The Chocolate Cherry Connection: Pattycake Bakery

It's easy to go over old ground with places that predate my existence here in Columbus such as Pattycake Bakery.  Still, a brief history for those who aren't familiar or have forgotten how this quaint Clintonville bakery came into being might be helpful.

Established in 2003, this vegan bakery undertook the unique transformation to worker-owned co-op a decade later, adopting conscientious credos such as utilizing recyclable and biodegradable packaging, sourcing locally whenever possible, and using human power to deliver many of their goods via their bicycle-powered cart. While not an exact match, the bakery does remind me of one of my favorite places back in California in The Cheese Board Collective, another workers co-op which has spent more than 40 years selling cheese and, later, coffee, baked goods, and the pizza of the day (all veggie, with just enough made to sell out before the day's over) to hungry patrons in Berkeley.

I could say Pattycake has great pastries (and they do; more on that later), but it holds a little special place in my heart in that it helped ease the transition here to the Buckeye State. Ironically enough, it was another California transplant in Peet's Coffee (which had a brief and somewhat strange run here in Ohio, as I detailed in this blogpost) that set this up long before I had a notion that I would ever move to Ohio, much less heard of Pattycake itself.  

Vilnius on the Park: Mama Papa Lithuania Bakery and Restaurant (Alameda, CA)

Mama Papa Lithuania Bakery & Restaurant occupy adjoining
spaces along Park Street in Downtown Alameda, California

While my spouse's multinational roots are fairly varied, the Eastern European (more specifically, Polish) side often comes through when we're looking for potential culinary destinations. A drive through Buffalo, New York on a trip to and back from Niagara Falls late 2014 allowed us to dive into one her favorite Christmas-time treats via Mazurek's Bakery in the form of kruschiki, or Polish Bowtie cookies. Cabbage rolls are also another favorite of hers from her childhood; if that item happens to be on the menu at any eatery we stop by, the decision is all but made up for her.

Eastern European cuisine has always held small presence in the San Francisco Bay Area to the depths of my knowledge, so anything new that pops up in that vein always catches my eye in general. In what seems like a completely unrelated tangent, my first experience with anything having to do with Lithuania, outside of the breakup of the old Soviet Union in the 1990s, came through the world of professional sports. Sarunas Marciulionis, one of the first European players to come play forthe National Basketball Association, was drafted by and then signed with Golden State Warriors (based out of Oakland) to play in 1989. He became an immediate favorite of mine and many others because of his hard-nosed and tough-minded style of play.

Thus, when my research came across a relatively new Lithuanian restaurant located in Alameda (just a stone's throw across a strait from Oakland itself), it seemed a natural to give it a visit.

Mama Papa Lithuania Restaurant, opened in October 2013 by "Mama" Damute Sukiene and her son, "Papa" Vaidas Sukys, holds a space next to the recently-opened-to-the-public (October 2015) bakery portion of the business. Since we arrived a few minutes prior to the restaurant's opening, we stopped inside the bakery to take a look. Our clerk was quite welcoming (funnily enough, she turned out to be a Puerto Rico native and we got to discussing (the lack of) her cuisine in the Bay Area) and guided us quite well on the bakery's offerings.

A small glass case and some shelves off to the side held a variety of cakes, cookies (the Lithuanian words describing the cookie shapes, including mushrooms, stars and ribbons) and breads, were found displayed in the small glass case in front and on the shelves to the left. A few savory items were packaged in bags, including a fried rye bread rubbed with garlic which was available for sampling. Even as avid garlic lovers, we were taken aback a bit by the powerful allium punch provided by this bread. We grabbed a few treats for the road (more on this later) and headed over to the restaurant.

The restaurant itself offers an interior that seems to be in tune with its home city's maritime vibe (along with a naval base that was closed in the 1990s, Alameda is home to Coast Guard, numerous marinas and a ferry service), with blocky, bench-like tables and chairs, dark wood paneling dominating most of the walls. Framed street scene pictures from Lithuania's capital city of Vilnius dot the brick wall that separates the restaurant from the bakery space.

The choices seemed fairly in line with other Eastern European restaurants we have dined in with both some unique options and taste variations. We were glad to see that all their dishes were available in lunch-size portions, as we would have been quite stuffed had we gone with the dinner-sized meal. My spouse's Stuffed Cabbage Roll was a bit different from the Polish versions she grew up with but still very tasty and satisfying, sporting a creamier tomato sauce, more paprika and perhaps even a hint of clove. For me, my pan-fried Potato Pancakes with Meat was nothing fancy but still quite satisfying, with a crispy exterior and chunks of mildly-spiced ground pork within the fluffy interior, perfectly accompanied by the dollop of sour cream on the side.

Some of the other menu options, which we did not partake in on this quick visit, seemed to be worthy ventures on a future visit.  Both the bakery and restaurant offered Lithuanian Amber Tea and Pour Over Coffee, while the restaurant itself sported a beer list from breweries in Lithuania as well as a Bread Kvass, a non-alcoholic, fermented beverage made from rye bread.

On the road, we gobbled on our three sweet treats from the bakery. The baravykai (mushroom-shaped) cookie was pleasant, and their Apple Pie (actually more of a cake) was nicely flavored, a bit crumbly, and moist.) But perhaps the most memorable of the threesome was the Honey Cake (Medutis); while this version did not sport the chocolate that is available on the restaurant dessert menu, its tangy sour cream based filling alternated with cake layers was nice satisfaction for both our sweet tooths as we journeyed toward points to the west and south..

Mama Papa Lithuania
1239 Park St. (Bakery)
1241 Park St. (Restaurant)
Alameda, CA 94501
(510) 521-1108 (Bakery)/(510) 522-4100 (Restaurant)
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Destination Unknown: Cravings Carryout Cafe

No one likes to see their local regular destination eatery disappear from the scene. A recently broadcast cable TV feature on the former  The Surly Girl Saloon. reminded me of that fact just a few days ago. Their sudden departure from the local scene earlier this year in April was sad for us and the restaurant's regulars, but the impression I got after reading the local media stories was that it was something both inevitable and a bit of a relief for its former owners. Many of us came out to send the Surly Girl off with a fond farewell in its final week of operation.

Other similar closings we have encountered such as Merion Village's Explorers Club and Jobu Ramen have thankfully led to only venue changes; the former has established a well-received food truck and is in the process of setting up a kitchen at Grandview's Zauber Brewing. Meanwhile, the latter has revived their Mashita Noodles food cart and makes regular appearances at places around the area such as the Brewery District's Double Happiness.

Then there are the out-of-the-blue closing announcements that are unexpected and leave both owners and patrons alike bewildered. Such is the case with Italian Village's Cravings Carryout Cafe.

Cravings started off in January 2012 under a different name (Cookie Cravings Bakery) that reflected its very simple concept: specialty decorated cookies. Demand from the friends of cafe owners the Tewangers (Matt, his mom Joan, and his wife Lindsey) for their cookies grew to the point where they quit their regular day jobs and opened up a shop in their uniquely quirky location (as time went on, I visited there often enough to only THINK I knew how to navigate the entrance without a hitch) in Italian Village on East Third Avenue.

From there, things grew both around the bakery's surroundings as well as within the bakery itself. In the surrounding area, food-oriented businesses such as Seventh Son Brewing, Cray Eatery and Drinkery, The Market Italian Village and Fox in the Snow Cafe, amongst others, have made Italian Village a culinary destination within the Columbus metro. For the bakery, the business of continual cookie-making got a little bit old for Matt (formerly of well-known eateries such as The Worthington Inn and The Refectory) and the rest of the Tewangers, and the shop slowly but surely added more savory items to the menu much to customers' delight. In 2014, the bakery re-branded itself to its current nameplate, still offering their cookies but making those a little more of an accompaniment to a focused but diverse menu of both breakfast and lunch items.

Cravings Carryout Cafe could add two other C-words (cozy
and casual) to describe its uniquely intimate interior

In many ways, I imagine Cravings Carryout has reached a beloved status for its surrounding residents similar to what Sassafras Bakery has become for us over time, enough so to bring people from outside the immediate neighborhood. This proved the same for us whenever we would be traveling through the Italian Village neighborhood. The cafe would be a perfect place to pick up a quick cookie snack and an excellent iced coffee (brewed with beans from local roaster Thunderkiss; in fact, the cafe produced a solid business of selling growlers of iced coffee over the months.)

As time went on, their breakfast and lunch savory items became a nice alternative when we were in the area and in the mood for something freshly-made in a very casual setting. Their sweet items have also evolved beyond cookies to things cinnamon rolls and eventually the Bronut, their brioche-based donut that seems to be the logical successor in the best blended-bakery-goods mashup since the now-closed Auddino's and their Doughssant.

From their Bronuts to their lunch items and sides, Cravings Carryout
sports a focused menu of tasty, freshly-made items

Things seemed to be going on business as usual until this August 25th post on their Facebook feed desperately requesting people's help in finding a new location due to the loss of their lease. Even if a place were to emerge immediately, the cafe's last day of business in their Italian Village location would be September 13th. Based on the number of responses to that post with followers' suggestions and general words of support, quite a few people from around the metro would love for the Tewangers to relocate their operations to their particular neck of the woods.

At this time of much uncertainty for the cafe, there are three things I can be certain of at this point. One thing is that the Terwangers are going to do their darndest to get the cafe relocated. Another is that if they're successful in relocating, the neighborhood that they relocate to will be that much the better for landing them.

Lastly, I am certain I am going to make at least one more visit to the cafe to try that vaunted Bronut (which, sadly, I have not have the chance to enjoy yet) along with a Thunderkiss iced coffee. When that happens, I know it will be the start of a very good day.

Hopefully, I will be enjoying another in the future at their new location, wherever that may be...

Currently, the last day of business for Cravings Carryout Cafe at their Italian Village location is scheduled for Sunday, September 13.

09/06/2015 Update - while the Mill Run location of Auddino's Bakery Cafe has closed, the doughssant and other goodies live on at Auddino's original location at 1490 Clara St, Columbus, Ohio. Thanks to everyone who pointed out this (delicious) correction to me.

As far as Cravings Carryout, there is no word yet on a new location, but I did get to sample their Bronut like I intended. This is a definite item on the to-eat-again at their new location, wherever it may be.

Cravings Carryout Cafe
227 East 3rd Ave (Italian Village)
Columbus, OH 43201
(614) 725-0090
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Footloose and Gluten-Free: Eban's Bakehouse

Adrienne Novak, co-founder and creator of Eban's Bakehouse
and its line of appealing gluten-free goods

While taste may be the dominant consideration behind a particular food's appeal, general mouthfeel is not that far behind. In some instances, that can be the largest consideration. For example, the taste of durian fruit on a personal basis for me isn't nearly as unappealing as its uniquely stringy, cottony and chewy texture.

For gluten-intolerant and Celiac disease sufferers, finding gluten-free bread that not only tastes decent but also has that generally pleasing texture that only bread delivers is something of a challenge. However, this was an issue that we generally had no worries about ourselves since we (thankfully) do not suffer from these issues.

This changed recently when we learned that relatives of ours discovered they had some gluten-consumption health issues; this news has put us on the watch for both gluten-free recipes and food products that they might enjoy. One thing they did echo was the bread conundrum: the few gluten-free options they found at their local grocery store were  not terribly good, especially in light of the cost, and they basically had conceded that bread would probably be just something to go without from here on out.

With some time to kill a couple weeks ago before headed up to a family gathering, we decided to drop by a place that we had not been to in quite awhile in the Worthington Indoor Farmers Market. At this and other farmers markets, Dan The Baker has been our regular go-to for bread at farmers markets, and sure enough they were doing their usual bang-up business (we stopped by and walked away with their intricately designed and very tasty springerle cookies.)

We had known about and seen Eban's Bakehouse's stand at this and other local farmers markets, but since we took care of bread needs elsewhere, we simply never had thought about dropping by to look at their goods. Old habits almost took over and we were ready to just stroll by when we remembered that their products were in fact gluten-free. On this day, the booth was staffed by the very charming Adrienne Novak, co-founder of Eban's Bakehouse, who invited us to try the bread samples. On this morning, we were more than happy to oblige.

We admittedly didn't have terribly high expectations, based on our own prior experiences with other gluten-free breads and the tales of such by our relatives and others we know. I popped a sample into my mouth and, well, surprise, it had the feel of regular bread. I then focused on the taste, which turned out to be equally quite nice. We tried other samples and reached the same conclusion: these breads were all pretty darn good. As we were sampling the bread, Adrienne gave us a brief primer on Eban's business and mentioned that it had taken her and her business partner/boyfriend (both of whom are trained chefs) about nine months to get the bread recipes just right.

Eban's offers a selection of gluten-free breads and other sweet treats

This is where our first encounter with Eban's gets a little footloose and a lot coincidental. Coming from California, I've become acutely aware of connections between there and the Buckeye State. Not only did we learn that Adrienne lived for a time in California in an area I loved to visit as a kid (Santa Cruz), but she also grew up in the very same town my spouse did as a child (in fact, she knew of and graduated in the same class as one of my spouse's sisters.) Another fun fact we learned about is the name itself, which is a combination of the initials of Adrienne and her business partner/boyfriend.

According to Adrienne, news is good on the business front for Eban's, as word has slowly but surely gotten out about their gluten-free products. These products are mainly focused on their bread varieties (including but not exclusive to Oat, Cinnamon Raisin and Cranberry Walnut), but they also sport a select inventory of cookies and other baked goods. Distribution has expanded into several surrounding states, and she has even been receiving online orders from the western part of this country, where she had always figured they had comparable, well-thought-of products readily available.

On this day, we left with a loaf of Eban's bread as well as a bag of gluten-free dinner rolls to take up to our family event. The dinner rolls were all consumed eagerly at dinner, and the loaf of bread has been quite well-received by our relatives. Based on our and our relatives' experience, we would not be surprised at all to see the upswing continue for this unique local bakery.

Eban's Bakehouse
4086 Broadway
Grove City, OH 43123
(513) 409-EBAN (3226)
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