Did You Know? Cleveland Edition

This post is inspired by a smarmy comment made on some one else's blog, about a moment in Cleveland history...The piece was written on the infamous 10 cent beer night at the Old Municipal Stadium...10 cent Back was back on June 4, 1974, and things got Out_of_hand...

So then some Uppity Chicago boy says, "That's sooooooooooooo Cleveland." And I'm willing to bet, that he knows just a couple things about Cleveland, and that's what he's basing his comment on...If you've been here before, you know I'm not the great Cleveland defender, but damn it, at least I live here and Know what I'm talking about, and willing to give the good with the bad...

So here we go...Did you know, on average, Cleveland is Windier than the mighty "Windy City" of Chicago? True!

Did you know that it has been a big misconception that The Edmund Fitzgerald Sunk in Lake Erie? It actually sunk in Lake Superior...But that's okay...We made a beer for it!

Did You know there was professional Baseball in Cleveland before the Indians? In 1870 there was the Cleveland Forrest Citys...In 1879 the Cleveland Blues were a member of the National League...1889 came the Cleveland Spiders...A second form of the Blues became the Cleveland Naps, named for their star player and manager Napoleon "Nap" Lajoie...The team became the Indians in 1915...

Did you know, Legendary Hockey Goaltenders Johnny Bower and Gerry Cheevers played in Cleveland? Bower played for the Cleveland Barons from 1946-1953, and again in the '57-'58 season...Cheevers played for the Cleveland Crusaders from 1972-1976, alongside Cleveland High School Hockey coaching legend Bob Whidden...

Did you know the mighty Cuyahoga River caught fire on June 22 1969? Of course you did...Everyone knows that one...But did you know, this was not the first time that the river had caught on fire? Fires had also occurred on the Cuyahoga River in 1868, 1883, 1887, 1912, 1922, 1936, 1941, 1948, and in 1952...The famous pictures they always show of that famous 1969 fire, are actually from the 1952...

The one in '69 was a great deal smaller...It's okay, we made a beer for it!

Did you know that after taking down notorious Chicago crime boss, Al Capone, Eliot Ness came to Cleveland and became the City Safety Director...He was going to clean up the police department, and then move onto the real criminals...Sadly he career ended in Cleveland as he became known as the 13th victim...Ness was put in charge the gruesome "Kingsbury Run Murders"...Also known as "The Torso Murders" Checkout In_the_Wake_of_the_Butcher if you like true crime books...12 decapitated, dismembered bodies, only two victims identified, and no clue who did it...Ness never got past it, and after all those years at the Bureau of Prohibition, Ness became a raging alcoholic...He died in 1957 and his ashes were dumped in a pond, in Cleveland's Lake View Cemetery...

Poor bastard...We made a beer for him too!

Did you know that Chef Michael Symon isn't the only f**king Chef in Cleveland? Hell he isn't even the best...Checkout Pete_Joyce...Rocco_Whalen...Marlin_Kaplan...For starters!

Did you know one of Cleveland's big Greek Festivals is going on this weekend, and I'll be there stuffing some lamb in my gob! Oh, and drinking some fine Cleveland Beers!?!

I could go on, but I think I'll save it, and do another one of these...

Later, The Beeze.

The Beeze Reviews The Bistro on Lincoln Park...Again

Yes, Mrs. Beeze, myself, and our friends May and Bryan stopped by the bistro last Friday for dinner...This was the second time for the Mrs. and I...The first time was great, and I hoped for the same this trip...Especially the end of the night...

Well, I'm gonna go a little Tarantino on ya, and skip to the end...Sadly, there was no road head...Bryan was driving the four of us...The girls who had split two bottles of wine were in the back...May, was ready for a nap...And well, I wasn't going down on Bryan...

Then we got home, paid the baby sitter, and rounded up Bryan and May's little girl...Then found out, our daughter was still awake...Sex was off the table now...If you missed it at the Beezewax a couple weeks ago, we woke up our daughter with one of our sessions...And by woke up, I mean scared the sh!t out of her...So the wife put me on lock-down...

So let's move onto the food...I started with the Autumn Bisque..."Puree of Butternut Squash, Sauteed Wild Mushrooms & Creme Fraiche" It was awesome! The Mrs. started with the Crab Cake...Without a doubt the best crab cake I have ever had...A friend compared ours at the Fish House to it, simply by saying The bistro's made ours look like dog food...He was right...This was the meatiest crab cake ever...Not a bunch of filler...Great!

May and Bryan ordered the Froie Gras...May had asked our server what it was like...She replied with, "It's deliciousness in your mouth." When may took her first bite, she said, "This is the best thing that's ever been in my mouth!" Sorry Bryan...She passed it around and it was amazing!

The next course Bryan and I both had the Bistro Salad..."Butter Lettuce, Indian Black Onion Seed Vinaigrette, Sunflower Seeds, 24 Hour Tomatoes, Watermelon Radish, Candy Onions." I loved it...I love butter lettuce, and the Vinaigrette was great...Very light and refreshing...May had Mushroom Bisque, which she passed around to all of us...Best Mshroom soup, I've had...And I make a pretty damn good one myself...

At this point I should tell you about May's order...It wa sthe evening before Halloween...They had a special "Treat" menu...3 Courses for $35...They also had a "Trick" menu...This was left up to Chef Pete Joyce...You got what he gave you...

Entree time...The wife and I both got a 16 ounce, French-cut, bone-in, ribeye (or cowboy steak)...served with house made Frites, that was on special...The steak was cooked perfectly...The frites are awesome...If you're at the Bistro and they don't have this on special, check out the Steak and Frites...It's a Hanger Steak with the frites, and it' so tender and delicious...Like a....Never mind...

Bryan got the Great Lakes Walleye..."Pan Roasted, Fingerling Potatoes, Smoked Bacon-Apple Hash & Sherry Beurre Blanc." He polished this off quickly, and was left wanting more...He felt the portion could have been bigger, but enjoyed it very much...

That brings us back to May...Her entree was Turkey, Brussel Sprouts and I forget the rest...It was at this point m wife felt bad...You see, May doesn't like turkey...But this turkey was different...It seemed like it was done the way you would do a nice piece of veal, for a Piccata or Marsala...It was topped with an apple cream sauce...And honestly, you could put the sauce on anything...It was great...She did it some, and enjoyed the flavors...

For dessert I had the Bistro Chocolate Cake..."handcrafted chocolate cake, whipped buttercream,fresh berries & warm chocolate ganache." WOW! A really good meal ends when most people are full...Not me...For me it ends when I hate myself...This dessert took me to that point...

The wife had the Pumpkin Cheesecake...Loved it...Bryan had the home made vanilla ice cream...And May had the Country Pear Tart..."Bosc pears, almond frangipane & honey almond ice cream."

The food was great again...The Atmosphere was great...Warm and inviting...The staff went out of their way to make sure we were happy...

In Cleveland, We're always hearing and reading about Michael Symon...Not to be a d!ck, but he ain't the only game in town...If you're looking to spend an evening out, enjoying good food, drinks, and company...Stop by the Bistro on Lincoln Park... http://www.bistroonlincolnpark.com/

Later, The Beeze.