Day 184: Dayton Food Truck Rally

I know Dayton is trying.  I know people are becoming more food-aware, and that makes me happy.  A huge crowd showed up downtown Friday night for the food truck rally, and that is a great thing to see.  Even so, I must say that for the most part, I was disappointed in the quality and variety of foodstuffs being offered by the trucks.  There are certain things I look for in a food truck, just as I do with a traditional brick-and-mortar restaurant.  1.  Use the best quality ingredients you can afford and get your hands on.  Please do not use inferior chocolate in your baked goods and instant coffee in your meat rub.  2.  Use local products whenever possible.   3.  Be creative.  Think outside the burger and the pulled pork sandwich.  3.  Make as many things as you can from scratch.  Do not use a bottled sauce or pre-made, preservative laden foods.

Ok, I know we have to start somewhere, and I'm glad progress is being made and people are so enthusiastic.  Some of the trucks are really doing a great job in offering quality and thoughtful products.  So here's hoping for continued forward progress.

 Bacon, bacon jam grilled cheese.  It could have been really good, if quality products had been used.  Instead, it was just ok.  And I could taste the Folger's.

 Chowing on a fish taco.  These were good, but not remarkable.  

 Peanut butter, pickle, and Sririacha burger.  Pretty tasty, but too much peanut butter, and an inferior bun.  People always over look the bread quality, which drives me nuts.

 Jones cane soda (cola) in a can!  Who knew!

Ordering cupcakes all be herself.  They were ok, but lacked flavor depth.

Day 183: The Things We Do for Fruit

Yesterday morning we braved very soggy conditions to go and pick blueberries.  It poured, we got soaked, but we also came home with about 15 pounds of berries!  Over the next few days these beauties will be frozen, baked, or preserved, and we will sell those results at the farmer's markets.  We will probably head out again next week for even more!

Day 182

Melon Meat!  We love watermelon in this house, and even though we are a small household, we can polish one off in a week's time.  It's a little early for farmer's markets melons, but a few have made their appearance, and we are taking advantage.  Over the winter months, watermelon is the first summer fruit I crave.  When everything is dead and grey and I can't bear the sight of another orange, I wish for these beauties and their summer smell.

Day 181: Favorite Honey

This is currently my favorite brand of honey, from Honeyrun Farm   in Williamsport, OH, and I buy a bottle almost every time I am at the North Market.  The Tulip Poplar (from the fall, I believe) is currently my favorite varietal.  It is bold, in- your- face honey, very good for baking or just drizzling on one's tongue.

I just bought some of the Spring Harvest and have yet to try it.  I have rarely seen a honey so light and delicate looking, and the flavor is said to match its appearance.  It is made primarily from Black Locust Trees.

I only buy local honey for a variety of reasons: I know it is real, unadulterated honey, the bees are raised well and not sprayed with nasty things (Yes, I am sure there are some local producers who aren't very conscientious...if you're wondering, ask them about their practices!), and the flavor is in a completely different spectrum from the faux stuff on grocery shelves.

Day 180: Eating Cleveland, Part 3...

I don't know about you, but usually each one of my "foodie" trips has some sort of a let-down.  Not necessarily full-blown disappointment, but more of an "Ohhhh....."

So, after all the excitment of our meal the night before, we ended our trip with a plan to brunch at Lucky's Cafe and walk over to Lilly Handmade Chocolates, one of my favorite stops in the greater Cleveland area.  We waited a long time for our table, much longer than quoted, which normally wouldn't bother me too much, but this time it completely prevented us from making it to our post-brunch stop for chocolates and specialty beers and liqueurs.  The owners of Lilly's were headed on vacation this week, and had discounted their truffles in order to sell-out stock before closing up.  And sell out they did.  While we were waiting for our table.  If only I had known, we would have made a beeline across the street before eating breakfast!!!

Gah!!!!

I was so disappointed that I forgot to take pictures of my food...but I did capture this one of me sticking my big ol' finger in my cappuccino foam:

Mmm...coffee....Seriously, my food was good too: biscuits and gravy and eggs and things.  Just what I needed to fall asleep on the construction- riddled, rain-soaked drive back home. ZZZzzzzz.....

Day 179: Eating Cleveland Weekend, Day 2

I know you are asking, "Who are these silly men with such silly looks on their faces?" Er, well, the one on the left is my brother, and well, I married the other one.  Yeah.  While waiting for our brewery tour to start, we spent some time tooling around at the West Side Market, a one-hundred-year--old gem of a building which houses over 100 vendors.  These two decided, it would be great idea to try one vendors chocolate-covered jalapenos.  You go for it boys.  We will just stand here and make a whole lot of fun of you as you sweat and burn.  Uh-huh.

After that silliness, it was on to Great Lakes Brewery for our tour.  We had been on one a few years ago, but a refresher is always good.  Besides, having eaten lunch in their brewpub earlier (where I drank a very tasty milk stout), we needed to walk around.

It was very, very warm in the brewery that day.  Between the heat and the noise from the giant fans, I couldn't here a darn thing.  I guess it's good I did take that tour a few years ago...

 Giant beer kettles

Wooden bar in the tasting room

After all this chile and beer excitement, we decided to head back to the hotel to "rest up" for our meal.  This was the part of our trip I was most looking forward to, as we had reservations at the Greenhouse Tavern, one of my favorite Ohio restaurants!

This place encompasses everything I love about a great eating spot. Casual and interesting atmosphere: check.  Knowledgeable and engaging staff: always.  Commitment to things raised right and raised close: of course.  Beautifully executed, yet approachable dishes and drinks full of delicious flavor: and how!

 Crispy hominy and pork cracklins with pickled red onion and lime juice.  Salty and smack-you-in-the-face tart!

Fried Lake Erie Smelts with thousand and one island dressing capers, lemon, and parsley.  I have loved these little fishes since I was a kid!

The queen mother of shared plates: Animal Style Frites with thick bacon, fried eggs, mozzarella cheese curds, peppery gravy, and whole grain mustard.  So, so good...

We ordered the beef tartare since some of us hadn't tried it before.  I had had it in France a while back, and don't know why I haven't done it again.  Here it's served with a 3-minute egg, frites, and relishes.  Such a great summer dish, as it is served cool and it very light.

Please don't think we ordered this out of novelty.  It is seriously one of the tastiest pork dishes I've had the pleasure of ordering, and I will happily sing the praises of any chef who chooses to use all bits of the animal. This is my second experience with the Roasted Pig's Head, and it was every bit as good as the first.  It is all crispy and unctuous; happy little crunchy bits on the outside with a porky pot roast interior.  This smiling porcine goodness is brought to you, yes, really, on a silver platter, garnished with lime wedges, leaf lettuce fennel slaw, and brioche buns.  Oh.  My.  

I wish I had taken pics of our tasty beverages, but as you can see, I was happily preoccupied...

Oh, and we weren't done!  Dessert:

Espresso martini, "Cherries and Berries": black sesame, black licorice, sweet cream, and meringue.

AHHHHHHHH......so satisfied.

Day 178: Eating Cleveland Weekend: Night 1

This past weekend my husband and I introduced my brother and sister-in-law to the Cleveland food scene.  Everybody loves to poo-poo this city, and sure, it has many, many problems, but name me a place that doesn't.  I have a soft spot for rusty cities; there is a haunting beauty to the graveyard of crumbling buildings and worn-out neighborhoods. Traveling through Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Buffalo, my imagination is captivated as I try to imagine what once was, what history and lore are contained in the hulking carcasses of abandoned industry.

There is another reason these cities captivate me.  Largely left to fend for themselves, I hear and see a fierce pride among the working citizenry, as they try to pick up the pieces and form a new history, accepting and even embracing the fact that what once was will never be again.  

What is being done in the food scene in Cleveland is, well, great.  Scoff at its sports teams, curse its terrible roads, people are doing some beautiful, tasty, and innovative things on the food scene.  From rooftop gardens, to farmer's markets, to restaurants, Cleveland has so much to offer when it comes to eating.

So we headed up to Cleveland on Friday evening, planning to meet up with my brother and sister-in-law the next day.  Having never officially been to NoodleCat (I had been there for a "pop-up" last year) and having a love for noodle bowls of all types, we decided to check it out for dinner.

The whole evening was kind of odd; I felt displaced and not quite settled, I believe as a result of our strange by-the-front-door seating, our very eccentric server, and the relative emptiness of the other tables.  Don't get me wrong, there were other people eating, but it being a Friday night I expected a larger crowd.  Of course, the location of the restaurant lends itself to a downtown business lunch crowd, and I'm sure that's where they do most of their business.

Anyway, the food was good.  We started with an assortment of Japanese pickles and kimchi (which didn't really impress me), and we each tried a steamed bun.  I had Japanese fried chicken and Gary had green curry chicken sausage.  They were quite tasty, and I could have easily eaten several.

For our main meal we each had noodles.  Gary had miso pork with ramen noodles and I chose the spicy baby octopus with thick egg noodles.  Both were delicious, though I favored mine.  It was bright with spice and plenty of fresh cilantro, and the noodles were perfectly chewy.  Very satisfying.

All in all, I think I would go back, though I think this spot definitely feels more like a lunch destination.

 Spicy baby octopus with carrot, bamboo shoots, bean sprouts, jalapenos, and chile paste with udon noodles.

Pork miso ramen with dashi, garlic, scallion, and six-minute egg