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Pierogis, Concerts, and Big Changes in CLE 🍻🎶

Pierogis, Concerts, and Big Changes in CLE 🍻🎶

January 24, 2025

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Good morning, Cleveland! This is The 216 Scoop, the newsletter that dives into Rudy’s pierogi magic, waves goodbye to Banter 👋, and checks out the future of the MLK Library 📚—all while celebrating our city’s culinary and cultural stars!

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In today’s 216 Scoop Edition:

Rudy’s Strudel turns Old World tradition into Cleveland pop phenomenon
Foundry Concert Club: End of an era, beginning of a new chapter
Banter Gordon Square to shut its doors Feb. 2
Doug Katz leads list of four Cleveland chefs nominated for Beard Awards
CPL to unveil state-of-the-art MLK Library

by John Petkovic, Mark Espinosa, Victor Takakura

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IN THE NEWS

Rudy’s Strudel turns Old World tradition into Cleveland pop phenomenon

Photos courtesy Rudy’s Strudel

Turning an Old World tradition into a pop phenomenon that has attracted thousands of Clevelanders – as well as devotees from Cincinnati, Detroit, Columbus, Pittsburgh -- sounds cool and fun and all.

That is, if you don’t have to work those 19-hour days. Ah, such is glamorous life of Parma’s pierogi and paczki queen, and owner of Rudy’s Strudel, Lidia Trempe.

“I worked 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday and then came back to work at 2 a.m. to work again,” says Trempe, who has been featured on CNN, Good Morning America and The Kelly Clarkson Show.

There’s no time for sleeping this time of year. Trempe, you see, is preparing for Fat Tuesday, er, as it’s known here, Paczki Day – when long lines form at 4 a.m. waiting for the Parma bakery to open so they can get their hands on Rudy’s Polish deep-fried and filled pre-Lenten doughnuts.

Last year, Rudy’s sold 127,000 paczki (pronounced PUNCH-ki) – all filled by hand.

She’s just rolled out her selections for 2025. It includes a tribute to legendary Cleveland TV personality, Superhost -- a swirl of red cherry, white vanilla and blue-moon almond buttercreams.

“We are the stewards of the Superhost telephone booth he used to change into from his original TV set,” says Trempe. “I’d watch his show as a kid with my brother and it was some of the funniest memories of my life – so I wanted to honor him.”

She has also created a new paczki to commemorate International Women’s Day (March 8). The collaboration with Immigrant Son Brewery boasts a blood-orange mimosa-flavored buttercream.

It all makes sense in Trempe’s always inventive mind: In 1946, feminists in Italy chose the mimosa flower to represent strength, sensitivity and sensibility.

“We’re also asking customers to drop off photos and letters about women and we’re going to paper the bakery with them, to honor women,” she says.

A lot of ideas, as always. Which means a lot of waking, working hours. “No sleep for me, at least until Paczki Day is over,” she says.

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Foundry Concert Club: End of an era, beginning of a new chapter

Photo courtesy the Foundry

The end is near for the Foundry Concert Club – at least in its current location.

As we reported last month, the stalwart Lakewood club is moving to Old Brooklyn, after its landlords decided not to renew its lease. The Foundry opened at the beginning of the century at 11727 Detroit Avenue, in a building that has hosted rock concerts for decades before that.

“This news came as a surprise to us as the Foundry has been a staple in the neighborhood for many years,” the Foundry announced. “The past two years have presented us with numerous challenges, including severe flooding in the basement.”

One of the challenges has been rent increases in a neighborhood that’s been undergoing a makeover, with construction of new apartment blocks along Detroit.

The Foundry will bid adieu to its current location on Jan. 29 and will go out with a series of concerts — including Sunday, when Cleveland ‘80s glam-metal legends Priscilla will perform for a fan and club appreciation night. Also on the bill: Billy Morris and the Sunset Strip (Morris was the previous owner of the club), Lilieae and Craig Martini. 6 p.m.

No cover, but donations will be accepted and put toward the relocation. The Foundry will reopen Feb. 14 in the former location of Mr. E’s Bar, 4256 Pearl Road.

Banter Gordon Square to shut its doors Feb. 2

Photo courtesy Banter

We hear so much about all the openings, but the restaurant industry has been faced with numerous challenges since Covid. Food inflation, stiff competition, difficulties in finding and keeping staff and ever-changing food trends have led to a number of closings.

The latest to close is Banter in Gordon Square.

Matthew Stipe has announced that the restaurant and beer and wine shop will shut its doors on Feb. 2.

“It is with the heaviest of hearts that we have to announce the closure of Banter Gordon Square. The restaurant business is fickle and this year has been one of the hardest across the board for our industry,” he said.

Banter in the Van Aken district will stay open.

“The silver lining to all of this is that banter Shaker is going strong and will continue to serve you the best polish boy and gravy fries in Cleveland.”

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Doug Katz leads list of four Cleveland chefs nominated for Beard Awards

Photo courtesy Doug Katz

It’s been a decade since Clevelander took a James Beard Award in the chef/restaurant category. That could change this year.

The prestigious James Beard Foundation has announced that four are 2025 Restaurant and Chef Award semifinalists.

Douglas Katz has been nominated as Outstanding Restaurateur. His Amba, Zhug and Kiln are among the most beloved eateries in the area. He’s also one of Cleveland’s most forward-thinking restaurateurs. Katz correctly predicted the impact of Covid on the industry and adjusted by closing Fire, streamlining operations and embracing smaller places with specialty themes.

Alexandra La Valle has been nominated as Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker for Larder, the Eastern European deli acclaimed for its bread pudding, babka, and cheesecake as much as its sandwiches. She was previously nominated in the Best Chef Great Lakes category.

That category – which covers Ohio, Michigan, Illinois and Indiana -- features two Cleveland semifinalists this year: Vinnie Cimino of Cordelia and Jeremy Umansky of Larder.

Under Cimino’s direction, Cordelia has helped revive East Fourth’s foodie status. Umansky is going for his second Beard award; he won one in the media category for a book he co-authored fermenting with koji.

THE 216 DIGEST

Bagpipes, beer, haggis: 11th annual Burns Day bash

Bring on the bagpipes and beer! At 6 p.m. Friday, Market Garden Brewery, 1947 West 25^th Street, Ohio City, will roll out its 11^th annual pays tribute to Robert Burns – the Scottish romantic poet who died Jan. 25, 1759. He penned odes to inequality, love and, yes, carousing and drinking. No surprise: Market Garden will release a small batch brew of its Wallace Tavern Scotch Ale. There will also be readings of poetry and, yup, haggis.

Rituals of romance through the ages for you and your sweetie

Ah, dating – it’s more than pounding beers together in a bar or smashing a bucket of buttered popcorn in a movie theater. So much more, as the Cleveland Museum of Art will have you know. Enter Date-Night Tours – a cultural journey through the art of attraction across civilizations and eras. In other words, you get a themed gallery tour that traces the art of courtship — from the Greek vases that pay tribute to flirting to Medieval odes to chivalric love. Woohoo, you also learn about the dating dynamics of Victorian England. The tours run 6:15 p.m. to 7:15 p.m. Fridays through April 25.

NOTES ON A COCKTAIL NAPKIN!

Sports, Entertainment, & Culture

Photos courtesy Cleveland Public Library

CPL to unveil state-of-the-art MLK Library

It was a dream a decade in the making. It’s finally been realized.

On Saturday, the Cleveland Public Library will unveil its new Martin Luther King campus, 10601 Euclid Avenue. The two-story facility is location near the old MLK library on Stokes Boulevard that was built in 1970. Other than physical proximity, they have little in common.

The state-of-the-art library boasts wide-open spaces and is as much a community center as it is a library. It boasts sprawling children and teen sections for story-telling and discussions, homework and games – as well as gathering areas for meetings, activities and exhibits.

“This library was built with our community in mind and a belief in its potential. It’s not just a place for books—it’s a place for people,” says MLK campus manager Kimberly M. Hunter.

The building – which features 207 apartments upstairs -- is also a rare private-public collaboration for the library system.

The opening celebration starts at noon and will feature live entertainment, activities, books and giveaways. It is free and open to the public.

VINTAGE CLEVELAND

Aftermath of the Moondog Coronation Ball at the Cleveland Arena on March 21, 1952. The event is regarded as the first rock concert. The concert was shut down after the first song due to overcrowding – which only made it more legendary.

And don’t forget! Tag @LiveMusicInCleveland or @The216Scoop to get your photos in the Scoop!

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WEATHER

Friday

24°F 🌡️ 14°F | 🌨️ | 80% | 💨 W 13 mph (11 knots)

Saturday

34°F 🌡️ 28°F | 🌨️ | 70% | 💨 W 14 mph (12 knots)

Sunday

30°F 🌡️ 21°F | ☁️ | 20% | 💨 NW 10 mph (9 knots)

LIVE MUSIC IN THE 216

Friday - 01/24

Saturday - 01/25

Sunday - 01/26

The 216 Sports Arena

Upcoming Games

Cavaliers
Away vs. Philadelphia 76ers, 7 p.m., Friday, Jan. 24
Home vs. Houston Rockets, 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Jan. 25

Cleveland Monsters
Home vs. Chicago Wolves, 7 p.m., Wednesday, Jan. 22
Home vs. Chicago Wolves, 7 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 23

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