JDawgBBall9

Thanks, sounds like it'll serve my purposes fine. I don't mind limited with beer/liqour if there's some variety (if I'm interpreting your intentions correctly) and I'll have to keep Lucien Walsh in mind if/when I make it there for wine.

Anybody been recently and able to report back? More specifically about the shop as most of the area liqour stores don't carry the greatest selection.

Neal Langermann opened Langermann's in Canton back in 2010 (I think) and a second location opened just a few months ago on Light Street in Federal Hill, appropriately named Langermann's on Light. I went to the new location recently and recalled that the building looked very familiar- sure enough, I've been there for a couple drinks when it was a different establishment. Based on my trip the other night, I hope that Langermann's on Light doesn't fall to the same fate as the prior tenants. The crowd was very scattered, ranging from young residents of the neighborhood to older couples that commuted in from outside of the area. All of the tables were spoken to from reservations, but we were able to grab two seats at the bar.

Outside was advertised that the restaurant was home to Baltimore's best grits. Now I don't know how stiff the competition is for that title, but I'm a sucker for grits and had to try it. In retrospect, I might have gone a little overboard because they were extremely rich. We started off with a small plate of scallops served over grits with tomatoes, bacon and scallops. I'm normally not a big fan of scallops, but you could taste the freshness of the seafood and I greatly enjoyed them. This was my first sampling of the grits, and I decided that I made the right choice in doubling up on grits after the small plate was finished.

As an entree I ordered shrimp and grits, served in a bowl with basically the same ingredients as the scallops but with andouillie sausage added in as well and much more broth. The grits being buried in the ingredients helped the loads of buttery grits go down easier and I found the sausage to be an excellent addition. The shrimp were shrimp, and overall the dish was delicious.

When paired with a Sierra Nevada Celebration, $5 during happy hour I believe, I had a very good experience for about $35 before tip. The staff was very friendly and didn't linger, and with the way the bar was set up it was almost impossible for us to be ignored. Not the worlds greatest review, but I'm fuzzy on the details from a few days prior and I'd rather err on the side of too little and be accurate than too much and mislead people. Overall, a very solid experience that I'd recommend for people wanting Southern cooking in the area.

Left Hand doesn't distribute in DC proper, right? Or at least I've never seen any of their beers in DC stores.

I checked their site and it doesn't look like they have a distributor in Maryland and just one in Virginia. Can't tell about DC. So not sure how that'll work.

Why?

I've had that burger a handful of times or seen it ordered, although I haven't been/seen that burger recently. I guess most everything seemed very district-oriented so it didn't really occur to me that it would be from the northern reaches this board covers. I'm not too familiar with the DC dining scene so I mostly use this board for information so I can be more informative on the few occasions I'm down that way and try to contribute in the Baltimore forum more (although dining experiences have been lacking lately for mostly personal reasons).

But moreover, when I read this clue posted before I got to your answer:

"- It is all in a name. I've always been interested in names whether people, pets or businesses. I always ask about them. For restaurants, most all names could be termed literal ("Restaurant X" or '24th St Cafe'), informative (R24, Palena and Freddy's Lobster & Clam all examples of places whose names tell a story about why and what's inside) and abstract (hotel restaurants or celebrity chefs will use names like these sometimes). The burger place's name is informative in a way that is descriptive. So, unlike Palena (where you have to know that Chef Ruta named it for his mother's hometown in Italy), this place's name is useful. It informs aptly what they do or what they aspire to do different from others."

The exact thing that popped into my head was "ok, I'm guessing something like Victoria's Gastropub" but it never occurred to me that would be the answer. I basically did a facepalm to myself when I saw the answer.

I'm embarrassed I didn't get that.

Amicci's (website), Chiapparelli's and Sabatino's (website) in Little Italy would all be decent bets I'm guessing. Doesn't seem like Aldo's goes a more classic route with their menu. There's other restaurants in the area too that are easily able to be located but at a quick glance I didn't see any basic lasagnas/spaghettis etc on the menu but I very well could have missed them.

Then if there's room- Vaccaro's for dessert.

I haven't been to any of those restaurants in years or at all, but its a starting point to hold you over and see if anybody else pops in with anything within the next four months.

(For extremely less formal occasions if this topic ever comes up again I might suggest Tutti Gusti in Canton)

Yeah I didn't word that greatly, what I meant is they don't change their courses/portions from normal like other places are sometimes accused of and it still adds up to less than it would normally.

Anyways that's probably a separate discussion somewhere else. If I don't try Bluegrass then I will in the near future (at least that's the plan!)

A lot of good restaurants are participating. Acts as both a public service announcement and a warning - walking into a restaurant and realizing its packed with restaurant week diners can sometimes be a pain.

http://www.baltimorerestaurantweek.com/

I know I can speak to Jack's Bistro being a good selection for the price if the menu appeals to you, but they'll probably be booked solid.

From a dining perspective I don't see the harm in someone discretely taking a photograph with their camera or phone if they don't use a flash, tripod, etc. Rules against those specifics can ensure it's not distracting to diners at other tables. However, the article doesn't address another concern I've heard, which is that the resulting photograph may not be up to par with what the restaurant would want to show off the food, and generally we all know that those photos are going on the WWW relatively immediately.

I originally heard of this piece on the radio and this was a BIG talking point from chefs/relatives of cooks that called in

Another point was that other people in the restaurant business to take their art method.

An article in the New York Times about photographing food in restaurants. I know this has been a hot topic of debate before, especially with the hot new topic "Where Did I Dine?" that's popped up over the past few days, but it brought up a couple alternatives that I've never even thought of. What really caught my eye was in the first few paragraphs:

When it comes to people taking photographs of their meals, the chef David Bouley has seen it all. There are the foreign tourists who, despite their big cameras, tend to be very discreet. There are those who use a flash and annoy everyone around them. There are those who come equipped with gorillapods — those small, flexible tripods to use on their tables.

One thing the article didn't touch on was the marketing the restaurants get when the pictures of their food are uploaded to facebook or twitter or wherever. Of course a lot of the places that have restrictions on photography really don't need that extra marketing anyways.

I know Rogue 24 bans photography too but it seems a lot of people have never heard of this practice. Personally I don't need to brag to others what or where I've eaten and will obey whatever the chef's rules are.

From ChicagoFoodies.com

Saw this somewhere else and figured the discussion would be good here. Focuses solely on experience and not the actual food itself.

Ellicott City Has been open a little while, they do not have a liquor license yet, but they happily allow BYO

Went and ordered some takeout for football this afternoon: hot wings, soy garlic wings, and soy garlic chicken strips. All of the pieces of chicken were juicy and delicious while the breading was extremely crispy but not greasy. Absolutely delicious way to spend the afternoon. Order took maybe 10-15 minutes to be ready.

There was a survey by the cashier asking customers if they would be interested in the restaurant serving beer/wine/liquor, so they seem open to the idea and are exploring if it will be a wise decision.

They also had a separate sign advertising preorders for Super Bowl Sunday, I'm guessing that would apply to all locations.

Was scanning through the dining guide...unfortunately, the Forest Diner closed over the spring or summer sometime.

My first thought is Max's Taphouse in Fells Point, it's relatively close and they have a large upstairs area that they might be able to block off for someone depending on the group size. No idea about their willingness to do it, either during a random weeknight or, say, Saturday afternoon as I've never tried or been there during slow times.

Ryleigh's in Fed Hill is another option with a similar set-up and probably better food based on what I've read, further from Johns Hopkins but closer to the downtown area. Just two off the top of my head.

I've done stuff at Looney's in Canton before but it's just a typical sports bar, nothing particularly special or anything but its got decent enough taps and decent enough bar food and we got specials and things like that.

DiPasquale's in Baltimore too....the sandwich they make with it is phenomenal as well

I know that for me personally weeknights generally work better, but the DC people who might want to try something different would have different opinions.

Of course knowing me I won't actually be free the night of an event anyways

Perhaps you were just a victim of advertising.

Nope, just drunk

Time for me to come clean: I had the first Big Mac of my life about a year ago, and I kind of loved it. No kidding. And now I'm addicted to it as 2am post-bar food. I know I should be going to the Falafelshop but I keep going back there. I don't even like the french fries, just the special-saucy/sugar-laden/limp-lettuce/grey-meat burgerness of it. Chalk it up to a Happy Meal being a special treat out when I was a kid and eating bland home-cooked meals was dull. That damn watery orange drink and syrupy-sweet cheeseburger had me at hello. Help me.

Go get the falafel. You won't hate yourself in the morning.

I lived across the street from a McDonald's during the height of my college years. Let's just say there were many mornings where I felt like two bears were fighting in my stomach and I would say "never again" only to end up destroying the dollar menu a couple weeks later.

Coincidentally, an English professor I had said he was a part-owner of Amsterdam Falafelshop but I no longer see him on the website. I still have never been, oh well.

Speaking of bear fights, that was always a good one...an Irish Car Bomb and a Jägerbomb taken one after the other. I'm not sure if I miss those days or not....

The collaboration between Stillwater Ale's Brian Strumke and Jack Bistro's Ted Stelzenmuller is opening today right across from the Natty Boh Tower in Canton.

http://ofloveandregret.com/

Hours:

(M-F) Drinks 11 am-close | Kitchen 11 am-10 pm

(Sat-Sun) Drinks 5 pm-close | Kitchen 5 pm-10 pm

They have twenty taps and the current beer listcontains 13 Stillwater beers, among others.

A short blurb in the Baltimore Sun

Some pictures and a very brief write-up from what appears to be a soft opening

I've been keeping an eye on this place and am excited to see what the combination has to offer, I hope to swing by within the next couple weeks (although knowing me, it'll take at least five months)

Brunch yesterday was eggs benedict which were good, but I'm coming here to write about my drink- they mixed their bloody mary mix with bourbon, a couple other ingredients I'm probably forgetting, and the rim was done in bacon and bbq sauce. Unfortunately their drink menus aren't on the website for whatever reason (high turnover among the drafts/mixed drinks probably #1 on that list) but it was delicious and quite the interesting take on the traditional bloody mary.

I don't know where to start so I'm just gonna type.

Went there last night and started out with their version of a Manhattan called a Manhampden (Maryland-style rye, California sweet vermouth, new fashioned bitters, Peychaud's, orange twist)...my Manhattan experience is pretty limited but this was extremely delicious, not too much bite and the first sip had a variety of flavor between the bitterness and sweetness. Another diner got a blackberry fizz (Blackberry vodka, Organic Snap, hard apple cider, lemon, Roggenbier) and while fizzes aren't my cup of tee, I didn't find it unappealing.

I started off with an Asparagus Salad (Charred ramps, pecans, pea shoots,'stony man')...not the most adventerous thing to start off with but it really appealed to me and it hit the spot. You could really taste how fresh the greens were and as someone who was raised on not-so-fresh vegetables I could really appreciate it. Other small plates that we started off with was a veal tartare served with chips which had a lot of flavor and She Crab Soup. Our waiter actually said before that he always recommends the clam soup instead but when the mind gets stuck on something, you have to get it. It was still good but it did make me wonder just how good that clam soup is.

I got the Mangalitsa Pork Chop served over McCarthy Farm black-eyed peas, ham hock, chard, asparagus and it was delicious. There was a thin layer of fat around the edges that provided a good flavor and while I don't order pork chops often, it was by far the best pork chop I've had. I may have liked the rest of the dish better, the flavors matched each other extremely well.

The two other entrees ordered was a mutton dish that doesn't seem to be on the website (I don't believe its the one currently up there) and the tavern steak over potatoes, wilted romaine, turnips, nettle cream, green garlic relish. Both were very good and full of flavor, but I must admit I enjoyed mine more than the others.

I also ordered a glass of the 2009 Black Ankle Rolling Hills, which was by far the best Maryland wine I've had. It was my first Black Ankle experience, but it definitely didn't taste like something you'd find from Maryland. I've wanted to try some Black Ankle wines for a while, now I'm going to be much more aware of their wines.

After dinner we did have a French Press (I think this one was from Peru) which was some of the best coffee I've ever had in a restaurant, seems like my feelings have been felt by others in this thread. Lots of flavor.

The decor was amazing, the server was a bit overeager if anything but very helpful, nothing really else to add to any of the prior experiences posted. As far as the value, we played guess the bill and I was about 20% too high. Our experience last night was great and it will be repeated in the future barring any unforeseen circumstances (please don't randomly close!).

I'm guessing HowChow covered most of the stuff I would've mentioned or you would've put in since it would be a lot of the more active topics or those that get a lot of mentions and praise from various media like Jacks Bistro, Pazo, Max's for beers, Bad Decisions, Pioneer out in Catonsville/Woodlawnish and so on

Voted the 2011 best new bar by Baltimore Magazine, they serve some very good pizza with a pretty good beer list. The pizza is Neopolitan style with 11" pizzas usually between $8-10 and 15" between $13-15. The appetizers/bar fare like fried edamame, hush puppies and fries are very delicious too. You aren't gonna go here for mind-blowing cuisine, just some very good pizza and bar fare in a very welcoming, busy atmosphere and drink some comforting beers with friends. I've seen children and the elderly in there as well, they are holding its own with the food.

http://www.johnnyrad...JohnnyRads.html

Unbelievable that the Chamelion Cafe isn't on this list.

It could be that its an honorable mention, that was just a selection so it wasn't all of the "Best of the Rest"

Then again, it might not be. I wouldn't know.