Fire Food & Drink
Despite its age, Fire Food & Drink on Shaker Square always feels fresh. Part of the credit for that goes to the initial design, which is classic and timeless. But credit also goes to chef-owner Doug Katz, who does frequent and consistent tweaks to keep the place in tip-top shape.
But the time had come, says Katz, to go above and beyond the typical skin-deep beautifications.
"We are 14 years old and we really needed to redo our wood floors," he explains. "Unfortunately, they were 90 years old and we couldn't rebuff them again. So we thought, since we're getting all new wood floors, we should probably get new chairs too."
Like pulling a loose a thread, the project didn't stop there. Katz shuttered his bistro following the Easter rush to undertake the improvements. To go with the brand new maple floors, Katz purchased dark wood dining room chairs with neutral putty upholstery. That too-cool-for-school concrete bartop got a sanding and refinishing. Guests will be greeted by a new host stand and dine off new tableware, while the staff enjoys fresh-built service stations. A fresh coat of paint throughout and – boom! – Fire is fresh as a daisy.
"I think when people come in they might not initially think, 'Oh, what did they do?,'" says Katz. "But they will see how great it looks. That's what I wanted. I feel that people go to a restaurant and expect a certain experience and if you change it too much, they feel like something is different."
The chef picked up a new toy in the kitchen too: an Argentinian wood-fired grill. Now, grilled items like chicken with chimichurri, lamb sirloin and grass-fed cheeseburgers will taste all new.
Vero Pizza
Things are going so well for Marc-Aurele Buholzer at Vero Pizza in Cleveland Heights that he recently signed a five-year lease extension. But that doesn't mean that the restaurant can't benefit from some improvements — and we're not talking a fresh coat of Sherwin-Williams.
"There is an inefficiency in the way we seat people," Buholzer says diplomatically.
The truth is, while the pizzaiolo works his magic at the wood-fired pizza oven, the front of the house can get a little hairy. Given the trim dimensions of the two-level dining room, those who don't get completely shut out on busy weekend nights often suffer long waits for a table. A hinky HVAC system doesn't ease the tensions.
Hopefully, much of that will change when Vero shuts down for a brief mid-summer break. In addition to a new air conditioning system, Buholzer will introduce a fresh interior layout designed to increase seating flexibility, decrease wait times, and ease aforementioned tensions. Vero will adopt the time-tested banquette system along the length of the main dining room, with a string of deuces (two-seaters) allowing for tables to be pushed together to accommodate groups of any size.
"It's more flexible," he says. "We should turn away less people on weekends."
The move that likely will prove more controversial, says Buholzer, is the removal of the sole remaining gelato cooler, a holdover from when the space was La Gelateria. Not only is the additional real estate needed for more seating, the walk-in service seems to gum up the entire operation.
Whether or not he follows through with his threat of ice cream eviction, however, is left to be seen.
"Every summer I try to get it out and then it's not out," he says. "Its days are numbered. It's going."
Moncho's
When Isabel Montoya and her father Moncho opened this cozy Brooklyn Centre spot last summer, it was mainly as a bar and grill where neighbors could grab a cold beer, watch some futbol and, perhaps, order some homespun Colombian-themed fare. But as time went on, the business began to evolve, which motivated management to make some sweeping changes.
"After being open for a year now we realized that we are able to serve more people if we had more seating space. The large bar used to work out well when the place was an Irish bar," Montoya says, referring to the previous tenant. "But now, a lot more families are coming in and eating. It's a completely different crowd."
As implied, the large 20-seat bar that dominated much of the room was ripped out and replaced by a much smaller one (with colorful inlaid beer-cap bartop preserved). That allowed the seating in the dining area to nearly double in capacity. All new walls — as in drywall — lighting and paint brightened up the interior. More TVs means even more soccer matches. A new wraparound patio extends from the front to the side of the building.
"You walk in and the restaurant looks completely different."
Perhaps the best improvements come in food form. Thanks to a surprisingly warm reception, the Colombian menu will expand, with items that previously were specials-only affairs being promoted to permanent status. I'm talking about you, bandeja paisa! Diners also can look forward to whole fried red snapper with coconut rice and fresh fruit smoothies.
