December Book Signing

We'll be signing copies of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore one more time in 2013:

Friday, December 6th
6-8pm
Greetings & Readings
Hunt Valley Towne Center
118-AA Shawan Rd
Hunt Valley, MD 21030
(410) 771-3022

We hope to see you there. Remember, books make great gifts!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

New Restaurant News

There's lots of new restaurant news in Baltimore!

Coming this Friday, 10/11, Spike Gjerde's new diner, Shoo Fly, will be opening in the old Crush space in Belvedere Square. Patrick "Opie" Crooks, formerly of Roy's, will be the chef there.
510 E Belvedere Ave
Baltimore, MD 21212

Ryleigh's Oyster is opening a second location in Timonium, on the site of the old Gibby's restaurant. The opening date is scheduled for November 8th.
22 W Padonia Road
Timonium, MD 21093

The Bagby Restaurant Group will open Cunninghams, at Towson City Center, in late November.
1 Olympic Place
Towson, Maryland 21204

Popular Brooklyn NY pizzaria Paulie Gee is opening a branch in Hampden. They've had some technical difficulties occur when their imported pizza oven was damaged in transit but still hope to open soon.
3537 Chestnut Avenue
Baltimore, Maryland 21211

Milton Inn Chef Brian Boston is opening a new restaurant in Howard County. The Highland Inn has been a work in progress for a while, but should be opening within the next few months.
12857 Highland Road
Highland, MD 20777

Former Dogwood owner Galen Sampson is opening the Farmstead Grill and a companion Farmstead Shack at the Shops at Canton Crossing in the Spring of 2014.
3501 Boston Street
Baltimore, MD 21224

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Best of Baltimore!

Our other blog, Minxeats.com, has been named Baltimore's Best Food Blog 2013 by Baltimore Magazine. We're thrilled and honored!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Restaurant Weeks

Baltimore's annual Summer Restaurant week starts up July 26th and ends August 4th. It's a great way to try out a restaurant that might ordinarily be out of your budget, or just to try something new. Food Lovers' Guide favorites like Aldo's, Langermann's, and Sotto Sopra are participating, as well as new spots like Maggie's Farm and Gordon Biersch. For a list of participating restaurants and their menus, go to the Baltimore Restaurant Week Web site.

Just when Baltimore's Restaurant Week is winding down, Baltimore County's is starting up. Fifty or so county restaurants will be offering special menus from August 9th to the 25th. What a great excuse to check out the Oregon Grille, the Milton Inn, Tark's, Peerce's, and Linwood's! Check out the list of Baltimore County participants on the Baltimore County Restaurant Week site.

Let's not forget that Howard County has a Restaurant Week as well. Starting yesterday, July 17th, and running to August 5th, several dozen great Howard County dining spots are offering special fixed price menus. Find the list of participants here.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

New and Upcoming Restaurants

Here at Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore, we're always excited when we hear about new and upcoming restaurants - more places to eat!

New:

Bangkok Peanut Noodles at
Noodle Charm.

Noodle Charm has opened at Radio Park. The sister restaurant to Spice and Dice next door, Noodle Charm offers Thai-style noodle stir fries and soups, some of which can be customized to your exact specifications, from style of noodles to heat level.
1220 E Joppa Road #106
Towson, MD 21286

After a 25-year nap, the Chesapeake Restaurant has risen, Rip Van Winkle-like. The new version is more casual than the original and offers fresh and locally sourced food and libations.
1701 N. Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21201

Upcoming:

The Bagby Restaurant Group will open its first Baltimore County restaurant, Cunninghams, at Towson City Center in late September.
1 Olympic Place
Towson, Maryland 21204

Popular Brooklyn NY pizzaria Paulie Gee is opening a branch in Hampden sometime this summer. For a sample menu, click here.
3537 Chestnut Avenue
Baltimore, Maryland 21211

Woodberry Kitchen is taking over the old Crush space in Belvedere Square. In addition to moving their pickling and canning operation there, they'll be opening a "farmhouse diner."
510 E Belvedere Ave
Baltimore, MD 21212

Vino Rosina will become Oliver Speck's on July 27th. Out goes the Modern American bistro and in comes goodies like brisket, hush puppies, and ribs.
507 Exeter Street
Baltimore, MD 21202

We can't wait!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Book Signing - Barnes & Noble, Power Plant

We'll be signing copies of the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore this coming Saturday, July 13, from 1-3pm at the Barnes & Noble at Baltimore's Inner Harbor. Located in the Power Plant, this book store is conveniently located between the harbor and Harbor East, with Phillip's right next door.

Sounds like a good excuse to have lunch or dinner in the area that day!

The Power Plant
601 E. Pratt Street
Baltimore, MD 21202
410-385-1709

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Book Signing - Greetings & Readings

We'll be signing copies of the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore at Greetings & Readings this coming Saturday, June 29th, from 1-3pm. Hope you can stop by!

Greetings & Readings
Hunt Valley Towne Center
118 Shawan Rd
Hunt Valley, MD 21030
(410) 771-3022

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Book Signing at Woman's Industrial Kitchen

We'll be at the Woman's Industrial Kitchen (in the Woman's Industrial Exchange) at 333 North Charles Street in downtown Baltimore from 12-2pm tomorrow, June 26th. Join us for lunch - theminx's favorite goat cheese and asparagus wrap, perhaps, or some deviled eggs and aspic - and pick up a copy of the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore. We'll be happy to answer questions and of course to sign your copies of the book.

Hope to see you there!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Happy Father's Day!

Where are you all taking your daddies for dinner tonight?

Our Dad is a no-frills kinda guy who said a bag of bagels would be a great gift (and that's what he got, half a dozen from Greg's, since we were there yesterday for a signing) and a hamburger would be terrific for dinner. Instead, we took him to Mo's in Towson, where we could dine outside and he could have his favorite coconut shrimp and some crab imperial-stuffed potato skins.

And a good time was had by all.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

More Restaurant Closings

We're losing two Italian restaurants this time:

S'ghetti Eddie's on Cold Spring Lane closed its doors for good this week to make more parking for sister restaurant Miss Shirley's.

And Della Notte, in Little Italy, will close its doors after tomorrow's service. What will happen to the giant fake tree in the main dining room?

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

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Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Greg's Bagels - Again!

Our first signing at Greg's Bagels was so successful, we're doing it again!

Saturday, June 15th
9:30am - 12:00pm

Greg's Bagels
519 E Belvedere Ave
Baltimore, MD 21212

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Upcoming Events

We'll be signing copies of the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore at a couple of local bookstores:

June 29th 1-3pm
Greetings & Readings
118 Shawan Road
Hunt Valley, MD 21030

July 13th 1-3pm
Barnes & Noble @ The Power Plant
601 E. Pratt Street
Baltimore, MD 21202

We'll also be at these non-bookstore venues in the near future, dates TBA:

Woman's Industrial Kitchen
333 N Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21201

Greg's Bagels
519 E Belvedere Ave
Baltimore, MD 21212

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Food Lovers' Guide in the Dundalk Eagle

Neal's a former Dundalk resident, so the Eagle did a little story about the book. It's behind a pay firewall on the Eagle Web site (http://dundalkeagle.com/), so if you're a subscriber, you can read it there. If not, it's available in pdf format right here and on the sidebar ---->

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Restaurant Week(s)!

Right now, there's a mini Restaurant Week going on in Pikesville. Called "Re-Discover Pikesville Restaurants," featured eateries include both Mari Luna outposts. The event lasts until Saturday, May 11th, 2013.

About thirty favorite dining spots are participating in Ocean City Restaurant Week, which started on Sunday and will run for two weeks, until Sunday, May 19th.

Baltimore Restaurant Week and Baltimore County Restaurant Week haven't yet posted their summer dates, but they're usually toward the end of July. Stay tuned!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Restaurant Changes

According to the Little Italy newsletter, the neighborhood's only Indian restaurant, India Rasoi, has closed.

The Hotel Monaco's B&O American Brasserie has a new executive chef in Bradley Willits, formerly the chef de cuisine there. We'll miss Chef Dunklin, but we're sure that Chef Willits, who has worked in notable restaurants in Florida, Seattle, and Charleston, will continue the restaurant's tradition of terrific eats.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Taste of Pikesville

Just a little reminder that we'll be signing copies of Food Lover's Guide to Baltimore next Thursday, May 2, at Taste of Pikesville.

Tickets for the event are $30 in advance; $35 at the door. You can also buy a copy of our book at a big discount if you order in advance (only $10!), otherwise they're $15 during the event.

We'd love to see you there!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Comments and Reviews

Can we ask a favor? Could those of you who purchased your copy of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore via Amazon.com please review our book on the Amazon site?

Thank you!

The link to our book page is here.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Poll: Who Serves Baltimore's Best Crab Cakes?

Crab cake at Koco's Pub

Lots of places claim to serve Baltimore's Best Crab Cake, but who really does, in your opinion?

poll by twiigs.com

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Taste of Pikesville

We attended the Taste of Pikesville last year and had a great time, so we were thrilled when the lovely people at the Pikesville Chamber of Commerce invited us to participate in this year's Taste. We'll be on hand to sign copies of the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore and chat about the local food scene, in between trying to snag food samples from various local vendors like Mari Luna and Island Quizine.

The event will be held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Baltimore North-Pikesville on Thursday, May 2nd, from 6-8:30 pm. Tickets are $30 in advance; $35 at the door. And as a special bonus - if you buy a copy of the book in advance, when you buy your ticket, you can get it at the low, low price of $10, which is about a buck cheaper than even Amazon's price.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Another Blog Review!

Doug, of Baltimore Bistros and Beer, likes us - he really likes us! Read his thoughts on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore here.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Food Lovers' on Midday with Dan Rodricks

If you missed us chatting with Dan Rodricks and Sun restaurant critic Richard Gorelick on Midday with Dan Rodricks on WYPR 88.1FM today, there's a podcast of the show available on the WYPR Web site.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Greg's Bagels

Join us at Greg's Bagels in Belvedere Square this coming Saturday, March 23rd. We'll be on hand to sign copies of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore and eat some tasty bagels, too.

Hope to see you there!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Food Lovers on the Radio

Catch us on the radio, Friday, March 22nd, as we do Midday with Dan Rodricks on WYPR from 1-2pm. We'll be discussing notable MD restaurants outside of Baltimore.

If you don't have a radio handy, you can listen online at http://www.wypr.org/stationprogram/midday

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Restaurant Closings and Changes 3.19.2013

The bad news: DC's Mr. Yogato is no longer at 732 South Broadway in Fells Point. The good news: the space is now occupied by a second outpost of Hamilton Bakery.

The Dogwood restaurant on Hampden's Avenue closed on Sunday, March 17th.

Chameleon Café on Harford Road is now Maggie's Farm.

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Favorite Restaurants

Since our book, Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore, has been released, we've been asked repeatedly about our favorite restaurants. Namely - what are they?

Richard Gorelick of the Baltimore Sun asked the question during a quick phone interview, and my response was basically, "I'm fickle. I can't pick one." Which is absolutely true. I don't really have a favorite anything. (Ok, I do have a favorite husband, a favorite co-author, and a favorite house-mate - they are one and the same person.) As an example, my favorite color is chartreuse. And purple. Celadon green is lovely, and I am very fond of particular shades of pink. I've always been partial to the "mulberry" crayon in that big box of Crayolas, too. Oh, and black.

See what I mean?

I love to eat, but I don't have a favorite food. Maybe part of me feels guilty for singling out one particular thing while ignoring all of the others. Or maybe I'm just fickle. :)

I do love Asian cuisine above all others, but can't say I prefer Thai to Chinese or Japanese to Vietnamese. I love them all equally, at different times of the day or the week or the year. Yet, when I get asked about my favorite restaurant, I usually find it easiest to say Grace Garden, that hole-in-the wall Chinese place across from Fort Meade in Odenton. There aren't all that many great Chinese restaurants in the Baltimore area (in my opinion); too many of them serve typical American-style, overly-sweetened-and-sauced glop. And that's fine from time to time, as long as the glop is tasty and well-seasoned with garlic and chiles. Grace Garden serves some really terrific stuff, as close to authentic Sichuan cuisine as I'll probably ever eat. Out of the dozens of times I've been there, I've been disappointed by only one dish, so it's probably safe to put Grace Garden at the top of my list.

And then I think about Thai food. Well, since we're talking about Asian cuisine.... Honestly, there was a time when I could say my favorite Thai restaurant was Bangkok Place, a rather ugly restaurant on York Road in Govans that was closed a few years back, razed, and is now a row of equally-ugly, presumably low-income housing. We were there every other week, to feast on tod mun pla and gaeng dang salmon. And then it was gone. While it was conveniently located near our neighborhood, we did really think they had the best Thai food in the area. The spicing was bold, the sweetness was subtle, and they didn't shy away from using some real heat. And now they're gone. Our favorite Korean restaurant, Purim Oak, met the same fate. Well, just the closure part. Maybe it wasn't the best Korean food around, but we loved it.

Crush is another restaurant that came to mind when contemplating favorites. The restaurant in the old Hess shoe store at Belvedere Square filled many needs for us. If we wanted a quick meal, they had terrific burgers and I really adored the salmon BLT. If we wanted something fancier for a special occasion, Crush also fit that bill. The small plates restaurant that opened on the lower level, Demi, was pretty special, too.

Demi closed just after I finished its write-up for the book, and Crush closed after the book went to press, too late to remove it from the manuscript.

Considering our track record for closing places down, perhaps we should stay mum on the topic of favorite restaurants, eh? Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

More Media Mentions

There's a new article on the MyUpperChesapeake.com site today!  The site also includes a mention of Friday's signing at Mallow Bar (in case you've forgotten!)

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Mallow Bar Signing Rescheduled

Ok - let's try this again! We'll be at the Mallow Bar in Rosedale (8767-A Philadelphia Road) on March 15th to sign copies of the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore. Make sure you get your copy by pre-ordering; email press@themallowbar.com.

Come meet us and indulge your sweet tooth with some yummy Mallow Crunchies, too!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Win a Free Copy of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore!

Want to win a copy of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore? Then LIKE the book's Facebook page and SHARE this image on Facebook.

(It won't work unless you go to Facebook and click on the "share" link on the post. Otherwise, we'll have no record of your sharing it.)

You can also enter to win by retweeting this tweet on Facebook, from @FoodGuideBalto.

Want to win a copy of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore? LIKE our FB page and SHARE the contest image facebook.com/foodloversguid…
— FoodLoversGuideBalto (@FoodGuideBalto) March 6, 2013

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Restaurant Closings 2.28.2013

Sadly, since Food Lovers' Guide went to press, a few of the included restaurants and specialty shops have closed or relocated. We'll endeavor to post changes here on the blog. If anyone knows of additional closings or address changes, please drop us an email at foodloversguidebaltimore@gmail.com.

        Crush - gone, but not forgotten.

        The Gin Mill - now the Moonshine Tavern.

        Glarus Chocolatier - they're no longer in the Harbor East neighborhood and will reopen a
        retail store in northern Baltimore County.

        Max's Empanadas - will close their restaurant on March 23rd but will continue to sell their
        empanadas elsewhere, including local farmers' markets.


Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Baltimore Coffee & Tea

Our next book signing events will be at Baltimore Coffee & Tea! Pick up a couple pounds of your favorite caffeinated libation along with your copy of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Saturday, March 2nd
12-2pm
9 W Aylesbury Rd
Timonium, MD 21093
(410) 561-1080

Sunday, March 3rd
12-2pm
890 Bestgate Road
Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 573-5792

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

Mallow Bar Signing POSTPONED

The impending bad weather has caused us to postpone the Mallow Bar event for 2/22 until March. New date TBA. Stay tuned!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

In Good Taste

Baltimore Magazine's Food and Travel Editor Suzanne Loudermilk gave Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore a shout-out in her blog, In Good Taste.

Thanks, Suzanne!

Posted on Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

HowChow Approved!

HowChow, the blog that specializes in the food of Howard County, has posted a glowing recommendation of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore.

"Keep the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore in mind if you want a spectacular homewarming gift for friends who move from out of town. Where should we go out? Where is great sushi? What could we turn into a Saturday drive for special food? The answers are all in the Food Lovers' Guide, and your friends -- or your new neighbors or the new residents in your hospital -- can eat well while they learn the charms of the city."

(Makes a great wedding gift, too! ;) )

Thanks muchly to Brent, who was of great help to us as we wrote the book. His knowledge of the eateries in his part of the state was invaluable.

Sweet Treats at Mallow Bar

Join us this coming Friday, February 22nd, at the Mallow Bar, 8767 Philadelphia Road in Rosedale. We'll be there from 6-8pm, signing copies of Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore amid the sweet and delicious krispy treats of Nikki Lewis.

Hope to see you there!

Signing Schedule as of February 15th, 2013

The book's official launch was February 5th, and since then, we've had two signing events. Here are the events upcoming.

February 22nd
The Mallow Bar
6-8pm
8767 Philadelphia Rd Baltimore, MD 21237
(443) 231-7399

March 2nd
Baltimore Coffee & Tea
12-2pm
9 W Aylesbury Rd
Timonium, MD 21093
(410) 561-1080

March 3rd
Baltimore Coffee & Tea
12-2pm
890 Bestgate Road
Annapolis, MD 21401
(410) 573-5792

May 2nd
Taste of Pikesville
6-8:30pm
venue TBA

Here Comes the Sun!

Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore got a mention in today's Baltimore Sun!

We're in the Examiner!

Dara Bunjon, Baltimore's Dining Examiner, put together a nice article about Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore. It includes a brief interview with yours truly that might answer some of your burning questions about the book.

Check out the article here. It's also available in PDF format on the sidebar ----->

Early Reviews Are In!

So far, the Food Lovers' Guide to Baltimore has had a couple of mentions by local bloggers.

Way back at the beginning of the month, HowChow offered one man's opinion. A few weeks later, we heard from Kit Pollard of Mango & Ginger, who has some very nice things to say.

If anyone else has mentioned Food Lovers' Guide on their blog, can you drop us a line here and let us know? Thanks!