which restaurant in metro-Cleveland serve food with authentic local flavor (Lorain: neighborhoods, live)

[mikemeatball]

I am new to Cleveland from out of Ohio and I have family and kids, so family-friendly dine-in will be preferred. I don't like chain restaurant whose menu are all the same across the states, lacking the soul of local spirit.

Also, any good local brew beer? I don't like national brand beer either.

Thanks

[1watertiger]

i dont think you are going to find a place that is just "cleveland fare". most places will offer their own "ethnic fare" depending on the nationality of their family heritage. ie- marias (croation) on st.clair, solkolowskis(polish) in tremont,martas(chech) e.200th in euclid. the family owned ethnic joints are my favorite, and its a good way to explore different neighborhoods. there is a "taste of cleveland "event downtown each summer showcasing many restaurants from the area.(link is last yrs.event).Taste of Cleveland.

[airics]

for beer, try willoughby brewery in willoughby, they do the beer thing, very good food.. great bands occasionally also... it has a sit down area (restaurant style) which would be good if you brought the kids

[Abasi]

Vincenza'a Pizza & Pasta is great. It is right in downtown by the Q.

[buckeye1]

Get a copy of Cleveland Ethnic Eats (Laura Taxel) to learn about all the non-chain ethnic restaurants of the area. Also clevelandindependents.com for the higher end dining.

[WeSoHood]

Good local brews are Great Lakes Brewing Company and Rocky River Brewing Co. Rocky River Brewing Co. has a tasty menu as well. It's just west of W. 210 and Center Ridge in Rocky River.

[Abasi]

Panini's is great. It is a Cleveland chain that has large sandwiches topped with fries and cole slaw. If you have a family, I would recommend going to a suburb location.

[firefightermom]

Yours Truly is an excellent place for a family meal...love their breakfasts. It's a local chain...so there are a few scattered around and they are excellent. http://www.ytr.com/. Corky and Lenny's in Shaker is another good choice...Corky and Lenny's Restaurant.

Nuevo Acapulco in Lorain is a great family owned Mexican restaurant which the kids would enjoy too. Worth the drive even when I lived on the east side.

Mama Santa's in Little Italy is a great hole in the wall Italian place, and you can walk down to Presti's bakery to get donuts for dessert. Geraci's in Univ Hts is another family owned Italian place with good pizza. Bialy's Bagels in Univ Hts is also great, but small.

[jam40jeff]

All good suggestions from firefightermom. Also, I would add to that list Brennan's Colony. Great food and family friendly in the dining area, although you wouldn't know it from the outside (looks more like a bar). Sokolowski's is another family-friendly location with very good, "local" food. One thing you'll find is that the closer you are to the city (or inner-ring suburbs) the more non-chain options you'll have, and around Cleveland thee are a ton of them (one of the reasons I love it here).

By the way, if you like good food, I suggest skipping out on Panini's. Brennan's is just as (if not more) family-friendly and the food is immeasurably better for around the same price or maybe even less. Winking Lizard is pretty similar to Panini's but the food is much better, although it is even a little more bar-oriented than Panini's.

[Sideblinded]

We are visiting Cleveland next week. Are Michael Symon's restaurants worth going to?