Michael Symon's Mabel's BBQ has smoked up plenty of press since the much anticipated meat emporium opened its doors on East Fourth Street last year. Mabel's may be Cleveland's go-to barbecue joint at the moment, but the city boasts a growing list of savory options for folks seeking to satisfy their carnivorous cravings. Fresh Water is happy to deliver the deliciousness with these BBQ hot spots at points across the 216.

Get the smokin' list — including the 411 on Proper Sloppers and chicken cupcakes here. 
 

Tucked away on East 41^th Street just across the way from Tyler Village, Stephen Yusko is toiling away at his studio wherein you'll find milling machines and band saws and the usual residents in a metalworking shop. But Yusko's tools also include anvils, a white-hot forge and the tongs and hammers that transform steel into the smith's graceful designs.
 
"My work is a combination of forging, machining and fabricating. It seems like more machining, but it always starts with a forged … something," says Yusko. "I enjoy that process: heating up a bar of steel and transforming it into a shape."
 
Yusko continues while a cat named M slinks around the shop, completely unimpressed by the craftsman's lofty musings:

Read them here, and find out where this able smith like to sup when he's not manning the forge.

As a former stand-up comedian and co-founder of the humor-fueled speechwriting startup, Laugh Staff, Josh Womack knows funny.
 
Sure, it's been years since Womack took the stage, and he doesn't write for Laugh Staff as much as he used to, but that doesn't mean he's lost his edge. Quite the contrary, as Womack's new job as a copywriter for Progressive has kept him sharp, inspired and motivated to take on new creative challenges.

Get his whole story, including what it's like to write for Flo, here.

A new food truck concept is rolling through Cleveland this summer, one that emphasizes lickety-split service, child-friendly meals, and locally sourced favorites while a single proprietor keeps watch.
 
That man is Jason Lawenda, who recently launched his Food Buggy retro concession trailer as part of All Culinary Services, a small events catering company. The buggy — an Airstream trailer that resembles an oversized sleep pod from a science fiction movie — transports fare prepared by local food artisans as well as the owner.

Read what he's dishing up and where you can find it here.

Welcome to the inaugural edition of "Over The River," a monthly calendar of exciting activities taking place throughout the area. Have a fun event you want to share with your fellow Clevelanders? Send us your freshest happenings.

Click here for our May listing, which is full up with a confluence of art and poetry, live mural painting and even a Frog Bride.

Before launching her OY-L skincare business,  Andrea Pierce-Naymon learned all she could about what ingredients went into the cosmetics women use daily. What she discovered was disturbing to say the least.
 
Many of the products Pierce-Naymon and millions of other women use contain synthetic preservatives called parabens, typically found in foods as well as personal care items such as deodorants, moisturizers and shampoos. Parabens mimic estrogen and disrupt the body's hormone system, which has been linked to an increased risk of breast cancer and reproductive problems.  

Find out what she did about it here.

Shuffleboard is sliding its way into Cleveland later this month with a side order of food, drink and puck-flinging good times.

Forest City Shuffleboard Arena & Bar, the mindchild of owner Jim Miketo and his wife, Kari, is scheduled to open May 18 at 4506 Lorain Avenue in Ohio City, the former site of the Supermercado Rico grocery. As part of its 7,500 square feet of fun, Forest City Shuffle presents seven regulation shuffleboard courts and two 22-foot-long shuffleboard tables. Game-playing patrons can enjoy a selection of local and regional beers along with a rotating cast of pop-up food providers such as Half Moon Bakery.
 
Cleveland's nightlife scene boasts the occasional shuffleboard table or small court, says Miketo, but there's nothing in the area like what he has to offer.
 
Get the rest of the story here.

Hop onto any social thread discussing Cleveland's best pizza and you're likely to see Battery Park's CHA on the list. Scotti's Italian Eatery on East 185^th surely has it's fans. Others swear by Crust.

But the one place you're sure to find, the one that's been white-hot since opening its doors a little more than a year ago on Waterloo Road in Collinwood, is Citizen Pie, wherein locals cannot get enough of the authentic Neapolitan pizzas served up in the tiny 875-square-foot space that sits opposite the Beachland Ballroom.
 
Now as construction rumbles on at Citizen's second location in Ohio City, we thought we'd uncover a few fast facts about this unique Cleveland biz that you may not know.

Discover them here.

The Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging has launched a new program that allows early-stage dementia patients to participate in their own care planning, potentially easing the burden for both the person with dementia and their concerned family members.  
 
Known as SHARE, the program outlines a care plan for loved ones to follow as the condition progresses. Based on two decades of research by Benjamin Rose, the SHARE toolkit includes an iPad app which lists tasks in a set of color-coded circular diagrams.  Under the guidance of SHARE counselors, duties can then be assigned to caregivers, whether they're family, friends or professional service providers.  
 
"It's a pictorial expression of the communication," says Benjamin Rose president and CEO Richard Browdie. "The app captures the evolution of the conversation so you're not going to back to zero the next time you meet."
 
Browdie says SHARE enables early-stage dementia patients to contribute in planning of daily activities such as finance management, food shopping and preparation, and personal hygiene. Planning these tasks is also a stress reliever for people who feel overwhelmed by a family member's diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease of other form of dementia.
 
"It builds confidence that they're doing the right thing, because they're doing all they can," says Browdie. "That can be empowering for the caregiver when guilt or self-doubt creeps in."
 
Investigation conducted by the Benjamin Rose Center for Research and Education indicates that early-stage dementia patients benefit from active participation in their care plan. Ongoing communication increases knowledge about available services, and preempts difficult questions regarding care that may be embarrassing for the recipient, such as feeding themselves or using the bathroom.
 
SHARE - an acronym for Support, Health, Activities, Resources, and Education — is currently available to professional organizations that serve families and individuals living with dementia in its earlier stages. Utilizing this technology, proponents say, can give people diagnosed with dementia the confidence that their needs will be met down the road.  
 
"People used to think Alzheimer's was a switch off/switch on kind of disease, but it's progress is gradual" says Browdie. "Communicating with a care recipient while dementia is advancing can alleviate some of those stresses." 

On Friday, May 5, from 6 – 9 p.m., SPACES will host an opening reception of The First 100+ Days, which is an exhibition of Ohio-based artists’ responses to the initial phase of Trump’s presidency — specifically regarding his immigration policy.
 
The artworks feature stories from immigrant and refugee communities while addressing the practical application of the Trump administration’s direction. The exhibition also considers how the media influences political discourse and aims to capture the radical potential of artistic activism.
 
The hard-hitting and varied responses from artists living in Ohio — a strategically positioned swing state — will be accompanied by a timeline of actions taken since President Trump's Jan. 20 inauguration that have introduced, enacted, and protested changing immigration policies during these politically turbulent times. 
 
Participating artists include Julia Christensen, Ryan Dewey, Michelangelo Lovelace, Home Affairs (Arzu Ozkal, Claudia Pederson, Nanette Yannuzzi), Tony Ingrisano, Kelley O’Brien, Darice Polo, John C. Williams, and Megan Young.
 
The First 100+ Days will be on display through June 30 and is curated by SPACES executive director, Christina Vassallo, with assistance from Karl Anderson. The gallery is located at 2900 Detroit Ave. in Hingetown.

To complement the exhibition, SPACES is offering a number of companion events to further explore U.S, immigration policy.

FamilySPACES, Saturday, June 4, 2 – 4 p.m.: Art-making activities to help families talk with children about the changing world.
 
Sanctuary City Potluck, Thursday, June 8, 6 – 8 p.m.: Dinner and panel discussion on how to be a community ally.
 
Live Jury, Saturday, June 24, 2 – 4 pm: Artists and architects are invited to submit U.S.-Canada border wall designs to the Unofficial Global Barrier-Centric Design Competition. Shortlisted entries will be judged on this day before a live jury.
 
Fact or Fiction?, June 29, 6 – 8 p.m.: An evening of alternative fact trivia and print making, presented by April Bleakney. Attendees are invited to learn about the impact of the printing press in resistance efforts throughout history and to make a print to take home.
 
Additional events may be added. Check the SPACES event calendar for updates.

 

Parenthood is not always an easy journey for expectant families unsure where to turn for guidance on birth planning and decision-making. Luckily, navigating parents along childbirth's sometimes rocky path is the mission of a business created by Clevelander Ashley Sova.
 
CLEBaby is a full-service pregnancy, birth, and parenting agency that hosts local events, presents childbirth education classes, and, perhaps most importantly to its founder, provides postpartum doula services. 
 
Sova offers educational tools that treat parenthood as an ongoing process that begins during pregnancy and continues through a baby's first months. Classes are taught in a client's home and center on a range of topics covering pregnancy, labor and birth. Sova's clientele, mostly professional women ages 27 – 40, prefer the comfortable nature of private classes over a more sterile hospital learning environment.
 
"They can ask embarrassing questions, and find out the information that matters for their birth experience," says Sova. "People will invite their pregnant friends and make it into a group event."
 
Teaching the classes are professionally trained doulas, who act as travel guides in advising families during pregnancy, birth and the immediate postpartum period. CLEBaby's postpartum doulas are also brought on to help with infant feeding and light housework, and offer mothers critical support in whatever ways they need to recover from childbirth.
 
Sova hired a doula for her second pregnancy after a difficult birth with her first child. Having an informed, supportive resource close at hand was a revelation, she says, one that inspired her to launch CLEBaby instead of returning to her job as a cancer researcher at Case Western Reserve University.
 
"Having an experienced woman who has seen so many births and knows it inside out brings such a sense of calm," Sova says. "We've had women tell us the service has been life-changing for them."
 
CLEBaby has served 50 to 55 families over the last year, a number Sova plans to grow through new classes and events. Outings for 2017 include a mom-centric ice cream social and a "daddy bootcamp" at a local brewery where new fathers can sip a beer while learning basic baby care.
 
Raising a newborn may not be all glitz and glamour, but neither should it be overwhelming or isolating, says Sova.
 
"We're going to continue to grow our services and our team," she says. "We want to continue on the path of having the most knowledgeable doulas around."