Another local — more or less — restaurant group plans to open in the retail and shopping mecca west of Akron.
The latest regional restaurant group to set its sights on the Montrose area is Burntwood Tavern, which said this week it plans to open this fall in the former Max & Erma’s in Fairlawn.
It will be the second Summit County location for the Chagrin Falls-based Burntwood Tavern, which has a restaurant in Cuyahoga Falls. Max & Erma’s abruptly closed at 3750 W. Market St. in February.
Nearby, a Bomba Tacos & Rum, part of the Beachwood-based Paladar Restaurant Group, opened last month in the old Hudson’s in the Montrose Town Centre plaza in Copley Township. The other area Bomba is in Rocky River.
And just a little farther west, in Bath Township, where West Market becomes Medina Road, the former Friendly’s restaurant is being transformed into the first Melt Bar & Grilled in Summit County. It will open July 6.
The Burntwood news got me wondering what was up with plans for a new seafood place on “Restaurant Hill,” off state Route 18 in Copley. Hospitality Restaurants Group of Fairview Park, which is behind Rosewood Grill in Hudson, revealed plans earlier this year.
Chris Oppewall, managing partner of Hospitality Restaurants, told me this week the plan now is to open the Copley location in the third quarter of this year.
The opening had been planned for June or July.
Oppewall has said Hospitality Restaurants is leaning toward a menu influenced by seafood specialties popular in the Low Country coastal areas of the Carolinas and Georgia, as well as the New England coast.
The restaurant will go in the site at 115 Montrose West Ave. that formerly housed Amazon Trail, and most recently the Tres Potrillos Mexican restaurant, which moved last year to the nearby building that previously housed Fiore’s.
First Watch in Falls
First Watch Restaurants, the breakfast-and-lunch chain based in University Park, Fla., is coming to the new Portage Crossing development in Cuyahoga Falls.
The chain hasn’t yet put out an official announcement, but a sign in the window of the spot on Portage Trail, next to the Starbucks, reveals that a First Watch is on the way. Spokeswoman Eleni Kouvatsos said the restaurant is expected to open by the end of August.
It will be open 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. seven days a week, closed only on Christmas and Thanksgiving. First Watch, with more than 160 locations, also has sites at Summit Mall in Fairlawn and in Macedonia.
Farmers market news
The Barberton Farmers Market — aka Anna Dean Farmers Market — will run 2 to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Sept. 20. This market moved to the historic O.C. Barber Piggery, 248 Robinson Ave., last year.
It’s worth checking out for its location. The former pig barn is one of several distinctive buildings from the onetime Anna Dean Farm, developed by town founder O.C. Barber.
The Barberton Historical Society, which owns the Piggery, took over the market last year, growing it to 30 vendors this year, including Dunkler Farms and Seiberling Farms. Vendors don’t pay a fee to sell.
“We are trying to provide healthy food to Barberton and southern Summit County,” Kelleher said. The market is sponsored in part by the Tuscora Park Health and Wellness Foundation.
Kelleher said while the official hours are 2 to 6 p.m., vendors start arriving at 12:30 p.m. and are allowed to sell as soon as they are set up. Vendors also are allowed to leave when they sell out, which is often between 4 and 6 p.m.
He’s hoping for another big year. Attendance averaged about 1,000 people a week last year, he said.
Kelleher manages the market with Bob Hurbean, also a member of the Barberton Historical Society.
• The Northeast Ohio Medical University Farmers Market will begin its third season June 23 in the northeast visitor parking lot of the university at 4211 State Route 44 in Rootstown Township. Market hours are 4 to 7 p.m. Thursdays through Sept. 15; note that this is a different day than last year.
The weekly markets will feature cooking demonstrations, music and other activities. Nonprofit groups, especially those related to health and wellness, are invited to share information about their organizations.
The market is accepting vendor applications at http://newcenterevents.com/northeast-ohio-farmers-market. For information, contact Audrey Hylton at market44manager@yahoo.com or 234-380-7982 or see the market’s Facebook page.
Find our complete farmers market list at www.ohio.com/lifestyle/food.
Honey at Highland Square
The small Akron Honey Co. will offer a limited supply of its wares at its third annual neighborhood Market Day on June 26.
The open-air event will run from noon to 6 p.m. at 1045 Jefferson Ave. in Highland Square, a vacant lot turned apiary. The hives of this small-batch enterprise are near the home of Akron Honey Co. owner Brent Wesley.
“Our market day shows everyone what’s possible, even when we have minimal resources, such as a vacant city lot,” noted Wesley, who also is a musician with retro soul band Wesley Bright & the Hi-Lites.
This year’s vendors include local enterprises such as Sweet Mary’s Bakery, Norka soda, Saint Augustine & Suds soaps, Urban Buzz beeswax candles, Not Yo’ Daddy’s hot sauce and Akron Coffee Roasters. Sweet Mary’s Bakery and Akron Coffee Roasters have new downtown Akron storefronts.
You’ll have to be creative about parking and may have to do some walking as this is a neighborhood event. For more information, visit the Akron Honey Co.’s Facebook page.
High & Low Winery
The High & Low Winery, which opened last year at 588 Medina Road (state Route 18) in Sharon Township, has some new additions: an expanded patio, lots of landscaping, and a small waterfall with a stone bridge. They’re all out back, behind the winery building.
Co-owner Matt Snyder reports that the winery is hosting Yoga and Wine at 5:45 p.m. Mondays, and Yoga and Mimosa at 10:30 a.m. Saturdays. “A class and a glass” costs $15.
Live music runs from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursdays. Check the winery’s Facebook page for more information.
Then newlyweds, Kate (Frech) and Snyder opened the winery last fall. The building and two young vineyards sit amid houses and commercial buildings. The land has been in Matt Snyder’s family for 100-plus years.
Festival food and fun
The Holy Ghost Ukrainian Catholic Church at 1866 Brown St. in Akron will host its 13th annual Ukrainian Festival from 1 to 8 p.m. June 25, featuring food, dancing, polka, guided church tours and more.
The church, which last year celebrated its 100th anniversary, is one block north of Waterloo Road.
The small congregation goes all out to prepare, making pierogis, cabbage rolls, halushki (noodles with cabbage) and baked goods. Also on the bill is a beer garden, gifts for sale, the Walter Wolansky & Friends Polka Band and the Ukrainian Village Singers.
The church, which began as an ethnic parish, now says many of its parishioners have no roots in the Ukraine. Go to www.hgucc.org.
• The German Family Society will host its popular Old European Days and Bierfest June 25-26 at the society’s grounds in Brimfield near Kent. The address is 3871 Ranfield Road, east of state Route 43 and County Road 18.
Sausage, schnitzel, stuffed cabbage, pastries, cakes, and beer and dancing, of course, will be on the menu.
Children’s games will be offered June 26. Admission is $5, free for children under age 12. Parking is free. Hours are 3 to 11 p.m. June 25 and 1 to 7 p.m. June 26. Go to www.germanfamilysociety.com.
Sounds and Taste of Soul
The LeBron James Grandmothers’ Fan Club will present its fourth annual “Sounds and Taste of Soul” from 5 to 8 p.m. Saturday featuring food prepared by club members and vendors.
The event at Helen E. Arnold school, 450 Vernon Odom Blvd. in Akron is a fundraiser for the mentoring program, involving students at Resnik, that the 10-year-old fan club is getting off the ground.
The club will offer more healthful versions of some foods: “We’ll have some cooked with turkey and some cooked with pork,” club president Alder Chapman said of side dishes. Chicken and fish will be available baked or fried.
The entry cost is $10. Meat, chicken and fish are available at vendor prices, with side dishes costing 2 tickets each (tickets are $1). Bread and drinks cost 1 ticket.
Humorist and journalist Mo Rocca brought the club some attention last year when he got cooking tips from them for his My Grandmother’s Ravioli TV series on the Cooking Channel. You can find out about the club’s 2010 cookbook at www.lebronjames grandmothersfanclub.org.
Send local food news to Katie Byard at 330-996-3781 or kbyard@thebeaconjournal.com. You can follow her @KatieByardABJ on Twitter or become a fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com.