COURT’S BIRTHDAY LUNCH (PART 2)

So following my amazing Sip and Spa Birthday experience (which you can read about Part 1), a few of us agreed to grab brunch! I didn’t formally plan a lunch because I wasn’t sure what time we would be finished with our services or what time we would feel like leaving our private room. As we packed up to leave the spa, a few us agreed that we were all hungry and decided to grab a bite close by.

My first thought was a Thai restaurant literally walking distance to the spa. Unfortunately, after driving literally 2 minutes there, that place didn’t open until 4pm. I had to think quick before everyone went their separate ways. I opened my phone to see check my list of places to visit and I was able to found something in the area that I had yet to try. I called to confirm at 2pm that it was in fact open. I let them know in advance I would be arriving with a small group and they agreed that they could accomodate us. I shared the location with the group and we were on the way. It was no more than 10 minutes from the spa in Chagrin Falls.

Funny enough, this place shares a name similar to another in the area so I wasn’t the least bit of surprised that my sister went there first. I reminded her of the name and told her to drive a little further down the road. My friend Ashley and I were the first to arrive as everyone else followed my sister and ended up in the wrong location as well. Upon my arrival, I luckily found parking in the front of the restaurant prior to valet starting and Ashley found a spot around back in a small parking lot. There weren’t many options to park but there was a large lot across the street and the option to pay at the meters.

If you’re familiar with Chagrin Falls, you know it’s a super cute place and a small area. It’s the perfect place to park and walk around in the summer. It’s so fitting for date days or nights, or simple outings with the kids- especially eating ice cream and watching the waterfalls. It’s also a great place to meet your girls and have a few drinks!

This restaurant in particular sits immediately off the main road to the left as soon as you come up the hill to enter Chagrin Falls. Once you park, you approach a large rustic mixed with industrial style restaurant. You can see from the outside glass the patio is enclosed for the weather, there’s a cute little fire place and people sitting at tables and a large bar. You enter these large doors and turn left and there are two more glass doors to enter before you’re actually inside the restaurant.

The space is very nicely designed. It’s very open and bright, with white linens and a beautiful light fixture hanging in the middle of the dining room. There’s a large bar to the left of the main room which is a U shape that also goes outside to the patio. On the inside, the bar top extends parallel to the perimeter wall all the way to the exposed kitchen counter. It’s pretty hard to explain, so you will have to go see it for yourself- but in the meantime look at the pictures above. There are no booths just small tables nicely scattered throughout the space. From a far, I can tell the patio had the same layout.

Our table of 5 was seated pretty quickly. It was about 2:30pm and the room was partially full for lunch. After learning that they have Happy Hour Monday through Sunday, I understood why so many people were sitting at the bar both inside and out. We were all pretty hungry so we wasted no time looking at the menu to place our orders. I was craving lasagna which I essentially ordered but after asking our waitress what were the popular dishes, I was torn between that and the Chicken Parmesan. When trying to new places, I try to pick classic items. Considering this was Italian, I figured these two entrees had to be done right. Two people in our party ordered the Chicken & Ohio Made Sausage Diavolo Pasta, and the rest of us ordered the lasagna. I added a chopped salad to my meal and enjoyed that prior to being served my entree. I’ll be honest… the best part of waiting was the BREAD AND OIL! We literally had that replenished at least 5 times for our table. It was amazing! I like my oil with balsamic vinegar and topped with parmesan cheese… try it! It was seriously amazing! Not to mention their spin on the lasagna, half of it is in a red sauce the other in a white sauce. It was soooo good! I actually think I liked the white sauce better, but totally enjoyed going back and forth from side to side on my plate. It was also a good portion, considering I also had a lot of bread and a salad prior – I left full.

Everyone who ordered the lasagna loved it, the gals who ordered the pasta said it was good but would consider trying something different next time around. We all agreed the bread was possibly the best part of the meal – which says a lot from me because I thought the lasagna was superb! At one point the owner/manager walked over to check on us and ask how we enjoyed our meals. We honestly replied all was well and some asked for additional pasta sauce. I’ll be honest in saying him stopping by was a nice touch to our service which started out mediocre.

In closing, I did notice there was a lunch menu, a dinner menu and a brunch menu. My meal was two dollars cheaper at lunch to give you an idea of the price increase later in the day. I spent a total of $21 not including the tip, which I thought was a great price. I also only drank water and didn’t get to enjoy any of the happy hour specials. I actually can’t wait to have the baby and return.I can only imagine how cute this place is in the summer time when the patio isn’t covered. When I wrote this on my list of places to try I planned to come with my husband who loves Italian so I will definitely have to come back for a date night. When I think about it, this place is great for any outing at anytime during the day. I would consider lunch with the kids or early dinner here, of course a girls night out, couples dinner with friends or like I plan to come for… date night.

This restaurant is a casual, cute and cozy place to enjoy a meal. If you’re looking for a new Italian place to try in the area, or you are in Chagrin Falls and don’t know where to eat… try M Italian and tell them you read about them on #CourtneyCoversCleveland

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  • Courts Sip and Spa Birthday (PART 1) – Courtney Covers Cleveland

    […] I’m so glad I found this place and I’m glad to share it with you…  if you’re ever in the Pepper Pike area, be sure to visit Santo Salon and Spa and tell them you read about them on #CourtneyCoversCleveland This spa is open Monday through Sunday. Be sure to read PART 2 of #CourtsSipandSpaBday LUNCH here! […]

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