Michael Symon has a James Beard Foundation award, one of the most dominant Iron Chef win-loss records Kitchen Stadium has seen, and a brand-new Cooking Channel show, Cook Like an Iron Chef.

The guy’s gastro game is sizzling, and bound to provide some inspiration. So the other day I trickled into a trendy Cleveland ‘hood called Tremont, where a street corner is named after Symon, to scope what I might learn about his sourdough-like rise at his hip bistro Lolita.

Three themes emerged. For one, simple is sexy, and more than a trend. Entrees like lamb steak, pork chop and roasted chicken echo Symon’s m.o.: No more than several ingredients are necessary as long as they’re the best in fresh and essence. The back of the menu has long trumped “farmers and artisans we love,” like Indiana’s La Querica, whom Carmel Belle (624-1600) swears by for prosciutto and such.

Symon’s food is “interesting and satisfying and reliant on good technique,” writes Michael Ruhlman in Michael Symon’s Live to Cook, “without pretension or self-conscious chefness.” Like the macaroni ($15) – goat cheese, rosemary and roasted chicken. Nada más needed. The other pastas hit with similar simplicity: pappardelle with pork ragu, tomato and parmesan, or gnocchi with just peas, pancetta, Swiss chard and ricotta salata.

Motif two: Making peace with pizza is good policy. As Big Sur Bakery’s (667-0520) principals once told me, they didn’t go to culinary school to cook pizzas, but the pies pay the rent. Symon’s include simple featured items – local heirlooms, anchovy, pork sausage, mushrooms – pulled off with precision. We went for the organic egg with duck prosciutto ($13): salty but superior. The cured meats – another trend that should stick around for some time – are also a strength here, including a head-turning “big board” piled with coppas, prosciuttos and sopressata ($18).

Three: It’s important to get the good stuff. The wild coho salmon ($19), seared to succulence, teases a theme you’ll hear any chef worth his salt pig oink on at some point.

“All food is not created equal,” Symon writes. “I repeat: The easiest way to improve your food is to improve the way you shop.” That would be a sign this Cleveland street corner’s in good hands.

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Across town, another eatery was even busier. At Melt Bar & Grilled (216-226-3699), everything is grilled and stuffed with cheese and other heart-rattling ingredients – but so deliciously that a table for two netted a 45-minute wait. At 11:30am. On a weekday. The bartender pointed out that the 150-deep beer list is designed to occupy folks as the tiny kitchen carefully assembles its stuff – like the Municipal Stadium Magic (locally made brauts, Napa vodka kraut, grilled peppers and American cheese, $9) or the Godfather (three-cheese lasagna, spicy red sauce, garlic bread with provolone, $11) – each made to order.

Other stylish distractions, like menus mounted on vintage album covers and the blue-stamped tin ceiling, help make the wait easier. But the unapologetic fattening flavors pack the place. Take the Big Popper ($9) – fresh jalapeños, herb cream cheese and melted cheddar, all beer battered and deep fried.

In a spontaneous exchange for a taste of the Big Popper – “Have you ever shared food with a stranger at a restaurant before?” my sister whispered – we even snacked some Parmegeddon ($10), with two potato-and-cheese pierogi (a town staple), grilled onions and never-better cheddar. Rich and thick.

In a land where LeBron James’ betrayal left folks feeling empty, the food certainly won’t.

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Thursdays 4-7pm through September the Hyatt’s (372-1234) patio is a scenic place to sip cocktails and graze on snacks like wild mushroom pizzas from new chef Russell Young. Fifteen percent of each Paws for a Cause check goes to the SPCA; poochies are invited to chill and enjoy biscuits… Friday, Aug. 27, there’s a special edition of the seasonal Jazz at the Plaza (624-0138) with Steve Ezzo at Carmel Plaza while Carmel Road pours its super stuff (try the Pinots) and the Salvation Army gathers gently worn jeans. The 5-7pm, $15 event even includes a little denim fashion show and appetizers to pair with the wine and free music… Concerts on the Bay at Monterey Plaza Hotel (646-1700) brings the Money Band to cash in its charisma 5:30-9pm Friday, Aug. 27. The Aquarium’s (648-4840) extended weekend hours and accompanying jazz and food (and lighter crowds) are almost over; 6-8pm Saturday-Sunday until Sept. 5. Free parking in Cannery Row garages after 4pm for locals with ID… Wine, Women and Shoes at Corral de Tierra Country Club (394-5171) is 2-6pm Saturday, Aug. 28; $125 boosts Boys and Girls Club…

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The best excuse to picnic in the redwoods this summer closes 7:30pm Sunday, Aug. 29, as Big Sur International Short Film Festival screens its winners at Henry Miller Library (667-2574)… As Anthony Bourdain writes, “Food has power.”