Rocco's Pizza - Cuyahoga Falls

There are two Rocco's Pizza locations in C. Falls and Stow.  One of them is right by our house so we go there a lot.  Much better than delivery chain pizza places and still great for a party or a quick dinner.  They also have chicken and Jojos, as well as subs and salads.  To me the chicken is average, TBG likes the meatball sub.  I just love the simple, greasy, thin but not crispy cheese pizza.  They also have great root beer.  They do not deliver, but do have room to eat in.  We usually have a coupon, still it's more than some of the chain places, but definitely better.


Service____ 4 Chipps
Food____6 Chipps
Atmosphere____3 Chipps
Beer/Wine List____0 Chipps
Value____8 Chipps

Rancheros - Akron

El Pasdor

My American style pork tacos

This is one of our favorite places to go.  This is authentic Mexican, not the "American-Mexican" that most places are.  They recently expanded their dinning room, and by that I mean they got one.  You used to go in and eat at the counter the Chef/Owner Dave was cooking at.  It was great.  I am happy to say the food is still just as good.  I always order something that is not on the menu and they make it no problem.  TBG likes to try new things and it is always good too.  They have $1 tacos on Wed nights, but it's not the quality tacos.  Those are still good, but use ground beef instead of the cut streak or pork I usually get.  This may not be the healthiest of places, he uses lots of butter, but all of the food is fresh.  He make the guacamole when you order it, the salsa is the best (all 3).  The chips are fresh and warm when they are brought to the table.  Because of the made-to-order style it usually takes awhile for the food to come out.  It is well worth the wait, but you can't go if you are in a hurry.  The Chef/Owner usually comes out into the dinning room to talk to everyone, and sometimes brings free desserts. 

Service____ 7 Chipps
Food____10 Chipps
Atmosphere____3 Chipps
Beer/Wine List____0 Chipps
Value____9 Chipps

Happy Holidays!

The Big Guy and I are going to be eating at home a lot with the holidays this week.  Everyone be safe and enjoy your families!

 

Farinacci Pizza - Cuyahoga Falls

A few months ago just off of Graham road in Cuyahoga Falls we noticed there was a pizza place being built.  We watched with anticipation while the "wine by the glass" sign went up, and waited for this place to open.  Finally, this week we went in to check it out.  The decorations and menu are minimal.  We did not get wine, but TBG did get a beer.  Nothing fancy, just the basics.  We started the meal with a salad.  This thing was huge!  The cheese on top was fresh grated and light.  The dressing was a tasty wine vinaigrette.   The rest was a simple green salad and tomato that towered over the white bowl it was served in.  I had to stop eating in fear I wouldn't make it to the pizza, but it was good.  Then the pizza came.  The menu mentioned fried peppers and I just had to try them since I had never seen that before.  The pizza was good.  I thought the fried peppers, which were pan fried with onions, were a little too sweet.  They were cooked well but I found myself picking some off the pizza.  One of these reasons however, is because I was enjoying the cheese on the pizza so much.  The sauce was good, and crust was great.  I like my crust thin, and my cheese greasy.  This pizza was able to satisfy all my pizza wants without loads of grease.  The crust was thin, but still able to hold up the weight of the cheese and peppers.  TBG got pepperoni on his half of the pizza.  It had a good spice, and was not greasy.  We will definitely be back.

Service____7 Chipps
Food____8 Chipps
Wine/Beer List____2 Chipps
Atmosphere____3 Chipps
Value____7 Chipps

Lolita - Tremont

We have always liked to watch Iron Chef Michael Symon on TV.  We have been to his burger place B-Spot in Beachwood and loved it.  Ever since then we have been wanting to try one of his Cleveland places, Lola and Lolita.  Instead of buying Christmas presents for each other we decided to go to Lolita.  Don't get me wrong, it was a tough decision, at one point we had reservations at both places.  Somehow, we managed to pick Lolita and we couldn't be happier we did.
The atmosphere was perfect for the place, it was fancy but still comfortable, with a bar and visible cooking area.  We were seated at the front window seat and I was worried I would be cold but I never even noticed (that could have been the red wine though!)  We started the night with a bottle of The Prisoner wine recommended by our wine guy.  It was great!  Even though we knew what we wanted we still studied the wine list.  Wine is kind of a hobby of ours.  We were impressed with the wine list.  There was a very large selection of by the glass wines, and bottles across all price ranges.  The Big Guy is a beer snob.  We make our own and he has tried every kind he can get his hands on in North East Ohio.  We liked that the beer list here included a lot of local beers.  Then the waitress brought bread and dipping oil.  That was a good start to the food, but the jury was still out.  Then the waitress brought this:

The Big Guy's meat butter

My rabbit

And that was it for The Big Guy.  He was in love.  This was the best bone marrow he has ever had.  I even had a bite.  I don't see the love affair he has with it but it wasn't as gross as I thought it would be.  I got mussels with chorizo as my app.  We didn't get a pic because I ate it so fast.  Seriously the best chorizo I have ever had, could be because it was covered in mussel juice, but it was great.  I ate a whole second piece of bread sopping up the juice in the bottom of the pan.  I was worried I wasn't going to be able to eat my entree.  We had the waitress wait to bring our entree out so we could digest some.  She was great too.  Really nice, talked to us, and brought us what we wanted when we wanted.  There was also a Server's Assistant (SA) who was great.  Our water was never less than 3/4 full and never empty dishes on the table.  Then the entrees came.  They were beautiful.  I felt like we had never been out of the house.  I love to cook so we don't go out to eat as much as some people, but we do love to try new places.  I ordered pappardelle pasta with rabbit and mushrooms.  All from Ohio of course.  It was amazing.  I had never had rabbit before but figured this was the place to try it.  I am glad I did.  The pasta was light, the sauce awesome.  I was actually able to eat most of it even though I ate so much beforehand.  TBG got a pork chop.  It was actually very big.  His side was fried brussel sprouts.  The pork chop was nice and moist, unlike most pork chops.  The sweet sauce complimented it perfectly.  The sprouts were the best either of us had ever eaten.  Every last bite was eaten.

Fried Brussel Sprouts and Pork Chop

Then, suddenly the last drop of wine was drunk, the bill was paid, and it was time to get the car from the valet.  We had a great time and found ourselves not ready to leave.

Service____ 10 Chipps
Food____10 Chipps
Atmosphere____10 Chipps
Beer List____7 Chipps
Wine List____8 Chipps
Value____9 Chipps

You can't drink Chianti with Steak

That was the conversation we were having when we decided to start a food blog. We love eating out so we thought we were share our experiences with others.  I like to eat places that people I know like, so read our blog and try the places we like! :)  Enjoy