Eileen Ivers and the Cleveland Orchestra

Last night the wife and I ventured out to Severance Hall to see Eileen Ivers and the Cleveland Orchestra do an Irish Christmas concert. For those who may not know Eileen is a 9 time All-Ireland fiddle champion and she was the original fiddle player in Riverdance. She brought along her own band Immigrant Soul, which consists of Tommy McDonald on vocals and percussion, Greg Anderson on acoustic guitar, Buddy Connolly on accordion and Leo Traversa on bass.

I have not been to Severance Hall or seen the Cleveland Orchestra live since I was in elementary school. That was on a school field trip. Being so long ago I could not remember anything of how Severance Hall looked inside. We purchased box seats which turned out to be a great idea. We were practically dead center and had a perfect view. I definitely would buy those seats again. The show started out with just the Cleveland Orchestra playing a couple of numbers. They truly are one of the top orchestras in the world. Then Eileen and the rest of her band came on stage. It quickly turned into a pub atmosphere with some conversation and good music. I enjoyed watching the looks on the musicians in the orchestra as they watched Eileen play the violin and dance around with such enthusiasm. The crowd got into it too clapping along and singing in different parts. An amazing show!

But the night was not over after the crowd let out. It was only 10:30 so decided to venture to the Ohio City area for some food and drinks. We managed to find a parking spot right across from the Bier Market and Bar Cento. Bar Cento is one of the restaurants we have been meaning to go to for quite awhile. The pressure to go was really on since head chef Jonathan Sawyer is leaving soon to open up his new restaurant downtown. We wanted to stop before he left and sure enough he was in the house last night.

I had heard the pizzas there are really good so that was the first choice. We ordered the Margherita with fresh tomatoes, basil and local mozzarella. Our helpful bartender Joey asked how hungry we were and when we said very he suggested the Pomme Frites. As soon as he mentioned the fries are cooked in duck fat I knew we had to get them too. Both choices turned out to be excellent. I also had a Troegs Mad Elf and Rogue Morimoto on tap. The Troegs is a christmas ale and the Rogue an imperial pilsner. I loved the first one but was not that happy with the second. That is always a chance though when trying new beers. And it is not like the Rogue was undrinkable. It just was not for me. A last note about Bar Cento was the crowd. We must be getting old because it sure seemed like we were the oldest people there. That is not a bad thing but after dressing up for the concert we seemed a little out of place. I would not hesitate to go back though!

We then decide the night was not over so we ventured around the corner to the Flying Fig. They have a wine there my wife just loves. We thought it would be a good nightcap before heading home. I was a bit disappointed that they were having a problem with their tap beer system so I had to switch to bottles. I got a Pyramid Snow Cap. And then finished up the night with a Macallan 12 yr old single malt scotch. That hit the spot. Last call came and went so we decided to head home. On a bad note the staff were talking about someone had their car stolen that night. She went to leave while were there and the car was gone. You do have to watch were you park in that area. And there is a parking lot right there, but a lot of people don't like paying to park. To me that is part of the cost of going out. I will grab a spot on the street if it is close but otherwise I like to park in a lot with an attendant. I know you can still get your car stolen or broken into there and the attendant does leave after a certain time, but chances of any problems are still less.

Overall it was a fantastic night. Great music, great food, great drink and best of all great company!

New restaurant....

We were out and about today and come dinner time we were looking for a place to eat. We came very close to stopping at our favorite Indian restaurant. Instead we decide to try a new place we had heard about called Luxe. It is a new restaurant in an old bank building in Cleveland. I can't wait to go back if that gives away my review. Great food and great service. Can you ask for anything more? We both decided to go with one of the specials for the night and got the pan seared scallops. The wife got the caesar salad first and I got the onion soup. We both were very pleased. I thought my soup was especially good. We also had two different breads with olive oil and balsamic vinegar to dip with that was very good. The main course was the scallops which we both thought were very tasty. Corn, potatoes, and cherry tomatoes with a cream sauce also came with the meal. Let's just say we were very satisfied and full when we left. I can't wait to go back now.

As a side note we had a bit of trouble getting there. We were coming from the east side. Lack of good signs led us astray and we had to go 40 blocks past the restaurant before we could turn around. That is one of the things I hate about Cleveland. The signs are so bad for people who have never been to an area before. I had no idea I could not turn left at the one intersection and then ended up a considerable distance away. Again at another intersection I could not turn left at so I was even farther away before I could finally turn around. The food was worth the delay this time. I can see though now why visitors to our city do not like out roadways. Poor signs really screw things up. I almost gave up finding the restaurant and am really glad I stuck it out. I wonder how many other people will stick it out...