Toast of the Town
Spring is finally here and boy, there have been all kinds of changes on our food scene… see what a season can do?
A big thank you to Stephanie Bradshaw of Bradshaw Designs for the invite to NACE annual party held at the AVAM. NACE is the National Association of Catering Executives and this is their annual party where all of the members come together to put their best foot forward to showcase their food, table decorations and creativity by way of a table competition. The tables are always breath taking and impress every year. This year’s theme was “A Night of Mystery”. The People’s Choice award winner was “Into The Night” by Perkins Productions; a theme depicting Baltimore Colt’s fleeing over night out of town, in 1984.
Bradshaw’s table was the Pink Panther table- that got my vote.
The dinner was 3 courses and they included:
Course One
Chef Ned Greig of Putting on the Ritz
Mango radicchio salad with basil vinaigrette
Course two
Chef Josean Rosado of Intercontinental Harbor Court hotel
Jumbo lump crab with asiago herb risotto cake and carmalized onion remoulade
Course three
Chef Jerry Edwards and John Walsh of Chefs Expressions
Moroccon lamb duo-fresh tangine served on cous cous; house made lamb confit on grilled naan bread and micro Swiss chard
As always, a beautiful job done by all.
The Inn at the Black Olive is open and ready for business. Located on Caroline Street, in Fells Point, the Spiliadis family has got it going on. Every single thing is organic, sustainable and “green” from the food, to the floor tiles, to the bedding. Dmitri Spiliadis, market manager and owner sure does know what he’s talking about and it shows with the quality they have put into this place. With a market on the lower level and 10 luxury suites (with a view) it not only feels good to be in there, but you know that the impact on resources is very low too. Nothing has been harmed and no chemicals have been used in anything. Let him tell you more about it. He speaks fluenty about this geo thermal building and very interesting to talk to. In market place, you will find a state-of-the-art bakery that uses all of the chef’s original recipes for flatbread, sourdough and their traditional calamata olive bread that they use at their restaurant, the Black Olive, on Bond St.
Just like their parent restaurant, all of the food that they use is organic. Yea, I know, the word “organic” is second to “local”- it’s the freshness we look for. These guys partnered with One Straw Farm a local farm, that happens to be one of the only organic farms in the state of MD. SO when you are eating those delicious fruits and vegetables, you can feel good knowing that not only is it organic, but it’s local too. It doesn’t stop there…Olives (go figure), cheeses from around the world, prepared foods such as octopus salad and their Greek spreads like Taramasalata, tzatsiki and hummus and don’t forget the wine selection . This alone has to have the neighbors in Fells point so happy. When you go in, (and I know you want to), look for their signature black olive tree that sits in the window. Chef Pauline Spiliadis brought this tree’s seedling back from Greece, many years ago, in hopes to have it in the market. They have taken very good care of it like everything else in this space. I wish them the best of luck here in Baltimore and can’t wait for their rooftop restaurant to open soon!
B and O American Brasserie on Charles St has a new chef, Thomas Dunklin, and boy is he firing up some good eats. Menu items like Ahi Tuna Crudo-citrus sponge, puffed rice and cucumber , Roasted Beet Carpaccio with goat cheese, avocado, pistachio, and meyer lemon oil, and the Maryland Rockfish, with peas & carrots, torchon and smoked almonds. Thomas is from New Orleans and has quite a culinary background, which makes him well versed to take on and bring a local flair to his menu, here in Baltimore. He is utilizing local farms and adhering to sustainable food philosophy. A huge and warm welcome to him. Dunklin is not the only one making the goodness around the B and O Brasserie. Brendan Dorr is at the bar mixing up some amazing drinks and definitely deserves a visit before dinner. If you like cocktails with your meal like I do, you will be very happy at the selection and the preparation. He uses mainly fresh ingredients and hand creates these delicious little concoctions. Some of those include the Junction Berry Fizz-Plymouth gin, red berry syrup, orange flower water, lemon and club soda or the Charles Street Crusta- Cruzan 9 Rum, Luxardo Maraschino, Angostura Bitters, Ginger Syrup, Lime Juice and cayenne and Queen Bee-Belvedere Vodka, Yuzu, St. Germain Elderflower Liqueur & Honeywater-this drink won the Cocktail World Cup finals that was held here in Baltimore on the Constellation in 2008. He won a trip to New Zealand for this drink-try it, you will see why.
Another addition to Baltimore’s “alfresco” dining, LaTavola now has outdoor seating. Now you can enjoy those amazing authentic Italian dishes outdoors, in Little Italy. Chef Carlo Vignotto and owner Michael Goldsmith have worked hard on getting their permits and we all know in this town, that’s not an easy feat.
Some days you can see Michael out there watering his herbs and flowers and making the table positions “just right.” Go and enjoy a glass and wine and relax with their delicious menu. Remember, Friday nights in July and August are “movie nights” in Little Italy. This is a great place to get started.
Nancy Longo at Pierpoint still has some children’s cooking class spots open. If your child has a passion for the kitchen but needs a little direction, Nancy’s classes are awesome. I hear that that you don’t need to worry about dinner for the week the kids are in there. I’m sending my daughter and I’m looking forward to it as much as she is. Classes are
WEEK 1 JUNE 20TH -JUNE 23RD MEXICAN FOODS , DIM SUM, PASTA & BRUNCH
WEEK 2 JUNE 27TH -JUNE 30TH - CHOCOLATES, CAKES, TARTS, POOL PARTY & SOUPS
Call Nancy at Pierpoint 410-675-2080 to sign up or check the website for details http://www.pierpointrestaurant.com
Have you been to Grano Emporio, yet? Gino Troia’s newest concept is a beautiful space complete with a wine bar and private dining room upstairs. He has broken through to the next door space and also put a deck on the front of the building.
I walked in and fell in love. Stay tuned for more on this space. I think he has something up his sleeve. Grano “piccolo” is the small pasta bar on 36th st. Grano Emporio is located on Chestnut Ave, both in Hampden.
LOCAL PRODUCTS
Heard of The Wild Pea?
It’s Blake Wollman’s new line of gourmet hommus. Blake has owned and operated Desert Café in Mt Washington for years. Now, after much experimenting, he has this beautiful, hand crafted food available in his shop or at local farmers markets. He makes both savory and sweet hommus in a variety of flavors like PB and J, Old Bay, Banana split and Bloody Mary. I can’t wait to try them all! Nice work, Blake.
Nikki Lewis of Mallow Munchies, that chewy gooey all natural “krispy treat” is making her way into more retail shops around town. In addition to the Baltimore farmer’s market, you can now find Mallow Munchies at Zeke’s coffee shop, in Lauraville and The Grilled Cheese Co. Some of her signature flavors are toffee nut crunch-with salted cashews and the classic munchies dipped in Belgian chocolate.
THE TURN AND BURN
-many (positive) changes on the food scene
Patrick Morrow, formerly of Bluegrass restaurant is now at Meli Bistro in Fells Point. I can’t wait to get over there to see and taste his menu. This means that Rashad Edwards, in now back in his original kitchen at Kalis Court
Bill Crouse has left Slainte Pub. His new digs will be with fabulous John Walsh and Jerry Edwards, at Chefs Expressions . Wow. What a trio of talent in the kitchen!
Nate’s back in Baltimore!!!! If you have ever spent any time in Canton, you will remember Nate Hayes who worked at Nacho Mama’s and later moved on to open Mama’s on the half Shell. For the past several years he has been in Columbia at Nottinghams. WELL, he’s back and in full force. Nate is managing bartender at Luckie’s Liquors in Power Plant Live. Not only will you find him at Luckie’s, you’ll also find the city’s largest selection of both domestic and imported beers, in their cases.
At the soft opening, I saw “Big Mean Rod” of Dangerously Delicious Pies, who is FAR from big and mean. He was rocking out on stage and in between time, got a chance to catch up with him. He told me that Dangerously Delicious Pie shop in Federal Hill is now closed and there are thoughts on having a pie truck. The only question I had was, “will it have Zeke’s coffee? He gave me a resounding YES. Looking forward to his pie on wheels.
GOOD NEWS!!! Pazza Luna in Locust Point has only closed temporarily. Due to technical formalities in licensing, they had to close for a bit. Surely they will announce their exact opening date, but for now it is slated for mid-June. I am very happy to hear of this great news. We are now planning a dinner there to show our support and gratitude for all that Davide and Christa do in that location. Viva Italia!
So happy to see everyone’s good friend, Filippo Lapides back in his working glory. Filippo is back with Platinum Brands and his “work family” the Pecora’s. I know they are glad to have him back and he is happy flying around the world, doing what he does best: educating people with his extensive knowledge of wine. A huge congrats to him. Some of his brands include: Voga, Ca Montini and Valle Reale all from Italy.
Sergio Vitale of Aldo’s is preparing to open his newest restaurant, Chazz: A Bronx original in Harbor East. The opening date is set for June 1st. I hear they are working on a really nice cocktail menu. I can’t wait to see what he’ll muster up. I love a good cocktail menu. No pressure, Serg!
I have resigned from my position at Charm City Food tours. It’s all good though; they will be continuing on with the tours in Baltimore. Best of luck to them. Looking forward to taking a few myself-they are pretty cool!
For me, I’m on to bigger and better things and I will let you know where I land, very shortly.
For this season, the changes are good, here’s to many more and a “toast” to everyone who is making things happen around here.
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