all, but that I cannot believe anyone who likes wings would ever order.
Happy Dyngus Day all...I will be down there trying some yummy Polish food all afternoon!
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