The crew at Never Say Dive (4497 Broadview Rd.) in Old Brooklyn is always looking for ways to spice things up on Monday nights to give diners a special reason to visit. Previous dinner series have been devoted to vegan food and ramen. Since June, resident prep cook Thu Tran has been hosting Cold Noodle Night.

“It seemed like something fun to try,” she explains.

On Monday nights, Tran offers a special menu starring three cold vermicelli noodle bowls, three banh mi sandwiches, and few appetizers. She describes the food as “Cleveland Vietnamese,” adding that she’s far from a traditionalist when it comes to recipes. Her banh mi sandwiches, for example, arrive on airy hoagie rolls from Michael’s Bakery across the street.

Tran’s take on the Vietnamese fish cake is made with fresh fish from Kate’s at the West Side Market and then smashed on the griddle the way you’d make a smash burger. They are available as the main protein in one of the banh mis and one of the noodle bowls. Other noodle bowls star grilled chicken marinated in a ginger-lemongrass sauce and a vegetarian crispy spring roll filled with tofu, mushroom and carrot. The other two sandwiches are filled with chicken and pate or tofu along with slaw, cucumbers and mayo.

Starters include shrimp chips, sesame chips, vegetable spring rolls and fish sauce-glazed chicken wings.

The recurring element – and really, the raison d’être for Cold Noodle Night – are the fresh herbs found across the board.

“The herbs all come from my backyard,” says Tran. “My dad is a big gardener and he grows all of these herbs. This pop-up has been a nice way to utilize all of that.”

The herbs, adds Tran, are picked fresh the day of service. But the herbs – or lack of them – will also signal the end of the road for Cold Noodle Night.

“The gravy train is coming to an end,” she warns. “If we had to buy all of these herbs it would probably $200 per week.”

Tran says that the noodle nights will continue for the next three Monday nights. After that, who knows.

“We might do pho night in the winter,” says Tran.

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Earlier this summer, Sirjoon Elassal announced that he was taking over the day-to-day responsibilities at Falafel Café from his mother, who has been running the popular Lebanese restaurant for nearly 30 years. After 18 years at its previous location in University Circle, and another six at its present location at Uptown, Mae Elassal was ready to move on.

“Mom said, the lease is ending, I’m tired, I’m over it,” Sirjoon told me.

Elassal, who grew up in the family business and later received his master’s degree in organizational psychology with a focus on hospitality, decided to intervene.

“I’ve been in the industry my whole life,” he says. “I’m pretty equipped to take this restaurant over. And not in the way of just taking it over.”

Since temporarily closing the restaurant, Elassal has redesigned the space, brought back a Middle Eastern retail foods section and trimmed the menu of gratuitous items such gyros, burgers and cheese phillies.

“I’m decolonizing the restaurant, bringing back the Lebanese authenticity,” Elassal explains.

Falafel Café (11454 Uptown Ave., 216-381-1591) reopened this past weekend, continuing a tradition that his parents started in 1998 when they opened their first shop in South Euclid.

“I wanted to get away from the family restaurant for so long and then I got over myself,” he says. “The restaurant is such a great opportunity, not only to flex culinary stuff but also to have community, to work with other businesses. I’m in such a fortunate position.”

In this current chapter of Falafel Café, mom has transitioned from owner-operator to “Historian of Falafel.”

“She is super excited,” says Elassal. “She has wanted this for us for a long time. The hope is to let her go and enjoy herself and enjoy the world and let the restaurant be the restaurant.”

The website is currently being updated to reflect the changes, the owner states.

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Northeast Ohio’s smelliest food fair returns to Shaker Square on Saturday, August 29 and Sunday, August 30, when the Cleveland Garlic Festival celebrates its 17th year. All proceeds benefit the North Union Farmers Market, a nonprofit that supports local farms and healthy food access through its network of certified producer-only markets across the region.

“This is the Midwest’s ground zero for all things garlic—think urban county fair meets foodie paradise,” says Emma Visnic, Director of Marketing & Outreach for North Union Farmers Market. “The Cleveland Garlic Festival is as much about community as it is about food.”

This year’s festivities run noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Visitors can look forward to garlic-themed prepared foods, cooking demos and competitions, farm-fresh garlic for purchase, live music and kid-friendly entertainment.

Garlic lovers can sample festival favorites like garlic fries, garlic shrimp and garlic ice cream. Less adventurous eaters can order food from vendors such as Cousins Maine Lobster, Piccolo Authentic Italian, Frankie Lynn Hotdog, Rooster Kitchen, La Campagna, Zanzibar, The Pierogi Lady and many more. Joining those prepared foods are vendors selling handmade pasta, fermented foods, artisan cheeses, fresh produce, baked goods, craft beverages, wine, donuts, lemonade and sweet treats.

For home cooks and gardeners, the Garlic Festival offers a dizzying selection of local garlic growers selling every imaginable variety for cooking and planting.

Watch local chefs compete head to head in the popular Garlic Grill-Off.

Now in its second year, the pitch competition by Les Dames d’Escoffier CLE showcases the next generation of women entrepreneurs in food, beverage, hospitality and agriculture.

Discount presale tickets are available now through the festival website. Admission at the gate will also be available.

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Last week, Sarah Halko opened the doors to Aria Wine Bar (12304 Mayfield Rd.) in Little Italy. Since taking over the space a few months ago, which had been home to two prior wine bars, the owner has transformed the room into a warm, cozy and inviting place to explore wines from around the world.

“From the beginning, I wanted Aria to feel like a place you stumble upon and never want to leave,” says Halko. “A place where time slows, conversations linger, and every visit feels a little magical. My goal wasn’t simply to open a wine bar, but to create a space where people gather, celebrate, reconnect, unwind, and feel like they’ve found their place. My hope is that Aria becomes that for our community.”

Halko aimed to assemble a one-of-a-kind selection of wines that is designed to expand one’s appreciation of varietals. The list leans heavily into Italy, showcasing producers from across the country, but also distinctive wines from other storied wine-growing regions.

“Every bottle has been chosen not only for its quality, but for the story it tells and the place it represents,” she adds.

In addition to the wines, Aria offers a menu of classic cocktails, beer and a concise roster of small plates designed to pair with the beverages.

“I tell everyone in the neighborhood that I’ll happily be your waiting room,” she says. “Send them to me to grab a drink and I’ll send them right back to you for dinner.”

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Benny’s Pizza, a Virginia-based pizza chain with dozens of locations in multiple states, is the latest corporate operation to plant roots in Ohio City. This week the company announced its plan to open a new location on West 25th Street, in a portion of the former Family Dollar space that was previously subdivided.

Founded in 2011 near the campus of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia, the restaurant is known for its massive 28-inch New York-style pies and slices. There are approximately 35 locations spread across Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Michigan and Pennsylvania. The Ohio City location looks to be the first in the state.

Rather than branding every store as “Benny’s Pizza,” each location is given its own unique name, such as Benny DiCarta’s, Benny Pazerelli’s and Benny Mazzetto’s. The Cleveland spot will be called Benny Lorenzo’s.

The impending opening marks another shift in a neighborhood long known for its fiercely independent personality. Benny’s joins other outsized newcomers including Chipotle.

Attempts to reach a company representative for comment have not been successful.

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Natalia Alcazar will open the second location of her popular Dahlia Coffee (4855 Broadview Rd., 216-415-5354) in Old Brooklyn on Sunday, August 16th. The café joins the original shop (2085 W. 114th St., 216-302-7785) in the Cudell neighborhood on Cleveland’s west side.

The spacious building was briefly home to Rebel Reserve. The extra square footage will allow Alcazar to expand her offerings, offer more seating, and partner with even more small, local businesses.

“We’re going to try really, really hard to use people in the neighborhood and buy from their businesses,” she states. “We want to do more made-to-order breakfast options, like breakfast sandwiches and burritos, lunch sandwiches. The new space will be able to give us the ability to do that because of the layout.”

Alcazar is also looking forward to hosting more community-based events such paint nights with local artists, latte art competitions, or pop-up vendor markets such as Ghost Market in her attached parking lot. She also plans on keeping later hours given the residential nature of the neighborhood.

There will be few changes to her coffee program, she adds.

“I focus more on Central American coffee because I’m Mexican,” says Alcazar. “I roast beans from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia. I tend to roast a little darker – not super, super dark. I roast to medium or dark roast, but the quality of the coffee and tasting notes are still there.”

Alcazar says that there will be no significant changes to her original Cudell coffee shop.

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It’s been three months since Shaun and JoLyn Yasaki of Noble Beast Brewing announced that they were expanding into the former Bookhouse Brewing site in Ohio City. On Friday, August 14th they will open the doors to Anthology Cask House (1526 W. 25th St., 216-237-0986), a sanctuary for lovers of fine European beers, English ales and rare gems from around the world.

The stars of the show are bound to be the cask ales, which are brewed onsite by Yasaki and brewer Logan Buckley-Neff and dispensed with care, patience and a little dose of ceremony.

“This has been such a learning curve: figuring out how to build it, figuring out how to brew it, condition it, serve it,” Yasaki explains. “But it’s fun because it’s all so new and exciting.”

Unlike conventional draft beer, which is pushed from keg to tap by carbon dioxide, cask ale is drawn by hand using an old-fashioned beer engine. Firkins of naturally-carbonated ale sit in a dedicated cooler set at “cellar temperature,” roughly 55 degrees. Each pint requires a series of pulls to fill the glass. Those brews flow through a graceful swan-like neck and, at the end, a sparkler, which creates a dense, creamy head.

“Every brewery had one of these 15 years ago, and they’ve all been ripped out,” Yasaki laments.

On opening day, those four engines will dispense an English golden ale, English bitter, dry stout and a funky Belgian lambic.

The other 16 taps are dedicated to imported beers from England, Germany, Belgium and the Czech Republic. Only a few hail from the United States. The styles represented include helles, pils, bitter, amber, dark ale, Kolsch, saison, cider and radler.

A display cooler is stocked with a compelling selection of European imports sold by the can or bottle. While guests can peruse the printed list, it’s fun to shop the cooler and examine the labels.

“I haven’t had most of these and I can’t wait to try them,” says Yasaki. “That’s what got me excited about craft beer 20 years ago. There was so much exploration, trying new things… That’s kind of gone by the wayside.”

“There’s been such a shift over the past 10, 15 years or so towards hyper-local, which is wonderful, but we wanted to bring that back,” adds JoLyn.

Those beers are properly served in style-appropriate glassware, such as an aged Belgian lambic slowly decanted from a wicker basket to prevent the transfer of sediment.

“That’s part of the experience,” says GM Jeff Draeger. “A lot of people haven’t seen most of these beers – or haven’t seen them for a while – so we want to give them the proper experience. That gives the staff the opportunity to explain the glassware, the pour, why we’re doing things a certain way.”

Guests will notice an enhanced beverage program, with more wines, spirits and cocktails, including a robust NA selection.

Anthology chef James Redford has worked with Little Cloud chef David Rutherford to create a menu just for the pub. Items such as meat and cheese boards, English onion soup, braised beef sandwiches and beef pasties can be ordered and enjoyed right from one’s table. Weekend food service will start at 11 a.m.

There has been a gentle remodel of the former Bookhouse space that swapped the literature-themed décor for more of an English pub vibe. There are now TVs throughout, but you wouldn’t know it unless the framed images were switched from art mode to live action. The patio has been opened up and refreshed with new furniture, lighting and plantings.

With Anthology Cask House, the Yasakis are keeping a little bit of Cleveland brewing history alive in Ohio City.

“This was the site of Baehr Brewing from 1866, so 170 years of brewing history in this spot right here,” says Shaun.

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After a holiday weekend plagued by heat, storms and power outages, local chefs put out a collective plea to diners asking for their support. I managed to hit Proof Public House in Ohio City twice in as many weeks in the wake of those outages and on both visits I was happy to see the restaurant operating at or near capacity.

While I can’t speak for every diner in the house, what I suspect motivated many of them was not a simple desire to help a struggling restaurant, but a recognition of what could be lost if it disappeared. After years – decades – of taking local restaurants for granted, it might finally be sinking in that when our favorite watering holes disappear, they won’t be replaced by another homegrown tavern.

The future of dining isn’t the special-occasion omakase. I certainly hope it isn’t the soulless fast-casual chain. I’d argue that it’s somewhere in the middle, the place down the block where you know the owner by name, the bartender remembers your drink order, and rare is the visit that you don’t bump into a friend or neighbor. 

Earlier this summer, Matt Fish opened such a place in one of Cleveland’s few remaining indie enclaves, the corporate-free zone that straddles Ohio City and Detroit Shoreway. Packed into this short stretch of Lorain Ave. are chef-owned places such as Soho, Heart of Gold, Juneberry, Tripi, Herb ‘n Twine and Real Smoq’ed BBQ. With Proof, Fish adds something distinctive, heartfelt and appealing to that collection.

When guests walk through the door at Proof, they are warmly greeted by staffers and immersed in a kaleidoscopic live music-themed exhibition. The space already was attractive thanks to a major renovation project undertaken by Fish’s predecessors, but now the restaurant feels finished, dialed in. Alongside myriad concert and club posters, each professionally framed and meticulously mounted, the space displays murals from former Melt locations and relics from Speak in Tongues, the seminal punk venue that existed on this very block.

Proof isn’t an over-the-top grilled cheese bar, but the chef’s penchant for taking familiar foods and pushing them to the edges of conformity remains. Fish likes to tinker, to gild, to pile on in messy, delicious ways. Sandwiches play a starring role here, with everything from the Melt-launching Parmageddon to a summery shrimp roll airlifted from Midcoast Maine. Amid the heat dome, that shrimp roll ($19) felt like a cool ocean breeze. A plush hoagie bun is loaded with a generous amount of sweet, juicy, garlicky red shrimp, crispy slaw and creamy garlic aioli. 

After years of sticking to a smash-burger diet, it felt nice to sink my teeth into meaty half-pound pub burger ($16), cooked to a perfect medium. Hand-cut fries are an extra $5 and worth every cent. Proof makes an excellent cheesesteak ($22) featuring shaved ribeye. It’s a savory, saucy two-fisted affair with a subtle kick from a splatter of chipotle aioli. Occasionally Fish turns the amp up a bit too far, like adding a superfluous layer of black bean spread to an otherwise delectable – and already multi-faceted – pulled pork hoagie. The aptly named Gonzo ($19) combines citrus-braised and smoked pork, smoked pineapple slaw, Oaxacan cheese, fresh herbs and that earthy bean paste.

Out back on Proof’s leafy brick-paved courtyard is a hefty smoker inherited from the previous barbecue restaurant. From that Southern Pride emerge items such as that woodsy pulled pork, lemongrass smoked chicken and some of the best wings ($15) in town. Jumbo drums and flats are lightly smoked, char-grilled and tossed in a choice of flavorful sauces. A liberal serving of creamy ranch rides shotgun. Fish offers vegans their own version of wings in the form of firm tofu triangles ($13) breaded in an assertive spice coating, fried up crisp and served with dairy-free ranch.

For Parmageddon fans looking for a trimmer version, the kitchen prepares a platter ($10) with two plump Rudy’s pierogi capped with grilled onions, warm caraway-scented cabbage, sour cream and bright microgreens. Another great starter is the whipped goat cheese ($14), which is topped with a spicy tomato tapenade and paired with plenty of grilled bread.

At Proof, meals might arrive on a paper-lined sheet pan, but cocktails are served in fine crystal. The bar mixes up a creative roster of compelling drinks such as the Sonic Reducer ($12), which somehow balances rye and banana. The neighborhood tavern doesn’t need 50 different bottles and cans, but rather a rotating selection of local gems on tap. Fish secures one-offs and limited releases from his brewing pals at Noble Beast, Market Garden, Fat Heads and Butcher and Brewer. 

If you too have grown weary of “experiential” restaurants chasing viral moments, reliable homegrown places like Proof are the antidote and, I hope, the future. 

Proof Public House 

4116 Lorain Ave., Cleveland; 216-644-4292; proofcleveland.com

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RED the Steakhouse (28869 Chagrin Blvd.) will open its new restaurant at Eton Chagrin Boulevard on Thursday, August 13. Earlier this year the partners shuttered the Pinecrest location after nearly seven years in anticipation of the move.

“We have been looking to get back on the Chagrin corridor since after Covid,” says owner Gregg Levy. “We knew that we wanted to be somewhere between 271 and Chagrin Falls. We looked at a couple different places and then this came available through a series of machinations. We are exactly where we want to be.”

This past winter, Levy struck a deal with Doug Petkovic to purchase Heritage Steak & Whiskey, which opened in late 2023. Petkovic worked with Richardson Design to refashion the former Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse at Eton into a completely new restaurant. Levy says that RED has benefited from those enhancements.

“Doug made some beautiful changes to the building. He did the heavy lifting.”

That said, RED’s designers have made cosmetic changes that let guests know where they are dining. Visitors will see new paint, carpet, furniture, light fixtures, art and kitchen equipment. The color scheme has shifted from blues to browns and reds. Bold, fun artwork on loan from Contessa Gallery features works from celebrity photographers Harry Benson and Lawrence Schiller.

In the lounge, the community tables have been swapped out for more flexible high-tops. The soft seating areas in the same room have been replaced by banquettes and tables.

In the kitchen, Heritage’s wood-fired grills are out and RED’s high-heat broilers are in. The patio out front has received all new furniture.

“This is a RED that while still sophisticated is more approachable,” says Levy.

Those tweaks will appear in the form of a great happy hour and an all-night bar menu with items such as lobster rolls, steak sliders, fried chicken sandwiches and a pastrami melt. In the main dining room, guests will have their choice between a dozen different steaks and cuts, ranging from an 8-ounce filet up to a 35-ounce prime tomahawk.

In the coming weeks or months, people in the area can look forward to the return of lunch service, says Levy.

“We’re ready to bring back the quote-unquote Moxie lunch to the Chagrin corridor,” he states, referring to the robust midday activity at that legendary bistro. “This is going to be the premier place to have a business lunch, a martini lunch.”

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Mark LaGrange, the longtime owner of Edison’s Pub in Tremont, has taken back possession of the bar from Hangry Brands, he says.

“I closed the bar yesterday morning,” he explains. “I went and changed the locks.”

Late last year, Hangry Brands announced that it had purchased Edison’s Pub (2373 Professor St.), which has been a neighborhood staple for roughly 40 years. But now, less than a year later, the bar is back in the hands of its previous owner.

“We took it back because I had a security agreement and he didn’t make payments to me,” says LaGrange.

Reached for comment, Hangry Brands responded with the following statement:

“We’re not going to get into the specific deal terms, those stay between the parties. What we can tell you is that ownership has returned to the prior owner and Edison’s continues in its historic format.”

Yes and no, says LaGrange. Presently, Edison’s Pub remains closed as the owner scrambles to reclaim possession of all the things necessary to restart and run the business. He no longer has access to the POS system, the social media feeds and the Google listing. Even the website is dead, he adds.

“I’m dead determined to save Edisons Pub,” LaGrange says. “The neighborhood’s pushing for me, the employees are pushing for me.”

If all goes as hoped, the bar could reopen by the weekend.

For their part, Hangry states that the outcome was a tactical one, according to the prepared statement.

“Our decision on Edison’s Pub reflects our strategic growth plan of continued consolidation on our efforts on the downtown Cleveland Gateway and Playhouse Square areas. Returning the establishment to its previous owner was an opportunity to ensure the community can continue to preserve a historic institution in its historic format.”

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