locustpointgirl's Recent Activity
Chowhound Post
Baltimore -- what do you think of my choices? Or can you suggest something else?
We just took family to Sunday brunch at Woodberry Kitchen (because we didn't plan ahead to get Saturday night reservations...d'oh!) and all of the out of towners loved it and thought it was a very special place.
We recently had a lovely celebration dinner at Cinghale, and the food was wonderful. My only criticism is that it does look a bit like a hotel restaurant. They could use a little more personalized dining environment for the quality of the food they serve.
Chowhound Post
Any Hibachi Grills in Baltamore?
We finally made it to the Korean Barbecue place in Charles Village (Jong Kak) last week and it was terrific. We got the all grilled beef meal for 4 people (~$75) and we were all very happy grilling the marinated meat to various degrees of char directly in the table. The fermented bean paste they bring you is worth the trip alone.
Chowhound Post
Aloha Sushi v. Aloha Tokyo HH?
We live near Aloha Tokyo in Locust Point and they haven't been open since before New Years. Not sure if that is a permanent thing, as they have frequently shut down for random nights (including Fridays and Saturdays) since they opened.
The food there is (was?) pretty awful. They did a decent bulgogi — despite the "Aloha" and the "Tokyo" the owners were Korean. We had a couple of other menu items though that were memorably bad, including canned tuna over rice with curry powder sprinkled on top — their version of Tuna Curry.
The one reliable feature of Aloha Tokyo was their steady supply of OB beer and awesome Karaoke. If indeed they have closed down, I know several of our friends and neighbors who will be crushed.
Does any one else have any info on their status?
Chowhound Post
Baltimore -- La Tavola 'one of the best Italian places' .... seriously?
It has been mentioned on this board a gazillion times before and I may be partial because it's in my neighborhood, but we have never had a bad meal at Pazza Luna. It's essentially Sotto Sopre's little sister. Wednesday nights are a great $10 pasta deal and they have some good happy hour martini deals as well. It's the hidden gem of Locust Point.
Chowhound Post
Baltimore Fish Market
We buy a lot of our seafood at Nick's in the Cross Street market as well, but a couple of months ago we had a very strange experience. I sent my husband inside to buy some mussels while I waited outside with the dog and he came back empty handed and annoyed. He said that they wouldn't sell him mussels without steaming them. (We had wanted them on ice so we could steam them open ourselves.)
I've bought mussels (and lots of other seafood) unsteamed from Nick's many times. This was on a weekend afternoon and my husband said that the Nicks guy mumbled something about that as he was shoveling them into the steamer. My husband said we didn't want any steamed mussels, asked if we could get them unsteamed and was apparently told no. He left empty-handed.
Could any one shed some light on this? We've had excellent seafood and service from Nick's in the past.
Chowhound Post
Tzatziki in Baltimore
We got catering from Samos for my birthday party and their tzatziki was pretty amazing. Best I remember it was either $12 or $15 (I think the tzatziki was $12, and the hummus, tapenade, etc. was $15). It was a sizable container, one of the round restaurant leftover containers, if I remember correctly. Best of all, you get to enjoy Samos without having to stand for hours waiting for a table. I've had the Total Greek Tzatziki they sell at TJ's, and it's not bad, but not as good as Samos.
Chowhound Post
JFX Farmers Market
We were excited at first by the South Mountain Creamery too. We bought a few small yogurts and my husband started to eat one while we were at the market and was really disappointed. He thought it would be greek-style as well and when I saw that it had high fructose corn syrup, I took the other yogurt we bought back to the stand and got our money back. I told them why I was returning the yogurt and they didn't sound surprised, they sounded like they'd heard it quite a few times before. I wish there was a Trickling Springs Creamery stand at the JFX.
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Bangkok Garden in Columbia, MD
Does anyone have any opinion about how Bangkok Garden compares to Little Spice in Hanover? I work in the area and I've been to Little Spice several times, but haven't stumbled on Bangkok Garden until now.
Chowhound Post
Locust Point - Proposed state legislation to add new restaurants
I live in LP, so I'm pretty biased. I like Pazza Luna, Hull Street Blues (Tuesday Night $10 dinners), we are absolutely devoted to the little Himalayan House carryout and we're excited to try Luca's.
Pazza Luna is much better than average Italian and has regular 25% off snow specials when the weather is crappy. We've taken advantage of being on their mailing list this winter. Last March we celebrated my birthday and the closing on our house (in an ice storm) at Pazza Luna and I had their incredible chocolate cocoa ravioli stuffed with gorgonzola and goat cheese in a porcini cream sauce. Not your average Little Italy Italian.
I would say that of all the LP Restaurants, Nasu Blanca might fit your bill of unusual food worth the drive. We ate there for restaurant week last summer and although we were skeptical of both the Japanese/Spanish approach and the prices (a little high) we ended up being very impressed with the restaurant.
You'll find a couple of reviews here: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/427207
I keep my ear to the ground and go to all of the neighborhood association meetings in LP. I still believe it's going to be a Harris Teeters Grocery store. And I do think you are right about the likelihood of chains in the McHenry Row development. When Sapperstein talked to the LPCA, I got a distinctly Panera/Bonefish-esque feel for the type of restaurants they might be courting. I'm not saying those chains specifically were mentioned, but that was the general feeling I got.
As for parking, they are building new garages in the McHenry Row complex. As with any city neighborhood, please be courteous when parking, as it is almost always tight. I've come home more than once to find an unfamiliar Lincoln Navigator wedged up on my sidewalk and bumping our cars on our very tiny street.
Chowhound Post
Jessup/Columbia/Baltimore Recommendations
El Nayar on Rt. 1 just south of 103 is particularly good Mexican and best of all, it's cheap! I've never been to dinner there, only lunch, but I think they are serving alcohol now as well.
http://www.elnayarusa.com/menus.php
Chowhound Post
Luca's Cafe in Locust Point
I just stopped by on my dog walk and talked to the owner again. He said that the brick ovens he was ordering from Italy wouldn't fit in the kitchen (ah, the Baltimore row house strikes again!). He said they bought huge convection ovens and are going to grill the pizza and then use the ovens in a sort of 2-part process. He sounded pretty confident that this would produce some good pizza flavor.
Sorry, I forgot to ask about the cheese or the dough, but they open on the 18th.
Chowhound Post
Baltimore Rest. Week Reports
Friday night a group of six of us went to The Black Olive. We weren't that impressed with the meal or the service. Two people ordered the lamb cooked in parchment paper. (There's a Greek work for this that starts with a K, but I can't remember it and google isn't being helpful about it.) The lamb was very overcooked. My husband's grouper filet was well-seasoned but also very overcooked. My whole fish Dorado was decent, but the vegtable/rice pilaf was cold by the time I got my plate. The appetizers (Greek spreads and octopus salad) were excellent and proved to be the highlight of the meal. My husband's water glass sat empty for most of the evening.
Saturday night we went to La Tavola for a friend's birthday. We've only lived in Baltimore for about a year and have so far avoided most of Little Italy mostly because of the mediocre reviews from other 'Hounds. My impression was that it was mostly an area for tourist dining. I have to say that I think both our food and the service was better at La Tavola than at The Black Olive. My husband and I both ordered the Zuppa di Pesce (fish and shellfish in a light tomato broth). We don't typically order the same thing when we go out, but after our RW experience at The Black Olive the night before, we were feeling a little pessimistic and threw caution to the wind. The Zuppa was great — we were both happy we didn't have to share.
I will comment on the portions at La Tavola. We were with a very large group of people. Most of the group ordered off the RW menu, but some ordered off of the regular menu. The size of the portions was staggeringly different. Those ordering from the regular menu had huge, heaping dishes delivered to the table. RW selections proved to be rather skimpy in comparison. The Zuppa we both ordered seemed the most substantial RW selection and I certainly didn't leave hungry, so I didn't mind.
The service at La Tavola was also quite a bit better than at The Black Olive. We had one waiter for a huge table and he was attentive and accommodating the entire evening. We were very impressed and let him know.
Normally, I wouldn't bother comparing these two very different restaurants, but RW (and a friend's birthday) provided an interesting and expectation-busting experience. I felt like The Black Olive had a real chance to convince us that the experience of eating there would be worth it even without the highly-discounted prices. They blew that opportunity and I'm not sure we'll be back. Baltimore has a lot of great options for dining and I'd rather check out someplace new than go back to a restaurant that didn't seem to bother the first time around.
Chowhound Post
Luca's Cafe in Locust Point
I live on the block and have stopped in once or twice to talk with them. The owner (his name is Lando, although I have no clue if I'm spelling that correct) said Luca's pizza will be brick oven, while Matthews is all gas oven. He says it's different, but "it will be good!"
Initially we were really hoping for a Matthews-esque place as well. We love Matthews and will make up excuses to go across the harbor to get it, but I'm excited to have pizza in Locust Point.
Chowhound Post
homemade ice cream Bmore
I use Trickling Springs milk and cream in the ice cream I make and it is incredibly awesome. Their butter is great too.
Chowhound Post
Baltimore CSA options?
We belonged to the Calvert Farm CSA this year. We were very impressed with the quality of their food and they're organic as well.
We were able to pick out 8 selections each week, which I felt was more flexible than having someone else pick out a box for us ahead of time. Occasionally, they would put special items (cherries, plums — mostly fruits) aside for just CSA members to ensure that they didn't sell out. We picked up our CSA at the JFX market on Sunday and there were Sundays when we got to the market later than we had intended and there were slimmer pickings at the CSA. The early bird gets the portabella mushrooms! (This happened more in the beginning of the growing season when the crops were just starting to come in, I think.)
We plan on continuing with Calvert Farm this year, but because there are only two of us, we may end up splitting a membership with another couple. We found that we had to occasionally be more creative in the kitchen towards the end of the week than we had the energy to be in order to maximize our fresh veggie eating. 8 CSA selections turns out to be quite a lot of food.
The few times when we were out of town on a Sunday, we sent my neighbor with my market bag and told her to get whatever she wanted. I think she really enjoyed her experience with Calvert Farm as well.
Chowhound Post
Baltimore Restaurant Week
We have reservations for Black Olive and thought about Bicycle as well, although we may go for Prime Rib since we've never been and some friends of ours really love going there.
Last summer we tried Nasu Blanca as our restaurant week pick and I was impressed both by the food and the service. They seemed to really embrace the restaurant week customers and use it as an opportunity to introduce the restaurant to a new audience.
Chowhound Post
homemade ice cream Bmore
Aglemesis Brothers is one of my favorite spots. Neither the atmosphere of the old-timey ice cream store, nor their homemade chocolate bittersweet sauce can be beat. I've toyed (dreamed) with the idea of having my own ice cream store in B'more and the Aglemesis parlor is certainly rooted deep in my subconscious as the kind of place I would want. That being said, I don't think I'm ready for that step quite yet.
That and South Baltimore seems pretty attached to the shaved ice....
Chowhound Post
homemade ice cream Bmore
I grew up in Cincinnati and its a beautiful city, but I haven't lived there since I graduated from high school. We were there for a few days visiting my family over Christmas though.
Graeters Ice Cream is a French Pot ice cream, so yes they have a wonderful custard base. It's very thick. Their Black Raspberry Chip is one of the best flavors of any ice cream. (Huge dark chocolate chunks — chips really aren't an accurate way to describe it.)
And I do think UDF has it's place. They have a very comforting (if a little too green) mint chocolate chip. The chips in that are so fine and irregular, they're almost flakes.
I miss my Cincinnati ice cream, but what I really miss are Skyline Chili, LaRosa's pizza and Montgomery Ribs. I have a stockpile in my basement of cans of skyline and Montgomery Inn BBQ sauce. Seriously, Like and entire shelf.
Chowhound Post
Grocery Shopping in Baltimore
Daveinmd,
Sorry for the super late reply but I got an email from my CSA last week that they are gearing up again. Their website is www.calvertfarm.com
We really enjoyed their food last year. I think this year they might add a few pick up locations. We always pick up at the JFX farmers market. You get to pick 8 items every week from their very large selection.
Chowhound Post
Raw Oysters
I'll second Ryleigh's. The rest of their menu is pretty good as well, but their happy hour oysters are the best deal we've found. Their happy hour goes til 7.
Chowhound Post
homemade ice cream Bmore
In my opinion the best ice cream in Baltimore is Sylvan Beach.
I will completely and totally own up to being a snob about ice cream because I care a lot (too much?) about this topic. I grew up in Cincinnati, home of the incredible Graeters ice cream. My grandmother grew up clearing tables at the Hyde Park parlor for 10 cent tips. Before moving to Baltimore, I lived in Columbus for the past 10 years, home to the even better Jeni's Ice Cream. But maybe the biggest reason I'm so passionate about ice cream is that I make my own.
That being said, I heard a lot about Moxley's when I moved here and I was eager to check them out, but in my opinion it's just too heavy handed and obvious with its flavors and texture. That might sound like a strange way to put it and I'm sure some people (and kids) like it very much. I just wouldn't consider it very inspired.
Sylvan Beach manages to be delicate and very flavor-intense. I've also never seen artificial coloring at Sylvan Beach which is a dead giveaway of the level of quality you can expect from an ice cream.
Also, unfortunately I think Beach Bums in Federal Hill closed sometime before last winter. I had been advised to check it out and when I visited, the deli that occupies the space now said they served Hershey's ice cream.
Pitango Gelato in Fells is very good, but it's not ice cream. (At least not to me.)
Chowhound Post
Grocery Shopping in Baltimore
Remember, word of the Harris Teeter is unconfirmed. I too am afraid of getting my hopes up. And according to the Baltimore Grows blog, it sounds like it might be a "Fresh Market" instead. http://www.baltimoregrows.com/2007/08...
The development will be called McHenry Row or something like that and will have shops and restaurants and of course a Starbux to boot, but it's the new Grocery that I'm really looking forward to.
Chowhound Post
Grocery Shopping in Baltimore
This is completely unsubstantiated neighborhood gossip (who does that better than Locust Point?) — but I've heard Harris Teeter. The developer of the Chesapeake Paper Board Co. project (Sapperstein? I'm new to the neighborhood) was at the last neighborhood association meeting and said he would be ready to announce the grocery soon. I think someone asked him about Wegmans and he said "no" on that one.
I've never been to a Wegmans, but they sound nice. Also, I've been to both the Fells Point and the Savage branches of Bonaparte and the Fells Point branch definitely has a bigger selection of fresh breads and pastries (the almond croissant! so good!) and also a bigger meal menu. The older French (?) woman who runs the Fells Point joint can be testy and forget to give you things like the desert you ordered, but if you stay calmer than she is, you should be fine. I'll consider tempermental French bakers part of the price I'll pay for such awesome pastries and bread. The also sell the Bonaparte breads at the My Organic Market in Jessup, which is handy for me.
On another note, I remembered the name of a great butcher we visited a couple weeks ago in the Catonsville/Ellicott City area: Treuths. http://www.jwtreuth.com/index2.html
We had pretty awesome steaks and the prices were decent. A little trek, but not too far if combined with a trip to H-mart.
Chowhound Post
Grocery Shopping in Baltimore
We just moved to Locust Point earlier this year and I'm still trying to get my grocery shopping down to something resembles a routine.
For staples and things like lunch meat, we shop at the Shoppers on Fort Ave. It's not great, but the prices are ok.
For all of our produce and veggies, we joined the Calvert County Farm CSA and pick up our 8 items every week at the Baltimore Farmers Market under the Jones Falls Expressway (JFX). That has been consistently good. We also usually buy our cheese from the two dairy vendors there.
We also try regularly to get to specialty markets like H-mart and the wonderful Italian grocery Trinacria's (406 N. Paca St., near Lexington Market).
And usually at least once during the week I stop at the Whole Foods in Mt. Washington (where I have a weekly meeting for work) or a grocery chain called "My Organic Market" (or M.O.M.'s) at their location on the corner of Rt .175 and Rt. 1 in Jessup/Columbia East/The Burbs, which is near my office. I've found the MOM's to be very similar to Whole Foods, but often cheaper. The only thing they don't carry is Whole Foods' freshly ground honey-roasted peanut butter, which me, my husband and our dog are all addicted to!
The word on the street (and at the Locust Point neighborhood association meetings) is that there will be a "Full-service Gourmet Grocery Store" in the old Chesapeake Paper Board Co. development on the north side of Fort Ave. at Woodall. They won't say who it is just yet, but the names I've heard mentioned sound promising. We're keeping our fingers crossed.
Chowhound Post
Baltimore RW reviews
We ate at Nasu Blanca as well on Saturday evening. It was a nice opportunity to try a restaurant that we had been meaning to go to, but somehow never made it. And we live a block away... (In our defense, we've only lived in B'more since March)
We arrived a few minutes early for our 8:15 reservation and were seated right away. The food was wonderful and our server was attentive and helpful all evening. We both went for the wine pairings with the RW menu for an extra $15 each. The choices were great.
I had the Japanese eggplant with sake, my husband had the mussels with a Spanish white wine. For our main course, I ordered the paella and chose a red over a white (not a white fan, myself) and husband had the Walu with a sake. Although we enjoyed our main dishes, the appetizers were both exceptional.
All of the food was excellent, and even though I think their prices are a bit on the high side (I balk a bit at the fact that normally NB charges over $25 for a bowl of paella, considered peasant's food in most parts of the world...) based on the quality of the food and service (and proximity to our front door) I would bet we'll be back. Like most places I've seen reviewed here, RW was a great excuse to go.
Chowhound Post
Baltimore Cupcake Company...
We live in the neighborhood and closed on our house on my birthday this spring. My husband had called ahead to reserve a special birthday celebration treat to eat on the floor of our new, empty home. (We moved from out of town, so this really was my "birthday cake.")
When we got to BCC, they acted as if they had never heard the request and were not very friendly about it. I basically got a chocolate chunk cupcake with a drink umbrella thrown on top, that I think they charged an extra $8 or so for. $11 for a (IMO) dry cupcake with some questionable customer service is not a good deal. We walk by the shop every day and haven't been back. It's a shame.
And if we're throwing out good cupcake recipes, I think Amy Sedaris' vanilla cupcake recipe is the gold standard of cupcake recipes. I make mine a little more interesting with some dried lavender flowers mixed into the batter.
