A Return Visit To Flury's Cafe

As any long-time reader of Exploring Food knows, I've reviewed Flury's Cafe several times before on this blog. And I've been enjoying owner Kimberly White's food from my very first visit many, many years ago. I find it ironic when I reread my previous reviews that I occasionally ding'ed particular items she made for having too little (or no) salt, such as her hashed browns or eggs. Interestingly, it is exactly that feature that now draws me in on a regular basis for breakfast or lunch.

I was quite surprised when I first approached Kim with my new diet that she was able to point to quite a few items on her current menu that would be appropriate for me. I also learned that she shares my philosophy that there is way more salt in our food than is necessary. When possible, she would rather make dishes lower in sodium and allow the guest to add salt where he or she thinks it appropriate.

While there are certainly items on the menu where salt is inherently built in (anything with cheese, sausage gravy, fried sides such as French fries or onion rings), I thought I would point out a few of the items on the menu that I've been able to order off of the menu without too many substantial changes (other than my usual request for "no salt, butter, or cheese").

Let's start with the potato pancakes, scrambled eggs, and a small cup of sour cream, all lightly dusted with paprika:

The difference between the potato pancakes and the regular hashed browns is the addition of onions and eggs to the potato pancakes. Cooked in a combination of canola and olive oil, the potato pancakes are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. The majority of salt on this plate comes from the scrambled eggs, about 120mg of sodium for two eggs. The sour cream, interestingly, does have sodium, but at only 10mg of sodium per tablespoon, it is an acceptable amount and adds a nice acidity and richness to the pancakes.

Next up is my standard breakfast order, the vegetarian omelet with hashed browns. Occasionally Kim makes awesome homemade jam, and if it is available, I may also get a slice of dry wheat or rye toast as a vehicle for jam delivery*:

* The omelet comes with hashed browns and toast, I sometimes just omit the toast.

Kim uses regular sandwich bread for her toast (which can have anywhere from 150 to 200mg of sodium per slice). Considering that the only other sodium in the dish is the 120mg in the eggs for the omelet, having a single slice of toast is an acceptable amount. The omelet is filled and topped with sauteed spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, onions, and red bell peppers. Both the original Tabasco sauce (the red one) as well as the jalapeno-based sauce (the green one) are available if you like things a little spicy. The green one is completely out (150mg of sodium per teaspoon), but every now and again I'll shake on a bit of the red one (35mg of sodium per teaspoon).

While regular sandwich bread is used for toast, Kim bakes her own buns for sandwiches and revealed to me that each bun only has about 150mg of sodium. Paired with a single or double burger or the grilled chicken breast, it makes for a delicious sandwich that can be kept under 300mg of sodium:

Of course, you have to forgo any condiments or the delicious housemade pesto (which I adore, but can't have due to the presence of cheese in the pesto), but you still get a juicy burger or chicken sandwich with lettuce and tomato that's also filling. Unusually, Kim uses chicken that isn't brined before grilling, so the chicken is 100% okay to order at Flury's.

As I mentioned before, none of the usual sandwich sides like French fries or onion rings are on the low sodium list, so whenever I get a sandwich, I usually order the spinach salad minus the bacon and substitute the housemade balsamic vinaigrette for the warm bacon dressing:

The vinaigrette isn't necessarily low sodium, but if I just use a very small amount to lightly dress my salad, I'm not too concerned about it.

Kim always has some kind of baked good to tempt you with at the end of your meal. In the past I've normally said no to these (even when I was eating salt). However, in the past couple of months, she has also had fresh fruit available to be eaten at the restaurant or to go. I almost always say yes to an orange, apple, or banana, even if I don't intend to eat it at that very moment.

Normally I hit up Flury's Cafe for breakfast on days that I don't walk in the early mornings, so maybe once a week. But Kim and Flury's Cafe has been on my no-salt radar since I first realized I had to change my diet. Whenever I'm craving breakfast food, this is the first place that pops into my head. Most breakfast/diner places can offer you eggs without salt, but Flury's appeal is that you have additional options, too.

One thing to note about Flury's Cafe is that they recently moved from their old location on Sackett Avenue in Cuyahoga Falls to their new location on the corner of Front Street and Portage Trail, also in Cuyahoga Falls. Free parking is available in one of the two parking garages just north or south of the restaurant. They are open Monday through Saturday for breakfast and lunch and can be reached at 330-929-1315.

Blue Door: A Compendium of Visits

When I heard that the local diner, Golden Goose Restaurant and Bakery, was closing down for several weeks for remodeling, I was a little surprised. When I finally came to understand that the remodel was due in no small part to head baker Michael Bruno and his wife taking over the entire operation of the establishment, both bakery and restaurant, then it became a little more understandable. For several weeks, Michael would send out updates via Facebook about the progress of the remodel. When it finally came time to open back up for business, he announced that in the Golden Goose's ashes would rise a new restaurant and bakery, Blue Door Bakery and Cafe.

While I have covered Golden Goose during numerous visits, I couldn't help but think that once Michael controlled the restaurant's kitchen, he could apply the same level of exacting thought that he put into his baked goods. This definitely had me excited. In order to help him out, he brought in Valerie Miller and Tim Carson to help him run the kitchen while he focused on breads and pastries and managing front of house activities with his wife.

I should say upfront that by now, Michael, his wife, and many of the front of house staff know me by sight, so doing any kind of anonymous review would be laughable at best. At the same time, I neither asked for nor expected any kind of special treatment. I paid for all of my own food during each visit and probably the only "special" treatment I received was a visit from Michael at the end of each meal to ask how my experience had been.

The first item to note is that the transition from Golden Goose to Blue Door is still a work in progress. While the main entrance to the restaurant has finally been painted blue, the sign out front still says Golden Goose. Don't let that fool you. The restaurant located at the corners of State Road and Broad Street in Cuyahoga Falls has definitely begun a metamorphosis. Stepping into the freshly painted door, you come across the remodeled reception area:


This was the new pastry case. While the old one wasn't objectionable, I definitely like the open feeling to the new one.

To the right of the pastry case is the counter area and the new shelving behind it to hold the freshly baked loaves of bread coming out of the kitchen:


On my initial visit (the day after they reopened), I was presented with an moderately redesigned menu:





There were definite holdouts from the Golden Goose's menu, but Blue Door's menu had been tweaked to really emphasize quality, organic, locally procured or produced items to really amp up the dining experience. While I can't really give many style points on the design of the menu, it definitely delivered on choices and descriptions.

Since my first visit was during lunch, I decided to start out my meal with a bowl of the Blue Door Tomato Soup:


Made with San Marzano tomatoes and homemade vegetable stock, what surprised me when it came out of the kitchen was that it was served cold. Gazpacho! While I didn't mind it being served as gazpacho, the menu didn't describe it that way, so be prepared for the temperature difference should you decide to order it, too. The flavor was everything that summer should be: slight sweetness and acidity from the tomatoes, ever-so-slight pungency from the garlic, and a bright, cool flavor that made this a refreshing soup.

While there was a lot from which to choose during my first stop, I decided on going with the Homemade Chicken Salad Sandwich and a Dressed Organic Greens Salad:


Served on Blue Door's homemade challah, this was a total knock-out. I have loved Michael's breads since I first discovered them, but using it in this way really highlighted the flavors and textures of this fantastic eggy bread. The chicken salad was moist without being overdressed and the organic field greens had been dressed in an extra virgin olive oil and 30-year-old balsamic vinegar emulsion. The greens had also smartly been seasoned with salt. I have to admit, I was very impressed with the positive changes coming out of the kitchen.

So much so that I returned two days later to have breakfast with fellow food blogger Cedric and his lovely wife. After being seated at a booth, I was surprised and delighted to see that the restaurant had started using a local purveyor for their coffee, Angel Falls Coffee Company. Here's a shot of my steaming cup of decaf:


To pair with my wonderfully bitter cup 'o Joe, I decided to indulge in a calorie-laden breakfast and ordered the daily special, Challah French Toast with Grilled Peaches, Thick-Cut Nueske Bacon, and Real Maple Syrup:


Holy. Crap.

To say that this was good would be a gross understatement. At one point I did a French Toast Battle between Golden Goose and another Cuyahoga Falls eatery, Chowder House Cafe. Golden Goose definitely lost points for serving maple-flavored syrup. This was no longer an issue. The bacon, hand-cut by the kitchen staff, was crispy, chewy, smoky, and salty: a perfect pairing with the sweet maple syrup. In fact, I think I paired the maple syrup more with the bacon than with the French Toast.

And how was that French Toast? The peaches added a wonderful textural and sweet compliment to the more savory battered and griddled challah. In addition to the standard vanilla flavor in the batter, Blue Door had finally upped the ante and started incorporating Vietnamese cinnamon, boosting the heady flavors even further up the scale. Were this my last breakfast, I could die a happy man.

My third visit was again for breakfast, this time with friend and fellow food blogger Tami. Both of us ended up succumbing to the Omelette du Jour, her the vegetarian, and I the porcine:


This was a chorizo, spinach, roasted red pepper and Havarti omelette with a potato croquette. I've had Michael's two inch high quiche in the past and one of the qualities I've always admired about it was how well-balanced the flavors behaved together. Sweet, sour, salty, crunchy, creamy. In much the same vein, this particular omelette also delivered. The eggs were light and tender and the filling just enhanced the experience. The potato croquette, an item which Cedric had gotten during my last visit, proved to be a deep-fried bit of love on a plate. Crunchy on the outside, it was tender and creamy on the inside. Honestly, I've never come across a restaurant that serves potato croquettes before, so I'm glad that Blue Door is not only serving one, but a decent version to boot.

Along with our omelettes, Tami and I each had the option for a "toast" side. Not only was Blue Door making their own breads and croissants, but they also were making homemade English Muffins! Now THAT is a rarity indeed. I knew what my side would be:


Served with an individual jar of strawberry jam, this was a carb lover's dream. For someone who grew up eating Thomas' English Muffins, this was what an English muffin should be. While you certainly won't go wrong ordering up a slice of some of their other toasted breads for breakfast, try the homemade English muffin when you go. I'm looking forward to another one with my next breakfast.

On my next visit for lunch, I decided to go with one of the daily lunch specials, the Cuban Sandwich with Dressed Organic Greens:


All of the typical Cuban sandwich ingredients were present: pulled pork, ham, swiss cheese, stone-ground mustard, and pickle. One of the problems I had with the sandwich was actually the bread. It wasn't that the bread was bad, but the toasted challah it was served on just didn't seem to match up with what my sense memory said it should. When Michael stopped out to check on me, I mentioned this to him and he admitted that it was definitely better with the homemade sourdough bread, but unfortunately they had run out. Fair enough. The dressed organic salad greens were tasty as always though.

During my last visit (which was a week ago), I had intended on going for a late breakfast and getting something light, like a bowl of the oatmeal. Of course, once I saw the daily specials board, I knew my plans were going to change:


Now is the time of year for great tomatoes. I'll happily forgo hard, grainy, not-even-close-to-ripe tomatoes the rest of the year so that I can indulge when they are in season. I mean, why even bother with them if they aren't at their peak?

So, my bowl of oatmeal morphed into a Heirloom Tomato Croissant with Fresh Mozzarella and Basil Chiffonade:


Realizing that this was more of a knife and fork "sandwich" than a handheld one, I cut off a piece with all four ingredients and took a bite. Waves of pleasure rolled over me as I savored each chew. The tomatoes were sweet, sour, salty, and tender. The mozzarella was creamy and rich. The toasted croissant was crisp and buttery. The basil added a bright herbaceous flavor that unified the entire sensation. This was incredible.

Here was a shot of the reverse side of the croissant:


If you are thinking to yourself, gentle reader, that the croissant pictured above looks incredibly flaky, well, you'd be absolutely right.

Along with my sandwich, I also received a Prosciutto and Cantaloupe Salad:


While pairing cantaloupe and prosciutto isn't anything groundbreaking, it's nice to be reminded now and again why they work so well together. The cantaloupe must be absolutely ripe in order for the sweetness to balance the saltiness from the prosciutto. In today's case, the pairing was perfectly executed.

I also wanted to mention the overall service I have received since the restaurant transitioned to its new name. Blue Door has been fairly busy every time I've gone (with the exception of the last visit), so if you are looking for a thirty minute lunch, I'd suggest trying it out when you have more time. Also, note that there have often been daily specials that also appear in a "regular" form on the printed menu. French Toast is a great example. The day that I ordered the French Toast with the grilled peaches, that was the daily special. There was also a regular French Toast already on the menu. Just make sure your server understands which one you actually want in order to avoid confusion.

These few minor quibbles aside, I think what Michael and his wife have done to transform the Golden Goose into the Blue Door is nothing short of remarkable. The food coming out of the kitchen is being held to the same standard that the breads and pastries have long achieved. The food is not inexpensive, but at roughly $10 for breakfast or lunch per person and for the quality you receive, I think it is a great value. If you've been hesitant to try out the restaurant or just haven't been back for a while, now is the time to take action.

And if you go on a day where they have the heirloom tomato croissant, get it. You won't be disappointed.

Trying A Hangover Burger At Steel Trolley Diner

When life recently handed me lemons, I decided to turn the tables and make lemonade. And in a strange serendipitous twist, it was delicious lemonade. I had decided to take a Friday off of work and when I checked my list of places "To Eat," I discovered an addition I had made some time ago: Mary's Pizza Shop in Lisbon, Ohio. Today being a lovely sunny and mid-sixties kind of day, I thought it would be the perfect time for a road trip out to eastern Ohio. By the time I had packed up my car and brought up GPS directions to Lisbon, it was nearly noon. Given that my estimated time of arrival was approximately 1:30 PM, I thought that this would be a perfect way to avoid the lunch crowds at what I can only imagine was a very popular restaurant.

Sadly, when I arrived at the quaint little pizza shop, I discovered a closed and locked door and nary a light on inside the place. Resigned to the fact that perhaps Mary's didn't have lunch hours, the fact that I was still hungry hadn't changed. Since I had driven this far, I decided to pull up my Google Maps application on my smartphone. In just a few moments, I gleefully discovered that less than two tenths of a mile away was a restaurant called the Steel Trolley Diner. While at first the name didn't jog any memories in my brain, I would later realize that I had been exposed to Steel Trolley Diner's food once prior at the 2009 National Hamburger Festival.

After finding a spot to park at a metered space on the street, I began rummaging around in my change cup to find several quarters for the meter. Much to my surprise, a single quarter actually bought me two hours' worth of time. I pocketed the rest and walked to the corner of Lincoln and Jefferson to discover the sign for the diner:


Technically, the diner was located at 140 East Lincoln Way, Lisbon, OH 44432 and can be reached at 330-424-3663. Upon turning the corner, I was presented with the front door:


Once inside the main door, I was completely taken aback to discover that the place was not only hopping at 1:45 PM on a Friday afternoon, but that it was completely packed. I stood by the door for a few minutes until I realized that there was a couple of empty stools at the opposite end of the counter, near the rear of the diner car. I took a seat and the incredibly friendly staff immediately welcomed me, rightly pegged me as an out-of-towner, and offered me a menu:









The breadth of the menu actually surprised me. This was a diner car, right?

In addition to the regular menu, a white board to my left also contained today's daily specials:


Since I hadn't had the opportunity to try one of Steel Trolley's burgers at the National Hamburger Festival, I decided to focus my search for sustenance on that part of the menu. When I saw the Hangover Burger, with its fried egg, I stopped right then and there. Burger? Check. Melted cheese? Double check. Fried egg? Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner! All the burgers were a meaty half pound of ground beef that started out as a frozen patty and were griddle-steamed on the flattop. What exactly does "griddle-steamed" mean?

The wonderful advantage of sitting at the counter was that I got to watch my lunch being made from beginning to end. When someone ordered a burger, the line cook went to the freezer, grabbed a frozen patty and threw it on top of the flattop. This was followed by a generous dousing of water and then a partial covering with a lid. Every so often, another patty was added and the process repeated. After flipping a patty, water was again applied to generate even more steam. While this ensured a properly cooked (meaning done) and steaming hot burger, the downside was that there was almost no caramelization on the outside of the finished burger.

I was also looking forward to the runny goodness from the egg yolk and when I saw that the egg that had been put onto a secondary flattop being used for breakfast items and hashed browns had its yolk broken, I was a little disheartened. Not wanting to make waves, I just decided to let my dreams of goldenrod gooey-ness dripping down my chin go the way of the Dodo.

With the final flourish of her spatula, the cook assembled my finished burger, rammed a serrated steak knife straight through its very heart, and slid the basket in front of me. Even before cutting the burger in twain, I noticed the oddly branded crown of my sandwich:


S ... T ... D ... oh, I get it! Steel Trolley Diner. That being said, one unfamiliar with this Lisbon legend might come to the same prurient conclusion as would most fourteen-year-old boys. I bisected the burger and took a shot of all the layers of my sandwich:


What I hadn't taken the time to bother reading while perusing the menu was that not only did the burger come with melted cheese and an egg, but also a sausage patty as well. This sucker must have been about two-thirds of a pound of meat in total. Overall the burger was quite tasty, although like I mentioned earlier, I didn't get the caramelization that would've made the burger even better. Other than that, it was nicely seasoned and you could taste each distinct flavor from the others.

Along with my burger, I decided to splurge and order a basket of the fried-from-frozen onion rings:


While the onion inside each ring easily detached from the crispy outer coating, I will have to concede that these rings were expertly fried: crispy on the outside without being greasy, seasoned nicely, and the onion had a bit of meat to it. They reminded me quite a bit of Jerry's Cafe in Orrville, Ohio. Did Steel Trolley Diner's version best Jerry's? They were pretty darn close, but I still think Jerry's has the edge on fried-from-frozen onion rings.

To accompany my rings, the same cook who had prepared my burger suggested I give some of their homemade horseradish mayonnaise a trip as a dip for the rings:


Just as with the spicy mayonnaise dip that Jerry's served, this was a welcome accompaniment to the onion rings, helpfully cutting through some of the fattiness. Honestly, I didn't think of it until after the fact, but the spicy mayonnaise would've made a great spread for my Hangover Burger as well. If horseradish is your thing and your server doesn't mention it, make sure you ask for it by name.

Normally, I wouldn't bother including a photograph of the check, but in today's case, my check came adorned with something I haven't seen in nearly thirty years and didn't even realize was still available:


Yes, that's right, gentle reader, that was a piece of Bazooka Joe bubble gum, complete with comic inside the wrapper. I hadn't seen this gum since I was a young boy living in Stow. I vividly remember riding my bike up to the local Lawson's on the corner of Fishcreek and Stow Road and plunking down my penny or nickel to pick up the grape or cherry treat. Ironically, it wasn't until I put the gum in my mouth and began to chew it that another memory popped into my head: we always used to buy so many pieces at a time because ten minutes in and the flavor had completely been leached from the gum. Ah well, the memory was nice while it lasted.

While I personally would've enjoyed my burger had it spent more time grilling and less time steaming, I immensely enjoyed my impromptu stop today at Steel Trolley Diner. The charming decor, the friendly people, and the diner style food make this little restaurant a must stop if you are traveling through or near Lisbon. Would I drive the hour it took me to get here for another meal? Given that I came across the very scenic Rt. 172 to get here, yes, I would. And as you'll see from my next blog entry on Mary's Pizza Shop, you might just want to stick around for that, too.

Brunching At Wild Goats Cafe

For those of you who have been following my blog for any length of time, I have made several remarks to the fact that I spent my formative years in Stow, Ohio. At the end of my 7th grade year and just before my 8th grade year was to start, my family relocated to Wadsworth, Ohio where I finished middle school and graduated from the high school. I was pretty miserable leaving my friends behind and I attempted to stay in touch for a while through letter writing. Ultimately, it got to be too much and the never very prolific penning of letters came to a grinding halt.

Over the years, I hadn't thought much about my Stow friends. That is, until Facebook came onto the scene. Suddenly I am reconnecting with people who, honestly, I don't even remember (anyone else out there have that problem, too?). As it turned out, this weekend was Stow High School's 20th annual reunion and many of these old friends had driven and flown in from all parts of the country. While I would feel a little weird crashing a high school reunion where I hadn't actually graduated from the school, I was fortunate enough to be invited to a pre-party the night before the reunion and to a brunch on the day of at the enormously popular Wild Goats Cafe.

Wild Goats Cafe was located at 319 West Main Street, Kent, OH 44240 and can be reached at 330-677-2326. Parking was a little strange in that only the spots directly around the restaurant were available for use. The outer spaces were for some type of medical facility that apparently shared the lot with the cafe. When I arrived today at 11:30 AM, there were absolutely zero spots available, so I ended up parking on the street further down West Main and walking to the cafe.

Here was a shot of the sign outside of the restaurant:


Once inside, I quickly realized why the parking lot was full: this place was hopping! Fortunately, it didn't take long before our group of 14 was seated at three different tables. Waiting for us on the table were menus:









The menu bordered on being just a bit too much in that there was almost too much from which to choose. It certainly didn't enter The Cheesecake Factory territory though. Looking through my options, I had to decide if I was more in a breakfast mood or a lunch mood. Since I hadn't eaten breakfast yet today, I decided to go for that.

I started out with a freshly squeezed glass of orange juice:


At $2.99, some might find this pricey, but given the size of the glass and how fresh it tasted, I certainly didn't mind. My body must have been craving orange juice this morning because somehow when I picked up the glass to take another sip, it was already nearly empty.

Looking over the menu, I tried to gauge which breakfast choice would give me the opportunity to try as many flavors as possible today. At $8.45, the Shepherd's Breakfast seemed to fit the bill perfectly. There were eggs, hash browns, toast, biscuit and sausage gravy, and a breakfast meat of my choice.

Here was half of my Shepherd's Breakfast:


And here was the other half:


Let's talk about the positives first. The eggs were cooked sunny-side up as I had requested with no visible uncooked whites surrounding the yolks. The hash browns were nicely caramelized and had that crunchy and creamy texture going for them at the same time. The toast, whole wheat, was thickly cut and nicely toasted so that the outside was crunchy and the inside was nice and soft. A restrained amount of butter had been brushed on the inside surfaces. The bread was tasty and made me feel like I was doing something healthy for my body.

The sausage gravy was perfectly seasoned and had just the right amount of spice to it. In combination with the biscuit,


I really enjoyed this combination of textures and flavors. The biscuit wasn't flaky, but it was definitely tender and warm.

Now the negatives. The first negative can almost get away with getting a pass since it happens at so many places where eggs are served: they came out unseasoned. The hash browns, while there was some seasoning, were definitely underseasoned. The ham, on the other hand, was like eating a salt lick in comparison. The other problem I had with the ham was that it looked like such a tiny portion on that big plate, especially in comparison to how full the first plate of eggs, hash browns, and toast looked.

My friend Rachel decided to get an order of the sweet potato fries for the table to share:


Flavor-wise these were good, but once again, they came out of the kitchen lacking some serious salt. After seasoning, the subtle sweet potato flavor came out even more and we enjoyed them as a nice side to our respective breakfasts/lunches.

In general, should the Wild Goats Cafe decide to fix their seasoning issues, I would heartily recommend that you check them out. They have a cool Kent State campus college vibe to them and I like that they strive to make healthy meals available should you choose to order them off the menu. You may want to try and go at sometime other than 11:30 AM on a Saturday if you want to avoid the crowds, but even then, it wasn't a terrible wait for a table. While I am actually a little sad that I won't be attending my previous alma mater's reunion tonight, at least I was able to share a meal and walk down memory lane with some of my old Stow friends. Wild Goats Cafe was a perfect place for all that reminiscing.