The unexpected trip report revised 10/17 finale

Ok, I know I said that my greatlakes/canadian baseball trip would be my last trip of the year, and it actually would have been had it not been for Hurricane Ike and Gustav.

First for those who knew (or cared) that I was off the board for almost a month, I was actually working Catostrophe duty at our home office in Cleveland which is where our call center is located. This was not fun and games...this was 12 hours of work a day- every day- including weekends, although I'll admit it was nowhere near as physically draining as working Hurricane Katrina in Austin TX was 3 years earlier.

For the most part, I didn't have time for roadfood in Cleveland, and if I didn't take advantage of the free dinner at the hotel on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays then it usually meant Wings and a Great Lakes Dortmunder at one of the bars. As I wrote prior to leaving, there would be time for some roadfood although I did not take any photos- not only because I was with fellow coworkers for part of the time, but because I was in complete work mode. There were 4 stand outs in Cleveland which I'll mention...

1- Sokolowski's Cleveland- This is my second visit- I went on a Saturday evening with 3 other coworkers one from Cumberland MD, one who lives in Cleveland but is originally from Youngstown and another from Wichita KS- The "Old Cleveland" atmosphere and hearty blue collar food of this Polish "cafeteria style" tavern is second to none. I had the stuffed cabbage and pierogies. These pierogis are probably not only the best in Cleveland but are probably some of the best I've ever had. My coworker from Kansas never had a Pierogi before, he ordered the Pierogi dinner and kept raving about them, even the next day at work, he seemed somewhat bummed that he would return to Wichita and be unable to find one. The Carrot Cake for dessert comes in 2nd place - only Greggs here in Rhode Island is better (and not by much) Here is their website www.sokolowskis.com

2- Jack's Deli University Heights- one evening after work I was looking for a place to eat, I decided to drive down a different main drag than I normally did. I ended up in the "bad" part of town- The Jewish Suburb of Beachwood which is basically "upscale chain hell" Finding Jack's Deli in between -the Cheesecake Factory, PF Changs and Ruth's Chris was like an oasis in Death Valley. I would put Jack's Deli up against any other Kosher Style deli back on Long Island.
I got the "Boicheklach"- corned beef, pastrami and chopped liver served on 3 little rolls- but I requested rye bread instead. I also ordered a cup of Matzoh Ball Soup. This soup was not designed for senior citizens- Bland it was not- Fluffy Matzoh balls made it perfect. Here is their website [url]www.jacksdeliandrestaurant.com [/url]

3- Di Cillo's Tavern Mayfield Heights- I bumped into this place- while I was taking one of my evening walks. It was about a mile and half from my hotel. The "friday night fish fry" sign in the front window precipated me to enter and inquire. Apparently this bar and adjoining restaurant has been in the same family for several generations since it first opened in 1933. Although it was a few days away from friday, I perused the menu which noted whitefish, walleye and of course the friday night fish fry which was cod, one of the men at the bar told me that if Perch is listed on the board "get it". My coworker and I returned on a friday and sure enough perch was on the menu- and "Gennie"(Genesee Ale) was on tap. The perch comes with fresh cut fried potato discs (somewhat similar to Kansas City style Cottage fries, but crispier and coleslaw. The greasless perch with nuggets of white meat was fantastic, both my coworker (who is from Cumblerland MD) and I gave it high marks. After our perch dinner,we had to have dessert- as I've said before, I never turn down a frozen custard joint when I'm in the great lakes.
We drove to Eastside Frozen Custard, I managed to beat my cowoker out of the last serving of Apple Pie Custard- chunks of apple pie mixed in withe creamy custard, a perfect way to end the night. Here is their website- [url]www.eastcoastcustard.com[/url]

Beyond a doubt my number one pic for Cleveland is a restaurant listed right here on the roadfood website and will most likely deserve a spot in my top 10 list for 2008

Balaton Shaker Square- I hit this place on my one day off - a Sunday evening- I came here alone- and couldn't decide what to order, I thought about Chicken Paprikash but after reviewing the menu, I decided on the Szekely Goulash- This was an amazingly rich and hearty meal. The rich, creamy sauce and saurkraut intertwined harmoniously with the dumplings and meat. This is not something you should eat every day- Here is their website
[url]www.cleveland.com/sites/balaton[/url]

After completing my tour of duty, I am automatically given 3 days off plus a travel day- that gave me four days off, plus my company owed me a half a day off for something else unrelated. Since my last working day was on a sunday I would basically have the whole week off and instead of flying home directly from Cleveland last monday, I decided to take the week and travel and flew home last friday instead.
I know, so far there are no photos

The photos will begin in the next chapter after leaving Cleveland

Great start WJ! That Di Cillo's Tavern sounds like a great find. Great to hear you enjoyed Balaton as much as you did. Why that place doesn't get more attention on here is a mystery.

Did you convert any of your fellow diners into Roadfooders?

Looking forward to the rest of the report.

Cleveland has great ethnic restaurants and great bars that serve great food. I spent six months there. I also enjoyed the West Side Market.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

We didn't know, but we cared, and for someone with a large amount of posts, I don't think there is a loser in the bunch.

That's rare. You could probably weed out half of mine.

No photos...?

Seriously, I was just wondering the other day where you were, post-wise. Even with no photos (so far), it's great reading, especially the pierogies...and the matzoh balls...

quote:

Originally posted by MiamiDon

No photos...?

Correct Don, not in Cleveland.

When I was in Cleveland I was in complete work mode, sorry to say, but roadfood and this forum were the last thing on my mind during that time. Getting through my tour of duty was.

As I mentioned previously, I can't and won't do a trip report every time I go out to the Grocery Store, across town, or out to a summer picnic event with a friend, some people may thrive on that and good for them, but I don't.

Some might recall that I had mentioned I took a weekend trip to Vermont this past summer to go to the Shelburne Museum, I didn't even bother to take my camera. Sure I had some good roadfood, on that trip, but the Museum was the main reason I took that trip.

I'll be back soon with part 2 of the trip.

oh by the way-

No Talent

Monday October 6

I was a free man, at least for the next week. Even though I was looking forward to my short trip, I was really looking forward to getting home.

After dropping off my company rental (a toyota camry) and picking up my priceline rental (a chevy cobalt) at Cleveland's Airport, I was on my way.

1st stop



My favorite Cincinnati Chili Parlor- Blue Ash Chili

I ordered a bowl of 5 way



and a couple of cheese coneys



a week or so earlier in Cleveland, I had the opportunity to stop at Skyline Chili, it just doesn't compare. This is definetely a heartier, thicker "stick to your ribs" chili and the flavor is much more pronounced, I'm still not sure if it's cinamon or nutmeg or a combination thereof, and I believe those are black beans in the mix too. After an 8 year absence it was just as good as ever.

My first stopover for the night was going to be in Louisville KY.
Of course a stop in Louisville just isn't the same without sharing a meal with Al-The Mayor-Bowen. We met here for an early dinner



Joe Huber Family Farm and Restaurant in Starlight Indiana, approximately 15 miles from downtown Louisville is truly a delight.

Al described it as "knotts berry farm, the way it used to be"
They're obviously gearing up for the fall harvest season and halloween.





They even grow "corn on wheels"



The restaurant itself is housed in this barn like structure



Each meal starts with the most amazing basket of warm, moist just out of the fryin pan biscuits-



Slap some apple butter on these billowy bad boys and you're in blissful biscuit heaven.

Between the both of us we had almost 3 basketfuls of biscuits!

The meal itself was almost secondary, Al ordered the fried chicken livers, I ordered the country ham with cole slaw and a sweet potato.




The meal itself was "ok" the coleslaw was of the sweet and sour variety remiscent of what you might find at Primanti Bros in Pittsburgh, and all throught the meal I kept thinking something was missing- RED EYE GRAVY !! where was it???

Overall Joe Hubers was a pleasant experience and has a great family oriented atmosphere.

After dinner I followed Al back towards Louisville. We stopped at Rocky's Italian Grill in Jeffersonville Indiana, we stopped to sit back, relax and enjoy the view of downtown Louisville whic overlooks the Ohio River from the outside deck.







We nibbled on some appetizers but I was quite full at this point, I did enjoy a refresing local beer brewed by the Bluegrass Brewing Company. As we left, I pointed out to Al a young couple who were "enjoying" a pizza, it was such a "sad" looking pizza, I felt true sympathy for this couple wondering if they would ever have the opportunity to enjoy a real NY Style Pizza.

After parting ways with Al, I drove to my hotel in the eastside suburbs.

After a couple of hours, I thought at that point that I had it in me to take Buffetbusters suggestion and head on over to



The Homemade Ice Cream and Pie Kitchen.

I ended up at one of the offshoot locations further down on Bardstown Road

I decided to go with the Caramel Apple Pie.



Despite the really bad weak coffee, this was a decent piece of pie, it didn't put me into hysterical extacy but it wasn't bad (or average) either.
I'm glad I got there when I did (9PM) as they were a half hour away from closing..

Afterwards I returned to my hotel and called it a night


more tommorow (or friday)

quote:

Originally posted by wanderingjew

quote:

Originally posted by MiamiDon

No photos...?

Correct Don, not in Cleveland.

When I was in Cleveland I was in complete work mode, sorry to say, but roadfood and this forum were the last thing on my mind during that time. Getting through my tour of duty was.

As I mentioned previously, I can't and won't do a trip report every time I go out to the Grocery Store, across town, or out to a summer picnic event with a friend, some people may thrive on that and good for them, but I don't.

Some might recall that I had mentioned I took a weekend trip to Vermont this past summer to go to the Shelburne Museum, I didn't even bother to take my camera. Sure I had some good roadfood, on that trip, but the Museum was the main reason I took that trip.

I'll be back soon with part 2 of the trip.

oh by the way-

No Talent

Ahhh, just yanking your chain, 'cuz I like your trip reports.

Thanks for the good review, Dale. I enjoyed sharing the Biscuits and Apple Butter. You're correct...the entree's were of secondary importance there. Those biscuits are really good! Nice photo's too.

WJ, Nice to have ya back in full form. Enjoying your report.

I also have visited Huber's with Al. I got the fried chicken but the country ham looked really good. That is a fascinating farm.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

That is a lovely slab of ham. And a nice looking piece of apple pie too.

That is some fine looking five-way and cheese coneys, WJ! I have been to Blue Ash Chili one time and very much enjoyed it. Still rank it behind Camp Washington Chili, though. Obviously, you feel the opposite. Still, glad you got to enjoy some of Cincy's finest after a much too long absence.

That is some fine looking pie, too. You made a great choice. I should have told you ahead of time that I prefer the cakes at Homemade Ice Cream & Pie Kitchen more than anything else.

That Huber's Restaurant..... Is that the place the attractive young waitress was making goo goo eyes at Travelin Man? Did you ask about red eye gravy?

Very much looking forward to the Nashville leg of your report.

That "5 Way" looks interesting!!!!

OK, now I am PO'd at myself for not checking my email sooner!!!!

WJ

Blue Ash Chili is MUCH better than skyline. Just wish we could have met up for a 5 Way.

quote:

Originally posted by CajunKing

OK, now I am PO'd at myself for not checking my email sooner!!!!

WJ

Blue Ash Chili is MUCH better than skyline. Just wish we could have met up for a 5 Way.

And Dixie is better than those two and Camp Washington...Russ

wanderingjew - thanks for taking us along. pie looks
delish. fall colors awesome.

BB

That is the same place. TTM's little friend was not working that evening.

Dale was so busy shooting photos of his dinner that he failed to notice our server checking him out!

quote:

Originally posted by Al-The Mayor-Bowen

BB

That is the same place. TTM's little friend was not working that evening.

Dale was so busy shooting photos of his dinner that he failed to notice our server checking him out!

The real question is where is the picture of you taking a picture of Dale taking a picture of his food?

That should be on the Official "It's Not a Roadfood Event Unless..." Top 10 list!

I was so busy playing with my new GPS Navigator that I forgot my camera!

Tuesday October 7

After trying two different coffee houses in Louisville, a medium roast at the local chain, Heine Brothers and a dark roast at Highland Coffe Company, I decided I liked Highland's coffee better..

I was on the way to Nashville. About 2/3 into my trip, it started to rain, I was expecting rain, but not until Wednesday. I was really bummed, as it was raining fairly heavily.

Once I arrived in town, I was on my way to my first stop, however I ended up stuck at a railroad crossing with a freight train that must have had 3 miles of cars that was probably traveling around 1 1/2 miles an hour, living in the Northeast, I've never seen such a thing before, freight trains yes- 6 or 7 cars, yes, but nothing like this.
I turned around and found another way to bypass the tracks and made it to the prototypical meat n three joint Arnold's Country Kitchen for lunch.
When I arrived, the cafeteria line was now officially out the door.
I oogled the huge selection of homemade southern specialties to load up on my tray.

I started out with cornbread- two types- muffin and "pancake style" which apparently is popular here in the music city.



I decided to take Buffetbuster's advice and go with the Meatloaf, I chose Mac n Cheese, Candied Yams and Collared Greens.




and finished my meal off with a slice of chess pie.


The cornbread muffin was hot n moist and the cornbread pancake was "interesting" but I think I preferred the muffin. The meat n three main course was definetely the star of the meal. The meatloaf was out of this world and so were the candied yams and porky greens, the mac n cheese was good too, but not quite as good as the Coffee Cup in Charlotte NC. The chess pie was ok, but lacked pizazz.

Overall this was definetely my favorite meal in Nashville. I hope to come back in the future and try some other items on the menu.

It continued to rain for most of the day. After lunch I checked into my hotel- I stayed at the Knights Inn about 2 miles from downtown- all I can say is one thing- Yuck! priceline really let me down on this one.

I drove downtown and walked the lower broadway area in the rain- it was no fun, I slipped into a brewpub and had an ok local brew- I don't remember what it was and didn't find it to be anything special, afterwards I drove back to my hotel- what lousy weather

Eventually dinner time approached...

I figured that one cannot leave Nashville without checking out



I ordered at the counter and asked for a breast quarter "hot" the lady at the counter asked if I had been there before, I told her I hadn't, she suggested I may want to consider "medium" I told her I think I can handle hot, I thought to myself "hey I've had hot wings before and thought nothing of it. I ordered a side of fries too.

My order arrived...



I took a bite and holy hell, all I can say is this chicken was
HOT!!

It was searing hot, it was managable and I could actually enjoy eating it, but buffalo wings these are not! In retrospect I would have been better off ordering the medium. Now I know for next time.
The Fries were ok..

After dinner I returned back to the hotel to watch the 2nd presidential debate which ironically was being held right there in Nashville at Belmont University. It was still raining out, so I thought it would be a good idea to stay in versus check out the town.

more....later, or tommorow or saturday...

Now that chicken looks freakin hot from here. You da man.

One word of advice about Prince's, at least for men. If you need to use the bathroom after eating chicken be sure to wash your hands before and after.

quote:

Originally posted by Holly Moore

One word of advice about Prince's, at least for men. If you need to use the bathroom after eating chicken be sure to wash your hands before and after.

Ew-ew -euuuwww! Thanks for the warning

ok....on with the show

before I move on to Wednesday, the sign for this barber shop which is located in the same strip mall as Prince's really caught my attention.



Wednesday October 8

It was still raining this morning, quite hard too...

I decided to head to another Buffetbuster recommendation



The Pancake Pantry is located in a cool trendy neighborhood near Vandebuilt University.

I opted for the Smokey Mountain buckwheat Cakes.



even though these cakes are dark, they were actually light tasting, they come with warm syrup or honey, the waitress suggested the honey, I doused a little syrup on half of of the pancakes and some honey on the other half, I thought the honey better suited the pancakes. Even the coffee was surprisingly strong and good. Again, a good meal, but not a life altering experience. Since it was still raining, After breakfast, I actually stopped at another coffee house a block away called Fido's, sat down, relaxed and read the paper over a strong cup of joe.

As I headed back towards downtown, the rain stopped and it seemed that the Sun was trying to peak out.

One dissapointment about my trip to Nashville was that I didn't get to meet up with Poverty Pete I know Poverty was enjoying himself on a Greek Cruise, but one thing I didn't understand- Why would Mr. Poverty go to Greece, when he has Greece right in his own back yard???




??

I drove to Centennial Park and took a tour of Nashville's reconstruction of the Parthenon. Apparently this structure was built for a large fair back in the early 1900's and was eventually turned into a permanent structure.

Inside the structure you will find a large statue of the Greek Goddess Athena along with other interesting statues, artifacts and tidbits..



Isn't she hot?

I then took a stroll around the park itself





which offered some interesting displays as well..





It was now time for lunch...
Across the street from the park I found



Hog Heaven BBQ, a shack with a couple of picnic tables..

I ordered the pulled pork/pulled chicken combo which came with pancake style cornbread and I chose beans and slaw as my sides.
Sauce is served on the side.



The Q was ok, the pork was smokey enough but was uninspiring, it reminded me of the Q at the now defunct Hays Smoke House which I had been to three years prior which I also thought was ok. The beans on the other hand were spicy and sweet, but somehow this combination couldn't pull it off and it had an "odd" taste.

After lunch, I drove to Franklin Tennessee, about 15 miles south of Nashville. Franklin offers a quaint main street with a town square.
I did stop at Puckett's Grocery and Restaurant for a chocolate chess pie, it wasn't bad, I realized at that point that maybe I'm not a huge fan of chess pie- it seemed somewhat "blah"
Unfortunately I didn't get any photos. I continued to walk the quaint main street but encountered some non quaint establishments like starbucks and ben and jerry's.
Unfortunately I didn't have time to stop at the local musueum



After my stroll around Main Street Franklin, I really wanted to check out the Hermitage, the former home of our 7th president, Andrew Jackson, leaflet I had indicates I need to allow 2 hours to see the place, it was now 2:30 pm and they close at 5, and of course I encountered another one of those 3 mile long freight trains that actually came to a dead stop right at the railroad crossing.
After a while I turned around and found another way to get back onto the interstate, but I realized I would never make it to the Hermitage on time.

I decided to check out the Belle Meade Plantation instead. When I took the exit for the plantation, I saw the signs for the Battle of Nashville, I followed the signs, but all it took me to was a small museum/information center, when I got there I was told that there wasn't a specific battlefield but that the battle took place over several miles and was given a map. Unfortunately I just didn't have any time, so I headed off to the Belle Meade Plantation.

The plantation house itself involved a guided tour, but you can view the grounds via a self guided tour.

The tourguide dressed in period clothing was extremely knowlegable and enthusiastic, I learned quite a bit about the history behind the plantation which after the civil war was a breeding ground for ancestors of the several horses which ran in the Kentucky Derby.













After the tour, I headed to my final meal stop in Nashville



Joe's BBQ and Fish

I didn't realize it was a take out only place until I got there. Of course I ordered the hot fish sandwich



with a side of white beans n cornbread




The hot fish, was really good, although the mustard was a little off putting, however the only thing is it wasn't that hot at all, it wasn't until I returned home and talked to buffet buster that I found out that hot sauce is what makes the fish hot- I didn't have any hot sauce, I was thinking even with the hot sauce, it probably would have tasted weird with the mustard, I thought tartar sauce would have been a more appropriate condiment.

The Steamy Hot n soft cornbread was the best yet, and the white beans served under some thick slices of onion were delicious.

Later that evening I returned downtown and strolled from one honkey tonk to another, I even tried a local beer called Yazoo.

I returned to my hotel and called it a night afterwards


The final chapter...sometime this weekend...

I apologise for not being on hand, Dale. I could have guided you around the train problem. You certainly hit some of the highlights of the city, however. The buckwheat cakes are one of the gems at the Pantry, but I like to top them with the cinnamon cream syrup. Next time you're in the area, I have a whole other list of places for you to try.

Buffetbuster

It wasn't until after I finished my country ham dinner that I realized that red eye gravy was missing, I just completely spaced, I think it had something do with the addicting qualities of those biscuits..

Russ

I've been to Dixie Chili and enjoyed it, I just thought that Blue Ash had an edge over Dixie and Camp Washington. I had previously been to Price Hill too but thought their chili had an "odd" taste.

Cajun King

There's always next time.
If I ever had more time in Cinci I would love to do a 5 way throwdown
I understand there are many independent chili parlors that don't get enough attention.

Poverty

If I had a choice of taking a Greek Cruise or playing local tourguide, I'd take the Greek Cruise, but hey there's always next time.

WJ-
Don't feel bad. Poverty Pete was the one who had to explain to my cousin Johnny and I about the hot fish. Glad to hear you enjoyed Arnold's Country Kitchen as much as you did. That place is a real Roadfood gem!

I encountered barbecue "corn bread" (the pancake style) when I was in law school at Vanderbilt. I think it was the first barbecue I had in Nashville -- two corn bread cakes, with barbecue in between, secured with a toothpick and a pickle slice, with cole slaw on the side. It was my very favorite accompaniment from the start. When I travel to Tennessee and am able to bring barbecue home, I always make my own "corn bread" -- usually using the "cornmeal batter cakes" recipe from Beaumont Inn in Harrodsburg, Kentucky -- to go with it.