What do you get when you mix together family traditions and fresh ingredients, a scoop of creativity, a dash of friendliness and a sprinkle of amazing flavor? The answer is simple, a wonderful meal at Eva’s European Sweets! Located in Solvay at 1305 Milton Avenue, Eva’s is a hidden gem, a local favorite and has even been featured on national television! They are open Tuesday through Thursday from 11 am to 8 pm, Friday from 11 am to 9 pm and Saturday from noon to 9 pm, for dining in, with both the dining room and the patio available, and for take out orders. Give them a call at (315) 487–2722 to make your reservations or to place a to-go order.
Eva’s European Sweets opened over two decades ago as a bakery and pastry shop where Eva baked and sold amazing cakes, pies, pastries and other delights with a European flare. From those beginnings the restaurant was born. Now hungry patrons can feast on homemade meals made with only the best and freshest ingredients using family recipes. Eva’s features many Polish and other European dishes that you just can’t find on any other menu in Central New York. The menu is unique and interesting and you can taste the love and care that is mixed into everything that is served at Eva’s European Sweets. Whether you are seated inside the cozy restaurant or outside on the new patio you can’t help but to get the feeling that you belong there – it’s hard to explain, but Eva’s just sort of feels like home. I believe that this atmosphere is curated by the staff of this family owned and operated restaurant. After speaking with David, Eva’s son, he told me that the staff is made up of family members and others that have been with Eva for so long that they have become family. The warm and inviting atmosphere is unbeatable!
Eva’s is famous not only for their amazing cuisine but also for the thing that started it all –the sweets! When you walk into Eva’s your eyes should be immediately drawn to Eva’s dessert case that is full of some of the best looking homemade cakes, pies and cheesecakes that you can ever see! If you see something you like (and you will) be sure to order it because the selection changes and rotates but no matter what is in there you will certainly find something you like! And if you are too full after your meal just remember that you can always take something sweet to go!
Something else you can’t find anywhere in town other than Eva’s is their extensive list of Polish and Eastern European beer and spirits. These beers and cocktails are sure to quench your thirst and pair perfectly with any menu item! Did you know that Eva’s European Sweets is famous? Well, they are! They were featured on an episode of Diners Drive-ins and Dives where they served Guy Fieri the Hungarian Style Placki, a dish with Four Potato pancakes topped with a lightly spicy ground beef-tomato sauce made with peppers and onions and topped with sour cream! Our server Dave is also famous at Eva’s – so much so that they named a sandwich after him! The “Dave’s Special” features Ham, American cheese, bacon, red roasted peppers, red onions and hot peppers and can be served warm or cold. Kyle and I (and the two little ones) arrived at Eva’s on a warm Saturday evening. We were seated outside in the patio area. We just loved the atmosphere that was able to cater to all of the guest’s needs, including a large family party, a date night, and a couple of tables of parents and their children. We loved all of the colors and the mural. We especially liked the fire pit that seemed so warm and inviting!We obviously had to start our meal with pierogies so we decided on the Sweet Cheese Pierogi (filled with farmer’s cheese, vanilla sugar and orange zest, topped with melted butter, cinnamon, sugar and golden raisins and served with sour cream) and the Bacon Pierogi (filled with potato and bacon and topped with fried bacon and sautéed onions and served with chive sour cream). They were both incredible! The dough was perfect and both fillings were unusual and delicious! For our entrees we just couldn’t make up our minds and we wanted to try a little of everything so we decided to split two meals! First we had the Pork Dinner, a huge serving of two well-seasoned breaded pork cutlets served with seasoned pan-fried creamer potatoes, apple sauce and a cucumber and tomato salad and sauerkraut.
The pork and apple sauce combination was fantastic, the cucumber and tomato salad was incredibly fresh and the sauerkraut was scrumptious! We also split the Polish Plate with two potato pierogi, one Gołąbki, one piece of kielbasa with sauteed onions and bigos. For those that don’t know, Gołąbki or cabbage roll is stuffed with ground beef and rice in a homemade tomato sauce and is also gluten free. Bigos also known as Hunter’s Stew, is a hearty stew with sauerkraut, sweet cabbage, kiełbasa, beef, ham, bacon, mushrooms and onions cooked in a light tomato sauce. I had never had bigos before but it, like everything else on the plate, was positively delicious! The Polish Plate was a great way to try a little bit of everything! For dessert Kyle just had to have a slice of the fried apple caramel cake – it was sweet and delicious and a perfect fall treat! I had a slice of the raspberry chocolate cake and oh my goodness was it one of the best things I have ever eaten! I see myself stopping by for dessert next time I am passing through Solvay!
I have a confession to make, for years I had driven by Eva’s thinking, “I have heard such amazing things about this place, I really should stop in sometime” and all I can tell you is that I wish I had stopped by sooner because my first trip will certainly not be my last. Every single bite of everything we ate was absolutely incredible. I also want to try each and every dessert because they all looked mouthwateringly amazing! For a look at their menu and to see some great pictures check out their website at http://www.evaspolish. com/ and be sure to like them on facebook where you can see their specials. Do yourself a favor and stop by Eva’s European Sweets today!