Exploring the West Side Market

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Hello faithful readers of The Daily Balance! I’m Alicia – one of Shannon’s fellow Cleveland bloggers. At my blog – Poise in Parma – I focus on finding the balance in leading a healthy lifestyle while trying to keep a “normal” routine in my hometown. When Shannon put the call out for guest bloggers, I had to help a sista out!

I’m a bit obsessed with this city, especially its strong food scene. If you aren’t from the CLE, you have probably already heard about all our fabulous restaurants, but you might not be aware of one of our food related gems: The West Side Market in Ohio City.

From their website: With its origins dating back to 1840 the West Side Market is Cleveland’s oldest publicly owned market. Today the market is home to over 100 vendors of great ethnic diversity.

There’s really no better place to do your grocery shopping or find a treat in Cleveland. Here is my list of “must haves” when I go to the Market on a Saturday afternoon:

Pasta from Ohio City Pasta

Visit any fine dining establishment in the city and you’ll probably find Ohio City Pasta being used. Their fresh pasta is infused with tremendous flavor. My favorites include the spinach and red pepper varieties.

Check out my post from last Halloween when I made their pumpkin gnocchi with a pumpkin brown butter sauce. YUM!

Hurka (Rice Ring) from Dohar Meats

Alright, don’t freak out. I understand this might not be for everyone, but for a traditional Hungrian treat, check out this blood sausage. It is made with rice, pig’s blood and pork. It’s also known as “rice ring” and is quite tasty. It’s one of my mom’s favorites that she must get on every visit to the Market.

Pierogi from Meister Foods

A culinary staple of the CLE, a pierogi is a piece of dough that is filled with any sort of food that you can think of: potato, cheese, sauerkraut, beef, or even fruit. Apricot pierogies are a favorite of my husband. I love a good potato & bacon combo. Since they are quite the chore to make, Meister Foods is our favorite place to buy homemade ones.

Ground Chicken & Old Hens from Kaufmann Poultry

Kaufmann Poultry always has the chicken my mom needs to make some of her best dishes, including her chicken meatballs and chicken soup. Plus, they are just good people – they gave my mom chicken livers (for dumplings) and chicken feet (for stock) on the house! Plus, anyone who has this sign up gets my loyalty:

[note from Shannon: I wonder if they'll create something for our traitor Lebron!!!]

City Chicken Skewers with Pork AND Veal from Sebastian’s Meats

Check out Wikipedia for the origin of the dish, but know that it VERY IMPORTANT to my family that we have both pork and veal on our skewers. Sebastian’s is the ONLY place where you can find them prepared with both meats.

Pizza Bagels from Frickaccio’s

Mmmmmm. The glorious combination of bread, cheese and tomato sauce. Need I say more?

Chicken Sausage from Czuchraj Meats and J&J Meats

Another great group of Clevelanders work at this stand. I love supporting people who make their customers feel like a part of the family. I like to decase these sausages and adding them to a pasta dish made with Ohio City linguine.

Crepes and coffee from Crêpes de Luxe

Place your order and watch their skilled employees make a traditional Parisian style street crêpe. From savory to sweet, the possibilities are endless. Combined with one of their excellent coffees, there’s no better way to end a trip to the West Side Market.

With this wide assortment of culinary delights, you can see why we love our West Side Market! I hope to see you around the market and around the CLE soon!

13 Responses to “Exploring the West Side Market”

  1. Amy @ Second City Randomness said:

    Oh spinach gnocchi! I bought some gnocchi in the grocery store once – such a mistake! I need to buy it fresh and local…

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  2. Bite Buff said:

    It’s 9 a.m. and now my mouth is watering for some West Side Market treats- darn you! :)

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  3. Courtney @ Three Months said:

    Oooh, that pasta looks like carb-heaven….YUM! :)

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  4. Tweets that mention Exploring the West Side Market | The Daily Balance -- Topsy.com said:

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by The Daily Balance. The Daily Balance said: Published a new post: Exploring the West Side Market @http://tinyurl.com/3ayg5uy [...]

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  5. Heather said:

    I should have added the WSM as one of my favorite things of CLE when I commented on your most recent blog post! Shoot!

    Anyways, we heart the WSM – my 8 yr old is in love with the cupcakes! Who am I kidding, so am I…….. :)

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  6. Kaz said:

    That looks like such an interesting place to wander around! Thanks for sharing it with us. =)

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  7. Melissa said:

    I love WSM AND especially LOVE Ohio City Pasta! If you work downtown, they also have a stand at Farmer’s Market at CSU on Thursdays. Yum! Thanks for sharing!

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  8. Rachel @ Fit Fun and Fabulous said:

    That was like pasta porn!

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  9. Lisa @ bakebikeblog said:

    Wow – how wonderful does all that pasta look!!!!

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  10. Heather said:

    Wow, wish I would have known about this when I had to visit Cleveland for work! It looks really cool :-)

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  11. Alicia at Poise in Parma said:

    Shannon: on the Art Modell sign: I asked them if they were coming up with a LBJ special. The owner said he actually hadn’t thought of it yet but would consider it! LOL!

    Posted on | Reply
  12. Liz said:

    This all looks delicious – I wish I lived nearby! I’m really craving a pizza bagel now :)

    Posted on | Reply
  13. my guest post at The Daily Balance « poise in parma said:

    [...] Make sure to head over to The Daily Balance to see the guest post in its entirety. Here’s a teaser to get you interested: my list of “must haves” when I go to the Market on a Saturday afternoon: [...]

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