Cheap eats – Page 12 – Cleveland Rocks, Cleveland Eats

Phusion Cafe

Cleveland now has an authentic Taiwanese restaurant, Phusion Cafe, which is located in the middle of the Superior Asia plaza (behind Superior Pho, towards the front door) in the old Mama’s Soul Kitchen location. The space is a little odd and lacks walls, but it makes up for the less-than-ideal ambiance by serving some killer food.

The most popular dish at Phusion Cafe is the Taiwanese Beef Noodle Soup ($7.95). The broth is very flavorful. It looks brown in photos, but it has a reddish cast to it. Because of the color I was afraid it was going to be spicy, but it was perfect. It actually has a slight pepperoni-like taste. The noodles (I upgraded my noodles for $1 more) were thick and a little hard to eat with a chopstick, so if you aren’t really adept with chopsticks swallow your pride and use a fork. I used chopsticks and ended up wearing a lot of it. The beef pieces were a decent size and fairly thick, yet tender. Overall I can definitely see why this is their most popular dish.

When Map of Thailand was unexpectedly closed on the day I planned a dinner we tried to come up with a Plan B, and someone suggested Phusion Cafe, which had just opened. They handled our large table of 11 wonderfully considering we just showed up with no notice (something I never do). The server was pleasant and super competent. The group was full of vegetarians and non-pork eaters, and everyone left happy and full.

I ordered mango iced tea, an egg roll and the Three Cups Chicken ($12.95). The egg roll was nothing to write home about. It was nicely fried and had a nice filling. The Three Cups Chicken was a bit unwieldy to eat since it had the bones still in, but it had a nice flavor. The chicken is cooked with fennel, whole pieces of ginger root, and basil, in a savory sauce. It was unlike anything I’ve had before.

I already had a dining out event at Phusion Cafe booked a few weeks later with my dining out group, so we met up again and had an even better meal. As mentioned in my Best Bites of 2015 post, the dish that absolutely astonished us and had us constantly reaching for more was their crispy chicken with fried basil. It was perfectly fried and extremely flavorful. My friend Nancy described it as “Chicken-Basil Crack.” I’m not sure if it is on their regular menu, but if you see it as a special do yourself a favor and order it. It was extremely addictive and makes a great appetizer.

We ordered several different entrees that visit and shared them. We ordered the eggplant with garlic sauce ($9.95) since so many of us are fans of the Chinese dish. It was definitely on point and was very similar to other eggplant dishes such as Wonton Gourmet and Szechuan Gourmet. Another big hit was the hakka pork with tofu and celery. The flavor was really good, but it was really hard to eat with chopsticks. The thin little strips were difficult to wrangle. Again, don’t be too proud to ask for a fork. We also ordered the Sausage Fried Rice. Although several of my friends enjoyed this dish I wasn’t as big of a fan. I thought it was kind of bland.

I was there recently for lunch and grabbed the Peanut Butter Chicken combination to go ($5.95 – the combo at dinner is $6.95). If you love peanut butter you will adore this dish. It was crisp fried chicken in a luscious peanut butter satay sauce. This is the chicken satay I have been searching for since I lived in Germany. The chicken was perfectly fried and still held up to reheating later. Now that I have had this dish I have to be honest and say I don’t think I will ever try anything else here. I still need to try the Peddler Noodles, but I can easily see the peanut butter chicken becoming an addiction.

Overall, Phusion Cafe is in a weird location, but it is super cheap and super delicious. Give them a try.

Contact info:

Phusion Cafe
3030 Superior Avenue
Cleveland, OH
(216) 861-3399

Wonton Gourmet

Wonton Gourmet is one of the best Chinese/ Cantonese/Hong Kong style restaurants in town. The neighborhood might be off-putting for suburbanites and the restaurant is nothing to look at on the inside, but if you like authentic Chinese food you really should give this a try. And I can assure you that the neighborhood is fine. I drive through here all the time. Parking is right outside and there’s closed circuit monitoring of the parking lot inside the restaurant, so I’ve never felt unsafe there. There is also zero ambiance, with enlarged photocopies of food hanging on the wall, paper place mats, and a TV playing loud Chinese shows in the back. But I don’t go there for the ambiance. People have talked about a decline in quality since a change in owners, but I hear it has improved again. I honestly can’t speak for how it was since I’ve only started coming here in the past two years, but my experiences at Wonton Gourmet have always been consistently good. It has menus, but most people rely on the photos on the wall to choose what they want. I suggest you order dishes you don’t find in most “Americanized” Chinese restaurants, because they really shine here.

Everyone I know raves about their chive potstickers and turnip cakes. I’m the same. The chive potstickers are wrapped in a delicate wrapper and come with a delicious dipping sauce. It’s hard to limit yourself. I also really enjoy the flavor of the turnip cakes very much. I think they are up there with Emperor’s Palace’s version. They are creamy and flavorful and reheat really well, so don’t feel bad ordering them if you are eating alone.

The entree I order the most often is the fish fillet with jade tofu. Jade tofu is a silken egg tofu that is fried on the outside and soft on the inside. That tofu is amazing, with a golden yellow color and creamy consistency. I’ve included a photo of my leftovers with a cross section of the jade tofu to show you how lovely it is. I also love the fish fillets that accompany the tofu. It has a nice little crunch to it despite the sauce, and the fish is just very flavorful. The vegetables also pair really well with the dish. Normally my favorite vegetable in Chinese cooking is the sweet pea pod, but in this dish I love IMG_20170323_143629 the Chinese cabbage. Yum!

You also can’t go wrong with any of their salt baked seafood. I ordered the salt baked tri-seafood the other day and it was exceptional. Perfectly baked fish filet, shrimp, scallop and calamari with just the right amount of breading. Very flavorful. The Hong Kong deep-fried pork chops in Beijing style were also delicious. Lots of meat with little bone and tender as can be.

I’m not a huge fan of their wonton noodle soups. They come with wontons and ramen noodles and you can add brisket, roast pork or roast duck. In fact, the 3 Flavor Shrimp Dumpling soup has three different delicious shrimp wontons. I love wontons, but the broth doesn’t appeal to me. I think it tastes a little musty, but I know plenty of people who love it.

I went here the other day with a friend and split the fish fillet with jade tofu. We needed another entree and decided on the Szechuan chicken with Chinese eggplant. Wow, this dish was delicious. It was not as spicy as I thought it would be, and I just really love the Chinese eggplant stir fried in the Szechuan sauce. I loved the flavor of this dish and would order this again in a heartbeat. I’m looking forward to eating the leftovers. The photo below is the salt fish chicken fried rice. It was really good too!

IMAG5404 The tea is hot and flavorful, and the service is attentive without being overbearing. I honestly love the food here. I can’t vouch for what it used to be, but I certainly like it as it is now. Many of the clientele are Chinese, which is the sign of a good Chinese restaurant as far as I am concerned. So if you are looking for a good place to eat some authentic Chinese food give this place a try. If you prefer the Americanized dishes like General Tso’s chicken, egg foo young, chop suey or chow mein you can order it here too, but I highly recommend picking something that looks good from the photos on the wall. I guarantee you won’t regret it!

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Contact info:

Wonton Gourmet
3211 Payne Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44114
(216) 875-7000

Bombay Chaat

Bombay Chaat offers Mumbai street food to Clevelanders, and CSU students in particular. It is located on Euclid Avenue next to JB Mack’s at the intersection with E. 21st Street. The signage is terrible. Look for black awnings with ‘BC’ on them.

The term chaat refers to a wide variety of delicious roadside snacks that are served throughout the Indian subcontinent. The menu offers a variety of dishes hailing from New Delhi to Mumbai, with roughly 75 different items in all, much of it finger food. They also offer an amazing weekday lunch buffet featuring two vegetarian curries, two non-veg curries, Dal, Naan, rice, yogurt and dessert for $9.99. When I was there recently for lunch they had a paneer in a cashew cream sauce that was simply delectable, an entree with potato and what looked like okra, butter chicken and some other meat curry. The lettuce in the salad was a little brown from being cut with a knife, but it tasted fresh enough. I was pleased to see the place so full during lunch on a Tuesday. We got the last table, although there were seats available in the tall communal table in the middle.

I organized a group of vegetarians and meat eaters to eat there on a recent Saturday morning. The staff was very accommodating and explained anything we had questions about. We feasted on dosas, pani puri and all kinds of Indian delicacies. The dosas in particular were a huge hit. Most college kids are hung over on Saturdays, so we had the place practically to ourselves. Later on the place started filling up with people in gorgeous saris because there was an Indian concert nearby that afternoon. People were eating and then going to the concert.

I ordered the pani puri ($4.99) to share with everyone, because I have been hearing about it from friends and really wanted to try it. Pani puri are puffy fried dough balls (puri) are filled with “flavored water” (pani), which is a chutney-like gravy with yogurt, chickpeas and cilantro. They came with the pani and chopped onions on the side to dress as you saw fit. They were really good, very vegetarian-friendly, and were the perfect one-bite starter.

I also ordered the Chicken Manchurian ($6.99) off their Indo-Chinese menu. It was well-flavored and I really loved the sauce. It was just the chicken and sauce. If I had known I would have ordered a side of rice to go with it.

The Veggie Manchurian was also quite nice. It features fried vegetarian balls in the Manchurian sauce. I liked it a lot and didn’t miss the chicken.

They have a huge variety of dosas to choose from – both plain and masala dosas. Dosas are huge, wafer-thin, griddle-fried crepes filled with things like potato curry, egg or onion. The Rava Dosa (pictured to the left), which is made of rava and rice, was gorgeous and very flavorful. Many of my friends ordered the Masala Dosa with potatoes and onion or the Onion Dosa. They were very good as well.

With such an extensive menu to choose from you certainly won’t get bored. And the prices are affordable. Sure, they aren’t Indian street food prices, but we aren’t in India and they have downtown rent to pay. I will happily support them when I can.

Contact info:

Bombay Chaat
2044 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44114
(216) 815-3950

Tommy’s

Tommy’s on Coventry is a Cleveland institution. It has been in business since the 1970s (even the Coventry fire in 1988 couldn’t shut it down) and many of its menu items are named after its regulars who ordered them. It isn’t haute cuisine, but it doesn’t claim to be. Instead, it is a good place for vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores to get together. Because it specifies vegan, gluten-free, etc. on the menu it is a great place for those with allergies or dietary issues. They have a separate gluten-free fryer and strict gluten-free kitchen practices, so I can eat here with my mother without worrying that she is going to get sick afterwards. It’s also great if you are on a juice fast and still want to get out and meet your friends. The food can be a little bland depending on what you order, so be prepared to season it.

If there is a bit of a crowd waiting be sure to add your name to the clipboard on the counter and wait for them to call you. The place stretches pretty far back, so the wait isn’t too obnoxious.

Tommy’s is famous for its milkshakes. They are rich and smooth with a wide variety of flavors. I can vouch for the chocolate and chocolate mint milkshakes, but my favorite is the banana – made with fresh bananas and vanilla ice cream. One of my friends swears by their chocolate peanut butter milkshake. It’s best to order them in the restaurant, because you get lots of milkshake with the glass and the metal mixer full. If you order one to go you just get a small plastic cup sealed with plastic.

I go to Tommy’s for comfort food. My go to comfort food is the broccoli risso. It’s a casserole with broccoli, rice, mushrooms, and cheese. It’s served in a bowl with a warm IMAG5661 piece of pita. You can also order a cup if you don’t want a big bowl of it or want it as a side. It is just warm, comforting goodness.

I also absolutely love Tommy’s French onion soup. It is vegetarian and made with shitake mushrooms, onions, kombu, veggie broth, tamari, garlic, a slice of French bread and topped with Swiss cheese. I adore it and order it almost every time I go.

I’m not a big fan of the pita sandwiches or escarole pies, but that’s a personal choice. They certainly are unique and come with a wide variety of fillings. My sister loves the Capetown spinach IMAG5315 pie with cheese, raisins and mushrooms. I usually stick with the basics – plain grilled cheese (Judy), Sharpy Burger, burgers, grilled chicken breast sandwich or any of their delicious salads (pro tip: deconstruct it on the plate because you won’t be able to eat it in the heaping bowl it comes in). Vegetarians rave about their vegetarian choices like the hummus, falafel, tempeh and seitan.

Tommy’s was recently voted the Best Fries in Cleveland. I don’t know if I would go that far (Bar Cento gets my vote), but they were better than average. They are 12816775_812473705554691_556600846_n intentionally unsalted so you can salt them however you want.

Tommy’s also has great breakfasts. I get a kick out of seeing young college-age men stuffing their face with waffles buried in strawberries and whipped cream. One interesting choice is the Elsie Combo, which features two fried eggs, two strips of bacon, mayo, American cheese, and their homemade peanut butter made into a triple decker sandwich on your choice of toast. The first time I ordered it I was really scared, but the waitress assured me I would like it. And she was right. The mayo and the peanut butter actually went really well together and complemented the eggs and bacon. If you want to try something different, give it a try. Their omelets are also delicious and plentiful.

They also turn the restaurant over to the Heights Arts group from 10-2 on January 1st for an annual all-you-can-eat pancake breakfast benefiting Heights Arts. Volunteers serve the masses pancakes, eggs, sausage patties and links and vegetarian options as well as juice, coffee and tea for around $10. Tommy’s has been hosting the benefit pancake breakfast since 2001, when owner Tom Fello first offered to help raise funds for the Coventry Arch, located at the intersection of Coventry Road and Euclid Heights Boulevard. It’s a fun time and a good local cause. Consider checking it out this week.

There’s something for everyone at Tommy’s.

Update (2023): I really admire how Tommy’s handled the pandemic. They pivoted to curbside carryout and had three parking spaces in front of the restaurant dedicated to curbside. They also rented the patio from Panini’s across the street to allow outside dining. I took advantage of both.

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Contact info:

Tommy’s
1824 Coventry Road
Cleveland Heights, OH 44118
(216) 321-7757

Dan’s Dogs in Medina

I love a good hot dog, so I was dying to try Dan’s Dogs in Medina. The only problem is that the only time I’m in Medina I am usually visiting family and eating with them. I had my chance recently when my niece had a play she had written performed at her school by an acting troupe, and I needed a place to have lunch afterwards. Dan’s Dogs immediately came to mind. The place is adorable. Very 1950s retro with a diner flair. It opened in 1991 and is located just northwest of the Square. It’s not The Happy Dog, nor does it try to be. It is just a good, old-fashioned hot dog diner.

Dan’s Dogs uses all beef hot dogs, grilled to order and served on a signature buttered and toasted split-top New England style bun. This bun was really amazing. The menu is extensive with 41(!) hot dogs to choose from and over 50 toppings if you want to build your own. If you don’t want a hot dog (but come on, why wouldn’t you order one?), they also offer grilled cheese sandwiches, grilled burgers, chicken sandwiches, salads, and more. I had trouble narrowing down what I wanted to order.

I started off with a root beer, because they make their own old-fashioned root beer and I’m a sucker for a good root beer. It was really good and quenched my thirst. If you like root beer floats, this would be the place for one. They also apparently make their own ice cream.

I was in the mood for a nice soup, and the soup that day was a chicken and rice soup. The broth was well-seasoned and the soup had chunks of carrot, celery and strings of chicken, so I could tell it was homemade. It was very good, although the rice had broken down a bit since it was later in the day after the lunch rush. My only complaint was that the server didn’t clear the soup bowl when she brought my dogs, but that is truly a minor complaint.

Now the big dilemma – what hot dogs to order. I ordered while I was still hungry, so I ordered three different “regular size” hot dogs. You can also order jumbo dogs if you are so inclined. Three dogs and soup was definitely too much, and I ended up taking half of each one home for later. My choices were The Mac Attack (smothered in their homemade five-cheese mac & cheese), the Top Dog (topped with grilled bacon and melted cheddar cheese), and a Firehouse Dog (“Red Hot” chili coney dog topped with homemade cole slaw). All three were really good, but that cole slaw was delicious – super creamy just the way I like it. It was a great pairing with the coney sauce.

You can choose all kinds of weird and wonderful hot dogs, like the Hula Dog with baked beans and crushed pineapple; the Junkyard Dog with freshly chopped veggies, melted mozzarella cheese, sour cream sauce and fresh diced tomato; or the Deputy Dog with peanut butter and jelly, or your classics like the Old Yeller with mustard, relish and diced onions; the Chicago Dog with its mustard, relish, onions, cucumber, hot pepper pickle and celery salt; or Hound Dog with caramelized onions and grilled mushrooms. There is literally something for everyone – or you can make your own.

They are closed on Sundays, but now accept credit and debit cards (they used to be cash-only). So the next time you are in Medina and want to try a good dog, check this place out. It’s family-friendly and locally owned and operated.

Contact info:

Dan’s Dogs
111 W Liberty Street
Medina, OH 44256
(330) 723-3647

Jack Frost Donuts

Jack Frost Donuts is consistently the Grand Prize winner in the “NEO’s Best: Donuts,” the Cleveland Hot List, and other “best of Cleveland” contests. The little doughnut shop on the corner of Fulton Road and Pearl Road in Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood has been making doughnuts since 1937. They only accept cash or checks, so come prepared. A dozen will run you $10.95, and a half dozen cost $6.95.

The doughnuts are fresh and made of quality ingredients. Some are a little sweeter than I prefer, but their pumpkin pie doughnut has made me a fan for life. They have fantastic specialty donuts like salted caramel, key lime pie, maple bacon, and other seasonal creations like said pumpkin pie doughnut (available with and without “cream”). I’ve enjoyed their Boston cream, salted caramel, raspberry, chocolate glazed, maple bacon and pumpkin pie doughnuts during my visits. The photo at the bottom features two pumpkin cream, two maple bacon, a strawberry cheesecake, and a chocolate cream. The maple bacon is a nice combination of salty and sweet with fresh bacon bits and maple frosting on a yeast donut. The chocolate cream exploded in a huge flurry of powdered sugar all over me and my car. It was totally worth it, with a big pile of chocolate cream on top. The donuts are fresh, and your teeth just sink into them. I prefer yeast donuts over cake donuts, so I can only attest to the yeast donuts here. They are not overbearing or too sweet. The toppings and donuts have a good ratio.
They sell coffee and have a cooler with milk and some sodas if you need something to wash the donuts down with. They are currently renovating their old store, but are located right next door. I can’t wait to see the new place once it opens. It’s a cash only business, so remember to bring cash.

Contact info:

Jack Frost Donuts
4960 Pearl Road
Cleveland, OH 44109
(216) 351-3638

Ferrara’s Imported Foods

Ferrara’s has been selling Italian bread, meats, cheese and more to East Side Clevelanders since 1959. You walk in and you definitely feel you are surrounded by Italians. One gentleman even held the door for me.

This place has everything you need – from fresh garlic and tomatoes to espresso makers and huge pasta bowls to serve your family delicious pasta. I wandered the aisles just amazed at the wide variety of items they sold. They had canned San Marzano tomatoes, every variety of olive oil and vinegar you could imagine, balsamic vinegar ketchup (!), blood orange soda, fresh pasta in a low-slung refrigerated cooler, dried pastas in every shape and form, as well as prepared foods such as Sicilian pizza, pasta and antipasti salads, and made-to-order submarine sandwiches.

Since my friend who told me about Ferrara’s recommended their sandwiches, I went there with the intention of ordering an Italian sub. The sub was loaded with thick-sliced Italian cold cuts (capicola, (Genoa?) salami and I think ham), provolone cheese and your choice of hot or sweet peppers. I went with the sweet peppers and it was oh so good! They make their bread rolls there, and you can tell at first bite just how fresh the rolls are. I don’t know what they do to the peppers, but they are extremely addictive. Some people also suggest having the top of the bread dipped in hot oil. If you want a different sub than the Italian, you can choose from Italian Beef, turkey, roast beef, veggie, prosciutto, and ham and cheese or you can make your own creation.

They also sell hot subs like sausage sandwiches, meatloaf subs, and meatball subs for $5.50. The sausage sandwich (pictured to the right) comes with peppers and onions and has a nice heat to it. It may not look appetizing in the photo, but it was really delicious.

Ferrara’s Wedding Soup is one of the best ones I have ever tasted. You can find it in the freezer with the frozen pasta on the wall to the left as you walk into the store. The back wall is all about pizza. You can buy slices at the register, but you can order larger pizzas back in the back. I bought some Sicilian pizza for my Italian translator friend who had lamented about the lack of Sicilian pizza in Cleveland, and she was absolutely thrilled with their pizza and its authenticity. The pizza is not in slices – but thick slabs of dough covered in a thick tomato pasty-like sauce. There is no melted cheese – just some sprinkled Parmesan. It is served at room temperature.

Just be warned that they only accept cash or checks. They have an ATM in case you forget, and from personal experience I can tell you that the fee is lower than most regular bank ATMs. They also have a nice little area for people to eat in if you feel so inclined.

A small dining area is set off straight ahead as you walk in

View of the bakery/deli counter from the back

Contact info:

Ferrara’s Imported Foods
5750 Mayfield Road
Cleveland, OH 44124
(440) 442-3700

Miega Korean BBQ

Miega Korean BBQ is located on the second floor of Asian Town Center just off E. 38th and Superior. Korean BBQ is a lot of fun with a bunch of people and I plan on having my dining out group here soon, but I wanted to report on my past couple of visits by myself.

I went here for supper before a recent vacation and ended up eating the leftovers on the road. There’s always a great variety of different banchan, which fill you up even before you get your entree. The banchan here weren’t as varied as the ones at Seoul Garden, but they were still delicious. I enjoyed sigeumchi namul (parboiled spinach dressed with sesame oil, garlic, and soy sauce), jap chae (stir fried glass noodles), sweet potato, ojingeochae muchim (dried squid), sukjunamul (marinated mung bean sprouts), rice cakes, boiled peanuts in a sauce, Kim chi, oi sobagi (cucumber kim chi), and miso soup. I enjoyed all of them, but my absolute favorite was the jap chae.

The Kim bob (pictured with the banchan) were a fun take on a Korean sushi roll. It was much sweeter than Japanese sushi rolls, but I enjoyed the flavor a lot. The pickled vegetables and meat were very good together.

I ordered Kalbi (marinated beef spare ribs) that came out of the kitchen grilled for me. At that point I was so full that I ended up taking most of them home with me. They were good cold and reheated.

I also enjoyed the barley tea they serve and ordered a glass of plum wine based on the server’s recommendation. The plum wine was very refreshing. The bill with tax and tip ran me $39.00. Not bad for all that food.

Some of the tables have a bell on them to ring for your server. This is a great little feature, and the Korean people do not think it is rude at all. I also really liked the metal chopsticks. They were definitely much fancier than anything you get at a Chinese restaurant. Most Korean chopsticks are metal. Unless you are there for lunch, then you get the wooden disposable chopsticks.

Lunch is a great deal here at Miega. You can order a lunch box featuring one of their six entrees and it comes with fried rice, jap chae, salad, two fried dumplings and the ever-present banchan. I ordered the bulgogi, which was nicely prepared, thinly shaved, with some nice vegetables, and in a light marinade. The fried rice was nice and warm, with fluffy chunks of scrambled egg and fresh vegetables. I loved the Gun Man Du (the Korean dumplings). They were crispy with some kind of meat filling. I would definitely order those again! I was extremely pleased with my lunch here and was not able to finish it completely. Although the web site specified that the lunch box was $10.95, they charged me $12.95, so do not rely on the website for recent prices. It was still cheap though; my bill was $13.99 ($17 with tip).

Contact info:

Miega Korean BBQ
3820 Superior Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44114
(216) 432-9200

#1 Pho

#1 Pho is open 365 days a year, which is comforting to know when I am craving pho and Superior Pho and Minh Ahn are closed. It is also helpful when you are craving pho on New Year’s Day, because they are sure to be open. I usually choose the other pho places because they serve bahn mi, and I am bahn mi’s bitch. Like seriously love it. Unfortunately #1 Pho does not serve bahn mi. They do, however, have lots of other tasty items on the menu.

The first time I went I ordered pho. I think it might have even been my first time trying pho. It’s good pho. The broth is a well-balanced bone broth with subtle flavors. They serve the usual meats – rare beef, meatballs, brisket, tendon, etc. The meat is always tender and melts in your mouth a bit. They serve lime here, which is a plus, in their side dish of add-ins (bean sprouts, Thai basil, lime, and jalapenos). I have also had the chicken pho (Pho Ga – pictured on the right), which is also good. It features a rich chicken broth and pulled chicken along with the rice noodles. The last time I was here it was very apparent that there are many regulars, who are greeted like old friends and were asked if they wanted their usual. I like that.

I have also tried their wonton noodle soup with roast pork (H5) and really enjoyed it. It has both egg noodles and wontons and thick strips of roast pork in a nice broth. I would definitely order it again if I was in the mood for a fun noodle soup. It was filled with all kinds of noodley and dumplingy goodness, and I loved the wontons, which were perfectly cooked.

The appetizers also have some good choices on the menu. The crispy spring rolls (A4) are filled with pork and mushrooms and served with a dipping sauce and some fresh vegetables. My niece, who is a serious shrimp addict, really loved the crispy shrimp (A3), which came with a sweet and sour dipping sauce and veggies. I am less impressed with the fresh spring rolls. The filling just tastes bland, and I need a lot of savory peanut dipping sauce to brighten it up. That said, the pork spring rolls (A8) with charbroiled pork, lettuce and bean sprouts are a bit more flavorful than the shrimp spring rolls. I learned how to make these in a Viking Vietnamese cooking class, and mine tend to be much more flavorful. Probably because mine include fresh mint leaves and a few things other than just lettuce and vermicelli.

They have a very nice selection of vegetarian choices, which makes life easy when you go out to eat with vegetarian friends like I do. The first time I went my boyfriend at the time, who was a vegetarian, he ordered the stir-fried clear noodles and really liked them.

I like their iced Vietnamese coffee and they serve a variety of bubble teas. I tried to get my nieces to try the bubble tea, but they were not as impressed with it as I was. It is apparently an acquired taste. They also serve a wide variety of juices and smoothies, including fresh orange, fresh coconut, jack fruit, mung bean and durian.

Contact info:

Number One Pho
3120 Superior Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44114
(216) 781-1176

Seti’s Polish Boys

Cleveland’s original food truck has been serving up Polish boys and grilled dogs since 2000. They have been at their current location, the parking lot of Dean Supply on the corner of E. 34th and Woodland Avenue, for the past nine years. Edit: Seti’s has moved to in front of the Thomas F. McCafferty Health Center, on Lorain Avenue near W. 42nd Street. They are parked there Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The truck is equipped with a grill, deep fryer, steam table, 3 prep tables, 2 refrigerators, 4 sinks with hot and cold running water, exhaust system, and serving window. They serve magic. Having been featured on the Food Network and lauded by folks like Michael Symon on The Best Thing I’ve Ever Ate, Rachel Ray and Andrew Zimmer of Bizarre Foods, I knew I had to try it.

The Polish Boy is Cleveland’s iconic sandwich. It features a slow-grilled and then fried jumbo style hot dog and is topped with cole slaw, french fries and BBQ sauce. Seti’s is known for having the best in town, and Food and Wine Magazine said their Polish Boy is one of the best dogs in the United States.

It was a total mess to eat, but it was worth it. I bit in and the hot dog had a great snap. The creaminess of the cole slaw, the perfect buttery french fries and the sweet BBQ sauce melded together to the perfect meal. I used every single one of the four napkins they gave me and then cleaned up with a wet wipe I had brought with me. Next time I’m bringing a new shirt to change into too.

They serve lunch Monday through Friday from 10 to 4. The service is fast and courteous, the price is right and the food is delicious. If you haven’t been there yet what are you waiting for? Just be sure to bring wet wipes.

setis_official — Seti’s various offerings – official photo by Seti on Yelp

Contact info:

Seti’s Polish Boys
E. 34th & Woodland Avenue
At Dean Supply
Cleveland, OH 44115
(216) 240-0745