When you order the chicken poulet with root vegetables and a celery root puree ($28) at Sérénité Restaurant & Culinary Institute, your meal is part of a larger purpose.
Operated by the Recovery Center of Medina County and opened in 2018, the accredited institute allows those in recovery from substance use disorder to start over by learning the culinary profession. The 12-month program gives students hands-on experience in the front of the house and the kitchen of Sérénité. With an October 2025 relaunch, the restaurant and culinary institute has started over — refocusing the menu on European inspiration with French influences and adding chef Niko Courey, who was trained at the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu. In a fine dining brasserie atmosphere replete with rich woods and white tablecloths, dine on bouillabaisse ($40), made with smoked mussel meat, shrimp, halibut, rouille, fennel and potato, or braised short rib ($45) with onion molasses glaze, kimchi and potato pave. Sip a lemon lavender drop martini ($15) or a nonalcoholic strawberry lemonade fizz ($10). //KP
538 W. Liberty St., Medina, 330-952-2611, sereniterestaurant.com


