Tryout Tuesday (on Thursday)

One day, driving in the car, Foodgoat and I tried to come up with a list of the best, the most recommended, the not-to-missed Cleveland restaurants.

After 10 minutes of struggling, we only had one place on the list.

What kind of food-lovin' gourmets are we? The kind that don't go out to eat very often, and when they do, the kind that always go to the same, familiar places for the same, familiar dishes.

Well, I'm fixin' to change that. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Hence begins Tryout Tuesdays. Every other Tuesday, we will venture into a new restaurant. We'll take turns choosing the experimental location, no questions asked.


The inaugural dinner (put off for two days) was my pick, and it was John Christie's Tavern down on East 185th. Why? Because Cleveland Scene said it had the best pierogi dinner, that's why.

The Tavern has dark wood booths, gnomes in one of the windows, and a cozy, neighborhood-y atmosphere. Foodgoat ordered the pierogi dinner: 3 big, heavy, but delicious potato and cheese pierogies. It's status at Cleveland Scene is much deserved.



I went out on a limb and tried the Cincinnati Chili, which is just chili on top of spaghetti, with cheddar cheese and sour cream. It was good, but not as good as the pierogies. I enjoyed the basket of onion rings much more, which had a yummy batter around real onion.

Mmmmmm ... onion rings.