Peter Shears
Canton, Ohio
October 2007
5 stars out of 5

I understand now why the first page of Peter Shears Downtown website reads “Canton’s Only Five Star Restaurant” after the dinner I experienced this evening. We are talking top of the line ingredients, beautiful atmosphere, extremely knowledgeable staff and exquisite cuisine. Considering I am a self-proclaimed foodie, I’m known to be very nitpicky over my food, so it was surprising when I found myself saying, “can I kiss the chef”? Granted, I was little surprised when Chef Michael Meffe visited us at the table for fear he was coming to claim his prize but luckily he didn’t hear me.

Let’s take a food tour, shall we? Imagine, if you will, a homemade, pineapple upside-down cake. Do you have the mental image of that sweet, yet savory tropical delight? Now flip that bad boy into a martini glass, add a little vodka you have a very good start to your evening. I loved this martini and the fact that it didn’t change my meal in any way, unlike some alcoholic beverages which can alter the tastes of your entree. Peter Shears’ martini menu is as extensive as is their wine selection, so you have pretty high chance of finding your fav.

To get started, Chef Meffe sent out a spring roll bite for each of us meant to cleanse our palate, tantalize our tongues and prepare us to enjoy our meal. The soft spring roll filled with cucumber, carrots, bean sprouts, fresh cilantro and other refreshingly crisp vegetables cleared our taste buds as we awaited our newly ordered appetizers. Even if you aren’t a fan of the rabbit food, you can not skip this step as far as I’m concerned. You really reset your mouth to enjoy each flavor as it comes and that is necessary for this high quality of food.

The two appetizers arrived and we knew very well between the four of us, we were ready to slap, grab or stab those we called friends to get our “fair share” of each portion of the Shears Sampler. The sampler contained a combination of shrimp cocktail with humongous shrimp, peppers stuffed with a spicy Italian sausage and sprinkled with melted cheese, Shears’ award-winning crab cakes and cashew encrusted calamari. The calamari was light and faintly sweet to the taste. The crab cake was fresh lump crab meat with a beautiful aioli dipping sauce. We also had the grilled lobster tail with asparagus in a vanilla cognac cream. I think this is about the time I started expressing my love for the kitchen and wait staff, because the vanilla cognac cream alone would make me drive from home just to taste it again. I sat their trying to pick out the ingredients, but finally gave up and asked Rob, our waiter, to bring another little bowl so that I could dip everything in it, including my finger.

Earlier in the day when were deciding where to go, Amy, one of my coworker from Canton said “You have go to Peter Shears and try their Goat Cheese Salad”. Needless to say, I have very smart co-workers. Perfect. Fresh mixed field greens, fresh and sun-dried strawberries, toasted pine nuts, warm goat cheese and maple balsamic peppercorn vinaigrette.

Now for our entrees, we had four fantastic specials from which to choose, including a Grade 7 Kobe Steak that I am sure is out of this world. Rob recommended the “Surf and Surf” route with the Australian Barramundi special. I’ll take this time to say that Rob had to be the best, I don’t even want to call him a waiter, host I have ever had. He didn’t regurgitate some menu items for each of the entrees; he actually knew what he was talking about. He went into such detail about Cajun Taso Ham and the origins of Kobe Steaks that I thought I was listening to Alton Brown from The Food Network.

My entrée arrived: the delightful Australian Barramundi served pan seared with a cold Alaskan King Crab Salad, mashed potatoes and crisp asparagus. Barramundi fish are flat whitefish that were discovered in the Australian rivers where they are known to natives as salmon or baramunda. In our American culture, their flaky white coloration and mildly sweet flavor is a far cry from the pinky, steak-like flesh of our typical salmon. Being pan-seared, the exterior was crispy, giving it an excellent contrast to the chunky lumps of king crab in the cold salad.

To finish off the night, we each chose a delectable dessert with an aromatic coffee. To accompany the variety of dessert choices, Peter Shears also gives you the option of having a paired dessert wine. I chose my absolute favorite dessert, Crème Brulee, and am I so glad I did. The sugar crust was crunchy and sweet followed by the smooth rich custard below its golden crown. The evening could not have ended better.

I left Canton the next morning to fly back to the ‘Ham with a slight tinge of jealousy. With Peter Shears’ lunch and dinner menus readily accessible to my co-workers, I daydreamed of some miraculous job transfer that would allow me eat there more often. I will say that I visited four wonderful restaurants during my visit to Ohio and found myself very impressed with the fine dining and attention to detail of this areas food industry. I look forward to another visit and I recommend that anyone visiting the area stop by the downtown area of Canton to experience the joy that was my fantastic five star evening at Peter Shears.

Cheers!

For more information visit www.petershears.com or visit them at 427 E. Tuscarawas, Canton, Ohio, 44702.