curiouskitkatt

History of Scapple. No explanation of why maple syrup other than it is delicious, but here is another reference to scrapple being served with apples. I must try it next time with a service of stewed apples. A publication on the history of food  provides a rich resource on food folklore for any of  you geeks who enjoy that sorta thing.

1 hour ago, DonRocks said:

Oof, I'm strongly in the maple syrup camp (although when you think about it scapple is a loaf made from sweeping the slaughterhouse floor, so does it really matter?)

May I suggest Dutch Eating Place in the Reading Terminal Market for your scrapple needs? If I recall, they also serve real maple syrup for a small supplement (non-negotiable).

Reading about the serving of maple syrup over scrapple has me scratching my head as to the origin of how it was ever added in the first place? I must investigate. 

Food folklorist,

kat

12 minutes ago, Steve R. said:

  I guess that’s a good thing.

It is indeed. 

Travel with purpose,

kat

On 1/18/2018 at 9:51 AM, Steve R. said:

  Please... if you look further into it & find anything specific that you think I should hear, let me know.

Not quite Voluntourism, but intentional tourism.  Recently feature in Lancaster Online, and there was an informative session about the the company at a local eatery. 

4 hours ago, funkyfood said:

I went to this place last summer with a friend and was blown away by the food and drinks.  It's like Espita but way better.

I will easily drive the 50 minutes from my place for the queso funidido, and the cochinita pibil.  Its crazy good, not to mention that the setting of the place is so dang cosy.  Most def in in my top 5 for Baltimore. 

44 minutes ago, ktmoomau said:

Don't live in the SS area, so not sure what park would be better, but will drive wherever!

I reside in PA& I will be attending This forum is special to me, I want this to happen. Whether 2 attend, or 40 attend, its gonna be a swell get together . I will check to see which one is more reasonable in pricing, and will post the details. 

Hostess with the mostest,

kat

or this? South Germantown.

Tacoma Park? I am thinking June 17th.

Scrapple. I love it. It makes me wonder why more places do not serve it. Up until recently I have never heard of ketchup as a condiment for scrapple. I am with the maple syrup camp in terms of condiments, but people tell me that Heinz ketchup is the way to go. But reading this piece, I may just want to eat scrapple with apple butter instead. So many possibilities. 

A peak into Clavel, and why I will be visiting often.

Gypsy,

kat

Sweet Teensy Bakery is looking to hire 2 bakers/pasty chefs . These are full time positions that require experience. If interested, please email resume  here. 

On 1/19/2018 at 1:19 PM, kitkatpaddywak said:

I am taking the lead on this. Please chime in if  you are  interested in attending this year's DR picnic. I am thinking summer, Junish.

 POP SURVEY!

The results are in!  !7 Rockwellians chimed in  and that makes me as happy as a clam at high water. Now I will need a little help from the gallery to pinpoint a park, since I am not all to familiar with locations. So please chime in! 

Cruise director,

kat

National Ice Cream for Breakfast Day!!!! 

This is exactly what my goal was, and it happened!! I posted my review, and the restaurant took the lead and added it to their bio. We are making progress Rockwellians!! If  you take action, and follow through, stuff happens. I am doing a happy dance. 

Dancing queen,

kat

We as consumers, want to be able to dine responsibly. Hence the popularity of the farm to table movement, but honestly just about all of the ingredients that land on the table , come from a farm. Present day, you hear a great deal about urban farming, as well as vertical gardening. A new agricultural  movement is on the up an up .Hyper local is gonna be the new farm to table. Foraged is a hyper local eatery that recently opened on Chestnut St in the Hampden neighborhood of Baltimore. I went there on Saturday, and had to find out if all the hulaballoo lived up to the hype. 

I made a reservation for 4 for 6pm. The space is relatively small and I believe it may seat up to 30 people in one seating. You kinda feel as though you are in a farmhouse, and I kinda like it. The overall aesthetic of the restaurant was rustic.  On the left wall there are installations of 2 vertical garden panels. Vertical gardens are all the rage you know. All the cool kids are doing it. We brought a bottle of wine to have with our meal. There is no charge for corkage since their liquor license has not been obtained yet. I  imagine once they are in full swing, one may expect to imbibe on locally crafted brews, and spirits.  We were sat at a lovely table parked right in front the kitchen. The best seat in the house, in my opinion. First look at the menu,  I am immediately pleased. There aren't distinctive apps and entrees, but rather plates encouraged to be shared. I like the idea that several dishes can be ordered , and passed around the dining table. Often though when dining with a group of people, this can be a plus, or a minus. I'm am referring to  the end of the meal and  calculating  who pays for what. If you dine with a group that equally shares, then it only makes sense to split evenly, but if one party only partakes in one dish, sharing of the dishes may present challenges. But back  to the food.

One of my guests happen to have dietary restrictions, and I was pleased that the kitchen was able to accommodate. We were told the entirety of the dish may be presented differently, but changes could be made. Another trend that is happening to menus everywhere is the attention made to feed both vegetarians, and vegans alike. I commend this effort.  My guest happen to be neither, but could not consume dairy. The server informed us that it may greatly restrict her choices considering just about everything on the menu was basted or prepared with dairy. The  server  checked with the Chef before giving his final answer. Otherwise, sadly we would have had to leave and venture to another restaurant. Fortunately , the Chef was able to adjust to my guest dietary requests. 

I started out with the oyster chowder. I have been spoiled with good soup that has been prepared at the hands of Chef Tom Power of Corduroy, so my expectation was high. I am happy to report, the chowder delivered. The briny flavor of the oysters, paired with the elegant composition of the  silky broth made for a perfect chowder.  The presence of fennel and a brunoise of aromatic veggies, that I can't put my finger on, elevated the soup.  The menu description was appropriately titled.  I wanted to tip the bowl into my mouth so that I could savor every drop. It was then followed by a Mushroom stew. It may not have been a traditional stew, but its was amazing.  Stewed Hen of the woods mushrooms garnished with dollops of ricotta gnudi, and topped off with a pillowy poached egg. The star of the dish was obviously the mushrooms, but I expected the yolk  to add a richness that surprisingly was missed.   The addition of what I thought to be sunflower seeds, which actually were pine nuts, added a clever nuttiness to the dish. I only wished there was a bit of bread to soak up the mushroom liqueur in the bottom of the bowl. I conclude my meal with the pastrami pork belly served with greens. My instinct was to order the catfish stew, but was directed to try the pork belly instead. I should have stuck to my gut. Though the pork belly, as good as it was, did not deliver as I thought it would. I found it to be salty, and paired  with the greens being briny as well, it was overkill.  Pork belly has essentially become the chocolate molten cake of menus. Everyone does it. Nothing ground breaking here.  I often follow the guidance of the server, and he versed it to be a sure thing. To me, I should have went with my first choice. 

The meal  as whole, was good. Could it have been better, sure. I will venture back after they have expanded their menu to include spirits, and will follow my own compass as to what to select. One thing is for sure,  the Chef followed a bit of advice from  his former employer, Sean Brock of the famed McCrady's. The James Beard Awarded chef passed on to the Chef, " Respect the food. Treat it like you would treat a loved one." You could taste the love in the food, especially in the first two courses. The last course, the Chef may have been a bit over zealous, and seasoned the dish aggressively.  The setting of restaurant, along with the meticulous details in preparation of all of the dishes,was not missed on this diner. In my travels, I seek out spots that set themselves apart from the rest of the herd. The Chef, Chris Amendola, has made an impression on me that will warrant  another visit. I will be back. This time I just won't have the molten chocolate cake, oops, I mean the pork belly. 

Roaming gourmet,

kat

20 hours ago, DonRocks said:

Kat, if we didn't have you, we'd need to invent you.

Thanks, Rocks. 

I love this forum, and want to see it reach new heights. The forum deserves it. You have poured so much into it, and I just want everyone to know how valuable it can be. With each interaction I have, I casually mention this dining forum, and people are curious, and interested. If we build it, people will come. If we contribute, and culivate the platform , it will flourish. I believe this. The future is bright, Rocks. 

Eterneral Optimist,

kat

27 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

Is that reaction in wonder? or surprise? 

I enjoy the drive. lol

49 minutes ago, DonRocks said:

We need people like you to spark the desire to make new friends, so please don't become disheartened. My dream had always been for this community to be a force for charitable endeavors, but that isn't how things panned out, so I'm doing it on my own, in private, for now - maybe you can rekindle the fire, and God love you for trying.

Making new friends is almost like breathing to me, Rocks. It’s comes natural. Thats the easy part. Bringing people together to share food is even easier, in my world anyway. I too share your vision.  In time, your dream will become a reality, I will see to it. Have faith. 

I may sound like a broken record, but I will never forget that first DR Happy Hour at Firefly. I could not have dreamed of a better turn out. Perhaps that is the way to go. Resurrect HH, and eventually build those HH into dinner gatherings. Those dinners won’t be like other dinners. These dinners will be with purpose. Dining for the greater cause.  I am happy to lead the charge!  

Oh, & FYI, Im sure this comes as no surprise. I talk about #donrockwelldotcom to everyone that crosses my path. You would think I’m the Mayor of the Dining Forum. Once I have attached myself to something, it sticks like crazy glue. 

I know what challenges lie ahead. I am prepared for them. Rocks, you can count on me not to be discouraged. I got your back, you have my word. 

Mayor,

kat

9 hours ago, ktmoomau said:

I started to take the survey, but my answers to them all where, any of the above!  So just count me in as likely, unless there is JF event, Mt Vernon event, or I am traveling.  I do have some cookbooks I could bring to swap.  I also can offer my condo's private space, it has a fridge, microwave, oven, dishwasher, little patio space, etc.  It is also very metro friendly in Arlington, but not a HUGE amount of street parking, but I have parking garages that aren't too pricey about a block away.  No pressure, just an offer.

That is so kind of you! Thank you. This is the first time posting a monkey survey, so there may be kinks. Inviting us into your home is warmly received. Let me let the survey run for a bit, and discuss with you when a date will work best. 

Cruise Director,

kat

On 12/10/2017 at 6:49 PM, DonRocks said:

If someone wants to reserve a location, I'll pay for everything.

I am taking the lead on this. Please chime in if  you are  interested in attending this year's DR picnic. I am thinking summer, Junish.

 POP SURVEY!

On 1/19/2018 at 10:31 AM, Bob Wells said:

LOL I know quite well. I first came to Baltimore in 1978. Attended my 35th college reunion last April. Quite familiar with the evolution of Hampden (and Remington ).

 I have a tendency to miss the cue in postings. I should have concluded that you know of the dining renaissance that is occurring  in your hood.I love Bar Clavel, and  WC Harlan. Best additions to Remington to date.

14 hours ago, Bob Wells said:

When I first came to Baltimore lo those many years ago, the only dining advice i got regarding Hampden was, "Do not go into Hampden."

I sense you have a discerning palate, and I am here to inform you Hampden has evolved into the hottest neighborhood in Baltimore. Present day, people are flocking to Hampden. Times have changed. 

You will like it, Hon,

kat

On 1/9/2018 at 12:19 PM, FranklinDubya said:

I'll start doing this on my future IG posts!

Thank you @FranklinDubya!! He has followed through and posted using the #donrockwelldotcom, and is in the process of posting a full review from his INSTA post to  DR.COM. Good work! 

On 1/16/2018 at 11:53 AM, Mark Slater said:

Michel Richard used to tell me that truffle oil was for lazy chefs. :-)

He was wise beyond his years, that one. Miss him.

48 minutes ago, Steve R. said:

While trying my best to not come off like an uncaring a-hole, I’d advise you to be very, very careful before doing this.  Unfortunately, our world is full of “entrepreneurs” who see our interest in “helping” as an opportunity to make money from human misery. The NYT was one of several media organizations publishing articles a couple of years ago explaining that much of this business isn’t as helpful to anyone as simply giving money to reputable organizations & some other articles exposed outright ghoulish practices engaged or supported by others.  Just google voluntourism & you’ll get an eyeful without me going on.  Lest you think poorly of my discouragement on this, please note that any opinion I have on this industry is based on me looking into it as something I’d be interested in doing myself & being shocked at what I found.  Please... if you look further into it & find anything specific that you think I should hear, let me know.

I wholly appreciate you chiming in on my inquiry. I do understand there are several companies that are looking to profit from the one's ability to want to help. I will do my due diligence in researching this option, and will report back on my findings. After all, I don't want my journey to end up like a scene out of Turista.

Heed caution,

kat