“There is no sincerer love than the love of food.”

– George Bernard Shaw

My father and I are not the type to play around when it comes to food. It has always been the thing that we’ve bonded over the most and I don’t see that dissipating any time soon. As an early birthday dinner we decided to check out Russo’s in Peninsula, OH (near Cuyahoga Falls). I had heard nothing but good things about it and a friend of mine used to work there.

When I first walked in, I thought that it wasn’t a very large place, but soon realized that there was a lounge area in the back. It is a Creole/Italian inspired restaurant that would be categorized as fine dining. You wouldn’t have to dress in a suit, but a nice shirt with clean jeans is preferred.

Many of the meals on their menu fell along the Creole side of cuisine (jambalaya, étouffée, gumbo, etc.), but I would be wary to call it Soul Food as their website states. They do have a few pasta selections that intrigued me, but I was in the mood for NOLA.

Due to my father being allergic to seafood, it was a bit harder to find an appetizer that did not feature that delectable meat. We settled on the Aracini (not featured). That particular evening I believe it had some kind of beef in it (their ingredients seem to change weekly).

They weren’t terrible, but were more on the blander side. They also weren’t very photogenic which is why they aren’t shown.

For dinner, I got the Crawfish Étouffée while my father got the New York Strip. The Crawfish Étouffée was filling, flavorful, and spicy. The additional flavors were not so overwhelming that it masked the natural taste of the crawfish. It reminded me a little bit of NOLA. The more you eat the more your tongue starts to tingle. I ended up having to pack it up to go because I was so full.

The New York Strip was a fine piece of steak. Both my father and I were impressed by its taste and texture. It truly melted in our mouths. I’m not entirely sure what they used in their signature steak sauce but I thoroughly enjoyed it. My father is quite the picky eater with a finely tuned palette so when a steak gets his approval, then I know it is good.

Overall, Russo’s is along the same price range as Crave, so expect to be paying a little more for your meal. It wasn’t the most fabulous meal I’ve had in the area, but it was far from the worst. Seven-and-a-half out of ten if it was on my fine dining rating scale.

Thanks for reading,