Baltimore City Restaurant Week – Baltimore Magazine

Where to Dine for Winter Restaurant Week

Lauren Cohen — Mon, 08 Jan 2018 13:38:00 +0000

Nearly 100 dining destinations scattered across the city are perfecting their menus for Baltimore City Winter Restaurant Week, which returns in its 13th year January 12-21. With featured spots offering everything from burgers to bronzini—plus more vegan and vegetarian options than ever before—the annual prix-fixe promotion certainly boasts plenty to choose from.

“I thought originally that it was only for fancy places,” says Annabel Lee Tavern owner Kurt X. Bragunier, who is participating in Restaurant Week for the first time this season. “But I’ve learned over time that little places like mine are good candidates, too. So I figured I’d give it a shot.”

Bragunier’s ode to Edgar Allan Poe on the corner of South Clinton Street closed briefly last summer due to financial struggles. Luckily, two local investors swooped in to save the bar soon after. Now that the tavern is back on its feet, Bragunier says that he’s looking forward to really showing the community what it has to offer.

“We wanted to gear the menu toward people who haven’t been here,” he says, mentioning the restaurant’s “tried and true” dishes including its crab cakes, crispy Brussels sprouts, and duck-fat fries. “I feel really strongly about our food—it’s just all about getting people in here to try it.”

Annabel Lee is among many of the must-try spots that are participating in the 10-day deal, which offers fixed menus priced between $12-25 for a two-course lunch, and $20-35 for a three-course dinner. In an effort to help break down all of the options, we’ve put together list of recommendations for the best spots to visit—whether you’re interested in a luxurious lunch, vegetarian dishes, beer pairings, or dining near a cozy fireplace.

Best bargain: The Prime Rib
With its white linen tablecloths, leather chairs, and famous leopard-print carpet, this Midtown supper club is bursting with old-school charm. And while its entrees could typically set you back anywhere from $26-69, the swanky steakhouse is offering a three-course prix-fixe menu including all of the classics for $35 during Restaurant Week. Choose from a house salad or warm bowl of tomato soup to start, followed by main courses like filet mignon, chopped sirloin, a center-cut pork chop, imperial crab, or the namesake special cut of prime rib. End the evening on a sweet note with traditional crème brûlee, key lime pie, or chocolate mousse. 1101 N. Calvert St., $35, 410-539-1804

Beer pairings: Heavy Seas Alehouse
There are plenty of spots to sip worldly wines, but if you’re more of a beer person, Heavy Seas Alehouse has got you covered. Each of the menu’s three courses will be accompanied by 10-oz. pours of Heavy Seas favorites including the Vienna-style Cutlass lager, Peg Leg imperial stout, and the brand new Americannon pale ale. Fittingly, the menu also features beer-infused specials including beer-battered crab dip, an alehouse burger marinated in Heavy Seas’ Powder Monkey pale ale, Golden Ale mousse, and a Tropicannon bread pudding with beer-infused cream sauce. 1300 Bank St., $35, 410-522-0850

Brunch spot: Minnow
This South Baltimore spot, which has been generating buzz with its smoked cocktails and trendy black-bun burgers, is going all out for Restaurant Week. In addition to the prix-fixe dinner menu (think dishes like crispy tofu, braised beef short ribs, and a chocolate-almond tart), the spot is also offering a three-course brunch. Dig in to dishes like French toast with spiced apple compote, crispy fried chicken on a blue corn waffle, sautéed shrimp omelets, and a Snow White cake with a vanilla-swiss buttercream. 2 E. Wells St., $22-35, 443-759-6537

Luxurious lunch: Johnny’s
Ditch the sad desk lunch and head to this Roland Park favorite for a three-course meal that starts off with either butternut squash soup with sage brown butter, or a classic Caesar salad. Then choose from options like a beer-braised short rib sandwich, chicken BLT hoagie, or a grilled shrimp kale salad with beets, goat cheese, and Marcona almonds. You can’t go wrong with ginger molasses, mocha chocolate chip, or gluten-free peanut butter cookies for dessert. 4800 Roland Ave., $20-35, 410-773-0777

Newbie: Rye Street Tavern
If you have been meaning to swing by chef Andrew Carmellini’s new tavern next to the Sagamore Spirit Distillery campus in Port Covington, Restaurant Week is an ideal opportunity. Take in the waterfront views while indulging in options like black bean soup with lime crema, cornmeal-crusted catfish with Carolina gold rice, the chef’s famous fried chicken with buttermilk biscuits and whiskey pickles, and banana pudding for dessert. 225 E. Cromwell St., $20-35, 443-662-8000, weekends excluded.

Most romantic: Annabel Lee Tavern
Nothing says amour like the melancholic-romantic style of Edgar Allan Poe. This beloved corner destination devoted to the master of macabre is an ideal date-night spot, with its dim lighting, merlot-colored walls, sculpted ravens, and vintage paintings. Glance over the handwritten menu to find dishes like chicken tortilla soup, a charred romaine and tomato salad, and comfort-food entrees like meatloaf with Applewood-bacon gravy and a mango vegetable curry served over couscous. Plus, you can make it a cheap date, since the prix-fixe menu only costs $28. 601 S. Clinton St., $28, 410-522-2929, weekends excluded.

Vegetarian offerings: Myth & Moonshine
Sip Moonshine cocktails out of a Mason jar while enjoying the farmers’ market-inspired fare at this Canton hangout. Chef Kevin Cauthorne’s three-course dinner menu features many meatless options including French onion soup, a fried goat cheese medallion in a crimson tomato sauce, and white wine-marinated eggplant fried in Cajun flour with a side of sautéed spinach and zucchini. The dessert menu also bolsters the ultra-local focus, featuring Dangerously Delicious Berger cookie pie and cheesecake from Sasscer’s Bakery in Canton. 2300 Boston St., $25-35, 410-777-5502

Best fireplace: Regi’s Bistro
Retreat from the frigid temperatures by snagging a table near the antique marble fireplace at this Federal Hill mainstay. The seasonal specialties on Regi’s Restaurant Week menu only add to the cozy vibe—with lunch options like a Bangkok chicken noodle bowl or steak quesadilla, or dinner dishes including Chilean sea bass, veal osso bucco, New York strip steak, and flourless chocolate cake. 1002 Light St., $15-34, 410-539-7344

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Baltimore City Restaurant Week Returns with New Price Guidelines

Lauren Cohen — Mon, 11 Jul 2016 09:00:00 +0000

Each year, in the dead of winter when locals are hunkering down, and in peak of summer when outdoor cookouts keep people from dining out, Downtown Partnership of Baltimore and Visit Baltimore organize Baltimore City Restaurant Week—a promotion designed to drive business to local eateries.

Summer Restaurant Week returns July 22-31 with upwards of 90 spots offering special menus, and the reveal of a brand new pricing concept.

“Our diners are really savvy,” says Michael Evitts, vice president of communications for Downtown Partnership. “They’ll scour the website comparing menus to look for the best value.”

Traditionally, the promotion requires restaurants to offer their menus at the same fixed price point across the board—which is typically $20 for a two-course lunch and $30 for a three-course dinner. After feedback from diners, organizers this year are allowing restaurants to choose within a range of $12-20 for two-course meals and $20-35 for three-course meals.

“We typically have over 100 restaurants participating and they encapsulate a broad range of dining options,” Evitts explains. “What you pay for a three-course meal at a smaller neighborhood bistro versus a steakhouse is very different, so we found that some of the restaurants that are normally less expensive, where it’s harder to get your check up to $35 on a regular basis, didn’t appear to be as much of a bargain to diners.”

Many spots are taking advantage of the opportunity to feature more affordable menus. Johnny’s, for example, will offer a two-course lunch for $18 (highlighting fried green tomatoes and blackened chicken sandwiches), Alexander’s Tavern will offer a three-course dinner for $25 (think pork tenderloin and heirloom pizza), and Cava Mezze will offer its traditional “Mezze Mania” three-course lunch deal for $15.

Cava’s regional manager Maurizio Luise is happy that the restaurant doesn’t have to alter its prices in order to participate this year. He says that he wishes Downtown Partnership’s liberal pricing guidelines were mirrored by restaurant weeks in other cities like D.C. and Virginia, where he operates additional locations.

“It works out very well for us,” he says. “It’s less printing, less headaches, and better service all around because everybody’s already used to it and they know what to expect.”

Other restaurateurs around town agree that the new guidelines are a good fit.

“I understand why they want that flexibility,” says Christopher Spann, owner of Wine Market Bistro in Locust Point. “People shouldn’t just be making up a number, it should be a deal. That’s the whole idea.”

Wine Market Bistro will highlight seasonal dishes such as cantaloupe gazpacho, curried watermelon salad, shrimp and squash risotto, and bourbon bread pudding on its special menus this year. Spann says that the restaurant habitually participates as a way to boost business during the summer.

“It’s become its own holiday,” he says. “This time of year, there are folks who will hop around to different places and eat out multiple times over the course of 10 days. It also creates a fun competition between all of the city restaurants because, in terms of the menu format, we’re all on the same playing field.”

Across the harbor, Brewers Hill newbie Gunther & Co. is celebrating its first-ever restaurant week, with a menu full of dishes such as Thai shrimp glass noodles, lamb tacos, scallop ceviche, and pan-roasted bass with miso-Dijon vinaigrette. Owner Nancy Hart Mola says that she’s excited for restaurant week to help spread the word about the new spot.

“It’s a great opportunity for people who haven’t heard about us to come out and get a sense of what we do,” she says. “It’s also a good way for restaurants to band together to show the community what a great assortment of options they have.”

On the horizon, Baltimore County Restaurant Week will be running August 5-20. However, for the city’s promotion, Evitts’ main goal is to get people downtown.

“We created restaurant week to bring people into the city and show them not only what we’re doing for dining, but culturally in terms of city evolution,” he says. “It’s not just about what the chefs do individually. Our food scene is a reflection of how dynamic and interesting Baltimore is right now.”

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