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    Restaurant Review: Harvey & Ed’s

    Cameron Mitchell recently opened a new restaurant concept in the Short North: Harvey & Ed’s. It pays homage to delicatessens.

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    To be precise, the promotional literature refers to it as an “American restaurant inspired by the classic Jewish delicatessens.” That is to say, it’s first and foremost a restaurant, a slick CMR restaurant. There will be a host, a menu, and a super-engaging server, all in classic CMR style.

    That menu, though. It features a lot of deli offerings and other treats not typically spotted at any regular Midwestern restaurant. Cases in point: kugel, latkes and blintzes.

    So, if deli’s you’re game, the Reuben ($16) is a classic. It’s filled with lean, thinly carved layers of corned beef with Russian dressing, swiss, and a crunchy, tart sauerkraut.

    There’s also a Roast Beef Sandwich ($18). It’s filled with an equally generous supply of lean layers of beef, this time teamed with a chili relish and horseradish cream. The roast beef is sublime, providing both a biting zing from the peppery horseradish and a richness to the sandwich. The rueben, however, has a chili relish that calls for an acquired taste. It is both hot and sour, and exceedingly so. Be judicious in your application.

    Sandwiches come with a side of serviceable potato salad, coleslaw or fries, and a cute little ramekin holding a super-fun selection of crunchy pickles.

    While the deli sandwiches are on the pricey side, the requisite burger is a relative bargain: $8. It’s thin compared to trends, though you can double it and add items like horseradish to make it interesting. For those who don’t want to participate in the whole deli schtick, it’s there for you, with the fries.

    Back to fixtures on deli menus: Matzo Ball Soup ($4/$7). You can start things off with it, or make into a whole meal if that’s your style. It does what it’s supposed to do, with broth, tiny dices of carrot and celery, plus shreds of chicken and one ginormous matzo ball. It’s bland, so unless you have a pre-established affinity for bland comfort food, it’s better to explore elsewhere on the menu.

    Like the Latke ($5) department, which are offered as sides. The kitchen’s version comes across like a crunchy, savory hash brown patty with an extra-resilient fried crust. They’re served with applesauce and sour cream, but it’s hard to want to do anything but eat them straight. The latkes are big winners in the side department. The house Kugel ($5) can also be found in the sides. Like the aforementioned soup, it leans hard toward the subtle, comforting side — bland, even with apples in the mix. More latkes are in order.

    Or, move on to the sweets section. There, you can find both brioche and blintzes and work your way into over-the-top happiness. Chocolate Babka ($7) comes as a variant of french toast, thickly sliced, and fried for crispy edges. It’s deeply chocolatey inside, and topped with sugared strawberries and whipped cream, with syrup accompanying it in a teeny pitcher. Just a little drizzle of the syrup puts an extra dose of sweetness into an already sublime combo.

    As for the Blintzes ($6), they’re the most memorable find of the day. Memorable in a good way, the crepes are topped with a complex mixture of toasted nuts, blueberries, strawberries, mandarine orange slices, sweet, soft, dried apricots, and currants accented with mint. You’d think that combo would be overkill, but you’d be wrong. It makes each bite a little different and the entire dish a plate-licker.

    Pictured here is the Harvey & Ed’s Sundae. They recently removed Blintzes from their menu.

    You can find it at 698 N. High Street. For more information, visit harveyandeds.com.

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    Miriam Bowers Abbott
    Miriam Bowers Abbotthttps://columbusunderground.com
    Miriam Bowers Abbott is a freelancer contributor to Columbus Underground who reviews restaurants, writes food-centric featurettes and occasionally pens other community journalism pieces.
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