L'Albatros Brasserie & Bar: Cleveland's 25 Best Restaurants

Greatness is best displayed in moments of adversity.

Zack Bruell’s obsessive pursuit of perfection passed the stress test during a recent visit with my pregnant wife. She craved the assiette de fromage ($12-$18) but could not eat unpasteurized cheese. The waiter consulted the chef and returned with an entire tray of safe, yet funky and delicious, cheeses.

Then, a kitchen mishap stalled my cassoulet ($32) — a French classic of white beans, duck confit, pork belly and sausages — by just a few minutes. We didn’t even notice, but the mistake was remedied by a complimentary house-made raspberry sorbet. These moments, however small, speak to Bruell’s fanatical devotion to detail — which is likely why the Cleveland Clinic used his expertise to set pandemic guidelines for restaurants nationwide.

And in a sea of “we’re understaffed” signs and have-it-our-way mentalities, Bruell has doubled down on old-school service that tailors his restaurant’s offerings to your desires — not the other way around. albatrosbrasserie.com

Our full list of 34 Best Restaurants, 10 Best New Restaurants and reader-voted Silver Spoon Awards is your guide to Cleveland’s best bites.