The New Strange Bird Bistro - a Restaurant

Today we had lunch at the newest restaurant in town which took over the vacancy left by Weia Teia when they closed this past August.  The spot is now home to the Strange Bird Bistro which identifies itself as "a global eclectic mix." The interior is much the same as the previous restaurant but the food is a 'fusion' of a little Asian, a little Mexican, a little Cuban, some Eastern European, and some American comfort food with a twist!.

See if some of these menu names whet your appetite: sushi deviled eggs and chicken pot stickers, which Joe and I shared as appetizers, roasted brussels sprouts salad, Korean meatloaf sandwich, Cuban citrus mojo pork, sriracha macaroni & cheese, thai coconut shrimp cakes just to name a few. For our lunch today along with the two appetizers,we also enjoyed the soup of the day which was mushroom bisque and was very good. Next week after the movie at the Apollo we will be checking out the dinner menu and in the weeks to come we will scout out the sunday brunch menu. I see on that menu is a bacon jam and grilled cheese. Sounds yummy!

You will not want for good food choices when you come to Oberlin as we have over 14 restaurants to choose from. Check our website Restaurant page for where to go, links to websites if they have one, and type of food served. And be sure to go to Strange Bird Bistro Facebook page. There menu is on their website. And follow us on Facebook too! LIKE US! We like you!

An Unusual Place to Stay

Got a surprise this morning when I came across an article on Cleveland.com titled "10 of the most unusual places to stay in Ohio" written by Susan Glaser of the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Since I am always looking for unique places to go when we need a getaway I began following the arrows to see just what Ohio has to offer in the way of unusual places.

I discovered that here in Ohio you can sleep in a tree house, a caboose, a jail, a yurt, a barn, a castle, a dude ranch, a winery, an art museum (yes an art museum!), an animal conservation reserve, a yurt, a barn, and a Civil War Underground Railroad house (this one being ours - 1830 Hallauer House Bed and Breakfast! Wow! Ms. Glaser called us several days ago for permission to use some pictures for an article for the Plain Dealer but I was really excited to see us listed as one of the 10 unusual places to stay! Thank you Susan for your super article!

So please take a few minutes to follow the arrows at the link: http://www.cleveland.com/travel/index.ssf/2015/09/10_of_the_most_unusual_places.html#1
We are number 18 and 19.

And when you want to stay somewhere different keep us all in mind!
We are unusual and we are in Ohio!

9 Bistro at Grey Hawk

Restaurants crowded in Oberlin? Do you want a place with a great atmosphere, excellent food, an expansive outdoor deck overlooking a golf course? Then we have a suggestion for you!

Joe and I had an early dinner today at 9 BISTRO at GREY HAWK in LaGrange, just 5 miles east of Oberlin. We chose to sit on the deck, placed our order and watched the golfers finish on the 18th hole. A couple of them got caught in the sand trap! I ordered the grilled salmon and it was cooked to perfection and served over risotto and grilled asparagus. Joe ordered the satay skewers - marinated steak, napa cabbage slaw and soba noodles tossed in a sesame oil vinaigrette. His ums told me it must be good!

The restaurant offers a variety of appetizers, interesting salads, sandwiches, soups, lobster bisque, entrees of seafood, pasta, flat breads, ribs, chicken dishes, and steaks and chops. There is a full bar with spirits, wines and beers. Check the link here for the complete menu.

And if you are a golfer this is the place to go! Play a round of 9 or 18 holes of golf and then enjoy dinner afterwards on the outside deck or in the dining room. We had a great time and I am sure that you will too! And don't forget that we are just a few miles away to make your overnight stay one to rememnber! Come to play, dine, and stay!

An International Cooper Violinist at Oberlin College

The 2015 International Cooper Violin competition at Oberlin College is over and we had to say goodbye to a super competitor and girl extraordinaire Maya Buchanan from Rapid City, South Dakota.

Maya is just 14 years old and has been playing the violin since the age of 3 and is now an Academy Fellow at the Music Institute of Chicago where she  goes every weekend for instruction. She is the youngest first prize winner in the history of the South Dakota Symphony Orchestra Young Musician  Concerto Competition. She is also the co-winner of the 2013 Walgreens National Concerto Junior Strings Competition, the second-place winner of the 2014 Music Teachers National Association Junior Performance Competition and the 2015 Junior Strings National Finalist. She has also been featured on NPR's From the Top.

At the Cooper competition here in Oberlin Maya placed 6th out of 21 contestants but she is number one with the guests here at Hallauer House. The video that I shot of Maya's Cooper performance would not upload to this Blog so I've placed a link to the YouTube video of Maya's 2014 performance at the Waxman Carmen Fantasie with Ottawa Chamber Symphony. Enjoy!

As we say goodbye to Maya we wish her well as she continues her studies and goes forth to perform outstanding music on the violin. In 2017 she hopes to return to Oberlin to complete in the next International Cooper Violin competition and we do hope that she comes back to Hallauer House.

International Cooper Violin Competition at Oberlin College, 2015

 
                                        We wish you well, Maya! Hope to see you in 2 years!

Fiftieth Anniversary on Motorcycles!

Saturday morning we said goodbye to two most interesting couples who have stayed with us here at Hallauer House, Clyde and Susie Houser and Tom and Sandy Young from New York state. They roared in on their Harley motorcycles, Clyde and Susie's an apple green and Tom and Sandy's a midnight blue. After about 6 hours on the road they were glad to plant feet on the ground and to take a walk through the gardens.

We then invited them to the pool deck where we presented them with a bottle of champagne to toast the 50th anniversary of both couples! That's right 50th anniversary and their gift to themselves is a cross country motorbike tour from their home in New York state to Arizona with many stops in states and landmarks along the way. We were the first stop on that long and amazing journey.

Both couples were friends in their younger days having lived in the same town. Then as children arrived and Clyde and Susie moved to another town a few miles away they sort of drifted apart but remained acquaintances. Then a few years ago they ran into each other and in their catching up they found that each of them had just bought a motorcycle! A Harley at that! And so the relationship is now sealed in a "Hog" friendship!

Saturday morning was perfect for breakfast on the pool deck so we sent them off with a menu of mango and cherries topped with Greek vanilla yogurt, Hallauer House muffins, Egg Roulade stuffed with peppers and onion and served on organic spinach and topped with a creamy cheese sauce, roasted rosemary potatoes, and crispy bacon. The morning went too quickly and soon the Harleys were brought out of the shed and packed up with bags that would fit into all the luggage spots. When you ride a motorcycle you ride light!

After a group hug and jackets, helmets, and glasses were donned we sent our 50th anniversary guests off to continue their special journey. And by the way Joe figured that 50 years together adds up to 36,362 days!!!! Good luck Clyde and Susie and Tom and Sandy! Stay safe and Happy Trails!

The Zip Line Canopy Tour

It's only March and already the  Common Ground Canopy Tour is up and open for business! They are open 7 days a week with tours leaving at 10:00 and 2:00 and they are offering a reduced rate through March for $57.00 per person on weekdays and $67.00 per person on weekends Friday to Sunday. What are you waiting for?

Mother Nature is starting to warm us up and we are seeing some sunshine so why not make some plans to come out to Common Ground, only 9 miles from us, and zip your way into spring! No need to go away on spring break when there are so many great things to do right here in Lorain County! There's adventure at the zip line and bike path, history at the Heritage Center, art at the AMAM, great food at our restaurants, shopping at our quaint shops, movies at the Apollo and excellent overnight accommodations at Hallauer House. 

And one last note - our pool will be opening in 6 weeks!!! We're on a count down!

 Enjoy the zip line pictures!

 We heard that the oldest 'zipper' so fat at Common Ground was 84 years old! So what are you waiting for!

 FUN! FUN! FUN!

Hallauer House on Flicklr

Pictures tell the story and our picture story can be found by visiting not only our main website, our secondary website, our BLOG, but now our many albums displayed on Flickr.

On Flickr the written words appear only in the description of the pictures themselves. You don't have to read, you just have to enjoy the photos. Here you can browse the albums and explore Hallauer House to see our guest rooms, our common rooms, our Asian Spa, our rec/exercise room, our gardens, our pool, our guests, our local attractions, and our changing decorations.

Nine albums have been added so far but we invite you to check back frequently to see all the new additions! Leave some comments and come and visit! Happy browsing!

Underground Railroad Quilt Part 2

In a previous post, I introduced Kathie Fiedler, a guest visiting us from Michigan who is a master quilt maker. She showed us her fabulous Underground Railroad quilt and in October she and her husband Robert returned and brought with them a wall hanging version of that same quilt which we purchased and now have hanging on the wall in our guest dining room. It has become a very unique and interesting conversation piece among our guests at breakfast and Joe, our resident historian/innkeeper, is very adept at pointing out and explaining what code is hidden in each of the squares.  Now when you come and stay at Hallauer House B & B you can immerse yourself in a new history lesson and we promise there will be no test afterward!

Kathie's Underground Railroad quilt wall hanging.

                  While we were visiting the National Cryptologic Museum at Ft. Meade in Maryland for our daughter's promotion to Petty Officer 1st Class in the US Coast Guard, we found on display a poster showing many Underground Railroad quilt squares and their meanings. Luckily I had my trusty camera handy so I took a picture of each square and decided to include them below. So hope you enjoy reading a little history and we do invite you to come as a guest and see the quilt up close and learn a little about the history of the Underground Railroad and Oberlin's role during this era of our country's history.




As a P.S. - The National Cryptologic Museum is a really fascinating and interesting place to visit when you are in the DC area and it's free. Go there! You won't be disappointed!

JANUARY SPECIAL!

It's that time of year when things slow down and we start experiencing cabin fever. So we are offering a cabin fever January special. Until Jan. 31st our Union and Confederate Rooms will be just $99.00 per night and the Mason/Dixon Suite will be just $149.00 per night. So what does this include you may ask?
 

• FREE 3 course breakfast
• FREE WIFI
• FREE parking
• FREE use of romantic Asian Spa
• FREE use of exercise equipment
• FREE billiards and ping pong

Take a tour of Hallauer House by clicking here and see all we have to offer. History stories and ghost stories are shared at breakfast but we don't divulge the haunted room until you come down in the morning! So what are you waiting for? Call now to schedule a break from cabin fever! 440-774-3400 or 877-774-3406.