Ball Mitzah
There's something comforting about slurping a bowl of matzo ball soup ($8.50) at Jack's Deli and Restaurant. It could be that the recipe comes from co-owner Alvie Markowitz's family who emigrated from Czechoslovakia or that the Jewish eatery has been hand-rolling its matzo balls with eggs and oil since opening in 1980. If you ask Markowitz, it's a little of both. "A Jewish deli is not just a restaurant," he says. "It's a home for people to come and eat traditional foods. And you got to have a good chicken matzo ball soup." A fresh batch of house-made chicken stock with carrots and celery cradles the soft, doughy dumpling for a meal that's familiar and filling. "You can go to other restaurants and get this soup, but many of them just don't get the taste," he says. 14490 Cedar Road, Cleveland, 216-382-5350, jacksdeliandrestaurant.com
