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| - Once upon a time, Cleveland had Taiwanese food... Not Thai food, Taiwanese. There may have been others, but the one I remember was in the complex where Han's skewer shop is now. You could get Taiwanese beef noodles and other things, but it wasn't always open, and ... obviously it's gone.
Fast forward, the team that used to run the Chinese shop near playhouse Square opened a new location in the same complex as Superior Pho.
How did I find this out?
Well, my brother and I were off to get some Pho, and we saw... PHUSION CAFE. What on earth?
THere's nothing at all in the title that suggests what it might be fusing - but a glance at the menu indicated that there were a lot of Taiwanese dishes - which warranted a much closer look.
How close?
Well, two people ordered 4 entrees -
Hakka style dried bean curd
Taiwanese beef noodle
Taiwanese sausage fried rice
Braised bean curd.
All were good, authentic, and, with exception of the braised bean curd, unavailable at other venues in Cleveland. The bean curds were very fresh - and the braised version was very crispy on the surface, something that isn't always managed correctly. Ideally, it should be moist within, with only the surface seared. They know what they're doing.
I'm half Hakka, so getting the dried bean curd sauté was also quite a treat.
Fried rice and noodles are standard fare, but well executed.
So - how do you spread the word?
Get a party together...
The next day, a party of 28 descended upon Phusion Cafe, and they served buffet style Taiwanese Beef Noodles, Beef Sauce Rice (This sounds nasty, but is actually divine.) Hakka styled pork belly (Divine)... actually let's do this dish by dish.
Beef Sauce +Rice
This is essentially mince-meat sauce that's got flavor to die for. You put it on your carb of choice, and eat until your belly decides to either expand, or burst - either way, you keep eating. For all of those with a weakness for carbs+meatsauce, try using Quinoa instead. I love this combo.
Hakka Pork Belly - (MeiCaiKouRou/?????
Another tremendous Hakka dish seasoned with Chinese Mustards and soy sauce that is stewed until the flavors permeate deeply, leaving the gastronomist oh-so-much to taste and savor.
Had fish cakes, beef noodles and a number of other dishes on the menu, all of which were satisfying.
On the down side:
The space is odd, since it forms almost an antechamber for the rest of the building - walking through one restaurant to get to another is a bit different. I also don't know what the decor will ultimately look like, but the current setup remains unusual.
Interesting tidbit-
They have a brunch menu that looks positively hipster with bulgar wheats, yogurts and the like. Haven't tried it, but maybe this is the fusion.
Another interesting tidbit -
Word is, they will start serving Taiwanese Breakfast during weekends.
That's HOT.
Word to the wise:
If you come here, I suggest a deep foray into the Taiwanese dishes. It's their specialty, and for now, it's a cleveland Monopoly.
Play ball!
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