Category Archives: Corned Beef

Slyman’s Tavern

I had the privilege of being asked to lunch in Independence last week and of course I suggested Slyman’s Tavern, off Rockside and west of Brecksville Road.

At first I thought the “lite” size would be too small (“about the size of a baseball” the waitress said) but after it arrived, I was confident that the original (“about the size of a softball”) would have been too much.

She might have meant that each half was the size of a baseball—it was pretty big.

Slow-cooked brisket between two slices of rye (and a slice of swiss) is just fantastic.

The horseradish on the side was a perfect compliment and I look forward to going back from time to time.

With a tagline of “Corned Beef Since 1964”, who can argue?

Brighten Brewery in Copley

A friend and I happened to be in Copley for the morning and decided to satisfy our appetites at the Brighten Brewery nearby. With tomorrow being St. Patrick’s Day, of course they had a specially modified Reuben and I ordered that along with a pint of something wet.

In my experience, Brighten is known for their beer and soft pretzels. A colleague of mine particularly likes their beer cheese, while I prefer their mustard.

I’ve never had a bad Stout at Brighten and their Hazy IPA selection is usually pretty robust.

The Reuben was fantastic and I would certainly go back for a second meal should the chance ever present itself. The Corned Beef was sliced thinly, and jumbled just enough that it didn’t feel too compressed.

The Rye bread was just the right compliment to the beef and the extra sauce was a nice addition.

Corky & Lenny’s

A business lunch and Corned Beef? Sign me up.

So we went to Corky & Lenny’s for lunch today, at the Village Square, off Chagrin and West Brainard.

And I was not disappointed. The service size was more than enough, we had ample pickles and the Corned Beef was amazing.

It was a fantastic meal and I hope to get there again. It’s been too long.

Update: No sooner than I got this posted than I received word that Corky & Lenny’s has closed, presumably forever. After 67 years, Kenny Kurland decided that enough was enough.

Hop Tree Brewing in Hudson

While more known for their beers than their food, I’ve always eaten well at Hop Tree Brewing in Hudson.

Tucked away in a light-industrial cul-de-sac, Hop Tree can be counted on for great IPAs, great waitstaff and good food. (Try their corned beef popcorn!)

This was more of a Reuben than Corned Beef, but it didn’t disappoint. Toasted to perfection, the right amount of cheese and perfect bread, I thoroughly enjoyed this sampling of Corned Beef.

Planted Flag in Medina

My wife and I needed to get out of the house.

She’d heard about this brewery in Medina that had opened during the first weeks of the pandemic and she thought we ought to patronize them.

So, off we went and forty-five minutes later we were seated and looking at menus.

Of course I had to try the classic Reuben with my IPA, and it did not disappoint. The Rye was perfect, the cheese and sauce were, too. And the Corned Beef was good—I’d go back for another round someday.

Huron Square Deli

An unexpectedly long server and storage migration left me looking for lunch for my team on Saturday.

Google Maps said there was a Subway nearby and in the course of looking for it, we providentially found the Huron Square Deli at 1150 Huron Road in downtown Cleveland instead.

Providentially, because I didn’t want a Subway, because the Huron Square Deli has of of those ubiquitous ‘”Hot” Corned Beef’ signs in their window and because I’d added it to our Where we’re going list a while back.

We gave them our “ham-and-cheese-without-the-cheese” order first, then got to bantering about their Corned Beef: Do they think they have the best? What kind do they serve, lean and crumbly or fat and juicy? Did we want provolone or american cheese?(!!) Did we want fries with that?

Turns out they do believe they have Cleveland’s best Corned Beef. They claim to serve lean and juicy. And yes, we wanted fries with that.

And we gave them a really tough time about the “provolone or american cheese” question. I suppose one has to cater to client tastes, but the mere mention made me question their Corned Beef credentials.

Well, back at the break room, we opened our parcels and dug in. Very good. Just look at those fries!!

Somewhere in there is buried a deli pickle spear, quite perfect in every way. But look at those fries!

The Corned Beef was quite lean, not crumbly, but just the right amount of juicy. The bread was grilled to perfection and didn’t leave your fingers too greasy. The cheese was an excellent choice, but might have been just as good if it had been swiss. I encountered one large portion of chewy gristle/fat but it didn’t really spoil the sandwich. (Look at those fries!)

It’s perhaps a bit telling that the fries overwhelmed the sandwich. In addition to being plentiful, they were also perfect. Perhaps it was because we caught them at 10-minutes-to-closing and they needed to offload so many fries. Or perhaps they always serve them so deliciously and plentifully.

OK. Enough said. They were good.

And the Corned Beef? Overall, it was very good. A good, every-day sort of Corned Beef sandwich. A daily staple sort of Corned Beef sandwich. Not a Best Corned Beef but a Very Good Corned Beef.

Now I can add it to our Where we’ve been list.

I look forward to visiting again when I’m in that part of town.

Note: Huron Square Deli closed February 26th, 2016.
From Cleveland’s Scene: Playhouse Square’s Huron Square Deli Closes

A drawn-out quick stop at Ontario Street Deli

I was downtown Cleveland yesterday and needed some lunch so I stopped over to Ontario Street Deli and quickly ordered their traditional Corned Beef on rye with swiss and Stadium Mustard.

Carl was very happy to oblige, of course. I think making Corned Beef sandwiches is what keeps that guy alive sometimes!

Since I was running late for my next appointment, it taunted me from between those slabs of bread for the next ninety minutes while I raced back to the Heights to talk technology with a local startup.

Perhaps the measure of a great Corned Beef sandwich is how long it can wait without being eaten and still taste delicious?

I don’t intend to wait that long again, so I may never find out.

Note: As of late 2019, Ontario Street Cafe has closed.

Another one for the list

I’m adding Yum Yum’s Downtown Treats to the list after seeing their sandwich board on Euclid this past week.

They don’t claim to serve the best Corned Beef in Cleveland, but their asking price of $6.99 for a sandwich combo appeals to this cost-sensitive sandwich eater.

I wonder how many ounces are on this one?

You can find them at 512 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland.

Note: Yum Yum’s Downtown Treats is closed.

Back to Slyman’s

There’s no doubt that Slyman’s Restaurant holds the region’s imagination for Corned Beef. From being “the place the president visited” (President Bush dropped by in 2007) to serving the “biggest” Corned Beef, nothing about Slyman’s is disappointing.

My colleague and I chose a Friday during Lent to avoid the massive crowds that on a normal day threaten to swamp this little “hole in the wall” (video). The takeout line (call, don’t email) was long but running quickly and yet there were a few tables to spare at 12:30 when we arrived.

If you’re here for the Corned Beef (and who isn’t!), a quick glance at the menu should be all that’s needed. My friend chose his traditional Reuben (hold the Sauerkraut) and I got the Corned Beef.

The first thing we do is pull out our phones to take pictures (his and mine). I didn’t have a ruler or measuring tape, but it was high, probably the tallest I’ve had yet.

We guessed about the weight, figuring about eight or nine ounces. Our waitress (she was friendly, attentive and yes, very busy) shattered our estimate by telling us that each one is eleven-point-five ounces.

Eleven-point-five ounces

No matter how you slice it, stack it or compress it, that’s an awful lot of sandwich.

I’m not going to get into “size matters” arguments mostly because no matter how big you make your sandwich, someone else can always add another ounce. You may be trying to lift a slice of rye bread the size of a hubcap, but the place down the road will trot out one the size of a spare tire.

On a personal note, a Corned Beef sandwich needs to have at least a 2:1 Corned Beef-to-bread ratio in order to be truly enjoyable. Less than that and you’d be better off eating tuna fish. On the upper side, there’s something about 16 ounces—an entire pound—that sounds like a good place to stop. As it is, one calorie calculator I visited put that 11.5 oz sandwich at 980 calories (sans pickle)!

Get on with it!

How was it? It was truly great. A real Cleveland classic. Without a doubt, a great Corned Beef sandwich. My friend would argue that it is Cleveland’s Best Corned Beef. As for me, I’m a bit more empirical: ask me when I’ve tried them all.

Until then, when I’m tired of sampling sub-Best fare, I’ll come back to Slyman’s to reset my expectations.

Yes, it was that good.

Corned Beef Cafe in Broadview Heights

Seth Golias is a guest writer and sandwich eater for Best Corned Beef in Cleveland. He recently visited the Corned Beef Cafe and tells us about his experience. If you want to guest post on this blog, check out the guidelines here.

While making my rounds at work, I spied the Corned Beef Cafe in Broadview Heights. Now being a lover of corned beef sandwiches, it didn’t take much contemplation to decide where I was going for lunch.

I walked in and promptly ordered a standard corned beef sandwich on rye with swiss to go. The staff seemed friendly and I left feeling very excited at the thought of devouring this new delicious smelling sandwich.

After a drive that seemed to never end, I arrived at my office and eagerly unwrapped my lunch. The sandwich was definitely big enough, after all, a proper corned beef sandwich is not made to fit in your mouth. I must say the taste was fairly good, but I was disappointed in the quality of the meat. I prefer a more lean sandwich, one that tends to “crumble” and is not too chewy. This sandwich was a little more on the fatty side and the meat was sliced a little too thick. I think good corned beef should be sliced as thin as possible. I know many people don’t agree with me, but the thickness of the slice does wonders for the texture.

I personally can’t say that the Corned Beef Cafe has the best corned beef in Cleveland as their window signs would suggest, but I can say that despite the opposition to my preferred style, the overall experience was agreeable.

-Seth Golias, March 11, 2011