Anyone who has been following my Facebook page for the last week has seen a number of posts on ramps - and I'm talking about the vegetable, not the inclined plane. But I realize that a lot of people have never seen a ramp, let alone tasted one. So my goal here is to tell you the basics of identifying, locating, cleaning, storing, and preparing ramps.
Identification and procurement
The ramp (Allium tricoccum) is a wild onion or leek native to North America. They are most closely associated with Appalachia, but they grow across most of the eastern half of the US and Canada in shady forest areas. Their flavor is a mix of garlic and onion with a pronounced funk (some people say cheesiness) - the last bit is much more noticeable after they are cooked. They usually grow as 1-3 leaves from a white or red-tinged stem, and at least around here they have a habit of growing under rocks and on steep hillsides. The bulb and stem are scallion-like, while the leaves are more similar to leeks or garlic.
The most reliable way to get your hands on ramps is to forage them. They grow exceptionally slowly - one source I saw estimated that they can take 6-7 years to begin proliferating if you transplant them into your garden, which means that you have to wait that long to start harvesting. That makes asparagus look easy. This should also make it clear that over-foraging is a real concern - the only estimate I have seen is to harvest no more than 5% of a patch per year, but keep in mind that that covers the total harvest for that year, not just what you are taking.
If you're going to forage, try to go with someone who has done it before. While there are no widespread toxic mimics in the US, all foraging is best done with a teacher at first. And foraging is an oral tradition, so this way you can pass it on to others later on.
Ramps are one of the very first spring vegetables - here in Maryland, they are ready for harvest 4-6 weeks before asparagus and rhubarb. And you only get 3-4 weeks to harvest them, so you can't dawdle or you'll miss them. After that period, the leaves die back and they flower and go to seed.
Alternative to foraging: if you live in New York, ramps show up in huge quantities at the Union Square Greenmarket for a few weeks every spring. They're pricey but very fresh and delicious. I do recommend talking to the vendors and finding out what their foraging practices are like - again, sustainability is an issue here.
Cleaning and storage
I went foraging with a friend last week in [REDACTED] - she asked me not to share the forage location. I came back with a 5-gallon bucket full of ramps, or somewhere around 3.5 pounds. Ramps are extremely perishable - somewhat more so than fresh spinach, for a reference point. If you plan to use them within a week or so, you can hose off the roots and wrap them in a damp paper towel. If you want to eke out another few days, skip the hose just wrap the roots, dirt and all. I put my wrapped ramp bundles in a gallon plastic bag with holes poked in it for ventilation, then put them in the vegetable drawer of my fridge.
Preparation
When you're ready to use your ramps, preparing them is somewhat labor intensive. If they are still covered in dirt, fill your sink or another large basin with warm water, dump the ramps in, and swish them around to get the dirt off. I find the next step easiest if the roots and bulbs are facing away from you. Ramps (like most other Allium members) are covered in a thin slimy membrane or netting on the bulb, which you will need to get off. An easy way to get this off is to break the root end off the bulb, then run your hands down the bulb toward the root until you pull off the membrane. Then break off the bulb from the leaves and put them in separate bowls, as you will often want to prepare them in different fashions.
Once all of your ramps are clean and ready to use, you have several options:
1. Eat raw. My friend likes to eat them raw with beans and cornbread. Ramps are sweeter than raw onions and delicious raw, but a lot of people (me included) get mild stomach upset from eating raw alliums. So try a little bit first and see if they get along with you.
2. Pesto. You can blanch the ramps first or not - the pesto will be much stronger if you don't blanch, but the flavor is fantastic and like nothing else. I made pesto with about 12 ounces of raw ramps (bulbs, stems, and leaves) and a handful of walnuts to mellow it out a bit. Some of the leaves are a bit fibrous, but you'll see which as they just won't process very well. Just pull those out and toss them. The pesto emulsified very well without adding olive oil, so there must be some kind of natural emulsifier or saponin in the plant - I just added a little olive oil to round out the flavor. I got around a pint of bright green pesto and froze it in four portions for future dinners. It is very strong, very garlicky, and exactly how spring should taste.
3. Pickling. You can pickle the bulbs just like any onion - the leaves won't pickle well. Either vinegar or lactic-acid pickling should work.
4. Preserving in oil. While this is delicious and will leave you with some fantastic ramp-flavored oil, there is a theoretical risk of botulism. If you want to do this, I recommend researching online - there are a number of recipes and methods around that should reduce the botulism risk via prolonged exposure to heat.
5. Frying. This is how I'm preserving most of my ramps. First tear the leaves into 1-2" pieces, then wilt them in a hot frying pan with some olive oil, butter, bacon drippings, lard - whatever you want, really. Chop the stems and bulbs and add them to the frying pan once the leaves are wilted, along with more fat if you need it. I usually fry mine for 15 minutes or so, or until the ramps begin to brown. Then cool and pack in small containers. They will last a few weeks tightly sealed in the fridge, or quite a long time in the freezer. For freezing I recommend packing small portions in sandwich bags, then sealing them in freezer-safe Ziploc bags and getting as much air out as possible. You won't get a ton - 10-12 ounces raw will get you around a cup of finished caramelized ramps - but they're great for adding to any stir-fry, stew, or soup after that.
Showing posts with label maryland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label maryland. Show all posts
Sunday, April 10, 2016
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
The Cow (Westminster, MD)
The Cow is a cute little stand on 140 Boulevard that sells frozen custard and soft serve-type ice cream. Noah and I have been meaning to go there for awhile now, but we never seemed to be available when it was open. After a trip to Hanover, PA for sushi (look for a review in an upcoming blog post!), we decided now was finally the time to stop by The Cow.
We ordered a regular chocolate frozen custard, and it was great! It's a little difficult to write about soft-serve ice cream, because it either tastes like it should or it doesn't--not too much nuance out there unless you're going for some kind of gourmet soft serve (which we weren't). The atmosphere is also just right; a small stand with people milling around outside in the parking lot, with only a couple picnic tables to sit on.
The Cow also serves various ice cream-based desserts, and claims to have gelato, which I definitely will have to taste to believe--not a lot of gelato around here. We'll definitely be back!
The Cow
473 Baltimore Boulevard
Westminster, MD 21157
410-751-6269
We ordered a regular chocolate frozen custard, and it was great! It's a little difficult to write about soft-serve ice cream, because it either tastes like it should or it doesn't--not too much nuance out there unless you're going for some kind of gourmet soft serve (which we weren't). The atmosphere is also just right; a small stand with people milling around outside in the parking lot, with only a couple picnic tables to sit on.
The Cow also serves various ice cream-based desserts, and claims to have gelato, which I definitely will have to taste to believe--not a lot of gelato around here. We'll definitely be back!
The Cow
473 Baltimore Boulevard
Westminster, MD 21157
410-751-6269
Saturday, June 7, 2014
Lone Star BBQ (New Windsor, MD)
I love barbecue. Real smoked not-made-in-the-oven barbecue. This presents a problem in Maryland, where 95% or more of "barbecue" has never seen or touched a lick of smoke. One of the few good options, the aptly-named Smokers' BBQ in Finksburg, closed a few months ago, leaving me with nothing short of heading to Virginia.
Enter Lone Star BBQ in New Windsor. It's been open for a year, but Florence and I saw it for the first time passing through town last month. We needed an easy lunch today and decided to check it out. The first thing we saw as we drove up was a smoker out front: a very good sign. Inside it smelled like smoke and meat: another good sign. I was very encouraged at this point, and given the name I went for the most Texas of barbecue I could find: the brisket.
The platter arrived with sliced brisket, French fries, coleslaw, and cornbread. We dismissed the cornbread out of hand as it was wrapped in plastic. I did try it and determined that it was Northern-style sweet cornbread, which was too bad. The brisket was lightly smoky, juicy, and very flavorful. While I like my brisket to be more smoky and somewhat more fatty, this was excellent barbecue for anywhere in the North. It did not need sauce, which is another point in its favor. The fries were thick, hand-made, and very good. The coleslaw was particularly good - extremely fresh, not too much mayonnaise, and not sweet at all.
Would I eat at Lone Star if it were in Kansas City? Probably not. But in Maryland, or anywhere in the Northeast for that matter, it is excellent and deserves to be tried. I'll be going back with friends pretty soon.
Enter Lone Star BBQ in New Windsor. It's been open for a year, but Florence and I saw it for the first time passing through town last month. We needed an easy lunch today and decided to check it out. The first thing we saw as we drove up was a smoker out front: a very good sign. Inside it smelled like smoke and meat: another good sign. I was very encouraged at this point, and given the name I went for the most Texas of barbecue I could find: the brisket.
The platter arrived with sliced brisket, French fries, coleslaw, and cornbread. We dismissed the cornbread out of hand as it was wrapped in plastic. I did try it and determined that it was Northern-style sweet cornbread, which was too bad. The brisket was lightly smoky, juicy, and very flavorful. While I like my brisket to be more smoky and somewhat more fatty, this was excellent barbecue for anywhere in the North. It did not need sauce, which is another point in its favor. The fries were thick, hand-made, and very good. The coleslaw was particularly good - extremely fresh, not too much mayonnaise, and not sweet at all.
Would I eat at Lone Star if it were in Kansas City? Probably not. But in Maryland, or anywhere in the Northeast for that matter, it is excellent and deserves to be tried. I'll be going back with friends pretty soon.
Sunday, May 4, 2014
Buttersburg Inn (Union Bridge, MD)
The Buttersburg Inn is one of those places that every town seems to have tucked away somewhere. A simple, family-style American restaurant that does the classics and does them well. Usually, it's a pretty straightforward menu: fried chicken, roast beef, crab cakes, all the standards. Buttersburg Inn has those, and does an astoundingly good job with them. But the menu also has some food you don't see as much on your typical family-style restaurant menu--at least, not nowadays. Fried rabbit and Pennsylvania Dutch Hog Maw have been known to grace their menu on occasion, and some nights you can get liver and onions. (The menu also has an option to order this with "extra liver", which proves that someone at the restaurant has their priorities straight.)
Honestly, while everything we've tried at Buttersburg Inn has been great, you'd be wise to go with anything fried. Whoever mans the fryer at this restaurant knows what they are doing, and everything from fried chicken to fried oysters to french fries to corn fritters comes out fried to golden perfection. My favorite thing to get is definitely fried chicken--I don't know their secret ingredient, but I told them I'm pretty sure it's magic.
Buttersburg Inn is open all day most days (Tuesday-Saturday from 7am to 8 or 8:30pm depending on the day), but they are not open for dinner on Sundays. Like most restaurants around here, they are closed on Mondays.
The Buttersburg Inn
9 N. Main St.
Union Bridge, MD 21791
Phone: 410-775-9939
Honestly, while everything we've tried at Buttersburg Inn has been great, you'd be wise to go with anything fried. Whoever mans the fryer at this restaurant knows what they are doing, and everything from fried chicken to fried oysters to french fries to corn fritters comes out fried to golden perfection. My favorite thing to get is definitely fried chicken--I don't know their secret ingredient, but I told them I'm pretty sure it's magic.
Buttersburg Inn is open all day most days (Tuesday-Saturday from 7am to 8 or 8:30pm depending on the day), but they are not open for dinner on Sundays. Like most restaurants around here, they are closed on Mondays.
The Buttersburg Inn
9 N. Main St.
Union Bridge, MD 21791
Phone: 410-775-9939
Tuesday, March 11, 2014
Woodberry Kitchen (Baltimore, MD)
I've lived in Maryland for almost my whole life, and I've now lived in the Baltimore area for about 3 years. While I spend plenty of time discovering new restaurants in the counties adjoining Baltimore, I hadn't spent a lot of time looking at restaurants in Baltimore itself--it just never seemed worth it to venture out to the city, and even though Baltimore is rejuvenating itself over the years, it's a hard place to go on a casual visit. The neighborhoods with great restaurants are spread out just enough that in order to get between them you sometimes have to go through places you really, really don't want to go through. For awhile, I only had one restaurant I really liked to go to in Baltimore, and I didn't have much desire to branch out.
Last year, Noah suggested that we try someplace new for our anniversary. He'd heard a lot of great things about Woodberry Kitchen, and it was certainly in demand--the wait time for a reservation was more than we were used to. We managed to get a late-night reservation, which we still had to secure several months ahead of time. I don't have a record of that visit for you, but suffice it to say that we loved our experience at Woodberry Kitchen and decided to go back for our 1-year wedding anniversary this January. This time we were able to get a slightly earlier reservation, but at the cost of coming in at a much busier time. We also sat in an area with heavy traffic, which didn't have anything to do with our reservation but certainly made me miss the more secluded room we had been placed in last time. Because there was a wait, we sat at the bar and enjoyed some snacks and cocktails. I'm incredibly partial to the Gov't Mule cocktail, a ginger-based vodka drink. From what I gathered by looking at our neighbors at the bar, this is one of Woodberry Kitchen's most popular cocktails. Noah drank a Snake Charmer, a spiced rum drink with lots of delicious apple flavors.
Our snacks at the bar included popcorn (not only my favorite snack, but a Woodberry Kitchen mainstay that should not be missed), smoked rockfish fritters, and house made chips and sour cream and onion dip. There was not a misstep in anything we had, and the snacks paired perfectly with our cocktails. We were seated a bit after our reservation time due to a busy night (we were stunned to look up at one point and see Bill Cosby exit the restaurant with a group of his friends; at that point, you don't begrudge the staff for being a bit swamped), where we were given more chips as a consolation. Woodberry Kitchen's menu has changed as of this writing, so I don't have as many details on our dinner, but we had some boudin sausage, an incredibly smooth and delicious beef tartare, barbecued oysters, and a pasta with egg sauce.
Woodberry Kitchen is often crowded, loud and busy, but it's easy to see why. The restaurant specializes in making the most of local food and does it spectacularly well. The attention to detail in each area of the food and drinks is excellent, and the staff is busy but attentive and pleasant. There are a couple of spin-off restaurants associated with Woodberry Kitchen that are at the top of our list when we are in town again.
Woodberry Kitchen
2010 Clipper Park Rd. #126
Baltimore, MD
410-464-8000
http://www.woodberrykitchen.com/
Last year, Noah suggested that we try someplace new for our anniversary. He'd heard a lot of great things about Woodberry Kitchen, and it was certainly in demand--the wait time for a reservation was more than we were used to. We managed to get a late-night reservation, which we still had to secure several months ahead of time. I don't have a record of that visit for you, but suffice it to say that we loved our experience at Woodberry Kitchen and decided to go back for our 1-year wedding anniversary this January. This time we were able to get a slightly earlier reservation, but at the cost of coming in at a much busier time. We also sat in an area with heavy traffic, which didn't have anything to do with our reservation but certainly made me miss the more secluded room we had been placed in last time. Because there was a wait, we sat at the bar and enjoyed some snacks and cocktails. I'm incredibly partial to the Gov't Mule cocktail, a ginger-based vodka drink. From what I gathered by looking at our neighbors at the bar, this is one of Woodberry Kitchen's most popular cocktails. Noah drank a Snake Charmer, a spiced rum drink with lots of delicious apple flavors.
Our snacks at the bar included popcorn (not only my favorite snack, but a Woodberry Kitchen mainstay that should not be missed), smoked rockfish fritters, and house made chips and sour cream and onion dip. There was not a misstep in anything we had, and the snacks paired perfectly with our cocktails. We were seated a bit after our reservation time due to a busy night (we were stunned to look up at one point and see Bill Cosby exit the restaurant with a group of his friends; at that point, you don't begrudge the staff for being a bit swamped), where we were given more chips as a consolation. Woodberry Kitchen's menu has changed as of this writing, so I don't have as many details on our dinner, but we had some boudin sausage, an incredibly smooth and delicious beef tartare, barbecued oysters, and a pasta with egg sauce.
Woodberry Kitchen is often crowded, loud and busy, but it's easy to see why. The restaurant specializes in making the most of local food and does it spectacularly well. The attention to detail in each area of the food and drinks is excellent, and the staff is busy but attentive and pleasant. There are a couple of spin-off restaurants associated with Woodberry Kitchen that are at the top of our list when we are in town again.
Woodberry Kitchen
2010 Clipper Park Rd. #126
Baltimore, MD
410-464-8000
http://www.woodberrykitchen.com/
Monday, August 27, 2012
Taco Bar (Gaithersburg, MD)
I'm a sucker for good, authentic Mexican food--the more hole-in-the-wall the location, the better. The only exception is for someplace like Papa Joe's, which I wrote about in a previous post (though it's still acceptably out-of-the-way, hidden facing the back parking lot). So when I got a Mexican food craving while visiting my family in Gaithersburg, I figured I'd give a new place a try.
Taco Bar definitely has the atmosphere down, which I could tell before even going there because of its appropriately no-frills name. But when I got there, I realized it was an authentic Mexican taco bar, inside a liquor store. Which was attached to a gas station. Facing out onto the highway. If that's not hole-in-the-wall atmosphere, I don't know what is.
I ordered 3 tacos: 1 pastor, 1 suadero, and 1 lengua. I honestly couldn't tell which is which in the picture, since they all looked uniformly like meat on top of more meat. The tacos came out with just the meat in the tortillas, and there was a toppings bar inside where you could dress your taco up with 4 different sauces (2 mild and 2 hot, a red and green version of each), tomatoes, onions, and a mixture of the two. There may have been other toppings there as well, but those were the ones I used. These tacos were very good, but quite greasy and very filling. I still prefer Papa Joe's for overall quality, though I'd visit it again in a heartbeat when I'm in Gaithersburg.
My sister got a veggie burrito, which I think was a more American-style preparation. I only had one bite of it, but it was very good. She definitely enjoyed it a lot and is eager to go back here and eat more burritos.
Tacos here are $2.69 each, which is a pretty good price for Montgomery County. Of course, I'm used to $1 taco Tuesdays when Noah and I lived in Kansas City, but I recognize that's hard to find most places. They also have a selection of tortas I'm eager to try, as well as sopes, pozole, and empanadas. For such a small, slightly unsavory location, it's usually doing great business. I'll have to go back again and try more things!
Taco Bar Washingtonian
10003 Fields Road
Gaithersburg, MD 20878
(301)-987-0376
http://www.tacobarwashingtonian.com/index.html
Mon.-Thurs. 9-9
Friday 9-10
Saturday-Sunday 10-9
Taco Bar definitely has the atmosphere down, which I could tell before even going there because of its appropriately no-frills name. But when I got there, I realized it was an authentic Mexican taco bar, inside a liquor store. Which was attached to a gas station. Facing out onto the highway. If that's not hole-in-the-wall atmosphere, I don't know what is.
I ordered 3 tacos: 1 pastor, 1 suadero, and 1 lengua. I honestly couldn't tell which is which in the picture, since they all looked uniformly like meat on top of more meat. The tacos came out with just the meat in the tortillas, and there was a toppings bar inside where you could dress your taco up with 4 different sauces (2 mild and 2 hot, a red and green version of each), tomatoes, onions, and a mixture of the two. There may have been other toppings there as well, but those were the ones I used. These tacos were very good, but quite greasy and very filling. I still prefer Papa Joe's for overall quality, though I'd visit it again in a heartbeat when I'm in Gaithersburg.
Tacos here are $2.69 each, which is a pretty good price for Montgomery County. Of course, I'm used to $1 taco Tuesdays when Noah and I lived in Kansas City, but I recognize that's hard to find most places. They also have a selection of tortas I'm eager to try, as well as sopes, pozole, and empanadas. For such a small, slightly unsavory location, it's usually doing great business. I'll have to go back again and try more things!
Taco Bar Washingtonian
10003 Fields Road
Gaithersburg, MD 20878
(301)-987-0376
http://www.tacobarwashingtonian.com/index.html
Mon.-Thurs. 9-9
Friday 9-10
Saturday-Sunday 10-9
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Birdie's Cafe (Westminster, MD)
I don't drink coffee. I have an immunity to caffeine, and the taste of coffee is not enough for me to justify drinking it on a regular basis. But no matter where I live, I have to find the perfect coffee house, one of those places where I can feel right at home even when I'm not at home. My ideal coffee house has the following qualities:
-excellent food
-great hot chocolate (gotta drink something instead of coffee!)
-quirky atmosphere (I like coffee houses with lots of art on the walls, or books lying around, or even just a slightly eccentric clientele)
-friendly staff
When Noah and I lived in Kansas City, my coffee house was called Broadway Cafe, and I spent many lunch hours drinking hot chocolate and reading there. The baristas knew my name, and it was a great place to sit and watch the world go by. Of course, when I moved to Westminster, I had to find a new coffee house. I tried a couple, but they didn't really wow me. I eventually found my way to Heinz Bakery, which was great on the "excellent food" and "friendly staff" front but not the exact place I was looking for. And then I found Birdie's.
When I ran into Birdie's, it hadn't even had its grand opening yet (and yes, it was open before its grand opening. I don't even know). I was walking back from the farmer's market with a friend and I saw it from across the street. The logo, with its name inside a stylized drawing of a bird's nest, and its friendly-looking, colorfully-painted building caught my eye and I insisted that we go in. Walking in showed me a narrow hallway that led onto chalkboards with a variety of delicious-looking food specials, and the walls were covered with art. (Birdie's now posts a flag outside their door alerting people to the fact that they are officially an art-friendly business.) There were flowers and decorative birds on the tables, colorful couches to sit on, vibrant painted walls, a small magazine rack, and the tables had a checkerboard pattern so you could play checkers or chess with a friend while eating your salads and sandwiches. It immediately became my go-to coffee house.
My favorite things to have at Birdie's:
1. Avocado salad. Avocados are one of my favorite foods, and this salad features a mound of salad greens topped with avocado slices, peppers, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, and a variety of other things you can ask to have included. Their homemade vinaigrette is my favorite dressing for this salad.
2. Veggie sandwich. Much like the avocado salad but on a sandwich, this includes avocados and hummus (!), plus all the above vegetables. I like to have it on their sourdough, but it's probably excellent with any bread.
3. Lox sandwich. I have them go light on the cream cheese, because I don't like a lot of cream cheese on a sandwich. Go for onions, capers, or both on this sandwich--you won't regret it.
4. BLT. Need I explain! I like them to put pesto on the BLT (along with the mayo they include--you would think this would taste bad, but the flavors actually meld together rather well), though sometimes I have them put avocados on instead. They have no problem customizing sandwiches.
To drink I love their hot chocolate, which is nice and rich with a strong dash of vanilla, or their raspberry ice tea, which is unsweetened and delicious. Over 4th of July weekend they had blueberry lemonade, but regrettably I didn't have an opportunity to go over there and try it. :-(
Well, I'm off to the library. And Birdie's is just a 5-minute walk from my house...maybe I'll stop by for an avocado salad on my way home? ;-)
-excellent food
-great hot chocolate (gotta drink something instead of coffee!)
-quirky atmosphere (I like coffee houses with lots of art on the walls, or books lying around, or even just a slightly eccentric clientele)
-friendly staff
When Noah and I lived in Kansas City, my coffee house was called Broadway Cafe, and I spent many lunch hours drinking hot chocolate and reading there. The baristas knew my name, and it was a great place to sit and watch the world go by. Of course, when I moved to Westminster, I had to find a new coffee house. I tried a couple, but they didn't really wow me. I eventually found my way to Heinz Bakery, which was great on the "excellent food" and "friendly staff" front but not the exact place I was looking for. And then I found Birdie's.
When I ran into Birdie's, it hadn't even had its grand opening yet (and yes, it was open before its grand opening. I don't even know). I was walking back from the farmer's market with a friend and I saw it from across the street. The logo, with its name inside a stylized drawing of a bird's nest, and its friendly-looking, colorfully-painted building caught my eye and I insisted that we go in. Walking in showed me a narrow hallway that led onto chalkboards with a variety of delicious-looking food specials, and the walls were covered with art. (Birdie's now posts a flag outside their door alerting people to the fact that they are officially an art-friendly business.) There were flowers and decorative birds on the tables, colorful couches to sit on, vibrant painted walls, a small magazine rack, and the tables had a checkerboard pattern so you could play checkers or chess with a friend while eating your salads and sandwiches. It immediately became my go-to coffee house.
My favorite things to have at Birdie's:
1. Avocado salad. Avocados are one of my favorite foods, and this salad features a mound of salad greens topped with avocado slices, peppers, onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, and a variety of other things you can ask to have included. Their homemade vinaigrette is my favorite dressing for this salad.
2. Veggie sandwich. Much like the avocado salad but on a sandwich, this includes avocados and hummus (!), plus all the above vegetables. I like to have it on their sourdough, but it's probably excellent with any bread.
3. Lox sandwich. I have them go light on the cream cheese, because I don't like a lot of cream cheese on a sandwich. Go for onions, capers, or both on this sandwich--you won't regret it.
4. BLT. Need I explain! I like them to put pesto on the BLT (along with the mayo they include--you would think this would taste bad, but the flavors actually meld together rather well), though sometimes I have them put avocados on instead. They have no problem customizing sandwiches.
To drink I love their hot chocolate, which is nice and rich with a strong dash of vanilla, or their raspberry ice tea, which is unsweetened and delicious. Over 4th of July weekend they had blueberry lemonade, but regrettably I didn't have an opportunity to go over there and try it. :-(
Well, I'm off to the library. And Birdie's is just a 5-minute walk from my house...maybe I'll stop by for an avocado salad on my way home? ;-)
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Athens Grill (Gaithersburg, MD)
Well, everyone, the time has finally come. It is time for me to tell you about my favorite restaurant in the entire world.
When I was growing up, it was always a special treat when we could go out and bring home food from Athens Grill for dinner. This tiny little Greek restaurant in the middle of a shopping center in Gaithersburg turns out generous portions of delicious food, and the owner is a gregarious man who always recognizes us when we come in. There are only about ten tables in the entire place, and while it's not usually packed, it's pretty much never empty--the stream of people coming in and out is almost constant. It's simple in decor, and there's no waitstaff, so you order at the counter and pick it up when you're called. It is definitely one of those hole-in-the-wall places where you come for the food.
And oh, the food. I usually get one of the souvlaki platters, which has a gigantic amount of food and is one of the best things you can get. It includes kebab-type skewers with shrimp, chicken, or lamb, and a large amount of Greek salad on the side, plus pita and your choice of fries or rice. I thought I had a picture of it on my computer, but apparently I don't (either that, or I missed it looking through the zillions of unorganized photos on my laptop). I've tried every one of their souvlaki platters, and they're all so amazing that I actually haven't gotten around to ordering anything else. However, I do have some experience with other things on their menu, since my family depends on Athens Grill for my mom's side of the family's holiday party every year. We order a whole rotisserie chicken from them, along with sides of things like rice and salad. It's always a hit at my house once the holiday season kicks in.
To sum up:
Amazing food? Check.
Hole-in-the-wall ambiance? Check.
Friendly staff? Check.
Even more amazing food? Check.
Looks like it has all the makings of a restaurant I love.
Athens Grill
9124 Rothbury Drive
Gaithersburg, MD 20879
(301)-975-0757
When I was growing up, it was always a special treat when we could go out and bring home food from Athens Grill for dinner. This tiny little Greek restaurant in the middle of a shopping center in Gaithersburg turns out generous portions of delicious food, and the owner is a gregarious man who always recognizes us when we come in. There are only about ten tables in the entire place, and while it's not usually packed, it's pretty much never empty--the stream of people coming in and out is almost constant. It's simple in decor, and there's no waitstaff, so you order at the counter and pick it up when you're called. It is definitely one of those hole-in-the-wall places where you come for the food.
And oh, the food. I usually get one of the souvlaki platters, which has a gigantic amount of food and is one of the best things you can get. It includes kebab-type skewers with shrimp, chicken, or lamb, and a large amount of Greek salad on the side, plus pita and your choice of fries or rice. I thought I had a picture of it on my computer, but apparently I don't (either that, or I missed it looking through the zillions of unorganized photos on my laptop). I've tried every one of their souvlaki platters, and they're all so amazing that I actually haven't gotten around to ordering anything else. However, I do have some experience with other things on their menu, since my family depends on Athens Grill for my mom's side of the family's holiday party every year. We order a whole rotisserie chicken from them, along with sides of things like rice and salad. It's always a hit at my house once the holiday season kicks in.
To sum up:
Amazing food? Check.
Hole-in-the-wall ambiance? Check.
Friendly staff? Check.
Even more amazing food? Check.
Looks like it has all the makings of a restaurant I love.
Athens Grill
9124 Rothbury Drive
Gaithersburg, MD 20879
(301)-975-0757
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Papa Joe's (Westminster, MD)
It has come to my attention that, despite having lived in Westminster for almost a year and a half, I have yet to review my favorite restaurant here! This must be remedied, especially since I'm home from work today with some yucky feverish achy illness and have nothing to do but write restaurant reviews, catch up on lesson planning, and watch back episodes of "Glee".
In a town where almost every restaurant features an practically-interchangeable menu of traditional American fare that one would expect from a small rural area, Papa Joe's is an anomaly. This little Mexican restaurant faces the back entrance of Westminster's historic Main Street, fairly well-hidden unless you're coming through the back parking lot. Noah and I happened upon it last year when we were looking at Westminster apartments, and though we didn't expect it to be any good, we were tired and hungry and decided to take our chances.
Luckily, Papa Joe's is a pleasant surprise! Apart from lettuce and sour cream-laden American tacos and the like, Papa Joe's does a nice variety of traditional Mexican standards. Their Mexican-style tacos, with just meat, cilantro, and onion, are a standby order for me. I also tend to order their tortas, particularly the egg and chorizo laden down with jalapenos and avocado and all manner of other goodies. It's hard to even eat the thing without bits of everything falling down on the table (and, in the winter, down your sleeves--my least favorite thing about long-sleeved shirts).
The real time to go to Papa Joe's, however, is on the weekend when they have off-menu weekend specials. Here's where the real traditional food comes out, like pozole and menudo and more authentic tostadas than the ones featured on their regular menu. Here's an example of some tostadas we had over the summer:
Although I don't see nearly enough people ordering the more authentic dishes, the restaurant is extremely popular and frequently has a wait, especially on weekends. The real test of its excellence? Noah currently lives in Jackson Heights, the hotbed of traditional Latin American food in Queens, and he still looks forward to going to Papa Joe's when he comes here. What higher praise could you ask for?
Papa Joe's
27 E. Main St. (in rear municipal parking lot)
Westminster, MD 21157
(410)-871-2505
Mon.-Thurs. 11am-10pm
Fri. and Sat. 11am-11pm
In a town where almost every restaurant features an practically-interchangeable menu of traditional American fare that one would expect from a small rural area, Papa Joe's is an anomaly. This little Mexican restaurant faces the back entrance of Westminster's historic Main Street, fairly well-hidden unless you're coming through the back parking lot. Noah and I happened upon it last year when we were looking at Westminster apartments, and though we didn't expect it to be any good, we were tired and hungry and decided to take our chances.
Luckily, Papa Joe's is a pleasant surprise! Apart from lettuce and sour cream-laden American tacos and the like, Papa Joe's does a nice variety of traditional Mexican standards. Their Mexican-style tacos, with just meat, cilantro, and onion, are a standby order for me. I also tend to order their tortas, particularly the egg and chorizo laden down with jalapenos and avocado and all manner of other goodies. It's hard to even eat the thing without bits of everything falling down on the table (and, in the winter, down your sleeves--my least favorite thing about long-sleeved shirts).
The real time to go to Papa Joe's, however, is on the weekend when they have off-menu weekend specials. Here's where the real traditional food comes out, like pozole and menudo and more authentic tostadas than the ones featured on their regular menu. Here's an example of some tostadas we had over the summer:
Although I don't see nearly enough people ordering the more authentic dishes, the restaurant is extremely popular and frequently has a wait, especially on weekends. The real test of its excellence? Noah currently lives in Jackson Heights, the hotbed of traditional Latin American food in Queens, and he still looks forward to going to Papa Joe's when he comes here. What higher praise could you ask for?
Papa Joe's
27 E. Main St. (in rear municipal parking lot)
Westminster, MD 21157
(410)-871-2505
Mon.-Thurs. 11am-10pm
Fri. and Sat. 11am-11pm
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Back in the saddle in Elmhurst
Well, I am sure glad that Florence has been posting to this blog for the past year, because obviously I haven't been doing anything with it. I could use as an excuse the fact that I've moved three times since May, but I actually just got really lazy and also stopped taking pictures. For some reason I don't enjoy taking pictures of my food - when I get something that looks amazing and delicious (either in a restaurant or at home) I just want to dive in with nothing in-between me and the food. Not even a camera for posterity's sake. Florence suggested that I do my posts more restaurant-review style, which I think is a great idea - reviews are typically light on the pictures and heavy on the content. I will endeavor to do the same.
My half of the blog is now being brought to you from Elmhurst, Queens, New York City. How did I end up here, you ask? It's...sort of a long story. I left Kansas City with Florence last May after completing graduate school there, and we moved into an adorable house in rural Maryland of which there are pictures several posts below. Unfortunately rural Maryland is not exactly brimming with jobs. We lived in a farm county, and retail was really the only option. Retail was barely paying my bills as was, and I knew that I had student loans coming up in a few months - I had to get a better job, and the only way to do that was to move home. So back to the NY suburbs for several months, and then a few weeks ago I decided it was time to move to the city. Not Manhattan - I think I would go crazy if I lived in Manhattan (not to mention the rent). But Queens - Queens is quiet enough and cheaper, and I unwittingly moved to an apartment about a ten-minute walk from Elmhurst's Chinatown. (Let me note that good Chinese is one of my favorites of all types of food.) From KC to a no-stoplight town to Westchester to Queens in under a year - it's been a little hairy at times, but I am more than ready to start writing about the foodways and delicious delicacies of this part of Queens.
Up next: dumpling houses, and an exemplary one just down the street.
My half of the blog is now being brought to you from Elmhurst, Queens, New York City. How did I end up here, you ask? It's...sort of a long story. I left Kansas City with Florence last May after completing graduate school there, and we moved into an adorable house in rural Maryland of which there are pictures several posts below. Unfortunately rural Maryland is not exactly brimming with jobs. We lived in a farm county, and retail was really the only option. Retail was barely paying my bills as was, and I knew that I had student loans coming up in a few months - I had to get a better job, and the only way to do that was to move home. So back to the NY suburbs for several months, and then a few weeks ago I decided it was time to move to the city. Not Manhattan - I think I would go crazy if I lived in Manhattan (not to mention the rent). But Queens - Queens is quiet enough and cheaper, and I unwittingly moved to an apartment about a ten-minute walk from Elmhurst's Chinatown. (Let me note that good Chinese is one of my favorites of all types of food.) From KC to a no-stoplight town to Westchester to Queens in under a year - it's been a little hairy at times, but I am more than ready to start writing about the foodways and delicious delicacies of this part of Queens.
Up next: dumpling houses, and an exemplary one just down the street.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
NYC food adventures, and the best mussels we've ever had
One of the best things about getting to visit Noah in New York (besides, of course, the "getting to see Noah" part) is being able to have days when we just go to the city and try to experience as much of the food atmosphere as possible. The small town where I live is almost stiflingly homogeneous food-wise, so the wealth of options available in New York is intensely refreshing. In early January, I took the bus to New York to surprise Noah with a visit (I had planned it in advance with his parents, and miraculously none of us managed to give away the surprise!), which was a huge surprise for him (he had no idea!) and was a lot of fun. Since he wasn't dong anything in particular that weekend, we decided to take a day and have adventures--or "foodventures", as we like to call them.
Our first stop was Doughnut Plant, where we started our day right with delicious fresh doughnuts. I had a hazelnut doughnut, because I am helpless to the power of hazelnuts, and Noah's was Meyer lemon. Then we went to Kossar's and had bialys. At least, I think we did. My memory is hazy after so many weeks, so I don't remember exactly where we went or what kind of bialys we had, just that we had bialys somewhere and they were really good and there wasn't a lot of seating so we pretty much had to squeeze onto one chair. From there we stopped briefly at an amazing pickle place where pretty much anything you can think of existed in its pickle form. We gaped at the selection of pickled things (I love pickles, so it was like the mothership calling me home), but decided we were going to come back to it. We never did, because we got distracted., Maybe next time! My google searches do not come up conclusive on what the place was called. This concluded Leg One of our food tour: the Lower East Side.
Our next leg was the Chinatown leg. We were only in Chinatown for one thing, and that was super-cheap dumplings. After some preliminary research, we finally decided on a dumpling house called, well...Dumpling House. (I believe my Google search also comes up with Vanessa's Dumpling House, but I can't remember if they're the same place.) We started our time there with 2 orders of dumplings. The dumplings are all crammed together in one small container, and 1 order (containing 4 dumplings) is $1. Can't get much better than that! We followed it up with a sesame pancake (Dumpling House has several varieties, and I can't remember which one we had...this'll teach me to wait so long to write my food blog entries) and some kind of soup--I think it was the pork wonton soup, but again, not sure. Dumpling House is definitely the kind of place I'd be at all the time if I lived in NY--it's super crowded, everybody's pressed together like sardines jostling each other as they eat their delicious (and budget-friendly) dumplings. I'm looking forward to visiting there more times during my regular visits to the city.
We then abandoned Chinatown for a very cold and windy walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, which made me wish I'd brought a hat, but was still exciting because I'd never walked across the Brooklyn Bridge before. We were in Brooklyn for the Mile End deli, where we'd heard there were amazing smoked meats being made. And the smoked meats were really good! After a wait, we ordered the smoked meats and also a house-ground salami sandwich (I tried to get the menu on my computer, but for some reason my computer loaded it really tiny and I couldn't make the window any bigger, so I can't actually read the menu to tell you what the sandwich was called). The smoked meat sandwich was good, but we actually liked the salami sandwich better. If I remember correctly, we also had pickles. And I had a cup of tea, because I was really cold. Mile End is a great place if you enjoy people who put a lot of care into their meat, and if you've got some time on your hands (there is always always always a wait, from what I've heard, so don't expect to just waltz right in). I would definitely go back to try more of their menu, or just eat more delicious salami sandwiches.
3 days after I went back to MD from that trip, Noah came to visit me for MLK Day weekend! We had 3 days to spend together, which coincided with an early celebration of our 2.5-year anniversary. (Since we had had feelings for each other for a while before we got together, and because we were a bit hazy on when we actually became an official couple, we chose July 26, 2008 as our anniversary because that's when we believe everything really started.) Because we had an anniversary to celebrate, we decided to go someplace nice for dinner, and after some deliberation we chose a little Bistro in Baltimore called b. It was a great choice for a nice dinner--it was intimate and friendly, and pretty much everything on the menu was strong. We got a selection of appetizers, tapas-style, and then shared an order of moules-frites. The appetizers included: olives (Noah's email reminding me of where we went and what we ate describes this as "roasted olives with lemon peel and some other stuff"), a charcuterie plate with amazingly delicious duck prosciutto as well as really good bresaola and serrano ham, served with fried bread, and a potato appetizer that was reminiscent of the patatas bravas that you get at tapas places everywhere. The potatoes were SO good--the waitress had placed them by me, and I definitely had a hard time sharing! ;-)
The star of the show, however, was without a doubt the moules-frites. The mussels were the best mussels either of us had ever had. They tasted like they had never known the inside of a freezer, and were incredibly fresh and well-prepared. They were served with frites, which were also excellently done. The meal was so good that I wrote a thank-you note to the staff on the back of my receipt and left it for them. There couldn't have been a better way to celebrate 2.5 years together then with good food and wine and the company of your partner. :-)
Coming attractions:
Check back in the next couple of days for my (slightly unusual) entry in this year's Novel Food, a celebration of literature and food organized by a food blog I've been reading for a while now. I'm not sure my entry will be accepted, since I didn't base it on a novel (more of a nonfiction book), but you'll get to see it regardless! I also may talk about an excellent stir-fry I made the other day from an even more awesome cookbook that you should all go out and buy. But that's later.
ADDRESSES:
Doughnut Plant
379 Grand St.
New York, NY 10002
Kossar's Bialys
367 Grand St.
New York, NY 10002
Dumpling House (this address is for Vanessa's Dumpling House, because I think it's the same thing)
118 Eldridge St.
New York, NY 10002
Mile End Delicatessen
97a Hoyt St.
Brooklyn, NY
b
1501 Bolton St.
Baltimore, MD 21217
Our first stop was Doughnut Plant, where we started our day right with delicious fresh doughnuts. I had a hazelnut doughnut, because I am helpless to the power of hazelnuts, and Noah's was Meyer lemon. Then we went to Kossar's and had bialys. At least, I think we did. My memory is hazy after so many weeks, so I don't remember exactly where we went or what kind of bialys we had, just that we had bialys somewhere and they were really good and there wasn't a lot of seating so we pretty much had to squeeze onto one chair. From there we stopped briefly at an amazing pickle place where pretty much anything you can think of existed in its pickle form. We gaped at the selection of pickled things (I love pickles, so it was like the mothership calling me home), but decided we were going to come back to it. We never did, because we got distracted., Maybe next time! My google searches do not come up conclusive on what the place was called. This concluded Leg One of our food tour: the Lower East Side.
Our next leg was the Chinatown leg. We were only in Chinatown for one thing, and that was super-cheap dumplings. After some preliminary research, we finally decided on a dumpling house called, well...Dumpling House. (I believe my Google search also comes up with Vanessa's Dumpling House, but I can't remember if they're the same place.) We started our time there with 2 orders of dumplings. The dumplings are all crammed together in one small container, and 1 order (containing 4 dumplings) is $1. Can't get much better than that! We followed it up with a sesame pancake (Dumpling House has several varieties, and I can't remember which one we had...this'll teach me to wait so long to write my food blog entries) and some kind of soup--I think it was the pork wonton soup, but again, not sure. Dumpling House is definitely the kind of place I'd be at all the time if I lived in NY--it's super crowded, everybody's pressed together like sardines jostling each other as they eat their delicious (and budget-friendly) dumplings. I'm looking forward to visiting there more times during my regular visits to the city.
We then abandoned Chinatown for a very cold and windy walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, which made me wish I'd brought a hat, but was still exciting because I'd never walked across the Brooklyn Bridge before. We were in Brooklyn for the Mile End deli, where we'd heard there were amazing smoked meats being made. And the smoked meats were really good! After a wait, we ordered the smoked meats and also a house-ground salami sandwich (I tried to get the menu on my computer, but for some reason my computer loaded it really tiny and I couldn't make the window any bigger, so I can't actually read the menu to tell you what the sandwich was called). The smoked meat sandwich was good, but we actually liked the salami sandwich better. If I remember correctly, we also had pickles. And I had a cup of tea, because I was really cold. Mile End is a great place if you enjoy people who put a lot of care into their meat, and if you've got some time on your hands (there is always always always a wait, from what I've heard, so don't expect to just waltz right in). I would definitely go back to try more of their menu, or just eat more delicious salami sandwiches.
3 days after I went back to MD from that trip, Noah came to visit me for MLK Day weekend! We had 3 days to spend together, which coincided with an early celebration of our 2.5-year anniversary. (Since we had had feelings for each other for a while before we got together, and because we were a bit hazy on when we actually became an official couple, we chose July 26, 2008 as our anniversary because that's when we believe everything really started.) Because we had an anniversary to celebrate, we decided to go someplace nice for dinner, and after some deliberation we chose a little Bistro in Baltimore called b. It was a great choice for a nice dinner--it was intimate and friendly, and pretty much everything on the menu was strong. We got a selection of appetizers, tapas-style, and then shared an order of moules-frites. The appetizers included: olives (Noah's email reminding me of where we went and what we ate describes this as "roasted olives with lemon peel and some other stuff"), a charcuterie plate with amazingly delicious duck prosciutto as well as really good bresaola and serrano ham, served with fried bread, and a potato appetizer that was reminiscent of the patatas bravas that you get at tapas places everywhere. The potatoes were SO good--the waitress had placed them by me, and I definitely had a hard time sharing! ;-)
The star of the show, however, was without a doubt the moules-frites. The mussels were the best mussels either of us had ever had. They tasted like they had never known the inside of a freezer, and were incredibly fresh and well-prepared. They were served with frites, which were also excellently done. The meal was so good that I wrote a thank-you note to the staff on the back of my receipt and left it for them. There couldn't have been a better way to celebrate 2.5 years together then with good food and wine and the company of your partner. :-)
Coming attractions:
Check back in the next couple of days for my (slightly unusual) entry in this year's Novel Food, a celebration of literature and food organized by a food blog I've been reading for a while now. I'm not sure my entry will be accepted, since I didn't base it on a novel (more of a nonfiction book), but you'll get to see it regardless! I also may talk about an excellent stir-fry I made the other day from an even more awesome cookbook that you should all go out and buy. But that's later.
ADDRESSES:
Doughnut Plant
379 Grand St.
New York, NY 10002
Kossar's Bialys
367 Grand St.
New York, NY 10002
Dumpling House (this address is for Vanessa's Dumpling House, because I think it's the same thing)
118 Eldridge St.
New York, NY 10002
Mile End Delicatessen
97a Hoyt St.
Brooklyn, NY
b
1501 Bolton St.
Baltimore, MD 21217
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Caribbean Kitchen; or, A Good Way to Beat Rush Hour
A couple days ago, Noah and I were driving home after picking up our CSA share when we ran into some big traffic problems. An accident had closed off Route 140, pretty much the only way into Westminster from the Baltimore area, and everywhere else was severely clogged with rush-hour traffic. After driving on Route 26 for a little while, we decided we'd had enough and we would stop at the first interesting-looking restaurant we could find on Route 26. Soon enough, when we spotted a small yellow building called Caribbean Kitchen, were immediately intrigued.
Caribbean Kitchen is exactly the kind of restaurant I like to visit. It's small, friendly, unassuming, and the prices are as reasonable as the food is delicious. We shared an excellent jerk chicken meal, which came with the chicken and sides of rice and peas, plantains, and cabbage. The cabbage wasn't all that exciting, but it complemented everything else well. And I love plantains, so this was very exciting for me! The chicken was pretty spicy, but not as spicy as the person who took our order made it sound (maybe people in the area don't have as much of a tolerance for heat as we do?). It did come with a sauce on the side which had a nice kick, though.
As we left, the person at the front asked how we liked our meal and mentioned that she was surprised we had enjoyed the spicy chicken. "Oh, it wasn't that spicy", we demurred. "Really?", she said. "Well, next time you come, I'll make it real spicy for you." I can't wait!
Caribbean Kitchen
8139 Liberty Road,
Windsor Mill, MD 21244-3043
(410) 496-6222
PS-Today we're experiencing another good kind of food--the down-home church dinner! There's a Methodist church next door to our apartment that's serving an all-you-can-eat dinner tonight. How can we not check it out?
Caribbean Kitchen is exactly the kind of restaurant I like to visit. It's small, friendly, unassuming, and the prices are as reasonable as the food is delicious. We shared an excellent jerk chicken meal, which came with the chicken and sides of rice and peas, plantains, and cabbage. The cabbage wasn't all that exciting, but it complemented everything else well. And I love plantains, so this was very exciting for me! The chicken was pretty spicy, but not as spicy as the person who took our order made it sound (maybe people in the area don't have as much of a tolerance for heat as we do?). It did come with a sauce on the side which had a nice kick, though.
As we left, the person at the front asked how we liked our meal and mentioned that she was surprised we had enjoyed the spicy chicken. "Oh, it wasn't that spicy", we demurred. "Really?", she said. "Well, next time you come, I'll make it real spicy for you." I can't wait!
Caribbean Kitchen
8139 Liberty Road,
Windsor Mill, MD 21244-3043
PS-Today we're experiencing another good kind of food--the down-home church dinner! There's a Methodist church next door to our apartment that's serving an all-you-can-eat dinner tonight. How can we not check it out?
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