First Look: Matt Fish’s Latest Venture, Proof Public House, Opens June 15

Matt Fish has opened a dozen or so restaurants over the course of his career, but this one feels a little different, he admits.

“I haven’t done this for 20 years, opening a restaurant for the first time,” he says. “Every Melt that I opened after the first one was relatively cut-and-paste.”

On Monday, June 15, Fish will open the doors to Proof Public House at 4116 Lorain Ave., a project he first publicly announced just six weeks ago. While the former Proof BBQ space in Ohio City was turnkey, Fish worked with a band of local artists and designers to transform the formerly somber restaurant into a vivid, vibrant room filled with eye candy galore. The main wall of exposed construction brick now features four large, trippy, intensely colorful works by Cleveland tattoo artist Sean Jason Kelly that appear to glow in broad daylight.

“I wanted people to walk into the restaurant and immediately be immersed in sights and sounds and smells and activity,” Fish explains. “I didn’t want it to be a boring space.”

Every other inch of wall space is covered with professionally mounted, framed and hung band posters and concert flyers from iconic Cleveland clubs and shows. Also prominently displayed are many of the original black-and-white cartoon murals by artist Jake Kelly that hung at former Melt locations.

Fish labored to create an all-day menu with broad appeal but while still preserving his unique culinary personality. The chef is a vegetarian, so there are many creative dishes that cater to diners such as himself. Some of his favorites include a whipped goat cheese appetizer with grilled bread, panko breaded and fried tofu wings that are tossed in a choice of sauce and served with ranch, and a Caesar salad starring marinated and grilled baby romaine with braised cabbage.

From a large Southern Pride smoker out back come smoked jumbo chicken wings, a pulled pork sandwich with braised Chinese cabbage, and smoky tandoori-style chicken with avocado-mint mousse.

In the sandwich department are a couple half-pound pub-style burgers on challah buns, a crispy fried chicken breast with slaw and roasted garlic aioli, shaved ribeye cheesesteak, and a ma po tofu burger with spicy eggplant. For Melt fans, Fish has brought the Parmageddon out of retirement, complete with pierogi, braised cabbage and sharp cheddar.

And for any of the 1,000 or so fans bearing a Melt tattoo, Fish will continue offering the standard discount.

“I’m going to keep it going,” he says. “Those people are still VIPs to me.”

Diners should expect to find new dish preparations, new menu items, and a few surprises on every return visit, Fish promises.

“We are designing this menu to change, whether that’s seasonally or because we can’t get a product or because something is not selling well or just on a whim.”

To drink there is a roster of creative, original cocktails and mocktails, wines by the glass, and some of the best local draft craft beer around. On tap are selections from Fat Head’s, Noble Beast, Butcher & Brewer and Market Garden that are available nowhere else but the brewery.

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