Choirgirl21

Ha. But if he didn't work on your clavicle, your diaphragm, or the muscles in your armpits, you ain't seen nothin'. The meal sounds fabulous. Jeff, remind us what's left, if anything, please.

I wish I could have. I was being beaten up by my massage therapist.

Can someone clarify their corkage policy? I'm not finding it on their website. Prices on the tasting menu have gone up so I'm wondering if the corkage fee has. Also, I thought it was appropriate to only bring bottles NOT on their wine list, but it sounds like you're saying the opposite? I can't imagine actually following through on it, but I have a special sparkling wine I've been saving that I would love to just drink through my meal there, but it's special on my terms (probably a $50 bottle, no longer available from a very small winery in the Finger Lakes), they would probably look down on it. I can't find the cost for a wine pairing either. I really like to pair wines with my dishes, but I'm really balking at the cost of this meal (and I also find I end up a little tipsy and don't remember the last couple of courses well). We're going up the day after Thanksgiving specifically for this meal, staying the night in a hotel and coming back. I said yes because it's to celebrate a friend's 40th and I figured if not now, then when, but as it approaches I'm remembering that after my meal at CityZen right before it closed I sort of swore off both tasting menus and outrageously priced meals. Someone please reassure me it will be worth it?

Hey, what about MD? Winner versus Delmarva?

The struggle to find good food in Sharpsburg is real! Heck, there isn't even a grocery store. I ended up getting a burger from Bender's one night when I really wasn't up for another night of leftovers. I had read a Yelp review from someone who said he had to rush to the bathroom before he even finished his meal because the food made him sick. I remeber thinking the guy had it wrong because you don't get food poisoning that fast. Not foot poisoning, but something is up with that place. I wish I had paid heed to that review now. On a lighter note, I didn't think I'd want ice cream in November but on my way our of town I couldn't resist and pulled over as I passed Nutter's. The pumpkin ice cream was a perfect way to justify it and it was indeed delicious. Unfortunately the recommended amish bakery was closed today so I couldn't check it out. I enjoyed the house I stayed in and the location was perfect for my needs, but man did it reinforce that I don't want to live in such a tiny town. The first thing I did once back was order good carryout.

A little delayed in my response, but I wanted to give this some thought before responding. I've been twice, once for the full 24 course menu and once for the 4x4 at the bar before Bryan left. The first time you weren't in the kitchen, the second time I don't recall if you were or not. I don't generally flag down chefs from this board when I eat in their restaurants. There are some who I "know" now, and who typically recognize me because I met them at DR events in their restaurant or introduced myself in other settings like Zoofari, but for the most part I would feel awkward. I sort of vaguely feel like maybe we did tell Bryan we were DR people at the bar, but I can't remember if we just brought it up in conversation or specifically because you were offering a discount at that time. Either way, I wouldn't have then gone further to ask him to flag you down so I could introduce myself - it just feels awkward to me. If you specifically wanted us to and made that request here, then I would. Probably. Outside of that, why I don't get there more frequently - time and money for eating out are very limited so I honestly don't go to many restaurants multiple times even when I love them. The 2 factors that increase the likelihood that I will are value and location (not much you can do about the latter unless you're considering opening a sister restaurant in good old Laurel, which I would welcome ). As much as I loved (LOVED) the 24 course meal, at that price point it's not something I can do often. But this has made me realize I made some assumptions about the 10 course meal that may not be accurate and wasn't even aware of the 3 course bar option until recently so maybe I have been depriving myself. When you post, you often detail the 24 courses. Could you go into a little more detail about the other options? I always assumed that the 10 course was similar to the 24 course, just less courses ie. portion sizes would be the same. Is this the case or are the portions sizes larger? Are they completely different dishes from the 24 course? Same questions for the 3 course at the bar, and with the latter, are there choices or set dishes? Based on your answers I may realize I should have planned another trip much sooner. And having decided that, it will take me another 6-10 months to actually make that happen.

Have been meaning to write a review. Went for dinner on a recent Saturday night with a friend. Food was very good to great, unfortunately our service was disappointing. We waited a good 15 minutes if not longer for our server to ever appear, including while we watched him go to a table that had been seated after us and wait on them first. When he did arrive, we got a perfunctory, "Hi, are you ready to order?". I actually badly wanted a cocktail. My friend had one as she had arrived earlier than me and ordered one at the bar so I had been sitting there staring longingly at her drink for some time. So I let him know that, ordered the cocktail and we asked for a few more minutes before ordering. The cocktail arrived and we proceeded to order, I'm not sure in which order and appetizers arrived quickly. The steak tartare was as good as on my first visit, it's just a solid rendition of this dish. I enjoyed the slightly toothsome quality the beef gets from what I continue to assume is a quick sear more than on my first visit, though the crostini were so thin and frail that they crumbled into pieces when bit into (a minor quibble as I'm happy to eat it sans bread). My friend got the pork belly appetizer, which was a play on the traditional European pork & red cabbage dish. I only got one bite, but the dish was rich, the belly cooked nicely and there was a very nice acidic kick to the cabbage to balance out the fattiness of the belly, delicious overall. Unfortunately we were still eating those appetizers when our entrees arrived. Our server hadn't been back in the interim so we also hadn't had a chance to order glasses of wine to go with our entrees since our cocktails were gone. We got an again perfunctory apology for the timing and the entrees were dropped on our table. At least the glasses of wine we ordered were delivered quickly and were quite good (I really like the offerings on their wine list). For my entree I had the braised pork shank, served over some nicely al dente vegetables (carrots, etc.) and cranberry beans with pork jus. This dish was good, a simple rustic dish, but something was missing for me. I think a little more jus to moisten each bite of the shank plus a touch more seasoning and I would have felt differently. My friend had the lamb stew and seemed to really enjoy it, though I didn't get to taste it. Based on my first experience at Barrel & Crow I was so excited to return to the restaurant and had raved about it to my friend, who was trying it for the first time so I felt pretty disappointed by the frankly cold and inefficient service we received. The food was very good overall, although my entree didn't wow like the one I had on my first visit did. I continue to appreciate the focus on local food and think prices are appropriate. I will definitely go back and just hope that the service was an anomaly this time because there's so much to love about this restaurant otherwise.

Yes indeedy, I did mean Shepherdstown. I probably confused myself since I checked out Dan's Taphouse in Boonsboro. That looks promising as a grab a beer and a burger spot, but not for our takeout/vegetarian purposes so much.

Thank you. After a look around good old Yelp I had basically come to the conclusion that it was a burger from Captain Bender's or nothing. So it will likely be nothing. I do have friends possibly coming to visit Sat night and wanted to do a takeout option. She's a vegetarian so I was looking at Blue Moon Cafe, I think it was in Boonsboro since it seemed like it had a lot of options for her. Any feedback on that place? It seemed like there might be some other good options in the other direction, but not as ideal for carryout.

Wow. $13 for a draft beer, $20+ glasses of wine. Think dinner here will be a sober night for me. Any thoughts on how long Chang will stick around?

Smart minds. I thought of it - I'm up there for a course at a facility in Fairplay, which is just south of the outlets, but I grabbed dinner there a few years ago and was a bit underwhelmed. Not sure what it's like these days. Especially because of my schedule though, I was holding out hope Sharpsburg offered something decent so I could just walk out my front door.

The dining guide only has Nutter's listed, not something I'm likely to crave during the first week of November. Does anyone know of any restaurants that are worth a visit, preferably for carryout? I'll be staying in a home right in downtown for a week and would like to not have to cook dinner once or twice (or drive to get it). Thanks!

Who knows, my experience may have been something of an anomaly these days. If it sways you one way or the other, I found these on my phone the other day:Pig's Ear with Crispy Kale, Pickled Cherry Peppers & Fried Egg Lemon Panna Cotta with lemon marmellata & candied pistachios The photo I took of the Calamari, Fregola, Radishes, Cucumbers & Pistachios has apparently gone missing, but it was a very nice bright dish in contrast to the pig's ear, which was incredibly rich and decadent.

My list is shameful really. Red Hen (have tried twice to no avail) Rose's Luxury Fiola Mare Mintwood Place The Partisan Izakaya Seki Inn at Little Washington I have more, but those are highest I suppose. I'll add Ben's chili bowl since it was mentioned. I'm embarrassed I consider myself a foodie, have lived here over 15 years and have never been.

I like collards as I do all greens. I tend to alternate which I buy depending on my mood, though I'll admit that Swiss chard is my personal favorite. I fully support your collards movement though I suspect here you'll find many people who already enjoy them. And I'm useless to you since I live in MD and shop at the Greenbelt market.

The fall menu is available, at least on their FB page. Many of the dishes look to be modified versions of existing dishes, like the tartare and fried green tomatoes. Others are completely new, like the rabbit pot pie and the pumpkin ravioli. Sadly if you haven't already had the fried chicken and waffles (like me, boo hoo) then you've missed your chance, at least for now. It appears a roast chicken dish has replaced it on the menu for now. Can't wait to get there to try several of the new items!

So it turned out that Astor Liquors (in Laurel, MD) had the Coney Island as expected, but instead of the Not Your Father's I found Sprecher's, which according to their website didn't have retailers in MD. So far I've only tried the Coney Island. As stated above, tastes like root beer. Was delicious as a root beer float. I really can't complain about a root beer float with alcohol.

I'm really interested to try one of these. Has anyone had the hard root beer from Coney Island Brewing Co? Watching FB feeds most people seem do prefer it over the Not Your Father's, but those who don't really don't. If anyone has seen any brands in MD, I'd love to hear about it. ETA: Hmm, according to their website's locator Not Your Father's is supposedly being sold at the crappy liquor store across the street from me and the slightly less crappy one up the street should have both that and Coney Island's. I am going to investigate tomorrow and will report back.

Sounds awesome. If I didn't already have plans I would definitely be there.

I second the confirmation on The Publican. I had a great meal there on my trip in April. Don't miss the shrimp ceviche if it's still on the menu - I almost ordered a second plate of it. However, and this doesn't seem to be the popular opinion on the board, the best meal I had on my trip was actually at Purple Pig. Each dish I had was outstanding, portions were generous and they have a lot of great wine options. I never really got to write my reviews so I guess this is going to suffice. The disappointment for me was The Girl & The Goat. I didn't dislike anything, just wasn't as wowed by a few of the things I had. Also incredibly loud in there and I found the service a mix of awkward and overly casual. I was dining alone, which seemed to throw my server for a loop and made it particularly disappointing when it took an eternity to get a drink in hand. With that sort of environment, I think I would have much preferred the bar, but I didn't want to miss my chance and they won't do reservations for the bar. A bit of an aside, the meal was much improved when a group of diners at the table next to me befriended me and we ended up sharing bites from our dishes. Restored my faith in humanity a tiny bit. Also, if you haven't been, don't miss Eataly. Lots of fun, and some pretty tasty if somewhat overpriced food. I especially recommend the porchetta if they're serving it the day you're there and it's a great place for an espresso or macchiato (go to the coffee bar upstairs, not the one downstairs for the good stuff). Last, but not least, I loved The Aviary. My cocktail was outstanding, as was the snack I got. I went there before my rez at TG&TG and kind of wish I had just stayed there though it would have cost me an arm and a leg. Unfortunately I can't help on the Italian. I had 2 good options picked out downtown, but in order to go with the group flow ended up at a place that was pretty terrible.

Jackie's in Silver Spring does brunch, though I've never had it. On a recent dinner visit, my big complaints were service related so sounds like it could be perfect for your friends who don't want to feel rushed. The food itself was all very good.

Seneca Lake Back from another annual trip. Hit mostly my old favorites. Dinner Saturday night was at Dano's Heuriger. I started with the mushroom & red pepper soup, which according to my server had mushrooms he had foraged for earlier in the day. The soup was indeed delicious. For my entree I was debating between the "ghoulash", which consisted of the aforementioned chanterelles, veal medallions and a cream sauce served alongside their spaetzle or the Bento box, which includes sausage, pork shank, and tastings of the spaetzle, red cabbage, cucumber salad, cold cabbage salad, a 3rd salad I am forgetting, and the liptauer spread. I asked my server if he had a recommendation and his response was, I kid you not, "meh". So I ordered the bento box and then was very very sad when a friend ordered the ghoulash and let me taste it. Let me just say, if that is on the menu when you go, get it. Dessert was an apricot strudel, which I enjoyed for it's "apricotyness" and the fact that it wasn't overly sweet. My overall feeling about Dano's stays the same - mainly that the food is good to very good, they offer nice wine options and they have a fantastic view from their patio so if the weather is good, it's worth going and eating outside, but plan to be there a long time as the service is always slow slow slow. The following night we had dinner at Stonecat. The appetizer salad with goat cheese was delicious as always. For my entree I had a special, which was a grilled duck breast with sweet potato puree, green beans and a blueberry demi-glace. Unless anyone particularly wants them, I'll spare you the details of the mess that was our service here this evening, except to say that this dish was really good, but unfortunately the cook/texture on my duck breast was disappointing because of a service issue (short version: served while we were still eating our appetizers, I sent the food runner away, manager appeared moments later to tell me that was the last duck breast so I ended up eating it). The sauce was particularly good (they do fruit sauces very nicely, always savory whether served with seafood or meat) and the green beans were actually a highlight as they were cooked to perfection. Dessert was an olive oil cake that was quite generous if a bit dry, a delicious housemade apricot & almond ice cream and a quenelle of whipped cream. I enjoyed the cocktail there as I usually do and a nice glass of Damiani reserve pinot that was supposed to be complimentary because of the service issues, but ended up on the check anyway. Ah well. Next year I may just do brunch at Stonecat. I love what they do, I love their deck, but I don't love the way the service and to a lesser extent the food seems to be going downhill. Maybe I just had bad luck this year. Having said that, FLX Wienery did not disappoint with it's delicious hot dogs and housemade brats, all things pickled, and their spiced onion rings (so good!). Also worth checking out, Lively Run goat farm in Interlaken allows you to wander around the property meeting their goats and horses, cheese tastings are held in their small shop for $3 for bites of a large selection of their cheeses, they do a farm tour each day at 2 pm (at least on weekends) and they have a very tasty goat cheese cheesecake for sale in their shop. Plus they are dog friendly.

I'm overdue to share my review of a recent meal here and sadly, although perhaps telling at this point I've forgotten many of the details of my dishes. What I haven't forgotten was the rather shoddy service. There was a group of 6 of us. We were seated quickly and then waited a full half hour to order any food. In that time, he did serve us wine, but delivered it with a "I'll give you more time to review the menu" line and shot off before anyone could stop him despite the fact that we were ready to order (our reservation was already on the late side at 8:30). I watched him putz around totally avoid any attempt I made at eye contact so we could order. 15 minutes later he appeared and said "he didn't want to bother us" or something along those lines. I think the whole table nearly cheered when we managed to actually get him to stay and take our orders. It was at that point that he proceeded to tell us that they were out of several menu items, including one of the 2 entree dishes on the prix fixe menu. This is a HUGE pet peeve of mine. I asked if they had run out of the dishes in the last half hour, he said no. I really feel strongly that if the kitchen has already 86'd items, the server should let you know in advance so you don't spend time deliberating over options that aren't actually available. In the end, they were out of the pork tenderloin, which several in our group had planned on. Most just opted for the only other entree choice from the prix fixe, which was a seafood dish. I really didn't want seafood and they wouldn't sub the porchetta for the tenderloin so I ended up ordering a la carte at a substantial additional cost. I started with the cacio e pepe that I would have had from the prix fixe, which was a tasty dish outside of a noticeable absence of any real pepper flavor. Details of the porchetta dish are failing me, but I do remember that it had fresh summer vegetables and was tasty. The popcorn cream puff dessert, also part of the prix fixe menu was really delicious. I did not share. Service once we ordered was okay - food was delivered fresh, but our server remained mostly absent and had to be flagged down so we could order another bottle of wine. Dessert and the check were another lengthy process and to top it off, the server made a mistake when running our credit cards (not a huge deal, and easily remedied, but it was just more time spent waiting). I don't know exactly what time we got out of there, but I would say it was close to 3 hours from start to finish. I would give Jackie's another shot based purely on the food and hope for better service, but I would only go if the prix fixe menu appealed to me. I think for the quality of the food the prix fixe is a good deal, but the regular menu prices aren't justified. I will admit my opinion may be somewhat biased by the crap service.

Interesting. I'm actually a big fan of Silver Diner. Having the carryout option for some at least partially locally sourced food here in Laurel is a plus and the food is always prepared well and tasty. But I'll be interested to see how they "upscale" some of the dishes to justify the price increases. The description of the bison huevos rancheros looks pretty identical to what they serve at my Silver Diner but they're charging $16 instead of $13.99 (one of my favorite dishes to order there by the way). In the same vein, the crabcakes with Old Bay fries are "market price" versus $16.99 at the diner and again the descriptions are identical. Maybe they're just counting on people not realizing and/or appreciating the more upscale interior, but it's a turn off to me.

We went to Jackie's. I need to post something about it, but haven't had time.