The Power of Amp 150

Positively Cleveland, the civic organization tasked with promoting our fair city, should be grateful for what chef Ellis Cooley is doing at Amp 150. Our convention and visitors bureau does a fabulous job marketing Cleveland's world-class culinary scene to tourists and journalists by organizing culinary fam tours and posting food-based itineraries on its website. But the truth is, many business travelers never step foot out of their hotel except to attend meetings. If those travelers are holed up at the Airport Marriott, they still will leave town thinking this city's food scene rocks.

Ignoring a restaurant because it resides in a hotel is not only unfair, it is unwise, as some of the best bistros in the world happen to be housed in inns. Granted, those lodgings tend not to be situated in the flight path of a descending airliner as it makes its approach into Hopkins International.

Opening this past fall, Amp 150 replaced the aging Jack’s Steakhouse, and it is the crowning touch on a $20-million makeover of the entire building. The hotel's owners not only redesigned the restaurant, they reconfigured the lobby so that the two entities seamlessly connect. Guests checking in at the front desk now have an unobstructed view of diners in Amp's lounge, and vice versa.

Airport hotel restaurants typically are more concerned with arrivals and departures than their own host cities. But ever since landing in Cleveland, executive chef Cooley has endeavored to become a part of the local food fabric. He and his restaurant volunteer at area fundraisers. The kitchen purchases a large percentage of local ingredients. And the chef is becoming a regular on regional network television.

Best described as contemporary American, Amp's food is modern, original, clean and focused, with the occasional pleasant surprise. The lengthy menu is split into sections for sharable items, small plates, entrees and sides. And while the practice of dividing and subdividing menus can grow tiresome, the model works well at a hotel, where guests pop in at all hours of the day in groups of one to many. Items start as low as $4 for a plate of yeast-dusted house-fried potato chips and top out at $19 for a bone-in tenderloin. Most dishes, however, fall in the $8-to-15 range.

It's not uncommon to see airline employees in the lounge sipping local crafts beers while sharing cracker-thin flatbreads ($10) topped with oyster mushrooms, Ohio goat cheese and celery leaves. Other delightful starters include silky chicken liver mousse ($8) paired with hearty grilled bread, and mussels ($8) braised in a kicky ginger and lemongrass-spiked broth. A Latino-style chicken soup ($6) features a fortified broth garnished with avocado, jalapeño, cilantro and irresistible corn dumplings. Better still is Amp's velvet mushroom soup ($5), named for the ethereal texture of this dreamy whipped bisque.

At Amp, one needn't spend a lot to enjoy luxe seafood dishes. The "small bites" section of the menu offers elegant entrees in miniature, such as copper-colored glazed cod ($9) served in a smoky onion broth dotted with edamame and bok choy. Scallop fans will go nuts for Cooley's take, deeply seared and presented with pea shoots, pickled ramps, and a seductive coconut cream.

Because the kitchen relies as much as possible on local ingredients, the menu undergoes frequent tweaks. In fall, I enjoyed a chunky pasta ($15) enriched with fork-tender braised rabbit and wilted autumn greens. Heralding the arrival of spring, morel mushrooms gilded a remarkably flavorful roasted free-range chicken ($15). I loved the decision to pair the dish with a warm potato salad – a fitting seasonal bridge between winter and summer.

Of all the items we sampled, the only downers were a gamey, fatty flank of braised lamb ($15), and a too-mild-for-our-tastes filet of arctic char ($16). The latter's flavor was not assisted much by a timid saffron broth.

Given its breadth and depth, Amp's menu is murder on fickle foodies. My suggestion? Leave the driving to Cooley by ordering the four- or six-course chef's choice tasting menu. Priced well below market at $30 and $45 respectively, the food-filled feast allows diners to enjoy a wide range of the kitchen's talents without calling a single shot. Ours ended with a sinfully delicious dessert called milk chocolate panna cotta. Like a gourmet malted, the shake was layered with salty caramel and crunchy hazelnuts.

Amp 150 continues to upend stereotypes. The so-called "airport hotel" is in the midst of installing a quarter-acre garden that will supply the kitchen with sun-ripened herbs, fruits and veggies. To pollinate those goodies, Amp is consulting with a beekeeper to establish an onsite hive.

Positively Cleveland may soon be sending hungry tourists back to the airport.

Amp 150
4277 W. 150th St., Cleveland
216.706.8787