Top Ten Hotel Restaurants
This wasn't as easy as it looks. What I didn't tell you in advance, because I wasn't sure I could pull it off, was that I wasn't going to include the popular chains that people don't even think of as hotel restaurants. That would be too easy.
For instance, Pier 5 Hotel has off its lobby both a Ruth's Chris and a McCormick & Schmick's. Shula's is in the Sheraton Baltimore City Center Hotel, while the Sheraton Inner Harbor is the home of a Morton's.
In fact, I think I've discovered a trend here, although I don't know if it's national or not. Not only has the grand old hotel dining room all but disappeared, but many hotels have simply thrown in the towel and brought in sure-fire winners so travelers will feel right at home.
So why should you care about hotel restaurants as opposed to any other kind? Well, they are often conveniently located, especially if you have out-of-town visitors you're meeting for a meal.
For this top ten, I think I'll rank them, and I'll tell you why they might be useful to you and what their strengths are. (As usual, it's not always about the food.)
In general, hotel restaurants get a bad rap for being overpriced and having mediocre food. That's not true of these if you go for the reasons I suggest.
Here's my list: ...
(Monica Lopossay/Sun Photographer)
1) Sherwood's Landing in the Inn at Perry Cabin in St. Michael's. I know I said I wasn't going to do boutique inns, but Perry Cabin is a large hotel in spite of its name. Chef Mark Salter's elaborate continental menu includes dishes like hazelnut- and herb-crusted wild rockfish with Italian lentils, wild mushrooms and a clam-maderia cream. Eat here on your honeymoon. Very expensive. (The vegetarian entree costs $30.)
2) Watertable in the Renaissance Harborplace Hotel downtown has been revamped to the tune of $3 million, so that the decor is now contemporary but still comfortable. The emphasis is on fresh, seasonal and local, and the food is quite good. The service wasn't perfect when I ate there recently, but the wait staff was so good-natured I didn't mind. I love the fact that every seat in the house has a great view of the Inner Harbor. Expensive.
3) Pisces in the Hyatt Regency downtown has a view every bit as spectacular as Watertable's. I like the fact that it's unabashedly a seafood retaurant, and I like the somewhat limited menu -- what the kitchen does, it does well. But unless you're on an expense account, you may well balk at the prices ($40 for crab cakes). It has a pricey but excellent champagne brunch. Very expensive.
4) Grille 700 in the Marriott Waterfront, Harbor East. Its dark wood and swooping curves suggest a luxury ocean liner, and the large windows open out to a watery view. There are brick oven pizzas, but most of the dishes are serious food: elaborately presented creations with a nouvelle Mediterranean sensibility. Moderate to expensive.
5) Spice Company in the Inn at the Colonnade in Homewood breaks the mold for hotel restaurants. The menu has dishes that acknowledge the global quality of today's American cuisine, like a grilled tuna with a spicy bok choy salad; but in general the well-executed food isn't too fiery in spite of the name. It hopes to attract neighborhood diners, so you will find dishes under $20. Moderate.
6) Azure in the new Westin Annapolis Hotel is a water-themed restaurant, in keeping with its Annapolis location, with lots of seafood and lots of watery blues in its contemporary decor. The 68-seat dining room and 150-seat outside patio both have fireplaces. The cuisine is American fusion. Moderate to expensive.
7) Brightons (pictured) in the InterContinental Harbor Court Hotel downtown -- with the closing of Hampton's, now the hotel's main dining room -- was uneven in both the food and service departments when I ate there this spring; but the romantic setting is so charming, even luxurious, it has to be on this list. The highlight of our meal was our appetizers, so maybe the way to go is small plates. Expensive.
8) Petticoat Tea Room in the Admiral Fell Inn is the hotel's only dining room now that True has closed. OK, pink walls and lace tableclothes may not be your idea of fine dining; but you can get a charming afternoon tea here as well as sandwiches, salads, homemade soups and homemade desserts. If you want more, go to Ruth's Chris in another of the chain's hotels, Pier 5. Inexpensive.
9) Cinnamon Tree in the Baltimore Marriott Hunt Valley Inn in Hunt Valley isn't exactly an undiscovered gem, but it's more likeable that you would expect. There isn't much in the way of dining outside of chains up this way once you get past the Oregon Grille and Milton Inn. It's a good place to take the visiting in-laws if you're in that area and want something safe but with a bit of flair. Moderate to expensive.
10) Crossroads in the Radisson in Cross Keys was once the Village Roost, the place to power breakfast in Baltimore. In its new incarnation it isn't as cozy, but it's still convenient to the JFX and everything it connects. I'm not sure why the place has lost its lock on the breakfast meeting set. I had excellent eggs with all the fixings last time I ate there, and my friend was happy with her Belgian waffle. Moderate.
Comments
Gone, indeed, are the days of the elegant hotel dining room. I can remember my parents driving to York to have supper in the hotel there. And Miller Brothers when the no-longer- new Hilton opened years ago.
We have always liked the Marco Polo in the Pikesville Hilton. The room is well-appointed: the staff is attentive without being overbearing or too familiar: and the food has always been good. In addition, we have never found the restaurant crowded at either lunch or dinner time.
Posted by: David | September 11, 2007 9:10 AM
FYI, several weeks ago a friend and I lunched at the bistro restaurant in the Peabody Court Hotel--the name escapes me. We had the place to ourselves, which I thought odd for such a busy part of town. Our lunch salads were delicious, with high-quality ingredients. Probably a tad overpriced, but then, it IS the Peabody Court.
Posted by: Dottie | September 11, 2007 9:10 AM
Nothing about the Inn at Little Washington, a major oversight given the geographical diversity shown in this top ten.
I know it seems sort of arbitrary, but I've always limited myself to Maryland restaurants in my reviewing. I have to draw the line somewhere. If I didn't, all the places in DC, not to mention Virginia, would be on the table. That's why the Inn at Little Washiington didn't make it into Restaurants Worth the Gas Money, which it clearly deserved, either. However, I count on readers like you to point out that it deserves to be -- although it is more of a boutique inn than a hotel, isn't it?
Posted by: joe | September 11, 2007 10:27 AM
Has Crossroads lost their breakfast trade to Miss Shirleys, just a mile or so away?
Good point. You're probably right.
Posted by: Fairfax | September 11, 2007 10:54 AM
I would call the Inn at Perry Cabin a boutique as well. Despite being in Maryland, the Inn at Perry Cabin is farther away.
Good point. I was going by number of rooms -- I think one has about 80, which makes it more hotel-ish, and the other 15 or so. And you're right about the distance; like I said, the state borders are a pretty arbitrary limit.
Posted by: joe | September 11, 2007 11:22 AM
I am glad you mentioned the Spice Company. We had a wonderful restaurant week lunch there about a month ago.
Posted by: Amy | September 11, 2007 3:51 PM
In re: the "Marco Polo" above -- it's the San Marco. But I have remembered everything else accurately.
Posted by: David | September 11, 2007 5:23 PM
I'm so happy you excluded chains in this top 10 and hope you conisider doing the same for future lists.
Posted by: SGI | September 11, 2007 5:28 PM
Interestingly enough the most acclaimed restuarant in Atlanta is "The Dining Room" in the Ritz Carlton Buckhead Hotel.
Posted by: Frank | September 13, 2007 3:10 PM
Location-wise, you can’t beat the Azure in the new Westin Annapolis Hotel. Your (under 40 lb.) Doggie is welcome, too. morton’s, the world-famous steak house chain, is right in the hotel. And the water-themed restaurant, the most unique I've ever seen.
- Sujan
Posted by: Phuket hotels | January 7, 2009 2:15 AM
Annapolis isn't Baltimore. And while I personally don't mind dogs (on leash and well-behaved) in restaurants, my understanding was that it was against every health code in the US.
Do they have a scale for the dogs? My dog weighs just 40 lbs., but looks bigger.
Posted by: Lissa | January 7, 2009 6:44 AM
Lissa -- while dogs are welcome at the Westin Annapolis, the hotel's website states: "Dogs are not permitted in food and beverage areas." I guess that Sujan was too busy trying to sell us hotel rooms in Thailand to notice the ambiguity in his/her post. ;-)
Posted by: hmpstd | January 7, 2009 11:23 AM
You mean if I go stay at the Westin in Annapolis, I could be sleeping in a bed that, just the night before, was occupied by some mangy, flee-ridden mutt? (Under 40 lbs.)
GACK!
Posted by: Bucky | January 7, 2009 1:36 PM
I want to know how NYC gets around the dog thing. They are everywhere. Hotels, Bloomingdales, Macy's, Tiffany's, even alot of restaurants, everywhere. If it is a generic US health code law, how do they do it?
BTW, I'm all for it. I eat, sleep, shower, and share just about everything with my dog and have yet to die from some off the wall germy disease :) or from ingesting dog hair lol.
Posted by: Carey | January 7, 2009 1:37 PM
Bucky -- actually, since the Westin chain features The Heavenly Bed®, The Heavenly Rollaway Bed, The Heavenly Crib (SM), and The Heavenly Shower/Bath®, the Westin Annapolis website proudly notes that "The Westin Heavenly Dog Bed [Is] Available".
Posted by: hmpstd | January 7, 2009 2:30 PM
In any event, Bucky, since all Westin hotels are smoke-free, you can rest assured that your bed wasn't occupied last night by some mangy, flee-ridden, cigar-chomping mutt.
Posted by: hmpstd | January 7, 2009 2:40 PM
Geeze, I hope Prof. McIntyre isn't reading this, noting that I misspelled "flea", "flee" and now others are following suit.
I suppose that's how language evolves, however...
I should have guessed, hmpstd, that the Westin has anticipated my concern and provides dog beds. That's the kind of service I expect from Westin, to be honest.
(BTW, we don't say "thank you" often enough to hmpstd, who always does a great job of providing us real facts when we just go off, making up things that sound like they might be facts. He enhances the credibility of the comments section of this blog.)
Posted by: Bucky | January 7, 2009 3:27 PM
I had to stop showering with my dog because I couldn't get the fur off of the soap.
Posted by: RayRay | January 7, 2009 3:34 PM
Bucky -- thanks for the kind words. As for "flee-ridden", I will confess that I just copied your mutt description, pasted it into my comment, and then inserted the italicized words, without bothering to check for typos. I wonder whether language evolved more smoothly before the invention of the PC copy-and-paste function?
Posted by: hmpstd | January 7, 2009 9:07 PM
I wonder whether language evolved more smoothly before the invention of the PC copy-and-paste function?
I suspect humans have been copying each others' mistakes for many centuries, with or without technology.
Posted by: Lissa | January 8, 2009 6:29 AM
We have a kitten who thinks a dripping shower is a kitty-sized shower just for him! I've never known a cat who loved water as this one does.
That's not language evolution--I call it devolution!
Posted by: Dahlink | January 8, 2009 6:47 AM
Dahlink, I've had cats who loved to play with dripping faucets. I had one cat who refused to drink out of a bowl. He wanted a tap run, not too hard but not dripping, either. He did not understand why I was not willing to provide his preferred format of water 24-7.
The one thing that is sure about cats is that they will not behave the way you expect them to.
Posted by: Lissa | January 8, 2009 9:54 AM
My cat thinks the tub is a giant litter box to use when his is too dirty for any more use (either that or that's his way of commenting on our not having cleaned the box quick enough).
Posted by: Joyce W. | January 8, 2009 10:32 AM
I always seem to have at least one water cat. The current one like's to sit with her head under the dripping sink faucet, like Dahlink's cat.
One of my old water cats taught me to always close the toilet lid.
Posted by: Hal Laurent | January 8, 2009 11:14 AM
Every cat I've ever owned has avoided water until one of the current pair. He either likes to drink from the bathtub drip or enjoys jumping out at me from behind the shower curtain. It's like having a bratty adolescent male in the house.
Posted by: Eve | January 8, 2009 12:28 PM
The 11:53 pm comment is Spam.
Posted by: Hal Laurent | August 28, 2009 12:05 AM
The 8:28 AM comment is spam! (Hasn't this one tried to post before?)
Thanks. I don't remember him, but I'm laying in wait for Vincent and his Top 10. EL
Posted by: hmpstd | September 4, 2009 9:07 AM