The Dog is coming back Credit: Google Maps
In February, Jeff Gordinier passed through Cleveland in his role as Food and Drinks Editor for Esquire magazine. While here, he stopped at places like Alea, Larder, Spotted Owl and Happy Dog, two of which appear in the pages of the summer issue.

In the magazine’s annual round-up “the Best Bars in America,” Happy Dog and Spotted Owl (along with the wonderful Law Bird in Columbus) earn a spot among 30 or so of the best watering holes in the nation.

“Happy Dog is a rock ‘n’ roll bar to its bones, with Christmas lights and a no-bullshit beer list,” Gordinier writes.

As for Tremont’s Spotted Owl, Gordinier muses about the cocktail bar’s unique mood wheel that doubles as the drinks menu.

“Instead of ordering from a cocktail menu, I was instructed to select my desired mood,” he writes. “The bartender would then conjure something for me to drink. I figured this was all some sort of gimmick until I tasted my cocktail… It was absurdly delicious, and it was then that I decided this is a next-wave mystic temple of cocktailing.”

This article appears in Jun 10-16, 2020.

For 25 years, Douglas Trattner has worked as a full-time freelance writer, editor and author. His work as co-author on Michael Symon's cookbooks have earned him four New York Times Best-Selling Author honors, while his longstanding role as Scene dining editor has garnered awards of its own.

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