It's only breakfast time, but you've made me hungry for sour beef. That's mean. :-)

"Top Ten"? Well, it is a list of 10 (11!) restaurants that serve sour beef. I guess that if there are only 10 (11) that makes them the top ten by default. But how about some subjective comments? I'll add mine - I must have had the sour beef at Dimitri's at least 50 times. It's good but strange. First it's served with a Greek salad (now optional) and seondly there are tons of onions swimming around in the gravy, with no hint of ginger. There must be better! Among the listed restaurants, the only other one where I have had their sour beef was Eichenkranz and that was at least 30 (40?) years ago, so I won't comment on that one.

Wow. You think there must be better and you've had it at least 50 times? :-) EL

without a doubt the best sour beef and dumplings comes from my mom's kitchen

No longer around but my wife & I went there from Perry Hall for the SB&D and all the Coca Cola memorabilia around the place, "Wolf's Cafe" on Northpoint Blvd. It was torn down for a community center a few years ago. Between the SB&D and the turkey dinners, we never left unsatisfied.

Housner's was the only restaurant at which I had sour beef & dumplings.

Otherwise it was my grandmother's or my Aunt Evelyn's.

So what happened to the blog square (ok rectangle) on The Sun's homepage?

My question, too, since about 3/4s of my page views come from the Sun's home page. I was told they were "working on the feedburner," whatever that is, when I asked. EL

Rallo's in Fed Hill. And don't forget to pick up a Peppermint Pattie on the way out.

I heard Rallo's only has sour beef on Thursdays. Is that no longer true? EL

Sour beef is one of the nastiest concoctions ever to rear its ugly head on the unsuspecting people of Baltimore.

I am 99% sure the only people who enjoy this are senior citizens, like my grandparents who think Spaghettios are a culinary achievement.

BLECH!

What an odd choice for a top ten. I've slightly wondered what sour beef was when I heard locals mention it, okay one guy. Sauerbraten, okay. Sour beef sounds like it's spoiled.

Sauerbraten, okay. Sour beef sounds like it's spoiled.

So you're saying it sounds less spoiled in a foreign language? :-)

We make sauerbraten, spaetzle and red cabbage every Christmas Eve. Makes my house so stinky!

When we lived in Locust Point, a lot of the churches had annual sour beef & dumpling dinners. Recently, I've heard that some churches have stopped because of the lack of volunteers.

"So what happened to the blog square (ok rectangle) on The Sun's homepage?"

Go here for a listing of the blogs, at least for today. You can also search on "blogs" in the box to the left of the masthead and click on the first result.

I'm not surprised my family's restaurant, Della Rose's, was omitted as it has always been under the radar, however, we have served sour beef and dumplings since 1961 when it was located in Overlea. My mom, Miss Josie, is still working full time in the kitchen and the sour beef is served all year. She has received many compliments on it over the years and has a steady following state-wide.

Thanks for letting us know about it. EL

Working on the feedburner? The blogs are donkey powered?

I really like sauerbraten, which my late German grandmother made often when I was growing up. I still get a hankering for it once or twice a year, so I've tried most of these places. The recipes most like hers among your Top 11 are at Sanders Corner and the Eichenkranz.

Other places worth noting to get the dish: Valentine's Cafe (formerly Hill's Delicatessen) in Parkville and the tiny, uber-German (was there ever a more perfect adjective for "uber" to modify?) Deutsches Gasthaus in Aberdeen.

No, I'm not a senior citizen. Not being a total food snob, though, I'm just as happy to read about Old World comfort food once in a while as about foie gras or designer spices. ;)

The best "old-school" sour beef and dumplings can be found at the Poplar Inn in Dundalk. They are my first stop when I crave comfort food.

Josef's web site is www.josefscountryinn.com

In a bright shinny thing moment, I noticed on the blue bar at the top of the page Blogs listed. Click and you go to a page listing all the blogs and their graphics. So from here we don't need no stinkin feedburner. (I could ask the obvious question about why the Sun publisher's 13-year old nephew was play with the web site code but realised the kid is a new hire (works cheap) to run the web site. Go management.)

[For those keeping score, its a double. Topic drift and Snarky. I'm not sure of the scoring on the snarky: do I get bonus points for attacking Sun management, or loose points because snarky wasn't aimed at another poster? Could the Rules Committee please give a ruling?]

I love Sour Beef and Dumplings! My mom got us to eat it as kids by calling it cookie monster's favorite because it was made with cookies. If it was good enough for Cookie it was good enough for me.

just as happy to read about Old World comfort food once in a while as about foie gras or designer spices.

Designer spices? We've done designer spices??

RtSO, you lose points for writing "loose" instead of "lose". :-)

Just last month we were finally able to convince my mother in law to make SB&D after almost 10 years. It was wonderful. The problem is that she won't give up the recipe!

RtSo, I'm not sure that a shot at Sun management counts as snark....

Just last month we were finally able to convince my mother in law to make SB&D after almost 10 yrs. It was wonderful!! The problem is that she won't give up the recipe.

I can't believe della rose's is not on the list. mama della rose has cooked this baltimore tradition for years. my mother is 80 and still feels this is the best in the area and she has ordered it everywhere.

So you're saying it sounds less spoiled in a foreign language? :-)

Of course. Would you rather order Burnt Cream for dessert or Crème Brûlée? French toast or stale bread in eggy milk? Silly as it is, we love foreign names.

@ Linda

On a friend's recommendation I went to Deutsches Gasthaus in Aberdeen a few months ago only to find that it was not open.

I drove by a few weeks ago and it's been converted to a rib joint.

Any idea on what happened?

Roman's Place (near Patterson Park, on Decker St) has great sour beef and dumplings (made with red skin potatoes)

ONE OF THE BEST SAUER BEEF IS AT ROMAN'S BAR ON DECKER AVE IN HIGHLANDTOWN.

RtSO,
But that blue bar means you have to get to this blog page first.

Not that I want to be on the Rules Committee, but I'll chime in.
I think you get partial credit on both counts. Joyce started, but you and others get credit for sustaing it.

The snark was funny though.

Head hanging in shame.

Not to cause any trouble, but previous posters seem to be confused: sauerbraten and sour beef and dumplings are two different dishes.

Indoor voices JOAN KIDD.

I do enjoy the idea of someone screaming something postitive in a German accent. German, the only language where "I love you" sounds like you're choking on a pork chop.

I love love love this clip of "Germans Who Say Nice Things:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aiI9sa6fEqk

JOAN: Stop yelling at us!

The blogs are donkey powered?

Explains so much, doesn't it?

I don't know if it will be the comment of the week, but it certainly is the comment of the day, IMHO:

German, the only language where "I love you" sounds like you're choking on a pork chop.

Owlie, you make me laugh.

Serioulsy, eating this garbage is pure torture and and having a top ten of a torture technique is demented

Boubon Girl asked me to refrain from romancing her in German after I shouted this: ICH LIEBE DICH MEIN REIZENDES SCHWEINEKOTELETT!

Now I just use the secret language that my twin brother and I invented.

So, where is Della Rose's?

Sun Shine Boy, I just assumed everyone had a permanent tab for the Sandbox. Shame on any who don't.

Owl - I am trying so hard not to burst out loud laughing here at work. My eyes are watering and I think people think I am crying...I can't understand why Bourbon girl would not find that incredibly romantic...

In the famous words of Sergeant Schultz " I hear nothing!"

I never have to go to the Sun site and so almost never do. Whenever a new post is posted a little notice pops up in my browser. I use Opera and have the blogs go to the Feed function, which displays them all in a one line summary and then shows a short version of the current post in another window. Very efficient, which we should all be paying attention to since this seems to be German day!

"sunshine boy", now that's snarky, Party of One.

Got a little edge on today, RtSO?

Pig chop?

RtSO,
I do have the Sandbox favorited at home, but not here at work. yet.

Lissa,
There are a couple Della Roses. One is in that First Mariner building (pretty sure) and another is on the Avenue at White Marsh.

Owl,
You make me laugh too. I used babelfish to translate that.

Della Rose's is at The Avenue in White Marsh. But why be surprised that its under the radar.? An Itallian sports bar with sour beef? Only in Balmer, hon.

Not being a native of Baltimore I was introduced to this local dish a few years ago. I've had it at Burke's at thought it was ok, though I loved the red cabbage. I actually had it at G&M Restaurant recently, just wasn't in the mood for crabcakes. It was very good, better than Burke's I think.

Porkchop ( duh ). I am little slow today.

PCB Rob, the "Blogs" link is now on the main Baltimore Sun page also. It was not there early this morning. I guess the feedburner got fed and burned the link onto the web page.

BTW, snarking the Sun Management gets you "fixed" points. Only when you snark another poster do you get "loose" points.

You call this a "Top 10 list"? It's more like a yellow page listing. You're the first restaurant reviewer I've ever read who doesn't even eat at the places she recommends. Talk about a loss of credibility.
"Letting the restaurant's menus speak for themselves"(?) Sounds plain lazy to me.

I'm guessing you aren't a regular reader, so please read this. EL

Harumph harumph harumph!

Bryan, thanks for the (sad) update on Deutsches Gasthaus. I know they had had some problems staying open -- closed for a while and then re-opened -- but I guess they finally gave up the ghost. Too bad. They seemed like nice people and very authentic German.

PCB Rob, thanks. I don't get to Canton much, which explains some of my confusion. (I'm afraid the rest of my confusion is inexplicable.)

Regina's in West Annapolis is an amazing hidden gem that frequently offers delicious saurbraten and spatzle. They generally serve other great german dishes, and are a cult favorite for their spectacular chocolate chip pancakes. They close at three on most days, but wow, this off the beaten path choice is well worth it.

RtSO,
Did you snark me? I didn't think so.

Yeah, its all sunshiney down here, but darn chilly too. I had to scrape frost off my car windows this morning. And this is Florida? In this part of the state, FLA has a different meaning = F-ing Lower Alabama.

Rob - What's wrong with Lower Alabama? Jimmy Buffett is from Lower Alabama, I believe. 'Nuff said...

Hey "Enough Already"

I didn't get a harumph out of that guy......Give the Governor a Harumph!! lol

Sour Beef and Dumplings brings me back to sunday dinner at Grandmom's

I've seen takeout sauerbraten at Mueller's deli.

Hey Bucky,
Yes, Muscle Shoals is Lower Alabama. And Alabama isn't a bad place at all. Very homey and welcoming. I've visited the Heart of Dixie and its pretty cool. Its just that here in Lower Alabama, where they go on vacation, well, its just different.

I drive a compact car and when a Ford F-150 pulls up beside me, and the lift kit on it raises the chassis so high that it enables me to drive underneath it if I wanted to... well, nuff said. Or, as is common down here- "CAN I GET A HELL YEAH?"

Hell Yeah!

Oh, Trixie, "pig chop" made me laugh so loud that I woke the cat! Hilarious! I use my sainted mother-in-law's sour beef recipe Yeah, you need a few days, but it's actually easy. I cheat and make dumplings with a mix from Binkert's--and sometimes buy jarred red cabbage there, too--but usually I make cabbage. I tell ya, all's right with the world with food like that! I feel sorry for folks who don't like SB&D, but it's their loss.

Yes, at least 50 times! But I love sour beef and I lived about 3 miles from there. As I said, Dimitri's is good, just a bit unusual. Haven't had the dish since I moved to Mount Airy about 18 months ago.

Dimitries is fantastic. Even my mom agreed it was as good as she could make.

Keep in mind that Sauerbraten and Sour Beef are related, but not identical! Oh, and I had some pretty good Sour Beef at the Eastern House on Eastern in "Hollantown."

Sauer Kraut - I'm not German and I'm not a big fan, so what is the difference between Sour Beef and Sauerbraten?

I do like those potato dumplings though and love ginger snaps out of the box...

I was so inspired by this post and comments, that tonight DH and I went to Dimitri's in Catonsville for Sour Beef and Dumplings. I got the Sour Beef, he got beef kabobs. The food was delicious: dumplings were not too heavy, gravy was the right consistency, and the beef was perfect!
The kabobs were Greek style and delicious as well.
Our server told me that the Sour Beef is their most popular dish by far. They have great Greek dishes, so hearing that was a surprise. I guess one reason is that so few places serve it anymore.
(Disclaimer: the server is my son's girlfriend).
I certainly do not want to be considered a shill :-)

Cosmo Girl, I thought of you when we were in California last week. I saw a car with the license plate KZMO GRL.

Cosmo Girl, what everyone wants to know is how well did you tip the server?

Sorry so late on the response to your response, Elizabeth.

Yup...when I lived downtown, Rallo's only served sour beef one day a week and that was probably Thurs. And if I wanted sour beef, I'd wait until Thursday and head to Rallo's.

My grandmom (whose parents immigrated from Germany) passed down a recipe to my mom that I guess is sauerbraten, since there's no dumplings. To me, its okay, but not something I'd order out.

Now my parents absolutely LOVE it. I let them know about Della Rose's and they will visit soon.

Anonymous and others: We tipped quite well. The check was $45, including a couple of beers, and the tip was $15.
We don't normally tip quite like that, but hey, we know her and like her :-)

Joyce W.,

Sauerbraten means sour roast, and there are variations throughout Germany (for example, in the Rheinland there are raisins involved). All it is is a marinated roast that is then sliced and served with marinade-based gravy (much as you would serve any other roast). Sides vary, but can include potato dumplings.
The Baltimore creation is a little different in that you get chunks of meat in a gravy similar to some variations of sauerbraten gravy (I grew up in the south, and my mom never used anything remotely resembling ginger snaps). The dumplings here are substantially smaller than what you would get in Germany FWIW. I personally prefer the southern delicacy of Schweinebraten, which is a pork roast (not sour) that goes very well with either potato dumplings of bread dumplings.

Sauer Kraut - thanks for the explanation. Schweinebraten sounds like something I would like - is there anywhere around here that makes it well?

sorry if I hit that last post two times, couldn't remember because it was taking ETERNITY!

Fl Rob - let's not forget Ronnie Van Zant and: "Now Muscle Shoals has got the Swampers
And they've been known to pick a song or two
Lord they get me off so much
They pick me up when I'm feeling blue
Now how about you?"

Can I get a "hell yeah!"?

(arm held high, lighter flickering) "Freebird"!

Hell Yeah!

Trixie - rock on, party girl!

Fl Rob - right back atcha!

To Eddie concerning his remark about Wolfe's not being around any longer, the are now located on Backriverneck Road in Essex.

My favorite place for Sour Beef is Johnny Dee's Lounge on Joan Ave off of Loch Raven Blvd. The beef is always very tender and there is never a hint of fat. Their version is sweet and sour which I prefer.

For Sour Beef fans, church dinners offer great value and lovingly crafted sour beef. Though it is a staple of fall church dinners, our church moved ours to the winter because people start getting a hankering for it in the cold weather months.
We'll be holding a dinner Feb. 22 from noon to 5 p.m. St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, 7859 Tick Neck Road in Pasadena. All you can eat, $12 in advance, $15 at the door, includes sour beef or roast beef, dumplings with gravy, green beans, pickled beets, cake, rolls, beverages.
Now, I cannot attest for the green beans or pickled beets (I prefer fresh beans and loathe beets), but the sour beef is the bomb... I love buying leftovers which they sell in a quart at the end of the day if there are any. Episcopalians tend to overcook, so there is usually leftovers.

I was going to comment on how I could never wrap my appetite around anything called sour beef, but then I found that they are serving it at a place on Tick Neck Road and now I have a new problem.

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."

Tell that to the Chinese gooseberry.

Episcopalians tend to overcook

That would explain my grandmother's roasts. And what she did to vegetables should be illegal!

I went to Eichenkranz with my roommate for lunch on Sat. Excellent sour beef & dumplings. Just like moms

er, RayRay - is that a compliment?

Owl,
Ever had gooseberries? Or, by their other name, golden berries? That nut place where I get the pistachios has them. While they are pricey ($18 a pound) they are like a raisin, only right tart.
They are good for you too; they have about equal parts fiber and protein. But with their tartness, I find I can only eat a few at a time, usually with the jumbo dried apricots.

I'm not trying to be a shill, but they are quite good. But at that price, it might be awhile before I get them again.

Gonna try the gojiberries next...

PCB Rob, I think Owl was referring to Chinese gooseberries, aka kiwis.

I would like to have a receipt for sour beef that I can make at home. Please
can anyone help me.

I'm not from Baltimore originally and had never heard of, much less tried sour beef/dumplings, but my mother-in-law used to make it. Since she passed away, we could never find her recipe or any restaurant that made it similar to hers until we tried Willy's in Ferndale on B&A Blvd. They only have it as a special every other Tues. but it is the closest we've found to his mom's.Love it!

Betty, this is a recipe my family and I have been using for decades. I know many may turn their noses up at using Mrs. Minnick's marinade versus using red wine vinegar, etc, but IMO, it makes excellent sour beef. Follow the recipe below and you'll soon be in sour beef heaven!

Most restaurants' SB&D seem to be several large pieces of beef and two (maybe three) golf ball-sized dumplings. My recipe allows a lot of the beef to fall apart and become incorporated into the gravy, which I prefer.

2-3 lb chuck roast
1 medium yellow onion
2 bottles Mrs. Minnick's marinade
McCormick's pickling spices
6-8 white potatoes
1 egg
white flour
ginger snaps (15-20)

Trim fat off of chuck roast and cut into 1" cubes. Put in large bowl and add marinade. Make a large cheesecloth square and put 2 tablespoons of pickling spices inside and add to beef/marinade mixture. Mince onion and add to bowl. Cover with Saran wrap and refrigerate 2-3 hours minimum, but best overnight.

Boil potatoes, peel and mash plain (no milk, etc.). Refrigerate overnight.

Place beef/marinade into large soup pot and bring to a boil, then turn down heat and simmer for 2-3 hours.

Take potatoes, add one beaten egg and then add flour a 1/4 cup at a time until flour can be rolled into balls without sticking to your hands. Try to avoid adding more flour than necessary, but make sure you add enough to prevent them from sticking, or they will fall apart while cooking. I make mine as big as a baseball.

Take ginger snaps and break them into small pieces in a bowl. Add water and mix to make a thick paste. Remove pickling spice bag from beef/marinade mix and discard. Add large spoonfulls of ginger snap paste to soup pot and stir slowly until marinade turns into a gravy.

Boil water and turn to a simmer. Using a large slotted spoon, slowly lower dumplings into water. Cook for 3-4 minutes after they float. Place on an aluminum foil-lined pan to drain and cool.

Serve 2-3 dumplings per serving covered in gravy and beef. Unlike Silver Spring (who serves three to five large pieces of meat in a meatless gravy), this recipe produces smaller chunks of beef, but the gravy is loaded with tiny pieces of beef throughout, like it should be.

Serve with thinly sliced Vienna bread and a nice German lager or a bottle of chilled Spatlese.