Try the World: Michelin Starred Holiday Box

 Hello everyone!   I realize it's been a while, but I have my latest Try the World box.   We're actually still finishing the Brazil box and have the Italy to start yet.  This holiday box features items from different countries and is Michelin rated.

 This is hot cocoa tablets.

Date spread.

 Lemon curd.

 Pineapple cookies.  I love these.

 Maple cookies.

 Bread mix.

Toffee!

Lastly, truffle sauce.

Disney's The Little Mermaid

We got back from a seafood dinner after seeing the Little Mermaid at the Beck Center.  Ok, I admit that dinner was slightly morbid.  But they were singing about delicious fish!

Seriously though, I had low expectations for the show and was happily surprised.   It wasn't all kiddie stuff, which was nice.  They brought back the concept of Ursula as Ariel's aunt (which was cut from the movie) and of course the ending was changed for staging purposes.   The actress who plays Ariel gets to sing her thoughts in the second act though her character is mute.  Also, watching her expression as the fish is served at dinner is hilarious!

Finding Neverland

Hi world!  It's been a while.  Been really busy.  Last week we went to see Finding Neverland.   That was neat.   It's about the inspirations behind J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan.   Of course, some parts of the story were modified to make them more palatable to a Broadway audience, but that's to be expected.  
It was a bit of a slow starter for me.  Very early 1900s Victorian-ish beginnings.  Things got much better when Captain Hook appeared on stage.   Definitely worth seeing.

Sex with Strangers

This past Wednesday, we saw the play, "Sex with Strangers" at Cleveland Playhouse.   It was actually about books, the internet, and what is considered public and private.  It was an amazingly moving show.   Not crying emotional, but definitely passionate.  The two actors are incredibly believable.  It's about where generations collide and have their differences, and of course, sex.   It's intelligent and witty, with extreme moments of clarity.

Body Awareness

Last Sunday, we went to see Body Awareness at the Beck Center.  It was advertised as a comedy.  Honestly, I would call it a drama, but comedy is technically correct because there is a happy ending and no one dies.   This play deals with mental illness and a family's functioning or lack there of.  Admittedly, there are humous moments, but overall, I consider this to be a very serious play.  It is continuous with no intermission.

Ruthless

 Today we saw Ruthless at the Beck Center.  This is my type of dark, musical comedy.   It's about a young girl who really wants the starring roll in the school musical.  Really, really wants it.   And the chaos that ensues.   Go see it!

Fun Home

Yesterday afternoon, we got to see Fun Home, the Tony Award winning musical.  It started its national tour this past week in Cleveland.   The story is a true one, Alison Bechdel's coming of age tale, from a young 10 year old growing up in a funeral home, to a 17 year old college student at Oberlin, to her 43 year old self as a lesbian comic writer.

The story is non-linear.  We jump around in time through Alison's past.   We learn the biggest part of the story is her father's suicide as a closeted gay man.   Then it's all about watching the events unfold.

I really loved this musical.  The way that it's put together is so intricate.  It just works.   It's 90 minutes without an intermission.   Please bring tissues.  It's worth it.

All the Way

Last night Steve and I saw All the Way at Cleveland Playhouse.  It is the first play of the 101st season and it's amazing!  It's only playing through October 9th, so you can still catch it if you hurry.

It's the story of Lyndon Johnson and his accidental presidency after JFK's assassination.  All kinds of political intrigue with J. Edgar Hoover and Martin Luther King Junior.  It's a very fast paced play, that goes into detail of how the Civil Rights Act was passed and the internal turmoil of the Democratic party.  The Democratic party then was much different from the liberal front of today.   They used the constitution as an excuse not to give people equal rights.   Does that sound familiar?

They even had stations to register to vote in the lobby on iPad stations.   This play won two Tony awards and the lead is the understudy of the Broadway original LBJ.   You should really see this.

Otto Moser's

 Last night we had dinner at Otto Moser's.   They have a Facebook page but no website.   The restuarant has been open since 1890.   I'm reading a book right now about the history of dining in the US, and we only got proper restaurants in 1830.   The walls are decorated with old photographs of theater actors.   Pictured above is the fish and chips I ordered.  I don't really care for fries, so I had veggies instead.  Also, I had applesauce instead of cole slaw.  The haddock was nicely cripsy.  It didn't feel heavy at all.

 Steve had this burger with salami.   It was really large.  

I had salted caramel cake for dessert.   I wasn't sure what to expect when I went to Otto Moser's, but it's a nice little sandwich place with other casual dining items.   I'd go again for a tasty and familiar meal.

Salt+

 We had our book club last night at Salt+.   It's a lovely tapas/small plate restaurant.   Between us book clubbers, we got to try the majority of the menu.  Pictured above is the chicken liver pate with sweet pickles.

Here is the calamari.

This is a golden beet salad.

Marinated manchego cheese with bread.

Grilled shrimp.

Mini pork pies on citrus salad.

Meatballs.

Angel food cake with lemon curd.  It was nicely crispy.

Butterscotch pot de cream.   It was a rather large portion that we got to share.

Chocolate ganache.  

I'm going again to try their brunch this weekend.

Try the World: Italy

 Our latest box from Try the World arrived the other day.  This time, it's Italian.  We haven't even eaten our Brazilian box yet.  

 I love the savory flavor of truffles.   I look forward to trying this with soups and breads.

 I like pesto sauce much more than red sauce.   I was really surprised there wasn't a tomato sauce in the box.

 This is a balsamic vinegar.  I'm not sure what I can do with it.  Maybe a salad dressing?

 You can't go wrong with hazelnut paste.

 Risotto with mushrooms!  Yay!

 The obligatory beverage.  This time it's coffee.

 Some kind of amaretto pastry.

And of course pasta!

Hofbrauhaus Cleveland

We had a busy and successful weekend, so we went for dinner at Hofbrauhaus Cleveland to celebrate.    I had some of their appetizers before at a function.  This time we had a sit down dinner.  Pictured above is the vegetarian dish I ordered, kasepatzle.   It's basically cheesy noodles with fried onions.  It came with a salad.

The noodles were tasty, but I think the amount of oil in the dish didn't agree with me.   I had leftovers on Monday for lunch.

Steve had the jaferchnitzel.  It's pork over noodles with bacon and mushrooms.  I enjoyed the pork, so maybe next time I will order this.  It doesn't come with a salad.

We also got an obatzda, or giant pretzel with a dip of Brie, cream cheese, butter, and onions.  That was tasty!   The whole table was able to split it.

Lala Custom Cake

A new cake shop opened the other week and I finally got a chance to go.   Lala Custom Cake is located near Fear's Confections and Ice Cream Joy.  It's quite the dessert corner now.   I've missed having a cupcake shop nearby.

These are the right size.   They have lovely buttercream frosting and the cake is a bit on the dense size.  You know you are getting a treat just from the small size and heavy mouth feel.  I liked these.

Top row: Cookie dough, lime, chocolate mocha
Bottom row: Chocolate salted caramel

Definitely worth a stop in.

Burgers 2 Beer

 We went back to Burgers 2 Beer yesterday.  We could keep going and still not try everything on the menu.  They are quite creative.  Pictured above is the Luther Burger.  Yes, that is a donut being used as a bun.   It had honey pepper bacon and American cheese.

I had the Breakfast Burger.  That's an egg, honey pepper bacon, hash browns, and hollandaise sauce.   It was a bit too much for me to finish, but only slightly.   I have to really compliment the chef on the macaroni and cheese.   It wasn't too salty and had the right amount of creaminess.  Until next time!