For a lot of us getting Sunset Grill back is joyous. Of all places in Cleveland perhaps Wendy Park and the Sunset Grill most represent the wonderful diversity of our part of Ohio. Cleveland and Ohio for that matter are so diverse that outsiders disapprovingly judge us for failing to meet their limited expectations. Even many who live here do not appreciate this unique city of mills, museums and maple trees.
At Wendy Park there are planes overhead, trains to the south, boats to the east and north, and cars and trucks along the Shoreway. A short walk takes you to the busy Cuyahoga, to the architecturally dazzling but deserted Coast Guard Station, and past trees that beavers have seriously gnawed. Sunset Grill offers a place to enjoy this distinctive setting with bar food and drink. I clearly wrote bar food. No celebrity burgers, no on site brewed beers, and no designer anything. No LA pretension or San Francisco snobbery or New York know it all is here. This is where people who toil, who make things, who have common sense come to sit along the water in the sun glad to be in Cleveland.
This is a very laid back place. The pace is slow. No one rushes to get you out or rushes to serve you. Bring a book or a dog or friends. Enjoy conversation or watch boaters dock or the sun set or a train pass. Sunset is one more waterfront location that locals harshly criticize rather than appreciate. Those not enjoying Sunset and Wendy Park must be quite frustrated being in Cleveland.