A day in Cleveland

July 24, 2010
Cleveland, OH

We actually made two trips into Cleveland today, managing to see everything we'd planned and still take care of the pups in the process.

The weather's been quite variable during our stay here. The only consistent parts have been the high temperatures and high humidity. We've had periods of rain on and off, some of it quite heavy. Winds have been strong as well, even knocking a birds nest with two chicks out of the tree next to us (one survived but seems to have been abandoned by the parents). We saw a couple of spots here in the park where things have turned muddy; fortunately for us, we're in a stable site.

We started the day early (OK, early for us), heading north via the spaghetti-like network of Interstates and Expressways that criss-cross Cleveland. Our first destination was the West Side Market, Cleveland's oldest publicly owned market. It's very similar to the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, and just as crowded on a Saturday morning. We were lucky enough to find a parking spot right near the door and spent the rest of the morning walking through and loading up on provisions. It's the kind of place where you have to walk all through one time, looking at the various stalls and shopping for the best food and the best prices, then head back to specific vendors once you know what you want. Of course, not being familiar with the layout, we "lost" a couple of vendors for a bit in the process. We picked up some veggies, veal (ground and cutlet), fresh pasta, ground lamb for the pups' food, and a nice, thick Porterhouse steak. We'll be eating well this week!

After leaving the Market, we headed the short distance to the lake shore and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I must say that we were somewhat disappointed with the exhibits, the crowds (hey, it's a hot Saturday, so crowds are expected, but still...), and the lack of parking. Now, some of the latter is self-inflicted (we have clearance issues in the Rover with the roof pod on), but the Hall is located in a complex with a series of other attractions, including the Science Center and Browns Stadium. Things must get pretty tight when there's a football game!

The Hall bans photography, so that set the tone right away. Many exhibits include videos, which is great, but when they're all spaced closely together with throngs of people clogging the walkways, the cacophony of noise and close-quarters maneuvering gets tired pretty quickly. Together with the fact that there isn't an exhibit documenting the various inductees (other than a video you get to queue up for), we left feeling a little empty. The Bruce Springsteen special exhibit on the top two floors was good but not completely accessible (escalators only go to four of six floors), and there was some interesting U2 memorabilia from the Zoo TV Tour, so it wasn't a complete washout.

After the Hall, we made a quick trip back home to walk, water, and feed the pups, and to relax a bit before dinner. Being Food Network junkies, I'd made reservations at Lolita, one of Michael Symon's Cleveland eateries. We did have an Iron Chef sighting, as he was hanging around between the bar and kitchen for a short while, and we had an excellent meal with fine wines. We started with a Crémant d'Alsace, a rosé sparkler, and moved on to Oren Swift's "The Prisoner", a Napa red blend. The only dish that was a tad disappointing was Geri's Roasted Beet starter; my Crispy Chicken Livers were fantastic. We both had the Pappardelle with Pork Ragu pasta course (very good, although we like our homemade Lamb Ragu a tad better), and finished with Lamb Steak (Geri) and Hanger Steak (me). We both thought we "won" the entree round, and the better news is that Geri brought home portions of both the pasta and lamb for leftovers. Woo-hoo! After dinner, we shared a Vanilla Bean Gelato and a glass of Dolcé, a sweetie from California. Another great meal!

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