Charlotte to Cleveland...Lakewood?? (home, restaurants, moving to)

[twange]

Originally Posted by clt-cle

Yeah Charlotte was quite a shock when we moved there years ago! We are looking forward to moving back closer to home and getting back to the Midwest. It'll be an adjustment and hopefully that snowblower I still own works!!
I'm sure we'll have to compromise somewhere as far as what we are looking for in a neighborhood. Everyone's suggestions have been a huge help and we'll have to spend some more time in the different areas. Anyone know of any good bars/restaurants to get a good feel of the Lakewood area?

My wife is born and bred Lakewood. I lived there for 11 years until last year. We owned a house there for 8 years. It sounds to me like you would really love it. The "stay West of Warren" is slightly overblown but not entirely. Madison and Detroit are the major business districts(bars, eateries, shops etc...). Like the other poster mentioned, the western end is close to the Metroparks. Great location. We lived in the SW part of the city, which is often overlooked. Another important thing I learned was that Lakewood has a slight incline as you go south(farther from the Lake. Water runs downhill. What this means is that when it rains, many of the basements towards the Lake(south of Detroit especially) get wet. Check google earth and look for higher ground. We never had water in our basement but everyone we knew that lived towards the Lake did...

As far as places to check out:

Bela Dubby(coffee house/beer/art gallery/comedy/music)
Phoenix Coffee(younger hipster/hippie hang)
El Tango Taqueria(oaxacan/mexican)
Melt(good place for lunch and beers)
Sullivan's(Irish pub)
Rush Inn(pub, food)
Westwood(pub, food)
Borderline Cafe(southwestern breakfast)
India Garden(uh, Indian food)
Beer Engine(local brewery)
Lakewood Park(where Bell ends at the Lake)
Rozi's wine shop(awesome selection)
The Public Library(gorgeous new building, in a stately Greek revival style)

Sorry I didn't make links...I'm in Cleveland right now visiting and so I'm busy visiting a million people

[exit18b]

In no order:

Eastside -
Lakewood
Rocky River

Westside -
University Heights
Cleveland Heights
Shaker Heights

[twange]

Originally Posted by twange

Water runs downhill. What this means is that when it rains, many of the basements towards the Lake(south of Detroit especially) get wet.

Oops. I meant north of Detroit...could be important

[ottomobeale]

If you are going to live in Cleveland check out.

Danny Boys in Rocky River
The Metroparks esp the Rocky River Reservation
Fortier Park Fortier Park - Olmsted Falls (broken link) This is an almost magical little park. Grab a pizza from Angelinas nearby and eat on the picnic tables in the park.
Des Essenhaus in Shreve (its a drive but a neat place)
Amish Country. Another drive and kind of touristy but interesting nonetheless

[BelieveInCleve]

Originally Posted by exit18b

In no order:

Eastside -
Lakewood
Rocky River

Westside -
University Heights
Cleveland Heights
Shaker Heights

Obviously you mixed the Eastside and Westside up.

[clt-cle]

Originally Posted by twange

My wife is born and bred Lakewood. I lived there for 11 years until last year. We owned a house there for 8 years. It sounds to me like you would really love it. The "stay West of Warren" is slightly overblown but not entirely. Madison and Detroit are the major business districts(bars, eateries, shops etc...). Like the other poster mentioned, the western end is close to the Metroparks. Great location. We lived in the SW part of the city, which is often overlooked. Another important thing I learned was that Lakewood has a slight incline as you go south(farther from the Lake. Water runs downhill. What this means is that when it rains, many of the basements towards the Lake(south of Detroit especially) get wet. Check google earth and look for higher ground. We never had water in our basement but everyone we knew that lived towards the Lake did...

As far as places to check out:

Bela Dubby(coffee house/beer/art gallery/comedy/music)
Phoenix Coffee(younger hipster/hippie hang)
El Tango Taqueria(oaxacan/mexican)
Melt(good place for lunch and beers)
Sullivan's(Irish pub)
Rush Inn(pub, food)
Westwood(pub, food)
Borderline Cafe(southwestern breakfast)
India Garden(uh, Indian food)
Beer Engine(local brewery)
Lakewood Park(where Bell ends at the Lake)
Rozi's wine shop(awesome selection)
The Public Library(gorgeous new building, in a stately Greek revival style)

Sorry I didn't make links...I'm in Cleveland right now visiting and so I'm busy visiting a million people

This is great info! Thanks so much...we are back in Charlotte now saying goodbye to our favorite local dives and hangouts...this was a nice thing to see so we can start getting excited about our NEW hood! Any places you'd recommend for some football? While we are psyched to have the Browns in town (just couldn't get into Panthers football...seriously, who wears teal blue uniforms??), my hubby is a die-hard Bills fan...and while I'm recovering from Favre's departure, I am a Packers fan...need to know where to catch the games! Also looking forward to trying out some "non-chain" coffee shops...

[twange]

Originally Posted by clt-cle

This is great info! Thanks so much...we are back in Charlotte now saying goodbye to our favorite local dives and hangouts...this was a nice thing to see so we can start getting excited about our NEW hood! Any places you'd recommend for some football? While we are psyched to have the Browns in town (just couldn't get into Panthers football...seriously, who wears teal blue uniforms??), my hubby is a die-hard Bills fan...and while I'm recovering from Favre's departure, I am a Packers fan...need to know where to catch the games! Also looking forward to trying out some "non-chain" coffee shops...

There are a TON of bars that show football games in Lakewood. But they'll be showing the Browns mostly. Not sure which bars show the other NFL packages. Try the Winking Lizard on Detroit near Bunts. Also, I noticed there was a new sports bar called Score on the corner of W117th and Clifton. I have no idea what it's about though...

As for independent coffee, Bela Dubby and Lakewood Phoenix are the best in town for vibe. There's also Truffles on Clifton just east of 117th(good deserts).

[Mrs. P]

Originally Posted by clt-cle

My husband and I are are early-mid 30's and moving from Charlotte NC to Cleveland. We currently live less than three miles from downtown in an eclectic older neighborhood with a great mix of senior-level professionals and artists. (While many Charlotteans may call our hood "urban," I think our definition may be different than that of a Clevelander! But regardless, keep us out of the outer ring suburbs...) We are looking for an older house with character, restaurants and bars within walking distance (or stumbling as the case may be), dog-friendly and one day kid-friendly! We are strongly considering Lakewood but want to know what the demographics are like...(we want fun young people to stumble home with when necessary!)...and are also looking at Rocky River...just might be a bit too suburby...I love Chagrin Falls, but might be something further down the road with kids...and the commute to downtown for work may suck in the winter...the East side seems a bit too far away for us...we didn't really like Shaker Heights for this stage in our lives...looked around Tremont and Ohio City but agree that nice single family houses can be next door to abandoned houses...so give us the scoop! And please don't send 50 postings about the weather change we are about to experience...my hubby is from Buffalo and I'm from Madison WI...we got it...

LUCKY YOU !!! you get to get out of Charlotte, I envy you. Though I am so happy I don't live there, I still have to drive there for work.

[Buckeye in SC]

Originally Posted by Mrs. P

LUCKY YOU !!! you get to get out of Charlotte, I envy you. Though I am so happy I don't live there, I still have to drive there for work.

You're one of the few people I've found that aren't too fond of Charlotte, can I ask why? We chose Columbia over Charlotte b/c it was smaller, less traffic, and real estate was much more reasonable - plus we're closer to the beach . Where in Ohio did you come from?

[Mrs. P]

Originally Posted by Buckeye in SC

You're one of the few people I've found that aren't too fond of Charlotte, can I ask why? We chose Columbia over Charlotte b/c it was smaller, less traffic, and real estate was much more reasonable - plus we're closer to the beach . Where in Ohio did you come from?

You know that's kinda funny...I hear that all the time, Oh we love Charlotte, it's the best thing ever and on....However where I work at? One of Charlotte's big employers (no not the bank) all everyone ever talks about is, what a mistake they made and they want to go home.

Why I detest Charlotte and more particularly NC, I will keep to myself.
And so you know my husband (who is now deceased) was born and raised in Charlotte, and left at the age of 28 to move to the midwest. For him it was a life saver and the best thing he ever did (another very personal story). I have been coming to the Charlotte area while I still lived in Ohio for 2-3 times a year for 28 years. I disliked it then, I still dislike it. Probably more now because I have to work there. Let's just say I love the midwest and it's sincerity and leave it at that. And the only reason I'm here is because my one and only child is here, however ..... I DO LOVE SOUTH CAROLINA So it's not a Northern/Southern thing.

I grew up in a small farm type town outside of Akron, but as an adult lived in Goodyear Heights (sigh....I miss my victorian house with REAL woodwork) and pretty much the last 10 years I lived in Ohio I lived in Cuyahoga Falls, 4 miles from my employer.