Dynamic Dining
Elements Bistro on Euclid brings contemporary cuisine to Cleveland State campus

By Mark Watt

When Cleveland State University's Parker Hannifin Administration Center opened last year at 2300 Euclid Avenue, a 2,700-square-foot space was left open on the building's first floor. The intention: to fill the space with a restaurant that would provide a contemporary dining experience for faculty, staff and students, while also welcoming the general public as a gesture of community outreach. That goal is now complete with the opening of Elements Bistro on Euclid, which serves contemporary cuisine for breakfast and lunch throughout the week and can be reserved on nights and weekends.

"Because of the administration center's location along the Euclid Corridor, we felt this would be a good way to integrate the neighborhood into the campus life," says Clare Rahm, assistant vice president for campus support services at Cleveland State University. "Our other dining areas around campus were developed with a more insulated idea of serving faculty and students, but we look at Elements Bistro on Euclid as a Cleveland restaurant that happens to be [on the CSU campus]."  

A play on its address and university atmosphere, the restaurant is named after the ancient mathematical tome Elements, written by Greek scholar Euclid and considered the most widely read textbook in history.

The "elements" theme is evident in the selection of materials throughout the space, which was designed by Braun & Steidl Architects and built by Apex Construction.

"The university was looking for a design sensibility that was contemporary and stylish with innovative, high-end materials, but it was also important that it felt comfortable," says Brandi Wilson, of Braun & Steidl Architects, the Akron-based architectural firm that served as lead designers for Elements Bistro on Euclid and the entire administration center project, as well as the renovation of the Howe Museum nearby. "The idea was to create a fun space as a way to encourage interaction between the university and surrounding neighborhood."

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