While the city originally had German roots, the influx of immigrants in the late 1800s and early 1900s brought Jewish, Italian, Lithuanian, Polish, Slovenian and Ukrainian food to the table: pastrami, pierogis, pizza, and sauerkraut balls. Today's restaurants also feature African, Asian, Middle-Eastern, and Mexican cuisine. Urban farming is part of Akron's cultural landscape. The city has provided many places to grow food, and has also supported many new restaurants: Bricco, Cilantro, Crave, and Lockview. Independent grocery stores include Krieger's, Mustard Seed Market, and Seven Grain Market. Akron has a longstanding claim to being the birthplace of the hamburger. A "National Hamburger Festival" was held in the city annually for many years.
Fine arts
Founded in 1922, the Akron Art Museum was vastly expanded in the early 2000s and now hosts international exhibitions along with its local collections. Directly across the street from the museum is the small Nightlight Cinema, an independent enterprise. As Vogue describes it, the theater "focuses exclusively on locally produced movies, as well as obscure documentaries, foreign films, and first-run indie features ".
The landmark Akron pizza shop Luigi's is the inspiration for the pizza shop Montoni's in the comic stripFunky Winkerbean, written by Akron native Tom Batiuk. In the Flaming Carrot Comics, Iron City, where the Carrot lives, was made similar to Akron and another working-stiff town, Pittsburgh. Writer and illustrator Bill Watterson has also lived in the county.
Music
Akron has been home to a wide variety of musical artists including:
In the late 1970s, following the international success of local band Devo, talent scouts combed the city. Soon, several compilation albums promoted the "Akron Sound", a multifaceted music scene led by the Waitresses and Rachel Sweet, and many artists of regional prominence including Tin Huey, Liam Sternberg, Bizarros, and Rubber City Rebels. Other major rock musicians from the city are: The city's music scene is chronicled and commemorated in the Akron Sound Museum, established in 2015.
Concert venues
The Akron Art Museum has hosted free outdoor concerts every summer since 1984. Major venues for music in Akron include the Akron Civic Theatre, E.J. Thomas Hall, and Blossom Music Center. Residents and fans of alternative music still miss the Lime Spider, but continue to appreciate new bands and live poetry at Annabelle's and Paolo's. The North Hill neighborhood was known for jazz during the early 1900s.