Oh HAI there 2012!  Only took me 26 days to get situated with you and get a post up. Ain’t no thang…

So it’s only fitting that my first post of 2012 wrap up my 11 in 2011 Restaurant List, right?

The final tally:

1. Lolita
2. Ponte Vecchio (closed down)
3. Dante
4. Umami Asian Grill
5. Chinato
6. L’Albatros
7. Happy Dog
8. Flying Fig
9. Sokolowski’s University Inn
10. La Cave du Vin
11. Three Birds

I went to 8 out of my 11 restaurants (I could be greedy and say 9 out of 11 since Ponte Vecchio closed, but that would just be cheating.)

Not too shabby for my first attempt at a year long restaurant list.

Now, allow me to tell you about my final stop on the 2011 tour.

It just happened to be THE restaurant I was most anxious to go to. We actually had plans to go in March for my birthday, but then something came up and we had to cancel. 

But alas, thanks to fabulous friends like Michelle and Suzanne (and Katrina in spirit!) – I managed to get my butt to L’Albatros with exactly 1 day left in 2011.

It was cold, wet, and blustery on the day we went, so I very thoroughly enjoyed the warm, soft ambience of the restaurant, AND the fact that we got put in the far back room, right by the fire place.

While Suzanne and Michelle opted for wine – I went the drink route and ordered a signature cocktail:

And I actually can’t tell you what was in it! It was one of their specials so it isn’t on the regular menu!   It was very good – I believe it had St. Germain and some Hendricks Gin – so while my description of it may be lackluster, I promise it was delicious!

If you don’t know about L’Albatros – I’ll let you in on the secret.

They are known for their cheese.

Wonderful, amazing, phenomenal cheese.

Cheese – as in – they have an official expert dedicated to it (cheesmonger? fromager?). A person whose SOLE job is to present and recommend cheese (!!!!!) – I think I chose the wrong profession.

We ended up choosing 14 (yes, 14) cheeses to sample:

- and it was amazing. I already know where I want to go for my birthday dinner this year.

And then, as if I hadn’t had enough cheese already – I went ahead and ordered the Croque Monsieur (a sandwich with french ham, cheese, and bechamel sauce)

I’m smiling just thinking about it.

The whole meal was so amazing, and I’m mad at myself for delaying my trip to L’Albatros for so long.

If you try ONE new restaurant in Cleveland this year – my recommendation to you would be: “It MUST be L’Albatros!”

With 2011 coming to an end (don’t worry this isn’t a year in review post!) – I’ve been trying to wrap up my 11 in 2011 restaurant list.

With three left and only two days remaining in the year – I don’t think I’m going to make it, but I’m going to put in a good effort.

Tuesday, I texted Suzanne “any desire to go to Sokolowski’s?” – and much to my delight – her answer was “yes”!

Sokolowski’s is a family owned restaurant that has been around since 1923.

Sokolowski’s is also the most shameful restaurant on my list. Shameful in the – I-can’t-believe-I’ve-lived-in-Cleveland-my-whole-life-and-never-been-to-this-Cleveland-staple – sort of way.

It’s surprisingly huge inside – there is a bar area as well as two large dining rooms.

One cool thing about the restaurant is that they serve all their food cafeteria style, which is a fun change of pace.

I had a really hard time deciding what I wanted because I had my heart set on stuffed cabbage but they were out – and then all of the other options looked so delicious – how was I supposed to pick just one?!

I ended up going with the pierogi dinner – which came with my choice of two sides – so I went with cabbage and noodles, and sauerkraut.

Sure – that might be a lot of beige and carbs on one single plate – but let me tell you. Every. Single. Bite. Was. PHENOMENAL!

Amazing!

Suzanne got the stuffed pepper dinner with corn and mashed potatoes – and I do believe she was also VERY pleased!

The serving size really is ridiculous. Both of these plates only cost $7.95, and while we ate lunch at noon – we were both full until well after “dinner time”!

So yeah – the final verdict is…I’m love Sokolowski’s (it totally lives up to the hype!!) and I’m very sad I wasted 29 years of my life NOT going to Sokolowski’s. Especially because it was one of my Grandpa’s favorites, and I won’t ever be able to go with him. I can’t get those years back, but I can try to make them up, moving forward.

Here’s to a 2012 full of Sokolowski’s visits.

*EarthFare Gift Card Winner announced at the end of post!*

So get this …

…I’ve lived in Cleveland my whole live, and I’ve never once been to Pittsburgh.

Weird, seeing as it’s only 2 hours away – right??

Well this weekend we fixed that – and headed off to Pittsburgh to celebrate our friend Brian’s birthday!

We checked into our hotel (that we snagged for $59 a night thanks to Priceline-Name-Your-Price – I just LOVE that option!) – and found the 20 foot ceilings in our room quite intriguing.

After a quick change of clothes we started our trek across the city to happy hour at our friend’s hotel, which was right next to the Consol Energy Center (which was totally happenin’ since there was a hockey game that night).

Once everyone was ready to hit the town – we took a cab over to Jerome Bettis’ Grille 36 – the birthday boy’s restaurant of choice.

This place gets major props in my book – they were able to seat us immediately! (a party of seven, at 7:30pm on Saturday, no reservations)

The menu had a ton to choose from so my friend Stephanie and I just split to appetizers since we were having trouble with the decision.

The Korean bbq beef tacos – which were disappointing (you can see them in the background of the picture below).

And the nachos. Which were insanely huge, and equally delicious.

Nachos before: (the picture really doesn’t even do it justice!)

Nachos after (and the boys even jumped in and helped us out too):

When we finished – we were close enough to the casino (The Rivers Casino) to just walk, so walk we did.

Not without letting the birthday boy, a die hard Cleveland Brown’s fan, have a little fun first.

I dislike the Steelers like any good Clevelander should – but I will say – Pittsburgh at night, near the water? VERY PRETTY!

Once we got the casino – most of the boys went off to gamble, which left me, Mike and Stephanie to go in search of some beverages.

We got very excited when we saw the non-crowded “select-a-pour” wine tasting tour! (That should have been our first indication we were in trouble!)

Not quite sure WHAT we were thinking – the wine was crazy over priced, the cards malfunctioned three out of the five times we used them, and the wine was so stale I poured my last two selections out.

You win some, you lose some – right?

Since we weren’t impressed with the wine – we headed over to “Drum Bar” which had an amazing view of the water, good music playing, and decent drink prices.

The three of us were even able to snag a seat at the bar!

The best part? They had Great Lakes Christmas Ale on draft

Things got a little hazy from there – I just know that by the end of the night, my feet hurt so bad from walking around in heels, I was so grateful that we were able to snag a cab back to our hotel.

All said and done – I have to admit – Pittsburgh was pretty decent I’d definitely go back again!

EarthFare Gift Card Winner:

Nichole!  Send me your info!!