Empellon

I was in New York recently where I embarked on an eating expedition with my intrepid friend, the fabulous Daisy Bow. Together we ate a number of delicious things that I will write about later. Right now, I want to talk about a restaurant I visited on my own: Empellon, in midtown Manhattan. 

Empellon is one of five Mexican-inspired restaurants by former pastry chef Alex Stupak. I dined at Stupak's 4th Street Taqueria in 2015, and had been pretty pleased with the food. In reading back over that post, I discovered that I had tasted one of today's dishes in the past. Was it as good as it was 7 years ago? Read on, friends, read on.

After eating mostly inexpensive comestibles over my last few trips to NY, I thought I might treat myself to something pricier. Several of the most memorable meals I've eaten in New York were at high end restaurants--Babbo in 2004, A Voce in 2012, The Bar Room at The Modern in 2011, and Le Bernardin in 2014. In each case, while the food was very good (excellent at times), the service was exceptional. And that was truly what made each meal magical. Rather than magical, my meal at Empellon was meh.

The $42 3-course prix fixe menu sounded good to me, and I started with the "lobster salad with chilled masa savarin." The salad incurred an upcharge of $4 but this was a splurge so I splurged. I'm not sure if there was a mistake on the menu, or if the kitchen doesn't know what a "savarin" is, but what I received was not a ring-shaped, booze-soaked, yeasted cake. It had more of a custard-like texture. Perhaps it was actually a sabayon, firmed up with gelatin (in which case it was no longer a sabayon)? Or a type of savory flan? In any case, it was ring-shaped, and it was flavored with masa. The center of the ring contained a spicy sauce of unknown origin. And around the mysterious custard-like object were corn kernels, slices of not particularly spicy capsicums, raw onion, and nuggets of lobster. On the whole, it was a tasty dish, though it was a tad overseasoned.

On the opposite end of the spectrum were the pastrami tacos with sauerkraut and mustard seed salsa. Back in 2015, I bartered one of my brussels sprout tacos for one of my husband's pastrami-filled ones and was delighted by the flavors. This time, not so much. The beef was tough and underseasoned, the sauerkraut was barely tangy, much less sour, and the mustard seed salsa provided nothing but texture. The meat in the second taco had a bit of fat, which made it more palatable, but the dish was pretty bland overall. Where was the peppercorn-and-coriander hit from the meat? Why was soggy cabbage considered sauerkraut? Why was this dish more sad than clever?

And here I must ding the service at Empellon. Generally, at a restaurant with these prices where food is not served family-style, I expect courses to arrive serially. However, I was about 2/3 of the way through my lobster salad when a runner appeared with my tacos. This put me in the position of having to decide between finishing my lobster dish before starting my tacos, as god intended, or to start on the tacos so they wouldn't get cold. But that might signal the wait staff to attempt to wrest my unfinished lobster away, which would earn them a literal slap on the wrist. Meanwhile, my waiter or captain or whatever one calls them these days (they do not serve, they merely take orders), was standing off to the side, gazing upon the dining room as might an overlord. Did he notice that my entree course was fired too soon? Did he care? I know he knew I wasn't dining on an expense account and may well have been...a tourist! (horrors!) but I think he could have been more solicitous. 

For dessert, which came at the proper time, I had the sour cherry flan with chicory caramel and a cup of decaf. The flan was fine. Not as good as my friend Melinda's flan, but then nobody's is. I enjoyed the sour cherry topping, but couldn't really pick out the chicory in the sauce. But it was fine. 

When he presented the check, I noticed that Mon Capitaine did not charge me for the coffee. He nodded when I pointed out his omission, rather than thank me. Which would have been below his station. 

Positives about the meal: the dining room was full of natural light and the seating was comfortable. The portion size was just right for someone not planning to eat again for the rest of the day (like me), but I imagine the 3-course lunch might be a bit much for someone going back to the office. The lobster was perfectly cooked, the tortillas were sturdy and didn't disintegrate under the weight of the generous portion of meat, and the cherry flavor of the flan was quite nice. But still--a solid meh.

It's less-than-perfect meals like these, however, that really allow me to appreciate an exemplary one. Or even just a good one. 

Empellon
510 Madison Avenue, 

New York, NY 10022 

(212) 380-1215

* Any products in this post that are mentioned by name may have been provided to Minxeats by the manufacturer. However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. Amazon links earn me $! Please buy!

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A Stroll Down Bleecker Street

Even before my first trip to New York, I was somewhat obsessed with Bleecker Street. It all started while I was in college, studying visual communications. A very famous illustrator who probably made pretty good money was a guest speaker at my school. During his talk, he dropped the fact that he lived on Bleecker Street in the West Village. Though I knew I didn’t quite have his talent, my life goals suddenly involved living in NY in an apartment on Bleecker. Looking back, I realize: 1) I had a bit of a crush on the guy; 2) He probably lived over a restaurant and existed in a constant fug of melted cheese and oregano. But what’s so bad about smelling like pizza all day every day? (I could probably rationalize it then. Now, not so much.)

I never did move to New York, but most of my visits to that city involve a stroll down Bleecker. In the days when a friend of mine worked at a now-defunct restaurant in the West Village, I liked to explore the neighborhood before meeting up with him for dinner. I would emerge from the Christopher Street station and, ninety-nine percent of the time, walk down a block and turn left onto Bleecker. A right turn would mean walking up the more expensive end of Bleecker, the one lined with clothing boutiques that are far less-interesting to me than restaurants. If you’re a Sex and the City fan, the original Magnolia Bakery is on that end, at W. 11th Street, but that’s about it as far as food is concerned. Unless you want to want to purchase pricey togs and accessories, head southeast.

There are also boutiques on the next two blocks of Bleecker, and I skip them all. Let’s face it--I’m a realist. I know I can’t afford anything in those shops, so there’s no use torturing myself by looking at any of it. But there are restaurants, too, like A.O.C., a little French joint where one can sit in an outdoor garden and enjoy a croque madame or duck confit while pretending to be in Paris. Modern Greek cuisine is offered down the street at Nisi Estiatorio. I like that I can get baklava oatmeal or grilled octopus for brunch and lobster moussaka for dinner.

Continue down to the next block for more food, though the walk can be mildly confusing with the criss-crossing of streets. The next intersection involves both Barrow Street and 7th Avenue. As you’re heading south(-ish, Manhattan isn’t on a straightforward N, S, E, W grid because the whole peninsula slants to the northeast), you’ll see Hummus Place and Bleecker Street Pizza on the left, though both are actually on 7th Avenue. Just keep walking straight. Once you’re across 7th Ave, you’ll see O. Ottomanelli & Sons, an old-school meat market that has been around forever. Next door is Ghandi Cafe, where the rather large menu of Indian favorites belies the rather cramped space. Bantam Bagels comes next, but you won’t find the NY classic with a schmear here--they specialize in bite-sized bagel nuggets filled with flavored cream cheese. Across the street you can eat sushi at Kumo, or, if you prefer your seafood cooked, there’s Fish next door. Craving pizza? John’s of Bleecker Street has been making coal-fired pies since 1929. You can’t get a slice there, only whole pies, but it’s worth a visit if your ultimate goal is similar to mine: taste all of the pizza NY has to offer (a lofty goal, I know.)

If you’ve ever had a hankering for ice cream flavored with, say, corn, or maybe sweet potato studded with bits of brie cheese, then you should hit up Cones. This shop specializes in helado--Argentinian ice cream similar to gelato--and sorbets, sometimes in unusual flavors. But also more familiar ones like pistachio, mint chocolate chip, and passion fruit.

Back across the street is Kesté, but this time the pizzas are wood-fired and Neapolitan-style. The crust is thin and blistered or “leopard-spotted,” and the toppings are plentiful. The menu boasts over 40 variations of white, red, and specialty pizzas including ones topped with housemade truffle burrata or porcini mushrooms and a walnut cream. There are over a dozen gluten-free pizzas, and a cheese-free vegan pie available, too. Also on this side of the block is my favorite tea shop, David’s Tea. The Canadian chain has three locations in Manhattan, but this one is my favorite. I like to snag something iced (or hot, depending on the season) to sip as I wander around, but usually end up buying quite a bit of loose tea as well. (Cardamom French Toast black tea and Coffee Pu’erh are two of my current faves.)

Murray’s Cheese is in the next block, next to Amy’s Bread, the perfect places to stock up for an impromptu park bench picnic in one of the green spaces nearby. If you’d rather eat your cheese indoors, Murray’s has a Cheese Bar up the block. The menu is predictably cheese-tastic, with items ranging from fondue and lobster mac & cheese to brie and mushroom soup, Buffalo cheese curds, and raclette for two. The dessert menu includes cheesecake, of course, but also s’mores made with a Spanish cheese called Arzua Ulloa. And now I’m seriously craving cheese, but as I’m on Whole30 right now, it’s verboten. [sad emoticon] [crying emoticon] [cheese emoticon]

A massive slice at Joe's

I have a couple of favorite places in the next block: taco joint Tacombi (with other locations in town if you can’t make it to this one); and Pasticceria Rocco. Going to Rocco’s is practically a tradition in my family; my Dad used to bring home boxes of their Italian cookies when I was a kid, and now I do the same. Their vaguely chewy hazelnut biscotti are one of my all-time favorite cookies, and I have a soft spot for their pignoli and meringue cookies as well. Rocco’s has gelato, too, but if that’s what I’m after, I go to Grom, on the corner of Bleecker and Carmine Streets. I’m a sucker for the pistacchio, but am happy with any flavor they offer. On that same block of Carmine is Joe’s Pizza, home to one of the best slices in the city.

While there are lots of tasty places on Bleecker itself, don’t be afraid to wander down one of the side streets. The first cross street after Christopher is Grove Street, and if you don’t wander, you won’t find Buvette or Via Carota, serving French small plates and rustic Italian fare, respectively. Turn left on Carmine after visiting Grom, cross 6th Ave, and you’ll find yourself on Minetta Lane which takes you to Macdougal Street and Minetta Tavern (home to one of the best burgers in the city), the enormous slices at Artichoke Pizza, plus several other eateries and cocktail lounges. The whole area is lousy with bars and restaurants that make up the many reasons I find myself exploring this area over and over again.

Posted on Minxeats.com.

"But There's No Place to Eat in Midtown New York!" Part One: The 10 Best Fast Casual Restaurants

I may live in Baltimore, but I travel to New York a lot, mainly to eat. So pardon the occasional NY-based post around here from time to time.
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I hear it all the time, “there’s no place to eat in Midtown.” That is technically not true at all. There are hundreds of restaurants in Midtown Manhattan, an area that stretches from 14th Street all the way to 59th Street, and from the Hudson River to the East River--at least according to Google Maps. Other sources will tell you that Midtown starts at 34th or 23rd Street and stretches from 3rd to 8th Avenue. In any case, it’s a sizeable area, full of food. But is it the kind of food you want to eat? That depends.

If you’re happy with the sort of chain restaurants found nationwide, they are a-plenty in Midtown. Applebee’s, Subway, Olive Garden, TGI Friday’s, McDonald’s, Chipotle, and Au Bon Pain are all well-represented. Other eateries, like Le Pain Quotidien, and Maison Kayser dot the landscape along with Pret a Manger, Cosi, and Five Guys. If you’re like me, however, traveling is an excuse to eat in restaurants that I can’t find back home. So here’s a list of my favorite fast casual, multi-location, eateries that can be found in Midtown Manhattan, but probably not in my own back yard.

1. Shake Shack
Yes, there is a Shake Shack in Baltimore right now, and in a lot of other US cities, too, but if you’re from one of the 27 states that still doesn’t have one of Danny Meyer’s ridiculously popular hamburger restaurants, there are about 17 locations in New York City, six of which are in Midtown. Their hamburgers have become classics, but they also have hot dogs and a crispy chicken sandwich that is my personal fave. The Madison Square Park, Grand Central, and Penn Station locations offer breakfast sandwiches, and they all have frozen custard, which can be had as-is, or blended into a shake, float, or concrete.

2. Num Pang Kitchen
There are three Num Pang Kitchens in Midtown, each offering hearty Cambodian-style sandwiches served on fresh and crunchy NY-baked baguettes. Served with cucumber, pickled carrots, cilantro, and a chili mayo, these sandwiches have a lot in common with Vietnamese banh mi. Eschewing bread? Num Pang also has salads and rice or grain bowls with tantalizing toppings like coconut tiger shrimp or peppercorn catfish. My go-to is the five-spice glazed pork belly on semolina, with a side of charred broccoli with spicy goddess dressing, but I would devour pretty much anything on the menu.

3. Xi’an Famous Foods
This spot famous for hand-pulled noodles started out in a 200-square-foot basement stall in the Golden Shopping Mall in Flushing. Rave reviews from major publications and bloggers alike allowed Xi’an to rapidly expand to 11 locations in Queens, Brooklyn, and Manhattan, four of which are in Midtown. The food of Xi’an (pronounced shee-ahn), a city in northwest China, combines both Chinese and Middle Eastern flavors, so don’t be surprised to find cumin and other spices intermingled with the more familiar má là, or “numbing and spicy” qualities shared by Sichuan cuisine. The restaurant’s now famous noodles come with lamb, beef, pork, or chicken, served with sauce or in a soup. There are veggie versions too, so everyone can experience their lovely, slightly chewy texture.

4. Tacombi
With two Midtown locations, every day can be Taco Tuesday at Tacombi. The menu is short but sweet (tacos, quesadillas, and a handful of other items) but has everything I need to satisfy my taco jones. Sometimes I crave a crispy beer-battered fish taco and at other times the Mexico City classic pineapple and pork al pastor. I can have them both simultaneously at Tacombi because their tacos are sold per each, and not in pairs or trios of one kind (so annoying). I can even go wild and do a black bean and sweet potato vegetarian taco and have a porky carnitas (literally, “little meats”) taco alongside. I am probably going to stuff my face with their esquites and guacamole, too.

5. BonChon
There are two Midtown outposts of this Korea-based chain that specializes in crisp fried chicken with either a spicy or soy garlic glaze. Though chicken is BonChon’s speciality, they also offer other pan-Asian favorites like pork belly buns, potstickers, and takoyaki. I like to describe the latter as pan-fried savory donut holes with bits of octopus inside, cuz that’s what they are. Traditional Korean dishes like japchae, bibimbap, and bulgogi are also available, as well as the chewy rice cakes known as tteokbokki, served with the currently trendy topping of mozzarella cheese. That’s next on my list to try.

6. The Kati Roll Company
While tucking into a feast of Indian food, have you ever thought, “there should be a burrito version of this?” Well, there is--sorta. In Calcutta (Kolkata, as it’s now known) there’s a popular street snack that involves rolling a paratha around a kabob to make it easier to eat on the go. Brillant, no? The Kati Roll Company offers these portable snacks with other fillings, too, like chicken or beef tikka, spiced lamb, or chana masala. They’re especially good with a pistachio or mango lassi, but also chai or beer, though don’t try to take the latter out onto the street.

7. byCHLOE
This all-vegan establishment is perfect for when you want a kale and quinoa salad to go, or a couple of gluten-free chocolate chip cookies as a mid-afternoon pick-me-up, but also if you’re looking for a great burger or meatball sandwich. The burgers are veggie, of course, filled with good things like beans, chia, and sweet potatoes, and the meatballs are made with portobello mushrooms. Honestly though, you won’t miss the animal protein. Some locations offer breakfast and brunch, but you can get avocado toast all day, as well as cold-pressed juices and even house-made organic goodies for your beloved doggo.

7. Dos Toros Taqueria
While there are a couple Dos Toros Taquerias in Chicago, the vast majority of this chain--started by two Cali-born brothers--is in New York. There are about half a dozen in Midtown alone, so taco-lovers don’t have to look very hard to find one. The menu is pretty simple: choose one of the naturally-raised antibiotic- and hormone-free meat (chicken, pork, beef) or veg options and decide whether you want it in tacos, burritos, quesadillas, or in bowl or salad form. While their food is good, Dos Toros also tries to be good citizens by using compostable plates, straws, cups, and utensils. They also support projects like the Michael J. Fox Foundation and Food Bank for New York.

9. Luke’s Lobster
Have you noticed that Instagram pics of lobster rolls tend to get tons of likes? I’m going to go out on a limb and say the vast majority of IG users have never been anywhere near New England, original home of the lobster sandwich. These days there’s no need to travel. Luke’s Lobster has a bunch of locations on the east coast, with several in Midtown Manhattan. Their lobster rolls are Maine-style, that is, served with chilled meat and mayonnaise, on a traditional buttered split-top bun. They also offer crab or shrimp rolls, and you can get your shellfish on a salad, too. Maybe with a cup of clam chowder or half a lobster tail. Or both.

10. Sweetcatch Poke
As sushi-crazy as we are in the US, it’s no surprise that poke is everyone’s favorite new way to eat raw fish. Some Hawaiians will say, however, that the stuff we eat on the mainland is about as close to authentic as your favorite deep-fried, cream-cheese-stuffed, avocado-topped sushi roll is to the Japanese original. Sweetcatch Poke doesn’t seem too far off the right track though, with fairly classic tuna and salmon pokes, and a few other versions including one with tofu and one with...chicken. (Don’t worry, it’s cooked.) You can mainland the heck out of your tuna poke by putting it in a burrito with kale and pineapple or mango and pickled ginger, or you can have it simply on a bowl of rice with mixed greens. It’s tasty however you do it.

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Brio Tuscan Grille's Seafood Celebration

Though Mr Minx and I have written about Brio Tuscan Grille at least twice, we had never actually eaten there. Oh, we had both been in the space itself many times in the past; it used to be a Friendly's back in the day, before even Harborplace came to be. Needless to say, the place has changed quite a bit. Gone are the banana splits and clam boats--they have been replaced by chops and pasta, a few steps up on the culinary ladder.

Brio is currently offering a special Seafood Celebration menu, so when the restaurant invited us in to have a taste, we were happy to comply.

The prices are right and the portions are huge at this spacious restaurant facing Baltimore's Inner Harbor. (Your local outpost of Brio will offer similarly localized views.) To get to our window table, we walked past the large bar area, scaled to handle happy hour crowds. From our seats, we noted that the ample sidewalk area--much of which is in evening shade--will be perfect for al fresco dining in the upcoming warmer weather.

We started off our meal with three cocktails, variations on a theme, each containing a blackberry infused vodka and black raspberry liquor. The Blackberry Infused Cosmo also contained pineapple infused vodka, lime juice, and basil simple syrup, which made for a refreshing and not-too-sweet drink. The Blackberry Cooler had the basil simple syrup, but also pineapple and lime juices. My favorite was the Blackberry Fizz, which included Moscato and citrus juices. It will be a great summertime sipper with some light snacks.

Then the food started coming. Did I mention that the portions were generous? Huge, even? A plate of calamari with a mustardy aioli and marinara came first. There were also bits of breaded pepperoncini in there, so some bites were fairly spicy. I honestly prefer a lighter breading on my calamari, but this stuff was so fresh and well-cooked, I didn't mind the extra coating.

The Strawberry Balsamic Salmon Salad arrived next. It wasn't on our special menu, so it was unexpected, however, I am glad we got it. A small mountain of baby spinach, strawberries, grapes, bleu cheese crumbles, and spicy pecans dressed in an herb vinaigrette would have been a fine dish on its own, but it was also topped with a small slab of salmon. Keep in mind that Mr Minx and I have been doing Whole30 off and on since the fall, so we've eaten a lot of salmon recently, all of it grossly overcooked. I approached the salmon on this salad with caution, but was pleased to find it was perfect. The outside was lightly crisp, and the inside was super tender and moist. The best restaurant salmon I've had in a good long time. Considering the relative thinness of the filet, cooking it this well took some skill. I'd be happy to eat this salad again, for sure.

When the entrees arrived--three of them!--we were happy to see there was more of that salmon, this time in the Grilled Salmon Fresca, a dish of grilled asparagus, sweet potatoes, spinach, red peppers, feta, and tomatoes, drizzled with a balsamic reduction and a pesto vinaigrette. We also received the Lobster & Shrimp ravioli in a spicy black pepper cream sauce with spinach, roasted grape tomatoes, and a pile of shrimp. Lastly, the Shrimp Mediterranean involved spicy grilled shrimp over a bed of orzo pasta with farro, broccoli florets, asparagus, tomatoes, and spinach, topped with crumbled feta and pesto vinaigrette.

I'm happy to report that the dishes labeled "spicy" were indeed so. The black pepper sauce on the ravioli especially. It was quite rich and hearty, and tasted almost meaty, though the chef assured me that there was no meat stock in it.

We had to doggie bag most of the entrees to eat for lunch later in the week (bonus!) so we could fit dessert. A shared slice of the day's seasonal cheesecake, a rich caramel mascarpone affair, was a nice sweet finish.

Mr Minx and I rarely eat in the Inner Harbor area, though we'd be happy to add Brio to our dining rotation. There's plenty of (expensive) parking in nearby garages, but folks who work downtown have easy access to the restaurant. I think a future happy hour visit will be in order.

* All food items mentioned in this post have been provided to Minxeats by Brio Tuscan Grill However, all opinions belong to Minxeats. 
Amazon links earn me $! Please buy! 



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Flashback Friday - The Oregon Grille

This post originally appeared on Minxeats.com on January 22, 2013.

January means Restaurant Week(s), and this year Mr Minx and I decided to stay in Baltimore County rather than stray into the City. Our first pick this year was The Oregon Grille, a cozy, clubby, and elegant restaurant just off the Shawan Road West exit on I-83. As befitting its location in horse country, the restaurant is decorated with equine prints and jockeys' accouterments. The menu has a nice mix of both seafood and meat dishes, featuring classics like steak au poivre and crab cakes, with a few more modern dishes like crispy duck legs stuffed with pears and a sushi-inspired appetizer called "spicy rolls two ways."

Sorry for the blurry photos, but the restaurant is dark-ish and a
flash would definitely have annoyed other guests.

I tried those spicy rolls as my appetizer, and they had a nice kick to them. The fish - tuna and salmon - was swaddled snugly within a nori wrapper padded with a layer of creamy rice. To continue with the Asian theme, we also tried an order of the crab and avocado wontons from the regular menu. They were heavy on the avocado, but crisp and greaseless. And prettily presented, I might add.

Mr Minx's RW appetizer was beef barley soup. It was a generous portion, with plenty of vegetables and nuggets of beef, but it needed a bit of salt.

For our entrees, I ordered the warm lobster salad, which was simply terrific. Lightly cooked julienned root vegetables were tangled with a bit of fresh watercress to form a bed for the meat from half a lobster, and everything was napped with a buttery lemon vinaigrette. On the side were pieces of truffled toast sorely lacking the truffle and a mite over-toasted, but I had a huge crusty dinner roll handy with which to mop up the sauce.

Mr Minx had the salmon with lobster risotto, crispy shrimp, and "vanilla dust" butter. Vanilla is a tricky flavoring to use in a savory dish, but it seems to be most successful with seafood. While all of the individual elements of his dish were well-cooked, the flavor of the vanilla was a bit too pronounced for his taste. I found it interesting, but a bit disconcerting because of the lack of accompanying sweetness. Vanilla = sweet stuff.

On to the actual sweet stuff. I had the orange-spiced apple crisp. The large shallow ramekin meant that there was a goodly portion of "crisp" - my favorite part. The combination of orange and apple was very fragrant and autumnal, and I quite enjoyed the dish. Mr Minx had the carrot cake with cream cheese buttercream, which was delicious and classic, if a bit dense from the number of layers of frosting.

While we had some minor quibbles about the meal, overall we really enjoyed the food at The Oregon Grille. The Restaurant Week prices are a real steal, and we recommend trying the place if you haven't already. Additionally, service was terrific, and our waiter, Tom, took excellent care of us. He even brought a tiny carafe of olive juice in case we wanted our extra dirty martinis even more dirty. We'll be back.

(Oregon Grille's Restaurant Week is extended to 2/2/2013, so there's still time to check it out this year.)

The Oregon Grille
1201 Shawan Rd
Hunt Valley, MD 21030
(410) 771-0505
http://www.theoregongrille.com/



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A New Tide Rolls in for By The Docks

We took my mom to By the Docks in Middle River for her birthday in 2006. It was our first time there and, after re-reading the Minx's blog post about the restaurant, I see we weren't blown away by the place. Except for the crab cakes, that is. Three of us ordered them and were stunned by the softball-sized mounds sitting on our plates. The Minx and I always planned to go back, but with all the new restaurants that popped up over the last 11 years, we just never got around to it.

As it turned out, By the Docks has gone through some changes over the years, with the original owners selling in 2010 and then buying the place back in 2015. They've recently remodeled the 19th century building and revamped the menu. We were invited to come by and check out the changes, and we were more than happy to comply.

Our group started with a couple of appetizers for the table. The oysters Rockefeller uses three kinds of cheese which are folded into the spinach before being placed atop the oysters. Their own imperial sauce is also dolloped on top, making for a very rich bite that is almost a meal unto itself.

We've talked about calamari a great deal on this blog, and it's heartening to find that the quality of the preparation has been steadily improving over the years. Even with that said, I think this might be the best fried calamari I've ever eaten. The fresh calamari is first marinated in Greek olive oil for 24 hours, then hand cut into rings slightly larger than what I've typically seen, They're lightly coated and flash fried so the calamari is incredibly tender. The crunchy coating is nicely seasoned so you don't need marinara sauce, but it is provided on the side. (Diners can also choose to have their calamari tossed in an Asian-style sweet and spicy sauce.)

For her entree, the Minx ordered the Jewels of the Sea: the colossal jumbo lump crab cake they are so well known for along with a 4-ounce lobster tail, jumbo shrimp, and broiled scallops. The crab cakes have little filler and are very light on the Old Bay, so the sweet crab flavor comes through. As if this wasn't enough food, each entree comes with two sides, in our case, baked potatoes and creamed spinach.

I went for the Rockfish a la Vasca: pan-seared rockfish sauteed with shrimp, scallops, mussels, clams, calamari, and Jonah crab claws in a traditional Spanish green sauce of fresh parsley, garlic, and wine. The chef is originally from Spain and he sees this as sort of a paella of seafood without the rice. The green sauce is something I'd never had before, and the sheer quantity of seafood is overwhelming. When I read the description of the dish, I expected a couple of shrimp, one scallop, a couple clams, etc. As you can see from the picture, it's an orgy of shellfish piled so bounteously that you can't even see the rockfish underneath (which was delicious, by the way).

Other diners during this media event tried the stuffed lobster tail and were presented with a mountain of broiled crab meat, like the crab cake but even bigger, with a 9-ounce lobster tail hiding underneath. Portions are truly incredible here.

Of course, it's not all seafood. While it's the star, there are also plenty of chicken, steak, and pasta entrees, and sandwiches like oyster po' boys, Reubens, and burgers.

Even though we had to get boxes for our leftovers, we couldn't leave without trying a couple of their desserts, made by Yia Yia's Bakery. Turns out, the family that owns By the Docks also owns Yia Yia's, where we have been getting yummy holiday pies for years. Their baklava cheesecake has all the elements one typically finds in the Greek pastry, with a rich layer of creamy cheesecake in the middle. A great combination of two classic desserts.

The Smith Island cake is everything the traditional dessert should be with thin layers of white sponge glued together by rich, fudge-like frosting. As full as I was, I couldn't stop eating this dessert.

In addition to their regular menu offered every night of the week, By The Docks offers specials Monday through Thursday like Monday Lobster Night where you can get twin lobsters for $28.99 or Thursday Steak Night where all cuts are just $19.99, They also offer a $17.99 brunch on Saturdays and Sundays. We're quite confident we won't wait another 11 years to go back to By The Docks.

By the Docks
3321 Eastern Blvd
Middle River, MD 21220-2811

410-686-1188

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Best of 2016, Part 1

Every year we compile a list of what we felt were the best dishes of the year, both at home and in restaurants. These are completely subjective, of course - it's what tasted most delicious to our palates. First up: the best of restaurant dishes. They are in order of posting, starting, of course, with January.

January

This rockfish dish at Waterfront Kitchen came with a plethora of carrots, and I couldn't have been more pleased.

February

A dinner at the Food Market's Private Kitchen included these succulent lamb chops, which we were happy to eat with our fingers in order to get every morsel of meat from the bones.

March

I indulged in a rather extravagant multi-course Korean meal at Gaonnuri in NY early last year. My favorite course was the kalbi, or short ribs, easily the best I've ever eaten. The bibimbap was pretty delicious, too.

Mr Minx and I had a great meal at Seasons 52. We enjoyed every course, but I think the sea bass with black rice was my favorite. Honestly, it was hard to choose.

April

Another tasty sea bass dish was had at the Rusty Scupper during an introduction to their Spring menu. Mr Minx also had blue crab ravioli that hit the spot.

May

Lamb shoulder isn't the first thing one thinks about when one considers chiles rellenos, but Chef Mike Ransom's lamb-stuffed chile in an ancho bbq sauce was among the best dishes at a B & O American Brasserie dinner where everything was pretty wonderful.

June

We went to a media preview of Gnocco in the spring, and honestly, there wasn't a bad dish in the house. The agnolotti with goat cheese, chanterelles, and hazelnuts was probably my favorite, though.

July

I'd never think I'd include a kale dish in a "best of" post, but here it is. The kale chaat from Sneha Indian Cuisine is an odd hodgepodge of crispy fried kale and a sweet tamarind yogurt sauce, and it was both unusual (not a classic "chaat" dish at all) and delicious.

September

In September, Mr Minx wrote about the best pizza we had all year - the cape sante di pancetta at Cosima. Topped with smoked baby scallops, smoked mozzarella, basil, caramelized bacon, and tiny whole onions, the pizza was fabulously unusual and unusually fabulous. The whole meal was excellent, but we gotta go back for this pizza.

October

It's hard to pick our favorite dish at Points South Latin Kitchen. Everything was marvelous, including this slab of meltingly tender short rib braised in a sauce containing bittersweet chocolate. The pork belly chicharrones and the evening's duck special were also amazing. One of the top meals of 2016.

November

Is it weird to have a salad on the best of list? This one,.the Fall Harvest Salad at the newly remodeled Milton Inn had mixed greens, maple vinaigrette, roasted butternut squash, feta cheese, and pistachio nuts and totally hit all the right spots.

B&O American Brasserie has yet another new chef, this time it's Scott Hines, who had been their executive sous chef for a while prior to his promotion. We love Scott - he's a great chef and a good guy, and always willing to help us out with recipes. He contributed several to our latest book, Maryland's Chesapeake. He's come up with some delicious dishes for the B&O's dinner menu, among them is this house-made pappardelle with veal sugo and an unexpected orange and marjoram gremolata. Another dish we need to have more of before the season ends and it comes off the menu. His oxtail marmalade and lamb dishes are notable as well.

December

We were invited to Charles Levine's new restaurant at Quarry Lake, Citron, where we had a lovely meal. There were many high points, the highest of which may have been this lobster bisque. Redolent of shellfish broth and containing two butter-poached claws, it is last-meal-worthy.

That's it for 2016. Not a good year in many respects, but not bad at all when it comes to restaurant food. Still, we can hope that 2017 is even better!



Posted on Minxeats.com.

Spring Has Sprung at Seasons 52

Seasons 52 opened in the summer of 2014 as one of the new shops and restaurants in Columbia Mall's outdoor extension. A national chain in the Darden Restaurants group (which also owns Bahama Breeze, Capital Grille, and Olive Garden, plus a few others not in the Baltimore area yet) Seasons 52 is all about "what's good now." Their food is seasonal (but not necessarily local) and designed not to bankrupt anyone's calorie budget for the day/week/month. That's not to say that they serve diet food - not at all! But you won't find a deep fryer in the kitchen, or french fries anywhere on their menu. Instead, entrees tend to include something starchy and something vegetal and average around 580 calories or so.

We were invited in to Seasons 52 to sample selections from the spring menu, with wine pairings; the multiple courses of deliciousness were a treat.

As we waited for the rest of our party of local food bloggers to arrive, we sampled two of the restaurant's seven flatbreads. New for spring are the lobster and fresh mozzarella (with roasted sweet peppers, scallions, and lobster sour cream) and the crispy prosciutto and asparagus (with Camembert and chervil). They are true flatbreads, with a very thin and crisp crust, and not just oddly-shaped pizzas. Toppings are generous and flavorful, with the lobster flatbread's creamy drizzle having a particularly pleasing lemony kick.

With the flatbreads, we enjoyed a Chartogne-Taillet Cuvee Sainte Anne, a lovely floral champagne.

Once we were seated, we received a spoonful of an intensely flavored chilled asparagus soup with lemon chantilly cream, paired with lightly effervescent Aveleda Vinho Verde.

Next up was a spinach salad dressed in a white balsamic vinaigrette, tossed with spring strawberries, toasted pine nuts, nuggets of Gorgonzola, and fresh pea tendrils, and drizzled with some 15-year aged balsamic. I felt the delicate greenness of the pea tendrils (also called pea shoots) was lost in all those assertive vinegar flavors, but sweet strawberries + toasty nuts + funky cheese are one of my favorite flavor combos.

(The salad was huge, and at 250 calories, when paired with an under-500-calorie flatbread, the combination would make a lovely lunch for two. Just a suggestion!)

With the salad we enjoyed a Tilia Torrontes redolent of jasmine, honeysuckle, and rose.

We then received two appetizers. The first, Meyer lemon ricotta ravioli with brown butter, roasted peppers, and English peas, was an actual appetizer. With it we drank a Robert Sinskey Los Carneros Pinot Noir, the earthiness of which worked well with the rich brown butter and overall sweetness of the citrussy ricotta filling.

The second "app" we sampled was actually an entree. Six handsomely-sized scallops with lemon risotto, English peas, and roasted asparagus won me over. I've complained many a time about the insane cost of scallops in a restaurant. You're lucky to get three puny ones for $30. Seasons 52 serves six big babies, perfectly cooked, for $23.50. The accompanying risotto was delightfully creamy and Mr Minx and I found ourselves fighting for the last morsels on the plate.

With the scallops we drank a Mer Soleil Chardonnay, which, while delightful on its own with its unusual almost-sweet butterscotch and apple flavors, didn't work so well with the scallops. The wine made them fishy on my palate. YMMV, of course. The wine is generally recommended for seafood.

We also sampled two entrees, the Asian-glazed Chilean Sea Bass with organic black rice, snow peas, shiitake mushrooms, and micro wasabi. I loved it. The somewhat sticky black rice positively oozed with heavenly brown butter flavors, and the fish was ultra fresh and very moist. The sauce, which could have erred on the too-sweet side, was just right to my palate. Mr Minx and I also finished every last drop of this dish, along with the accompanying Selbach-Oster Kabinett Reisling, apple-vanilla sweet with nice lime-y acidity.

Our last savory dish was the wood-grilled rack of lamb with spring vegetables (including English peas, asparagus, fiddlehead ferns, pearl onions, carrots, and mushrooms), Yukon Gold mash, and shallot jus. The chops were cooked to a juicy and well-rested medium-to-medium rare, and all the veg were crisp-tender. With them we drank a smooth Cab blend from South Africa, the De Taren Fusion V, with flavors of berries, licorice, and spice.

But wait kids, that's not all! We were also served desserts. Just about all of them. As part of Seasons 52's reasonably caloried meals, desserts are wee parfait-style treats that range between 220 and 370 calories (and if they have that many calories, just think of what a full-sized slice of pie a la mode is worth!). We sampled pecan pie, strawberry cannoli, key lime pie, Belgian chocolate s'mores, mocha macchiato, chocolate peanut butter torte, and a tiramisu-style concoction that came with a pipette of amaretto. All rich and tasty; the cannoli, chocolate peanut, and key lime concoctions were our faves. We had another nice Selbach-Oster Reisling, a Bernkasteler Badstube Auslese, with dessert.

It was an excellent meal, all said, with the strawberries, pea shoots, asparagus, and fiddleheads adding happy hints of spring here and there. Seasons 52 is certainly worth a visit, not only for the lovely food, but also the great selection of wines. (The 52 in the restaurant's name indicates the 52 wines available by the glass. One hundred are usually available by the bottle.) Just don't fall in love with any of them, because, as is almost always the case for us, few if any are available in local stores (the Mer Soleil being an exception).



Posted on Minxeats.com.