OLMSTED FALLS, Ohio -- Not just soup, salads, sandwiches and lunch.
You can say this is the mantra of the new owners of Clementine’s -- Gabby Metz-Colcord and Mike Marich.
Gabby and Mike purchased the Grand Pacific Junction eatery/bakery in November. This month (February), they introduced a new menu, added breakfast and changed some of the restaurant’s hours.
“We are slowly revamping,” Mike said. “We want this to be bigger than before, bringing it into the future and using new (cooking) methods. It’s new age with a down-home country feeling.”
“Quality is our main concern. We don’t want to cut corners,” Gabby added. “We want you to come back.”
It’s all in the little things. For instance, Mike uses shredded potatoes as the crust in his quiche recipes.
“We have people coming in who don’t buy just a piece, but the whole quiche,” he said.
This is the first time for Gabby and Mike to run a restaurant together, although both have vast experience in the food industry. Gabby, who owns Cherry on Top Bakery with Mike, grew up watching her grandmother bake. Her sister took to baking, then cake decorating.
Gabby Metz-Colcord of Clementine's in Olmsted Falls decorates all sorts of bakery, including these cookies. (Joanne Berger DuMound, special to cleveland.com)
“I learned cake decorating from her and a lot of YouTube videos. I also did some when in high school (Padua) and afterward. I bloomed from there. I baked for family and friends, posted on community groups and many heard about my cakes through word of mouth,” she said. “I’m 100 percent self-taught.”
When working at the Brunswick Dairy Queen, her decorated cakes attracted a following. Mike, her best friend, urged her to open her own bakery. That is when she and Mike created Cherry on Top, located in Hinckley Township in Medina County.
Gabby is known for the photos she draws on her cakes, including of family pets. She said her favorite cakes center around events, especially birthdays. Many say her cheesecakes are the best in the area.
Mike is a self-taught chef. He said he grew up watching his mom “in the kitchen” and his dad “outside” at the barbecue grill. Mike has worked in several restaurants, most recently Taste of Excellence Catering.
“My mom, one of 17, grew up on a farm. We had great country, home-cooked meals,” he said. “I watch when people cook. I have to know how I can do everything,” he said.
“I just have to be better than you. You can say I’m a little competitive. A lot will mop the floor with me with their experience and their techniques. But food became a love for me. I can’t see myself doing anything else. Me and food just get along.”
Neither were looking to own their own restaurant together. Gabby heard the owners of A Bit of New York, which supplies bakery to Clementine’s, were selling their business. Mike urged her to take a look. When she visited Clementine’s to talk about the bakery, she learned that the restaurant also would be for sale.
“When I walked in, I fell in love with it. I just love everything about it,” she said.
Gabby and Mike took the next step -- they bought the bakery and the restaurant.
“Who better to run a restaurant with than your best friend?” Gabby said. “He’s the only one I would go into business with.”
Mike believes in making food from scratch and using fresh ingredients.
“When I walked in here, this place screamed ‘homemade’ to me,” Mike said. “That’s what we’re doing.”
The upstairs Victorian dining room at Clementine's is a favorite with new owners Gabby Metz-Colcord and Mike Marich, shown here at their Olmsted Falls restaurant. (Joanne Berger DuMound, special to cleveland.com)
He brines and roasts the turkey, marinates the roast beef overnight and roasts the chicken. He makes his own pickles, uses fresh vegetables and spices, and plans to make most of the items you find in Clementine’s, including the ketchup and, eventually, jams.
Mike utilizes fresh Atlantic salmon in his salmon cakes, along with a variety of fresh ingredients, such as dill and lemon zest. He also browns garlic and adds other spices and sautés vegetables for soup.
“The spices and vegetables need to bloom to bring out their distinct, natural flavor,” he said. “We put love into it.”
He hopes to entice more men to visit Clementine’s. To that end, he has introduced the chicken lollipop. It’s a chicken wing/leg that is stretched to resemble a lollipop. He cooks them in a brine with some veggies and spices and poaches them at 200 degrees for 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
“They are tender, full of flavor,” he said. “It’s like a baked wing. They’re delicious.”
This week (Feb. 1), the restaurant is introducing a new menu, with many of the old favorites. It also will begin offering breakfast and extended hours.
Scones, cookies and cupcakes are just a few of the offerings in Clementine's gluten-free food line that owner Gabby Metz-Colcord bakes and supplies. (Joanne Berger DuMound, special to cleveland.com)
Clementine’s new hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Wednesday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday through Sunday. They will offer breakfast from 9 to noon only Thursdays through Sundays.
The morning menu includes three breakfast skillets, featuring short rib hash and egg; sausage, gravy and dropped biscuits; and a vegan specialty. There will be bread pudding, Clementine’s Benedict, a classic breakfast, homemade crepes stuffed with various options and a breakfast sandwich. Expect these dishes to have their own unique flavor and ingredients.
Appetizers include a hot artichoke dip, chicken lollipop barbecue and brie cheese, all of which have their own twists. Mike has made his own ricotta and mozzarella cheeses at other restaurants. Expect that and other fresh items coming to Clementine’s.
The bakery now produces several flavored scones, cookies, cupcakes, cakes, torts and cheesecakes, as well as popular gluten-free and vegan product lines.
The two also offer parties of any kind at Clementine’s and cater to outside events. They also open the restaurant to events after hours, such as the upcoming Galentine’s Day High Tea Feb. 13-15, which features various fresh sandwiches, strawberry scones, tea bread and heart-shaped petit four cakes with a pot of tea for $24.99. Reservations may be made by calling 440-235-1223.
Clementine's in Olmsted Falls has daily specials, whether it's soup, coffee, tea or entrees. (Joanne Berger DuMound, special to cleveland.com)
This Friday, Feb. 4, it is hosting a Valentine’s Gnome Workshop from 6 to 8 p.m. featuring all supplies to make a gnome and food offerings from the restaurant’s entire menu. Gabby and Mike promise more events like this.
Haven’t been to Clementine’s lately? You should give it a try.
“I have been a single father for 13 years,” Mike said. “When I go out, I expect to get what I pay for. We want you to find that right here.”
Best wishes to Gabby, Mike and their families as they bring that fresh, country, home-cooked food with a new-age twist to the community.
Senior pizza pickup: Next Wednesday, Feb. 9, seniors who ordered their free cheese pizza through the Pizza Across America promotion may pick up their reserved order from 3 to 4 p.m. at the Olmsted Township Administration Building, 7900 Fitch Road.
Ann Reichle with Angelina’s Pizza partnered with Olmsted Township to bring this campaign to the community. Thank you to all who coordinated this effort for Olmsted Falls and Olmsted Township seniors.
Preschool registration: Olmsted Community Preschool is now accepting online registration for its 2022-2023 school year. Although there is no in-person open house, you may view video tours of each room at its website under “Our Facilities.”
If you prefer to see the preschool in person, call 440-235-3326 or email [email protected].
The preschool is part of Olmsted Community Church on Main Street. It offers 3-year-old, pre-kindergarten and pre-kindergarten extended programs. Go to olmstedchurch.org/preschool for more details and sign-up information.
Pet photos: The Olmsted Chamber of Commerce is again partnering with Olmsted Falls Kiwanis Club for the Fur-Ever Love Pet Photo Contest during the month of February.
As of this writing, full details have not been fully disclosed. Like prior contests, however, residents are encouraged to submit photos online of their pets. The community will then vote for their favorites.
Check out the chamber’s Facebook page and its website, olmstedchamber.org, for the details. You also may go to Olmsted Falls Kiwanis’ Facebook page.
More details will be provided in next week’s Olmsted Dates and Data column online and in the paper.
Kampus kudos: Resident Tate Blain earned the honor roll for the fall 2021 semester at Dixie State University. Congratulations, Tate.
Information, please: To include news, tidbits, honors or activities in Olmsted Falls and Olmsted Township, contact Joanne DuMound at [email protected]. She is also on Twitter, @JoanneDuMound. The column’s online version at cleveland.com/olmsted has direct links for many news items.
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