The new crepes restaurant in Downtown Willoughby is pretty amazing.

I had lunch at Crepes in the City the other day with Managing Editor Laura Kessel, who reviewed it this week (Dining Out: Willoughby's new Crepes in the City does just fine with the savory, astounds with the sweet). I agree with everything she said about the eatery, and I'm looking forward to going back. I mean, the Strawtella crepe has got to be in the top 5 desserts I've ever had, and I'm guessing the other sweet offerings would be strong contenders for that list as well.

Some more pictures from Crepes in the City:

Breakfast menu

Main menu

Customized art

Hawaiian crepe (with roasted pineapple sauce on top)

Strawtella — stuffed with strawberries and Nutella

-- Cheryl Sadler | CSadler@News-Herald.com | @nhcheryl

Last week, correspondent Mark Koestner reviewed the new Bistro DTW in downtown Willoughby. This week, I checked it out for lunch.

I don't think I liked it as much as he seemed to, and that's mostly due to the fact that the chicken on my Italian chicken sandwich was a little bland. I liked how the rest of it tasted, but I wish the chicken had been seasoned instead of leaving the pesto to do all of the work. Koestner wrote that he and his wife both loved the coleslaw, and I found it to be just fair — but then again, I generally don't care much for coleslaw (really, the only coleslaw I eat consistently is the kind that I find on my overstuffed sandwich from Panini's).

(I loved the chalkboard tabletops, and was happy to write my Twitter handle on there. Seemed like all of the tables in the restaurant were clean when we walked in, and I'm not sure if that's because they had been wiped down or because no one else had taken advantage of the chalk on the table that day.)

I'll likely give it another shot. My fellow diners Janet Podolak and Caitlin Fertal raved about the roasted red pepper bisque and loaded potato soup, so I'd love to try both of those. I also really want to have the gourmet grilled cheese Koestner ordered when he visited to review the restaurant. Actually, I wish I had ordered it on this visit.

Check out Koestner's review Dining Out: Bistro DTW in Willoughby shows potential for lunchtime spot.

-- Cheryl Sadler | CSadler@News-Herald.com | @nhcheryl

The Good Living in Mentor section that appears in Thursday's News-Herald (Sept. 20) offers plenty of information about new restaurants opening in Mentor. Check out all the stories by Jean Bonchak and Betsy Scott below:

• Influx of restaurants ramping up
• Caribbean fare served up in Mentor's Maracas
• Zoup!'s on in Points East Plaza
• Tony Sacco's set to change look, tastes of Great Lakes Mall
• Five Guys fans soon to find locale in city
• Looking forward to Scrambler Marie's
• Mmmm ... It's Melt in Mentor
• Jimmy's Backyard BBQ serves up barbecue at its best
• Frank & Pauly's eatery fills historic home
• Familiar Brown Derby back in town
• Red, Wine & Brew expands to city

Chick-fil-A is adding a new item to its breakfast menu: the Spicy Chicken Biscuit. The restaurant ran a promotion this week that allowed those who signed up at www.getspicychicken.com to try the breakfast sandwich free before it officially appears on the menu Jan. 10. Copy editors Danielle Capriato and Cheryl Sadler tried it this week, and below are their reactions.

Cheryl: The Spicy Chicken Biscuit tastes exactly how it sounds. It's spicy. It's chicken. It's on a biscuit. It was a lot spicier than I expected it to be, but the milkiness of the biscuit countered that pretty nicely.

Danielle: Like Cheryl said, the sandwich is pretty self-explanatory. It's clear that they took the chicken from their popular Spicy Chicken Sandwich and just put it on a biscuit instead of a bun. You know, because a biscuit is just so much more breakfasty. Also as Cheryl said, it was a bit spicier than expected, but in a good way, I think. The spice factor isn't particularly overwhelming, but I think I was expecting a milder version simply because it's breakfast. Initial impressions? It could use some cheese, maybe, or a sauce of some sort. But I'm not sure how much that would enhance the whole experience. It might take away from the biscuit, which was creamy and good on it's own.

Cheryl: I didn't know before that Chick-fil-A even served breakfast, but now I might consider it an option if I am eating early on the go.

Danielle: I definitely didn't know that Chick-fil-A had a breakfast menu until Cheryl asked me if I'd try this new sandwich with her. Their breakfast options definitely intrigued me, and considering the quality of their food in general, I'd be interested in trying more.

Cheryl: The biscuit is the perfect pick for someone who likes Chick-fil-A's Spicy Chicken Sandwich and wants to have it in the morning. For me? Maybe not. I don't know if I want to eat something that spicy that early. And the nutritional data is not yet on Chick-fil-A's website, so I'm not sure yet if it's something I'd want to be consuming in the morning.

Danielle: I would not give the breakfast sandwich a bad review, but I agree with Cheryl that it's just not my thing. I would definitely suggest trying it when it launches. And I know I would like to go back to try more from their breakfast menu.

-- Danielle Capriato, DCapriato@News-Herald.com
and Cheryl Sadler, CSadler@News-Herald.com

This weekend my boyfriend and I enjoyed breakfast at New Town Grill & Tavern on Lake Shore Boulevard in Mentor (near the Willoughby border). We sat on the patio under giant umbrellas, enjoying coffee, eggs, french toast, bacon, sausage, rye toast and hash browns.

The food was delicious and the service, excellent. The meal was served quickly, and our server was around often to top off coffee and ask how we were doing. I will return to have breakfast there again.

My only complaint about the experience was the noise of the traffic from Lake Shore. Fortunately there wasn't a constant stream of vehicles on Saturday morning, and being able to sit in the nice weather to have such a good meal definitely outweighed the infrequent noise.

New Town serves breakfast Saturday and Sunday only. The prices are incredibly reasonable -- with most meals hovering around the $5 mark -- and items can be ordered a la carte if they are not included in your meal.

New Town Grill & Tavern
7079 Lake Shore Blvd.
Mentor, OH 44060-2960
440-946-1552‎

-- Cheryl Sadler
CSadler@News-Herald.com

Ordering Bob Evans' Wildfire Chicken Salad for takeout has become pretty much a weekly ritual for me. Every Tuesday I ask my supervisor if he's hungry and thinking the same thing I am. His response: "Yes. With rolls."

The salad is lettuce, grape tomatoes, corn, green onions, barbecue chicken, cheese and tortilla strips, with their special Wildfire ranch dressing on the side. It is fantastic and filling. The restaurant offers both a lunch and dinner portion, to fit your appetite, and the dinner portion is just $7.99, to fit your budget.

Other favorites I have at Bob's (if for some reason I'm not in the mood for the WCS) include the Pot Roast Sandwich, the Bob=B-Q Pulled Pork sandwich and the Fried Chicken Dinner (especially the garden veggies on the side). For breakfast, you can't beat their pancakes. Or sausage. Or omelets. Heck, the whole breakfast menu is tasty and cheap.

Oh and their rolls are really great, too -- and can be found in your grocers' freezer.

Bob Evans
locations vary throughout Northeast Ohio and can be found on the restaurant's Web site, www.bobevans.com

-- Cheryl Sadler
CSadler@News-Herald.com