No Salt Added at The Annex Bar and Grille

I must have driven by The Annex Bar & Grille on Pettibone Road in Solon several dozen times over the last number of years. Friend and fellow food blogger Nancy lives close by The Annex and every time I would drive to or from her house, I'd pass by the small structure. I never even gave it a second thought until recently when Nancy contacted me to tell me that two old friends, Walter Hyde and Scott Slagle (of Fat Casual fame) were now working certain shifts behind the bar and the grill. Not only that, but apparently they were doing some low/no sodium items on the menu for lunch.

After doing some initial research with Walter, I met up with Nancy and her husband for lunch just a few weeks ago to check things out. It turns out that The Annex has a policy of not salting anything on the menu. Here I was all prepared to say, "no salt, please" to everything I ordered, but as it turns out, there was no need to. Now, that being said, there are still only a couple of menu items that can be done low/no sodium successfully because much of the food is traditional bar food -- highly processed frozen items that can be quickly cooked or deep fried during service. These items (and there are many of them) can't be done without salt because they are seasoned even before they are cooked.

The first item I tried was the burger. The burgers come in two sizes, a one-third pound patty and a two-third pound patty. I was feeling particularly hungry that day, so I went with a two-third pound burger, medium rare with just some lettuce and tomato on a toasted (but not buttered) bun. While The Annex doesn't use salt, it does use butter, so if you want a toasted butter-free bun, make sure to order it that way. Paired with my burger was an order of their fresh-cut fries, also completely salt-free:

I have to say, for a measly $8 for this combination, this was a pretty damn good burger! Now, of course, there was some natural sodium in the beef and the bun was just a regular hamburger bun (so probably around 200-250mg of sodium), but for around 300-350mg of total sodium, this was a great way to kill the craving for a burger and fries. And at two-thirds of a pound of ground beef, it was VERY filling.

On every table (and presumably the bar), there was a container with standard condiments. Since I knew I wanted some ketchup and mustard with my meal and knowing that regular ketchup and mustard pack a large sodium wallop, I brought my own. I've done that twice now and nobody seems to care, so if you want sodium-free condiments, do what I did and bring your own. To be fair, malt vinegar was available for your French Fries, but I kind of prefer ketchup.

It was also during my first visit that Walter informed me that the chicken breast wasn't brined and would therefore be a good choice, too. I decided to take him up on that bit of information and several weeks after my first visit returned to order the grilled chicken sandwich with a side of the same fresh-cut fries:

In the second image you can see my sodium-free ketchup and mustard in the background. Heinz makes a nearly sodium-free ketchup that you can find in most regular grocery stores. Unfortunately, the downside to this ketchup is that it uses high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) as the sweetener. It turns out that you can't have your (condiment) cake and eat it, too. Either you get the "natural" ketchup with real sugar that has salt or you get the no salt added ketchup that has no added salt but HFCS. I figure that as rarely as I eat this ketchup, having it twice in six months was acceptable. The sodium free mustard I used was one from Westbrae and is available at Mustard Seed Market (the one in Fairlawn) for about $3 per jar. It comes both in organic and non-organic varieties (and the price varies accordingly). I've found this to be an excellent mustard that I can use liberally since it has 0mg of sodium per serving.

But I digress; back to my chicken sandwich. Based on how the menu reads, the chicken sandwich normally comes between two slices of bread. Figuring a hamburger bun would be slightly lower in sodium than two pieces of sandwich bread (200-250mg vs. 300-350mg), the only change I made was to ask for it on the hamburger bun, again without butter. While it was nice to have the option of either the grilled chicken or the burger, were I to do it again, I'd probably stick with the burger. In the end, it was just the better tasting of the two. The fresh-cut fries, however, were great both times.

The only other option you really have if you're not in the mood for a sandwich is to order a house salad with grilled chicken on top. The only problem is that while they have malt vinegar to dress your salad, I don't know that they have oil to go along with it (you might just want to bring your own).

Will I go back to The Annex? Absolutely. For $8(ish) for either a healthy-sized burger or chicken sandwich with fresh-cut fries, it's a great deal. Is it the best burger I've ever had (price aside)? No, but it's pretty darn good and I wouldn't hesitate recommending it to others, especially if they're looking for low sodium options.

The Annex Bar & Grille is located at 36200 Pettibone Road, Solon, OH 44139 and can be reached at 440-248-5725. Hours listed on their website indicate they are open Monday through Saturday from 10am-2:30am (kitchen 10am-10pm) and on Sunday from 12pm-12am (kitchen 12pm-10pm). That being said, I know they recently added breakfast hours on Saturday mornings.

A Low Sodium Fast Food Compendium

It would seem, at least at first, that the notion of eating a very low salt, no butter, no cheese diet would be at complete odds with the current state of the fast food industry. And to a large extent, you would be correct. However, in the vast sea of salt, fat, and sugar that comprises most of the fast food industry's offerings, there are a few nuggets of goodness that you can cling to when you are looking for a quick fix or are traveling and haven't had time to research local restaurants.

Having combed through more than a dozen published nutritional guides on the Internet, I've come to a few conclusions:

1) Many fast food restaurants offer some type of "garden salad" which is usually okay. Almost all only offer salted dressings, although as you'll see, some dressings are better than others.

2) Of those that offer garden salads, that's usually all they can offer that would be acceptably low sodium.

3) There are some fast food chains that offer nothing acceptably low sodium.

4) Grilled chicken breast is often as salty or saltier than beef (thanks to brining).

So, how do I differentiate between fast food and fast casual? I know it isn't a completely cut and dry set of rules, but in general, if the restaurant has a drive thru, I'd consider it fast food and not fast casual. That being said, I consider Subway to be fast food although I've seen very few Subway locations with a drive thru.

And with that distinction out of the way, here are the only fast food restaurants at which I've had any success.

Wendy's

While none of the proteins (chicken, beef, or fish) at Wendy's would even remotely qualify as low sodium, the one thing that Wendy's has on their menu that I find appealing is the presence of a baked potato. Now, of course, when you load up that baked potato with cheese, bacon, and sour cream, it is no longer low sodium, but according to their published nutrition information, a plain baked potato by itself has almost no sodium and if you decide to splurge and add chives and sour cream (just one container of sour cream), you top out at 35mg of sodium.

And while the garden salad has nothing particularly salty on it, you do have to be careful of the dressings. Your two best choices are the pomegranate vinaigrette (150mg of sodium for the entire packet) or the ranch dressing (170mg of sodium for the entire packet). Since I tend to not like overdressed salads, I usually use only half of the packet. Thus, for about 100-110mg of sodium, you can walk away with a baked potato with sour cream and chives and a garden salad with half a packet of pomegranate vinaigrette. Not bad.

Subway

Just like Wendy's, every single protein and cheese option is out at Subway if you are considering a sub sandwich. Which means that the only real choice you have if you want a sub sandwich is a 6" Veggie Delite on either 9-grain wheat, Italian, honey oat, or multigrain flatbread. Each of these types of bread has between 280mg and 290mg of sodium for the 6" version. Skip the cheese and load up on non-salty vegetables (lettuce, tomato, red onion, spinach, cucumber, green peppers, etc.). Fortunately, Subway is one of the few (maybe only?) fast food restaurants to offer plain old oil and vinegar as a dressing. Other non-salty toppers include ground pepper and dried thyme. Pair that with a package of apple slices from the kids menu and you've got a decent meal with about 300mg of sodium total.

If you're wanting to go more of the salad route, you can certainly go with the Veggie Delite option at 75mg of sodium or, the one protein-based salad that seems acceptable to me is the oven-roasted chicken salad at 280mg of sodium. Again, dressing will be limited to oil and vinegar. A possible third option is the Monterrey chicken melt salad, but it clocks in at 360mg of sodium. Plus, with the addition of cheese, you up the fat and saturated fat by a couple of grams each. Nothing heart-seizing, mind you, but the first two salads are the healthier options.

Steak 'n Shake

As you've seen so far, fast food proteins and low sodium don't mix. However, at Steak 'n Shake, you can get either the single steakburger (310mg sodium) or the double steakburger (330mg sodium) if what you crave can only be satiated by beef. Of course, realize that cheese is out, as are all forms of condiments. The standard burger toppings of lettuce, tomato, and onion will be okay additions.

For sides, you could go with applesauce (0mg), apples and caramel (75mg), small French fries (80mg), regular French fries (140mg), small garden salad (105mg), or a cup of Mandarin oranges (15mg). I'm guessing by the fact that the garden salad has 105mg of sodium that it probably has cheese or croutons, which you can either pick off yourself or ask for it to be served without, which would substantially lower the sodium content. While I don't see oil and vinegar as an option from the salad dressings portion of the nutritional spreadsheet, one ounce of the honey mustard dressing does clock in at only 115mg of sodium. As with Wendy's, a light touch with the dressing can reduce that number by half.

If breakfast is what you are after at Steak 'n Shake, you also have a couple of options from that menu, too. Two eggs, any style, will set you back 140mg of sodium. Other choices include a cup of Mandarin oranges (15mg), the parfait (95mg), oatmeal (260mg), or hash browns (300mg). While the combination of eggs and hash browns is a bit high for my liking (440mg for both), combining two eggs with a parfait seems like a perfectly reasonable amount of sodium (235mg for both) when eating out at a fast food restaurant and getting something that is nutritious and filling.

So, there you have it -- three recommendations for those looking to both maintain a low salt lifestyle and still be able to occasionally stop in for a quick meal at a fast food restaurant. Are there others out there that might qualify? Of course, I'm sure there are. I really only researched fast food chains that are common to the northeast Ohio area. And for those that hoped Swenson's might make the list, even though it is a local chain here in northeast Ohio, unfortunately, they haven't published any nutritional information about their food, so I ruled them out.

Please feel free, gentle reader, to suggest other fast food chains (and more specifically, menu items) that might make the cut.

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.

Dining On The Mezzanine

[Full disclosure: In 2007, I apprenticed (and got paid) at Mustard Seed Market in Solon in the baking department for two months. I also gave away several gift cards provided by Mustard Seed Market in my blog post about the grocery part of the Montrose store back in May 2012.]

I find it both odd and interesting that having lived and worked in and around Akron for much of my life that I really haven't spent all that much time trying out the cafe portion of Mustard Seed Market. With their recent acquisition (and subsequent departure) of one Mr. Lanny Chin, I decided that perhaps now was as good a time as any to investigate further. As when any new chef starts, he or she invariably takes control of his predecessor's menu and has to execute it until it can be replaced with something new. This was the role that Lanny played.

Fortunately for me, Mustard Seed Market prominently features not only their cafe and its mission but also the menu online for all to see. Given the variety of healthy choices (gluten-free, vegetarian, vegan, etc.), it was also nice to see that they offered something as hearty as a burger (grass-fed beef, bison, or veggie). Before each of my visits, I was able to study the menu in such a way that would allow me to try maximum tastes for minimum cash outlay.

First on the discussion block are soups. The Tomato Bisque was a member of the regular menu:

Tomato Bisque

Although I thought that the soup was a bit chunky to be called a bisque, the flavor of the tomatoes was pretty profound. The acidity of the tomato matched well with the cashew cream used to give the soup its body. While perfectly tasty on its own, don't make the mistake that I did and pair the soup with something equally acidic, like the whole wheat gemelli with marinara sauce.

While the other soup always on the menu is the Miso Soup, always be sure to check the daily specials. On a different visit, the Chicken Florentine Soup struck my fancy:

Chicken Florentine Soup

Rich and velvety, this was a hearty soup that satisfied. There was ample chicken and spinach in the liquid and the soup itself was the perfect consistency. The only real complaint I had about the soup was that since the chicken had been shredded, I pulled many a spoonful of soup out of the bowl where chicken was hanging over the edge of the spoon, mercilessly taunting the shirt I was wearing. Needless to say, the perilous trip from cup to mouth was fraught with danger.

While the soups were delicious and relatively worry free, both of my salads had me perk up and say, "Hmmm." One of the niceties of the cafe's current menu was that many of the salads were available in both half and full portion sizes. All the salads pictured here were of the half-portion size variety. First was the Avocado Salad:

Avocado Salad

The avocado was rich and buttery and the acidity of the dressing on the greens balanced the richness of the fruit. The bisected cherry tomatoes were a nice touch, but sadly, my salad came from the kitchen missing the fresh raspberries the menu promised. Unfortunately, I didn't realize that until after I had eaten most of the salad, so there was no sending it back to the kitchen. Regardless, it was still a tasty salad sans raspberries.

The more dubious of my salad experiences was when I ordered the Spring Panzanella Salad during a different visit:

Spring Panzanella Salad

With fresh peas, asparagus, and more bisected cherry tomatoes, this was a perfectly serviceable salad. Except no one bothered to tell the chef who made the previous menu that what he actually created was a garden salad with croutons, not a panzanella salad. Traditionally, a panzanella salad is made by taking day old cubed bread and tossing it with cut up tomatoes. As the mixture is tossed, the juice from the tomatoes softens the bread. Other ingredients can be added, of course, but clearly what I had been served was not panzanella.

Here was the conversation that ensued when I released the picture on Twitter with a comment:

Tom Noe @tnoe27 21 May
Listed on the menu as a Spring Panzanella Salad at @MustardSeedMrkt, Bzzzt, wrong! It WAS a tasty salad w/ croutons. http://flic.kr/p/enFXvy

Mustard Seed Market ‏@MustardSeedMrkt 24 May
@tnoe27 We apologize for mixing it up and giving you the wrong salad. Mistakes do happen but not often in our Cafe. We hope to see you soon.

Tom Noe ‏@tnoe27 24 May
@MustardSeedMrkt So, based on the picture I posted, I am curious as to what salad you sent me instead of the Spring Panzanella Salad?

Mustard Seed Market ‏@MustardSeedMrkt 24 May
@tnoe27 Looks like a garden salad with croutons but let me check and get back to you. -Gabe

Mustard Seed Market ‏@MustardSeedMrkt 24 May
@tnoe27 It is our Panzanella salad but not a traditional Panzanella salad. I hope you enjoyed it and come back to see us again soon.

So, the basic point I am trying to make is that if you expecting a more traditional panzanella salad, I'd avoid the one at Mustard Seed Market. If you are looking for a tasty garden salads with croutons, this one's a keeper.

Now that we've covered soups and salads, we move forward to sandwiches and entrees. On my initial visit to the cafe, I decided to go with a plate of Whole Wheat Gemelli and Turkey Meatballs:

Whole Wheat Gemelli

The picture doesn't really do the platter of pasta justice. At only $8 on the menu, I EASILY received enough food for two meals (or two people). Honestly, they could've given me half the pasta, kept the two meatballs and only charged $6 for it. I had no problem with the texture of the cooked pasta, but as you can see in the lower bottom right corner of the plate, the kitchen hadn't drained the pasta completely before saucing it. The meatballs were tasty, but a touch on the dry side. Overall, this dish scored an average rating.

At Lanny's suggestion, I gave the Bison Burger a try on my second visit:

Bison Burger

The cafe has sort of a "build your own" burger philosophy. You pick the protein, the cheese (or soy-based alternative), the toppings, and the side and the kitchen will send you out exactly what you ordered. In this case, I went with grilled onions and a side of the house made cole slaw. I knew that bison was a lean meat, so I ordered my burger medium rare. And that was exactly how it came out of the kitchen. The burger was marvelous: juicy, seasoned properly, and cooked perfectly. While the house made whole wheat bun held up well against all the juices coming out of the patty, it was also just a touch stale. The cole slaw was a creamy salad, unusual in that it had large planks of colored bell peppers in it.

The first time I ordered chicken was as the Pan-Seared Chicken Breast:

Pan-seared Chicken Breast

Fanned over a savory fennel and tomato farro and adorned with a herb pistou, everything on this plate tasted fantastic. The chicken, sadly, was a touch overcooked and dry. The pistou helped in that regard, but too much pistou and it tasted like I was eating an herb garden. The whole cherry tomatoes were hot and when I bit into one, the hot cherry juice exploded into my mouth.

My second experience with chicken fixed one problem, but introduced others. Here was the cafe's take on Pasta Carbonara:

Bucatini Pasta Carbonara with Chicken

This time around, the chicken was seasoned and cooked beautifully. The chicken was actually an add-on to the base dish of bucatini pasta carbonara (which was vegan). Many of the dishes offered at Mustard Seed Market operated in this fashion. Start with a base and add whatever "topping" you'd like, for an additional fee. The problem with this dish, and I think it is pretty clear in the picture above, was that the pasta carbonara portion of the dish was just too much: too many ingredients and too much sauce. A traditional carbonara is made with pancetta, which is smoked. I wondered how that particular flavor profile would be recreated. It turned out that the mushrooms were lightly smoked and really infused a remarkably similar flavor to this vegan dish. While in the end this was a tasty dish, it just tried to be too many things to too many people.

Of all the entrees I tried during my visits to the Mustard Seed Market cafe, none were so perfect as the Black Pearl Grilled Salmon:

Black Pearl Grilled Salmon

Served exactly medium rare over a grapefruit quinoa salad that had been drizzled with a balsamic gastrique, this was heaven on a plate. The fish was eminently juicy and perfectly seasoned, the quinoa had amazing depth and was slightly chewy while still being cooked and the grapefruit supremes embedded in the quinoa matched the sweetness from the gastrique very well. Honestly, the grilled baby bok choy was cute and added a contrasting color, but was wholly unnecessary.

The final sandwich I tried during my visits was the good old Turkey Reuben:

Turkey Reuben Sandwich

Served with Kettle potato chips, a pickle spear, and a side of "1000 Island" dressing, this was a decent interpretation of the real thing. Actually, on the sandwich itself, the rye bread could've been a bit more toasted and the sauerkraut could've been a bit more tangy, but the quality of the turkey was quite lovely and the sandwich more or less worked. What didn't work so well was the vegan 1000 Island dressing. It was a bit on the thin side and just didn't pair as well with the sandwich as the real deal. The potato chips were salty and crunchy and tasted like, well, potato chips.

Lest you think the cafe doesn't have anything for your sweet tooth, I took a taste of two of their desserts. On my first visit, I tried the Warm Chocolate Chip Sundae:

Warm Chocolate Chip Sundae

The dish consisted of a scoop of vanilla ice cream that had two warm chocolate chip cookies pressed up against it, topped with whipped cream, sliced strawberries strewn among the plate and drizzled heavily with chocolate sauce. I'm not going to lie; this was good. But it was good in the way you'd expect a quality vanilla ice cream to taste. And homemade chocolate chip cookies to taste. In other words, the individual components were tasty, but put together, it wasn't really breaking any culinary ground.

The Knock Out Cake, however,

Knock Out Cake

elicited several moans of culinary ecstasy. With the cake layers and the mousse layers and the fresh raspberries and the generous chocolate ganache coating, it was all I could do to restrain myself from licking the plate clean. My server didn't indicate whether or not this cake was vegan. If it was, my hat is off to the baker who came up with this recipe. Even if this was a traditional cake, my hat still goes off. If you are in the mood for something sweet at the end of your meal, this is definitely the route to go.

I should also say a little bit about service. During all of my visits except one, service was prompt and efficient. The kitchen definitely wasn't cranking out dishes quickly, so I wouldn't advise the cafe for lunch if you have less than forty-five minutes available. The one service issue was the day when I ordered the Chicken Florentine Soup and the Black Pearl Grilled Salmon. After what seemed to be an enormously long time to get my soup, thirty seconds or so after receiving my soup, my server returned to my table to deliver the salmon. As he was setting the plate on the table, I was finishing my first spoonful of soup. He helpfully offered to put the salmon under a warming lamp, but realizing that would kill the dish, I moved the soup aside (I had tasted it after all) and accepted the salmon. I'm glad I did.

Overall, I think the cafe did a pretty good job. While there were a few nitpicks with the food here and there, (just like most restaurants), there were dishes that could've been improved upon (or simply renamed) and others that were utterly perfect just as they came out of the kitchen. While Lanny Chin has moved on, I'll be curious to see which executive chef they bring in next and the changes (or not) that get implemented. I recommend that you give Mustard Seed Market Cafe a chance the next time you are in Montrose and looking for a restaurant that can serve up food to folks with dietary restrictions and for folks who are just looking for something tasty.

A Week In The Life At The Blue Door Cafe

I love The Blue Door Cafe and Bakery.

Am I recognized when I walk through the front door? Yes. Am I given seating priority over other customers? Never. Do I ask for special treatment or go off menu when ordering? Nothing that I wouldn't do at any other restaurant. Do I think that the kitchen might take an extra second or two to make sure my plate of food is a stand-out dish both visually and in how it tastes? Absolutely.

Lest I set the bar too high so early in the review, let me bring some reality to the situation. I have been going on a fairly regular basis to Blue Door since they converted over from The Golden Goose just under a year ago. On the whole, the food is creative, very tasty, and fun. Have I ever gotten a bad plate of food -- something I would send back to the kitchen? No. Have I ordered items off the menu that weren't as stellar as others? Yes. It is a sad fact of life that not all dishes are created equal and while I've been knocked out of this world too many times to count with the food here, sometimes a dish can be cooked correctly and seasoned properly, but still only register a "meh" in the taste department.

So why do I love Blue Door so much? Mostly because of the commitment of every single person that works there to provide a positive experience, from the homemade breads and pastries, to the effort to use seasonal and local ingredients as much as possible, to the knowledgeable waitstaff, and to the kitchen team that not only continually strives to innovate new dishes on a daily basis, but also has the chops to be able to pull it off.

While the restaurant has a regular menu which changes very little, the true magic of this place is the daily "specials" menu, which tends to rotate definitely on a weekly basis, and quite often, on a daily one. This week, dishes on the specials menu centered on an Italian theme, some of which were of true Italian descent, others were a nod to an Italian tradition.

Shall we begin the journey with Wednesday, May 16th?

Many times I already know what I am going to order even before walking through the front door. This is because owner Michael Bruno does a great job of fairly regularly updating the status of the restaurant's Facebook page. He'll list out the daily specials for the following day so that customers have an idea of what to expect. Nine times out of ten, that status update will be what prompts me to come in the following day for breakfast or lunch.

So what was today's sirens' song? Fresh Pasta Carbonara:

Made with homemade egg noodles, fresh peas, shallots, Nueske's bacon, and Parmesan cheese, this creamy and salty concoction made my head swoon with delight. I am particularly fond of the fact that from it's very inception, Blue Door has championed the use of the deliciously smokey and salty Nueske bacon, which adds such great depth to any dish it appears in. The fresh peas were delicious and added little pops of sweetness to a pasta dish which could've easily landed on the salty side.

Not wanting me to miss out on the opportunity to try one of the kitchen's homemade meatballs, at the chef's request, my server also brought me one covered in the house marinara sauce:

This was one of the most tender meatballs I think I've ever eaten, probably due to the freshly ground bread crumbs that were added to help retain the meat's moisture. The marinara sauce had a nice acidity to it that complemented the fattiness of the meatball. On the menu, this meatball was intended for the "Not Just Any Spaghetti and Meatballs," also with homemade egg pasta. Had I not been so hot and bothered for the carbonara, I would've gladly ordered this in its place.

On Thursday, May 17th, I returned for lunch and decided this time to try the Italian Sausage Sandwich accompanied by a selection of Fresh Fruit:

Here's a slightly different angle:

Placed in a toasted housemade baguette roll, the Italian sausage was a little bit spicy, substantial, and delicious. Housemade marinara along with roasted peppers and onions also filled the roll and was finished off with melted cheese and a chiffonade of fresh basil. When the plate was first set down in front of me, I had to pause for a moment to consider my line of attack. While I'm sure some could unhinge their jaw and attempt to eat this like a normal sandwich, today I opted for knife and fork. Everything about this plate of food was delicious. And while the interior crumb of the baguette was nearly perfect, the only concern that I had was with the exterior. When toasting a baguette, it can get a bit too crusty for my dental work. The fresh fruit was an excellent complement to the savory sandwich.

When I stopped in on Friday, May 18th, I noticed that some of the specials had been reworked (like the Cannoli French Toast was now a Sicilian French Toast) and new items were listed where others had lived before:

I am ALWAYS up for a good burger and having never had one at Blue Door before, I decided to go with the Mafia Burger with a side of French Fries. Here was one angle:

and a different angle:

So what made this burger so special? For one, the ground beef was local Ohio beef that had been grass-fed. It arrived at the perfect medium-rare I had ordered it. Second, the pesto creme fraiche, organic roasted red peppers, and toasted ciabatta roll were all made in-house. As you can well imagine, the French Fries were hand-cut and fried to a proper crispy golden brown and delicious texture and flavor. While I had read the night before on Blue Door's Facebook page that the bun was going to be a seeded brioche, I was a little surprised that the burger actually came on a ciabatta roll.

If there was one gripe about the burger, it was the ciabatta roll. Don't misunderstand, gentle reader. It was impeccably fresh and had a wonderful crust and crumb. And it was right for the kitchen to split and toast the roll in an effort to avoid a soggy bottom bun from the juicy burger patty. But because of the nature of ciabatta, the crust was tougher to bite through. This meant that with every bite, the interior contents of the burger were being squished out the other end of the roll. A minor gripe to be sure, but when you're working at such an elevated level, every little consideration counts.

I mentioned it to Michael on my way out of the door and he concurred that ciabatta wasn't the best match for the burger, but that he just hadn't had time to get the brioche done that morning. Fair enough.

 On Saturday, May 19th, I was completely stoked to see that Blue Door had received a shipment of ripe heirloom tomatoes. There are few pleasures in life as a really ripe tomato and I was excited to see what would appear on the specials menu for the day:

While there was a Salad Caprese on the menu:

I was thinking more along the lines of a sandwich. So, in a moment of foodie inspiration (or desperation, depending on your point of view), I decided to order the Salad Caprese and one of Blue Door's signature croissants, split and toasted on the flattop:

With salad and croissant in hand, I simply assembled the breakfast sandwich I had been envisioning all along:

I mean, how can you go wrong with fresh ripe tomatoes, fresh Ohio basil, fresh mozzarella cheese, 30-year-old balsamic vinegar and an incredibly buttery, flaky croissant? Truth be told that one croissant only used up about half of the salad's contents, so I had a lovely time finishing the remaining salad with my fork. For about a tenth of a second, I thought about ordering a second croissant to make an additional "sandwich," but decided to keep my butter quota in check for the meal. If you have the chance to try this for yourself, do it!

For my final visit, TODAY, I had arrived early enough to consider a breakfast dish instead of lunch. As such, I decided to give in to my sweet tooth:

Any time I order something sweet, I also try to order something to balance it out. In today's case, that would a cup of coffee from local, Akron-based coffee roaster Angel Falls:

Hot and bitter, this was a lovely way to start my meal and wake up in the morning.

The Sicilian French Toast had been teasing me most of the week and a comment from a Facebook friend finally pushed me over the edge:

The French Toast was made with housemade Challah bread, soaked in lemon, milk, cream, and eggs, which had then been griddled and then layered with a lemon pastry cream, topped with Creme Chantilly (aka fresh whipped cream), sprinkled with Vietnamese cinnamon, a chiffonade of fresh mint, fresh raspberries, and powdered sugar. I was surprised at how well the lemon and mint went together. Actually, the whole thing was delicious and while it wasn't the best French Toast I've had at Blue Door (that honor goes to the brandied peach French Toast), if you're looking to satisfy your sweet tooth, this would be the way to go.

Along with the sweet portion of my meal, I decided to add a bit of smokey saltiness with some of the Nueske applewood-smoked, thick-cut bacon:

Honestly, this is some of the best bacon I've ever eaten. It isn't inexpensive, but it is meat, hearty, rich, salty, and smokey all at the same time. I probably shouldn't have gone the extra step because I couldn't finish everything, but every time I taste this bacon, it takes me back to my youth when I would camp out with the Cub Scouts and we'd cook most of the food over an open fire.

So there we have it, gentle reader, an entire week's worth of Blue Door Cafe and Bakery.

Now, I will be the first to admit that Blue Door is not inexpensive. On a fairly regular basis, with tip and tax, each of the meals I wrote about above was anywhere from $15 to $20. Those wandering in thinking that Blue Door is the same old greasy spoon diner it used to be in one of its previous lives will be a bit shocked. In fact, I have seen people sit down, look at the menu, then at each other, get up and leave before ordering anything. Honestly, those aren't the kind of folks that Blue Door cater to anymore.

But if you are interested in nearly everything being made from scratch, local, organic, sustainable food being cooked and seasoned properly, and understand that quality ingredients cost money, then you really ought to check out Blue Door as soon as you can. Do note that while the outside door is now blue, the old sign for The Golden Goose is still standing out in front of the restaurant. That will change at some point, according to Michael, but it is worth remembering in case you are trying to locate the restaurant for the first time.

I've included lots of gorgeous pictures in this write-up from my past five visits (which open up extra large when you click on them), however, I have many, MANY more starting from the day they opened in on my Flickr account. If you'd like to see more pictures, click here. You can even start a slideshow to view them from beginning to end.

There is so much I didn't get to cover during these five visits. Gee, I guess I'll just have to pick another week in the future and repeat the experiment. And that will be fun for both of us!

A Trio Of Lunches At Sweet Pea Cafe

I remember reading about Sweet Pea Cafe several years ago in the Akron Beacon Journal and was reminded once again of its existence about a year ago when Jane Snow mentioned them in one of her weekly electronic newsletters (to which I highly recommend you subscribe). But it wasn't until I happened to be in the Fairlawn area one day for lunch that this quirky, VERY out of the way place popped into my head as a potential candidate for lunch. Nestled in a multi-business building suite, the cafe was only a single block east of Summit Mall, but for those who only drive on the major roads, it can be a bit intimidating to find.

Sweet Pea Cafe was located at 117 Merz Boulevard, Fairlawn, OH, 44333 and can be reached at 330-794-7952. They do have a website, but it appears to be fairly incomplete and only somewhat helpful. Parking at the restaurant was in the lot in front of the building.

Here was a shot of the front of the space occupied by the restaurant:


For my initial visit, I had decided to go for a late lunch at 12:45 PM figuring that most of the lunch crowd would have come and gone. While the restaurant was about half full when I got there, within fifteen minutes, the crowd had shrunk considerably. When I walked in the door, someone behind the lunch counter motioned that I should sit wherever I'd like. As it appeared that many of the tables by the front door hadn't been bussed in a while, as soon as I picked a four-top by the window, someone immediately came over and cleared and wiped down my table.

After finishing with the cleaning of my table, he handed me the menu:



From the little feedback I had seen on Yelp and Urbanspoon, I knew that Sweet Pea Cafe had many devotees of the food. A lot of the positive comments revolved around the fact that the menu was vegetarian friendly. Even more comments were made as to the freshness of the food. While I wasn't particularly looking for a vegetarian meal today, I was in the mood for something fresh and tasty.

After placing my lunch order, I sat back and surfed the web on my smartphone while I waited for my lunch to be prepared. After twenty minutes with nothing coming out of the kitchen, I began to get concerned. The cafe was only one-third full and it was taking the kitchen a long time to get my food out. While I had the flexibility of no set time limit for my lunch, lots of other patrons might not. I can only imagine how long it took to get food if the place was packed during peak dining hours. Finally at about twenty-five minutes after originally placing my order, my lunch arrived.

Here was a photograph of the hamburger platter with a side of Sweet Pea Cafe's "country potatoes":


I had upgraded the basic burger ($7) with American cheese (+$1) and bacon (+$1):


I had ordered the one-third pound burger to be cooked medium and when I bisected the burger using the steak knife my server provided to me upon my request, I got a much better view of the interior of the burger patty:


Sadly, this burger was cooked somewhere between medium well and well done. Fortunately, it was still juicy. With the addition of a little yellow mustard and ketchup, I took a bite and was rewarded with a good, but not great burger. On the plus side, the bun had been nicely toasted which not only added a nice textural element to each bite, but also helped to keep the bun from disintegrating when the juices from the burger leaked out. Also nice was the bacon which tasted freshly cooked and crispy. The tomato was red and sweet, but there was just a bit too much lettuce. It bordered on salad territory and made the sandwich a bit more difficult to eat.

Accompanying my burger was a serving of the country potatoes:


When I asked my server what country potatoes were, he seemed to have a hard time describing them to me. As soon as he set the plate down, it was obvious that they were simply roasted new potatoes. The potato wedges were hot and creamy on the inside and crispy on the outside. However, they were grossly underseasoned, bordering on completely unsalted. Every now and again I thought I detected a hint of salinity, but it just wasn't enough. I have debated endlessly about whether eggs should come out properly seasoned (I think they should), but a bland potato product? Had the menu stated that they were purposely unseasoned to allow the diner to adjust it to their preference, I might have given these a pass. As no such mention was made, I have to ding the restaurant for this oversight.

In the end, from start to finish, my initial meal took approximately one hour to complete. Which, as far as lunches go, isn't terrible. But, with the restaurant at only one-third capacity when I went, I don't know that I'd be willing to tempt fate and go right at noon. They are open for breakfast and lunch daily, and have dinner hours Thursday through Saturday. From what I've read, they also do a special prix fixe meal the second Saturday of each month. While the potatoes disappointed me today, the burger was good enough that I'm definitely willing to give this hidden Akron eatery another try ... and that's exactly what I did.

I knew that after my first visit was complete that I would be returning for a second relatively soon. About two weeks after my initial go-round, I decided to stop in for another lunch. The lunch crowd must really vary day by day because for today's visit I arrived shortly after noon to find the restaurant even less full than when I went last time. The good news was that my meal this time not only fit into the one hour time window I try to stick to for lunch, but actually only took forty-five minutes from the time I left work until the time I returned.

When I walked in, I checked out the specials board and noticed that they were serving a white chicken chili today and with the temperatures hovering outside in the mid-50's, I thought this might be an appropriate way to start my meal. When my server approached me, I asked about the chili. She apologized and said that the soup du jour wasn't chili but a hearty pork stew. She never gave a reason for the disparity, but the thought of the stew sounded just as appealing as the chili so I went ahead and ordered a cup.

Here was what arrived at my table just moments later:


And here was a close-up shot of the pork stew:


Filled with chunks of pork, carrots, onions, potatoes and cabbage, this definitely lived up to the definition of the word hearty. A bowl of this with some nice crusty bread and a salad and you would be good to go on a cold day like today. While the liquid portion of the stew was closer in consistency to a gravy, that was only a minor criticism. The stew was seasoned well and it was clear when I first tasted it that some type of acid had been used at the very end of the soup making process to lift and brighten the flavor of the finished product. It didn't taste sour, mind you, just fresh.

Since I had only ordered a cup of soup, I was able to substitute it for the salad that was normally served with my main course for today, the macaroni and cheese. I have read interesting reviews of the macaroni and cheese omelet that Sweet Pea offers, but not being in a particularly breakfasty kind of mood, I decided to try the macaroni and cheese entree sans eggs. They offered the dish both as a vegetarian and carnivore option, served with either eggplant or prosciutto respectively.

I decided to get my macaroni and cheese with the roasted eggplant:


Topped with what appeared to be panko and toasted under the salamander before being plated, Sweet Pea's version was creamy and delicious. The noodles were cooked completely, but still had a bit of tooth to them and they were sauced such that they were neither dried out nor swimming in the cheesy sauce. The sauce was complex and tasted like a blend of cheeses; I suspected at the very least Cheddar to be one of the players. When I asked my server about it, she didn't know either, but a gentleman who I am assuming is either the manager or the owner stopped by my table to let me know that the sauce was a combination of Cheddar, Jack, and American cheeses. The American, he noted, was used specifically to give the sauce extra creaminess.

The one downside to the dish was the eggplant. When I tasted a piece of the eggplant by itself, it was nicely caramelized and conveyed a subtle sweetness. The problem was that this flavor got lost in the cheese sauce. I like the idea of offering a roasted vegetable mixed in with the macaroni and cheese; I just think it needs to be a little more assertive in flavor.

A thoughtful touch today was my server's inclusion of a bottle of Cholula brand hot sauce that she brought with my entree:


While I hadn't asked her specifically for the condiment, when I added a few drops to the pasta dish, the vinegar from the hot sauce actually helped cut through the fattiness of the cheese sauce and the spice from the chilies took an already good dish and elevated it even more. While I used the hot sauce quite sparingly, the flavor added to my enjoyment of this dish immensely, so much so that I may just have to start adding hot sauce whenever I have this American classic in the future.

For my third and final lunch at Sweet Pea Cafe, I decided to order off of the daily specials board. As with my previous visits, there was always both a vegetarian option as well as a meat-based selection on the panini board. When I saw that today's meat-based panini was a Cuban sandwich, my mouth instantly started watering. A good Cuban sandwich can be a thing of beauty and I was curious to see what the kitchen would send out to me. After reading the description on the board, however, I was left with two questions. First, the board listed the cheese being used as "Jack." Not Colby Jack or Pepper Jack, just Jack (bonus points for those readers who get the television show reference I just made). Every Cuban sandwich I'd ever eaten prior to today had come with Swiss cheese. The other variation today was that instead of yellow mustard, a brown mustard was being substituted.

When my server came to take my order, I asked about the Jack cheese. I don't think she understood the point of me asking about the cheese, but when I asked if I could substitute Swiss cheese in place of the Jack, she happily agreed. In a rather odd twist of fate, a different server explaining this exact panini to a table next to mine described the sandwich as coming with Swiss cheese and not Jack cheese. So clearly, somebody at Sweet Pea knew how to make a proper Cuban sandwich. But I digress.

After around twenty minutes or so, my sandwich and side arrived:


Here was a side shot of the Cuban sandwich:


What to say about this sandwich? The outside was hot and crusty. The inside was cool to lukewarm. The ham had been placed on the sandwich in thick "steak" form, not shaved thinly. The pulled pork was juicy but nearly flavorless. The chopped pickled added a bit of crunch but almost no acidity. The brown mustard was actually an impossibly thin layer of grainy mustard spread on just one side of the sandwich. The Swiss cheese was nicely melted.

Was this a bad sandwich? No, it wasn't. Was this a Cuban sandwich? Technically, all of the ingredients were there. In spirit, however, this was not a well thought out sandwich. The ham, barely warmer than refrigerator temperature, was so thick that if you didn't manage to bite completely through the sandwich would yank all of the other ingredients out from the two pieces of bread as you pulled the sandwich away from your mouth. The acidity and bite from the mustard and pickles did almost nothing to help cut through the fattiness of the cheese, ham, and pulled pork. While the pork added some much needed juiciness, by itself it had little character. Finally, the bread. Instead of a nice crusty roll with a soft interior, Sweet Pea's version was so crispy on the outside that I thought I might damage the soft lining on the inside of my mouth as I took bite after bite.

The other component on the plate were the fresh cut French Fries:


Post frying, these potato sticks had been tossed unevenly in a dried herb blend and salt as some of the fries were completely bland and some had seasoning. While the fries succeeded in not being greasy, they were also fairly limp and not crispy at all. Applying ketchup help to hide the seasoning inconsistencies, but nothing could compensate for the lack of crispiness in these potatoes.

Honestly, I'm torn over Sweet Pea Cafe. I wanted to like them as they are the very type of restaurant at which I want to spend my money. Based on the research that I did before going, many people obviously do like them as the restaurant has always been busy (at least when I arrived). While some of the dishes have been successes, there have been an equal number of misses, too. While I would rather spend my money at a place like Sweet Pea Cafe than any of the national chains, given their so-so record over three separate visits, I have to recommend that if given the choice, Continental Cuisine, Mr. G's Pizzeria, Beau's Grille, or even Pub Bricco (review coming soon!) might be a better choice if you are in that neck of the woods. Nothing was outright bad, but not knowing from visit to visit what to expect makes me leery to recommend whether you should spend your hand-earned dollars at this little eatery in Fairlawn.