By: Carlo Wolff
Keep your eyes peeled for Cent’ Anni, the specialty cocktail bar that opened in Cleveland’s Little Italy neighborhood this winter. The bar, which is devoted to Italian bitters, is a short walk from Mayfield Road near its corner with East 124th Place.
It seats 40 inside, a multi-partitioned, creatively appointed and entertaining space that used to be a one-bedroom apartment. Another 40 can share tables outside, a natural resting place, particularly for summer strollers. There’s no storefront, but a jazzy Cent’ Anni sign suggests another world awaits. Take the step and enter.
“Cent’ Anni is the culmination of my passion for hospitality, my intense interest in the history of spirits and cocktails, and my fascination and admiration for those at the top of the cocktail world,” says Michael Paley, a former resident of Little Italy who now lives in Cleveland Heights, and one of the partners behind the bar. “I love the art and craft of cocktails and the practice of super hospitality.”
A group of eight businessmen spearheaded by Paley, a radiologist, brought this flavorful homage to all things Italian – particularly the drinks, mostly herb-based, that country is known for – to fruition. Cent’ Anni is Paley’s vision.
A longtime fan of Little Italy, a popular Cleveland tourist area, Paley honed the idea that became Cent’ Anni with David Orloff, a businessman and fellow amaro lover he met before COVID-19. Paley was a congregant of Park Synagogue, now in Pepper Pike, as a child and raised his own children through The Temple-Tifereth Israel in Beachwood. His brother, Andrew, is a rabbi in Dallas, and his great-grandfather, Eiser Paley, was a rabbi at Heights Jewish Center Synagogue in University Heights.
Orloff and Paley were introduced by Terry Tarantino, the owner of La Dolce Vita, an Italian restaurant at Mayfield and Murray Hill roads, and the two bonded over the notion of a dedicated cocktail bar that would complement the area’s restaurants and gastropubs. Orloff and his partners, a group of investors who buy buildings in Little Italy for renovation and repurposing, had similar interests.
An insurance specialist at Oswald Companies, Orloff also is a member of Preservation Partners of Little Italy, an interdisciplinary group that includes a lawyer, a professional sports coach and a former industrialist. After Paley and Orloff began to formulate a bar specializing in the aperitivos and digestifs both favor, Preservation Partners brought Paley into the venture, along with Valerio Iorio, owner of the nearby restaurant Valerio’s. The group also includes Marc Glassman, owner of the Marc’s discount grocery-pharmacy chain.
“David Orloff and I are very hands-on, and Mike Fratello is also very hands-on when he is not traveling for basketball,” says Paley in a nod to the former Cleveland Cavaliers coach who is also part of the Cent’ Anni backers group. “We are not exactly owner-operators, but I oversee operations and David is hands-on with the construction, physical plant and also involved with overseeing the finances and social media.”
“We all have our various roles in this project,” says Orloff of Cent’ Anni, a “pizza bagel” whose mother is Italian and father is Jewish. “I was the one who has the relationships with the contractors, so I took on the responsibility of having the place built. Everyone else has contributed in various ways as well. Also, being a partner at Oswald Companies, naturally, I was responsible for having the insurance placed as well.”
Iorio, meanwhile, long wanted to open a pizza place, so becoming a partner in Cent’ Anni was a natural. He will run the pizza operation opening soon at the bar.
“It made more sense to do everything together,” Iorio says, “so that’s what we did. Everything is in place.”
“And having this all together allows us to serve drinks outside,” Paley adds. “It’s all about the liquor license. That’s the way it works.”
AMARO AMBIANCE
The 900 square feet inside Cent’ Anni spotlight a dark, glossy bar stocked with amaros, including ones from Paley’s private collection. Sensual art deco wallpaper, discreet lighting and large paintings of fanciful figures adorn several walls, diverse seating from group tables to intimate nooks encourages sociability, and the overall ambiance is inviting. Slightly edgy, big-time classy, Cent’ Anni aims to enhance a neighborhood Paley has grown to love.
Although some of his partners wanted to create a speakeasy, Paley had another idea. Speakeasies frequently feature evocations of Prohibition, when alcohol was outlawed and people had to break the law for a snootful. Even though Cent’ Anni is in a back alley, there’s nothing clandestine about it, he says. “We’re not really doing that secret thing.”
“We speak loudly,” says Iorio. As do the bitters Cent’ Anni offers. They include such Paley raves as Cynar, a rich, artichoke-based aperitivo; Sfumato, a smoky, woodsy variant; velvety Braulio; and Fernet-Branca, an edgy amaro that also works wonders on upset stomachs.
Such an array would make up a representative amaro flight during the bar’s Aperitivo Hour late afternoons, when Cent’ Anni serves craft cocktails that are purposely lower in alcohol content. Don’t look for a happy hour boasting cut prices and drinking to excess. The idea here, says Paley, is to offer guests an opportunity to relax, to soften the transition from the work day to the evening. Aperitivo Hour runs from 4 to 6 p.m., and all drinks are slightly pricier than those on the regular menu but come with nuts, olives and chips – snacks like bars in Italy offer to welcome customers for a before dinner drink.
Cent’ Anni also offers a charcuterie board, and bites of ricotta on bread (including a vegetarian option). Bar staff prepares the boards, and eight different Sicilian-style pizzas will be available soon. There also is a well-curated selection of Italian beer, sodas, cider and wine.
“The theme of this bar was my concept,” Paley says, “a kind of bar that celebrates Italian product, the aperitivo phenomenon and just amaro. I thought it just fit the neighborhood. That to me was what made sense in this neighborhood – to have something that celebrates Italian drinking style and culture.”
Cent’ Anni’s backers*
Jay Lucarelli – owner of Minutemen Staffing. He handles payroll and HR.
Michael Paley – radiologist who handles cocktail design and the overall concept for the bar.
David Orloff – vice president, specialty life at Oswald Companies.
Nicholas DiCello – partner at Spangenberg Shibley & Liber LLP. Counsel for legal matters.
Marc Glassman – owner of Marc’s grocery stores. Use of his entity for various bar items and contacts.
Valerio Iorio – owner of Valerio’s. Responsible for the pizza served and provides overall guidance on food and restaurant operation.
Mike Fratello – former head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers. Involved in many aspects of the bar ranging from staff management and direction, build-out recommendations, social media coordination and promotional aspects.
Bob Reiner – retired former owner of Joshen Paper & Packaging. He is the pied piper of the group – the one who brought most of the backers together, and it is his relationships that helped strengthen the group.
*As told to Jstyle by David Orloff