Uptown's Asian Invasion

Photo courtesy of Barney Taxel

Ninja City Kitchen and Bar opened last month in University Circle. This Asian street food and fast food concept from Bac Nguyen, the owner of Bac, a bistro in Tremont, is a fun spot as long as you know a few things in advance. Ninja City a place for eating, not dining. Water is served in plastic cups and some dishes arrive in paper-lined baskets. The vibe skews toward youth in decor and style, which makes sense given the location on the fringes of the CWRU campus.

Photo courtesy of Barney Taxel 

The operation strikes me as a cross between two other local creations. To order, guests fill out a form a la Happy Dog (soon to be opening a second outpost in the former Euclid Tavern down the street), with options to customize your own plates and combos. The small menu itself is reminiscent of items available at Noodlecat downtown — reinvented versions of ramen, gyoza, edamame, steam buns and chicken wings. I enjoyed everything I tried. The BBQ pork buns were my favorite — light, airy rounds of dough to wrap around bits of roasted meat accompanied by pickled carrot and radish, a toss of scallions and cilantro, and topped with chili aioli. The cold spring roll noodle bowl didn't stray far from tradition but it was nicely done with a tasty sweet garlic vinaigrette. The Banh Mi sandwich was big, mostly because of thick slices of crusty bread, but the filling of sliced pork, ham,  and veggies held its own. The portions were generous and the prices reasonable. I noticed that dishes were flagged for being gluten free, vegetarian or available without animal protein.

Photo courtesy of Barney Taxel

There was something a bit too postmodern about the decor for my taste, a mix and match pastiche that strives a bit too hard to be hip. The comic book cute wall art is inspired by graphic novels. The chain link fence that fronts the mirror — for no obvious reason — metal ceiling fans, utilitarian tables and chairs and exposed ductwork have an urban industrial feel. But then there's weathered barn wood paneling opposite the bar and in parts of the upper level. I do like the fact that the front window is actually a garage door that can be raised in good weather, with access to a small patio on the sidewalk.
 
I don't think I'd make a special trip just for a meal here, but if I was hungry and in the neighborhood, Ninja City would definitely be on my list of possibilities.

Movin' Out

Photo courtesy of Barney Taxel, Taxel Image Group

Brian Reilly has a 216 area code, but he's no longer cooking in Cleveland. The former Noodlecat chef has taken his knives to Seymour, Connecticut, where he's now executive chef at Tavern 1757. The June move was unplanned but was an opportunity too good to pass up. We caught up by phone last week.

LT: You landed the new gig after beating out the competition on Food Network's "Chef Wanted With Anne Burrell." How did it happen?

BR: The show producers came to me. The first thing I did was call my mother. Then I called [Jonathon] Sawyer and he told me to go for it — he's been totally supportive — but I never expected to win. By the time the final episode aired in August, I was already gone. The whole thing was pretty surreal.

LT: Was a job at the restaurant guaranteed?

BR: No. Owners don't necessarily have to hire you.  In fact, I was the only one who actually got a job in season three. After we finished filming, the owner and I sat down three hours before I was scheduled to fly home and came to an agreement.

LT: What kind of food are you cooking?

BR: I'm doing mostly rustic Italian with some more Asian-influenced dishes added. It's kind of a combination of classic Italian and new, creative American. This isn't a foodie-centric area like Cleveland, so we have to go slowly. I just got my first review in New Haven Living. The writer loved our food. Gave us four and half stars.

LT: Think you'll ever bring your talents home?

BR: I've left Cleveland three times, and I always come back. Things are going really well for me here right now, but who knows what's ahead.

After Party, After Sandy

 I was hanging out at Noodlecat late Saturday night,  mingling with some of the hard working chefs who so generously donated time and talent to the utterly fabulous and financially successful West Side Market Gala. As if he hadn't already done enough,  'Cat owner and chef extraordinaire Jonathon Sawyer, who worked with Michael Symon on the big fundraiser, rolled out the welcome mat for an afterparty. He wanted to be sure that those who worked the main event also had a chance to kick back, relax, and enjoy some nice food and drink. Ben Bebenroth, who's own Spice Kitchen and Bar had been closed last week due to the power outages that crippled so many Cleveland neighborhoods, was outside grilling.

Eric Williams and I chatted about how Storm Sandy had hurt us here. Momocho, his Ohio City restaurant, was dark for three days. He lost about $5,000 worth of food and the building suffered some serious wind and water damage. He estimates his total losses at $15, 000, a lot for a small business but not much, we agreed, compared to the hit taken by those on the east coast, including some of the chefs scheduled to be here for the Gala. I mentioned reading an article in The New York Times about how tough things were for that city's hourly wage workers: their desperate attempts to get to work despite the dangers and transportation shut down because they couldn't afford to miss a day of work, and the despair of those who  lost desperately needed income when their employers didn't or couldn't open for business. Williams told me that, worried about his own people, he had gone to the bank, made a cash withdrawal and paid his staff for the days Momocho was shuttered. "I did it," he said, "because it was the right thing to do."

He didn't tell me this to boast or make himself look good. I wasn't on the job and he had no reason to think I'd write about it. We were just two people chatting about what had been going on. But thinking about it afterwards, I realized that I wanted to share the conversation because it encapsulates both some of the grief the hurricane left in its wake and the way people step up to help one another in times of crisis. The entire evening- the super efforts Symon and Sawyer made to find replacements for the chefs from out of town who were not able to make it here; how everyone pulled together to insure that the fundraiser went ahead as planned including Williams who cooked for the event; Bebenroth showing up with his usual smile despite a hellish week and troubles of his own; and my exchange with Eric- was a little story within a big a disaster and a testament to resiliency and goodness.

Cheering for Team Sawyer

Chef Jonathon Sawyer is ambitious in a good way. He’s always got something new going on, striving to advance his reputation, build his career and get people in the doors of his two restaurants, Greenhouse Tavern and Noodlecat. And he’s committed to bringing the whole city with him into the spotlight.

That’s why he organized a tweetup to coincide with his appearance as a competitor on Iron Chef America Jan. 22 at 10 p.m. Instead of a simple watch party, attendees are being asked to tweet about the action. The idea is to turn Sawyer into a trending topic on Twitter with Cleveland coming along for the coast-to-coast promotional ride. The free event to be held at Greenhouse Tavern booked-up fast, so another one was offered at Noodlecat. There’s no space left for this one either. But that doesn’t mean you can’t be part of the experience. Invite friends over. Get takeout from either place or make something wonderful to eat while watching and tweeting (use the hashtag #teamsawyer) at home. Pop corn, toss with melted butter, salt and Parmesan and just enjoy the show, without worry about greasy fingers.

The culinary cook-off pits Sawyer against Geoffrey Zakarian, winner of The Next Iron Chef Season 4. The gray-haired contender, who heads up multiple dining establishments in New York City, Miami and Atlantic City, looks more like a natty businessmen than a stove jockey. And he definitely had his work cut out for him going up against the Cleveland team, which included Sawyer’s talented right- and left-hand guys, Jonathan Seeholzer and Brian Goodman.

Abiding by his ironclad contract, Sawyer isn't breathing a word about the secret ingredient or the final outcome of his Food Network battle, but he still has plenty he can say.

“It was hard to portray the entirety of the Tavern style in just five courses,”  he says. “There was so much we wanted to do, but we only had an hour and had to keep it simple. Even so, I am absolutely pleased with the food we produced and how it defined us and the restaurant.”

And, the chef continues, it should be big fun to watch.

“We were super entertaining, loud, laughing and enjoying ourselves in the kitchen just like we always do," he says. “I hope that comes across to the viewers.”

Noting that he’s been in the hot seat before as an assistant when Michael Symon took on the challenge, he adds, “It is awesome and humbling to be the actual competitor instead of the sous chef.”

Another thing Sawyer’s doing for his hometown’s dining scene is hosting pop-ups. He’s using his national connections to bring in really great chefs from other cities to cook in his kitchen and making room for locals to shine too. Three of these one-night-only experiences are scheduled for January and February at Noodlecat: Lee Anne Wong returns to prepare a lunar new year feast on Jan. 21; Fresh Street of Columbus makes Japanese street food on Feb. 2; and Cory Barrett, a trained pastry chef now serving as executive chef at Lola does desserts on Feb. 13. Reservations for Bricks and Mortar Pop-Ups required.

Purr-fectly Wonderful

Once again Jonathon Sawyer and crew are on the cutting edge of food trends … and helping insure that Cleveland is too. This time it’s restaurants with a short life span. Chefs secure a venue, create a menu, host a dinner party for a single night or a week of nights, then pack it in and the party’s over. It’s a chance for them to play with ingredients, test ideas and break free of diners’ expectations. For the people they feed these temporary eateries are exciting, an opportunity to be part a singular and out-of-the-ordinary experience. These culinary adventures are getting traction in big cities around the country.

Sawyer in Noodlecat kitchen: photo by Bridger Rehner

Sawyer’s calling his version Brick & Mortar Pop-Ups. I was a guest at the very first one, held last Saturday night in his not-yet-open new place, Noodlecat, on Euclid Avenue, just around the corner from The Greenhouse Tavern. Lee Anne Wong, an accomplished chef well known for her Bravo TV and Cooking Channel appearances, was in town to help him launch the planned series. The two partnered in the kitchen to great effect, producing a highly original and outstanding menu titled "Easy Japaneasy.” It foreshadows some of noodle dishes Sawyer will soon be serving there as well as what Wong wants to do for the Asian-inspired gastropub she hopes to get up and running in New York city before the end of the year.

Lee Anne Wong doing Easy Japanesy: photo by Bridget Rehner

The options were divided into three categories: Fingers, Sticks and Slurps. Sharing plates with the husband, I got to try three in category one and two each in the others: roasted oysters seasoned with togarashi (a 7-spice blend), garlic and bone marrow butter, (among the more astonishing and delicious things I’ve ever eaten), plus tea smoked deviled eggs on toast topped with marinated salmon roe, and crispy shallots with breaded pork cutlet sliders with mustard-katsu sauce and cabbage salad; shrimp and water chestnut gyoza with scallion ponzu dipping sauce + nanbanzuke of perch (cold marinated fried fish) with tomato watermelon salad and pickled onions; braised pork belly stew with radishes, carrots, and tiny potatoes in a drinkable soy laced broth + a gingery udon noodle stir fry with cabbage and bits of bacon. Bartender Dean Sauer mixed me up a Lee Anne Special made with Maker’s Mark and Orange Rhubarb spritz, a Dutch salad featuring gin and ginger beer and Noodlecat’s Japanese margarita. We left nothing edible or drinkable behind.

Perch: Photo by Bridget Rehner

Wong, wearing golden clogs, told me the pair got quite a work out in the kitchen with many hours of prep required. "It was a good warm-up for Noodlecat," she said. "Jonathon has an ambitious menu planned and will be doing some similar dishes." It may get even more ambitious- he and wife Ameilia left the next morning for eight days of research-that means eating- in Tokoyo.

The next Bricks and Mortar Pop-Up, also at Noodlecat, comes courtesy of Dim and Dem Sum founder Chris Hodgson July 11 & 13. Reservations required. The uber-energetic and super social young chef recently returned home after a cross country stint as a contestant, and finalist, on America’s Great Food Truck Race, along with his second mobile chuck wagon, Hodge Podge, and plans for a permanent location.

Noodlecat, which will serve strictly Japanese style noodle based preparations, should be totally finished and ready for customers right after this event. The space, small, simple and fun, already looked great Saturday. The design and décor is a collaborative effort for Sawyer and Sin-Jin Satayathum, the artist who helped give Greenhouse Tavern its distinctive and sustainable character. Based on first impressions, I’d say they’ve successfully combined elements of a traditional ramen house here with something distinctly their own and totally Cleveland. Love the long repurposed school lab tables ats the back, bench along one side, stools on the other. They create instant sociabilty. Traded "what to order" advice with a pair of women on my left, and the couple on my right offered samples of their dish. If I was a cat, I'd have been purring with happiness.