It's pretty hard to find a good cup of tea anywhere in this city. Usually the best/norm you can expect in a restaurant is that they stock Tazo or something similar. So being an avid tea drinker, I was intrigued to hear of a cafe with "tea" in their name... however I didn't understand the "chocolate" prefix.
Chocolatea is a little cafe tucked under the Ambassador building in Charles Village (if you're not familiar, it's behind One World). As the title dictates, their centerpiece items are a variety of teas and gourmet chocolates, as well as a rotating and robust specialty drink menu.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Kumari
This is the first place I ever had Indian food, it was from their lunch buffet a few years back. Ever since then, my Indian food experiences haven't deviated much from chicken tikka masala, samosas and naan; I had also never been to Kumari for anything other than the lunch buffet, so I decided to "get crazy" and get something vaguely different during a DINNER service.
If you've never been to Kumari before (and the odds are stacked in that favor considering Mughal Garden and Akbar are within spitting distance), allow me to paint a picture. It's located above the Mount Vernon Tavern (formerly Liam's), and has about four tables in the front overlooking Charles Street, and a bar and buffet that guide you into a rear seating area. It's been there for awhile and it seems the only thing that has changed is their sign out front.
Getting back to dinner experience, we were promptly seated and were offered some fried flour puff things with dipping/dripping sauces; I discovered that they were quite horrendous and completely pointless. After much deliberation regarding the menu I ordered the curry chicken, which probably sounds less interesting than the tikka masala... but whatever. I was actually interested in trying some fish, but found it very puzzling as to why all of the dishes used salmon. Shouldn't they be using something that would accommodate Indian spices better than salmon? Also... since when have salmon flourished in India enough to be the their culinary fish ambassadors?*
Anyway, before we got to the food, we had a good long sit at the table, "enjoying" the conversation from our fellow patrons. That is to say that it took quite awhile for the food to come out, despite the fact that it was a Friday night and the restaurant was only at about one third capacity.
When the food did come out, I ate it. It was good, it was Indian food. I really don't know what else to say about it, I mean... to some degree all Indian food tastes the same. Not that that's a bad thing, it's just hard to discern any notable differences.
Since my only qualms were with the atmosphere of the restaurant itself, I guess I would suggest getting take-out if you had the choice. Or you might want to stop in at lunch time for the buffet, I don't know if they jacked up the price, but the last time I went it seemed to be pretty cheap.
Kumari Restaurant and Bar
911 N Charles Street
Baltimore MD 21201
Phone: (410)-547-1600
OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK
Lunch Buffet:11:30 am to 3:00 pm
Dinner: 3:00 pm to 1:00 am
http://www.kumarirestaurant.com
* Thankfully no one knows this blog exists, otherwise I might get railed from some foodie regarding the use of salmon in Indian cuisine.
If you've never been to Kumari before (and the odds are stacked in that favor considering Mughal Garden and Akbar are within spitting distance), allow me to paint a picture. It's located above the Mount Vernon Tavern (formerly Liam's), and has about four tables in the front overlooking Charles Street, and a bar and buffet that guide you into a rear seating area. It's been there for awhile and it seems the only thing that has changed is their sign out front.
Getting back to dinner experience, we were promptly seated and were offered some fried flour puff things with dipping/dripping sauces; I discovered that they were quite horrendous and completely pointless. After much deliberation regarding the menu I ordered the curry chicken, which probably sounds less interesting than the tikka masala... but whatever. I was actually interested in trying some fish, but found it very puzzling as to why all of the dishes used salmon. Shouldn't they be using something that would accommodate Indian spices better than salmon? Also... since when have salmon flourished in India enough to be the their culinary fish ambassadors?*
Anyway, before we got to the food, we had a good long sit at the table, "enjoying" the conversation from our fellow patrons. That is to say that it took quite awhile for the food to come out, despite the fact that it was a Friday night and the restaurant was only at about one third capacity.
When the food did come out, I ate it. It was good, it was Indian food. I really don't know what else to say about it, I mean... to some degree all Indian food tastes the same. Not that that's a bad thing, it's just hard to discern any notable differences.
Since my only qualms were with the atmosphere of the restaurant itself, I guess I would suggest getting take-out if you had the choice. Or you might want to stop in at lunch time for the buffet, I don't know if they jacked up the price, but the last time I went it seemed to be pretty cheap.
Kumari Restaurant and Bar
911 N Charles Street
Baltimore MD 21201
Phone: (410)-547-1600
OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK
Lunch Buffet:11:30 am to 3:00 pm
Dinner: 3:00 pm to 1:00 am
http://www.kumarirestaurant.com
* Thankfully no one knows this blog exists, otherwise I might get railed from some foodie regarding the use of salmon in Indian cuisine.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Golden West Cafe
I've hitched up at Golden West at least a dozen times and the results have ranged from great to utterly retarded. It would be very easy to pick on the staff too, but it's Hampden... what can you expect? Instead, I'll just write up a short list of the good, the bad and the ugly.
The Good:
- half-price burger Mondays
- chili-cheese fries made with real chili (not that Hormel canned bullshit)
- one time they had a schnitzel special, it was splendid
- the men's bathroom walls are plastered with old LP covers that have been copiously vandalized with penis references; they always make me giggle when I'm peeing
- decent menu selection
- in recent years their notorious wait time has gotten much, much better
The Bad:
- half-price burger Mondays tends to yield sub-par results, YMMV
- the kitschy decor is kinda lame; it kinda makes you feel like the owner just didn't feel like repairing the "aged walls" and then he dumped a bunch of yard sale leftovers all over the place for decoration
- biscuits and gravy needs to be SAUSAGE gravy instead of mushroom gravy
- hot water and a tea bag sets you back $2.35, where as an iced tea is only $2.00... wtf?
- it seems that the bartenders usually never talk to you until you've been standing/sitting there for at least 2 minutes
The Ugly:
- the other day I had a multiple-mistake breakfast order: ordered eggs, sausage, biscuit and home fries but the cook decided to put mushroom gravy on everything for some reason... got the re-make order, but the eggs weren't cooked, and when I told the waitress again she didn't even respond and just took the plate back... in the kitchen they literally scrapped the eggs off my plate back onto the grill and then re-plated them, ridiculous... waitress seemed fed up with ME when she finally brought it back, and didn't even think to offer any type of discount or anything
- one morning I had the pleasant addition of a shard of porcelain in my hash browns
As always, those are just my personal experiences and I'm not boycotting the restaurant or anything. I do however suggest that you don't go during a busy window of time, like weekend brunch. It seems that most of their fuck-ups occur when they're at full capacity. Also, I've always had much better luck/service at the bar than at a table.
Golden West Café
1105 W 36th St
Baltimore, MD 21211
410-889-8891
www.goldenwestcafe.com
The Good:
- half-price burger Mondays
- chili-cheese fries made with real chili (not that Hormel canned bullshit)
- one time they had a schnitzel special, it was splendid
- the men's bathroom walls are plastered with old LP covers that have been copiously vandalized with penis references; they always make me giggle when I'm peeing
- decent menu selection
- in recent years their notorious wait time has gotten much, much better
The Bad:
- half-price burger Mondays tends to yield sub-par results, YMMV
- the kitschy decor is kinda lame; it kinda makes you feel like the owner just didn't feel like repairing the "aged walls" and then he dumped a bunch of yard sale leftovers all over the place for decoration
- biscuits and gravy needs to be SAUSAGE gravy instead of mushroom gravy
- hot water and a tea bag sets you back $2.35, where as an iced tea is only $2.00... wtf?
- it seems that the bartenders usually never talk to you until you've been standing/sitting there for at least 2 minutes
The Ugly:
- the other day I had a multiple-mistake breakfast order: ordered eggs, sausage, biscuit and home fries but the cook decided to put mushroom gravy on everything for some reason... got the re-make order, but the eggs weren't cooked, and when I told the waitress again she didn't even respond and just took the plate back... in the kitchen they literally scrapped the eggs off my plate back onto the grill and then re-plated them, ridiculous... waitress seemed fed up with ME when she finally brought it back, and didn't even think to offer any type of discount or anything
- one morning I had the pleasant addition of a shard of porcelain in my hash browns
As always, those are just my personal experiences and I'm not boycotting the restaurant or anything. I do however suggest that you don't go during a busy window of time, like weekend brunch. It seems that most of their fuck-ups occur when they're at full capacity. Also, I've always had much better luck/service at the bar than at a table.
Golden West Café
1105 W 36th St
Baltimore, MD 21211
410-889-8891
www.goldenwestcafe.com
Monday, March 8, 2010
SALT
To me the idea of opening a trendy, boutique restaurant nestled between several blocks of row homes in Butcher's Hill seems odd... then again if I lived there, I would probably think it was pretty cool. SALT (I'm pretty sure they don't spell it with all caps, but I'm going to because I don't want to confuse myself later when reading and wonder why I keep talking about sodium chloride) has been around for a few years, but it seems only within the last year that I heard of it, and even then it became synonymous with places like Pazo, where I have also never been due to it's "fancy" reputation. I'm only 27 after all and haven't fully embraced the idea of fine dining yet, so this journey to SALT was a culinary coming of age journey.
My partner had made us last minute reservations and from what she said, the restaurant was easily persuaded to shuffle us into their otherwise packed Friday night date book. When we got there, we were ushered in like pseudo-royalty, too (by this I mean that the maître d’ opened the door for us, personally "checked" our coats and then gave us a choice of where to sit... obviously I'm not very used to good service). Our waitress might have been the best part of the dining experience though, she was extremely helpful and interested in helping us with the menu as well as persuading me to try duck for the first time. Also she had a mega cute lisp and I thought of asking her to record my outgoing voice mail message, haha. The only thing I can fault her for was the tardy delivery of our free bread, but whatever.
As I mentioned, I got their duck special which consisted of tenderloin, confit, gouda orzo and topped with a cherry balsamic reduction. I'm a big douche and never order meat less than well-done, so I was a little afraid to eat all of the tenderloin because it was, you know... cooked how it's supposed to be. It was good though, and not oily or anything like I had heard duck can be. The real boner-maker on the plate was the duck confit though. It was like the best bacon/Smithfield ham I've ever had times ten. People should be "confit-ing" more meat, like all the time. Also, the portions were pretty much perfect as I was able to take down the entire plate and not feel bloated and gross. We got some chocolate-fudge cake with lavender(?) ice cream too, which was pretty epic.
All in all, SALT pretty much lived up to the hype that I had been hearing about it and was one of the more memorable meals I have in Baltimore. So if you've got a c-note burning a hole in your pocket and want to have a sexy-food dinner date, go make a reservation here. If the duck isn't on the menu, go ahead and order a plate of the duck-fat french fries, apparently they are pretty tasty, too.
salt
2127 E. Pratt Street
Baltimore, MD 21231
410-276-5480
Open Monday - Saturday at 5 P.M.
Reservations
Taken for parties of 2-8
My partner had made us last minute reservations and from what she said, the restaurant was easily persuaded to shuffle us into their otherwise packed Friday night date book. When we got there, we were ushered in like pseudo-royalty, too (by this I mean that the maître d’ opened the door for us, personally "checked" our coats and then gave us a choice of where to sit... obviously I'm not very used to good service). Our waitress might have been the best part of the dining experience though, she was extremely helpful and interested in helping us with the menu as well as persuading me to try duck for the first time. Also she had a mega cute lisp and I thought of asking her to record my outgoing voice mail message, haha. The only thing I can fault her for was the tardy delivery of our free bread, but whatever.
As I mentioned, I got their duck special which consisted of tenderloin, confit, gouda orzo and topped with a cherry balsamic reduction. I'm a big douche and never order meat less than well-done, so I was a little afraid to eat all of the tenderloin because it was, you know... cooked how it's supposed to be. It was good though, and not oily or anything like I had heard duck can be. The real boner-maker on the plate was the duck confit though. It was like the best bacon/Smithfield ham I've ever had times ten. People should be "confit-ing" more meat, like all the time. Also, the portions were pretty much perfect as I was able to take down the entire plate and not feel bloated and gross. We got some chocolate-fudge cake with lavender(?) ice cream too, which was pretty epic.
All in all, SALT pretty much lived up to the hype that I had been hearing about it and was one of the more memorable meals I have in Baltimore. So if you've got a c-note burning a hole in your pocket and want to have a sexy-food dinner date, go make a reservation here. If the duck isn't on the menu, go ahead and order a plate of the duck-fat french fries, apparently they are pretty tasty, too.
salt
2127 E. Pratt Street
Baltimore, MD 21231
410-276-5480
Open Monday - Saturday at 5 P.M.
Reservations
Taken for parties of 2-8
Friday, February 19, 2010
Wegman's
So, Wegman's is technically a supermarket, but like many other people that find themselves in Hunt Valley at lunchtime, I end up eating lunch there once a week.
Wegman's is somewhat a place of lore to grocery connoisseurs. For those who have never been to one, it is often described by others as a mecca to food consumerism, boasting warehouse-like amounts of products in addition to many specialty items. A prime example, and one very near and dear to me, is their dedicated "tea wing", including a full stock of Ito En's entire product line.
However on the opposite side of the grocery paradise lies their take-out section, which includes a salad bar, asian food bar, soups, sushi bar, pizza shop, sub shop, confection shop, coffee bar, bakery... (takes breath) ... hot food counter, panini shop, CRAB CAKE kiosk... I think you get the point. Your first few visits will be spent in awe of the selection and the nonchalant attitudes of all the "regulars" zipping past you.
Only after the sense of wonderment has subsided will you be able to get a gauge on what is really going on, like realizing how ridiculous it is that their salad bar costs $8 per pound. In fact, all of their buffet options cost that price, but it seems much more justified for the Asian Wokery, especially since the salad bar options are pretty scant when compared to that of Giant's.
Everyone knows what to expect from pre-package sushi, and I usually don't ever go for it because it can be infamously bad. I did however decide to try an eel roll once and it was a little worse than I could imagine: it seems like they decided to leave the skin on... wtf?
Despite the overall cost vs. quality/quantity issues across the board though, the one champion of it all would have to be their sub shop. First off, they offer 7" & 14" subs instead of the typical 6" & 12" options you get anywhere else. With a Wegman's shoppers card, you also get 50 cents off a 7" making it only $5, and it's girth makes it very comparable to a Subway $5 foot-long. Their bread is pretty decadent, too. I've only had the honey wheat, but in addition to it always being fresh and fluffy, they put this super thin coat of glaze or something over it which might sound weird, but is actually awesome.
All in all, if you're in the area and want a Disneyland-esque lunch experience, I would recommend hitching your wagon up at Wegman's for a spell.
Wegman's is somewhat a place of lore to grocery connoisseurs. For those who have never been to one, it is often described by others as a mecca to food consumerism, boasting warehouse-like amounts of products in addition to many specialty items. A prime example, and one very near and dear to me, is their dedicated "tea wing", including a full stock of Ito En's entire product line.
However on the opposite side of the grocery paradise lies their take-out section, which includes a salad bar, asian food bar, soups, sushi bar, pizza shop, sub shop, confection shop, coffee bar, bakery... (takes breath) ... hot food counter, panini shop, CRAB CAKE kiosk... I think you get the point. Your first few visits will be spent in awe of the selection and the nonchalant attitudes of all the "regulars" zipping past you.
Only after the sense of wonderment has subsided will you be able to get a gauge on what is really going on, like realizing how ridiculous it is that their salad bar costs $8 per pound. In fact, all of their buffet options cost that price, but it seems much more justified for the Asian Wokery, especially since the salad bar options are pretty scant when compared to that of Giant's.
Everyone knows what to expect from pre-package sushi, and I usually don't ever go for it because it can be infamously bad. I did however decide to try an eel roll once and it was a little worse than I could imagine: it seems like they decided to leave the skin on... wtf?
Despite the overall cost vs. quality/quantity issues across the board though, the one champion of it all would have to be their sub shop. First off, they offer 7" & 14" subs instead of the typical 6" & 12" options you get anywhere else. With a Wegman's shoppers card, you also get 50 cents off a 7" making it only $5, and it's girth makes it very comparable to a Subway $5 foot-long. Their bread is pretty decadent, too. I've only had the honey wheat, but in addition to it always being fresh and fluffy, they put this super thin coat of glaze or something over it which might sound weird, but is actually awesome.
All in all, if you're in the area and want a Disneyland-esque lunch experience, I would recommend hitching your wagon up at Wegman's for a spell.
Monday, February 1, 2010
In Defense of One World
Of course your first would be of One World. It's amazing that I was able to drag you there last week. Unlike my fellow food critic, I like One World. Yesterday at a friend described One World to me as "the place I go when I don't feel like cooking." The food is simple, reasonably priced and straight forward but they always have exciting specials including a veggie burger of the day that is always delicious. They also have many staples such as vegan chili, a vegetarian take on a club sandwich featuring tofu and tempeh bacon, a vegetarian meatball sub and quesadilla and burritos that are available with vegan cheese and sour cream. I have yet to find another restaurant in Baltimore that has vegan sour cream. Oh and they have really delicious guacamole, but don't be fooled, the bottom of the bowl the guacamole is served in is padded with lettuce to make it look like there's more than there really is. It's still delicious. would also recommend the OWC Wrap and the meat(less)ball sub. One World also has a great selection of vegan friendly desserts and good beer. With the cafe setting it's easy to go and just grab a slice of the triple layer vegan chocolate cake and a Rogue Dead Guy on a Sunday afternoon with out having to wait for a table.
I do agree with my partner that One World does have a few flaws. For a while the service was really bad but several key people on the wait staff no longer work there which has made a huge difference. Also there are some items on the menu that I would describe as bad, the falafel being one of them. I would also not recommend the humus or the vegan cheese steak (although I've heard some people do like it). The humus is bland and chunky. The breakfast menu features "steamed eggs" which are indeed as gross as they sound. I'm not sure why anyone would advertise that they steam their eggs, much less steam them at all. I have a bad memory of ordering the tostada at One World for breakfast the morning after a night of heavy drinking. I was only able to take a few bites before I had to puke in the bathroom (mostly from the alcohol) and the waitress didn't seem to show any concern that I hadn't finished my meal (I am very particular about good service). That being said, I would still recommend One World as a good place to go if you are looking for an inexpensive, average meal. Just stick with the specials or one of the items listed above.
I give One World 3 noms out of 5.
100 West University Parkway
Baltimore, MD 21210-3454
(410) 235-5777
I do agree with my partner that One World does have a few flaws. For a while the service was really bad but several key people on the wait staff no longer work there which has made a huge difference. Also there are some items on the menu that I would describe as bad, the falafel being one of them. I would also not recommend the humus or the vegan cheese steak (although I've heard some people do like it). The humus is bland and chunky. The breakfast menu features "steamed eggs" which are indeed as gross as they sound. I'm not sure why anyone would advertise that they steam their eggs, much less steam them at all. I have a bad memory of ordering the tostada at One World for breakfast the morning after a night of heavy drinking. I was only able to take a few bites before I had to puke in the bathroom (mostly from the alcohol) and the waitress didn't seem to show any concern that I hadn't finished my meal (I am very particular about good service). That being said, I would still recommend One World as a good place to go if you are looking for an inexpensive, average meal. Just stick with the specials or one of the items listed above.
I give One World 3 noms out of 5.
100 West University Parkway
Baltimore, MD 21210-3454
(410) 235-5777
Friday, January 29, 2010
One World Cafe
I have never liked One World. First of all, it's too difficult to even determine whether or not they are open. The front lounge area is always so dark and you can only see if there's anyone in there after you've already driven past it. Also, is this a bar, a restaurant, a coffee shop or a pseudo-vegan bakery? The first time I went there was because it was oddly enough the last stop on a Charles Village pub crawl... ?
Identity discrepancies aside, the food is obviously catered to vegetarians and vegans, which is not normally a problem. The problem lies in that it's not very exciting, at least to me. The most rewarding food item is the french fries, but that's only because they are liberally dusted with Old Bay, A.K.A. "miracle seasoning". The falafel platter consists of six nugget-sticks that most certainly came from a freezer isle of a grocery store, and I don't think "Amy" would make something that dry either. I remember getting some tacos or something once, which were very "meh". Other than those items, I can't really remember anything else about the food... which is a bad thing.
Oh wait, I forgot... one time I went for breakfast and got the southwestern breakfast burrito, which fell apart and dripped egg-liquid the entire time. Also the "salsa" is just pico de gallo... fail.
I know too many people who like this place, which boggles my mind whenever I think about it. But then I remember that they're all vegetarian or vegan and then it makes sense. You people sure do like some gross stuff some times. Do yourself a favor and just get a vegetarian burrito from the Chipolte a few blocks away, it's a much better investment of time and digestion.
- R
Identity discrepancies aside, the food is obviously catered to vegetarians and vegans, which is not normally a problem. The problem lies in that it's not very exciting, at least to me. The most rewarding food item is the french fries, but that's only because they are liberally dusted with Old Bay, A.K.A. "miracle seasoning". The falafel platter consists of six nugget-sticks that most certainly came from a freezer isle of a grocery store, and I don't think "Amy" would make something that dry either. I remember getting some tacos or something once, which were very "meh". Other than those items, I can't really remember anything else about the food... which is a bad thing.
Oh wait, I forgot... one time I went for breakfast and got the southwestern breakfast burrito, which fell apart and dripped egg-liquid the entire time. Also the "salsa" is just pico de gallo... fail.
I know too many people who like this place, which boggles my mind whenever I think about it. But then I remember that they're all vegetarian or vegan and then it makes sense. You people sure do like some gross stuff some times. Do yourself a favor and just get a vegetarian burrito from the Chipolte a few blocks away, it's a much better investment of time and digestion.
- R
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