On a whim, we took a midnight bicycle ride tonight. We were careful—kept our front and back blinkers on and stayed mostly on the sidewalks. It was a very warm feeling 50-something, so I grabbed a light jacket and scarf and we rode. I didn’t feel like bothering to take a photo but it did remind me of The Triplets of Belleville so I am grabbing a screenshot from a wonderful film that captures the spirit of this post. It was a wonderful ride.

Rent it, Netflix it, Amazon it, or just borrow it from the Toledo Public Library. It’s a French film but you need not know a lick of French or worry about subtitles. Trust me.

Once more, I will make note of Toledo’s importance in bicycle history because it is just that… a piece of history.

Built in 1880 and lovingly restored in the 1970’s, The Kerr House is where I spent the last weekend before the Election for a little R&R. Every detail in this Victorian mansion is perfect for the period, from the antique furnishings and decorations to the wallpapers and lighting. Breakfast was served in bed to start off a day of massages, sauna and yoga with Laurie.

My room was beautiful—like I was living inside a jewelry box. It was the perfect setting to read The Devil in the White City, a superb drama happening during the Chicago Worlds Fair and based on fact.

The Kerr House | 17777 Beaver Street | Grand Rapids, OH | (419) 832-1733

On the way home from from our scenic drive last weekend we stopped in Waterville for a bit to eat. According to D. there had been a Koral Hamburg on River Road when he was younger.

Seems this place has been around a long time—since 1926, in fact. I had high expectations for my burger because you would hope in all those years they would have gotten it right.

And they did. It was a perfect cheeseburger, or should I say cheeseburg? D. took one bite of an onion ring and exclaimed, “This is the best onion ring ever!” We mentioned Koral to a friend the next day and they too said the onion rings at Koral are the greatest… so if you’re a fan of onion rings you know where to go.

Koral Hamburg | 12 North 3rd St. | Waterville | (419) 878-7007

J. graciously opened his home on Tuesday for his, now second, election night party. Guests brought a ton of food and tended the bar while others had their eyes glued to the TVs. Towards the end of the night revellers pushed out of the house, into the yard, and celebrated with some fresh air.

I had never heard of fried pickles until my first visit to Toledo. Tony Packo’s was touted by D. as THE place for fried pickles… and I fell in love with those wonderfully breaded and fried slices. Easy Street also has fried pickles on the menu, in the form of spears and with a different sort of batter (more like Tempura). The only other place I’ve had fried pickles was in North Carolina at the famous Penguin Drive-In; they were thin slices… about a quarter of the size of Packo’s pickles… and man… so good!

This weekend we stopped at LaRoes’s in Grand Rapids and were pleasantly surprised to see fried pickles on the menu, so of course we ordered them. These were entirely different… spears with a crunchy (maybe cornmeal?) batter that was seasoned well. They came with a sweet poppyseed dipping sauce which at first seemed an odd pairing, but once we tried them it just made sense. Highly recommended. The weather is still nice enough to sit outside and enjoy the river view. Do it.

LaRoe’s | 24138 Front St. | Grand Rapids, OH | (419) 832-3082

Take advantage of gas at 2 bucks a gallon and drive; drive down River Road… past Toledo… past Maumee… and simply enjoy the fall colors. You will get alternating views of the river and then of a multitude of greens, yellows, oranges and my favorite reds. The road and topography of the hills—swirling up and down and over—are reason enough for the drive.

You can stop at many points along the drive. We chose a spot in Grand Rapids where there is a small dam.

Mary Jane Thurston State Park | 1-466 State Route 65

The parking lot to El Camino Real was packed last night… and so was the restaurant. I had a bean burrito with guacamole and D. had a taco and a couple of those chili relleno things he loves so much. And, we shared a pitcher of margaritas—my favorite reason to visit. It’s apparently a fave of a lot of Toledoans because there were some pretty tipsy folks out last night… like falling down on the ground tipsy.

El Camino Real | 2500 W Sylvania Ave | (419) 472-0700 | There’s one on the east-side too… google it.

P.S. Don’t drink and drive, K, thanks, bye.

Looking to skip the queue and long waits on election day? In-person early voting is quick, easy and centrally located downtown at Jefferson and 22nd Streets. We voted last week shortly before lunch and while a lot of people were voting but there was basically no wait. Of course, there is a *certain* thrill of voting on election day… but if you are time-challenged take advantage of this and VOTE EARLY.

Click here for a PDF from the Lucas County Board of Elections for days, hours and a map to the location.

Lucas County Board of Elections Early Voting Center | EMS Training Center – 2127 Jefferson St. (Across from Mercy Medical Center) 

Hungry? Hungary? We just got back from our first visit to The Budapest. Open for lunch and dinner this little time-capsule of a restaurant is really something. A blast from the past, from the rotary phone and the old-fashioned cash register, to the antiquated music in the background. Even the waiter seemed like he had just stepped out of a time machine with a vintage vest and bow tie… even his watch and spectacles. I was too shy to ask him to pose for a photo.

The menu was on the board. I had pork chops and D. had the special—a ribeye steak with sauteed peppers. Both came with small salads, potato and noodles. The portions were way too much for me and I brought home most of my dinner but the food was good. Very “comfort food”… comforting like the atmosphere where everyone seemed like a regular.

Suggestion: call ahead to make sure they are open.

The Budapest Restaurant | 3314 Monroe St | (419) 241-1513

This weekend was very relaxed and casual and at one point we just decided to take the doggie down to the river for a walk. It was perfect weather, plenty of parking on Water Street, boats going up and down the Maumee, and a couple guys passing the time by fishing…

World, meet Daphne, the dog.

Pretty soon (or too soon) the streets will be covered with snow, sleet and ice. Take advantage of the weather while it lasts and visit downtown on your bicycle. Did you know Toledo used to be the bicycle capital of the world? Well… if not capital of the world it certainly was very important in the late 1800s taking credit for a good deal of modern bicycle innovation. The everyday metal wheel spoke was invented in Toledo! Ride your bike downtown after 5pm, when all the worker bees have gone home, enjoy the quiet streets, and own the city.

Our friends R. and M. invited us to go apple picking this afternoon, just over the border into Michigan. Visiting an apple orchard/pumpkin patch is something I haven’t done since I was a little kid in CT. and other than the fact I hadn’t lived near an orchard most of my adult life, I have no idea why… it was amazing fun.

I found two beautiful pumpkins that may or may not become horrifying jack-o-lanterns… we’ll see.

We also picked a bag full of apples. Apples of all sorts of color and flavor… all ending up in the same bag so we’ll have no clue how to separate the Golden Delicious from the Granny Smiths, but who cares?

Some of the apples were pretty high up, so R. climbed up a tree and tossed them down to M. At one point D. picked me up (bless his soul) while I picked what I could.

We found a patch of Indian Corn. I’ve never been in a corn field before and they always remind me of scenes from films where people are running through them, like the X-Files or Signs or even worse, Children of the Corn. At one point I wandered past a pumpkin patch and braved an honest to goodness real corn field on my own.

After picking our apples, pumpkins, gourds and indian corn we walked to a big barn and left with some of Erie Orchards famous donuts and cider. The donuts were particularly amazing. Fried dough transcends all borders and cultures—no matter who you are or where you’ve come from fried dough is something we can all stand behind. Vote Fried DOugh in 2008!

Erie Orchards and Cider Mills | 1235 Erie Road | Erie, Michigan | (734) 848-4518

Last week I posted some of my favorite restaurants in the area and asked what yours were. Here are the replies I got, which include several local spots I haven’t visited yet. The Beirut seems to be pretty popular, no? Thanks to everyone who answered the call!

Jody:

“I’m not sure which is a number one for me. If I had a choice, I’d have five stomachs.”

Al Saher (super falafel sandwich) on mcCord
Fujiyama (shitake mushroom and tempora sweet potato sushi) reynolds
Calvinos (greek pizza-spinach pine nuts garlic sun dried tomatoes and feta) at cricket west
Deepham Deli (indian deli, saturday & sunday Dosa’s) on central past mcCord heading west
Thai Kitchen on dussel in maumee

Jeff:

“Here are my 5 (okay, 6) favorite restaurants in Toledo.”

Shorty’s BBQ 5111 Monroe Street  Toledo (419) 841-9505
Jo-Jo’s Original Pizzeria 4336 Monroe Street, Toledo (419) 473-1223
El Camino Real 2500 W Sylvania Ave  Toledo, (419) 472-0700
Star Diner 3067 W Alexis Rd, Toledo - (419) 472-5103  (girls in stupid outfits, ridiculous portions of food)
Indian Jewel of Toledo 6711 Airport Highway, Holland (419) 865-9500
Tandoor Cuisine of India 2247 Reynolds, Toledo (419) 385-1552

Kelly:

Calvino’s
Kotobuki
J&G Pizza Palace (in Sylvania)
Manos
Doc Watson’s (good bar food)

John Henry:

5. Beirut Restaurant
4. Mercado San Pedro Taco Bar
3. Manos
2. Manhattans
1. Rockwell’s Steakhouse

Mark:

1. The Beirut, 4082 Monroe St. Toledo, OH
When I take someone from out of town to a local restaurant, I take them here. The best tabouli on the planet, hands down!
2. Kotobuki, 5577 Monroe St. Sylvania, OH
In my opinion, still, the best sushi in Toledo. Which is saying a lot, in a town with pretty good sushi for a city it’s size and 600 miles from an ocean.
3. The Village Idiot, 309 Conant St. Maumee, OH
The best pizza in Toledo. Throw in an ice cold Bell’s Beer and the best juke box in the area and I’m pretty happy.
4. Bangkok Kitchen, 582 Dussel Dr. Maumee, OH
Just great Thai fast food

Scott:

Rose Thai
Frog Leg Inn
Real Seafood (editors note: I think this might be a chain?)
Beiruit
Wasabi Bistro

Sarah:

Poco Piatti 5333 Monroe St., Toledo 419.885.0101
Jing Chuan 4424 Secor Road  Toledo, OH  419.472.9612
Grumpys is also one of mine!
Romans Deli 526 Jackson St. 419.254.0191 (you can’t sit and eat in there though, just a sandwich place. yum.)
Glendale Garden Cafe 2521 Glendale  419.382.1011

Michael:

1. Calvino’s - 3143 W Central Ave, Toledo, OH 43606  (419) 531-5100
2. Bangkok Kitchen - 582 W Dussel Dr  Maumee, OH 43537  (419) 897-7777
3. Beirut - 4082 Monroe St  Toledo, OH 43606 (419) 473-0885
4. Sori Sushi - 5236 Monroe St  Toledo, OH 43623  (419) 720-7674
5. Mr. Spots - 125 E Court St Bowling Green, OH 43402

Joel:

1) The Original Sub Shop & Deli
2) Grape Leaf Diner
3) Tony Packos
4) Star Diner
5) Whitehouse Inn

Jacob:

The Original Sub Shop & Deli (of course)
The Grape Leaf Diner
Schmucker’s
Toledo Market (best shawarma sandwiches in town)
Star Diner (when I’m up and actually make it out for breakfast)

Kristen:

The Beirut
Sori Sushi
Mancy’s
Sam and Charlie’s Breakfast
Al Saher
Real Seafood

My first visit to the Greek Festival in Toledo was on Saturday. The food was incredible!

I had mousaka, pastichio and a tiropita (cheese-filled philo). I was too busy stuffing myself with amazing food to notice what D. was eating. I think there was some chicken on his plate? 

I left with a small box of pastries (think butter cookies and baklava) after we watched some darling children re-enact a greek monster myth.

Greek-American Festival | Downtown

On Saturday morning we drove down to Bowling Green for the Black Swamp Arts Festival. BG has one of the cutest Main Streets ever. 

There were quite a few booths… most being more craft than art, but regardless there was plenty to see. One surprisingly cute booth had little animals and creatures formed of everyday rope.

We also spent some time checking out the shows at the electronic stage. Above is HMNLCD.

The Wookalar (from Wicked Lung and the Wookalar of Columbus) played. See above. Wicked Lung did a set too.

We made sure to catch the Secret Swords show before leaving the festival.

Cheers—and thanks for putting up with the poor video quality!

Black Swamp Arts Festival | Bowling Green, OH

D. and I were having dinner at the River Cafe last night and after a pause both agreed that this is one of our favorite places in Toledo (or nearby). “What are our top 5…”, I asked. We mulled it over in our heads and came up with a list, in no particular order:

The River Cafe | Point Place | 6215 Edgewater Dr. | (734) 723-7405

Frog Leg Inn | Erie, Michigan | 2103 Manhattan St. | (734) 848-8580

Mac & Tong’s | Talmadge & Central | 4330 W Central Ave. | (419) 531-3103‎

Grumpy’s | Downtown | 34 S Huron St. | (419) 241-6728‎

Manos | Uptown | 1701 Adams St. | (419) 244-4479‎

Each one is special in their own way. So, what’s yours? Shoot them over in an email and I’ll list them in a later post. Please note: no chains.

Fighting our sedentary lifestyles and a couple extra pounds, J. and I made plans to start running during the week. Day 1 was rough… less running and more power-walking.

By the time we got to Monroe Street we were practically crawling. But it felt good to get up off my butt and move a little, and today will be a little easier. I hope.

Obama accepted the nomination last night. We ambled over to M. & K.’s house where the DNC was projected onto a huge screen outdoors. We watched the speeches in lawn chairs and on blankets and cheered and clapped. And, it was great.

I carry a bit of German blood in me and have been to Germany twice, BUT I’ve never been to a German-American festival. We’ve heard nothing but good things about the festival in Oregon and that raccoon mascot/logo is so damn nice… we grabbed our designated-driver/lawyer and drove over the river. The cornfield on both sides of the drive to the parking lot was a little ominous.

We ran into M. almost immediately, and of course, he was in lederhosen. He was also a few beers ahead of us so we got some tickets and started drinking. D. was able to finish the night off with a free glass mug by trying 7+ different beers. I tried to stick with old reliable Bitburger. Bitte ein Bit.

There was more to this festival than just beer. There was food, lots of it, pretzels and sausages and potato latkes/pancakes. There was quite a bit of dancing. And there was a parade!

But in the end, the real focus was on drinking bier. Except for our designated driver who had none.

At one point, there were dancers on a giant cuckoo clock-styled stage. It was around this time that I started to realize the crowd was getting bigger.

Much bigger. And it was about this time that we decided it was time to go home.

But not without saying bye to the rollerderby girls. BYE!

German American Festival Society | Oak Shade Grove in Oregon, Ohio

Last night saw the 8th Meet & Greet event merge with the Arts Zone Third Thursday Art Walk. There was a bus loop going between aprox. 8 different stops, including the Parkwood Gallery, Collingwood Arts Center, UT’s Center for the Arts, and the Toledo Repertoire Theatre. Eleven galleries were open (to walk or bus to) and we started with Space 237 which had the Toledo AIGA’s “Design What?” show up.

We choose to ride our bikes rather than take the bus, which was a lot of fun and J. joined us. Biking downtown at night was pretty great with little-to-no traffic and breezy weather.

We ran into the great Toledo ambassador, John Henry Fullen at Erie Street Market. He was hosting 2 newcomers to Toledo, Kalpak and Lars (L to R. Kalpak, Jody, John Henry, Lars).

20 North is showing a tribute/retrospective to Joe Ann Cousino right now and I totally recommend you check it out. There is some great sculpture, photos, and news clippings exhibited.

D. got a treat when walking into the Blue Heron Gallery (@ The Oliver House). A watercolor in the hallway clearly showed his grandmother’s house/spa in Grand Rapids, The Kerr House. It was obviously before the renovations that happened in the late 70s. The artist, Jim Brower, was in attendance and D. was happy to meet him. His watercolors will be showing through September 29th.

Before making our way to the after party at The Blarney, we strolled down to the Morris Street Studios. There was live music outside the studio and also at the Blarney, which was packed full of people inside and out. Again, a great night out in Downtown Toledo.

Third Thursday Arts Walks | Every third Thursday through October | Live Work Create Toledo Arts Zone

Meet & Greets | Twice a year | Various locations in Toledo

Got back into town just in time for the Old West End Security Margarita Cruise down the Maumee. It was a good excuse to interact with the neighbors, under the guise of margaritas and fund-raising for the neighborhood security patrols.

…And they were great margaritas (ie. strong). There was mexican food as well—like salsa, burritos, and D.’s favored taquitos. I had a couple taquitos myself and they were pretty great. It’s safe to say by the end of the cruise most of the Sandpiper was three-sheets to the wind, except for Captain Greg.

Looking for more boating excursions in Toledo (can we rent boats for the day?), so if you know of anything please drop me a line.

In Denver at the moment… get back early next week and then a day later I’m off to Minneapolis for work. So, no Enjoying Toledo posts for a bit… sorry!