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| - Everything at Crop Bistro is grand in scale. But, the grandeur of Crop is not nearly as impressive as the perfection in its small details. It's like a pointillism painting with perfectly round and evenly spaced dots.
I visited on my 11th anniversary as a special meal. It lived up to the hype. The cocktails were fantastic. The Mr. Figgy was delicious. I usually turn up my nose to excessive uses of bacon, especially in drinks, but the candied bacon garnish enhanced the drink very well. The New Fashioned, (yes, I like bourbon), was familiar but had a great spicy twist and vibrant orange and cherry flavors without losing the bourbon.
My wife is unable to drink, so the bar prepared a mocktail for our special occasion. She absolutely loved it. It was really well prepared and thought out instead of the usual citrus explosion mocktail. And, it was visually interesting too.
Many of the food recommendations in other reviews are spot on: basalmic popcorn is turned-up snack food. The deviled eggs with prosciutto were great and looked great. The entrees were simply fantastic! The pork chop was the ultimate comfort food. The pairing with cheese grits meant tons of flavor. My wife finished the whole thing and she usually doesn't deviate from steak and potatoes. I had the veal chop, which was perfectly medium rare. The sauce and fried potato combination was so good that I threatened to lick the plate. (Etiquette? Fanciness? I laugh at you!)
Most of all, the best part was the attention from the staff. Our waitress, Mary, was always right by our table when we were ready for her and gave space when we needed it. Plates were cleared promptly and our meal had a very pleasant pacing and flow to it. Everyone on staff worked hard, yet effortlessly, to make sure our meal was a great as possible. (They succeeded.)
Crop Bistro is pricey, but it's well worth it. The attention to the entire dining experience makes it one of the best values on the Cleveland dining scene. It's money well spent on a lot of perfectly executed small details that add up to one grand night of dining.
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