Lucky's Cafe

777 Starkweather
Cleveland, OH 44113
(216) 622-7773
www.luckyscafe.com

Lucky's Cafe in Cleveland's Tremont neighborhood is a perfect place to sit and sip coffee all day or just stop in for a quick bite. The cafe has indoor seating and outdoor seating. The seating outside consists of picnic tables lined up along side their personal herb and vegetable gardens.
Each time I have been to Lucky's I have left pleased and sometimes overly caffeinated, due to over indulgence of the luscious coffee. They are open seven days a week, but only serve brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. They offer sweet selections like scones, tarts, cookies, and cupcakes as well as soups and sandwiches. The sandwiches are served on your choice of house baked breads from focaccia and multigrain, to baguettes and flaky croissants. My most recent visit I left with two cupcakes and a peanut butter brownie, and unfortunately, all three were dry and unimpressive. Because of how good everything else has been, I surely will try again.
On the brunch days they serve delectable options, from gingerbread waffles with maple apples, honey whipped cream and house made caramel, to the Shipwreck: an egg scramble of bacon, potatoes, peppers, and cheese, served with buttery toast. I also have enjoyed their house made granola served with yogurt and fruit, as well as the oh so rich, brioche stuffed French toast, with sweetened ricotta and served with caramelized peaches. Sweet deliciousness. Even if you arrive on a busy weekend morning, the overstuffed couch near the front is a perfect spot to enjoy your meal and coffee while looking out of the large picture window on to the street, or conversing with your neighbor across the table.
The staff is always helpful and courteous. A few additional perks are that they adorn the walls with local artists' works, and also feature a daily dark roast, medium roast, and flavored coffee.
There is nothing like a locally owned cafe; especially one that grows it's own veggies and herbs, and Lucky's is definitely not one to overlook.

Bongo Room

1470 N Milwaukee Ave.
Chicago , OH
(773) 489-0690


I first heard about the Bongo Room by doing searches online for breakfast spots or cafes in Wicker Park. It kept showing up with rave reviews, so I had to see for myself. A freezing early Saturday morning we braved the elements and made it. We had about a 10 minute wait until we were seated. The fact that there were only two of us was extremely helpful, I watched parties of three and more waiting at least 20 if not 30 more minutes for a table. From what I hear we got off easy, usually the wait is out the door on the weekends. The tables are close together so you will get to know your neighbors. Our neighbors were a very nice couple that shared quite a bit of their knowledge of the city, and to our surprise they were from the Cleveland area as well.
The service was great. They ran a tight ship. The water in the glass never fell below half and neither did the coffee, which by the way was delicious. I ordered the Pumpkin and Graham Cracker Pancakes, served with a vanilla bean crème anglais and dusted with cinnamon. Talk about rich. Talk about sweet. The pancakes themselves had great graham flavor and if I were to get the dish again, I would certainly get the anglais on the side. There was no way I could finish the portion or anything else for that matter. My companion ordered the breakfast burrito, meatless and served with chunky potatoes. The burrito was filled with fluffy eggs and veggies and he seemed quite pleased.
After we departed, he later told me that he did find a hair on the plate, but did not want to ruin the visit, although it wouldn’t have changed the company or the experience.