before Nasu, which was awesome, do you remember EurAsian Harbor? Now where the 2nd Ruths Chris is?? We have all these fine chain steak houses, several of some but really only 3 good seafood places, Oceanaire, M&S, and Blue Sea Grill, and even though they may be good, does anything really blow your mind??

So..we have a Vin, a Fin (which by the way is slang for DEAD in French). Someone want to open a SIN?

A previous commenter suggested that their menu was boring. I couldn't agree more. I would also like to commend them for a combination of hubris and incompetence for their web site. Using Metromix as a shill is pathetic. The overall pedestrian and incompetent design made me throw up in my mouth a little. If you are going to be grandiose, then back it up. I can't think of any reason to go there, except possibly on a Monday or Tuesday or maybe for lunch. Perhaps instead of "fin" which implies a vast seafood-centric theme, they should call themselves, "Closed for Renovations". Eventually they will.

Thanks for opening this up for discussion. I'd like to point out that not every place needs to be over the top innovative. I ate at Salt for the first time this weekend and quite enjoyed it -- they made the attempt to make me feel like I was getting something interesting. On the lower end, Joe Squared has an interesting menu.

For me it really has to do with how they think of the customer. When I eat out, my need is to be fed. My expectation is that it will taste good and be cooked properly. But what sets apart a really memorable meal is the willingness to delight me -- to serve me something that goes beyond my expectations. This doesn't have to be high end --- the ceviche at Rinconcito Puerano is amazing, even though it's just a tiny casual place. I can come up with numerous examples. But give me something that makes your restaurant better than another place that may be cheaper or closer.

Location, location, location. Do we need another X in [insert geographic location]? It depends. Especially as the cost to drive becomes dearer and dearer, there are any number of types of restaurants I would love to have in the Towson-Herford zone corridor, either because there is none or there isn't a good one (Chinese). Broadly speaking, Baltimore probably doesn't need another Prime Rib, but wouldn't life be grand if you had a Prime Rib within walking distance of your home? (What you save on transportation costs you use in your food budget.) How about Cafe Hon or Blue Moon?

"The overall pedestrian and incompetent design made me throw up in my mouth a little" Jonathan Gilbert - I LOVE THIS! Quote of the day! Jonathan, thanks for making me laugh at my desk!

Jonathan Gilbert, I agree that the website didn't do much to sell the place -- advertsing a crab cake trio "each seved with it's own sauce" (sic) or roasted chicken with a "Beurre Blanc Sauce" didn't impress me at all.

Robert, I agree that location may enter into the equation, but given that this place is in the Admiral Fell Inn it's doubtful that they're trying to be a neighborhood joint. If they were I probably wouldn't have said anything. Prime Rib is a destination place that's worth the drive. fin appears to be targeting either tourists or locals visiting Fells Point. Since that area has places that actually are worth bothering to travel a stretch for, it's really hard for me to see just who their potential clientele is.

Jon, I'm not sure how to parse "locals visiting Fells Point", but there are those of us for whom Fells Point actually is "local". I'm sure you get plenty of tourists in your neighborhood too (yes, Virginia, I do know where Jon lives), but that doesn't mean that the locals are chopped liver.

None of this should be construed as a defense of Fins. I haven't yet seen anything to make it seem attractive (although I haven't looked closely, either).

RTSO, as for Chinese in the 83 corridor, have you tried the Szechuan House in Lutherville. It is my understanding that they offer a nice mix of real chinese food as well as american chinese food.

And if Fells Point can support dozens of taverns with pub grub, as well as many latin restaurants, I would imagine the chances of the area supporting a steak and seafood restaurant is pretty good.

Thanks RoCK, I've not tried Szechuan House in probably 15 years. Then the beef chow fun was mostly yellow/white onion; probably more than the beef. No green onion; no subtlety. I haven't been back.

Hal, there isn't that much difference between tourists and "locals visiting Fell's Point" other than the fact that the locals probably won't be spending the night. Both Fells Point and Federal Hill (where I live) are destinations for locals who come to play even though they may live elsewhere in Baltimore or the suburbs. It's not very common for someone to say "hey, let's go have a good time in Roland Park."