As the house forager and larder master for Trentina in University Circle, Jeremy Umansky is tasked with gathering and concocting a large portion of the restaurant's ingredients. In the short time he's been involved with Jonathon Sawyer's flagship restaurant, Umansky has unearthed for consumption more than 150 species of wild plants and 70 species of wild mushroom all harvested from Cleveland woods and fields. Those include wild apples, stinging nettle, staghorn sumac, lamb's quarters, purslane, black velvet boletes, lion's mane and chanterelles, to name a few. In the larder, the encyclopedic tinkerer fabricates vinegar, cultures butter and preserves all matter of dairy, meat and vegetables by various means. It is in this gastronomic laboratory that lobster eggs are dried and cured into bottarga, koij-fermented garbanzo beans are transformed into miso, and fish sauce is coaxed out of mussels. It might be months before an item moves from prototype to menu item, but if and when that koji-cultured scallop does make it, we have Umansky to thank.

The local founders of Choolaah had an audacious goal: to transform the Indian food experience. While every other ethnic food startup hopes to develop another successful Chipotle knock-off, these folks stuck to traditional recipes and cooking techniques, like the beefy tandoor ovens in plain view. The resulting Indian food isn't dumbed down, but simply sped up. Puffy, fresh-baked naan, paneer in creamy tikka masala, moist and fluffy biryani ... all of it fragrant, delicious and, shockingly, fast.

27100 Chagrin Blvd., Orange Village, 800-459-8860, choolaah.com.

In Italy, the Aperitivo Hour is that dreamy time between work and dinner when well-dressed swells sip and snack until it's time to go out to eat for reals. It's nothing like our happy hour, where stiff drinks are heavily discounted and decent food is nowhere to be found. Will Hollingsworth loved the idea, so he imported the concept to his Tremont cocktail bar, Spotted Owl, where it runs from 6 to 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Traditional Italian aperitifs are low- (or no-) alcohol, making them ideal as pre-meal beverages. There are always complimentary snacks, and aperitivos like the 3-2-1, an Aperol spritz-like drink, and the Mezzo e Mezzo, which is half Fernet and half house vermouth.

710 Jefferson Ave., 216-795-5595, spottedowlbar.com.

Just $2 buys a guy a taco so good that he's reaching deep into his pocket for another $2. This makeshift taqueria in the back of a Mexican grocery is further proof that some of the best foods around can't be found in a restaurant. We're partial to the slow-simmered beef tongue (lengua), but we wouldn't turn up our noses at the carnitas, chorizo, al pastor or barbacoa versions either. All are tucked into a pair of small corn tortillas so fresh, warm and corny that you'll swear somebody is baking cornbread. Dress up your tacos from a wee condiments station stocked with chopped onion, fresh cilantro, lime wedges and the spiciest salsa verde around.

13609 Lakewood Hts. Blvd., 216-476-8000.

Given the impressive setting, a neoclassical masterpiece designed by George Post, who later planned the New York Stock Exchange, Heinen's had very special plans for its wine program. The second-level wine and beer section boasts a self-serve wine station outfitted with 48 labels, each available in 1-, 3- or 5-ounce pours. There, guests can insert a prepaid card, pour a glass of perfectly chilled white Bordeaux, and gaze out at space that has been closed to the public for more than a quarter century. That magical view includes a grand central lobby, striking marble columns, and a breathtaking stained-glass dome that may or may not have been designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany.

900 Euclid Ave., 215-302-3020, heinens.com.

Short, to-the-point and impossibly factual, #ladybutchers tells the social media world that those delicious meats you're about to jam down your pie hole were hand-crafted with love by female butchers Melissa Khoury and Penny Barend of Saucisson. Like true ladies, these gals bitch, moan, drink and cuss a blue streak with about as much enthusiasm as they reserve for turning heritage-breed pork into mind-blowing charcuterie. Whether you know it or not, many of the best meat boards ordered at bistros around town feature smoked, cured and potted meats from these bad-ass butcher babes. Check them out at farmers markets around town.

330-242-9839, saucissoncleveland.com.

This new urban greengrocer is small but mighty, putting the emphasis on quality over quantity. After all, founder Rachel Kingsbury didn't intend for it to be a substitute for the mega-mart, but rather a convenient shop for Ohio City residents to get what they need quickly and effortlessly. Kingsbury saves you the runaround by combining in one shop all of your favorite local brands, like Rising Star Coffee, Cleveland Bagels, Randy's Pickles, Old City Soda, FruitVibe Juice and more. Coolers are stocked with local and organic eggs, butter and cheese. Grab-and-go sandwiches are built on locally baked bread and filled with locally raised and roasted meats. Fresh organic veggies and fruits are stocked in bins. "It's all about neighbors supporting neighbors," says Kingsbury.

3815 Lorain Ave., 216-543-6388, facebook.com/thegroceryohc.

"It's kind of like a hidden treasure," admits Asia Tea House manager Henry Duong. This makeshift cafe is buried deep inside an Asian grocery, which itself is located in an Asian-themed mall, which itself is tucked into an Asian neighborhood. The reward for adventurous diners who do make the journey is homestyle Vietnamese and Chinese food so good you'll forget the way home. Big bowls of bun bo hue, spicy Vietnamese beef noodle soup, are on the billing next to less assertive yet equally comforting vessels of shrimp dumpling and noodle soup. And then there are the chestnut-colored Cantonese-style roast ducks, hanging by the crook of their necks behind glass until ordered, hacked into slices, and served with rice and greens. Before you leave, load up a sack with fresh-baked buns filled with BBQ pork, cheese and bacon, or mung beans and coconut.

3820 Superior Ave., 216-621-1681.

For about three years now, Tom Herbruck has been filling wooden barrels with new-make whiskey at a rate of nearly one per day. The sour mash bourbon is made the old-fashioned way, with copper pot stills and open wood fermenters. Herbruck has slowly, methodically filled an entire rickhouse with these barrels and allowed them to age – expanding and contracting along with the seasons – until they reached the point when they could be called Straight Bourbon, a term of art for whiskey aged between two and four years. The result is a world-class bourbon that holds its own against any other two-year-old on the market. We can’t wait to try the four-year-old hooch next year.

tomsfoolery.com