Best Things We Ate This Month: Boaz Fresh Lebanese, Valley Cafe And More

Arbela Capas, associate editor
Fresh Lebanese’s Build-Your-Own Bowl ($8.99)
Boaz Fresh Lebanese’s wide variety of ingredients are fit for a quick, healthy lunch. Although I’m not a big veggie person, their options such as purple cabbage, shredded carrots, banana peppers, pickled cucumbers and turnips have won me over when paired with brown rice, seasoned chicken and a hearty dollop of hummus. 20630 John Carroll Blvd., University Heights, 216-417-7765; 2549 Lorain Ave., Cleveland, 216-458-9225, boazfresh.com

Henry Palattella, associate editor
East Coast Custard’s Cookie Dough Concrete ($4.25-$6.50)
I had never heard of East Coast Custard until my girlfriend introduced me to the Mentor location early in our relationship. Now it’s a mandatory stop every time we visit Kirtland because the cookie dough concrete is the perfect combination of vanilla custard and a near-endless supply of cookie dough pieces.  Various locations, eastcoastcustard.com

Kim Schneider, editor
Gibbs Butcher & Brews’ Sausage Sampler ($12)
I grew up shopping at Gibbs Butcher Block with my mom, where we’d purchase house-made sausages. Since opening in 2019, Gibbs Butcher & Brews gives us the best of those memories with its sampler. The options rotate often, but you’ll find gems such as the stuffed cabbage sausage or the roasted corn & crabmeat sausage. I love dunking them into the dips and mustards that come along with it to create a flavor-packed bite.  8154 Columbia Road, Olmsted Falls, 440-793-6700, facebook.com/gibbsbutcherbrews

James Bigley II, managing editor
Valley Cafe’s Country Fried Steak ($11.99)
Smothered in pepper gravy and served with eggs any style, toast and grits or hashbrowns, this is a hearty dish that keeps me and my friends coming back for more. Add grilled onions to the hashbrowns, upgrade to Texas Toast and ask for a side of thick Amish bacon for a next-level experience. 1212 Weathervane Lane, Akron, 330-865-0101; 101 High St., Wadsworth, 330-331-7555, valley-cafe.com