The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Where’s the beef? Recently opened Beefsteak celebrates the power of vegetables
The power of vegetables is showcased at Beefsteak, where the motto is “Vegetables Unleashed,” a mainstay of healthy eating that recently has opened a location in the Crile Food Emporium at Cleveland Clinic.
It’s chef Jose Andrés first restaurant in a hospital, but, as he said at the recent opening, hospitals are nothing new to him.
“My mother was a nurse, and my father was a nurse, and they often met us in the hospital’s cafeteria,” he said about his childhood in Spain.
Although twice named one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People,” Andrés is perhaps best known among foodies for bringing the concept of tapas or small bites to America.
After last year’s Hurricane Maria, his World Central Kitchen served more than 3.5 million meals to the people of Puerto Rico. He was named Humanitarian of the Year by the James Beard Foundation.
He has several restaurants around the world and is devoted to healthy eating.
The Crile Food Emporium, on the second floor of the Clinic’s Crile Building at 9500 Euclid Ave., is designed something like a food court, except eateries are in the center, with seating near windows at the periphery. The bright, lightfilled space is a lovely venue for dining and is attracting lunch business beyond the expected patients and medical staff.
Beefsteak is the newest among five restaurants there, all of which offer clearly marked vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free food options every day. Most are open only until 3 p.m., although Beefsteak is open until 6 p.m.
Service is cafeteria-style, and food is prepared as you wait. Local farmers and artisans include New Creation Farm in Chardon Township and Middlefield Original Cheese Co-Op from Middlefield.
There’s no beef in the Beefsteak Burger ($5.99), which is built around a beefsteak tomato with pickled red onion, shoots, caper herb mayo, extra virgin olive oil and sea salt on a brioche bun. That’s not to be
confused with the BEETstake Burger, which is built around marinated beet with chipotle mayo and the other ingredients and priced the same.
Other choices include the Gazpacho Bowl — chilled tomato soup topped with leafy greens, scallion, cherry tomatoes, cucumber salad, shoot, radishes and extra virgin olive oil. An 8-ounce version of the gazpacho is available as a “Grab + Go” option.
Also find five other veggie bowls, including one with kimchi, and three intriguing salads on the overhead menu. Standouts during a recent visit were the Frida Kale Bowl ($8.79), with rice, black bean and spicy tomato sauce, sweet potato, kale, lemon honey dressing, cherry tomatoes, scallions, corn nuts, toasted pumpkin seeds and cranberries; and the Avo-Toasty ($8.49), with mixed greens, avocado, pickled red onion, asparagus, toasted brioche, poached egg, sprouts, sherry vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, smokes paprika, black pepper and sea salt.
Other restaurants at Crile Food Emporium include Char, with savory and sweet breakfast options, plus fresh grilled burgers, sandwiches and salads (Open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.); and Carve, with house-roasted meats carved to order and served with seasonal sides, grain salads and a hummus bar open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. House-made soups are prepared there daily in 8- and 12-ounce portions.
Italia serves up Italianstyle fare that includes fresh entrees, such as baked eggplant parmesan and specialty flatbread topped with local and seasonal produce and cheeses.
Simmer & Steam is a noodle bar with house-made Vietnamese-style pho broths with a choice of protein and seasonal ingredients including greens and fresh herbs. Both are open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m..
The Crile Food Emporium is overseen by Bon Appetit Management Co., a California-based restaurant management company with restaurants in universities and museums in 33 states.
Its foods all are made from scratch and embrace plant power. Visit Cafebonappetit.com.