Posh on Prospect

Photo by Dustin Lopez

   The husband and I were among 300 plus guests at a private preopening event for Red the Steakhouse, which will extend the energy and excitement of East Fourth Street around the corner and onto Prospect Avenue. It was a lavish affair, done with impressive flair and opulence. The wine flowed, the hors d'oeuvres never stopped coming and the buffet tables heaped with platters of arancini, calzone, cheeses, tiny stuffed peppers, cured meats and other delicious expressions were always full. I watched Brad Friedlander and chef Jonathan Bennett graciously endure hours of backslapping, hand-pumping,cheek-kissing and enthusiastic hugging. Along with the two other principals in their restaurant group, Jon Gross and Peter Vauthy, they were marking their first foray from the eastern suburbs (where they also operate Moxie) into downtown Cleveland,  and the launch of the fourth location for their high-end restaurant, which began in Beachwood in 2004, and then expanded south to Boca Raton and Miami, Florida.

  The top-to-bottom renovation of the two-story building, once home to a thriving jewelry business that had gradually morphed into a pawn shop, and a couple of adjacent storefronts, has created multiple sleek and contemporary dining spaces on two levels. The rooms are done up in distinctive red, black and white, and luxe materials and finishes that define all the venues. Twenty tiers of bottles are on display in a glass enclosed walk-in for wine.

Photo by Dustin Lopez

  Bennett gave us a brief guided tour of the upstairs, which includes a second kitchen. There's the elegantly furnished VIP room and another outfitted with multiple flat screens that can be sectioned into separate, smaller places for meetings and private gatherings. These guys clearly know how to throw a great party, and that's what these rooms are meant for. By the time summer rolls around, there will be a rooftop patio too.

  The menu here will be identical to those at all the Red restaurants. Expect expertly prepared meat and seafood with a choose-your-own selection of sauces and toppings and a la carte sides, plus classic pasta dishes. Dinner service started Nov 17. Lunch is scheduled to begin by mid-December. With this group of seasoned and successful professionals in charge there is every reason to expect that food and service will be impeccable.

Photo by Dustin Lopez

   It's terrific that they've chosen to become a part of the resurgence of the city's center.  As we waited for the valet to bring our car, I remembered what it used to be like in this area when I arrived in 1971. The words sad and seedy came to mind.  The transformation took my breath away and the place literally and figuratively glows with energy. To all who paved the way and pioneered the resurgence of the Gateway District and to the most recent arrivals, I say cheers and thank you. To everyone else, my message is the lights are on, and there's a table waiting for you!

The Taste of Success

   The restaurant business is tough and most places have a relatively short shelf life. Moxie, a white tablecloth establishment in Beachwood serving creative American food, is the exception to that rule. Busy since the day it opened and typically packed with regulars, Moxie marks its 15th anniversary this month. Owner Brad Friedlander is clearly a smart guy with a keen understanding of what diners want, and his partner Chef Jonathan Bennett is terrifically talented, not to mention one of the nicest human beings you'll ever meet. Together they've managed to buck the odds and arrive at this celebratory moment.
  So the pair and their staff are in a partying mood, and everyone's invited. For three nights, January 24-26, they're bringing back favorites from the past, many from the original opening night menu. Guests can feast on the likes of crab cakes with roasted peppers; lobster ravioli; crispy chicken livers with roasted apples, bacon, spinach and port wine sauce; long bone rib steak with garlic mashed potatoes; herb crusted striped bass with tomato tartar sauce; baked hot chocolate, grilled banana split, and fudge brownie sundae. Better yet, prices on all these dishes and and the rest of the Anniversary Dinner specials, served 6-11 PM, are reduced- more than you'd have paid in 1998 but less than you'd expect to spend in 2013.

  There will be musical entertainment. Perhaps some table hopping by Friedlander and Bennett, providing diners a chance to engage in  hand shaking, back slapping, cheek kissing and other congratulatory behaviors. Reservations are required, 216-831-5599. 

  I've been a Bennett fan from the start, have followed the ascending arc of his career and written about him often. And I'm happy that the husband and I will be there to help kick things off on Thursday evening. We're  guests of the house. Touched and surprised I asked what prompted the generous invitation. The answer was, "You helped us get here and you're part of the story."
   It's a good story, with many chapters yet to come.

Mondays with Moxie

Jan. 9 was the first Pizza Monday at Moxie in Beachwood. The new wood-burning oven was fired up and turning out wonderful pies. I was there to try them at the kickoff for this once-a-week-only special. Right now, there are three versions: a classic red white and green Margherita with fresh mozzarella, tomato, Romano and basil; the Funghi made with oyster mushrooms from Killbuck Valley farm, Fontina and a toss of aurugla after it's baked; and a Calabrese topped with slices of spicy salami, fresh mozzarella, tomato, basil and slivers of garlic. Don’t ask me to name a favorite because I thought all were superb. photo courtesy of of Michael McElroy

Executive chef Jonathan Bennett and his crew are making hand-shaped, Neapolitan-style rounds, each one beautiful in its irregularity. The crust is really outstanding — thin on the bottom, puffy at the edges, with the right crisp to chewy ratio. Charring, a characteristic of wood-fire baking (Bennnett calls it "leopardness" for the pattern of dark spotting) adds a dark, smoky note. Long-fermenting dough is one of his secrets. Another is a lot of trial and error. A pleasant tempered perfectionist, Bennett admitted to me that he’d spent the month of December experimenting to get every detail right.

“When you’re working with just a handful of simple ingredients, every little thing, every step matters,” he says. In addition, he got schooled in the craft at an intensive, four-day training course taught by certified experts with the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana in Marina del Rey, Calif., where he did nothing but make pizza for 8 to 9 hours each day.

I also had a great, not-your-usual salad composed of juicy marinated grapes, frisee, walnuts and sheep milk feta, and a bowl of heavenly warmed olives. I sampled the meatballs small plate too, not because I needed more food, but because I needed to taste them. Verdict: delicious. I discovered that dipping the thicker pieces of the pizza rim into the red sauce they come in is an excellent idea.

Another incentive to show up here at the start of the work week is that all bottles of wine less than $100 are half price on Mondays. It’s an incredible deal. The server helped me select the terrific Tikal Amorio malbec from Argentina that normally sells for $64.

With the Monday options of pizza and bargain vino, Moxie has managed to redefine when the weekend begins and ends. You might also want to come in on Thursday, Jan. 19. The restaurant is having a whiskey dinner featuring five courses paired with brown spirits from Ireland, Scotland, Kentucky and Tennessee. $65 per person plus tax and gratuity. Reservations required, 216-831-5599 or here.

Staycation Dinner at Moxie

If they were handing out free trips to New York City, I’d elbow the young and the elderly out of the way so I could be at the head of the line. Once I got there, my primary activity would be eating with some arts and culture pit stops along the way. But alas, no one’s offering me such a no-cost junket and it’s a staycation summer for me. From what I hear, I’m not the only one.

So imagine my delight when I learned that Chef Jonathan Bennett and the folks at Moxie have arranged to bring a little taste of New York to Cleveland. Actually it’s a taste of Istanbul by way of Midtown. On Monday night, August 2 the acclaimed master of Turkish cuisine Orhan Yegen will step into the Beachwood kitchen to cook a five course dinner. Bennett and staff will get hands on experience preparing such traditional specialties as tarama (fish roe spread), cacik (yogurt and cucumbers) and lamb shanks. Those lucky enough to get a place at the table will be served dishes that echo the menu at Sip Sak, Yegen’s Manhattan restaurant. (You can also follow his entertaining blog here.)

Yegen is famous for his food which he’s been making in this country since 1977 at more than a dozen different restaurants he’s opened (and sold, closed, or left). Over the years he’s earned kudos from the James Beard Foundation, Food and Wine Magazine, Gourmet, Newsday, Forbes and a long list of other publications. Yegen is equally famous- or to be more accurate, infamous- for his opinionated, unedited and eminently quotable remarks. The media typically describe him as a quirky character- that’s code for unpredictable, highly entertaining, and occasionally insulting. I think he sounds like a fascinating fellow who operates without a script or handlers, and that rare sort of person that is willing to tell you what he really thinks.

The prix fixe dinner starts at 7 PM. Cost is a reasonable $50 per person including wine pairings plus tax and gratuity. Reservations required. Call 216-831-5599. Maybe Orhan Yegen, who dislikes being called a chef, will have time to visit with guests, an experience that has the potential to be memorable. And no doubt the always charming Jonathan Bennett will make the rounds of the room to insure that everyone is happy. This could be the first dinner in a series: Moxie may host more of these events featuring out of town chefs bringing their style and skills to our town. It's a whole new way to think about culinary tourism.

Family Values

Don’t let the title of this post fool you. I’m not about to start talking cultural politics here nor am I planning to stir up controversy by voicing my opinions on some hot button socio-religious issues. Fact is the highly charged buzz words were chosen by the folks at Moxie to describe what’s going on there this month.
The Beachwood restaurant, not exactly known as a bargain dining destination, is offering special prix fixe meals until January 30. And what a price it is: $50 (plus tax and gratuity) for two people AND just $20 (plus tax and gratuity) for each additional person. This is a deal that’s hard to refuse, especially when the food’s coming from Chef Jonathan Bennett’s kitchen, so bring your parents, the in-laws, the kids, the cousins…

The Family Values Menus change weekly but always include a salad, entrée, two sides, and dessert. Here’s a sampling of what you can expect…but be warned, reading the following list will definitely make you hungry: baby spinach & dried pear salad with warm date vinaigrette and goat cheese; buttermilk fried Bell & Evans chicken; all day pot roast with natural jus; roasted carrots with thyme glaze; garlicky Tuscan kale; Yukon gold potato cheddar gratin; pecorino risotto; lemon meringue pie; chocolate baked Alaska; de-caf tiramisu.

If you haven’t ever gotten up close and personal with a plate of Bennett’s cooking, now’s definitely the time to try it. If like me you’ve visited this stylish restaurant before and already know how talented he is, then there’s extra motivation to make a reservation. Other members of Cleveland Independents, an association of locally owned and operated restaurants, are also offering their own version of bargain meals. No matter whether your voting tends to swing left or right, these are Family Values everybody can support.

Photo by William Beck