CMH Gourmand – Eating in Columbus & Ohio

When Marilou Suszko says, “if you are only going to eat one thing at the West Side Market, eat the stuffed Chicken wing”….you do it. Suszko and her colleague Laura Taxel know what that are talking about because they literally wrote the book on the West Side Market.

I had the pleasure to meet Laura Taxel and Marilou Suszko at the Greenhouse Tavern as part of my CLE Gourmand adventures earlier this month. I have read several books written by both over the years so it was an honor to spend time picking the minds of two ladies that know more about Cleveland Food and its history than I could begin to dream of. So when I heard mention of a must have chicken wing and the West Side Market my ears picked up and I started typing information into my iPhone.

For a mere $2.00 you can buy a simple but sumptuous stuffed chicken wing from Kim Se (section A on the market). The shop is owned by Sopheap Heng who is renown for cooking some of the best (in quality and value) Cambodian Cuisine in the city. The chicken wings come in two styles – both are stuffed to the bursting point with bean thread noodles and vegetables or vermicelli, lemon grass and peanuts. These portable bites offer a quick treat while dodging fellow shoppers from stall to stall and are an easy incentive to want to come back at the end of the shopping trip for a bigger meal. I limited myself to one of each type of wing and was pleased with both so I have added this to my must buy list when visiting the market (which means taking a large cooler with me).

Speaking of Marilou Suszko, she will be in town on November 9th as part of Pro Musica’s Culinary Capers series. Suszko was walking and talking locavore long before it became the buzz word and trend it is today so I am sure she will have a lot of share about great finds in our state.