Pickwick & Frolic Happy Hour with Jason Mraz (I wish)

Posted on August 25, 2009 by Laurel Miltner

Last Monday, I took my mom out for a night on the town.

She met me at my office and for dinner/happy hour we ended up at Pickwick & Frolic.  Despite hearing only good things about this East 4th staple, I had not yet been there.  I had, however, perused the menu online several times and wanted to check out the happy hour, so I was excited to go.

Pickwick & Frolic

Pickwick & Frolic

There were few people at Pickwick aside from my mom, James (who met us there) and I, but we were there quite early (I think we arrived at 5:15). Though our service was not stellar, overall it was a good experience, and I managed to get my meal and a couple of drinks for just about $20.

I started with a Fruli Strawberry beer (which wasn’t on the happy hour menu and set me back $5.50 for a smallish bottle), a strawberry Belgian witbier. It was very strawberry-y without much of a beer taste. Maybe a little on the sweet side, but good and surprisingly refreshing.

Next, I tried one of of Pickwick’s happy-hour-special $5 martinis, the Citrus Drop, which tasted strongly of grapefruit and was sweeter than both mom and I expected. (It also was not as strong as I would have thought for a martini, as I left Pickwick with no buzz whatsoever.) However, the regular price for martinis is around $10, so it was a good deal, and I’m definitely glad that I tried it during happy hour. I’m not sure that I’d pay full price for it, especially considering the killer cocktails offered by The Greenhouse Tavern across the street in the same price range.

For dinner, I had a margherita pizza (happy hour special price of $5) and a house salad ($3.95 if I recall correctly).  The salad (mixed greens with cucumber, carrots and grape tomatoes) was fresh, and the pizza (garlicy with good quality cheese, sliced tomatoes and basil) was yummy.  Still not as good as the pizzas at Bar Cento/Bier Markt, but $5 for a fire-cooked (I think!) flatbread pizza is a great price. I’d go back for another one.

Thinking of checking out Pickwick & Frolic’s happy hour yourself?

Here are some tips:

  • Happy hour runs 4-7 Mondays through Fridays.
  • Be sure to sit in the bar area if you want to take advantage of the happy hour specials.
  • They offer a couple of free appetizers, set out at one of the bar tables.  Mom sampled one; I did not (because I didn’t know what they were and am mostly a vegetarian). She said it was good, and described it as “like a chicken cordon bleu croquet.”
  • Happy hour specials include $5 martinis, $3 house drinks, $2 domestic (aka mass-produced American) beers, and a couple of pizza and appetizer options for $5.
  • Their beer selection is rather limited, especially if you want happy hour deals.

After dinner, mom and I headed to the main event: the Jason Mraz concert at the Tower City Amphitheater. She had been wanting to see Jason Mraz in concert for literally about 3 years, and I was so happy to be able to get tickets and take her out.  I’ve seen him a few times in the distant past, did not really love the sophomore album, and have been waiting for him to come back to town for a show that I could take my mom to.

Sidenote: I hate paying ticket fees.  I would be so much more likely to go to a concert if the fees were included at the get-go, and I didn’t think “sweet, I can see [INSERT ARTIST HERE] for $20,” only to have Ticketmaster or Live Nation be like, “actually, you see can see them for $30.”  Why so steep?  I will never know.  But I run with Pearl Jam on this one, and often only go to shows when I can buy tickets straight from the venue.  On rare occasions I deviate from this plan and pay ticket fees, but I honestly can’t remember the last time that happened.

How I got tickets that should have cost me about $60-70 for $35.

This summer, Live Nation ran a promotion where they waived ticket fees on Wednesdays.  Not sure if they did it every week, but there were at least a few times I saw this offer. (I hope they keep this up.) Tickets for Jason were still around $35… kind of steep for a date with my mom, especially considering that I paid something like $15 the last time I saw him (yes, it was that long ago).

But then, Live Nation ran another deal where general admission tickets to some shows were sold on Wednesdays for only $25.  And still no ticket fees.  Score!

(Tip: sign up for Live Nation emails or follow them on Twitter.  That way, you’ll be in the loop when they offer any money-saving deals.)

At the concert, I suddenly realized that my mom isn’t 40 (or even 50) anymore, and standing around in general admission might not be the best idea.  Luckily, there were seats available and I was able to upgrade our tickets on-the-spot for only $10 each at the information booth.

So I ended up paying $35 per ticket, but that was for seats that I think were going originally for $45 or $50 each, and I still avoided paying any ticket fees.  Plus, my mom got to sit during the opening bands (K’Naan and G Love and the Special Sauce, both pretty freaking incredible) and dance around with a good view when Jason took the stage.  Boo-yah.

Photo courtesy of PickwickandFrolic.com

Filed under: Cleveland Restaurants, East 4th | Tagged: , | Leave a Comment »

Keeping the Spark in Downtown

Posted on July 23, 2009 by Laurel Miltner

No plans tonight?  Fancy something a little different for happy hour? Head on over to West 9th anytime from 5-9 and check out the Sparx Thrursday Night Live block party taking place from St. Clair to Johnson Court (aka – down to about Constantino’s and the Map Room).  There will be:

Map Room

Map Room

  • Live performances from Lost State of Franklin and Morrison Dance
  • Happy hour specials from Anatomy, Brasa Grill, D’Vine Wine Bar, The Map Room, Sunset Lounge and the Waterstreet Grill (all offering $4 cocktails, $3 wine and $2 beers — no word yet on limitations/quality assurance… for all I know, by “beer” they mean Bud Light)
  • A cornhole tournament for $30 per team (2 players) that offers a  $100 cash prize
  • And… a free outdoor screening of The Dark Knight on an inflatable 15×20-foot screen at dusk.  Holy Giant-Heath-Ledger-as-Joker, Batman!  (Let’s hope it doesn’t rain.)

Note: (Sparx Thursday Night Live starts tonight, July 23, and runs for the next three Thursdays — July 30, August 6 and August 13.) The happy hour specials and cornhole tournament remain consistent for the four-week run of the Sparx Concert Series, but the performances and movie will change each week.  Check out the entertainment lineup (no direct link – you have to scroll down a bit) for more info.

And if West 9th isn’t your thing, The Sparx Concert Series that kicked off in June is still going strong.  The schedule is slightly complicated, so check out the nice chart on the Downtown Cleveland Alliance Website.

Essentially, if you walk outside after work today and don’t want to go home, head to East 4th or the Warehouse District and you be rewarded with free entertainment and happy hour specials.

WTF is Sparx?
SparxTo be honest, my initial reaction to hearing about all these great events from Sparx was, “so why is that weird energy-beer hybrid sponsoring free events in Cleveland”?  The answer… wrong Sparx.  The Sparx we have to thank is actually a program of the Downtown Cleveland Alliance that “leverages the creativity of artists to stimulate commerce and street life in the core neighborhoods of Cleveland.”  Cool.

Filed under: East 4th, Warehouse District | Tagged: , , | Leave a Comment »

Bringing the Belgians to Cleveland

Posted on July 20, 2009 by Laura Novak

This Friday I had the privilege of escorting my Belgian friends, Karine and Pauline, out for an evening downtown. On break from school, I knew they were looking for a good time in a new city and I knew I was working with a small budget. So here’s how we had a fun-filled evening without breaking the bank.

First, make a plan
Even if you don’t stick to it entirely it’s good to have an idea of what you want to do. I knew Karine and Pauline hadn’t been into the city so I wanted to make sure they got a feel for what we have to offer. No better place to start than East 4th Street, it’s such a beautiful street with plenty of great places to try. The neighborhood’s website, www.east4thstreet.com, lists the hot-spots on the street and talks about special events. I checked each place for specials, happy hours and previewed menus for the best prices. Though the happy hours didn’t fit my time frame I was able to pick our destinations, The Greenhouse Tavern and Flannery’s Pub.

GreenhouseThe Greenhouse Tavern
I picked this place for a few reasons – One, I knew it would be a nice place to relax while we waited for all my friends to gather. Two, it’s unique approach to food was going to be interesting for Karine and Pauline. Three, I have been wanting/begging to go since its opening and couldn’t wait to sample some firsts and libations! (check the menu at www.thegreenhousetavern.com for details)

The great thing about The Greenhouse Tavern is you can sample delicious food and handmade cocktails without spending a ton of cash. The menu’s “Firsts” feature amazing treats for only $3 – $5. The Roasted Marcona Almonds and House Made Fromage Blanc were my favorites and I’ve heard the French Breakfast Radishes are great too. The cocktails were reasonably priced as well. For drinks made of only fresh, local ingredients the $6 – $10 you’ll spend is well worth it. Also currently available but not listed in the Libations is the Port Punch, at only $5 a glass or $15 for a bottle it’s a great, inexpensive choice.

Overall, The Greenhouse Tavern was well received by Karine and Pauline. The total for three cocktails and two Firsts, only $31.

group 1

Having fun at The Greenhouse Tavern

Flannery’s Pub
Next stop, a good ol’ Irish pub for some beer drinkin’ and sports watchin’. Ok, I wasn’t sure if the girls were beer drinkers, but Flannery’s was a great example of the variety of entertainment East 4th has to offer. Choosing beer was the first time we ran into any language/accent barriers – Does Pauline like sherry beers or cherry beers? Hmmm…hard to tell. Fortunately, our waitress was kind enough to let us sample a few selections and Pauline settled on a cider beer.  Meanwhile, I introduced Karine to the fine taste of Great Lakes Brewing Co., Dortmunder Gold.

Since everyone ordered a different beer it was a great way for Karine and Pauline to sample various drinks without incurring extra costs. While the beers are fairly priced around $5 or so, the girls were kind enough to buy my beer, saving me a little more cash. Total cost for 3 beers $15.

Funny Side Note – The pub is also where we ran into our second language situation, Lads and Lasses. Although the bathroom door marked Lads looks like the word would translate to Ladies, it in fact translates to Men. Oops. Never thought to warn the girls that the bathroom door marked Lasses was for them.

1 a.m. and we’re still not done
After saying goodbye to a few friends at Flannery’s, the girls decided they wanted to go dancing. We headed to West 6th to show them yet another side of Cleveland. I was worried we might lose each other on the crowded street but we managed to hold tight and ended up at Bar Flyy. Though the atmosphere was new and different, the Techno music wasn’t exactly what we were looking for.

Karine & Pauline on Velvet Dog's Rooftop Patio

Karine & Pauline on Velvet Dog's Rooftop Patio

We ended up at Velvet Dog and at first the girls wondered where we were going as we passed the first two floors of the club. To their surprise and excitement we went to the rooftop patio and finished the night dancing in the rain surrounded by the Cleveland buildings. The club was a great way to close the evening and with no cover charge and no drinks, the cost was zero.

Running back to the car in the pouring rain Karine and Pauline were thrilled with their night out in Cleveland. I was happy to have myself and my friends be a part of their experience. Oh, and I was able to keep my total cost under $40. Not bad for a night on the town!

Karine and Pauline’s Observations
1. Both were impressed when I picked them up in my own car (Toyota Celica). How exciting!
2. Heading into the city they couldn’t believe the size of our buildings. The two of them will be blown away for certain when they spend 10 days in NYC next week.
3. Pauline was surprised when our waitress brought us waters without even asking. In Belgium water is purchased.
4. Both were also surprised to know there is also no cost to use the restrooms. (Another cost savings you could argue.)
5. Watching a college soccer game in Flannery’s they noted our players are far less agressive and the game is not as exciting.

Filed under: Cleveland Restaurants, East 4th, Uncategorized | Leave a Comment »

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.