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| Escape to classy, fiery Saravá
Escape to classy, fiery Saravá for dazzling Brazilian cuisine Friday, March 24, 2006 Debbi Snook, Plain Dealer Reporter Take a vacation from the mundane at Saravá. Sergio Abramof's new restaurant in Shaker Square -- a spacious counterpoint to his longstanding Sergio's at University Circle -- delivers a dining transformation. It isn't just the look, although there is momentum in its sweeping, Art Deco lines, mahogany rain-forest details and shadow-dappled lighting. It isn't just the food, a Brazilian-inspired menu blended with both spark and soothing substance. And it isn't just the servers, swiftly translating each dish and then getting out of the way of their guests' good time. No, what struck this happy customer was all this originality in perfect rhythm, the big, one-of-a-kind effect that is remarkable here and would be remarkable in any city. Saravá (sarah-VAH, translated as a warm Portuguese salutation) is perfect territory to slip out of your regular skin for a first date or a 457th date. It is like running away from home for dinner. That said, I will quibble a bit. I wasn't dazzled with the drab artichoke fritters ($5) and rainbow smelt tempura ($5.50), until they met their sauces. Nor was I happy paying $1.75 each for crab claws that seemed rinsed of flavor. Since the selection of small plates, raw bar and appetizers is almost 10 times that size, I will accept that the odds were not in my favor. And I do so with the confidence of having tasted the beef Churasco ($9), a miniature street festival on a plate with its dizzily charred and marinated miniskewers, tomato relish, zesty green sauce and smidge of rice. How better to temper the tug of a classic Brazilian rum drink poured over crushed mint and lime? Each main dish had something hauntingly good to remember. In both the Shrimp Quiabo ($19), with okra, tomato and rice, and the Xim-Xim (zim-zim, $22.50), with its chicken, shrimp, veggies and roasted peanuts, it was coconut milk that calmed the chile heat into friendly fire. A small boulder of pasture-raised tenderloin ($26.50) wore a hint of black pepper, garlic and port on its shoulders. (With the house's crisp-fried and salted spinach as court jester.) A mahi-mahi special ($23.50) promised a pineapple sauce that turned out to be classy and complex. The pork loin special ($24.50), accompanied by a mighty mashed potato side, carried sparkle in its candied caramelized onions. Finally, the feijoada, "the ceremonial party dish from Brasil" ($19), earned its heavyweight title in vibrant ruffles of flavors -- beans, rice, sausage, salsa and a splash of lime. "Saravá"? Oh no. The Portuguese greeting seems too well-mannered for all these thrills and for a place that makes it hard to slip back into your own skin. To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: DSnook@plaind.com 216-999-4357 © 2006 The Plain Dealer |
| Free Times' Douglas Trattner on Sarava's Opening
Bites : Published December 7th, 2005 The long wait for Sergio Abramof’s new Shaker Square restaurant is over — and by all accounts, it was worth it. Sarava (13225 Shaker Square, 216.295.1200) opened quietly Monday, November 28. Like Sergio’s in University Circle (1903 Ford Dr., 216.231.1234), Sarava evokes the spirit of Abramof’s birthplace, Brazil, albeit in a more youthful and dynamic way. The interior is gorgeous, with warm dark woods, sleek leather banquettes and dramatic lighting. Seating options range from barstools to low-rise booths to intimate fireside lounge areas. For those who had visited Joseph-Beth’s Bronte Bistro, which occupied the spot in which Sarava now stands, the interior design will be all the more remarkable. Of course, that is exactly what Abramof and his design team had in mind. “We wanted to make sure the restaurant looked nothing like a bookstore,” Abramof says. “It came out exactly like we had envisioned.” With Sarava, Shaker Square gains a restaurant that will be open on Monday nights, a windfall for the legions of Monday-night movie goers. And Sarava’s menu makes it a natural choice for a pre-or post-movie repast. Meals can be as light as a bowl of salted cashews or mixed olives, or as hearty as a dish of feijoada, a rich bean stew from Brazil. A raw bar offers shellfish fans a selection of oysters, clams, shrimp and crab — each available by the piece. The small plates, or “street plates,” are the cornerstone of Sarava’s menu. Nearly two dozen options are priced under $9. An order of fried rainbow smelt, battered in a light and crisp tempura shell, is the cure for calamari overkill. They are served with a sweet-spicy dipping sauce. Grilled on a plancha, a screaming-hot Spanish griddle, two mini-burgers come topped with caramelized onions. Individual pizza toppings include Portuguese pork sausage, Maine lobster and tapenade. |
| AOL CITY GUIDE SAYS....
With 10 wildly successful years at his original location, Sergio's in University Circle, chef Sergio Abramof snapped up a part of the former Joseph Beth bookstore in Shaker Square for his newest hot spot. While Sergio's menu is more global in scope, Sarava gives a nod to the chef's native Brazil, not only on the plate but in the tropical decor and the rhythms emanating from the sound system at this dimly lit, romantic restaurant. Folks with smaller appetites can sample from the street plates -- including Salgadinhos (daily assortment of Brazilian bar snacks), Pao de Queijo (chewy Brazilian cheese bread puffs) and bigger bites like a thin house-special burger; the street plates are also offered at the spacious, plush bar. Bigger courses include pizzas, raw-bar offerings, salads and pastas, while the entrees include turf (a Brazilian-style beef tenderloin, grilled chicken with a smoked bacon sauce) and plenty of surf (shrimp, bouillabaisse). The menu is topped off with several combination dishes including Feijoda, which is described as a traditional Brazilian party dish -- a black bean stew simmered with sausage, bacon, ham and pork loin. Keep an eye out for the 100-seat outdoor patio with a live-music set-up -- an attempt to evoke Rio's Copacabana Beach. -- Daniel Rivkin (Photo: Gretchen Gaede) |
| Ohio Magazine Review August 2007- Click here!
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| More From The Plain Dealer
More From The Plain Dealer RESTAURANT ROW WEEKEND Tropical mood takes over at Sarava Friday, December 30, 2005 Let the new Sarava cure your winter ennui. It's Sergio Abramof's big leap from his toy-size restaurant, the Brazilian-influenced Sergio's in University Circle. Sarava has a long-flowing, shadow-dappled space at Shaker Square, a room full of designed mystery -- grasses, polished tree trunks and ebony pergolas. The food follows. Try his feijoada -- a rice, bean and sausage dish splashed with salsa and sweet lime -- or a mahi-mahi special where the fish is lightly warmed with blackened spices and brightened with a gentle pineapple glaze. No palms here, but you might sense a sway of mood toward the tropical. Find Sarava at 13225 Shaker Square, Cleveland, in the old Joseph-Beth Bookstore. Call 216-295-1200, or go to www.sergioscleveland.com. Look for Abramoff to get back in the kitchen this winter at University Circle to introduce his new Italian and Mediterranean menu. -- Debbi Snook |
| Cleveland Scene Review February 15, 2006
Click on the above link to read Elaine Cicora's latest review of the restaurant! |