Langermann's

Langermann's, in the old American Can Company Building, has been a favorite of ours for many years. When we were writing and promoting our first two books, Neal Langermann was a great help to us. While Chef Langermann has moved on to other endeavors, his namesake restaurant carries on with his original concept of offering a refined take on "lowcountry" southern cuisine. The Minx and I were invited back for a chance to sample some of their current menu choices.

We started off with drinks. I had an unusual gin & tonic with a pleasing orange flavor and aroma instead of the usual lime. Other guests in our party enjoyed the southern classic, Pimm's Cup. The Minx opted for a glass of French rosé, which has become her new summer drink of choice.

Our meal began with a quite satisfying amuse of shrimp and grits. The creamy grits--a Georgia heirloom variety, custom ground--were served in a broth of clam juice and white wine and topped with slices of mild andouille sausage in addition to the shrimp.

We also sampled the baby arugula salad and Scotch egg starters. With shaved Parmesan cheese, cherry tomatoes, and a lemon olive oil dressing, the salad was light and refreshing for a hot summer day. The Scotch egg was heartier, with its crisp sausage coating and accompanying sweet sriracha-style sauce and stone-ground mustard.

A perennial favorite at Langermann's, the Low Country Louie adds lobster and shrimp to the traditional crab salad. The Creole mayo dressing makes the salad pleasantly spicy, and the corn kernels provide a bit of texture and sweetness to the dish.

We also sampled the pork belly appetizer, served over more of those delicious grits. The meat was perfectly cooked, with a crispy top layer and melt-in-your-mouth tender pork underneath. While it was lovely on its own, the smoky tomato jam and a sauce made from a reduction of the braising liquids made the dish more special. 

We also sampled a fellow diner's Pork Pops, savory spirals of roast pork and bacon with date and fig jam speared on lollipop sticks and glazed with hot honey. Maybe a bit trendy, but fun to eat and tasty to boot.

For an entree, I had a perfectly cooked piece of pan-roasted Alaskan halibut with a nice crusty top, served on a bed of corn, asparagus, and brown rice. The topping of sweet pickled peaches was unexpected, and the jury is still out on that.

The Minx's seared diver scallops were served in a rather autumnal cider butter sauce over a hash of sweet potato and mushroom. Coupled with the steamy hot weather outside, the dish really made her long for cooler weather. And while it all worked fine with scallops, the accompaniments would have been really perfect for a fat pork chop.

For dessert, the Minx had the rich bread pudding with creme anglaise while I opted for the light and citrussy key lime pie. Both were satisfying endings to a substantial meal.

Despite all of the many new restaurants that have been popping up in Canton recently, Langermann's still seems to be going strong. The spacious dining room was fairly busy that night, and there were several patrons enjoying the bar area as well. Langermann's has outdoor patio seating, too, where one can watch the comings and goings of Cantonites up and down Boston Street--a perfect way to spend a summer evening.

Langermann's
American Can Co, Building
2400 Boston St #101a
Baltimore, MD 21224
410-534-3287



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Fleet Street Kitchen

We chose to celebrate our 14th wedding anniversary at a restaurant we hadn't tried before--Fleet Street Kitchen. To clarify, we had eaten in the Tavern Room part of the restaurant at the front, but had never dined in the more formal dining room at back.

The place is gorgeous, all wood and crystal chandeliers, but the unadorned row of windows on the west wall and horse-blanket upholstery on the long booth on the east wall give the place a more casual feel.

We started our feast by squinting at the cocktail menu. Honestly, with dim lights, serif font, and bad eyes, reading it was no easy task. Eventually we settled on our bevvies and proceeded to the food menu, which I had checked out earlier in the day. I settled on the scallops and halibut, with a side of broccoli rabe. Mr Minx ordered the short ribs, the rockfish, and a side of brussels sprouts. Everything was outstanding.

The scallops were aggressively seasoned, with a nice crust on the outside and properly translucent middles. The radish and radicchio salad offered both tart and bitter notes, and the broccoli puree was just plain pretty. (And tasty. And it didn't particularly taste like broccoli, which for some might be a plus.)

Mr Minx's tender short ribs came atop a mound of kale cooked with currants. A lot of currants. (From across the table, I thought it was a bed of lentils.) Leafy greens + raisins are a classic Mediterranean combo, and the deep, lightly sweet, flavors worked well with the beef.

I love halibut and wasn't disappointed by the perfectly cooked hunk of seared king halibut atop a veritable mountain of glazed baby carrots with lemon and hazelnuts. This carrot lover was quite pleased.

Mr Minx's rockfish dish paired the fish with elements of clam chowder, including baby white potatoes, bacon, clams, and a chowder emulsion. Turnips found their way into the mix as well.  The fish had a nice sear, and the elements worked well together.

We had gone for the four course prix fixe dinner, which included a vegetable course. The spicy broccoli rabe with garlic confit and brussels sprouts with marcona almonds and creme fraiche seemed more like side dishes than a course unto themselves, so we asked them to be brought at the same time as the entrees. Both were terrific, and I particularly enjoyed finding the nuggets of almond in the sprouts.

Those three courses provided a lot of food, but we had dessert coming, too. I had the frozen cappuccino, made with a frozen coffee-flavored cream (not sure it was technically ice cream, as it didn't melt) atop a thin slice of chocolate cake, topped with crunchy candied cocoa nibs and milk froth. It wasn't exactly like a frozen coffee drink, but the textures and mild cappuccino flavors were appealing.

I think I preferred Mr Minx's tender peach almond upside down cake with creamy mascarpone sorbet and candied almonds. Again, a lot of really pleasing textures and flavors there.

As expected, everything we ate was delicious and well-executed and service was friendly yet professional. The atmosphere was nice, too, that is until a large group of people who didn't have inside voices took over the dining room with their inappropriate shrieks of laughter. A shame there's no way to turn the volume down on other people.





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Ananda

"Ananda" is a word that means "bliss" in Sanskrit and other Indian languages. It's also a pretty good word to describe the meal that Mr Minx and I had recently during a media dinner at Ananda, a new restaurant in Maple Lawn by the folks who gave us the Ambassador Dining Room. While their usual menu comprises many of the Punjabi-style dishes that are familiar to most of us (tandoori dishes, biryani, bengan bartha, bhunas, naan), we were served a selection of special seasonal offerings, some of which had a fusion aspect.

We started our party in the bar, sampling the restaurant's tasty house beverages, like the Mumbai Mule, made with a light but still quite peppery ginger beer, and a cosmo made with goji berries. The decor at Ananda borrows heavily from the old-world ambiance of the Ambassador, and even has a spacious terrace area with garage doors and a corner fireplace that will come into play during the colder months. For right now, it's a perfect spot to enjoy an elegant, yet exotic, meal.

We started off with a couple of appetizers. One was a moist lamb meatball version of classic seekh kabab...

Kulu Kofta, aka lamb meatballs

...and the other was wee crab cakes with local corn and toasted mustard seeds, one for each of us. Both were a delicious way to start off the meal, but I did prefer the lamb meatballs. They were the most "Indian" in flavor, which I hoped was a harbinger for the rest of the meal.

Kerala crab cakes

That was not to be the case. Instead of the usual collection of richly-sauced family-style dishes, we each received our own beautifully-plated servings. Haute cuisine with Indian flavors, if you will.

The first of our individually-plated courses consisted of a giant shrimp, prepared tandoori style, and served with the restaurant's mint, mango, and avocado chutney. The chutney, both spicy and fresh, was the highlight of this dish. It's also available on its own. They should sell it by the jar.

Shrimp Adrak

After the shrimp, we received a bowl containing chunks of spiced pear chutney. It looked a bit sparse until Bindi Singh, one of the restaurant's owners, poured over a soup of summer squash and carrot. Billed on the menu as a classic dish from the foothills of the Himalayas, the soup was served cold. The chilled soup spoons were a thoughtful touch.

A palate-cleansing salad of locally-grown watermelon, Breezy Willow Farm feta, watercress, onion, and pistachio came next. I loved the way the sweet watermelon absorbed some of the tangy dressing, a combination of lime, chile, mint, olive oil, and white balsamic vinegar.

Halibut, basmati rice, potatoes, onions

Our entree was a nice slab of well-cooked halibut, dressed with sesame, soy, and tamarind, served with grilled leek and both red potatoes and basmati rice. The sauce, which did not seem typical at all, was inspired by Tibetan cooking experienced by the owners on trips to Dharamshala, northern Indian home of the Dalai Lama.

Peach and strawberry crisp with cardamom ice cream

Finally, we were served a dessert of peach and strawberry crisp topped with a wee scoop of cardamom ice cream. Despite being full, I ate every bite and wished for more ice cream.

Ananda is a bit of a haul from Baltimore, and not exactly easy to find, despite being in a stand-alone building on Maple Lawn's main drag. There's no signage (as yet), so look for the street number on the side of the building (7421). There's plenty of parking in the back. It's definitely worth the trip to try the restaurant's seasonal menu as well as more traditional offerings. However, if you don't want to make the drive to Howard County, Ananda's sister restaurant, the Ambassador Dining Room in the Tuscany-Canterbury neighborhood of Baltimore City, is there to satisfy your Indian food cravings



Posted on Minxeats.com.