The folks at the Atwater's in Catonsville, the company's central bakery (formally known as Atwater's Natually Leavened Bread), have installed a seating area for customers on the second floor of its historic Frederick Avenue building.

In December, Atwater's began offering its customers a walk-in lunch option and has just recently added a Sunday brunch.

It's all done with tiffin boxes, those tiered containers popular in India and Pakistan. The tiffin boxes are just the thing for carrying an Atwater's soup up to the second floor, according to general manager Donna Grant.

The tiffin stack on weekdays includes a soup, a bread and a sweet and is limited to a few daily choices - typically one is vegetarian. The price range is $6.95 to $7.95.

Now, customers can come in for Sunday brunch, when there are more choices.

Tier 1 might be a choice of granola parfait, dilled potato salad, or a green salad; tier 2, a main course like baked ham-and-egg pie, vegetarian pot pie, or potato leek soup; and tier 3, a sweet or pastry.

Customers can purchase (and personalize) their very own tiffin box for $14.95, and when they do, they will have it filled with one complimentary lunch. (Alternately, if they give the tiffin box as a gift, it will include a voucher for the complimentary lunch.)

And each time a tiffin box is brought back in, 50 cents (the approximate savings for Atwater's) will be donated to charity.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

► Over in Adryon's Kitchen, she's making Pickle Chicken. Finally, something to do with all those extra chickens lying around the house.

► President Obama has declared today Cesar Chavez day

► Pasteurization, sooo boring. The raw-milk-wanters have a new formidable opponent - children's doctors.  Food Safety News reports that "the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics (WIAAP) has again voiced 'strong opposition' to bills that would legalize the sale of unpasteurized milk in Wisconsin, saying the measures put children at risk."

Earlier this month, word came that several towns in Maine had declared themselves sovereign from federal and state laws licensing the production, processing and sale of foodstuff.

► Via The Food Section, this new food trend: the Vegan Stoner. It's actually pretty cute.

photo courtesy Adryon's Kitchen 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Caesar's Den owners Tina and Guido De Franco have put their Little Italy restaurant, Caesar's Den, on the renting block. There is no firm date for the closing of the restaurant, which opened in 1970.

When I reviewed the restaurant back in February, I wrote about the old-fashioned appeal of Caesar's Den, its simple, straightforward menu and its modest, homey atmosphere.

The owners are shown here in Kenneth K. Lam's 2003 Baltimore Sun photo.

I'll be spending time this morning trying to firm up the details on this. When a rental sign appeared on the restaurant leasing brochure appeared on the Segall Group's website , I made a few exploratory calls to the restaurant but never heard back.

It's a true thing, though - confirmation appears in the Little Italy neighborhood newsletter.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

This started with a Tweet I received this morning about a memorable dining experience at Hollywood Burger Bistro.

Below is the extended version. I took out the final paragraph, which draws a conclusion about the future of Hollywood Burger Bistro that, however warranted, is mere speculation.

About the experience, the author says: I believe the adjectives my friends used were 'unparalleled, memorable, and unforgettable. I would call it sad. :-(

And just now (5:37 p.m.), I called to get a response from someone at Hollywood Burger Bistro. No one answered the phone.

Here's the letter:

Thanks for encouraging me to email. I feel like an in-depth explanation of my and my friends’ experience last night at Hollywood Burger Bistro is warranted given the number of bizarre things that occurred, and tweets or DM’s just can’t convey it all. First, I must say that I never vent about bad experiences in restaurants, nor do I think of myself as being a difficult diner to please. Our experience last night was so bizarre that it deserves some attention, if only to provide other reader's with some funny entertainment on this gloomy afternoon.
 
I had my reservations about going to Hollywood’s in the first place, given the number of less than stellar reviews on both Yelp and FourSquare. As a social marketer I do my research on new places and generally think the crowd gets it right. But I figured “what the heck, it’s in the neighborhood, I’ll give it a whirl, " and I was a big fan of the spot when it was Red Fish. Plus one of my dining companions claimed to have heard good things about it. From whom these “good things” were heard, I have no clue, they clearly were talking about a different restaurant.
 
We were seated in the back dining room, where I believe only one other table was occupied. We order drinks, which come pretty quickly, however all of the sodas were flat. Problem #1.
 
We then ordered our appetizer. We went with the fries, but added on truffle oil, demi glace, and cheese curds to make them more poutine-like (as we all love the delish poutine at nearby Jack’s). Five minutes later fries arrive. Plain. With a plastic cup of ketchup on the side. No cheese curds, no demi glace, no truffle oil, no poutine-ness. Problem #2.
 
We tell the waiter this is not what we ordered he insists this is it, the toppings are buried inside the pile of fries. We think “Hmmm, that’s weird,” and dig deeper in the fries. But still don’t find any yummy toppings. Problem #3.
 

We call the waiter back again to tell him this. He takes the plate back into the kitchen and returns with a plastic cup with shredded parmesan cheese and tells us these are the cheese curds. Clearly that is not the case. Problem #4.
 
Our waiter comes back to take our dinner order. We get through three of the four burger orders, when my friend mentions the plainness of our fries and describes what demi glace and cheese curds should look like. The waiter than swiftly picks up the plate and takes it back to the kitchen, without taking the fourth order. Awkward problem #5.
 
Five minutes later he returns, apologizing for the mistake, fortunately this plate of fries resembles what we ordered. Our fourth diner then had to ask if he could order. Awkward problem #6.
 
Ordering finally complete, we dive into the fries, which were actually delicious. This is a good thing since it took 30 minutes to get them right and we were starving. We were then joined by two other friends who pulled up a table and joined us. One orders a lager and is told they don’t have any. Seriously? Problem #7.
 
Another orders a Stoli Razz drink and it told they have no Stoli. Problem #7.
 
We were amazed that a place with such a big bar could have no light beer of any kind and no top shelf vodka, but they order other drinks and are satisfied. Our two new guests were given menus and here’s the kicker… wait for it… told that the place had “run out of beef.” Problem #8.
 
Given the fact that there were only maybe seven other people in the place the entire time we were there between 7:00 pm and 9:00 pm, there is no way that they had a run on burgers before we came in. Also burgers make up 75% of the menu, once you knock those out of consideration you are left with pizza or pasta for dinner. Fortunately, our friends are told that it happened to be two-for-one-pizza night. So they order two pizzas and dinner marches on… and on… and on. We wait over an hour for our burgers, which keep in mind were ordered 20 minutes before the pizzas, yet still somehow the pizzas arrive first. Problem #9.
 
We had our suspicions that they had actually run out of beef before any of us had ordered and ran over to Safeway to get some. Finally an hour and fifteen minutes after we sat down, our burgers arrive. Problem #10
 
Had the experience leading up to us receiving our food not been so negative, I may have been okay with the mediocre burger that I was served, but the burgers my friends got were terrible. My Princess Di burger had limp wet bacon on top, my friend’s medium burger was so overcooked and dried out he couldn’t eat it, and my other friend’s burger with an egg on top had a huge piece of egg shell in it. Problems #11-13.
 
I won’t even get into how long it took to get the bill once we had finished attempting to eat. Problem #14. Once we got it, we were charged for two pizzas instead of one as we were promised. Problem #15. After some conversation with our waiter that was fixed and after some additional urging and our reminding him of the ridiculous things that had happened, he cut our bill in half. A very nice gesture, but it still does not salvage the situation.

Baltimore Sun photo/Algerina Perna 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 5:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (26)
        

Daniel Raffel is adding a second Haute Dog Fabulous Franks cart to his fleet. It will be parked right in front of the Colonnade in Tuscany-Canterbury.

The Haute Dog Fabulous Franks on Falls will remain in front of Bonjour Bakery on Falls Road. Beginning April 11, the second cart, Haute Dog Fabulous Franks at the Collonade, will operate seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:49 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

News to me.

But on the Grilled Cheese & Co. website, on the What's New tab, there's a reprint of an article from February 27 about plans to open a second Grilled Cheese & Co. in a former Scoops ice cream location.

The new location, "coming soon," is 577 Johnsville Road. It must be opening soon because there's already a phone number:  (443) 920-3238.

I need some Catonsville scouts!

Remember, April is national Grilled Cheese month.

Baltimore Sun photo/Sarah Kickler Kelber

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

Here's Laura Vozzella's profile of former Baltimore Sun reporter and now author Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan. Tan will read from and sign her new memoirs, A Tiger in the Kitchen, at Red Canoe Thursday night at 6 p.m.

The book is Tan's "account of returning to her native Singapore to learn cooking, family history and a bit about herself."

The article includes a sidebox of Tan's best-remembered spots to get Asian food in Baltimore, among then Nam Kang, Joss Cafe (Annapolis), Thai Landing, and Bangkok Kitchen in Odenton.

A reader wrote to Laura V, sad that Sam's Kid wasn't on Tan's list:

I spent 2 years in Malaysia.  I can tell you with no exaggeration the best pan-Asian food I've ever had is at Sam's Kid in Fells Point. The woman who owns it is Indonesian, the menu is Indonesian, Singaporean, Malay and Thai, and it's simply terrific. I was dismayed with your sidebar on restaurant suggestions. I think you should find a Singaporean or Malaysian and have dinner with them at Sam's Kid--they'll extol its virtues!

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

@gorelickingood Weirdest/worst dinner of my life at Hollywood Burger Bistro last night. How can a burger joint RUN OUT OF BURGERS?

I'll be following up on this one!

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)
        

Looks like it.

I had a tip yesterday (that I failed to act on, thanks anyway JH) and HowChow is reporting today that Elkridge's Ceazar International Market and its adjacent restaurant have apparently closed.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The question came up on Bon Appetit's BA Foodist blog. How soon is too soon to visit a new restaurant? (via Eater) - the question applies both to critics and the lay diner.

I like Andrew Knowlton's answer, it's pretty much what I would have said word for word, especially this part, "If a restaurant is open for business and charging full price, well, then they are open to criticism--no matter how new they are."

On the other hand, it's not very nice to make a blood sport out of hoping things go wrong at a new restaurant so you can bad-mouth the joint all over town. That's a very bad way to behave, and you know you who you are.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

They're thinking about it.

Posted on Facebook:

The Department of Recreation and Parks and the Friends of Druid Hill Park have been researching the idea of creating a new Farmer’s Market in Druid Hill Park near the Conservatory. We would like to invite persons interested in actively participating in the creation and implementation of this new market to our first working group meeting on Tuesday, March 29, 5:30 pm, at the Rawlings Conservatory in Druid Hill Park.

Please forward this invitation along to anyone you believe may be interested in working toward the Druid Hill Farmer’s Market becoming a reality. Our goal for this meeting is to determine the “ideal” market type for Druid Hill Park, and the specific steps we need to take to organize the market structure, including the subsequent working group meeting schedule.

Light refreshments will be served, so please RSVP your attendance to my office phone, 410-396-7012 or fran.spero@baltimorecity.gov.

I spoke with Fran Spero over at the parks department, who told me that tonight's meeting is for people who are willing to work to make this thing happen.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 12:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Here's the story about the new early opening of the Baltimore Farmers' Market. It's something the farmers wanted, according to the market's organizers.

There is more big news about this year's market that I didn't put in the print story: street closures!

Marketers will be able to move back and forth freely between the east and west markets this year. Here are the details:

Parts of Hillen and Holliday streets will be temporarily closed on Sundays for the duration of the market from April 3 to December 18, 2011. The 600 block of Hillen Street and 300 block of Holliday Street will be closed from 5 a.m. to 2 p.m.  Pleasant Street and a part of Hillen Street, near the market, are accessible.  Drivers can use Guilford Avenue as an alternate.  Some parking restrictions will be in effect.  

Nice!

Meanwhile, the Anne Arundel County Farmers' Market opens this Saturday for its 30th season, and the Silver Spring Freshfarm Market has its official season opener this Saturday. If you go, know that there's a different location this Saturday only -- Gateway Plaza at he corner of Georgia Avenue and Colesville Road.

Baltimore Sun photo/Jed Kirschbaum

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (11)
        

The wine shipping bill is headed to the governor.

The Original Beer in Baltimore blog weighs in on the pluses and minuses of the bill. Basically: it's better than nothing but leaves much to be desired, namely beer and spirits.

Also from Alexander D. Mitchell IV, news about the beer at Camden Yards: "This just in from Heavy Seas:  Oriole Park at Camden Yards will have nine taps of Heavy Seas Loose Cannon, nine taps of Heavy Seas Pale Ale, & three taps of Heavy Seas Gold Ale in 2011.  A call to the brewery confirms that these will be in place for the entire 2011 season."

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Here's some of  what the New York Times' Diner's Journal is recommending today.

► Sedgwick, Me., becomes the first town in the United States to pass a Food Sovereignty ordinance. "In doing so, the town declared their right to produce and sell local foods of their choosing, without the oversight of State or federal regulation." 

► Salon wonders how natural sweeteners like agave nectar and stevia stack up, taste wise, against stuff like asparatame and sucaralose.

► The Ina Garten story, in case you missed it.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I have no CSA recipes to report so far this week. I'm still struggling with pine mouth, so I wasn't feeling particularly like experimenting this weekend.

But I did stumble across this recipe, and before I knew what I was doing, I impulse-bought a box of brownie mix and some Peeps to try to make these Peep-Stuffed Brownies. 

Calling this a "recipe" is really an overstatement. It's basically a gimmick, but it's funny, and it's sugary, and it's chocolate and marshmallow, so how can you go wrong?

The original recipe cut the Peeps in half and used only three. I had a ton, so I put in six un-beheaded Peeps. In the oven, they puffed up, as seen above, giving the pan a "zombie Peeps arising from a chocolaty grave" kind of look. 

After they were removed from the oven, the Peeps deflated, and the marshmallow spread out. These were no longer cute; the Peeps no longer identifiable. But they were yummy, in an Easter-basket sugar-coma sort of way. 

Recipe: Peep-stuffed brownies

Courtesy of Babble.com

Makes: 6 brownies (my brownie mix said it made 16; I think 9-12 is probably a more accurate count than either 16 or 6)

1 box of brownie mix (+ ingredients listed on box)
3 Peeps – cut in half (I used 6, not cut in half)


1. Preheat oven according to package directions.  Mix brownies according to package directions.
2. Spray an 8×8 oven proof dish with cooking spray. Place 3/4 of the brownie mix into pan. Press peeps down into brownie mixture {1/2 peep per brownie section} Spread remaining 1/4 of brownie mixture on top.
3. Bake brownies according to package directions. Allow to cool completely prior to slicing.

Notes: Make sure you really grease the pan well. Even buttered, my pan was reluctant to give these brownies up in one piece. 

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 1:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Recipes
        

"Maryland's first distillery in nearly 40 years has begun to bottle its flagship spirit," reports Jill Rosen in a Midnight Sun guest post.

Meet Sloop Betty.

You can sip or swill it at Kooper's Tavern and Woodberry Kitchen.

Baltimore Sun photo/Karl Merton Ferron

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Marilyn and Brian Meagher, the keepers of the excellent Hot Sauce Daily blog, obliged my request for a guest post; please enjoy it. Of course, let them and everybody know about other Maryland-produced hot products. Also, talk here about your favorite dining destinations for super peppery food. Who's got the most insane wings? I feel a guest post from HowChow coming on..-- RG

We are native Marylanders and hot sauce lovers that write HotSauceDaily.com. Here’s our list of some of the best Maryland companies in the hot sauce and fiery-foods business. You can find in-depth reviews of these companies and their products on our website HotSauceDaily.com

Captain Thom's Chili Pepper Company
2527 Fait Ave
Baltimore, MD 21224
410-342-3547
http://captainthoms.com/
Our favorite Captain makes dozens of original and unique hot sauces, marinades and condiments, and is also the creator of Bacon Ketchup. Captain Thom’s products are featured at Geckos on Fleet Street and Mahaffey’s Pub on Dillon Street in Canton.

Todd's Dirt
102 Idlewilde Rd
Severna Park, MD 21146
http://toddsdirt.com/
Todd’s Dirt is a collection of 3 awesome rubs/spices - Original, Crabby Dirt and Bayou Dirt - a great cajun seasoning for blackening.

Rising Sun Pepper Farm
PO Box 31
Rising Sun, MD 21911
http://risingsunpepperfarm.com/
Relative newcomers, they have a killer 3 Pepper Garlic Hot Sauce along with other hand crafted sauces made with peppers grown locally on their Rising Sun farm.

Rippin Red Wing Sauce
3717 Trail Wood Court
Abingdon, MD 21009
443-640-5776
http://www.rippinred.com/
A superb ready to use wing sauce in both “hot” and “original”. With its fresh taste, it has become one of our favorites.

BMore Nutz, Inc.
6961 Golden Ring Rd
Baltimore, MD 21237
1-888-780-0323
http://bmorenutz.com/
Potato chip coated peanuts in many spicy flavors like Chili, Nuclear, Jalapeno and more. Delicious fiery snacks you have to try to believe.

Mama Vida (Toto's Blue Crab Salsa)
9631 Liberty Rd Ste. N
Randallstown, MD 21133
http://mamavida.com/
It’s salsa and blue crab meat. Nuff said!

Infusion Hot Sauce
615 Blossom Dr
Rockville, MD 20850
(240) 401-0973
http://infusionhotsauce.com/
Hot sauces made in small batches with fresh chilies, garlic, and vinegar. Most recent is their Mango Bango which uses the Bhut Jolokia chile, also known as "Ghost Chili" - over 1,000,000 Scoville Units!!!!

Marco's Sauces
P.O.Box 356
Keedysville, MD 21756
301-801-5938
http://www.marcosauces.com/
Locally produced delicious salsas that are “Not Yet Famous”.

Baltimore Sun photo of a Hampden pepper harvest/Karl Merton Ferron

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

Via Eater, a video documenting the ongoing Groupon backlash. (NMA is new to me. Am I way behind?)

We haven't talked much lately (at all) about coupon dining. Who's a fan? Who's not? I'd love to hear from some restaurant folks.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

► I love the title of this blog post on the Food & Wine Blog --"So, I got this fish from H-Mart..."

Go take a look at the fish Greg brought home and see what he did with it. Maybe you can tell him what the fish, which H-Mart calls palmburo, is.

► John Lancaster's New Yorker review of Nathan Myhrvold's (six-volume, 2,438-page) Modernist Cuisine provides an excellent and concise history of the movement otherwise known as molecular gastronomy. Alton Brown, at this Hippodrome appearance emphatically made the same point as Lancaster does: all cooking is molecular. Lancaster prefers the term modernist cuisine:

That is why the term “modernist cuisine” is so handy. When modernism arrived in the arts, it marked a dual break: a rupture within the history of the art form and a splitting off between advanced practitioners and the general public—between the popular and the serious. That’s what is happening in cooking, and the idea of it as a modernist revolution is a clarifying one, not least because it helps explain a distinction in the high-end restaurant business.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Some of you shared your weekend plans here.

I'm wanting to hear about AR's dinner at the B&O Brasserie. We've already heard from Hal, who ran the National Marathon and rewarded himself with dinner at La Chaumiere, and Mags, who took her  nieces to Snyder's of Hanover.

Monday dining specials are here.

The sleeping pet of the week is Max.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

Elevated levels of radiation in Pennyslvania's rainwater?

"These detections were expected and the levels detected are far below levels of public-health concern," says the EPA.

Here's the statement.

While short-term elevations such as these do not raise public health concerns – and the levels seen in rainwater are expected to be relatively short in duration – the U.S. EPA has taken steps to increase the level of nationwide monitoring of precipitation, drinking water, and other potential exposure routes to continue to verify that.

Here is the FDA's most recent statement of food safety.

UPDATE: Here's Tim Wheeler's story in the Baltimore Sun on the Maryland response

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Take a minute to read this Q&A Mike Klingaman did with Gino Marchetti that appears in the latest edition of the Sun magazine. Just like in the old days, the Hall of Farmer still loves working behind the line.

Baltimore Sun photo/Amy Davis

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 5:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Here's John Lindner's Sunrise section review of Baba's Kitchen in Riverside.

I've been to Baba's a few times, and I've had good luck recommending it to folks.

Have you been?

What's your favorite spot for Mediterranean food? 

That's Farid Bishara Salloum and his mother, Claire Salloum, in Karl Merton Ferron's photograph.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

The review of Drovers Grill & Wine Company  has actually been up online for a week now. But because the review got bumped from last Sunday's print edition, I held off linking until now.

Pictured is chef Kevan Vanek's showcase Black Angus platter.

Anybody dropped by Drovers Grill* yet. 

Baltimore Sun photo/Karl Merton Ferron

*I wish I had a dollar for every time I've typed in Drovers Corner instead.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Sorry for the slow day, gang.

I have been battling insomnia lately. This is new. I'm blaming my cats. They've gone mad. 

I was also on deadline today.

Now, as the sun is setting, I present you with some of the juicier items I'm seeing in my Google Reader:

This article about a new Lancet study on the effect of diet on ADHD. There are other links to follow once you get to the article, including to an interview you may have heard on NPR. (Civil Eats)

A Chicago Tribune business story on the changes the packaged-food companies are making to their products. Are they really healthier? Marion Nestle weighs in on Food Politics: "And as I keep saying, just because a processed food is a little bit less bad than it used to be, doesn’t necessarily make it a good choice."

Too much science for you? How about Tempura-fried pizza at Sumo Grub in Berkeley. (Serious Eats Slice)

Meet Food Republic -- Eating, drinking, and living the way a man should. It has a recipe for a hamburger.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Dear helpful people,

Other than the 32nd Street (aka Waverly) Farmers Market and the Baltimore Farmers' Market, what is your favorite area farmers market?

I'm working on a directory to accompany a farmers market article and I wanted to be sure I included the cream of the crop.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (13)
        

Lots to do this weekend. Who's going out to eat?

Everyone has an Aries friend or partner who is expecting TONS OF ATTENTION for his or her birthday. (Tip: Don't spend anything on Aries gifts or dinners -- just make a huge deal out of everything and keep him or her the center of attention.)

The Charm City Roller Girls are skating at the Du Burns Arena on Saturday. I'll go to my grave not understanding the league's basic team structure much less the basic rules of the sport. Who's going? And where in Canton do you plan to eat afterward?

Elton John performs at 1st Mariner Arena on Saturday night. I'm thinking B&O Brasserie is going to be a mob scene. Who's got some other tips for dining around the arena?

Baltimore Greek Week winds down this weekend. Sunday's Maryland Greek Independence Day parade starts at 2 p.m. on Eastern Avenue at Haven Street.

Talbot County Restaurant Week concludes this weekend, too. 

Where will you celebrate winning the Mega Millions jackpot?

It might snow.

The sleeping pet of the week was submitted by Steve Miller, the executive chef of the County Cork Wine Pub in Eldersburg. Steve writes:

This is Carlito. He is a 100% Baltimore City Pit Bull that was rescued a little over a year and a half ago. We think he was a bait dog in a fighting ring. When he came to rescue he weighed around 40lbs, was covered in scars and open wounds, and was the sweetest dog around. He bounced around a little until I got him as a foster right before last year's blizzards. I adopted him not long after. He's now a healthy 65lbs, and everybody that has met him loves him.

He mostly sleeps, gets along with nearly every dog he meets, and eats stink bugs. He is ferocious only to a rawhide or a milk bone, and loves to curl up next to me and Ms. Joker in bed and snore.

Steve worked with Mid Atlantic Bully Buddies on Carlito's rescue.

Finally, let's see what Sam Sessa has to say about this weekend.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (16)
        

Today's OED update has some new food-related words.

Big block quote from here

As the culinary appetites of the English-speaking world grow ever more diverse, loan words referring to new cuisines are a perennial source of new OED entries. The March 2011 update sees us adding such far-flung items as banh mi n. (also known as a Vietnamese sandwich n.), taquito n. (a crisp-fried Tex-Mex snack), and kleftiko n. (a Greek dish of slow-cooked lamb). Dishes from the English-speaking world are also in evidence, with new entries for the classic English dessert Eton mess, doughnut hole n., and that emblem of West Coast US sushi culture, the California roll. And speaking of food, the OED now acknowledges the ten- (or three-, five- etc.) second rule (n., the American [second n.1 Additions (b)], which allows for the eating of a delicious morsel that has fallen to the floor, provided that it is retrieved within the specified period of time.

via Eater

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

You can read the FDA's statement on radiation safety for yourself.

I was wondering whether people here have changed their behavior? Have you heard of anyone taking precautions, avoiding certain restaurants?

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 5:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Could there be a second Joe Squared moving into Power Plant Live!

Suzanne Loudermilk says it's a possibility that Joe Edwardsen could open a second location in the Two Boots space.

Baltimore Sun photo/Kim Hairston

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
        

From an article by Richard Verrier in today's Los Angeles Times:

The nation's cinema operators are fuming about proposed federal rules that could require them to disclose the calories in their concession food — including popcorn, a highly profitable item for theater chains.

What do you think about this? Should movie theaters have to post nutritional information?

Los Angeles Times photo/Allen J. Schaben

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

Of course, not to be taken literally. All manufacturers of dairy products are equally blessed.

The first year of Thursday evening Food Enthusiast Classes at Baltimore International College is winding down. Classes are held at the college's culinary arts center on Central Avenue. More information and the course catalog here.

Coming up:  

April 7 - My Friend Sushi

April 7 - Introduction to Cheesemaking

April 14 - Wok Around the Clock

April 21 - Easter Brunch/Easter Basket

April 28 - Mother's Day Brunch

And coming up on April 16, you can learn how to make a Clam Bake for Two as part of the Cook, Crack & Eat series of seafood cooking classes at Phillips Harborpace. The classes include a designed to help you learn the tricks of the trade. Join Chef Todd Weisz for a guaranteed  a demonstration, some wine and a  meal with the chef Todd Weisz.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Thanks for all the tips last week about what to do with turnips. We ended up doing a potato and turnip mash, and it was SO good. I'm looking forward to the next batch of turnips so we can try some of your other recommendations.

I experimented with the red chard and made this really yummy recipe below -- a mixture of chard, onions and golden raisins topped with pine nuts. (They were supposed to be toasted, but I ran out of time/patience and just ate them plain.)

I had a huge serving of leftovers for lunch yesterday, and late last night I started to notice that my mouth tasted foul. I was worried I was getting sick, and then I remembered a story I edited a couple of years ago about pine mouth. It's a weird, temporary condition, thought to be caused by some varieties of non-domestic pine nuts, in which your mouth develops this weird, bitter taste, and most foods taste awful. I thought I'd been so smart and checked and saw a U.S. address on the package of pine nuts when I bought them. What I failed to notice: "Product of China."

This morning, the flavor persists. One of my coworkers who experienced this before had a couple of suggestions: Artificial sweeteners seem to taste OK. Sugars and starches seem to taste the worst. A dose of Maalox that I took when I thought I was feeling ill last night tasted like the worst thing ever. Mint toothpaste was pretty awful too. 

So ... this is going to be fun. 

Anyway, if you make the recipe below, check your pine nuts carefully! It tasted great before the dreaded pine mouth.

Swiss Chard with Raisins and Pine Nuts

From One Cake, Two Cake and adapted from Epicurious

1 1/2 pounds Swiss chard (preferably rainbow or red; from 2 bunches)
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup golden raisins
1 cup water
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted

Tear chard leaves from stems, then coarsely chop stems and leaves separately.

Heat oil in a heavy pot over medium heat, and then sauté onion, stirring occasionally, 1 minute. Add chard stems and cook, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes. Add raisins and 1/2 cup water and simmer, covered, until stems are softened, about 3 minutes. Add chard leaves and remaining 1/2 cup water and simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until leaves are tender, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve sprinkled with nuts.

(Photo by me)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 1:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

Via Serious Eats

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 12:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Here's the story about the new food at Oriole park. It was, I admit, a story of limited scope. There are new food options at the stadium, what are they?

The story did not address many questions, including:

How much do these new food items cost?

What about gluten?

What about kosher?

What about vendor commissions?

They're all good questions, and I'll get you the answer.

As far as I know, fans will still be allowed to bring their own food into the stadium. I'll make sure.  

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Here's an early look at Rob Kasper's review of the food offerings at Milk & Honey. Milk & Honey is located at 816 Cathedral Street.

"Arugula shows up in a lot of sandwiches," there, Rob says. It's that kind of place.

Trivia question: which notably handsome restaurant critic used to live at 814 Cathedral Street?

Baltimore Sun photo/Karl Merton Ferron

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

Ewww!

On the Food Politics blog, Marion Nestle asks Who is responsible for dealing with poverty?

There is no way I could link to everything that gets posted on How Chow, not even the news of Howard County openings and closings. You're going to have to learn to follow it yourself. But here's a review of the new Fuji Restaurant and Sushi Bar -- "a little gem" -- to get you started. 

John Houser III over at Rouxde Cooking School made a human baby.

New pages on the Taste of Baltimore blog, including an alphabetical list of restaurant reviews. Handy!

And Tasty Trix is off to Budapest but is leaving behind this recipe for prażonka. What's the diacritical mark over the "z" called? Bon Voyage, TT!

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Gayle Economous wrote in to tell me:

This is sad news:
 
"As many of you know Phillip Rizas passed away on Monday night of a heart attack.  Phillip was the owner of Fins Restaurant on the square in Canton, a humanitarian, participant of Baltimore Greek Week, and a kindhearted human being.
 
Phillip's viewing will be held Friday at Connelly's Funeral Home in Dundalk from 3 - 5 p.m. & 7 -9 p.m.  The funeral is Saturday at St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church on Ponca Street."
 
Gayle added, Mr. Rizas attended the Baltimore Greek Week kick-off event at Ikaros on Sunday - he's the man in blue in the photo.

Sad...

As we say in Greek: May His Memory Be Eternal.
 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Delaware North  Companies Sportservice and the Orioles invited the press down this morning for a look at and taste of some of the new food they've come up with for Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

At the entrance -- trays of Berger cookies. This was a sign, of sorts, that Delaware North Sportservice had come through on the promise it had made to bring local flavors and vendors to Oriole Park

All of these items we tasted will be available at locations in general concessions throughout the stadium.

Some of these are premium items -- if you don't want them, you don't have to have them. Regular old hot dogs will be still be for sale, too.

Boog Powell was there. He and Sportservice are introducing the Big Boog, a new superhuge pit beef, pork, and turkey sandwich. It looks like a slider in his hands but is actually really big!

A few of the items we tried are intended as the stadium's new "signature item," Baltimore exclusives that Sportservice has been working on for months, inspired, at least in part by the culinary bus tour of Baltimore Delaware North executives and chefs took last December:

Polack Johnny's Sausage

Old Bay Wings

The Camden Yards Crab Cake -- more on this later.

Natty Boh Brats

The Birdland Dog -- an Esskay frank topped with smoked pit beef, Little Italy pepperoni hash, stewed tomato jam and crispy fried onions.

The Rolling Crab -- a spring roll filled with crabmeat, peppers, pepper jack cheese, flashfried on a traditional roller grill.

Beer-battered soft-shell crab sandwich

The O's Pretzel -- it's in the shape of an the Orioles' "O."

Some of the items are tweaks of popular items at other Delaware North venues:

The Little Italy Meatball sub -- served with romano cheese, garlic and fresh basil.

The chop house & egg sandwich, kind of a nighttime version of a sandwich that's been a big hit at football games at other Sportservice venues.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (26)
        

Details here about a chance to win tickets to an invite only performance of Cirque du Soleil’s  touring show Totem and a tour of Charm City Cakes bakery.

Contestants have until March 31 to create your very own Totem-themed by cake and email a picture of it to ... well like I said, details are here:
 

A little bit about Totem, from the press release but with the title moved out of all caps:

Totem traces the fascinating journey of the human species from its original amphibian state to its ultimate desire to fly. Totem illustrates, through a visual and acrobatic language, the evolutionary progress of species. Somewhere between science and legend Totem explores the ties that bind Man to other species, his dreams and his infinite potential. Totem will be opening in Baltimore at the Westport Waterfront on April 7.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Sticky Rice Baltimore is collecting $1 donations for Shelter Box to provide emergency shelter and lifesaving supplies for families who lost their homes in the tsunami in Japan.

For every $1 donated, a customer receives an entry into a raffle for a sushi party for four, prepared and served by a Sticky Rice chef at the winner's home.

The raffle will conclude on Sunday, and Ronnie Pasztor at Sticky Rice says that they've already collected over $450.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Thank you to sharp-eyes Fells Point scouts who told me about the closing of Talay Thai and the almost immediate opening of an Indian restaurant named Darbar in its place. 

Darbar's owner, Vinay Wahi, a partner at Akbar, was surprised I had heard about it the opening.

Darbar opened on Monday, Wahi confirmed, and a grand opening will be in several weeks, after the customary kinks are worked out. A lunch buffet debuts next week.

The address is 1911 Aliceanna St, and the phone number is 410-563-8008.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Take a look at our new photo gallery of traditional Maryland food and regional favorites. We'll be building it.

What else belongs here? We really want recipes, too, so if you have a classic recipe, or know of one we can publish, please say so.

Baltimore Sun photo

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Here's Bob Swank's Episode 3 recap of American's Next Great Restaurant. Now we're all caught up.

Johnny Carson golfswing!

Last week grilled cheese operation Meltworks was the crowd favorite and has immunity. “I can make a 100,000 wraps Fran” was eliminated for telling Chipotle founder Steve Ells that his opinions were wrong and that people do like dry over-cooked chicken. She was strapped into her Delorean wrap and sent back to 1993.
 
Most reality shows have a catchphrase that they use when someone is eliminated: You’re fired; Please pack your knives and go; etc. ANGR’s is the ultra-lame, “I’m sorry, Smedley, we will not be investing in your restaurant.” Awkwardly polite for a vulgarian like Bobby Flay.
 
I guess we are supposed to think that marble-gargling Bobby from da Block is now a respectable entrepreneur who doesn’t try to humiliate people in bogus chef contests or jump on his cutting board when victorious.
 
I think something more gritty would work like, “Grab yourself by the collar and take out the trash. Your sauce is weak!” Too strong?
 
Judges
 
Bobby Flay – Bona fide high-end faux Mexican / jerk
Steve Ells – Bona fide business genius of high concept, lowbrow faux Mexican.
Lorena Garcia – Real Latina / shoe-horned TV chef / chimichurri Barbie
Curtis Stone – Kangaroo Ken doll / haircut in search of celebrity
 
Know Your Investors
 
Who is Curtis Stone and why should we care? Oh, he was on Celebrity Apprentice 3. Yeah, but why was he on that? Oh, because he was one of People magazine’s sexiest men alive (2006), newcomer category. Yeah, but why? He apprenticed with Marco Pierre White in London. So? Oh, he had a show on TLC between 2006 and 2008, Take Home Chef,  where he picks up hot babes in the lonely food section of supermarkets (Lean Cuisine, anyone?) and weasels his way back to her home so he can put Barbie on his, er, shrimp.
 
He is a manufactured celebrity who was sold as a soft-core porn stalker. Creepy.
 

I’ve Got a Beef with Your Meat

You Say Chipolte, I Say Chipotle

A Saucy Ball Is Saucy Ball Is a Saucy Ball – What’s In a Name?

Philosophy of the Whirled

Slogans

Outside Judges

Pet Peeve

Judgment Day

Adios Marisa.

The Future

Contestant names, Home City, Current Concept Names and Slogans

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 9:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (18)
        

Patrick Morrow (in photo) is leaving Bluegrass to take over the kitchen at Tapas Adela and Meli for the Kali Group. He will also serve as chef for the group's forthcoming Admiral's Cup project.

Morrow succeeds Rashad Edwards, who will return to the group's flagship restaurant, Kali's Court, where he started.

Meanwhile, back at Bluegrass, stepping up from chef de cuisine into Morrow's executive shoes is Ray Kumm, who formerly worked at Alizee under Christian deLutis. 

Official feeling of everybody involved so far: happy.

Baltimore Sun photo/Monica Lopassy

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

A few things I've been meaning to tell you about.

- On Thursday, Donna's Columbia is having its first-ever wine dinner featuring Dr. Thanisch Riesling. The three-course dinner (plus dessert and starter) is $55. Call 410-659-5248 for information. The guest for the wine tasting is Barbara Rundquist, the current owner of the Thanisch estate, who will be bringing a special wine (a Beerenauslese) from her cellar for the tasting. 

Speaking of Donna's, plans are moving forward, Alan Hirsch told me, for the Mt. Vernon location. Just don't look for it anytime soon; late late fall is the most optimistic prediction.

- Coming up soon, a Charles Krug Winemaker Dinner at Morton's on March 30, with special guest Peter Mondavi, Jr. The event is a benefit for the Make-A-Wish Foundation

- Spike Gjerde (Woodberry Kitchen) delivers the keynote address for a March 31 breakfast and speaking event at Center Stage. The invent. Involve: A conversation about localism and community responsibility, is a benefit for Wide Angle Youth Media's programming.

- The Baltimore Farmer's Market and Bazaar opens earlier than ever this year. Put April 3 on your calendar.

- Crabi Gras returns to Jimmie and Sook's in Cambridge on April 9. This is a benefit for the Chesapeake Bay Commercial Fisherman's Association

Finally, my story on the refreshed Pazo included some murky information about the new menu. Here's a clarification, broken down in menu categories, with some representative items:

Crabmeat Buñuelos- sweet peppers, salsa brava
Tuna Tartare- cilantro, chili oil
Spicy Coppa Carpaccio- wood-grilled mango, 50-year sherry vinegar
Pizza Napoletana “Catalan”- chorizo, wood grilled green apple, La Peral blue cheese

FIRST COURSE/APPETIZERS

Lobster Salad Sandwich- toasted brioche, avocado, bacon, tarragon aioli
Sea Scallops and Calamari a la Planxa- white coco beans, chorizo

MAIN COURSES

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I've been playing catchup for hours. Geez.

I still haven't posted about the food at Saturday night's Foodie Experience. 

Here are some things I found on the blogs that caught my eye:

1) Here's a link to a pdf listing all of this year's James Beard Foundation nominees. Or you can go to the website and open it there. Yesterday we learned that both Duff Goldmann and "The Ace of Cakes" are finalists.

2) he Minx shares her curry cupcake recipe on Minx Eats. It was a recipe she submitted for the Scharffen Berger Chocolate Adventure Contest; you can see the winning recipes on the contest website.

3) On Serious Eats, a grilled cheese sandwich after my own heart. Take a look and see if speaks to yours. Secret ingredient -- cheese from Cowgirl Creamery. There's a Cowgirl Creamery Sidekick in San Francisco's Ferry Building, where you can order a grilled cheese. The Cowgirl Creamery in Washington's Penn Quarter (its only store on the East Coast) sells sandwiches and other prepared foods (including a mac-and-cheese that you can warm up yourself), but they don't really do hot food on the premises.

4) Eli has a new review on Adventures of a Koodie -- read about his trip to the storied Pizza John's in Essex.

Tuesday dining specials are here  

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 12:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

I am sorry for the lag in approving your comments from last night. Apparently, this is something I will be able to from my smartphone. Which I am happy to do, even if it takes away from Scrabble.

Hang in there.

In case you missed it, all comments need my, or a colleague's approval before appearing. There is no single reason for this change. The good news -- no more spam!

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

This is breaking news...I'm actually waiting for the official press release to pop up in my inbox.

But I just heard that Duff Goldman has been nominated for a James Beard Foundation Book, Broadcast & Journalism award.

Stay tuned ...

Update: It's real. Goldman is nominated in the Best TV Personality category along with -- wait for it, Bobby Flay and Alton Brown!

And ... Ace of Cakes was nominated in the category of Television Program, on location -- the other nominees are Avec Eric and Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern

The announcement of the Book, Broadcast & Journalism Awards came along with those of the nominees in the restaurant and chef categories.

Although Cindy Wolf had earlier been announced for the shortlist in the Mid Atlantic Chef category, her name does not appear among the five finalists. Also missing is Tony Foreman, who had been shortlisted in the Outstanding Wine Service category for Charleston, and the restaurant itself, which is not one of the finalists in the Outstanding Service category.


On May 6, 2011, the James Beard Foundation Book, Broadcast & Journalism Awards Dinner, an exclusive event honoring the nation’s top cookbook authors, culinary broadcast producers and hosts, and food journalists, will take place at Espace in New York City.  The evening will be hosted by Ted Allen and Gail Simmons. 

Also nominated: Amanda Hesser, who will be in Easton this Saturday for the concluding event of Talbot County Restaurant Week, was nominated in the General Cooking cookbook category for The Essential New York Times Cook Book: Classic Recipes for a New Century

Baltimore Sun photo/Gene Sweeney Jr.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (17)
        

Here's Bob Swank's recap of Episode 2 of America’s Next Great Restaurant. I'm not watching the show but I am really enjoying these recaps -- Bob Swank should have the recap of last night's episode soon, and then we'll be all caught up. The dismissal catchphrase, Bob says, is super lame-o. How about you all submit your ideas here for a great "so long, suckers" catchphrase -- RG

Johnny Carson golfswing!

 
Are you a Shark or a Jet? In this episode of ANGR, the scrappy non-chef food conceptualists take their beef to streets. They’re packing (canned) heat and flashing blades. In the end ... somebody gets cut! Hang on to your wigs and keys, it’s getting real on America’s Next Adequate Restaurant.
 
In Episode One of ANGR Bobby Flay killed a guy just to watch him die and his fellow judge/faux-investors picked 10 teams from the 18 that had been selected from an “exhaustive” nationwide search. Remarkably, most of them were from Los Angeles and were dreadful. See my recap of Episode 1 for full details on the ten selected and the colorful losers.
 

Emulate and  listen to your overlords

 
The models for contestants to emulate are obviously the two name judges’ fast casual restaurants. Flay has Bobby’s Burger Palaces with five locations in the New Jersey area, mostly in malls (snicker). Yo, what exit?

Steve Ells owns Chipotle which has over a thousand locations. Listen to them, especially Ells. Flay’s burger joints are nothing special. They exist because his name recognition as an obnoxious boor has positive value for some in the Tri-State area. (See Jersey Shore, yo.) Meat puppet judges Lorena Garcia and dross-toff gel-coiffed fast-casual (fasual)-naif Aussie Curtis Stone are basically professional followers and blow-dried toadies. Learn from them, arrogant nobodies. Since NBC owns Telemundo and Bravo, I suspect they are grooming Garcia for something like El Numero Uno Chef. Eh, Padma can do it.
 
In this episode they field-test their concepts by making food for a thousand people at Universal Citywalk in Los Angeles, which looks like Harborplace with concrete instead of water. First they have to hire chefs and design logos for their ventures. When I heard they were branding today, I got excited, since the sauce-on-the-side woman probably should be branded. Nertz, not that kind of branding. Giddyup.

Hiring Your Chef from the Kiddie Pool of Talent

 
The 10 teams (all but one are individuals) interview 17 chefs. Ugh. Sudhir, who is making Southern Indian coastal cuisine adapted to American tastes is soooo screwed. Not one chef has any experience with Indian food. He goes with a Swedish-born chef. Well, that should mellow out your flavor profiles into nothingness. (With apologies to Marcus Samuelsson.)

All the chefs claim to be amazing at all things. Question: why don’t any of you have jobs?
 
Joey Saucy Balls asks chefs what their favorite movie is. Correct answer: Scarface. Incorrect answer: Beaches. When grilled on how one makes meatballs, one California dreamer includes carrots. Rejected with extreme prejudice. The California-ness of chefs and contestants is really annoying and shows how limp the California cuisine influence can be.
 
Contestants interview chefs and argue about over them. Zzzz....
 
Joey Saucy Balls and Greg/Krystal (Grystal) argue over Brandon the chef, and Grystal walks away with the faux-hawk dweeb even after  Joey makes his pitch as Al Pacino from Scarface. Go figure.
 
WNBA Fran makes her pitch to a chef that she can’t go wrong with her because she can literally make a different 100,000 wraps. Every chef’s dream. Taco Alex says, “They make wraps at Subway.” Ouch. Wraps + WNBA = Yawn.
 
All in all the contestants here behave like adults, which makes for bad reality TV since it’s realistic. I’ve been in few business meetings where people threw chairs. Except once and I swear I didn’t know you weren’t supposed to mix Thera-Flu and methadone.
 

Logo Design

 
The contestants get matched with marketing and graphics arts people to design logos and graphics based on the names that they created before the show.
 
The meltworks -- Grilled Cheese Guy brought his own logo, which is basically the “o” as a gear oozing something cheese-like. It works.
 
Chicken and Waffles guy’s place is called W3 – Woods, Wings, Waffles. He is a football player so everything has to be a football theme. And when he says he is a football player I assume he means he played football in high school. W3 is a terrible name. I have no idea what “Woods” stands for.
 
The Sports Wrap – Whatever You Create I create a beeline to a better place to eat. The logo of the wrap looks like a loose Band-Aid. This is a BAD concept and a terrible name. Whatever you create? No, YOU create something, I’ve been testing widgets all morning. Make me some damn lunch, woman!  WILMA!!!
 
A wrap is a sandwich that hates itself, a bad marriage between a self-loathing sandwich and burrito that has lost its identity. Why not skip the lame tortilla wrap and just use the Tracy Jordan Meat Machine where meat is the new bread. Healthy? Pfft! One tortilla used as a “wrap” has 210 calories and two slices of delicious rye bread has only 180 calories.
 
Wok – Stir fried banality. Miss Sauce on the Side insists on black & white graphics. Doom, doom, doom. Maybe she had a Chinese orthodontist in high school in Scarsdale.  I just don’t see her connection to Asian food or even flavor. Maybe she put on an amateur production of the Mikado (Yes, I know it’s set in Japan.) at equestrian sleep-away camp that certain confusing summer. Seriously, she has a concept called Wok with no Asian ingredients, sauces, or spices. Why not just call it I Hate You Daddy Bistro?
 
Hicks is getting a bad logs-as-fonts logo that screams pit stop on the river in Deliverance. Squeal like a pulled pork slider (with a California twist). Ouch.
 
ComplEat – Terrible name for the calorie counting unfun place. Stephenie went to Harvard Law School out of guilt because she told people she was going before she was accepted. More self-hatred food. Why not just let your neurotic trust fund customers suck on a sponge that tastes like money. This woman doesn’t seem to like food or even life. She constantly checks a calorie counting book. Future mega-fail.
 
Hard & Soft Tacos – Loves the logo he made it’s very tattoo and very rock n’ roll. It speaks to L.A. Why did they pretend to look around the country for people? This whole show is saturated with shallow L.A. morons. the logo looks like a gay biker gang tattoo. The name has poorly considered sexual connotations.
 
Joey Saucy Balls wants to add a drawing of his grandma to his saucy balls logo. This guy has brass ones. Respeck.
 

Feeding the Beast

Watch the non-cooks try to shop for service for a thousand people at Restaurant Depot.
 
Grystle are making “signature” tater tots casserole. First, if you don’t have a restaurant, you don’t have a signature anything. Second, there is a point where comfort food is just garbage you eat when you are really drunk.
 
Grilled Cheese Guy’s sandwiches are too complicated. Six ingredients is not a grilled cheese, it’s a twee fancy-lad sandwich with cheese. It’s the shaved corgi of grilled cheese. Pet peeve: when people put cold things like arugula, lettuce and baby spinach on a hot sandwich. Stop it.
 
Chicken & Waffles Guy is making gumbo for his first culinary challenge. He is either very bold or out of his mind. People are confused why gumbo is all that W3 has. No wood, waffles or wings today. Change name already. People love the gumbo.
 
Customers at Citywalk vote on best concept by dropping tokens in their booth boxes. People unhappy that Woods, Wings & Waffles have none of those things.
 
In general, the food looks bad and the names and logos are bad and don’t match the bad food. Indian Guy has a bad Swedish chef but his flavors are consistently good.
 
Grilled Cheese Guy was the most popular concept at the event. Still seems lame to me. He’s really just doing square Quizno’s sandwiches. He’s taking something that exists in Catonsville already and probably in fifty other cities, that is almost infantile in its simple appeal and going all Rosina Gourmet with melted cheese. Bring it back to Earth, Chauncey.
 
I should mention that Grilled Cheese & Co. opened in Catonsville a year or so ago with the same basic concept. I see that they will be opening a second location in Eldersberg. Congratulations. You didn’t even need Bobby Flay to show you how to make a grilled cheese sandwich.

Judges Critiques

The contestants wait in a sterile place called the business center, which looks like an unused conference room for the Screen Door Convention at the Tulsa Convention Center. The judging takes place in a empty space in a huge room with a sign that says “Restaurant Row”. All I see is the lobby to nothing in particular.
 

1) SportsWrap Fran – Just drive a stake through the heart of this loser already. WMBA Wrappin’ Amazon has a sob story about how wraps are important to her, because her mother died of a massive heart attack. I can’t do that math. Frantastic Hoop Dreamer argues with all the judges’ opinions. Ells says the chicken was dry. She says it was fine for her. Some people like it dry. “Your opinion is wrong,” is not a smart response to your investors. The judges openly despise her now.
 
2) Hicks’ Greg/Krystel – Food was “gross” according to Crockpot Dundee. Ells described it as fatty, just fat, just disgusting. Grystel are clueless. Deep fried tater tot casserole? That’s Southern tapas?
 
3) Wok chick Marisa – didn’t serve stir fry. Served “dodgy rice”. Marisa says people are dying for non-Asian stir fry. Really? She and ComplEat’s  calorie-counting Stephenie sound like they are making nursing home food.
 

When All You Have Is a Hammer, Everything Looks Like a A Nail

I was listening to the beautiful album by Magnetic Fields, The Charm of the Highway Strip when the song “Two Characters in Search of a Country Song” came up.  

That reminded me of a problem with restaurants and several of the contestants here. The problem is when a chef gets enamored of a technique or piece of technology and tries to shoehorn food into it. We have seen it in fine dining restaurants with sous vide and the dreaded foam monsters.
 
I’ve seen ads for the Vitamix blender that show that it is so powerful that the food in the blender heats to high temperatures. This side effect implies that hot liquefied solids become soup. Pass. Sadly, an early discard from Episode 1 decided that this was her concept for food.
 
Another doomed contestant is Wok Girl. She has it in her head that you can make healthy food in a wok. The problem is that she removed the wok from the context of places that use it for cooking. So she has no skill with it or idea of food with flavor. Her food sounds like Lean Cuisine minus any flavor. Wok and ComplEat are culinary hair shirts.
 
So far, I see too much gimmick and technology masquerading as “concept”.  
 

Yes, I Can! No, You Can’t

There is a fine line between enthusiasm and delusion. Wrappin’ Franny hangs onto her invisible unknown WNBA stardom as proof that people want to make their own wraps. Chipotle may sell $1.5 billion in wraps a year, but they are an established brand. I wonder what constitutes a “wrap” there. Anything with a tortilla? So is a burrito a wrap? I think Fran is stretching the truth to suit her delusion.
 
D’oh! Tricked by the idiot box. A quick look at Chipotle’s menu shows that there are no wraps. Delusional Fran just renamed burritos (and maybe soft tacos) wraps. Chipotle may have lame gringo food posing as Mexican, but they are not stupid enough to call them “wraps”.

Fran is obsessed with wraps because her mother died of a massive heart attack. Therefore, wraps are healthy. Tap the breaks on that one, Stretch. A plain wheat tortilla used for a wrap has 210 calories. One slice of Wonderbread has 70 calories. So your “healthy” wrap has the same processed white flour goodness of three slices of Wonderbread smooshed together.
 
Fran circles the drain flailing with blind enthusiasm and a weird speech about not being no scrub as they flush her with impunity: “I am a star!” Blind enthusiasm flips over into delusion. Take your hundred thousand possible sadwiches and dribble on home. Since you are locked into a basketball mental framework, let me explain it this way, Fran: The Washington Generals think they can beat the Harlem Globetrotters before every game, but I wouldn’t bet on them.

The lamest dramatic aspect is the catchphrase with which they crush their dreams: “I’m sorry, Chauncey, but we will not be investing in your restaurant.” Weak sauce. Anybody have a better catchphrase? I like, “Pull yourself up by your collar and take out the trash.” Too harsh? 

The Future

 
So far the judges haven’t messed with the contestants’ concepts, logos, or names. They gave them some nudging, but mostly gave them enough rope. In the coming weeks things should get interesting, because they will be actively changing the fundamental aspects of the proposed businesses, since they have an interest in all of them doing well. This wasn’t a great episode. It was a building episode.
 
Joey, you are a delightful East Coast ethnic caricature, but your Grandma’s Saucy Balls does not a business make. Think outside the, er, saucy ball box.
 
As Picasso said, “Creation is destruction.” In coming weeks I’m looking for some brutal some brutal destruction of the more banal and misguided aspects of some of these ventures.
 

 

 
 
 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Here are a few recent posts that got my attention.

A guest review on Hot Sauce Daily of Great White Shark Predator, a Scoville-crazy, extreme-heat hot sauce. It's a positive review:

With all the full scale tongue scorching power of a monumental hot sauce and the flavor depth of a fruit platter (with a few drops of monumental hot sauce), Great White Shark Hot Sauce is a true hot sauce lover’s hot sauce.

Who out there likes it very, very hot? Which area restaurants come through with heat, at least for regulars. Which places are the most reluctant to add heat, even when it's begged for. I'm thinking Baltimore is a rough town for pepper-lovers. True?

Google Reader recommended this site to me, Smitten Kitchen, specifically this post on whole wheat goldfish crackers.

From Eater National, Paula Forbes on a new foodie feud (a "feudie"?). They're fun! This one's between Grant Aschat'z business partner Nick Kokonas and Esquire food writer John Mariani. Seems Mariani scrawled on and walked off with a custom-made wine list from Aschatz's restaurant, Aliana. Here is Mariani's response, posted just a few  hours ago.

Boys, boys. You're both pretty.

Note: All comments on Dining@Large now my need my pre-approval. Please review the Terms of Service. I'll get to comments as quickly as I can. There is no one particular reason for the change, but doing it this way will absolutely make the dreaded spam problem go away.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

The National Cherry Blossom Festival starts on Saturday.

Any minute now I'm going to look up and some editor's going to be at my desk saying, "Gorelick, why don't you put together a list of places to eat for Baltimore Sun readers who are visiting the Cherry Blossom Festival." 

I made a list last year, and readers didn't love it so much. I'd especially love to hear reader tips based on, you know, real-life experiences at the festival, complete with transportation strategies.

Here's a list of restaurants participating in the festival's Cherry Picks festival to shake your branches.

Baltimore Sun photo of Baltimore cherry blossoms/Algerina Perna

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

First, a little Mari Luna disambiguation. John Lindner's review is of Mari Luna Mexican Grill, the first Mari Luna, the one in the converted Carvel ice cream store. Mari Luna Latin Grill is further up Reisterstown Road.

The new Mari Luna, is Mari Luna Bistro, just across from the Meyerhoff. There are high expectations for this  one -- I'll be reviewing this one soon. 

Lindner went looking for enchiladas, his "favorite Mexican comfort food" -- see how Mari Luna's stacked up for

For the record, the enchilada photograph that accompanies the online review was taken at Mari Luna Bistro, the one across from the Meyerhoff.

I never posted a link to Lindner's review of Jimmy John's, the Chicago-based sandwich shop that opened up a few months back on Pratt Street in the Inner Harbor. Here it is.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Spring arrived last night. I forgot to look at the moon on Saturday. I decided to inventory every article of clothing I possess. (Why?) 

The Baltimore Greek Week is just getting started. My picks -- the $16 fixed-price buffet at Zorba's and the $20 fixed-price menu at Ikaros. There's more information here.

Talbot County Restaurant Week continues through Sunday

Monday dining specials around town are gathered here.  The dining specials main page is here.

Coming soon

On Saturday, April 2, there's a big food-and-wine event at the B&O Railroad Museum. Sante: Spoil your Palate is a benefit for the National Kidney Foundation of Maryland. Participating restaurants include RA Sushi, Bistro Rx, B&O American Brasserie and Talara, and the honorary chairs or Brendan Dorr (B&O), Hugh Sisson (Heavy Seas Brewery) and David Wells (The Wine Source) There's more information here.

The sleeping pet of the week is Stagger Lee's puggle, Odie

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:02 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Your Weekend Dining PLUS
        

I really wish I was watching America's Next Great Restaurant. It sounds like a fun show. I asked for a volunteer to write recaps for Dining@Large, and Bob Swank stepped up.

Thanks, Bob Swank!!

Bob'll start writing day-after recaps beginning tomorrow. Episode 3 airs tonight at 8 p.m, so if you want to start watching tonight, here's the recap of Episode 1, which establishes the premise and the players. An episode 2 recap will appear anon.

Johny Carson golfswing!

Bobby Flay, mumble-mouth auteur of roasted corn and cutting board romper-stomper shame-magnet from Iron Chef, hosts the new “reality” show America’s Next Great Restaurant (or as I will call it ANGR). 
 
I generally hate reality shows, because there is nothing real about them and I feel stupider after watching them. Top Chef is an exception, because talented people make things of value and I learn a lot. ANGR looks like it might have some virtuous combination of entertainment and business value.
 
The idea is to select ten people who have promising ideas for a new restaurant (chain) and have them compete in serious and probably stupid contests, eliminating one every week. The last concept standing gets three restaurants in New York, Los Angeles, and Minneapolis(waaa?)  bankrolled by Bobby Flay, Steve Ells, founder of Chipotle, and two other “investors”. (I don’t believe this investor twist for one minute.)
 
Another “investor”-judge is Lorena Garcia, a D-list chef and Telemundo Rachael Ray/Charo-lite wannabe. The final judge-dream weaver is Australian haircut-looking-for-a-TV-gig and former Pierre Marco White toque duster, Curtis Stone. His chef credentials seem as thin as Garcia’s and both appear to fill some cynical demographic niches.
 
Steve Ells looks suspiciously like Stephen Hawking’s cousin. Flay asserts his usual obnoxious confidence and speech impediment/Brooklyn accent. The other two video meat puppets nod and sit up straight, eat tacos with upside down forks.
 
At the start of Episode 1 Flay introduces us to his models of greatness past: KFC, Subway, and Chipotle. So “great” refers to the business model, not the food. They call it fast casual.
 
Twenty people appear on stage after their “exhaustive” nationwide search (by bus). They go into the kitchen and make something for their pitch. Like every reality show, it is clear that some people are here to be comedic and dramatic clichés. There seem to be 18 actual teams (16 individuals and two pairs).

I present them in order of appearance.

 
* = In top ten
- = Booted off
 

*1) Fran – Personal trainer/Ex-WNBA player. The sports wrap: A healthy wrap that customers build on their own. Alley-oops, 1996 just stole your idea.
 
There will be canned applause when ordering, high-fiving and sports things on walls. You get a fitness tip in your sandwich, I mean wrap, like a judgmental fortune cookie. (“Put down that wrap, fattie!”) Aussie haircut: “Isn’t this a bit toyered?” She disagrees; Chipotle sold $1.5 billion in wraps last year. Wraps may be all the rage from Tucson to Tucumcari, Tehachapi to Tonopah. I am distracted by what looks like my girlfriend’s purple satin bath robe she is wearing over a black dress, looking like a young black Maude. (Aussie for "tired" - RG)
 
*2) Joey – Bona fide Jersey/Brooklyn meathead archetype seen in every WWII movie. Concept: meatballs. Name: Saucy Balls. (now say it like you’re from Jersey: sawwwcy bawls). Made Grandma’s (saucy) balls with a side of rigawt, I mean ricotta cheese. Many ball jokes ensue. (There was also a concept inspired by Hooters that didn’t make the cut called Peckers, with a rooster theme.)
 
- 3) Sarah – Private chef to “A-list” LA celebs. What’s Good – Organic and Healthy Café. 6 page, 100 item menu. Signature dish: mac n’ cheese that uses fruit and vegetable purees to increase nutritional value. Yuk. Precious overload: IT’S A CUPCAKE! Judges are mean: Tastes like the paper bag. Sarah, you’ve been Flayed! Guess you’ll be making Hot Pockets for Steve Guttenberg for a while longer. Congrats on creating the rare double shark jump on cupcakes and mac n’ cheese. Give her a Ted McGinley t-shirt and bus fare home.
 
*4) Sudhir – Software sales. The Tiffin Box: Southern Indian cuisine. Goal: “Indian Chipotle”. Make Indian flavors more accessible to American palates by making it lighter and healthier. Genius. Judges love the food. Leaning heavily toward being 100% vegetarian. Oh, Sudhir, you’re breaking my heart. You just lost 90 percent of your market and my love.
 
*5) Sandy –  Bartender, Hair Cuttery frosted-tips enthusiast. Limbo: Where healthy and devilish foods collide. Serving pulled pork (Hell) and pulled bison (Heaven). Hell, please! Judges love concept.
 
*6) Jamawn – Un/self-employed cook in Detroit. Chicken wings and waffles. Hard-working black father of five with tons of spirit. Haircut is baffled by combination of waffles and chicken wings, as am I. Food is okay, but they love his tale of woe and persistence. It’s a Cinderfella story.
 
-7) Jason – Bully’s Burgers & Wings. Has “secret sauce” – it’s all-purpose! Like ketchup! Serves wings. I want to smack the tenebre out of Charo’s ham hand as she eats chicken wings with a knife and upside down fork again.
 
-8) Joe – Owns LA restaurants called “Big Wangs”. Wings + sports bar = Big Wangs. Obnoxious stereotype. Points out that the black guy is making wings too, because “that’s what they do.” Wang wing envy? L'il Wangs is fast casual version. See any problems with the name? Me neither. Joe, you’ve been out-wanged.
 
-9) Aimee – Kristin Chenoweth doppelganger. Runs a pet waste removal business called ... wait for it ... wait for it ... The Poo Crew. “My restaurant’s name is SoupZ and the inspiration probably comes from ... soups.” All natural, made to order ... in a VitaMix blender. “SoupZ ... for when chewing is too much trouble.” Reminds me of the SNL sketch Bass-O-Matic. Her spicy vegetable mix soup looks like C.H.U.D. waste. Flay: “Tastes like if you took nacho cheese chips and pureed it with some water.” Judges spit into napkins, make ugly faces. Back to the Poo Crew, Pikachu.
 
*10) Stephenie – Attorney. Asian-American addition to this rainbow of blah. Compleat: Fixed calorie healthy fast food. So ... Weight Watchers? An entrée, side and dessert for a fixed amount of calories.
 
*11) Alex – Hard n’ Soft Taco Bar: Fusion tacos. “Whatever you’re making, I could make it a taco.” Example: Chicken parmesan taco. Entrant #9, clean up on aisle 3! La fusión salta el tiburón.

*12) Marisa – Wok: Stir Fry for the Healthy Heart. Came to her in a dream. Made to order pick your own ingredients from seven columns. Does Batman have to go through all this rigmarole? No! Alfred just makes him something. Pre-cooked cooked to order. Sauce on the side. BURN HER, SHE’S A WITCH!
 
*13) Eric – MeltWorks: Grown-up grilled cheese sandwiches. Serves a BBQ chicken grilled cheese. The menu is the dreaded multi-column build-your-own deal. It’s been his vision for three years. As MLK said, “I have a dream. I have a dream of melted Asiago on a fresh ciabatta with thick slices of honey-baked ham.”
 
-14) Brianne – “Educator”/possible acid casualty. Inflates something that looks like a birthing structure for giant cartoon clowns. Café Creativi – Interactive Café for Kids. Left brain menu and right brain menu. Clown birthing bladder has nothing to do with restaurant.
 
-15) Sina – Persian cuisine (shh, that means Iranian.) Serves six-story kabob meat slider. Sina is the business name. Bad news if they don’t even give Captain Kabob’s name.
 
-16) Nam Nam – The first mainstream Vietnamese fast casual restaurant. You’ve got my attention unnamed (and doomed) hipster Vietnamese dudes. Namsters start talking about waiters. Steve Ells says, “I wasn’t aware that fast casual had waiters.” Buh bye pho now.
 
-17) Pot Belly – Pot pies. Tell me more, angry sexy librarian. “We have a chicken pot pie, but why not have a cheeseburger pot pie or a Philly cheesesteak?” Because the ovens are too hot in the bowels of Hell where I just banished you. Judges agree.
 
*18) Krystal/Greg – Bartenders. Hicks: Classic American small bites and BBQ (LA hipster version). Southern comfort food tapas. “Never been done before.” I disagree. Celebrating the American redneck. With tapas? Served tiny banana cream pies. Judges like. Charo thinks it might be offensive. Yes, tiny portions of BBQ would be offensive to rednecks.

Summary of remaining concepts:

1) WBNA wraps
2) Saucy Balls
3) Indian light & healthier
4) Limbo – decadent or healthy
5) Chicken and waffles
6) Healthy fixed calorie food
7) Everything is a taco
8) Healthy design your own wok meals
9) Grown-up grilled cheese
10) Redneck tapas
 
I think the Indian Chipotle concept is great if executed properly. The Saucy Balls guy is a force of nature. The taco concept is a novelty that could work. Redneck tapas could work – lowbrow small plates. Limbo could work, because you may have the intention of eating the healthy options, but switch over once you get there and pass out in a platter of ribs.
 
WNBA wraps? Nope. All this make-your-own healthy stuff? No thanks.
 
I think the chicken and waffles guy is a sympathy choice put in there for dramatic purposes.
 
Because this is airing on NBC and not Fox, it is less exploitive and has much less timing wasting “coming up next”, “what you just saw”, and idiotic exaggerated pauses.
 
While I have never been a fan of Bobby Flay, he is not Gordon Ramsay and that is a beautiful thing. The show connects with the real world of restaurant creation and management, which is an interesting world, so I will be blogging recaps for the rest of season.  
 
 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)
        

I thought Alton Brown did a terrific job at the Hippodrome's Foodie Experience.  This was a pivotal year for the event, and I think it overcame the sophomore jinx. Brown is certainly popular, but it's fair to say he lacks the crossover following of last year's headliner, Anthony Bourdain. But on Saturday night, Brown was a bona fide headliner. And the Foodie Experience has legs.

Brown's first degree, as he mentioned at least once last night, is in theater (from the University of Georgia) -- his culinary training came later. The Hippodrome event asked him to perform both in a large auditorium and, beforehand, in a more intimate cabaret setting. I thought the handled both extremely well.

I'll have more on Brown's performance tomorrow, along with a few of my favorite offerings from the restaurants and caterers that participated in the post-show grazing. 

I did want to go on record that Brown is a class act. He worked the shows back to back, without a rest, and mingled quietly and obligingly at the post-show gathering afterward. 

He was especially obliging with photographs, even when he must have known they would turn as badly as this one of him with my brother-in-law.

The fact is I had only a fleeting familiarity with his Good Eats show and none at all with Iron Chef America. I'm a convert.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

No restaurant review in the Sunday A&E section. The review did show up online but got squeezed out of the paper edition. I'll hold off talking about it for now.

Instead, I hope you read Sam Sessa's story about the music scene in Austin.

The article suggests a contrast between Austin's (progressive, sensible, grown-up) management of  live music in clubs and restaurants to Baltimore's (crank-driven, bureaucratic, byzantine) style.

Favorite quote:

From Don Pitts, the head of Austin's music office, upon hearing about Baltimore's permit process: "Gosh, I can't imagine that for indoor stuff. That's pretty heavy.... I hope people in Austin don't read the codes in Baltimore.

Also heard from, Rodney Henry, who had music events shut down at his Federal Hill pie store, he says, because of complaints from a single neighbor.

Sam has been posting reports like this one from the South by Southwest Conferences and Festivals on Midnight Sun.

Also, read Michael Sragow's report on a change in plans at the Senator. In - two additional screens, making a total of four. Out - a small plate restaurant. Although, as far as I know, there will still be a Sofi's Crepes. I'll check on it.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 12:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Meet 27, the new restaurant in Charles Village that was scheduled to open on Monday, March 20, will now be looking to open a week later.

I was told that there is a hold-up on the delivery of tables that are being hand-made in Pennsylvania. But I think maybe the owners, who include Richard D'Souza of Sweet Sin Bakery, just couldn't resist the lucky-number factor.

Meet 27, which will be located located at 127 W. 27th St will now open on March 27. 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Check out 1000yregg's report on the tail-to-snout tasting menu Patrick Morrow cooked up for a Troegs beer dinner at Bluegrass Tavern on This is Gonna be Good

Great post with beautiful photographs.

photo by 1000yregg used with permission, via Flickr

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Here's a spirited defense of Velveeta (via Eater) and Tex-Mex cooking from the Texas-based food-writer Rob Walsh. Loved it, read it.

The average American has never heard of a Tejano. They have no idea that this is Tejano cooking and they are putting down a very old Hispanic culture when they trash Texan-Mexican food. 

How about some other defenses of abused cuisines and products?  

I call dibs on white rice (which I prefer infinitely to brown rice). I will work on my white-rice paean over the weekend.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

There's more to Baltimore Greek Week than food, but food is the focus.

The week-long event, produced by the Baltimore-Piraeus Sister City committee, kicks off Sunday, 1:30 p.m., at Ikaros and concludes the following Sunday with the Maryland Greek Independence Parade in Greektown.

Here are the restaurant promotions and discounts I know about.

Acropolis is offering a four-course $19.95 menu for lunch and dinner. Entree choices include Chicken Mavrodaphne, Lamb Youvesti and Shrimp Oregano.

The Black Olive is offering a fixed-price, three-course lunch ($20) and dinner ($35) throughout the week. Options include the Greek Village Salad, Kleftico, and the Shrimp and Lamb Platter. 

Boulevard Diner in Dundalk is offering a huge selection of $12 and under entrees, including Spanakopita, Lamb Youvetsi and Chicken Stefatho.
  
Double T Diners -- all locations are offering $2 off the menu price on selected items, from 11 a.m to 9 p.m. only.

Fins in Canton has packed its menu with Greek specials, including a grilled seafood sampler for two and a whole bronzini. Half price bottle of wine with an entrée, Monday  & Tuesday in the dining room.

Hazelwood Inn in Overlea will be highlighting the Greek offerings on its menu and will be showing Greek movies. 

Ikaros is running a $20.11 fixed-price menu for the duration of the festival. 

Kali’s Court is offering "high-end Greek wines" for $5 per glass

Maria D’s -- $1 off of a Greek pizza on Sunday, March 20 only

Meli -- Free Greek cookies

Mezze -- Fixed-price $24.95 for a family-style, small-plate meal.

The Olive Room at the new Inn at the Black Olive is offering a $25 Greek wine & food pairing tasting menu  

Scoozzi in Dundalk is offering discounts on Greek specials

7 West Bistro in Towson is offering discounts on its extensive Greek listings.

Speakeasy in Canton is running Greek lunch and dinner specials
Lunch and Dinner Specials
 
Sunshine Grill is saving Greek Night for Wednesday, March 23 -- Greek music, 20% off all Greek entrees and wines.

Uncle Pete's Grill, formerly J&P's Carryout in Federal Hill is offering discounts on gyros, Greek salads and chicken souvlaki,

Zorba’s is running a $16 Greek buffet from Monday through Thursday, 5 p.m. until closing. 

Baltimore Sun photo/Kim Hairston 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Talay Thai Grille on Aliceanna Street in Fells Point has reportedly closed, at least according to Restaurant.com, which notified a certificated-holding friend of mine about his options (he can exchange it).

I never went back there after I reviewed it. My review included this description of our waiter's table-side manner.

“Fork,” he said, as he removed an appetizer plate, meaning, Please take your fork off this plate and keep it for the main dish. 

I know folks who came to rely on Talay Thai, though. 

Also, Dego Dames in Little Italy is closed. Or is it?

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

So...what's up this weekend?

Spring comes on Sunday, at 7:21 EDT. I'm ready, are you? I'll be dancing, as always, around the Battle Monument.

How will you be welcoming the spring?

Here's the Baltimore Sun's round-up of things to do this weekend.

Foodwise, there's:

Talbot County Restaurant Week begins on Sunday.

The Foodie Experience at the Hippodrome Alton Brown. I'll be covering it. And I'll be tweeting live. (Follow @gorelickingood)

Maki Madness, a competitive eating event at RA Sushi. Take a look at the photo gallery of last year's event.

The Baltimore Greek Week kickoff at Ikaros on Sunday. I'm going to try to have a longer post with more details a little bit later today. There are a bunch of attractive dining deals as part of this first annual celebration. You can find the official website at the link above.

Pictured, courtesy of medeitor

Here’s Ollie, our 5-month-old kitten. Exhausted after a full morning of tin-foil soccer, knocking over vases, and eviscerating catnip mouse toys. (He’s actually available for adoption, if you know anyone….)

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 9:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Categories: Your Weekend Dining PLUS
        

Got the newest produce box from the CSA: some familiar favorites (butternut squash, oranges, eggs, apples) and a couple of new challenges: turnips and chard. But that's why we decided to do this in the first place.

A friend facing the same turnip challenge, albeit on the West Coast, found this link for turnip recipes, but if anyone has any favorites or suggestions, I'm all ears. For the chard, I'm thinking about this chard with pine nuts and golden raisins recipe.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 3:24 PM | Permalink | Comments (14)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

Please, you know how discouraged I get. Just let Clemson win lose this first game, and I'll feel so much better about my brackets.

Tiger paw fondant graduation cake from Art Eats Bakery in Greenville, S.C.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:56 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Attention, fans of grilled cheese. April is Grilled Cheese Month -- finally, a legitimate holiday.

Please send your gorgeous photographs of you gorgeous grilled cheese sandwiches here.

The big area event -- on Sunday, April 10, the Mt. Washington Tavern will host a Grilled Cheese Sandwich Cook-Off. It's a benefit for Moveable Feast

Top local chefs will battle it out between 2 and 4 p.m., and judging will done by both celebrity judges and the public.

One of the celebrity judges is Eli of the Adventures of a Koodie blog, who has a link up today to his guest review of Grilled Cheese & Co. on the Macaroni Kid website. Check it out -- you can win a $20 gift certificate to Grilled Cheese & Co.

There are actually two competitions at the April 10 event, one for the general public and one for the celebrity chefs: Kevin Miller, formerly of Ixia, Bill Crouse of Slainte in Fells Point, Matt Milani of The Rumor Mill in Ellicott City, Chad Gauss of City Café in Mount Vernon, Opie Crooks of Roy’s Restaurant and Darrick Granai of Baldwin Station.

More information about the event and the home cooks contest (deadline for submission is April 1) is here. Information about purchasing tickets to the event is here.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

The Post's David Hagedorn on what happens when the Obamas dine out in Washington, D.C., restaurants.

Still....

I found myself thinking that the president and his family should eat at home, or in private residences, except when they're on vacation, every day, for four years. The kids, too.

I said so on my facebook page and my friends think I'm kidding. I'm not.

I'd be okay with it if it didn't require elaborate security arrangements (of course it does).

My rule -- if it needs a motorcade, it shouldn't be done.

Hagedorn, by the way, admits he was tipped off in advance about the Obamas' recent visit to Equinox.

Tipped off by whom?

photo by Uncredited white house photographer [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

HowChow on changes at Soretti's Ethiopian in Burtonsville:

Soretti's has spruced up the art, added more tables, and hung curtains to soften the front windows.  They're serving beer, including an Ethiopian variety, and even offering bread made from the authentic teff.

On New York magazine's Grub Street, finance blogger Felix Salmon on The Crowded Restaurant Conundrum: Why We’re All Gluttons for Punishment (via Eater). The article describes a phenomenon associated more with New York than sweet ol' Baltimore, where, with a few exceptions, you can just about waltz over to the table of your choice on any given weeknight.

For Top Chef fans, this interview with Tom Colicchio on the A.V. Club (via Eater)

Minx Eats wonders about the photographs on the cover of Rocco DiSpirito's new book.

The photo immediately to the right of the cover, with the orange background, is from his last book. It's pretty obviously retouched--unless he's found the fountain of youth, he looks younger there than in the three other, older photos--but it still looks like Rocco. (Just not a middle-aged Rocco. He's 44.) 

Take a look.

On Tasty Trix, a truffled tuna noddle casserole with crispy shallots and mushroom-white wine sauce. Looks yummy.

My version is modeled on the Stouffer's frozen variety that my mom used to "make" for me when I was a kid. 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

From earlier today, in this post about the ceaseless flow of articles about food trends, in which cupcakes are offered as the ultimate inexplicable food trend, I wrote:

After I've compiled 10 or so, I will try to come up with a scoring system (or a drinking game), based on certain recurring elements in the articles. 

But references to Carrie Bradshaw will definitely be worth something.

Just hours later, a new food trend article, from the Wall Street Journal, that mentions cupcakes and Carrie Bradshaw. (also via Eater). This piece, unlike the goodbye, cupcake/hello, macaron story from the New York Post, is more of a rants about food trends are the new skirt length kind of story.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Dunklin's Doughnuts?

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: Seasonal Menus
        

Here's a link to my story on Alton Brown.

Yes I was eating something when the conversation started. But Brown called me. I would hardly ever, I mean never, make a phone call with food in my mouth.

What was I eating? I don't want to tell you.

I really enjoyed talking to him, by the way. He's funny.

Also, I left Roy's off of the list of participating restaurants.

Sorry, Roy's.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (47)
        

Hello Suckers, as Toots Shor Texas Guinan used to say.

Check out this neat-o innovation in wine buying:

Tasting Room packages samples of wine in 50 ml. mini bottles complete with miniature versions of the real labels. Take a look. And check out the samplers.

Great little gifts, right, an all-around appealing idea -- Eater even has a coupon for the the Tasting Room today.

Or maybe it's actually a very stupid idea, but you'll never know.

Because if you live in Maryland, the Free Sucker State, you can't order from Tasting Room. It's against the law.

If you lived in non-sucker states like Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming or the District of Columbia, you could order from  Tasting Room

There's a sister-kissing direct shipping bill now making its way through the Maryland Sucker State State House. As it currently stands, it would allow you to order wine directly from wineries but you would still not be able to order  from Tasting Room, or any other retailer, or a wine-of-the-month club.

That's what you get for living in the Sucker State!

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

After reading my post last week wondering what to do with beets, Liz from Consuming Interests suggested this recipe, from Dishing Up Maryland (which is an absolutely gorgeous cookbook, by the way), as adapted by the Washington Post. The cookbook author got the original recipe from One Straw Farm in Baltimore.

I definitely hadn't cooked with beets before, and honestly, I'm not sure I had even had beets before. (No, I'm not exactly sure how that happened.)

As Liz said, this soup would convert even beet haters. It's smooth and earthy and, as the title mentions, sweet and savory. Great combination.

Sweet and Savory Beet Soup With Orange Juice and Yogurt

Makes: 6 servings

3 large (3 1/2 to 4 pounds) beets, trimmed and scrubbed
2 cups orange juice, preferably fresh
5 cups low-sodium or homemade chicken or vegetable broth
1 large onion, coarsely chopped (1 1/2 to 2 cups)
1/2 teaspoon salt, or more as needed
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or as needed
2/3 cup plain whole or low-fat yogurt, plus more for garnish (may use Greek-style yogurt for a thicker soup)
Carrot strands, for garnish (optional)


Combine the beets, orange juice, broth, onion, salt and pepper in a large saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to medium or medium-low. Cook for about 1 hour, or until the beets are soft. Remove from the heat.

Remove the beets; peel them under cold water (changing it once or twice as needed so you can handle the warm vegetables), then cut them into quarters.

Place half the quartered beets in the blender, along with half of the contents of the saucepan. Remove the center knob of the lid and place a dish towel over the opening so that steam can escape. Puree until smooth and transfer to a large bowl. Repeat with the remaining beets and contents of the saucepan.

Add yogurt to the beet puree and stir to incorporate thoroughly. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Serve hot, chilled or at room temperature; garnish with a dollop of yogurt or carrot strands, if desired.

Notes: I used honey tangerines instead of oranges, because that's what I had. Also, instead of transferring quartered beets to the blender, I cut the pieces up smaller and used a stick blender.

(Photo, such as it is, by me)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:37 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

I have decided that I will begin compiling, from today forward, a definitive archive of food-trend articles proclaiming either the birth of macarons or the death of cupcakes, or both.

After I've compiled 10 or so, I will try to come up with a scoring system (or a drinking game), based on certain recurring elements in the articles. 

But references to Carrie Bradshaw will definitely be worth something.

From today's New York Post

Cupcakes? So over. Once the fashionable finger food of a certain type of New York girl — the kind who worshipped at the altar of Carrie Bradshaw — they’ve been eclipsed by the macaroon, the new dessert choice of the moment. (Bon Appetit even recently crowned it “the new cupcake.”)

Photo by Jemal Countess/Getty Images

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 9:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

1) Poppy Seed

2) Everything else

The NY Times has a great piece today on hamantaschen, from Tel Aviv to Paris.

“I put out only a few humantashen the weeks before Purim,” said Florence Kahn, owner of a celebrated Eastern European bakery in the Marais that bears her name. “I like to whet my customers’ appetites so that they remember that the holiday is coming.” 

Who's got the best hamantaschen in Baltimore? Who has a good recipe? This one ran in today's Taste section.

Why has no one thought of hamantaschen Peeps?

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 9:22 AM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

Blue Hill Tavern tweeted that its new spring menu was viewable on the new menu tab on its facebook page.

I knew what that meant!

According to co-owner and manger Mel Carter, who answered the phone when I called, the appetizers are mostly, if not entirely, new. They include octopus with lemon and shaved fennel, an escargot saute, and a garde manger with chicken liver, prosciutto di parma and breseola.

Entrees are now divided between seasonal and favorites, things that customers would "kill us if we took off the menu," Carter says.

On the seasonal menu -- mussels and monkfish in saffron both, skate wing (suddenly everywhere) with olive tapenade and orange and butter braised fennel, and bison osso buco.

Send your spring menu to richard.gorelick@baltsun.com

Baltimore Sun photo/Kenneth K. Lam

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
Categories: Seasonal Menus
        

Two days to St. Patrick's Day, officially. But it seems like it's been going on for weeks and will never end.

At the link -- full St. Patrick's Day coverage, including a Midnight Sun list of the best area bars for celebrating.

Below, the food specials I've heard about.

Restaurant owners and managers, send information to richard.gorelick@baltsun.com

13.5% -- Non-traditional menu specials include a housemade choucroute platter with corned beef, sausages, smoked turkey, and sauerkraut; herb dumpling and lamb stew; and Guinness + chocolate cake.

Captain Larry's -- open for lunch at 11:30 a.m., serving corned beef & cabbage, shepherd's pie, Irish soda bread and Shillelagh cupcakes.

Mt. Washington Tavern -- Corned beef and cabbage on the Tavern menu. Customers can earn $10 in "Tavern bucks" when they find a four-leaf clover on a bottle of selected beers.

Rams Head Tavern Annapolis -- tent party opening at 2pm $.50 Guinness draft beers from 2pm-3pm, reduced drink specials, green beer, St. Patrick’s Day decorations and giveaways, featuring live music. Extensive St. Patrick's Day menu features bangers and mash, corned beef and cabbage, fish & chips and Dublin coddle.

Rams Head Roadhouse -- tent party opening at 2pm. $.50 Guinness draft beers from 2pm-3pm, reduced drink specials, green beer, St. Patrick’s Day decorations and giveaways, featuring live music. Menu features corned beef and cabbage, champ salmon and bangers and mash.

Rams Head Shore House -- $.50 Guinness draft beers from 2pm-3pm, reduced drink specials, green beer, St. Patrick’s Day decorations and giveaways, featuring live music. Menu features corned beef with cabbage, seared salmon with raisin and caper butter, and braised lamb chops with root vegetbles.

Ryleigh's Oyster -- An Irish menu -- Guinness stew, corned beef and cabbage, bangers and mash -- debuts beginning March 11. Ryleigh's will open at 8 a.m. for brunch on March 17, with the cost of a Guinness draft  starting at 25 cents and rising by the hour, topping off at $4 at 4 p.m.

Slainte will be donating $1 for every pint of Guinness they sell to the American Red Cross to aid victims of the tsunami in Japan. Not food related, but worth knowing about.

Victoria Gastro Pub -- On the menu -- Smoked salmon; lamb, Jameson and barley stew, beef shortrib & Guinness pie; and Smithwick's braised corned beef and cabbage.

Baltimore Sun photo/Amy Davis

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Tony Foreman has been making incremental changes, both to the menu and the decor, at Pazo over the past eleven months; some of them you might have noticed, others not. The refreshing of Pazo is the subject of this week's Table Talk.

Those four purple love-seat groupings? HOT!

Who's been to Pazo lately?

Alergina Perna shot and Leeann Adams edited the video of the interior.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

It's SarahKK, back with today's cooking-the-CSA report. I'll note again that I'm taking part in an early-bird CSA that does exchanges with other East Coast farms during this part of the year, which is why today's ingredient, blood oranges, isn't exactly local.

But if you make this cake, you won't care. It's another one from Smitten Kitchen, and boy does she know her baked goods. This butter-free loaf cake is moist and not overly sweet (not that I have anything against sweet, but the flavor is refreshing).

Check it out:

Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

I keep thinking it would be fun to blog about what people eat in movies, especially when a movie isn't about food and eating. 

Eating scenes are notoriously tricky to film and, for reasons of continuity, to edit. Someone is always spotting the slice of pie that dwindles and grows back whole. So the absence of eating scenes in a movie doesn't necessarily mean anything -- it does, though, i think, in the case below.

I welcome your contributions. The next time you see a movie, try documenting what the characters ate, in and out of restaurants -- was it realistic? Did they ate like real-life human beings?

What they ate in The Hustler:

Nothing.

Not one person eats one thing.

And no one, not even Minnesota Fats, wonders what his next meal will be. 

In the picnic scene, one of the few times anyone in the movie gets some fresh air, Piper Laurie’s character, Sarah, is seen holding a half a sandwich, but you never see her eating it.

When Sarah and “Fast” Eddie go to dinner at Parisien, a "fancy" restaurant that seems to be in their neighborhood, we see them having drinks before and after dinner, but we never see their meal — presumably they ate something.

And perhaps Sarah consumed a soft-boiled egg at breakfast in her apartment — we see an empty egg cup. Eddie asks her if she ever cooks (she's returned from the grocery store with mostly canned food): she says she occasionally fries an egg.

Otherwise, it’s liquor, coffee and beer for everyone, almost non-stop. And the absence of nourishment feels deliberate, as though Robert Rossen means for us to know that these characters are malnourished, soul- and otherwise. When, shortly after their meeting, in a bus-station cafe, Eddie kisses Sarah outside of her apartment, she stops him. “You’re too HUNGRY!”

It took me a solid two weeks to watch The Hustler. People whose movie taste I hold in high regard hold this movie in high regard; I thought it was boringly self-conscious about not being a Hollywood movie. It made me long for a Hollywood movie.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

From Eater: Jamie Oliver launches his own line of cheese

Angry Asian Creations got into the March Madness spirit with a "sure thing" recipe for Deep Dark Chocolate Cake. The recipe includes "one cup of hot coffee" (!)

On the Cannelle et Vanille menu: creamy buckwheat with fennel, snow peas and watercress, and chocolate and chestnut pudding cakes. What makes the buckwheat creamy? mascarpone cheese

Minx Eats has a post on the Gypsy Queen Cafe food truck -- seems like no one can resist trying the mac and cheese with bacon "bling" served in a waffle cone and the truffle sliders. See what Minx had to say.

photo by snappy gorelick

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 5:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Starring!

Dominque Dawes, Carla Hall ("Top Chef All Stars"*) and Sam Kass, White House assistant chef and senior policy advisor for healthy food initiatives

Special unexpected guest star: Bob Ehrlich! 

Here's the link to the livestream, which starts Tuesday morning at 9 a.m.

The summit will spotlight the best practices and new solutions to combat childhood obesity. The discussion will be divided into three panel sessions focusing on the role of government, the health impacts of obesity on kids, and the role of schools and the community.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Who has a rooting interest? Did fans have a food tradition at your alma mater?

Morton's is having a contest. If you guess the last four teams remaining, you can win dinner for four at a participating restaurant.

I didn't find much to eat on the tournament menu.

The most edible and potable mascots I could find were bison (Bucknell), boilermakers (Purdue) and buckeyes (OSU)

[I think four (or more) teams have the bulldog as their mascots. Nope, just three -- Georgia, UNC Asheville, and Butler Mississippi State. Four Tigers, though]

bulldog update!

I once worked with a woman from Gallipolis, Ohio, who would make buckeyes for everyone as a Christmas gift. Here's a recipe on allrecipes.com. Any of our favorite food bloggers have a good buckeye recipe?

Who's had good bison lately?

Between St. Patrick's Day and Round 1, is anyone expecting to get any work done on Thursday and Friday.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

Here's the review of Golden West cafe.

A conversation here about Golden West inspired a Top 10 Controversial Restaurants in Baltimore category.

Was I aware of all this when I sat down to write the review of Golden West?  Yes.

Did I try at least to approach Golden West as though I were meeting it for the first time? Just a little.

Did I consider writing about Golden West without any reference to its reputation? No.

What are thinking about Golden West these days? Anyone have a recent change of heart about Golden West, or another restaurant?

That's the Aztec burrito at left.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Mark Bittman performs an unholy act on a crabcake via Serious Eats. This is Bittman's new crab cake recipe. Here is his old crab cake recipe, about which he said:

Since I first published this recipe, probably ten years ago, it’s received more compliments than just about anything else I’ve done. I think that’s just because the best crab cakes are those that showcase the crab, not another ingredient, and too many recipes ignore that.

Like, for instance, Mark Bittman's new crab cake recipe.

Dining@Large has its ongoing series of Sleeping Pet photographs. Eater NY has a portrait gallery of Chefs N Cats

Also on Eater NY -- 10 signs that a New York restaurant is dying, and SNL's high fructose corn syrup commercial parody, along with the commercial that inspired it.

Frank Bruni's review of Blood, Bones and Butter, the new memoir by Gabrielle Hamilton, the founding chef of Prune in the East Village -- this is the food book of the year so far.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 8:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Some of you told us about your weekend plans here.

Frequent Little Italy Restaurant Visitor was headed to Lebanese Taverna for the first time -- how was it it?

Ryan97ou was planning a jam-packed birthday weekend, with trips to the Brewer's Art and Mick O'Shea's

I dropped in for dinner at The Corner, the new joint in Hampden, not for an official review but just to check it out. I mentioned that The Corner has kangaroo on the menu. It's not on the menu -- and we weren't told about it -- but a friend from the newsroom who went to the Corner later the same night said that he was told about it by his waiter. He ordered it and loved it. I wonder why our waiter didn't tell us.

I also made it out for Sunday brunch at  the Gypsy Queen Cafe food in Canton. Red velvet waffles and mac-and-cheese cone with with bacon "bling". More on that trip, later, too.

Photo of Mr. Jefferson (aka, White on White), courtesy owner.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (10)
Categories: Your Weekend Dining PLUS
        

My Google Reader feeds me updates from the various food blogs I follow. Most of these blogs are listed in the blogroll, which you can find on this page at right.

(Modifying the blogroll, even simply alphabetizing it, turns out to be absurdly non-intuitive and cumbersome.)

Also in my Google Reader, a few blogs that aren't food related. One of them, Daily Cognition, is a good resource for quirky and unusual news (although some of it quite dated.)

Anyway, today on Daily Cognition, a story about unusual sculpture gardens, originally published on the Woman's Day site.

One of the gardens is right here in Maryland.

I've never heard of the Annmarie Sculpture Garden & Art Center down in Dowell, Calvert County, but it looks like a great place to take the kids.

Turns out Susan Reimer did a Travel piece about the gardens last summer, before I was here full time and made it a point of reading every syllable in the Baltimore Sun.

Now I want to do a Calvert County trip -- any good restaurants down there?

In other blogs,

The Minx contributes to the team coverage of the Top Chef finale, Part 1 on All Top Chef

Dara Bunjon's Dining Dish has a great round-up of spring cooking classes (scroll down for it) that I am so going to steal from.

Serious Eats reviews a new book by Ben Ryder Howe that's been getting some buzz if by buzz you mean NPR did something about it -- My Korean Deli: Risking it all for a Convenience Store.

I learned on Obama Foodorama that I am apparently not invited to Michelle Obama's third annual South Lawn Garden Planting

Epicurious made me look at this post on Moscow's Best Restaurants. About a theatrical restaurant named, appropriately enough, Turnadot, Colleen Clark says, "Liberace himself would have blushed at the gilded frippery dripping from every frescoed eve of this multimillion-dollar dining room.

Eater reposted a funny piece from SF Gate about a San Francisco restaurant that is diners 50% off if they sit a the very worst table in the house.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

We are getting a dozen eggs a week through the CSA, and for our family of two adults and a toddler, that's a lot. For our first dozen, I made a modified version of this BLT Frittata, which my husband has made a bunch of times, but I'd never attempted.

BLT Frittata Recipe

Adapted from Rachael Ray's recipe

Makes about 6-8 servings

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 3 turns of the pan
6 ounces Canadian bacon, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 cups fresh spinach, loosely packed
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
12 extra-large eggs
1/3 cup half-and-half or milk
1 teaspoon salt
Black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Heat a 12-inch nonstick ovensafe skillet over medium high heat. Add oil, Canadian bacon, and garlic to the pan. When Canadian bacon browns at edges and begins to crisp, add spinach. Wilt spinach, stir in tomatoes. Beat eggs together with half-and-half. Whisk in salt and pepper. Pour eggs over fillings and let eggs set. Using a spatula, raise eggs off the bottom of the skillet, allow more of the liquid egg to settle. When the frittata has set, transfer to oven and cook 10 to 12 minutes until top is deep golden brown. Remove the frittata and let it stand 5 minutes. Cut into wedges and serve.

Notes: The original recipe calls for pancetta, and I highly recommend going this route if you have it. Pancetta is awesome. (And as Iggie's reminds us, pancetta is meat.) As it happened, I had Canadian bacon I needed to use, and I subbed in spinach for arugula because I had that, too. And it was great. We ate it for breakfast for several days, but it also makes a great brunch meal, too.

(photo by me)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:05 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

Let's see. I've got to have a Sterling's fried seafood sandwich. Other than that, I have no firm dining plans this weekend. How about you?

We've got Bethenny Frankel's Skinny Girl Night Out at the Hippodrome on Saturday night. Any good Skinny Girl dining tips in that neighborhood? Who can vouch for Alewife?

Also, on Saturday, an Amontillado tasting at Wesminster Hall.

Sunday is the city's St. Patrick's Day parade. Who has a favorite Irish pub they want to sing the praises of?

The Sun has rounded up its coverage of weekend events here.

Reading words got you down -- here's Super Sam Sessa with his weekend picks.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (17)
Categories: Your Weekend Dining PLUS
        

How to run a smart promotion.

1) think of one

2) email it to richard.gorelick@baltsun.com (or similar).

City Cafe is running a "Rainy Day" special tonight -- $5 of all entrees, 1/2 off appetizers. Dine in only.

Baltimore City photo/Lloyd Fox

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Sorry for the late notice. I was sitting on this information. I sat too long.

Roy's Restaurant founder Roy Yamaguchi is in town tonight. He'll be teaming up with local chefs to produced a five course, fixed-price ($75) dinner at Roy's. His teammates include Nino Germano from La Scala Ristorante; Rey Eugenio, formally formerly of Roy’s Baltimore; John Taylor from the Oceanaire Seafood Room; Nikki Debrouse from the Marriott Waterfront Hotel; and Opie Crooks, the current, and I think very talented executive chef at Roy's Baltimore

Reservations are available starting at 5 p.m., and can be made by calling Roy’s Baltimore at
410-659-0099. 

I spoke with Roy Yamaguchi a few weeks ago. He's committed to giving his executive chefs room to create and grow.

He doesn't get to Baltimore often, and I don't remember Roy's ever staging an event like this in Baltimore.

Here's tonight's menu:

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

It's SarahKK, back again to report on Living in the CSA. The family picked up our second haul from the early-bird CSA we're taking part in. This week, we got: potatoes, onions, kale, apples, blood oranges, honey tangerines, beets, parsnips, eggs (beautiful eggs!) and apple crumb bread.

We still had quite a lot of leftovers from last week, despite my cooking whirlwind this weekend, so my husband whipped up a quick soup from the last of the carrots, potatoes and apples, with a hefty dose of curry. Yum. This morning, I broiled a grapefruit, and I'm going to poach one, as suggested, as well.

The things I'm thinking about making:

-- Blood Orange Olive Oil Cake from Smitten Kitchen

-- Kale chips (this is a definite; we were already obsessed with these)

-- Roasted Parsnip and Apple Soup from Guilty Kitchen

-- Another frittata for sure (tomorrow, I'll post the one I made this weekend)

-- Something with beets, but I haven't figured that out yet

Any suggestions? I'll take 'em!

(Photo by me)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

Charlie Sheen has this video, exclusively, or Funny or Die. (I saw it first on Eater.)

"I don't cook food, I will it"

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (12)
        

I just ate the last of these muffins a bit ago, and I miss them. Thankfully, they were very easy and I still have plenty of apples to work with. I could make two more batches if I wanted!

Hearty Apple Muffins

Adapted from Smitten Kitchen's Whole Wheat Apple Muffins (which she adapted from King Arthur Flour)

Yield: They said 12, I got 18 (SKK: But I got 12)

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick, 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup (3 1/2 ounces) granulated sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed, divided
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup (8 ounces) buttermilk or yogurt (I used 6 ounces Greek yogurt and a splash of milk)
2 large apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped (I used 2.5 smaller apples and left on the skin)

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Grease and flour 18 muffin cups and set aside.

Mix together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, and set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and add the granulated sugar and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar. Beat until fluffy. Add the egg and mix well; stop once to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.Mix in the buttermilk gently. (If you over-mix, the buttermilk will cause the mixture to curdle.) Stir in the dry ingredients and fold in the apple chunks.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, sprinkling the remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar on top. Bake for 10 minutes, turn the heat down to 400°F, and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool the muffins for 5 minutes in the tin, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes: I am in love with these muffins. The original recipe called for half the flour to be whole-wheat flour, but I left my grocery list on my desk and didn't get home with that. I'm absolutely (or apple-solutely, to quote the Wonder Pets) making these again, with the whole-wheat flour. Also, for whatever reason, I didn't use the mixer, but I definitely am next time.

(Photo by me)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

Sterling's Crab and Oyster House, the landmark Remington home of the overstuffed fried mixed-seafood sandwich is headed for Lexington Market, with an opening scheduled for the first week of April.

Great news for Lexington Market, I think.

The Lexington Market and Remington locations will operated simultaneously, but not forever. The building housing the Remington location is for sale. Owner Dottie Goff, who purchased Sterling's from its original owners eight years ago, told me she's downsizing the business.

This is the only photograph of Sterling's I could find in our archives. 

Baltimore Sun photo

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (9)
        

Here is Rob Kasper's review of Kumari, a Mt. Vernon restaurant I don't hear too many people talk about.

But Kumari's still there, so it must have a following.

I reckon that makes Kumari kind of like Desperate Housewives, a show no one talks or writes about anymore -- but it must have a following, too.

Go see what Rob has to say about Kumari.

What other restaurants, or tv shows for that matter, are you surprised to discover are still around.

Jake and the Fatman?

Baltimore Sun photo/Barbara Haddock Taylor

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

I drove up to King of Prussia, Pa., yesterday to meet the new Gino Giant, which will be making a triumphant return to Baltimore this year.

And then I drove back. 

So I'm tired. 

I'll have details of my meeting with the Gino Giant later today.

But I will say that Gino Giant was down to earth and relaxed -- or wanted me to think so. As soon as we sat down, Gino Giant ordered a Gino Giant, as if to say, "I know, but I love it."

Baltimore Sun photo/Amy Davis

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

This is not exactly a pretty recipe, to say the least. I'd say that most casseroles aren't. But it's tasty and filling -- and it definitely made the "keeper" list in our house. Plus you could easily swap out the squash for some other vegetable in a pinch.

Recipe: Cheesy Butternut Squash & Quinoa Casserole

Adapted from Meals and Miles

1-2 small-medium butternut squash
1 cup cooked quinoa
1/4 red onion
3 garlic cloves
3 links apple chicken sausage
1/2 cup milk
6 ounces Greek yogurt
1 cup shredded cheese
1 T rosemary
1 T oregano
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
Salt & pepper
nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 375.

Peel, hollow, and cut the butternut squash into small bite size pieces. Sprinkle with nutmeg, salt, and pepper and bake at 375 for 15 minutes. (Note: I find it much easier to roast the squash with the skin on, so I did that -- I set two small to medium squash on a cookie sheet and roasted them at 350 degrees for about an hour. Let them sit for about 15 minutes. Peel the skin off [most of it will come off easily]. Then dice the squash and sprinkle with salt, pepper and nutmeg.)

In a casserole dish combine, all of the ingredients above + the cooked butternut squash. Cover  and bake for 25 minutes. Remove cover and bake 10 more minutes.

Another note: I've tripled the amount of sausage the original recipe called for, and I added a little more of everything else to compensate, too, but to still fit in the dish. Next time I make this, I'm going to cut everything, especially the squash, into smaller pieces.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (16)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

New Yorkers are accustomed to diversity on sidewalks and subways, in jury pools and in line at the bank. But in our restaurants, as in our churches and nightclubs, life is often more monochromatic.

(At Red Rooster) the racial and ethnic variety in the vast bar and loft-like dining room are virtually unrivaled.

That's from today's New York Times review of Red Rooster, Marcus Samuelsson's new restaurant in Harlem. It was something Sam Sifton thought worth mentioning, and he brings it up again in his Diner's Journal blog.

I've brought this up, cautiously, in my reviews. Diverse dining rooms are the exception in Baltimore. 

Any comments?

Did Sifton's observations about diversity belong in his review, or were they better left for the blog. Or do they matter at all.

I am leaving for a long assignment today. I'll be eager to see your comments when I get back. 

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 9:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

I heard from Cristin Dadant at Clementine. They've just started running a Prime Rib special on Wednesday -- they're calling it Pwibe Wib Wednesday.

Cristin says it's a Creekstone Farms all-natural, hormone free  Prime Rib for $20. She adds, "It's marbled (restaurant-speak for fatty) and will never be served in a consistent portion. But if you like it, this is a truly wonderful one."

I'm not a Prime Rib man myself -- are you?

I hadn't been up to Clementine for a while but I got up there for brunch last Sunday. If someone asked me today what my favorite brunch in town is, I'd say Clementine -- big farm-kitchen tables, those cheese grits, big thick bacon, the spring-onion horseradish spread. The only thing missing -- a Bloody Bull. If it's not the best brunch, then it's the brunchiest brunch, you know?

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Richard D'Souza of Sweet Sin is about to open a new restaurant, more or less adjacent to his gluten-free bakery. D'Souza is working with a partner, Paul Goldberg, on this new project, which the team hopes will become a "go-to spot" for the emerging stretch of Howard Street -- Charmingtons, a newish cafe, is one block south.

Meet 27 will open on or about March 20 in the old Two Sisters Grill space, on the border of Charles Village and Remington. The new joint will be open for dinner seven days a week.

I'm saving the best for last:

It's got a full bar.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

The Corner opened last week in the old Avenue Diner space, at the corner of 36th and Elm in Hampden, right next door to the Wine Source. That's pretty convenient because the Corner is BYOB.

The chef is Bernard Dehaene, the founding chef-owner of Mannequin Pis, the well regarded Belgian restaurant in Olney. The owner is Cecille Fenix.

The Corner isn't full-on Belgian -- Dehaene describes it an American restaurant -- but it's pretty Belgian.

Moules et frites are absolutely on the menu, and Dehaene is preparing them five different ways. Also on Dehaene's opening menu --  Dover sole, flambeed steak and lamb brochette. And, Dehaene says, kangaroo, ostrich and yak. I'm not kidding.

Dehaene says we could look forward to multi-course beer dinners beginning sometime this April.

The Corner is open for dinner Wednesday through Sunday, and for brunch on Saturday and Sunday. The Corner's address is 850 W. 36th St., and the phone number is 443-869-5075. There's a website, but it's not really ready for company.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 5:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (10)
        

As first reported on HowChow, glancingly linked to here, and confirmed today on HowChow, Maple Lawn is getting a kosher restaurant.

Not kosher-style. KOSHER. As in Baruch Atah Adonai kosher. 

Pita & Rye, which describes itself a New York-style deli, is scheduled to open in May in the Maple Lawn community (I'm pretty sure "Maple Lawn" is the literal translation of my grandparents' shtetl in Belarus.) Who says Jewish humor is dead? Hello?? Is this thing on?

Anyway, according to the press release, "Pita & Rye will operate under Orthodox kosher supervision by Rabbi Hillel Baron of Congregation Ahavas Israel in Columbia, MD. Rabbi Baron welcomes Pita & Rye as 'the first kosher food establishment in Howard County and it is a milestone for our Jewish Community.'"

The menu will feature, in addition to the "premium sandwiches" stuffed with "fresh roasted meats" you'd expect, a selection of Mediterranean-style offerings, which you might not.

Go look at HowChow's post today, which quotes this reader comment from the first post.

Owners of Pita & Rye, whoever you are - you are risking a lot, we know, to give us a deli. Please don't screw it up. I beg you. Give us the good stuff, throw out the bad, and smile when you serve us. Give us good value & a good pickle.

I haven't seen anyone do plaintive like that since Lamentations.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 3:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Baltimore Sun's food editor and Reality TV blogger Sarah Kickler Kelber has recently embarked on a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) journey. (Read the introduction here.) Every Wednesday or Thursday, SKK will be posting about her latest CSA haul and you'll be able to give her some tips and guidance. From time to time, we'll invite a local chef to create a CSA-inspired recipe, too. And, every day, around lunchtime, look for the results of SKK's CSA experiments. -- RLG

I got started on my CSA cooking adventures this weekend, and while it was fun, it also felt at times like a part-time job. I got into this frenzy about cooking things up before they went bad. But it was a productive frenzy. I made two batches of spinach soup (recipe follows after the jump), some apple muffins, a butternut squash and quinoa casserole, and a BLT frittata. Whew. We've still got plenty to work with, and I think a curried carrot soup and a grapefruit vinaigrette are on the agenda.

I'll be sharing roughly a recipe a day, right around lunch time -- and of course asking for suggestions when we get this week's haul.

Recipe: Spinach Soup with Rosemary

Adapted from Eating Well

1 tablespoon butter
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary, or 1 teaspoon dried
1/4 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 cups diced peeled potatoes (I used yellow)
4 cups chicken broth, vegetable broth or water
6 cups fresh spinach or chard leaves, tough stems removed

Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, rosemary, salt and pepper, reduce heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Stir in potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Pour in broth (or water). Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook until the potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes. Stir in spinach (or chard) and continue to simmer until the greens are tender, about 10 minutes more. Puree the soup with an immersion blender or regular blender (in batches), leaving it a little chunky if desired. (Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.)

The original recipe includes Rosemary Croutons, but I never got around to making those, and I devoured this soup nonetheless. I suspect that they must have used water and not broth to end up with such a vibrant green soup. As you can see, mine was not nearly as pretty. I actually made two batches of this -- one with vegetable broth and white onion and one with chicken broth and red onion. I much preferred the former. The flavor of the spinach and the creaminess of the potatoes came through much more for some reason. Also, the second batch, I wasn't paying close enough attention (because I thought I knew what I was doing since I'd already made it once), and I didn't turn the heat back up when it was time to simmer the potatoes, and I didn't realize it until I checked them after 15 minutes and they still weren't soft.

I'm sure I'll be making my own stock soon, but I used the unsalted vegetable and chicken broths from Kitchen Basics. I had to salt the soup a little bit more than the recipe called for, but I'm sure it was still lower sodium than using salty broth in the first place. Also, I didn't try this yet, but I imagine you could use olive oil instead of butter easily, too.

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 11:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Charleston shows up on Open Table's 2011 Diners Choice list of the Top 50 US restaurants for “Best Service”

Well done, Foreman-Wolf and all of your hardworking staff.

Baltimore Sun photo/Lloyd Fox

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Great survey idea on Serious Eats. What pizza topping is a dealbreaker for you? Why don't you go see what folks over there are saying and then post your dealbreakers here.

Baltimore Sun photo/Amy Davis

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (39)
        

This is an oldie but goodie. Elizabeth posted a link to this 2009 article when it was published.

A friend was clearing out his email box and thought to pass it along.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

So, what are you giving up for Lent? Lotion? Make it matter!

My best bet (and thanks to my Twitter correspondent @suitandsoot) for Mardi Gras/Shrove Tuesday is in Waverly.

It's the Shrove Tuesday Pancake Supper at St. John's in the Village.

Dinner is from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m., just $8 for adults; $6 for children (free for les enfants).

But get this -- the supper is being catered by the church's across-the-street neighbor, the Darker Than Blue Cafe.

The menu includes pancakes with assorted toppings, bacon, sausage, scrambled egg casserole and fried apples.

I mean, COME ON!!

Father Parker told me that folks could just show up, but maybe you should call 410-467-4793. More information on the church's facebook page.

More on Mardi Gras

Find. Eat. Drink has Mardi Gras recipes from John Besh

Jen at Eat. Swim. Shop. posted about her rich, buttery pancakes 

Other Mardi Gras events around town.

Captain Larry's -- Open at 4.p.m., and serving Oyster Po'Boys, Etouffee, King Cake Ccupcakes (by Pirate Cupcakes).

Paladar Kitchen & Rum Bar has already started its Carnaval celebration with Brazilian-inspired menu specials and half-off bottles of South American wine. The March 8 event will feature live music by Mambo Combo and heavily discounted mojitos and caipirinhas. 

Pazo's Big FAT Tuesday will feature live entertainment and a $59 "Seven Deadly Sins" fixed-price menu. The full a la carte menu will also be available.

The Rumor Mill Fusion Bar & Restaurant in historic Ellicott City will be running an extensive menu of New Orleans-themed specials throughout the weekend of March 4-6. The weekend will culminate with a New Orleans-style brunch fundraiser for the Ellicott City Restoration Foundation. Tickets are still available for the 3-course brunch ($40 per person plus tax and gratuity at ECRF's website)

* Find more Mardi Gras celebrations around Baltimore.

Baltimore Sun photo/Lloyd Fox

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

The casting process includes us!

Here's the blurb:

Gordon Ramsay needs your help finding his next Kitchen Nightmare!

 
But the casting company will be checking into this blog -- so let's go! Who needs Gordon Ramsay's help?

Restaurants can nominate themselves here. 

The casting producer told me that the show has pretty much narrowed its choices for next season to Texas and the Baltimore-Washington area. I told him Baltimore is much funnier than Texas.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:07 PM | Permalink | Comments (37)
        

1000yregg has a shad roe post on the This is Gonna Be Good blog. 1000yregg and his pals had their first shad roe of the season up in New Jersey but 1000yregg said he thought that, closer to home, the Peppermill had some shad roe on the menu.

I called the Peppermill, and they do have -- broiled with bacon -- probably through the end of March.

Good work, Thouzy!

Who else has shad roe?

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

Here is Jill Rosen's story about a bill making its way through the Maryland General Assembly bill that would allow dogs to hang out at restaurants -- on patios, sidewalks -- not inside. There's a (sporadically enforced) law against having dogs on restaurant property, inside or out, but I see dogs at restaurants all the time.

Check out the comments under Rosen's story.

Of course there's the commenter who uses the phrase "nanny state" and the commenter blames everything on City Hall. But there is plenty of outrage besides. 

And I think only one thing could explain the LEVEL of outrage in some of these comments.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (18)
        

The editors of Parents magazine have named their 10 best restaurants chains for families. You can read about the list's criteria at the link. Some of these chains don't have links in Maryland. I was going to say that there isn't a local outpost of Jason's Deli -- but there is one, in Timonium.

I think I'm going to try to get a response to this list from Eli, who has a new post this morning on the St. Leo's Ravioli and Spaghetti Dinner.

What are your favorite family restaurants -- chain and non-chain? What's important to you -- price, nutrition, high-chairs?

1.         Jason’s Deli
2.         Cosi
3.         Souplantation/Sweet Tomatoes
4.         Red Lobster
5.         Chipotle
6.         Noodles & Company
7.         Red Robin
8.         Mimi’s Cafe
9.         Panera Bread
10.       P.F. Chang’s China Bistro

Baltimore Sun photo/Gene Sweeney, Jr.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (19)
        

There were a few backstage issue concerning this review of Slainte. I felt, for the reader's benefit, I had to:

1) explain what I was doing reviewing a seven-year-old Irish pub in the first place, which mean that I wanted to:

2) acknowledge, in fairness, that while Slainte had been promoting its new "gastropub" fare it has never quite come out, to my knowledge, and called itself a "gastropub"

3) back up and re-introduce the concept of a"gastropub," with a mild defense of the concept, an easy thing to make fun of, until you come across a real and true example

4) all while being careful to admit that at least half of a "gastropub" menu will typically resemble a basic pub menu

5) mention the pretty dining room

6) describe the essential weird thing that happened on this review -- when we were sitting there, looking at the menu in the pretty dining room, it just wasn't obvious at all what the new menu items were. We correctly uncovered, and ordered, a few of them. But we left a handful others on the vine

7) conclude that it shouldn't have mattered, because everything in a gastropub should be special; unless a place is half a gastropub and half a traditional pub, which is a terrible idea, not to mention impossible 

8) say how disappointed I was, because I think Slainte is genuinely trying to improve its fare

Some of this survived into the final version.  Not all of it.

Baltimore Sun photo/Barbara Haddock Taylor

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 8:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
Categories: Monday Morning Quarterbacking
        

How was the old weekend?

A few of you told us in advance about your weekend-dining plans or had some tips for your fellow readers.

Summer got my attention with  her comments about the new (this year) Blacksauce Kitchen booth at the 32nd Street Farmer's Market.

I went and got myself a BLT Breakfast Sandwich and a special, biscuits covered with a roasted-mushroom gravy.

The BLT is bacon, microgreens and sun-dried tomatoes -- but it's all about the cheddar-thyme biscuit. Great Biscuit! 

Phineas Gage

Definitely a gourmet take on the traditional breakfast sandwich, and $7 will definitely strike some as a gourmet price. The partners here are Damian Mosley and Vesnier Lugo -- a Blacksauce Kitchen website is in the works.

New pickle booth at the market, too. I've stashed some in the fridge at 501 North Calvert.

Pyro T. Nettles

 The Blacksauce Kitchen BLT

Keep sending in those sleeping (or drowsy) pet photos to richard.gorelick@baltsun.com

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 8:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

A new skirmish in the ceaseless War of Restaurant vs. Customers 

This New York Times article, Have It Your Way? Purist Chefs Won’t Have It, popped up on Friday but I thought I'd save it for today, when more people would see it.

Guess which one of these four hardcore examples I find the most defensible:

One restaurant in New York refuses its customers ketchup; a cafe won't give its customers espresso to go; Murray's Bagels refuses to toast its bagels; your cheese option on a Spotted Pig cheeseburger -- Roquefort or no cheese at all.

And then you hear a story like this; it happened this past weekend in an upscale Baltimore restaurant. A customer insisted that his shrimp be cooked without any salt or spice and then complained that it was bland and refused to pay for it.

Customers can be a trial, even when dinner's finished -- like the four young women who squatted at their table, on a busy Saturday in another white-tablecloth Baltimore restaurant, playing some kind of game with each other on their smartphones, for at least a half hour after their table had been cleared.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (16)
        

One of the most gorgeous blog posts I've ever seen showed up last week on Aran Goyoaga's Cannelle et Vanille website -- it's a recipe for Sophie Dahl's Eton Mess and watermelon radishes.

Wait until you see what she does with a watermelon radish.

On Adventures of a Koodie Eli reviews CiCi's Pizza (not sure which one, there are three nearby; Ci Ci's is based in Cary, N.C. -- everyone who uses statistical-anaylsis software knows that SAS is headquartered in Cary, but I digress). I like the creative spelling Peeza- Rea. Eli is a reliable source for kid-family dining and he says that CiCi's is "awesome".

Check out this Saturday Wall Street Journal story on the oyster po'boy. The focus is of course on New Orleans, but a sidebar lists four locations outside of Louisiana that make a great po'boy, and one of them is in Baltimore!

Speaking of po'boys, Rachel Rappaport has an oyster po'boy recipe on Coconut & Lime

Copyright Aran Goyoaga, Cannelle et Vanille  

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

The review of Slainte is online. I'll have more to say about the review on Monday morning.

Also online, John Lindner's Sunrise review of Hummus Corner in Owings Mills.

Hummus Corner's owners Johnny and Carla Mattar are in Algerina Perna's photo.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Blair River, the 575-pound spokesman for the Heart Attack Grill in Chander, Ariz., is dead, at the age of 29. The Heart Attack Grill earned itself some notoriety (including a report on CBS Sunday Morning) for being, as the USA Today's obituary puts it, "unabashedly unhealthy" -- the menu includes bypass hamburgers and flatliner flies.

Check out the Heart Attack Grill website -- it's deliberately cheeky and offensive. A video, featuring River plays as soon as you click on the site. Obviously, it's morbid viewing today. But maybe purging River from the website would have been worse?

For the record, there's no evidence that River's death was related to his morbid obesity, and comments in the obituary from the restaurant's owner address what he imagines will be the response some people might have to River's death.

Here's some coverage of the coverage from Newsy.com

Multisource political news, world news, and entertainment news analysis by Newsy.com

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 5:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

Hey, folks. It's SarahKK, your friendly area food editor, commandeering the blog for a bit. We've been talking on and off about starting a recipe blog, but it hasn't yet come to pass. So for now, we are doing occasional guest posts here with recipes. So, hi!

I'm a newbie to the whole CSA (that's Community-Supported Agriculture) situation and looking for some suggestions. My house is signed up for one with an early-bird program (in which it trades with some farms up and down the East Coast for some out-of-area items and includes some from cold storage), and we picked up our first share last night.

My husband and son came home with: 1 head of garlic, 3 pounds of potatoes, 1 pound of spinach, 2 pounds of the biggest carrots I've ever seen (each carrot is a pound), 4 pounds of apples, 3 red grapefruit, 3 oranges, 1 butternut squash, 1 dozen eggs, 1 loaf of challah, and a bag of mushrooms.

Whoa. 

I'm solo parenting this weekend (without my husband, who does most of the cooking), so it's up to me to figure out how to use this stuff.

I poked around for some recipes yesterday. Here are some of my ideas:

• -- Cheesy Butternut Squash and Quinoa Casserole (bonus: contains quinoa and apple sausage, both of which we have on hand)
• -- Whole Wheat Apple Muffins
  
• -- Spinach Soup with Rosemary Croutons
• -- Curried Carrot Soup
• -- My husband's family recipe for marinated mushrooms
  

(Yes, I ended up finding a lot of inspiration in this photo gallery of recipes from Eating Well.) But I am definitely open to suggestions. If you have recipes or preservation ideas, I am all ears. I'll report back next week on what I made, what worked, and what didn't.

For the record, we're signed up with Breezy Willow Farm in Howard. This Howard County Times story has details on a bunch of other CSAs in Howard, and we're compiling more information on area farms and programs now, as well. We'll get that posted soon.

(Photo by me)

Posted by Sarah Kickler Kelber at 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)
Categories: CSA, Living in the CSA, Recipes
        

Apparently not. The McLobster does exist. It's sold in Canada, and seasonally in Maine. But, according to various Internet sites, McDonalds has no plans to roll out the McLobster nationally.

A few of those sites included this tv ad.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:17 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Slainte in Fells Point gets reviewed  this Sunday's paper.

Last month, media members and food bloggers were invited to try out some of executive chef Bill Crouse's new menu items, and the word "gastropub" appeared in some of the coverage of that tasting event.

I took that as a signal that Slainte, which opened in 2004, was ready for a check-up.

Baltimore Sun photo/Barbara Haddock Taylor

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Categories: Review Preview
        

A reader pointed out the recent opening of Yama Sushi Bar in the Greenspring Tower Shopping Center on 41st Street (where the Superfresh is)

Coincidence!

Rob Kasper has a review of Mamma's Cucina in the same shopping center.

Hoes Heights

Baltimore Sun photo/Gene Sweeney, Jr.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

Who's eating where this weekend?

It might be a good time to slip over to Frederick, where restaurants will be ramping up for the official start of Frederick Restaurant Week.

Anyone got tickets for Esperanza Spalding?

Who has a good tip for people headed up to Timonium for the Spring Home & Garden show? How about for people headed to the University of Baltimore for the John Waters double feature -- anyone got any good eggs.

l'll always need--want eggs, always and always and always.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (11)
        

Tony Foreman is throwing a premiere-weekend party at Pazo for Matt Porterfield's Putty Hill.

Your entry to the Sunday evening (5 to 7 p.m.) party, which will feature complimentary wine and tapas and movie posters signed by the director -- a ticket stub from a weekend showing of Putty Hill at the Charles.

One person per ticket, limited space.

Is there a Porterfield-Foreman connection? Yes. The director worked for a brief spell at Petit Louis, where he became friends with the film-loving Foreman.

But Porterfield's most significant Baltimore restaurant experience -- a seven-year, "on and off" stint at The Chameleon.

Baltimore Sun photo/Gene Sweeney, Jr.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 2:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

The long-awaited Black Olive Agora, a key component of the Inn at the Black Olive, opened on Saturday. Suzanne Loudermilk has the details on In Good Taste

The Spiliadis family's new market sells wine, cheeses, organic, bread and baked goods, including executive chef Pauline Spiliadis' Black Olive bread.

I'll have more on this in the days ahead.

Here's a 2009 Baltimore Sun article about the Inn.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

Here's a challenge:

Which of these ranked restaurants (I've put them in alphabetical order) are New American and which are urban gourmet. I'm not saying the editors got it wrong -- I'm just guessing it wasn't always so obvious.

No fun peeking, but I guess I can't stop you

First correct response gets a copy of Faith Durand's Not Your Mother's Casserole (Harvard Common Press), source of those salted caramel and walnut slices that no one ever made a batch of to bring into me.

Update -- this is a tough one!

I'll get you started -- Woodberry Kitchen is New American; Salt is Urban Gourmet

B&O Brasserie

The Brewer's Art

Bluegrass Tavern

Blue Hill Tavern

The Chameleon

Clementine

Corks

Crush

The Dogwood

Henninger's

Jack's Bistro

Langermann's 

Meli American Bistro

Peter's Inn

Mr. Rain's Fun House

The Point in Fells

Restaurant Sabor

Salt

Tark's Grill

Woodberry Kitchen

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 12:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (11)
        

St. Patrick's Day falls on a Thursday this year. That means not much work getting done on March 18.

I'll be adding more events and promotions to this post as they come in.

Just in --Mt. Washington Tavern and Ryleigh's Oyster, which will be opening at 8 a.m. for brunch.

Restaurant owners and managers, send information to richard.gorelick@baltsun.com

13.5% -- Non-traditional menu specials include a housemade choucroute platter with corned beef, sausages, smoked turkey, and sauerkraut; herb dumpling and lamb stew; and Guinness + chocolate cake.

Captain Larry's -- open for lunch at 11:30 a.m., serving corned beef & cabbage, shepherd's pie, Irish soda bread and Shillelagh cupcakes.

Mt. Washington Tavern -- Corned beef and cabbage on the Tavern menu. Customers can earn $10 in "Tavern bucks" when they find a four-leaf clover on a bottle of selected beers.

Rams Head Tavern Annapolis -- tent party opening at 2pm $.50 Guinness draft beers from 2pm-3pm, reduced drink specials, green beer, St. Patrick’s Day decorations and giveaways, featuring live music. Extensive St. Patrick's Day menu features bangers and mash, corned beef and cabbage, fish & chips and Dublin coddle.

Rams Head Roadhouse -- tent party opening at 2pm. $.50 Guinness draft beers from 2pm-3pm, reduced drink specials, green beer, St. Patrick’s Day decorations and giveaways, featuring live music. Menu features corned beef and cabbage, champ salmon and bangers and mash.

Rams Head Shore House -- $.50 Guinness draft beers from 2pm-3pm, reduced drink specials, green beer, St. Patrick’s Day decorations and giveaways, featuring live music. Menu features corned beef with cabbage, seared salmon with raisin and caper butter, and braised lamb chops with root vegetbles.

Ryleigh's Oyster -- An Irish menu -- Guinness stew, corned beef and cabbage, bangers and mash -- debuts beginning March 11. Ryleigh's will open at 8 a.m. for brunch on March 17, with the cost of a Guinness draft  starting at 25 cents and rising by the hour, topping off at $4 at 4 p.m.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

The 1 p.m. segment on Midday with Dan Rodricks is a "soup smackdown"

The participants:  Mr. Chesapeake Cuisine himself, John Shields (Gertrude's at the BMA), and the Food Nerd, Henry Hong  (Suzie's Soba downtown), subject of the best. blog. post. title. ever. Expect good soup recipes and tips.

What's the best bowl of soup you've had lately?

Here's a post from October on Top 10 cold-weather soups.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

The New York office of Wagstaff Worldwide is now handling public relations and media for Woodberry Kitchen, Baltimore's pioneer in making local sexy.

Nothing wrong about Woodberry's wanting to move out of its comfort zone and expand its reach beyond the Beltway. Good for them. And, take a look Wagstaff's extensive list of prominent restaurant clients -- it looks like Woodberry is in capable hands.

Still, this has been a bee in my bonnet for a solid week.

Should keeping local not apply to the choice of a pr firm?

Baltimore Sun photo/Kenneth K Lam

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)
        

Joined by Education secretary Arne Duncan, Michelle Obama reads the Dr. Seuss "foodie classic" to a gathering at the Library of Congress. Via Obama Foodorama. Right after, in the interest of fairness, Sarah Palin read The Fountainhead from start to finish.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Somebody Needs To Get Henry Hong Drunk In Ellicott City So I Can Hear About Local Chicken

HowChow, which wants my pal at the City Paper, Henry Hong, to know that he didn't have to go all the way to Annandale for good Korean Fried Chicken. 

[I love those "best EVER" headers on Huffington Post.}

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:11 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
        

There's an opening date for the Chipotle in the Can Company --  March 15. This is the third Chipotle for Baltimore City.

I got the press release from Katherine Newell Smith, who came up with this great opening line:

How ironic that Chipotle, (chi-POAT-lay), the popular burrito eatery that uses only absolutely fresh, premium-quality ingredients is opening in The Can Company! Yep! As of Tuesday, March 15, you will be able to find Chipotle’s award-winning gourmet burritos, bowls, tacos and salads in the Canton neighborhood’s beautifully restored historic Can Company building at 2400 Boston Street. This is Baltimore City’s third Chipotle. 

Nicely done. 

Chipotle Mexican Grill at the Can Company will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Another new Chipotle is slated to open this April at the Festival at Woodholme in Pikesville.

REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson/Files

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (3)
        

I'm interviewing Alton Brown tomorrow morning in advance of his appearance in Baltimore at the Second Annual Foodie Experience.

Is there anything you've always wanted to ask Alton Brown?

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 4:51 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

Here's the list of Wednesday dining specials.

And here's the weekly dining specials main page. Bookmark it or something.

And, a reminder about the Getting Friendly with Forgotten Grapes event tonight at V-No in Fell's Point.

Photo/Sam Sessa

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 1:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
        

I had a good time with the Chazz Palminteri restaurant story.

I liked what I heard about the project, except maybe the name of the place -- Chazz: A Bronx Original, which sounds to me like a sports bar at a minor league stadium.

As far as I know, the name isn't etched in stone -- who has a better idea?

In the article, I didn't have time to go into some of the particulars of the restaurant, and there wasn't really room to sum up what the its planners are headed for.

Here's Sergio Vitale's take on the new restaurant:

We wanted the dining experience to be evocative and immersive—and fun.  There is that unmistakable joy of the Italian table and that warm camaraderie of ‘The Neighborhood’ and we wanted to capture that.  And we wanted to do it at a price point that allowed repeat visits in the same week.

Here's a better look at the pizza oven at Chazz: A Bronx Original, the new restaurant project now under construction in Harbor East.

You can see the white tile motif, inspired by the Guastavino tile arching in Manhattan's City Hall subway station. 

You can make out, too, the double windows in the oven -- one for watching pizzas, the other for watching pizza makers.

You can see the other partners, too. From left to right, Chazz Palminteri, Allesandro Vitale, Sergio Vitale, Kerry Kessel.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (21)
        

The City Paper's cover story is on food trucks. Here's Jill Rosen's September 2010 Baltimore Sun article on the food-truck phenomenon.

[Would you like for me to gather up a bunch of scattered information about Baltimore Food trucks and tie it up with a pretty red ribbon. I could do that, you know.]

And tucked inside the City Paper  -- EAT, the annual dining guide. 72 pages, stuffed with color.  I love the new Rocket to Venus ad.

They kept it simple this year (I was responsible, I believe, for the supplement's worst. concept. ever.)

Restaurants (except for Corks) are arranged alphabetically within neighborhoods. And how does EAT break down the city?

In this order: Federal Hill -- South Baltimore -- Canton/Highland town -- Fells Point --Little Italy -- Harbor East --Downtown -- Mount Vernon/Bolton Hill/Station North --Charles Village/Waverly -- Roland Park/Mt. Washington -- Hampden/Remington -- Hamilton -- County.

There are more listings than ever, and the blurbs are briefer. Icons are minimalist" Dollars signs ($, $$ or $$$) designate the cost of the average entree; BYOB, parking, outdoor dining, late-night dining.

Handsome. Congratulations to my old pals for rolling that boulder up the hill.

Here's the Sun's 50 Best restaurants galleries

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

Proponents and opponents of corkage had their say in Annapolis on Monday.

I kept trying to post a link to the article yesterday, but I found that each time I did, my little intro text be crammed with phrases like "...cat's paws of the liquor lobby...," "....should recuse herself as a matter of course..." and "...continue to fabricate their reasons for opposition out of whole cloth."

So I thought I'd wait until I calmed down a bit.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 10:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

Erik Maza has a piece into today's Taste section about the art of pairing craft beers with good food. The idea of beer with dinner isn't brand new, Maza acknowledges, and nor is the trend of hosting beer dinners. But there's an increased serious of purposeness about them. 

Coming Monday, a beer dinner at Woodberry Kitchen featuring Frederick's Flying Dog Brewery.

I know some of you out there are veteran beer pairers -- how about some tips for the novice?

Although the best thing about pairing beer with food is that there's not the volume of received wisdom that accompanies wine pairings.

And of course a well-trained and informed waitstaff can make a huge difference.

But as Spike Gjerde advises in the article, the best advice might be: "Experiment."

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 9:12 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
        

In this story, I couldn't fit all of the details I learned about the new Harbor East restaurant the folks from Aldo's are planning with Chazz Palminteri.

For instance: Palminteri is taller than you'd think he is -- I thought it was usually the other way around.

There's lots to tell about the pizza, the antipasto bar, the clam bar...

Come back tomorrow

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 7:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (8)
        

Hey, chefs -- you can win Perdue chicken for a year!

Perdue is using the contest to promote its being the first poultry company to have a USDA Process Verified seal. Contest particulars here

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 5:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
        

I'll have more on this later, but here's a head's up.

The Hollywood Diner will open on Saturday. As posted here back in December, the diner's new operator and head chef is Cheryl Townsend, who ran the Red Springs Cafe on Calvert Street.

The Hollywood Diner presents Red Springs Cafe will feature diner favorites alongside Townsend's Southern and soul-food and Caribbean fare.

The diner remains a collaborator with the Chesapeake Center for Youth Development.

Baltimore Sun photo/Algerina Perna

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
        

A reader was wondering about espresso service in restaurants.

What's with the pods?

He's noticed more Lavazza and more Illy in higher-end restaurants. The pods are clearly part of a coffee program that the restaurant has subscribed to -- espresso is served in cups with the Illy (or Lavazza logo).

(Restaurants owners -- shed some light if you can. Do these programs work -- seems like they'd keep waste to a minimum?)

Diners, are you down with the pods, or do you expect your espresso to be hand-crafted? What are you drinking these days after your meal?

Wikimedia Commons

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 11:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)
        

I'll admit it. I'm as excited about the return of the Gino's franchise as anybody.

But I'd understand if you were, well, puzzled about all the attention we're giving Gino's here, both on the blog and elsewhere.

I've noticed a few baffled comments, both here and underneath the reported stores.

The simple explanation -- it is what it is.

The fact is we've had an enthusiastic response from readers each time we've reported on the new Gino's franchise, first on the occasion of its grand reopening, last November, in King of Prussia and then, last week, on the announcement of franchisees for the Baltimore area.

Gino's posts on Dining@Large were among the most popular of 2010.

That doesn't mean that, as the franchise becomes a reality, the Baltimore Sun won't report truthfully on the Gino's Burgers and Chicken company, its business practices and its burgers.

But Themis' eyes are still a bit misty. In tomorrow's Taste section, Laura Vozzella has a story about the new franchisees, and I hope you're not too sated in Gino Giant stories to read it, because it's utterly charming.

Posted by Richard Gorelick at 6:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (7)