Fall Menu at J. Paul's

I love when restaurants change their menus seasonally, not only to reflect available produce, but also to include heartier dishes when the weather turns cold. At J. Paul's, Chef Jason Dyke does just that. The new fall menu for 2013 includes a rib-sticking Virginia beef chili that combines ground beef with smoked short ribs topped with cheese and sour cream. There are also baked oysters topped with bacon, smoked gouda, scallions, and garlic butter...

...and chicken Marsala, with fettuccini, goat cheese, mushrooms, and asparagus.

There are also two salmon dishes on the fall menu; one is a salad with dried fruits and hazelnuts, and the other is grilled with a honey bbq glaze.

J. Paul's also has a new Ravens-inspired cocktail on the menu, the Ravens Nation, comprising Bacardi Razz rum, black raspberry liqueur, cranberry juice, lime, a splash of soda, and served with a sugar rim.

J. Paul's will also be part of Downtown Partnership's Maryland Crab and Oyster Celebration. From October 25th-November 3rd, J, Paul’s will be offering a special menu that highlights crab and oysters from Maryland including the yummy crab cake appetizer: a Maryland jumbo lump crab cake over a boursin-stuffed fried local tomato with corn relish and cherry pepper remoulade. There will also be a fried oyster po' boy, local fried oysters in an amoroso roll with lettuce, tomato, red onion and tarragon mayonnaise; and a crab cake salad with mixed field greens, tomato, onion, corn, red and green bell peppers and cucumber tossed in peppercorn ranch topped with a Maryland jumbo lump crab cake. For more information on the event: http://dinedowntownbaltimore.com/.



Posted on Minxeats.com.

J. Paul's Summer Menu

J. Paul's restaurant in Harborplace is welcoming the impending summer by adding several new items to their menu. We were invited in for a taste, and remembering how we enjoyed our last dinner there, we jumped at the chance to try some of the new goodies.

I feel bad that we don't get down to the Inner Harbor area more often. As longtime county residents, we find city driving to be a bit of a pain, especially in the business district (if one can call it that). But, on the occasions we persevere, grit our teeth, and venture downtown, we find ourselves well-rewarded for the effort.

This particular evening was clear and temperate, so we chose to eat on J. Paul's patio, (as did every other diner in the place). We started things off with two of their new cocktails, the "Oriole Magic" and the "Paul Red Handed."

Left: Oriole Magic - Bacardi Rum, banana liqueur, orange, pineapple, and lime juices with a sugar rim
Right: Paul Red Handed - muddled strawberries, Absolut Citron, fresh lemon, elderflower, Champagne

The Oriole Magic sounded interesting, but I let Mr Minx order that one because I had my eye on the PRH. I struck gold with a light and sweet easy-drinkin' kind of beverage strongly flavored with strawberry. It was one of those dangerous concoctions that begs for guzzling, but sipping is definitely in order. The Oriole Magic was much less-strong and, um, sorta weird. I always expect anything with banana liqueur to taste like that peanut-shaped marshmallow candy, circus peanuts, and it almost did. Not that that would have been a good thing, mind you. We just thought the drink's elements didn't blend well, and the bartender didn't help things by salting the rim instead of sugaring it. Oh well....

Philly Rolls: caramelized onion, rib eye, cheddar cheese and cherry pepper cheese sauce

The appetizers were far more successful. We originally wanted to share the new shellfish bucket of various bivalves and crab with lemon butter, but after we were told the restaurant was out of clams, we switched gears and tried two separate apps. Mr Minx's Philly Rolls - egg rolls stuffed with what one might normally find in a cheesesteak sandwich, served with a pool of house-made "cheez whiz" -  were really tasty. The fried shell was actually an improvement on the usual sub roll (hey, we're not from Philly). Just be warned that this appetizer is fairly heavy and filling, so you might want to share if you plan to have an entrée as well.

Crab cake, Boursin-stuffed fried local tomato, corn relish, arugula and cherry pepper remoulade

Several people - from the restaurant's PR ladies to the servers - mentioned that the new crab cake appetizer was a favorite, and as a crab cake fanatic I had to try it. While the cake had too much shredded meat for my taste, it played well as a soft textural counterpoint to the super-crisp slice of tomato that shared its crunchy coating with a schmear of garlicky and herby Boursin cheese. The peppery arugula and dollop of spicy remoulade added to the lively flavors on the plate.

Grilled salmon, lemon mashed potatoes, spinach, key lime butter sauce finished with tomato and avocado

There are several new sandwiches, salads, and entrées on the menu, including a sushi-grade seared tuna salad, an 8oz New York strip sammie, and Chicken Milanese, all of which sounded tempting. We settled on the grilled salmon and the Buffalo chicken wrap.

Mr Minx's salmon was simply grilled, a bit crusty on the outside, and topped with a light-tasting butter sauce and vegetables. Very nice, but the best thing on the plate was the mashed potatoes, which were unusually flavored with lemon juice and zest. I wouldn't necessarily put citrus on mash, but it worked really well and I plan to try it at home.

My Buffalo chicken wrap came with a choice of cucumber salad, cole slaw, or fries, and remembering the tasty slaw that Mr Minx had with his fish and chips last time, that was my choice. Cilantro should be an ingredient in all slaws, IMHO, and it was as good as I remembered. The wrap was good, too. Crispy fried-and-hot-sauced chicken strips shared the tortilla with chunks of celery, feta, tomato, and lettuce, a hot wing experience wrapped into a tidy little package.

It's clear that the chef at J. Paul's cares as much about his food's appearance as its flavor. How much more attractive than a plain white tortilla is that spinach one?

Buffalo chicken tenders, spinach tortilla, celery, feta, tomato, romaine, cilantro aioli

Stuffed to the gills (I doggie-bagged half my sandwich) we ordered dessert anyway. There were three selections that night - the flourless chocolate torte that we had sampled on our other visit, no-bake cheesecake, and creme brulée. Stereotypically for us, Mr went for the chocolate, and I went for the cream.

Flourless chocolate torte, raspberry sauce and berries

The torte is really too decadently sweet and fudgey to be served in a slice that large, but the very tart berry sauce helped a bit. A great dessert for sharing.

Three cremes brulée: plain, chocolate chip, berry

My full stomach was dismayed to see that I was receiving not one, not two, but three ramekins of creme brulée. I really didn't have room for one, but when I discovered there were three flavors, I ate more than a few bites of each. My favorite was the berry, which had a welcome lightness and fruity acidity. Most importantly, I appreciated that the creme was cold. This dessert should properly be refrigerated after brulée-ing, so the creme is cold and the hot sugar forms a hard, crackable, layer on top. Recipes that instruct one to "serve immediately" are wrong, wrong, wrong because that gives the molten sugar an opportunity to melt down into the custard, ruining the effect.

:::stepping off soapbox:::

Anyhoo...if you find yourself hungry in the Inner Harbor and don't relish the idea of eating at Bubba Gump's or Cheesecake Factory, we can recommend J. Paul's. We like the food and the service. We like half price bottles of wine on Wednesday and half price raw bar after 5pm on Thursday, too.

J Paul's
301 Light St
Baltimore, MD 21202
(410) 659-1889
j-pauls.com


Posted on Minxeats.com.

Kinda Big News

From Twitter:
@PhillipsSeafood: We've made a business decision to terminate our lease at Harborplace effective September 30th, and are exploring our options in Baltimore.

That decision will not only affect Phillips, but also Harborplace, which has been in decline for years now. So - what do you think will happen? Will Phillips find another location, or end up leaving town?

Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.

Cooking Something Up at Phillips

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enlarge

Mr Minx and I were invited to attend a cooking demonstration called "The Freshest Catch," part of Phillips' "Cook, Crack & Eat" series of cooking classes. While they are called classes, the demo was held in the dining room so participants didn't actually see any cooking being done. Instead, Phillips Harborplace sous chef Jonathan Kappes demonstrated various fish-prep techniques, like skinning and fileting a whole salmon, removing the bloodline from a side of tuna, assembling a Phillips'-style stuffed flounder, and cutting swordfish steaks. Not that we'd be doing any of that at home (except perhaps filleting and skinning a smaller fish), but it was interesting to see how a restaurant kitchen breaks down their fish for service. He also gave us tips on choosing fish for home consumption: make sure the eyes are bright and not cloudy; the flesh springs back when pressed with a finger; the gills are red and not black or cloudy. And fresh is almost always better than frozen!

While demoing each type of fish, Chef Kappes described a dish from Phillips' menu that utilized that particular cut, after which we were served that dish - definitely the best part of the class!

First off, we were presented with tandoori spiced salmon with cous cous, Mediterranean salad, & Greek yogurt. Of the four dishes we tried, this was my favorite. The salmon was perfectly cooked and moist, and the yogurt sauce (not pictured) - flavored with garlic, mint, dill, lime, and sugar - was subtle and delicious. I appreciated the pretty colors in the dish, something I don't aways achieve in my own home cooking.

After the tuna demo, we were served blackened ahi tuna with bok choy and wasabi mashed potatoes. The tuna was mid-rare and could have been more rare for my tastes (raw would have been best), but it was good and not overwhelmed by the blackening seasoning. The mashed potatoes, which were very creamy and seasoned with coconut milk as well as wasabi, were somewhat sweet and something I definitely would like to try to make at home. Luckily, I can, because Phillips provided recipes for everything we ate today.

Chef Kappes showed us the Phillips method of stuffing flounder. "Stuffed" in many places merely means "topped," but at Phillips, 3oz of crab meat is sandwiched between two 5-oz flounder filets, making for a protein-heavy portion. Rather than adding carbs to the plate, they serve the fish with a side of green beans almandine seasoned with a touch of garlic. This dish has been on Phillips' menu since day one, and it has that classic Maryland flavor profile that is so familiar to us locals.

Finally, the chef broke down a huge side of swordfish while describing a preparation that he had designed for the specials menu one evening. The swordfish we were served was very simply grilled and came with Jasmine rice flavored with coconut milk, a pineapple chili salsa, and baby arugula. I was really looking forward to the pineapple salsa, but ended up not getting very much of it on my plate. 

At this point you're probably thinking, "man, that plating is shitty!" That's because the dishes were served family style by two servers who each had different components of the dish. They're all going to look a lot prettier when they come out of the kitchen pre-assembled.

And just when we thought we couldn't eat any more (we doggie bagged most of the swordfish), out came portions of tiramisu for dessert. And then we were given a goodie bag containing more recipes, a can of Phillips seafood seasoning, a bag of seasoned nuts, coupons for Phillips products, and a $25 gift card to Phillips! So...if you think that $50 sounds a bit high for a cooking class, then consider it a rather filling lunch with bonuses, instead.

There are currently no other Cook, Crack & Eat classes scheduled, but they have become more and more popular so look for them to pop up again. In the meantime, you can like Phillips on Facebook, or follow them on Twitter, where they're likely to announce future classes.

(We were able to attend the class for free, however, all opinions expressed in this post are those of Minxeats.)

Posted by theminx on Minxeats.com.