2nd Chocolate Crawl held in Downtown Willoughby

Crowd comes out despite chilly temps

The latest creation of Sol Executive Chef Brett Zubek was getting rave reviews over the weekend.

But don’t expect to see it on the menu anytime soon.

“It’s a lot of work,” he said with a smile.

Zubek made Asado de bodas, a traditional Mexican wedding stew, combining slow-stewed pork with a red chili and dark chocolate sauce for the second annual Chocolate Crawl Feb. 9 in Downtown Willoughby.

Participants who paid $30 to $40 a pop could sample such creations at eight eateries along the crawl route, plus purchase specialty chocolate drinks at a discount with their “passport” guide.

Hundreds of people turned out for the event, including Glenda Terrell of Wickliffe and her daughters Mackenzie Smart and Erica Bardon.

“It was an opportunity for the three of us girls to get together before Valentine’s Day,” said Bardon, who made the trip from Columbus.

They declared delicious Ballantine’s dark chocolate espresso torte with salted milk chocolate drizzle and raspberry coulis.

“And it’s just the perfect portion,” said Terrell. “It’s a chance to try chocolate desserts that are unique.”

Or dessert-like dishes, as the case may be. Like Sol, many of the locations served meaty treats. There were chocolate mole wings at Frank & Tony’s Place and Nickleby’s, espresso and chocolate-crusted beef carpaccio at Chagrin River Diner, chocolate-covered bacon at Mullarkey’s and mole chicken tacos at Barrio.

BRIM Kitchen + Brewery opted to offer a chocolate macaron dipped in raspberry meringue.

Non-ticketholders were able to buy the specialty drinks at full price.

Sol served up spiked Mexican hot chocolate.

“We’re using a mixture of heavy cream, half and half and la leche,” Zubek said. ‘“Actual chiles are added in the cream, then (we) add Dutch cocoa to a water and cornstarch slurry. We serve it hot with a shot of silver tequila and top it with agave whipped cream and a dash of cayenne pepper on top.”

He said it took some research to come up with the recipes, but he enjoyed the challenge.

“We continue to do these things because we think they’re great events and awesome for the public to come check out our restaurant, and the other surrounding restaurants,” he said. “Downtown Willloughby is a great place.”

The crawl was organized by Taste CLE, which plans tasting events throughout Northeast Ohio and has six in Downtown Willoughby this year.

Others are the Mac & Cheese Crawl April 13, a new Vegan & Veggie Crawl June 8, Tequila Fest Aug. 10, Bourbon Trail Oct. 19 and the Xmas Ale Beer Crawl Dec. 7.

“Out of all the ones we do down here, this is probably one of the more popular ones,” Taste CLE CEO Adam Bossin said. “Chocolate is nice because you can bring your kids with you.”

He said the sunshine was an improvement over the gray day last year.

“I think the weather’s awesome,” he said. “I think we Clevelanders know how to handle cold weather.”

CARRIE GARLAND — THE NEWS-HERALD Sol Executive Chief Brett Zubek serves samples of his slow-stewed chocolate pork dish during the Chocolate Crawl Feb. 9 in Downtown Willoughby.