It all started about a week and a half ago when my brother Brendan and his friend Joe tried an Ethiopian restaurant in Cleveland. On their way home they discovered Sterle's Slovenian Country House, and quickly decided that they had to go. Soon after I received a text message that I was going out to dinner Saturday and the destination was a surprise.
Saturday came and it was a typical freezing Cleveland winter night. All I wanted to do was drink hot chocolate, get under my double fleece blanket and watch feel good movies of the Love Actually variety. However, I made a commitment and knew that if I didn't follow through not only would I hear about it from Brendan, but he would never ever let it go. So like a good sister I showed up at my parents house. Upon my arrival I learned that I got to play designated driver for the evening, a role that I typically star in when I go out with my brother. I love to driving places where I don't know the route or destination.
We picked up Joe and his friend Danielle to accompany us on this supposedly surprise dinner. Well it turned out that I (the driver) was the only one in the group who had no idea where we were going or what we were eating that night. We drove down the hill, merged onto Carnegie and made a right onto East 55th. As we crossed Chester, we entered into the sort of neighborhoods that my father would prohibit me from going to as a teenager. After a few minutes of driving deeper into this questionable neighborhood Brendan instructed me to make a right into the lot next to a dim, virtually windowless, red brick building.
Before entering the restaurant I had no hints or clues to what the meal would be; it was a complete mystery. We walked down a long corridor, through a set of double doors where we were first welcomed to polka music and then to a server wearing what I assumed to be a traditional Slovenian dress. The dining room was large, complete with a dance floor, murals of Slovenian scenery and most importantly (for Brendan and Joe) a full bar.
After a short wait we were seated and handed laminated mint green menus. We promptly order a pitcher of Slovenian beer, which was delicious and refreshing. We decided on the set menu which was $17.95 per person. The meal included wedding soup, salad, bread, sausages with horseradish, wienerschnitzle, sauerkraut, veggies, pork in gravy, mashed potatoes, cheesecake and coffee. The dishes were served family style and they were delicious. There is nothing like a having a dinner which consists of starch, pork prepared two ways and fried breaded veal.
The stand out on the table was the mashed potatoes, which were chunky and had a yummy caramelized crunch to them. Danielle and I were also big fans of the cheesecake which was completely enrobed whipped cream, a decadently delicious dessert. The portions were huge; Brendan and Joe took home about five boxes of leftovers to eat the next day as NFL Sunday snacks.
At this meal the idea of Mystery Ethnic Dinner was conceived. Every week we will go to a new ethnic restaurant in the Cleveland area. We we will take turns choosing the restaurant weekly and it will be a mystery to everyone else (other than the chooser) in the group. Restaurants that include the word "fusion" in either the title or description are prohibited nor are we allowed to chose restaurants owned by Food Network stars (no Lola). However, restaurants which are featured on Food Network shows will receive bonus points.
I enthusiastically introduce to you Mystery Ethnic Dinner, an activity which combines both drinking and eating with a cultural twist.
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