Before moving to Baltimore, Brian Plante was living the New York chef’s life and dining out in The Big Apple. While in culinary school in New York, he recalls, “we’d eat out every night, truly authentic cuisines or food from the best chefs in the world and they were right in my backyard,” says Plante who did stints at Babbo and Esca. “Every chef should experience that for a little while.”

Plante is now happily living in Baltimore as the chef/partner at Rye Street Tavern in South Baltimore. “I enjoy living in Locust Point,” he says. “It doesn’t feel like I’m living in a city. After three years of living in Baltimore and when I walk into Rye Street, I feel like I know everyone eating here.”

When did you know you wanted to be a chef?

I was very young, maybe 6 or 7, when I thought about becoming a chef. But as I grew older, I was afraid of the hours. I came to it late—I’m 34 now, I became a chef at 24.

Chef Brian Plante. —Noah Fecks

What other jobs did you work prior to becoming a chef?

I worked in a warehouse. . . . When I told my father that I wasn’t going to finish college, he said he’d get me a warehouse job. I worked the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift and was the only one who spoke English. He told me that my high-school education was no better than anyone else’s. I hated the job more than anything, but I stuck it out because I was stubborn. I made three-ring binders. I’d take the three rings and put them on the machine. I did that for eight hours straight. It was mind-numbing.

Wow, that sounds awful. Any other jobs?
I worked at Costco selling electronics. My boss was two years older and he was at the ceiling of how far he could go. I realized that I wanted a job that never had a ceiling. That’s what being a chef is all about. However hard you work is how high you can go.

So when did you start working in restaurants?

I worked in a restaurant called Food 101 in South Hadley, Massachusetts, where I’m from. I loved it. I loved the pace of the kitchen. It was stressful, but exciting. When you’re a chef, every day is completely different than the last and it gives you instant gratification.

Did you get formal training after that?
In 2010, I moved to New York to attend the French Culinary Institute. I’d never even been to New York City before. My first day there, I got a pizza and a beer and ran back to my apartment. I was so overwhelmed.

What did you learn in culinary school that you still use today?
I was blessed to have Jacques Pépin and André Soltner as my professors. André Soltner told me, “Relax, its just food.” We were making bouillabaisse at the time.

What has it been like for you to cook with the ingredients from the Chesapeake Bay watershed?
It has been incredible. The proximity to everything from the city is second to none. Within 20 minutes, I can have easy access to one of the best pig farms in the country and within an hour I can be slurping oysters with the Choptank guys. The quality of the ingredients is amazing and is very similar to New England.

What’s on the menu right now that you’re excited about?
I’m super excited about our pork dishes. We don’t waste one part of the pig. On a 300-pound pig, there’s probably two pounds we don’t use. We do our play on an old-fashioned barbecue sauce with ribs. We’re doing a house-made bacon jam for sweet and sour collards, and we have pulled pork specials, beautiful pork chops, and house-made sausages. We’re also doing more to explore the dishes of Appalachia like rabbit stew with the rabbit legs braised in mustard and crème fraiche and the loin rubbed with an herb garlic spice and grilled.

What would you like to do in the future?
We’re starting to make our own vinegars in the old whiskey barrels from Sagamore. We’d also like to get into pickling and fermenting. Dishes that you tried a year ago are going to taste different when you come back.

Where do you like to go in Baltimore when you eat out?

I like Thames Street Oyster House—it’s a little taste of home for me.

Before moving here three years ago, did you know anything about Maryland Blue crabs?
A soft-shell clam sandwich and steamers are my favorite things to eat. When I went to L.P. Steamers for the first time, I thought that I was going to get clams, then I realized that steamers in Baltimore means crabs. They were delicious and awesome, but they weren’t clams.

So have you mastered eating them?
At L.P. Steamers, I was with a bunch of chefs from New York at the time. We were picking out the meat and making piles of the meat and cracking the entire crab before we ate the meat, and then we were dunking the meat in butter. The people at the next table told us, ‘That’s not how you do it.’

Move over, Ravens and Orioles, a new bird is taking Baltimore by storm: the chicken. Although chicken might not be a beloved Birdland mascot, it’s certainly a rising star on menus throughout the city. For years, culinary gurus such as Anthony Bourdain have rolled their eyes at the original white meat, labeling it tasteless and forgettable, but Charm City chefs have recently taken advantage of chicken’s endless versatility to create memorable dishes.

“The way chefs look at chicken has changed quite a bit, and it’s much more sophisticated today,” says Linwood Dame, co-owner and chef of Linwoods. “There are so many different ways to work with chicken, but it’s difficult to get right, so you’ve got to do it well.”

If there’s one place chicken is consistently cooked to perfection, it’s France, where the bird has been a cornerstone in the kitchen for generations. Luckily for all of us across the Atlantic, French transplants such as Steve Monnier, the executive chef at Chez Hugo, offer to-die-for chicken dishes.

One of Chez Hugo’s most popular plates is the poulet roti au foin pour deux, or the whole roasted chicken for two.
For Monnier and his team, serving such a dish is a painstaking, six-day process that includes carefully selecting chickens from local farms, marinating the meat for hours, slow-roasting the bird on a bed of hay to give the dish a true farm-to-table feel, and cooking different cuts in the oven to make sure every bite is tender and flavorful before reconstructing the pieces to compose a whole bird.

“It seems simple, but you have to make sure the meat is juicy and the skin is crispy,” says Monnier. “This takes a lot of technique.” It’s a far cry from the overlooked poultry of the past, and restaurants throughout Baltimore are offering more and more chicken dishes that soar miles above expectations.

Roasted Half Chicken

The Brewer’s Art
At this Mt. Vernon restaurant, a pan-roasted breast is accompanied by a confit leg and thigh. A watermelon salad, pistachios, and salsa verde provide counterpoints to the richness of the meat.

Poulet Grillé

Petit Louis Bistro
The whole roasted bird for two is a star at this Roland Park staple, but its lighter chicken fare—succulent grilled breast served over fingerling potatoes, with grilled red onions and zucchini and a drizzle of pistou sauce—is just as delicious.

AC’s Famous Fried Chicken

Rye Street Tavern
At this upscale Chesapeake-style spot, ordering the fried chicken—crispy, golden-brown, and packed with flavor—is a no-brainer. On the other hand, choosing between the Southern style, served with buttermilk biscuits and whiskey pickles, or the spicy Jerked version, plated with charred pineapple and Hawaiian rolls, is quite the challenge.

Korean Fried Chicken Breast

Jazz + Soju
In classic Korean technique, this chicken is twice-fried in soybean oil, leaving tender meat covered in a light, crispy shell. This Riverside kitchen’s signature dish melts in your mouth and is tossed with one of two sauces: soy garlic or spicy.

OPEN

Little Fig Bakeshop: This passion project from chef Melanie Molinaro can now be found inside Stall 11 at R. House in Remington. The plant-based baking business, which began as an ode to Molinaro’s late grandmother, now fills a huge display case inside Stall 11 with everything from vegan cookies and muffins to scratch-made pop tarts and Meyer lemon bars. Little Fig favorites include a chickun-and-waffles donut and custom cakes that are dairy and soy free. The baked goods will be available Wednesday-Sunday from 10 a.m. until sellout. 301 W. 29th St.

Blue Dog BBQ Co.: Barbecue buffs Sean Stoll, Jon Royce, and Mike Neall are preparing to officially debut their new pit palace during lunch service on Friday, October 19. Set in the former home of Heavy Seas Alehouse in Little Italy’s historic Tank Factory Building, this is the first brick-and-mortar space for the company (not to be confused with the other barbecue joint Blue Pit) and will offer eats like pulled pork shoulder, spare ribs, chicken wings, and locally sourced sausages from Kevin McCormick of High Noon BBQ. All meats are prepared in a wood smoker that is stationed in the building’s adjacent courtyard. “Somebody shows up at midnight the day before to light the fire and start smoking the meats,” Royce says. “We’re not using gas, so we can’t just set it and forget it.” The eatery will be open for lunch and dinner Tuesday-Sunday. 1300 Bank St.

MOM’s Bakeshop: Speaking of baked goods, this cafe adjacent to MOM’s Organic Market in Timonium also made its debut earlier this week. The sister-concept will bake all of its own breads using heirloom grains, and use them for an array of vegan and vegetarian sandwiches like a portobello muffaletta, chipotle roasted vegetable panini, and jackfruit barbecue roll. Before grabbing groceries from the market, satisfy hunger pangs with the hearty sandwiches, as well as raw juices, kombucha, soups, and scratch-baked muffins. 20 W. Ridgely Rd., Timonium. 443-921-1390

COMING SOON

AJ’s Deli: Though the official grand opening party for this modern delicatessen inside Mount Vernon Marketplace isn’t slated until early November, owner Alan Morstein is looking forward to debuting in soft-opening mode this Friday, October 19. The stall will harken back to a deli that Morstein, who formerly owned Regi’s American Bistro in Federal Hill, operated in Ocean City more than 35 years ago. But this time around, he is offering updated versions of the classic sandwiches and sides. “It’s part of this new wave of delis,” Morstein says. “It’s not like what my parents used to take me to, and it’s not like what I used to take my kids to. It’s where my kids are taking me now. It’s a whole different style.”

Dishes to look out for include Regi’s famous cranberry chicken salad, potato latkes instead of French fries, and tuna and egg salad made with avocado as a substitute for mayonnaise. There will also be brisket and turkey carved in-house, and bagels brought in from Davidovich Bakery in New York City. Equipped with eight bar seats, a 42-inch flat screen, and a modern-industrial design, the stall will open in the former home of Edible Favors, which recently relocated to another space inside the food hall. 520 Park Ave.

Clean Juice: Locust Point neighbors will soon be able to grab fresh-pressed juices, açaí bowls, and smoothies at McHenry Row. Come January, former NFL safety Anthony Walters and his wife, Kait, will open the first Maryland franchise of this North Carolina-based juice bar inside the mixed-use development. “I first became familiar with McHenry Row while working as in intern with Under Armour,” Walters said in a press release. “I hope people will visit us before and after work, for lunch, and after a fitness session at the local gyms.” Set in the former home of Ruby 8 Noodles & Sushi, the shop will be open all day and highlight customizable fruits, vegetables, honeys, oils, and seeds for the smoothies and bowls. 1702 Whetstone Way

EPICUREAN EVENTS

10/19: Maryland Food Truck Week Kickoff
Dozens of local kitchens-on-wheels are gearing up for the return of Maryland Food Truck Week, which will run from October 19-28 with planned rallies everywhere from Arbutus to Elkridge. The festivities will officially kick off with a free foodie festival at South Point in Port Covington this Friday. Grab a drink and enjoy live music while sampling noshes from The Green Bowl, Kommie Pig, Dizzy Cow Pizzeria, Mexican on the Run, Bistro Lunch Box, Farm to Charm, and Quinn’s Ice. 101 W. Cromwell St. Free. 5-9 p.m.

10/20 & 10/27: Fall Festival at Rye Street Tavern
Rye Street Tavern is welcoming the chilly temperatures accordingly with an all-ages fall festival on its waterfront lawn. Moms and dads are invited to sip whiskey cocktails at the outdoor bar while watching kiddos paint their own pumpkins, jump over hay bales, and dance to live music. Grilled hamburgers and hot dogs will be available throughout the day, and, if you stick around for dinner, try out the restaurant’s new seasonal menu featuring butternut squash lasagna, stout-braised short ribs, and bacon-wrapped rainbow trout. 13 Rye St. Free. 12-5 p.m. 443-662-8000.

10/21: La Cuchara Evenings at the Farm Dinner
Special guest Amy Langrehr of Charm City Cook will be joining chef Ben Lefenfeld for La Cuchara’s final farm dinner of the season. Make your way to the picturesque Zahradka Farms in Essex to enjoy a family-style outdoor meal cooked over an open flame. Special dishes incorporating Zahradka produce will include roasted carrots with chevre, wilted kale with burnt oranges and pumpkin vinaigrette, smoked pork shanks with sauerkraut, and turnip cake with salted-caramel buttercream. 2300 Golupski Rd., Essex. 4 p.m. $73

OPEN

Tersiguel’s French Country Restaurant: We’re constantly inspired by the resilience of this French fine-dining den on Main Street in Ellicott City—which has endured a fire and three floods since opening in 1975. This week, the restaurant persevered yet again. After three months of rebuilding since the tragic flood on Memorial Day Weekend, husband-and-wife owners Michel and Angie Tersiguel officially reopened their restaurant earlier this week. “Nothing can stop us,” the owners posted to Facebook after the flood. “Our hearts are heavy, the road ahead is paved with blood, sweat, and tears, but it’s familiar territory, one we have traveled many times. And we will continue to do so.” Tersiguel’s reopening comes on the heels of Howard County executive Allan Kittleman’s announcement of a $50 million five-year flood mitigation plan—which will demolish 10 properties on the lower half of Main Street. See more recent reopening updates here. 8293 Main St., Ellicott City. 410-465-4004

COMING SOON

The Greener Kitchen: Pigtown will welcome this vegan worker-owned collective to its dining scene next month. Formerly known as PEP Foods Inc., The Greener Kitchen fulfills its wholesome mission by providing catering services and distributing its plant-based products to vegan restaurants in the area. In addition to boasting plenty of commercial kitchen space for other dairy-free purveyors, the new headquarters off of Washington Boulevard will also operate as a one-stop-shop for vegan groceries. Be on the lookout for dairy-free cheeses, marinated proteins, seitan and deli slices, sauces and dips, and an array of prepared foods to grab on the go. 803 Washington Blvd. 443-929-3706

Indigma: Mt. Vernon locals were saddened when this neighborhood mainstay—known for its classic Indian dishes and filling lunch buffet—shuttered its doors suddenly last year. But now, there is a possibility that Indigma could be making a comeback in the neighborhood. A sign posted to door of the old Tavern on the Hill space at 900 Cathedral Street indicates that Indigma owners Christina Martija and Tony Chemmanoor are requesting to obtain a liquor license for the space. Though nothing has been set in stone as of yet, diners are holding out hope that Indigma’s samosas, curries, chutneys, and gulab jamun (deep-fried honey balls) will return very soon. 900 Cathedral St.

Milk & Honey Market: Speaking of comebacks, this former Mt. Vernon staple is returning with two locations in Station North and Pigtown in the coming months. Owners Ernst and Dana Valery closed their beloved market on Cathedral Street in 2016, and have since been working on a new cafe on the bottom floor of the Nelson Kohr apartment building in Station North. The duo recently told The Baltimore Sun that the store is expected to be finished this fall, and a second Milk & Honey location in Pigtown will follow soon after. The Pigtown iteration will be housed in the new Bath House Square project that the owners are developing on Washington Boulevard. Both locations are expected to offer the market’s signature breakfast sandwiches, paninis, soups, charcuterie boards, and coffees. 20 E. Lanvale St. and 906 Washington Blvd.

UNION COLLECTIVE UPDATES

Vent Coffee Roasters: Locals have enjoyed getting acquainted with Union Collective in Medfield this summer. The massive makerspace which you can spot from I-83, opened in June—debuting Union Craft Brewing’s new taproom and production facility, a state-of-the-art Earth Treks bouldering gym, and an ice cream factory from The Charmery. The latest tenant to join the pack is Vent Coffee Roasters, which opened in the space last weekend. Featuring sleek wood picnic tables and a roll-up garage door, the bright shop offers a full coffee and espresso bar from longtime barista Sarah Walker. Other highlights include nitro cold brews, Chemex and Aeropress offerings, teas, chocolate chip cookies, and other locally sourced pastries. Vent will be open from 7 a.m.-6 p.m. on weekdays and 8 a.m.-6 p.m. on weekends. 1700 W. 41 St.

Baltimore Spirits Company: On deck to open at Union Collective next month is this homegrown distillery, which was formerly headquartered in Remington. In conjunction with the grand opening of its production facility and tasting room at the Collective on September 15, Baltimore Whiskey Company has officially changed its name to Baltimore Spirits Company. The team hopes that the new name will better reflect the diversity of their products, which include gin, brandy, and amaro in addition to whiskey. Aside from providing more room to breathe, the new production space will use a custom geothermal system to sustainably distill award-winning spirits like Epoch Rye and Shot Tower Gin. “We can’t wait to show everyone what we’ve built over here,” co-founder Max Lents said in a statement. “We will certainly miss our old location on Sisson Street. It had a lot of character, but when people see our new space, they will understand how we’ve carried that character forward.” 1700 W. 41 St.

EPICUREAN EVENTS

8/31: Food Truck Rally at the Baltimore Museum of Industry
Kick off your long weekend with this foodie get-together to benefit There Goes My Hero, a nonprofit that works to improve the lives of blood cancer patients and their families. More than 15 local food trucks will be parked against the waterfront backdrop at the Baltimore Museum of Industry, serving everything from burgers and barbecue to tacos and ice cream. (Be on the lookout for favorites including Farm to Charm, Kommie Pig, The Smoking Swine, and Bistro Lunch Box.) Plus, enjoy family-friendly activities, sip beers from Heavy Seas, and dance to live tunes spun by DJ Neil Paul. Baltimore Museum of Industry, 5-9 p.m. Free admission.

9/4: Brewer’s Dinner with Dogfish Head at Rye Street Tavern
Rye Street Tavern in Port Covington is continuing its monthly Brewer’s Dinner series with a four-course meal that will pair each dish with a different Dogfish Head beer. Snag a seat on the restaurant’s lawn overlooking the Patapsco River to dig in to a bay scallop crudo with SeaQuench ale, smoked ricotta cappelletti paired with Punkin’ Ale (yes, it’s almost that time of year), a duo of beef with the Bitches Brew imperial stout, and a Hawaiian chocolate trifle with the Luau-luau IPA. 225 E. Cromwell St. 7-10 p.m. $85. 443-662-8000.

In an ordinary game of golf, the sound of a ball hitting the water usually results in a penalty shot—and a groan from the swinger. But when players tee off at a Splash City Golf driving range, that sound signals dinnertime for schools of fish in the Inner Harbor.

Since 2016, friends and co-founders Daniel Bucci, Shawn Flaherty, and Jamie Hodges have been bringing pop-up driving ranges to waterfront establishments across Baltimore (think Sandlot, Barcocina, and Rye Street Tavern), where both veteran linksmen and first-time putters attempt to score a hole in one on floating targets using golf balls made of fish food.

As a golf enthusiast, Flaherty was inspired by his waterfront job at the Living Classrooms Foundation to create an urban driving range that was both environmentally friendly and fun for city residents. He brought the idea to Bucci and, shortly thereafter, the duo launched the company with a target prototype: a rowboat outfitted with a cinder-block-weighted flag.

With help from Hodges, a mechanical engineer and patented inventor, the team has upgraded to a GPS-positioned inflatable target that is kept steady by an app. “[The concept] fits in Baltimore particularly well because it’s outside of the box,” says Flaherty, “and this town is very much that.”

The golf balls—which are manufactured in Barcelona, Spain, and sold in baskets of five, 15, or 30—biodegrade within 72 hours of hitting the water. Last year, Baltimoreans hit more than 10,000 balls into the harbor, and this summer, Splash City Golf will expand to new locations across Charm City, Washington, D.C., and the Eastern Shore, setting up courses at restaurants, bars, and private events such as weddings (including Flaherty’s this month).

The self-funded startup hopes to grow by making the balls locally and securing partnership locations across the county, while sticking to their Baltimore roots. “There’s a body of water in every city,” says Bucci. “Eventually, we want to be in all of them.”

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

On my first trip to Rye Street Tavern, after snaking through a wall of traffic across Lombard Street, exiting off I-95 North, and getting dumped by my GPS onto a jug handle that led me past billowing smoke stacks, I found myself in an industrial No Man’s Land that most locals would be hard-pressed to find on a map. In fact, my dining companion, a lifelong Baltimorean, skeptically asked, “Where are we going, anyway?” But as the global headquarters of Under Armour and the triple-diamond racing logo on the Sagamore Spirit distillery water tower came into view, the answer was apparent. Approaching our destination, there was the tavern—a stone barn-like structure with walls of windows, Adirondack chairs along the water, and the adjacent distillery rising in the distance like some sort of Emerald City. 

Welcome to Kevin Plank’s Field of Dreams, his reimagined vision for Port Covington, a one-time garbage dump and abandoned rail yard where grain and coal and merchandise were once loaded onto the piers along this peninsula on the Patapsco. As the Under Armour CEO attempts to develop the 266-acre parcel by building a city within a city, Rye Street Tavern (sprung from the site of a defunct Walmart) is destination dining, at least until Port Covington starts to develop. And it’s more than worth the drive it can take to find it. Clearly, others agree—woe to the patron who doesn’t make a reservation.

The restaurant itself is meant to evoke Plank’s Reisterstown property at Sagamore Farm, where water burbling steadily from the farm’s springhouse is being used in the production of his Sagamore Spirit whiskey. Inside, interior designer Patrick Sutton, who has seemingly designed every new upscale restaurant in Charm City, has topped himself with this stunning ode to Plank’s thoroughbred farm (think worn leathers and wagon-wheel lighting fixtures), along with touches that call to mind the Eastern Shore, such as oyster shells artfully arranged in wooden bowls and a coil of nautical rope on an entryway table. 

In addition to the spectacular setting, Rye Street is also a serious culinary contender: Leading the charge is Michelin-starred, James Beard Award-winning chef Andrew Carmellini of New York’s NoHo Hospitality Group (the same group that gave us Rec Pier Chop House in Plank’s Sagamore Pendry).

With a focus on New American/mid-Atlantic comfort foods, the dinner menu is divided into appetizers, a raw bar (including ceviches, crudos, and East Coast oysters), sandwiches, and mains, including the trifecta of tavern classics (fried chicken, ribs, and burgers), an assortment of wood-fired seafood, simply prepared steaks, and a “Crab of the Day” dish. 

Over several months, I visited Rye Street five times and didn’t have a bad bite. You should start with the ceviches or crudos. My favorite was the Peruvian-style striped bass ceviche, slices of the flavorful and firm fish, marinated in aji amarillo (yellow chile peppers) and fresh lime juice to make “tiger milk,” then crowned with Andean corn, red onion, radishes, and fresno chillies. 

Another signature of the spot, and rightfully so, is AC’s Famous Fried Chicken with pickles salted and fermented in whiskey barrels and house-made biscuits. In the ’90s, Carmellini made a fried chicken road trip to taste his way through the South. The result is this boffo bird—not served in a bucket, but still something to add to your Baltimore bucket list. Whoever is working the fryer also dazzles with a simple fried-fish sandwich, a crispy hunk of flounder paired with yuzu pickled cucumbers and served on a sturdy house-made seeded bun slathered in Old Bay aioli. Also a highlight is the wood-grilled Maryland rockfish served with shrimp, grits, and smoked tomatoes. With its intensely smokey-sweet flavor profile, it was possibly the best single seafood dish I consumed in all of 2017. 

Bacon-Wrapped Trout
This dish, stuffed with Swiss chard, breadcrumbs, and a touch of beurre blanc, and served with Sea Island red peas and chow-chow relish, is a must. It was inspired by the Low Country dish hoppin’ John.

And if you don’t mind a little neck-craning from adjacent tables, don’t miss Rye Street’s seafood twist on a traditional potpie. Filled with carrots and peas, the dish is fairly classic, however the presentation—with a crab claw dramatically cracking through the crust—is anything but. 

Service is also excellent, and on one busy Saturday night when a large party was kept waiting, all appetizers were on the house. What impressed me most is that the waitstaff was equally versed on the menu’s liquids (many of them Sagamore Rye-based, natch) as they were on the solids. 

Whether for lunch, brunch, or dinner, Rye Street is the perfect place to impress an out-of-towner or a first date, or just a spot to commune with your nearest and dearest. On one of our visits, we spied Ravens kicker Justin Tucker breaking house-made cornbread with a table of friends. And as one might expect, Kevin Plank is also a frequent patron. 

In Field of Dreams, another starry-eyed Kevin (Costner) stands in an overgrown cornfield when he hears a whisper out of nowhere: “If you build it, he will come.” Plank is counting on all comers.  

Chef Andrew Carmellini has restaurants all over New York City (Locanda Verde, The Dutch, Bar Primi, to name a few), but has quickly familiarized himself with the Mid-Atlantic culinary scene, too. We catch up with the James Beard Award-winning chef and talk about the recent debut of Rye Street Tavern. 

How did you come to be involved with both of Kevin Plank’s restaurants, Rec Pier Chop House and Rye Street Tavern?
Initially, the Sagamore people recruited me for Rye Street Tavern first. They brought me down to this empty industrial field where there was a defunct Walmart. They caught me at a vulnerable time. I had just gotten back from a two-week trip to Scotland where I did a lot of hiking and drinking of Scotch.  They said, ‘We want to do this restaurant next to the distillery.’ My interest was piqued. Once we got into it, it became more apparent that the thing to do there wasn’t English—it needed to be an American restaurant.

Tell me about your signature fried chicken on Rye Street’s menu?
When I was the chef for Daniel Boulud from 1998 to 2006, we did a to-go fried chicken dinner. Bill Goldman, the screenwriter, who did The Princess Bride and was a good customer of ours, and [journalist] Diane Sawyer and her husband, [filmmaker] Mike Nichols, came for Sunday fried chicken dinners. More or less, this is the same one I’ve always made. 

I went on a fried chicken road trip in the ’90s. I went to a lot of fried chicken places in Nashville and Memphis and through the South to understand the best things I liked about fried chicken. I love a real crispy crust that’s not too greasy. I like for the chicken to be tender and flavorful and not too dried out. And I like to deep fry. 

What did you want the tavern to feel like?
Aside from a great bar, the number-one quality I want in a tavern is for it to feel like a return to home. 

Does Kevin Plank have a favorite dish at the tavern?
He likes the shrimp and rockfish. We thought about putting a Plank salmon on the menu, but decided not to do it. 

With more than a dozen restaurant concepts scattered from New York to Miami operating under his reign, James Beard Award-winning chef Andrew Carmellini is no stranger to the jitters of opening night.

“You have to break the machine to figure out where the holes are,” he says. “I can make the recipes no problem, but it’s the human component that’s the hard part. Luckily, we’ve had a lot of practice.”

Carmellini will celebrate yet another opening night on Tuesday, September 12, as he welcomes diners to Rye Street Tavern on the campus of Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank’s Sagamore Spirit Distillery in Port Covington. The restaurant marks Carmellini’s second venture into Charm City dining, the first being the Italian-influenced Rec Pier Chop House that opened inside of Plank’s Sagamore Pendry Hotel in Fells Point last spring.

With a focus on American cuisine, the 315-seat restaurant will feature Carmellini’s spins on classic comfort foods that incorporate the flavors of the Eastern Shore. Among the token dishes will include crab pot pie, classic fried chicken, Bloody Mary blue crab salad, roasted local carrots with popped sorghum (a grain similar to popcorn), and an array of wood-fired seafood bakes.

Carmellini credits visiting area purveyors—think Calvert’s Gift Farm in Sparks and Whistle Pig Hollow in Reisterstown—and exploring aquaculture on the Eastern Shore as being some of the most exciting aspects of landing on the local food scene.

“Baltimore is very diverse, and no one really knows that,” he says, describing the area’s many microclimates. “A sense of place is important. You always want to be respectful of the community in executing it, while also presenting things from another point of view.”

Developed by local designer Patrick Sutton, the restaurant’s cozy interior is a fitting accompaniment to the menu of comfort foods. Filled with wooden and copper accents, the space is also a nice complement to the neighboring Sagamore Spirit Rye distillery. The building is comprised of a front bar (boasting exclusively domestic wine and spirits), main dining room, upstairs area for private events, and outdoor space complete with firepits and Adirondack chairs overlooking the water.

“To me, a good tavern should have a little sense of home when you walk in,” Carmellini says. “That’s what I want it to be—a mix between a destination and a neighborhood place where you just stop by for a bite to eat.”

Aside from its own wood-burning fireplace and an elevated platform to host live music, the front bar also features a collection of vintage paintings surrounding a huge taxidermy buffalo.

The 65-seat dining room highlights a killer waterfront view, as well as elements like exposed wine racks, interior greenery, leather booths, and a chef’s table overlooking the kitchen’s hearth oven.

“Cooking with wood is a long American tradition that goes beyond just barbecue,” Carmellini adds. “A good part of the menu is cooked over wood, so seeing it all happen creates a special connection.”

Upstairs, the tavern houses two loft rooms overlooking the front bar, a dual-climate wine cellar, and two pieces of the original American flag that flew over Fort McHenry that have been framed and put on display. The top-level also pays homage to the restaurant’s proximity to the distillery with a non-functional copper column still and a hallway lined with whiskey barrels.

“I’m a big fan of whiskey and bourbon, and obviously wanted to incorporate that into what we do here,” Carmellini says, mentioning that his team has fermented ingredients like pickles and hot sauces inside some of the reclaimed whiskey barrels. “I will say one thing about Baltimore is, man, you guys like to drink.”

Other than the city’s burgeoning booze scene, Carmellini says that he’s enjoyed getting acquainted with the community’s quirk.

“Baltimore is pretty weird, man,” he says with a laugh. “There are a ton of characters around that should be embraced and celebrated. Here, you have that grit. As far as food culture goes, it’s all about finding a way to maintain that organically.”