AKRON, Ohio – Downtown Akron has undergone a series of changes, from restaurants to businesses to the Main Street Corridor project that reconstructed the thoroughfare over several years. One recent void has been fine dining.
Until now.
You could say Crave is a new old addition. Owners Aaron and Dana Hervey are shifting and evolving the adventurous restaurant, formerly on E. Market St., around the corner to its new home on Main.
Downtown – Main Street in particular - has had limited fine-dining choices in recent years. There’s plenty of bar-food places, and Cilantro Thai & Sushi Restaurant sits along Main on the same side as Crave. But Bricco down the street shut down, and options have been limited.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Aaron Hervey said. Opening day is Monday, June 27.
The impetus for the fresh start came as a result of Covid restrictions and rental costs, and Aaron Hervey can’t wait to open the doors officially.
“Even though we used to do really well from (Akron) Civic shows and Lock 3, now we’re right on top of it,” Hervey said.
The restaurant is in the Bowery District, which is seeing a resurgence. Residential units across the street are filling, he said, and it’s a block from city hall, a county building and courts.
“It’s just accessible,” Hervey said.
Even if you miss the engraved etching on the front of the building, when you walk inside the cavernous space it’s easy to see its old bank bones. With its huge ornate white ceiling, the Akron Savings and Loan Co. building will mark 100 years in 2023, Hervey said.
Crave covers 5,200 square feet on the street-level main floor. The upstairs area has another 3,300 square feet in the atrium-style design meant for additional dining area or private spaces, with 88 seats and 12 more at the bar. The restaurant is handicapped accessible.
Crave initially opened at Northside – another since recharged area in downtown Akron - two days after 9/11. After a couple of years of running the kitchen in that location, the restaurant moved to E. Market Street.
Hervey said talks started 15 months ago with Welty, the landlord and owner of five Bowery buildings. Even though supply-chain and other economic factors drove up some of the prices, Hervey kept his head down, his eyes focused on the end game.
“Absolute worst time and most expensive time to build a restaurant,” he said. “The train had kind of left the station – so it was buckle up, we signed the papers, so here we go.”
A couple of unique features are included in the restaurant:
A retail wine shop is located in the food takeout area.
“The (bottle selection) in the shop is not the stuff that is on our list,” he said.
That means diners have choices: Choose a bottle, pay corkage fee and enjoy with dinner. Or get a bottle to go after a meal – smart considering there are few nearby places to buy a bottle of wine. Or, for those picking up a meal, quickly peruse the offerings and buy a bottle or two to go for dinner at home.
A 24-hour grab-and-go self-automated kiosk section will have selected items. Everything from a chicken-salad wrap to Gatorade to assorted dry goods will be available. One frozen machine and a couple of refrigerated machines will be installed.
“It’s another revenue stream we didn’t have before,” Hervey said. Eventually, dinner offerings off the menu could be packaged, he added.
The restaurant takes advantage of its views: Main Street out front, and from a dining room out back, an overview of the nearby lock, outdoor walking area, mini waterfall and artwork. Crave is located within an expanded DORA district, the Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area that allows folks to saunter place to place with a drink, if preferred.
Some of the funky glass fixtures from the old space are being used in the new location, along with other artistic touches.
“We couldn’t affix anything, we couldn’t hang anything from the ceiling – nothing,” Hervey said about having to preserve the building’s integrity. “How are we going to light it? We knew we could do sconces on the walls and the pillars. So how are we going to get some ambient light?”
To solve that challenge, thin tasteful “laser lights” are strung between columns. Earth tones are used throughout the space, with fixtures and artwork providing a colorful contrast.
Speaking of lights, the main bar top is lit.
The first-floor bar area and rest of the dining room is segregated. In the dining room, booths from the previous location have been re-sprung, re-foamed and re-fabricated. Tables can accommodate assorted sizes.
And on those tables expect a variety of dishes that don’t follow any particular culinary niche.
Having been part of the Akron dining scene for so long has helped the Herveys guide the menu with chef Jimmy Pintiello, who heads up a kitchen staff of veteran cooks. Crave has a large kitchen with two walk-in coolers on the main level and one upstairs.
“You knew what they (diners) go for and what they don’t go for and what’s pushing the envelope,” Aaron Hervey said.
“Every time Jimmy and I would sit down at my house we’d have 18 cookbooks and we’re really trying to push it for some new ingredients and new flavors. (It’s an) amazing new spot; we wanted to elevate our game across the board.”
One of the menu “firsts” is Akron-style giardiniera, a collective nosh of pickled peppers, olives, garlic, herb oil, served with creamy whipped Feta-Boursin spread, focaccia, ciabatta and baguette.
“I’m a pickled-peppers guy and olives, and I got to messing around during Covid and playing with all these different chiles, mild chiles, and making giardiniera,” said Hervey, who also created the Feta-Boursin spread. “This is basically the bread service if you want it for your table. But it’s coming with spread and oil to dip in and olives. It was - pun intended - break some bread with everybody at the table, ‘let’s get some bread before we pick some other stuff.’ "
Crab cakes, calamari, steak skewers, pierogis and hamachi with avocado-cilantro mousse are among a dozen other “others.” “Nexts” include salads, duck confit and tomato grilled-cheese soup. “So on” will cover burgers, cornflake-crusted chicken, vegan chicken apple bratwurst, pulled pork, battered cod and more. And “So Forth” will be entrees – short rib, hanger steak, bucatini carbonara, several fish dishes and more.
The Herveys have been busy; their Crave Cantina, a 24-foot wide taqueria, was one of the first places to go into the refurbished Front Street in Cuyahoga Falls when it opened in May 2017.
In the new location, a 45-seat patio with soft seating is in the works down the road, and Sunday brunch is a possibility this winter.
“It’s a big baby,” Hervey said. “There’s a lot going on.”
Coming out of Covid and with more than two decades of experience in the local dining scene, Hervey takes the challenges of the build-out in stride.
“Living in limbo for so long in the building stage,” he said. “And now, it’s like, ‘It’s really here?’ "
If you go
Where it is: Crave is at 156 S. Main St., about 38 miles from downtown Cleveland.
Parking: Nearby streets and the Cascade deck, which will lead diners to an elevator to the first floor. Valet also will be offered.
Hours: Hours are being worked out but probably will be 11 a.m. Monday to Thursday with food service stopping at 10 p.m.; 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday, and then opening mid-afternoon Saturday to 11 p.m. Closed Sunday.
I am on cleveland.com’s life and culture team and cover food, beer, wine and sports-related topics. If you want to see my stories, here’s a directory on cleveland.com. Bill Wills of WTAM-1100 and I talk food and drink usually at 8:20 a.m. Thursday morning. Twitter: @mbona30.
Get a jumpstart on the weekend and sign up for Cleveland.com’s weekly “In the CLE” email newsletter, your essential guide to the top things to do in Greater Cleveland. It will arrive in your inbox on Friday mornings - an exclusive to-do list, focusing on the best of the weekend fun. Restaurants, music, movies, performing arts, family fun and more. Just click here to subscribe. All cleveland.com newsletters are free.
Like cool local food + drinks photos and videos? Follow @DineDrinkCLE on Instagram.
Ad Choices