Restaurants

Road Trip

An Ohio City eatery embarks on a fact-finding mission.

By Elaine T. Cicora 

Staffers at Ohio City's modern-Mex Momocho (1835 Fulton Road, 216-694-2122) will be tackling the Three R's -- rest, research, and remodeling -- during a hiatus between January 28 and February 5. During that time, key staffers, including owner Eric Williams, chef Nolan Konkoski, and bar manager Molly Smith, will be checking out Mexican and southwestern hotspots in Chicago, New York, and maybe even Mexico, to gather tasty new menu ideas. Also in store: a host of interior upgrades, including new upholstery and improvements to the bar area.

"It's the slow season, it's Super Bowl weekend, and the weather's just turned cold," Williams said last week. "After 10 months of doing terrific business, we figured we could all use a break."

Clearing the table . . . Despite an earlier report to the contrary, Luchita's in Parma (7431 Ridge Road, 440-743-7650) is not closing; owner Adriene Bardot assures us it's business as usual . . . And the phone number given last week for Ly's Thai Gourmet was incorrect; try 216-360-9384 instead.

Breakfast by the book . . . Here's good news for East Side morning types: Bistro Joseph-Beth, inside Joseph-Beth Booksellers in Lyndhurst's Legacy Village, has expanded its breakfast hours (now 8 to 11 a.m. Monday through Saturday, and 9 a.m. to noon on Sunday) and launched an entirely new lineup of morning offerings.

Just in case the promise of a hot meal isn't enough to get you moving, there's another hook too: Menu items are drawn from the pages of popular cookbooks -- which just happen to be for sale inside the bookstore. Like what you eat? Buy the cookbook and whip it up at home next time.

If a bookstore seems like a novel setting for an eatery, rest assured that kitchen manager Joe Dawson and his crew do a good job with the made-from-scratch edibles, seasoning them brightly and bringing them forth in abundance. Among the temptations, early risers will find Banana Cream Pancakes ($6.50) from The Bon Appétit Cookbook, Crème Brûlée French Toast ($6.50) from The Gourmet Cookbook, and Paula Deen's Perfect Scrambled Eggs ($6.95) from The Lady and Sons Savannah Country Cookbook. (We peeked, so we know that sour cream is the key to the scramblers' light, fluffy goodness.)

In addition to breakfast, the handsome bistro offers lunch and dinner daily, with a full bar and hot and cold coffee drinks. Call 216-691-7000 or visit josephbeth.com.