Cleveland, OH

Best Chili in Greater Cleveland: Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers among top finishers in readers’ poll

Published

10 months ago

October 4, 2023

Best Chili in Greater Cleveland: Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers among top finishers in readers’ poll

CLEVELAND, Ohio — It’s National Chili Month and as promised, we’ve got some hearty reading this week on the top three finishers in our Best Chili in Greater Cleveland readers’ poll.

In second place (but forever in first place in the hearts of many) is Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers of Richfield with 20.55% of the vote.

We sat down with Whitey’s general manager Robert Shaffer last week to talk about (and eat) all things Whitey’s. Here’s what we gleaned before the “food coma” set in.

Whitey’s Chili Garden – crushed tortilla chips layered over a large bed of garden greens topped with your choice of Whitey’s Chili, cheese, diced tomato and sour cream from Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers located at 3600 Brecksville Rd., in Richfield
– Photo by Yadi Rodriguez, cleveland.com

Background: Local legend Harry “Whitey” Bigadza first started making his chili in 1939 and would “wander down the hill every day to share with folks — straight from his home kitchen,” said Shaffer. Today, the demand is so great that they “must mass produce.” While that does take away the small-batch approach of the other top finishers in our Cleveland’s Best Chili contest, who can deny four saucy success stories — each with a mythology to match? Not us. “Everything about the chili remains the same, except the size of the marquee,” he said.

Construction and Flavor Profile(s): Of four offerings, original Beef Chili with Beans “is our most popular” (midweight gravy, ingredients of matching gauge chunks) and maintains the “homemade and homestyle feel that customers fell in love with,” Shaffer said. The Jalapeno Beef Chili is “more heat-forward and geared to people who don’t like beans.” Best of Cleveland teammates Yadi Rodriguez & Peter Chakerian found the JBC silkier (brothy?) and more peppery than the original, forgoing beans (and by proxy, starch) as a focal point. Chipotle Garden Vegetarian Chili was remarkably mild. A white bean-laden Chicken Chili was a stew consistency.

If Your Chili Had a Commercial: “We stand by our chili. It’s what people come here for. What I tell people: if you’re looking for it, go to whiteyschili.com and use the locator. It will give you a list of where to find it. We supply restaurants, stores, everyone… we’ve been doing this for a long time,” Shaffer said.

Whitey's Booze N' Burgers — Coliseum Fries – Our famous homemade fries baked with your choice of Whitey’s Chili, cheese and bacon from Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers located at 3600 Brecksville Rd., in Richfield
– Photo by Yadi Rodriguez, cleveland.com

Presentation: “People get chili flights every day,” said Shaffer. “But you can get a lot of menu items with any of our chili options. We do Chili Chips & Cheese, we have [Richfield] Coliseum Fries — named for our former neighbors! —a Chili Burger, Whitey’s Footlong, Chili Garden [a taco-esque salad with chili], the Mac & Cheese Dinner can be smothered with it.” We didn’t ask Shaffer if people sub Whitey’s Original for pizza sauce on a pizza, but we did wonder. With a combo-options list longer than the shrimp fantasy sequence in “Forrest Gump,” we figured the answer was yes. (If you’re bold enough to order a Whitey’s pizza that way, email and let us know how that works out). Pro tip: Whitey’s Footlong is precisely that and nearly 1.25 inches in diameter to boot. Eat one and you won’t feel bad sleeping through the second half of that Browns game. Nighty night.

Oh, as for straight up? Shredded cheese, sour cream and tortilla chips.

Reflections: Only the Original Beef Chili with Beans is a Bigadza original. The other recipes have been picked up along the way; none of them have been changed or altered and Shaffer was nonplussed when asked if there were any plans to. “No, oh no. No changes. Not at all. And I think we’re pretty capped out at four.”

Sales: During the summer, Shaffer estimates “20-25 cases and 35-40 cases during peak season — at 40 pounds a case.” That’s just the restaurant. “We sell take-home sizes on-site, including two party pack options,” Shaffer said. “The Super Bowl will always bump those numbers up, too.”

Verdict: Yadi & Peter are all about Whitey’s lore. The place is always a vibe — replete with townies, outdoor enthusiasts, bikers, business lunchers, sports fanatics and more. Who else in our seven-county reader footprint is offering a “chili flight” the way that a microbrewery would for beer? Exactly. Fun fact: Whitey’s business “actually picked up” in 1994, after the permanent closure of Nick Mileti’s “Palace on the Prairie,” Richfield Coliseum. Seems counterintuitive, right?

The charismatic Shaffer had a one-word answer on what changed for the better — traffic.

Whitey’s Booze N’ Burgers, 3600 Brecksville Road, Richfield, OH 44286 330-659-3600

whiteys.com / whiteyschili.com

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Cleveland, OH

GCSC Summer Golf Classic | Greater Cleveland Sports Commission

Published

3 hours ago

August 4, 2024

Press Room

GCSC Summer Golf Classic | Greater Cleveland Sports Commission

Get Your Golf On!
Golfers of all abilities are invited to play in GCSC’s Summer Golf Classic presented by First National Bank on Monday, August 5, 2024 at Cleveland Metroparks Sleepy Hollow.
Join us for a day of 18 holes with cart featuring beverages, contests & prizes, lunch and a buffet dinner.
FORMAT:…

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Cleveland, OH

Fatal shooting on east side after reports of large fight: Cleveland Police

Published

10 hours ago

August 4, 2024

Press Room

Fatal shooting on east side after reports of large fight: Cleveland Police

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – One man is dead after a shooting following reports of a large fight on the east side, according to Cleveland Police.

Police got reports of a large fight around 2:50 a.m. on Saturday in the 1000 block of East 71st Street.

While officers were en route, they learned that two people were shot.

Police located a 22-year-old man and a 24-year-old man who were both shot, according to a release.

Both of the men were taken to the hospital by EMS.

The 22-year-old man later died at the hospital.

The condition of the 24-year-old is unknown.

Cleveland Police homicide unit is investigating, according to police.

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Cleveland, OH

WWE SummerSlam 2024 Results: Winners And Grades On August 3, 2024

Published

18 hours ago

August 4, 2024

Press Room

WWE SummerSlam 2024 results

Credit: WWE.com

WWE SummerSlam 2024 from Cleveland, Ohio advertised six championship matches. Among them was Solo Sikoa challenging Cody Rhodes for the WWE Undisputed Championship, LA Knight challenging Logan Paul for the WWE United States Championship, Sami Zayn defending the WWE Intercontinental Championship against Bron Breakker and GUNTHER challenging Damian Priest for the WWE World Championship.

This week’s broadcast of WWE Raw garnered 1.412 million viewers on SyFy after being preempted by the Olympics.

WWE SummerSlam Results | August 3, 2024

Liv Morgan def. Rhea Ripley | WWE Women’s World Championship
Bron Breakker def. Sami Zayn | WWE Intercontinental Championship
LA Knight def. Logan Paul | WWE United States Championship
Nia Jax def. Bayley | WWE Women’s Championship
Drew McIntyre def. CM Punk
GUNTHER def. Damian Priest | WWE World Heavyweight Championship
Cody Rhodes def. Solo Sikoa | WWE Undisputed Championship

WWE SummerSlam 2024 Ticket Sales

WWE SummerSlam 2024 Venue: Cleveland Browns Stadium (Cleveland, OH)
WWE SummerSlam 2024 Tickets Distributed: 55,858
WWE SummerSlam 2024 Tickets Available: 807

WWE Money In The Bank 2024 Winners And Grades

Liv Morgan Def. Rhea Ripley

Despite all the talk of The Judgment Day competing by themselves, Dominik Mysterio accompanied Rhea Ripley to the ring.

Michael Cole noted the last time Rhea Ripley lost a singles match was 26 months ago. To Liv Morgan.

This match started as a cat-and-mouse as Liv ran away from Ripley. Fans became frustrated and booed Liv loudly.

Rhea dominated this match until Liv Morgan dodged a charging Ripley and followed up by throwing her, shoulder-first, into the turnbuckle. Ripley could be heard (kayfabe) saying “it’s out, it’s out!”

Fans were split as they made dueling chants of “let’s go Rhea/let’s go Liv!”

Liv Morgan (kayfabe) popped her shoulder back into place by running herself into the announce table and fans went crazy.

Ripley hit the riptide, but did not pin Morgan. Instead, she grabbed a steel chair that Morgan brought into the ring. Mysterio grabbed the chair from her, which was the wise decision because she would have gotten herself disqualified. This led to an Oblivion for a nearfall and “holy s—t” chants.

Dom distracted the ref, leading to an Oblivion on the steel chair for the win. After the match, Dominik Mysterio kissed Liv Morgan and they left together.

Backstage, Damian Priest was furious with Dominik Mysterio for his actions. Finn and the rest of the Judgment Day vowed to go find him. I don’t trust them.

Rhea Ripley vs. Liv Morgan Grade: A-

Bron Breakker Def. Sami Zayn

Bron Breakker hit his always impressive Breakkensteiner early on, then he proceeded to scream “quit!” at Sami Zayn.

Bron Breakker cut Sami Zayn off with a Spear, then he hit ayn with another Spear for the win. This wasn’t necessarily a squash match, but it was definitely a dominant win for Breakker.

Bron Breakker vs. Sami Zayn Grade: B

LA Knight Def. Logan Paul

Logan Paul wore a Cleveland-inspired American Flag vest and greeted two security guards on his way to the ring. One of hte security guards turned out to be Cleveland’s own MGK.

LA Knight shattered the glass on Logan Paul’s Prime vehicle before making his way to the ring.

Paul cleared the table, but LA Knight got the better of him with a modified TKO, though the table didn’t break.

Paul won these people over with a springboard moonsault on LA Knight. Though they cheered the spot, they eventually came to their senses and chanted “you still suck!”

After jumping up on the top rope, LA Knight hit a scary looking superplex. Fans chanted “this is awesome” after a nearfall.

Logan Paul borrowed brass knuckles from MGK. After a shot to LA Knight, Knight countered with a BFT.

Logan Paul vs. LA Knight Grade: A-

Nia Jax Def. Bayley

Bayley relentlessly knocked Nia Jax off her feet early in the match.

Nia Jax took control of the match, to the point where she hit the Annihilator, but Bayley kicked out.

Jax called herself “reckless” and “clumsy” while trash-talking Bayley on offense.

Bayley hit an awesome power bomb on Nia Jax from the top rope. The fans were fervently into a match that struggled to follow Logan Paul vs. LA Knight.

A Tiffany Stratton cash-in was thwarted by Bayley, but the distraction led to two power bombs and two Annihilators for the win.

Nia Jax vs. Bayley Grade: A-

Drew McIntyre Def. CM Punk

Seth Rollins walked out in a long cloak, and what was under the jacket was certain to be even wilder.

WWE used ref cameras on the referee’s ear, and there were never more ref cam shots than during Seth Rollins’ entrance.

Rollins’ referee outfit were baggy, bedazzled pants and a cutoff shirt similar to Shawn Michaels.

Fans chanted “CM Punk” to start the match as punk donned pink gear in homage to Bret Hart.

Rollins did a great job working the fans into a frenzy before ringing the bell. When the bell rang, Punk and McIntyre brawled like crazy.

Instead of counting to 10 while Punk and McIntyre were outside of the ring, Rollins instead chose to tie his shoes. Rollins also took immense pleasure in seeing Punk and Rollins beat the hell out of one another.

During an Anaconda Vice on McIntyre, Punk secured his friendship bracelet and the entire stadium celebrated.

Punk stopped his GTS on McIntyre dead in its tracks and confronted Rollins about wearing his bracelet, which Rollins picked up off the ground did wear, but out of no malice.

After a ref bump and a nearfall (followed by a second visual pinfall), Punk and Rollins got into a heated argument. Punk hit a Go To Sleep on Rollins and took his bracelet back, but it cost him the match.

Drew McIntyre vs. CM Punk Grade: B+

GUNTHER Def. Damian Priest

Finn Balor wished Damian Priest luck before the match. Famous last words.

GUNTHER already had chop marks on his chest before the match even started.

GUNTHER and Priest chopped the hell out of one another to the point where GUNTHER was bleeding from the chest.

Finn Balor hit the ring, presumably to save Priest, but he ended up costing Priest the WWE World Heavyweight Championship by putting GUNTHER’s leg on the bottom rope.

After this match, Jelly Roll, The Miz and R-Truth took out A-Town Down Under.

GUNTHER vs. Damian Priest Grade: B+

Cody Rhodes Def. Solo Sikoa

Cody Rhodes ran into Arn Anderson backstage, and Anderson said he called in a few favors to a few allies of Cody Rhodes. Some of whom he knows, some he doesn’t.

For a full recap of Cody vs. Solo Sikoa in Bloodline Rules, click here.

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