Immigrant musician took a chance opening International Food & Deli

December 20, 2012October 10, 2016Leave a comment

International Food & Deli, opened with the slimmest of resources.

Sozanski, a violinist who once played for the philharmonic orchestra of Lviv, Ukraine, runs one of the busiest enterprises in the Ukrainian Village section of Parma. His grocery store and adjacent party center attract a multilingual crowd to offerings of Ukrainian pastas, German sausages, Polish polkas and, occasionally, rousing Cossack dances.

Regulars come in for the sausages and kielbasa draped from racks behind the counter, for the rich European-style cakes and tortes in the bakery case and for the mineral waters that spring from cherished fonts back home in eastern Europe.

Most members of the staff speak several languages, certainly Ukrainian. But English is common, too. Many of the customers are first- and second-generation Americans rediscovering the foods of their childhood.

International Food & Deli is located at 5850 State Road in Parma’s Ukrainian Village.

Read on at: http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2012/12/risk_takers_immigrants_took_a.html

Garden club and Boy Scouts plant flowers in Ukrainian Heritage Park in Parma

November 11, 2012October 10, 2016Leave a comment

Beautification underway in Parma’s Ukrainian Village.

The Ridgewood Garden Club of Parma and Boy Scouts Troop 221 planted 250 daffodil bulbs in Ukrainian Heritage Park on Oct. 22.

The park is on State Road in Parma.

Petitti Garden Centers and Royal Victorian Garden Center donated 150 bulbs and the garden club bought the rest.

Source: http://www.cleveland.com/parma/index.ssf/2012/11/garden_club_and_boy_scouts_pla.html

George and Maria Salo bring taste of Ukraine and France to Northeast Ohio at State Meats

December 18, 2011October 10, 2016Leave a comment

Today, State Meats is a smokehouse shop.

“We process and smoke our own items right at our facility,” said George. “We’re primarily doing pork. We are known for our smoked kielbasa, homemade luncheon meats, cottage hams, Canadian bacon, kishka or blood sausage, hurka or rice sausage, head cheese, goose liver, smokies, and more.”

Some of the more popular items are ham krakow, which is a very garlicky Eastern European ham, and State Meat’s own bacon. All salads and sides are prepared next door at Mama Maria’s kitchen. One of the most popular is Olivia’, a homemade ethnic potato salad.

State Meats also wholesales out to a few grocery stores such as Bassett’s Market in Port Clinton, West Point Market in Akron, and Miles Farmer’s Market. Babushka’s Kitchen in Northfield and Independence is one of its best customers.

“I’m so happy I took on this challenge,” said George. “The people are great and I like making sure that my customers are happy.” Although he says that he loves being his own boss, he fondly says that Mom has really been the boss for the last 25 years.

State Meats is located at 5338 State Rd in Parma’s Ukrainian Village.

Groundbreaking Ceremony Held For Ukrainian Heritage Park

September 1, 2010December 13, 2015Leave a comment

One Parma resident’s observation at the park groundbreaking ceremony:

“On Sunday, August 22, a Groundbreaking Ceremony was held in Ukrainian Village at the future site of what will be Ukrainian Heritage Park…Like all events in Ukrainian Village which I have had the pleasure to attend, this one was as meticulously planned as any other. Any group planning any event anywhere can learn a lot from the folks in Ukrainian Village – they really know how to celebrate the moment; nothing ever seems to be left to chance, and their hallmark is clock-like efficiency. Even the weather seemed to cooperate, as what seemed to be imminent rain subsided just in time, and the sun actually started to show itself as the ceremony began.”

New Park In Ukrainian Village

August 3, 2010December 13, 2015Leave a comment

park-sign On Sunday, August 22nd at 2:00 p.m., a groundbreaking ceremony will take place to bless a plot of land across from St. Josaphat’s Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral. This 40’ by 120’ lot has been allocated by the city of Parma to be the future home of Ukrainian Village’s new “Heritage Park.” Mayor DePiero, Eric Tollerup, Parma’s Director of Community Development, members of Council, and of course the Ukrainian community will gather together for a formal dedication of the land for the future park. The mayor and Ukrainian community leaders will speak at the dedication. The Ukrainian clergy, including the bishops will bless the park sight. This is just the beginning of this wonderful project. Currently plans are being reviewed for the landscape design and the sculpture that will adorn the center of the park. The park will be a place for relaxation and reflection for walkers by and visitors. The City of Parma continues to recognize the economic impact that Ukrainian residents, including the new wave of immigrants, have made on the City of Parma. Ukrainians are Parma’s largest new immigrant demographic.

After the ceremony, the Ukrainian community will proceed and walk to St. Vladimir’s Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral to celebrate Ukraine’s Independence Day which is August 24th. This anniversary marks the 19th anniversary of Ukrainian independence from the former Soviet Union.

The celebration will culminate the following Saturday, August 28th, with a Ukrainian Village Festival which will be held at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Cathedral from 12:00 noon till 11:00 PM. Featured will be Ukrainian foods, dancers, arts and crafts, a polka band and a tour of the cathedral. All are welcome.

Source: http://www.parmaobserver.com/read/2010/08/03/new-park-in-ukrainian-village

Lviv International Foods thrives on ethnic Easter traditions

March 31, 2010October 10, 2016Leave a comment

Freshly shaved loaves of ham, salami and head cheese sit stacked high in the deli case at Lviv International Foods in Parma.

Any day looks like an ethnic holiday at this sparkling Ukrainian grocery store. And with the unusual concurrence this year of both Orthodox and non-Orthodox Easters this Sunday, things will only get busier.

She and her staff make a wide assortment of their own pierogi. They bake Vie de France bread from purchased dough several times a day, and will gladly explain to customers how they can make a torte from thin sheets of wafer and caramel sauce she sells by the can.

The meats are a long production: cooking and chilling a marinade, three to four days of soaking in the refrigerator, five hours of marinating with garlic and mayonnaise and three to four hours of cooking. For garlic lovers, the cooking aromas are almost as good as the taste of the transformed meat. It’s served with traditional beet relish made with horseradish, a kind of Ukrainian hot sauce.

The bread, made with an overabundance of eggs, is particularly important in conveying a sunny color to signify spring — as well as Easter’s celebratory, religious meaning of resurrection. It, too, sweetens the air in the home (and makes great French toast, if there’s any left).

This is also where you can buy your very own babushka (floral head scarf), coffee mugs printed with Ukrainian names, and baskets of pysanky, the ornately decorated eggs.

Lviv International Foods is located at 5689 State Road in Parma’s Ukrainian Village.

Source: http://www.cleveland.com/taste/index.ssf/2010/03/post_42.html

A Piece Of Ukraine In Parma

October 31, 2009December 14, 2015Leave a comment

One Parma resident’s observation of the Ukrainian Village dedication:

“It is easy to notice right away that religious faith is a major component in the fabric of the Ukrainian community. Therefore then, it is not hard to imagine how it might be that the Ukrainian community feels that God was watching over them as they picked just about the most picture perfect September morning to dedicate the Ukrainian Village in Parma.”