Seared, Brecksville

Seafood typically makes the trek from ocean to Seared in fewer than 24 hours, mingling with organic, locally sourced veggies and house-made dressings and marinades before adorning tabletops in a century-old building that started life as a schoolhouse. Hidden in the restaurant's name is its trinary mission: to champion the arts of grilling and pan searing, to create a sizzling-fun dining environment, and to supply a delicious variety of seafood and red meat. In Seared's sights and smells, these three themes are evident. Pineapple-mango emulsion tinges the pan-seared mahi-mahi with fruity flavors, and an overlay of gorgonzola cheese tops a tender Prime cut steak offered in an open, two-tiered dining room with exposed wooden beams and vaulted ceilings. Intricate wrought-iron gates swing into a separate wine room for six that harbors more than 30 wines. Thursday–Saturday, specialty martinis flow more freely than rogue water, complementing a raw-bar showcase stocked with fresh seafood strewn artfully across ice. Adding to the cheerfully old-fashioned ambiance is a wood-burning fireplace, which crackles beneath a stone mantel and archway near the lounge's leather couches and wooden coffee table.