The only downside i suppose is eating while the bartender is talking to you,i just get awkward when people watch me eat..... Just sayin'.

Linwoods is pleasant at the bar.

I had a good experience at McCormick & Schmick's in Annapolis Mall when I went there. It was a Friday night and there was a 1/2 hr wait for the dining room. My husband and I went to hang out at the bar until our name came up on the list. Well we wound up getting seats at the bar and stayed there. The bartenders there were friendly, made us drinks that weren't on the drink menu (I told him what I was in the mood for--think flavored martinis) and I believe that a drink or two was not added onto our bill at the end of the evening. I think bartenders are friendly because they want repeat business and it's funny that you don't get this sometime from a waiter/waitress.

I used to go to Chili's in White Marsh during college all the time and I became a regular at the bar and always had good service. It's a mid-scale chain, but at 21 it was what I could afford, the bartenders got to know me, gave me free drinks and it kept me coming back during college.

Sushi bars are always good bar options too!

Downside for me is that I am short, and sometimes when the bar has a lip on in, it's hard to pull your barstool in enough to reach over the bar.

I've always liked eating at the bar when traveling alone (which I fortunately rarely have to do anymore).

Tusk Lounge, upstairs at the Brass Elephant, has a separate bar menu in addition to the one from the restaurant, and a nice low marble bar for meals. Very comfy.

Eating at the bar is usually the best way to go if you have 3 or fewer people - better service and often you meet other interesting people at the bar.

The only downside is that if you are a female dining alone, men hit on you, and almost always it's the ones you absolutely don't want to hit on you. Good bartenders offer protection.

Re: El Rancho Grande.
Yes, I can imagine a
Starbucks in Hampden just
as I can imagine the art
galleries, pricey clothing
stores, boutiques, and a
very good Chinese carry
out at the corner of Falls Road and 41st Street that
you incorrectly stated was in Roland Park because you could not imagine
Peking duck in Hampden.

Here's what she's talking about if you missed it, although I'm not sure why she's angry that I think Hampden is too good for chains. EL

Yes, the Tusk Lounge is very attractive, despite my earlier comments elsewhere on this blog about other forms of animal life there.

Both Brasserie Tatin & Gertrude's have lovely small tables in the bar area. Lovely, warm, and inviting.

last week went to Cinghiale for my birthday in the bar area (even though we ordered from the regular menu). We had an amazing time, and the food was great. I was surprised with the cheaper bar options they had as well as the 40 wines served by the glass.

Also, i am not sure if you JUST mean dinner, but every saturday or sunday me and my girlfriend head over to paper moon for some breakfast, and of course the wait is always at least 30 minutes. But sitting at the bar is right away. It's great.

i personally have no problem sitting at the bars of any restaurant and i agree that while the service isn't as "fancy"...you can be sure that when your ready for your next drink it will be taken care of ASAP.

What? Only lame lonely single people eat at the bar! And I find doing so is much more enjoyable with the no-smoking thing. I never think of eating at the bar of an Italian restaurant or a classy sit-down restaurant... usually I do it at places that are bars first and restaurants second (except when I lived in the burbs and sat at the Bennigans or Red Hot and Blue bars to eat, kind of like Kim said). Weeknights are definitely better than weekends, because there is too much elbow-bumping on weekends and you never know when a drunk rugby team will show up and peer over your shoulder at the menu.

Heather said: Only lame lonely single people eat at the bar!

Phhffthtt!!! (sp?)

With a group of 3 or more, though, you have the awkwardness of speaking across the person/people in the middle since you are not facing them directly.

Sorry to hear that ladies (the ones that get hit on)

Personally, I love eating at the bar, alone or with family/friends.

As someone said above, this is a bad idea with anything more than three people, but if it's at a place you're familiar with and the bartenders know you, you get taken care of and service is quick and your fellow bar patrons don't really mind. Unless it's one of those clubby, loud places in which case avoid at all costs.

I'm still new to the area, but I've been pleased with the Ellicott City Greystone Grill's bar service at any hours, and same with Victoria during the later hours when the place finally cools down and it's not shoulder-to-shoulder.

Cons of eating at the bar:

1. I'm on the short side, can't get the barstool close enough to the bar.
2. Getting hit on while just having a meal.
3. Barstools aren't as comfortable as a chair. My legs have gone all needs and pins while hanging up there with my feet dangling.
4. Until recently... smokers.

If I can come up with a pro I'll let you know. Then again, I don't mind dining solo. In San Francisco I went to a great little neighborhood place three nights out of my five. Got amazing service. Talked with a bunch of other solo diners. Had the wait staff recognize me on the second night. So far I've not been shunted to the bad table or ignored.

I second the recommendation for the bar at Gertrude's, both for lunch and for dinner.

I detest eating at the bar, bars are for drinking (or dancing) and tables are for eating! I would much rather eat my meal in peace and peruse the tables and company around me than suffer thru awkward 'conversation' and annoying barpatrons...as LJ said "men hit on you, and almost always it's the ones you absolutely don't want to hit on you".
Sushi and Kitchen bars are my exception to the rule but even then, they're not my first choice of dining locale.

My wife and I enjoy eating at the bar. I'm a regular at Helen's. I enjoy the people and the bar and wait staff. We have a book review/exchange among ourselves. Helen's has a good wine selection and great happy hour wine prices. Generally, I find eating at the bar a pleasant experience at many restaurants. I think the informality is a factor. I seldom go into a place that I don't know someone. Usually, I discover that the bartender or the person next to me knows someone that I know. I've met a lot of interesting people. It's Smaltimore, gang, and life's a barquet.

There are two establishments at which I've taken meals at the bar: Mt. Vernon Stables and Sammy's. Neither has a separate bar menu. The Stables' bar is small and doesn't afford much space for diners, and usually their bartenders don't pay much attention. Sammy's, on the other hand, has a comfortable bar. There is plenty of room for all of the components of one's order, the bartenders are friendly and accommodating, and everyone there takes care to remember the names of regulars (this doesn't happen at the Stables but I put that down to a high rate of turnover with the staff). The only quibble I have with Sammy's is that the bar is severely limited in what they stock brand-wise.

Hampden too good for chains?

I didn't know that Royal Farms and 7-11 weren't chains.

El Rancho Grande? Did you actually drink the coffee there? Went there a couple weeks ago and while the space was interesting, the coffee was watery and terrible, they've got an espresso machine they don't know how to use and the owner was about the least warm and inviting person I've met in Hampden.

Or perhaps I just wasn't the right color.

try rocket to venus!
fried pickles?!! delicious!
happy hour is a deal. 3 draft beers(any) for $3.

My boyfriend and I always eat at the bar when we go to One World Cafe. It's the only way to get decent service in that place. I'm convinced that they staff the dining room with one less person than they actually need to provide good service. But the bartenders are always great.

My husband and I like to sit at the bar when we try new restaurants, so we can order a drink (and maybe an appetizer) and then decide whether we want to eat there or find another place. Recently, we tried this at Yellow Dog and ended up staying and eating at the bar. The clientele was very eclectic and the bartender was super friendly. The TVs in the bar area were tuned into the Food Network and everyone around the bar was exchanging recipes. Just a ton of fun!

Tsk. When I was a frequent diner goer (pre-marriage days), I used to love eating at the bar/counter by myself and reading the daily paper.
Faster service, more frequent refills of mediocre coffee, and I didn't feel bad about taking up a stool compared to an entire table for a few hours.

I seldom go into a place that I don't know someone. Usually, I discover that the bartender or the person next to me knows someone that I know. I've met a lot of interesting people.

Oh, Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon...;-)
(seemed to be a more food-related example than Six Degrees of Separation)

Gertrude's, Peter's Inn and Henninger's Tavern (Henninger's has a special bar-only menu that includes a TV dinner!)

Whoever said that only lame people eat at the bar is way off base. I think you are discounting many others, such as alcoholics, angry loners, etc...

My wife and I also love eating at bars - we do so regularly at One World and Rocket to Venus (somehow, it seems to work there with 3+ people, too). Oh, and we were at Daugherty's after the St. Patrick's Day parade downtown and got lightning-fast service despite the large, drunken crowds piling in and through the place. So it absolutely paid off there as well. Oh, and Dionysus is good for bar dining. And Joe Squared. So yeah, a few places. We're pretty friendly with most of the bartenders everywhere we go, too, which always seems to help

RoCK, you raise an interesting point. All lame people alcoholic/angry but not all alcoholic/angry are lame. Or: All alcoholic/angry are lame, but not all lame are alcoholic/angry.

"Whoever said that only lame people eat at the bar is way off base. I think you are discounting many others, such as alcoholics, angry loners, etc..."

well, thank god your not the guy sitting next to me at the bar then...seems your more interested in stereotypes than actually enjoying yourself and meeting new people (GASP....god forbid). you can have your table.

;)

Salt is a GREAT place to eat at the bar. The bar has plenty of room and the bartenders are extremely friendly. And of course, there's the food...

Eating alone, in any bar will do for me. I'm a little annoyed with the extra high ones like those at Tir Na Nog, where you can even rest your arms down comfortably (And I'm not short guy; not that there's anything wrong with that either).