Grilled Cheese & Co.

Ah, Twitter. It's turning out to be much more useful than I had ever imagined. Thanks to Twitter, I found out about the wonderful Iced Gems Baking. And also thanks to Twitter, I found out about a much-needed restaurant right off of Exit 14, that I will have to add to my Back to the Beltway series, starting in June. The catch: this place specializes in all manners of grilled cheese. Wonderful, gooey, filling grilled cheese. And a grilled cheese was exactly what I needed on an unusually cold and damp day in the middle of May.

Obviously, I have come to the Grilled Cheese & Co dance late. The place has only been open for two months, and already it's so popular it was packed - I mean packed - around lunch time. Grilled Cheese & Co's many offerings are written in big, colorful chalk letters all across one wall in the extremely cozy establishment. It's not easy to hear because the place is buzzing with lunchgoers having loud, grilled-cheese-addled conversations. Who knew grilled cheese could be so exciting?

I'm not quite sure if Grilled Cheese & Co is a franchise or not. There is but one location, in Catonsville, but the website gives the impression that they're all over the place. Perhaps it'll spread?

Grilled Cheese & Co definitely puts a new spin on this old American classic. If you want just the standard American cheese sandwich, it'll cost you $5. You will probably want something a bit more fascinating, and this place can accommodate you handily. Just a few of their offerings include: the Blue Ox Crumbled Sandwich ($7), the first grilled blue cheese sandwich I have ever heard of, and also with grilled steak and horseradish sauce; the Crabby Melt ($7.50) with both Monterey Jack, cheese and - gasp! - blue crab; and the Sweetest Thing sandwich ($7.50), a sinful combination of brie, raspberry mascarpone and chocolate chips. This was what originally enticed me into the place, but it seemed too sweet and sugary for lunch.


I went for the more savory Fresco ($7), a grilled cheese with two types of mozzarella, as well as roasted peppers, pesto and a balsamic glaze and olive oil. For just $2 more I also got sweet potato fries and a 22 oz drink. The sandwich was absolutely luscious. The blend of the sweet peppers with the hearty mozzarella and the pesto all melded well in this sandwich that I had never even thought of before. Although greasy on the outside - I mean, it is a grilled cheese sandwich - the bread remained crispy and crunchy while the mozzarella filling was substantive and gooey. I had planned to save half of the sandwich for later, but I just couldn't. I ate the whole thing at once. It was that good. I cannot say as much for the sweet potato fries. I've had more interesting ones. These were pretty average as sweet potato fries go. But you probably won't go there for the fries.

It's about damn well time somebody opened a restaurant that specialized in grilled cheeses! If you just want the standard with American cheese and nothing else, it'll probably be much better than those nasty ones you got in grade school that were heated in their plastic wrap and somehow managed to be both tough and gummy at the same time. The age of that grilled cheese is gone.

Little Phoenix

I had the pleasure of going to Little Phoenix in Catonsville for some orange chicken. It's a little more money than most Chinese lunch deals, but you do taste it. Most orange chickens I have had come coated in a crisp, sometimes overly chewy coating with a little too much breading in the middle, even at some of my favorite Chinese take outs. The orange chicken at Little Phoenix tasted juicier and less "processed". That doesn't mean it wasn't processed, just that it didn't taste like it. Plus, the coating was not gummy or hard at all. It wasn't particularly crispy, but the flavor and the juiciness made me forget about that. I was also impressed that the food was still hot enough to burn my mouth after the half hour drive home. That has never happened before. I also had fresh and crisp broccoli and a dried red chili pepper - this last thing is not something I often see in orange chicken.

On the minus side, I wasn't particularly sold on the rice - I should've specified that I wanted white rice instead of stir-fried - but I dealt with it. For $6 it was a tasty and filling meal. Really. Normally I eat half and put the rest away. I almost ate the whole thing this time.

Café Kabab

I was in Catonsville for a haircut the other day, and decided to stop in one of the nearby eateries for lunch. Sam's Bagels was a frequent stop of mine, but for some reason it was closed (at noon no less). Among the various other options was a fairly new place selling various types of kababs. The barber had never been to Café Kabab but he said one of his patrons recommended it.

My original intention was to just grab a menu. But the very sparsely decorated Café Kabab had an equally sparse menu. Apart from some beverages, pretty much all they do are kababs, all of which range from about $10 to $12. I ordered the kofta kabab (about $10), which came with complimentary rice, salad, cucumber sauce and flat bread and my choice of spinach or chickpeas (I went with the chickpeas).


There were mostly good things about this meal. I started nibbling the bread in the car. The bread was soft and hot, which may seem unremarkable except for the fact that the flat bread I get from kabab places is usually never hotter than lukewarm. My favorite part of the meal was the rice, which nicely absorbed the juices from the kofta. The chickpeas also had a nice velvety texture and I was sad to finish it so quickly.

The downside to the meal was the main attraction. Like a lead actor eclipsed by his co-stars, the kabab had some good points and some bad points. The extremely strong cumin flavor masked even the spiciness of the kabab. This did not detract from the kabab, because I liked this flavor a lot. What I didn't go for was the softness of the kabab. Kababs I have eaten in the past have usually been more or less firm. Maybe the restaurant (or its supplier) grinds the meat very fine. Maybe that's it, because the meat had an unsettlingly pasty consistency. When I put a piece of kabab inside my flat bread, it got flat almost in the way a lump of polenta might've gotten. I just found myself finishing everything else much faster and more eagerly. I didn't enjoy the kabab as much as I did the sides.

On a tangential note: Yes, I finally got a new camera! I replaced my long-dead Nikon Coolpix 4600 (the screen got crushed somehow) with the slimmer L20 model of the same brand. It must be popular, as it was the cheapest one at Office Depot and nobody in the area was carrying anything other than the floor model. So they let me buy the floor model.

Best of 2009 Part II: 10 Places, 10 Recipes, 10 Items, and then some

I know it's taken a while. But as far as we are into the new year (half a month!), I've finally narrowed down my favorite eating experiences of 2009 down to tens: ten restaurants (and then some), ten recipes and ten foods.

Ten (Plus) Restaurants of Note

13.5% Wine Bar (Italian, American, wine - Hampden) - A smallish wine bar, hip but not in an in-your-face sort of way. But it's got so much more than that. It's got beers and cocktails. It's got appetizers, panini, salads, a roving cheese cart, and a massive wine selection. And you can buy whole bottles if you want. Even on Sunday. Plus, their desserts are walked over fresh from the nearby Puffs and Pastries (see below). My favorite dish: the "Mack N. Cheese PhD" which sports mascarpone and several other cheeses ($10 except on Sunday evenings, when it and several other small plates are 1/2 off).

Carlyle Club (Indian, coastal Indian - Roland Park) - The formerly Lebanese restaurant now serves haute coastal Indian food. Specifically try their dosas, though most things are good to eat. And much of it is local.


El Nayar (Mexican, Western Mexico - Catonsville, Elkridge) - It's very difficult to find particularly good Mexican food in the Baltimore area, but it is there. The favorite place I found this year has been sitting in Elkridge for a while now. I had the chance to eat at their new Catonsville location. I was impressed by the quality, variety and reasonable price of their soft tacos, a quality of which I just haven't found in Baltimore yet.

Grano (Italian - Hampden) - Not only has it stuck around (unlike most of the businesses in its same location on the Avenue) but it's expanded to a second location down the street. The mix-and-match pastas with sauces are a revelation to me, and you have to try very hard to spend more than $15 to $20 there. Their coconut flan is also tasty, more coconut milk than coconut flakes.


Joong Kak (Korean - Charles Village / Koreatown) - The filling, tender, flavorful Korean barbeque is just the tip of the iceberg. The soju, the pajeon, the panchan, the homey atmosphere, the pleasant and quick service - well, here's the rest of the delicious iceberg. A fave of my friends.

Kooper's Chowhound Burger Wagon (burgers - various locations, depending on the day) - I love a good burger, but lately they have gotten tiring. Kooper's has helped by delivering deceptively juicy burgers, available in beef, turkey, bison and veggie. I first found them at Tide Point, where I got a juicy, packed beefy hamburger for about $8. And they cook it to your taste. The next time I found them they were at the Rotunda, where I benefitted from their Rotunda lunch special: $5 for the burger of your choice, plus sweet potato fries.

Minato (Japanese - Mount Vernon) - This has become my favorite sushi restaurant, though certainly not my only favorite. It's more than just a flashy interior: their rolls, their selection of martinis, their sake and wine selections, and (especially) their sashimi are all consistently delicious, and their service is regularly friendly. My favorite thing to order: the sashimi, which is juicy and comforting.



Puffs and Pastries (bakery - Hampden) - Yes, there's a lot from Hampden. I am biased by the places I spend the most time, and I pass through often. This itty bitty and inviting bakery has some of the most amazing cookies I have ever eaten. They've had to raise the price of their humongous chocolate chip cookie, about 7" across, to $2. Considering most places would likely charge at least thrice as much for half the quality, I mean it's a steal, people. A delicious, buttery, sinful steal. I just hope they don't read this lest they raise the prices of their wonderful cookies.

Tamber's (diner, Indian - Charles Village) - I went here with a large group after a Christmas concert (I was in the concert). They all raved about this diner that I hadn't heard of before. Tamber's has two diverse sides to its menu: its diner side and its Indian side. the chicken tikka masala was buttery and wonderful, and the naan soft and hot. It's not difficult to please me with Indian, but in a place that makes it just one of its specialities, it was kind of a surprise to me. Plus, the service was pretty quick for a large groups such as ours.

Trinacria (Italian, deli - Downtown) - Why did I never stop in here before? They sell quality groceries from Italy, quality pre-made foods in their refrigerated section, and inexpensive wines, bulk pastas and ready-made sandwiches. Try their tiramisù, in the refrigerated section. It's rich and light at the same time, and I don't know how they manage to do that. Wonderful stuff.

Also deserving of high praise

Dukem (Ethiopian - Mount Vernon) - The service was a wee bit slow the last time, but still friendly. The food was rich and spicy as always.

Mughal Garden (Indian - Mount Vernon) - Now serving dosas! But their northern offerings are still filling and flavorful.

Sotto Sopra (Italian - Downtown) - I haven't eaten there in a while, but I'm really, really looking forward to going back.

Wine Source (wine, beer - Hampden) - It's a market, not an eatery. But their constant tastings, extensive cheese section and always helpful staff have made it my favorite beer-wine-and-liquor store by far.

Woodberry Kitchen (Chesapeake, slow food - North Baltimore) - They really pride themselves on serving up local foods with local ingredients, in unique, somewhat pricey ways. I ordered a helping of their bacon wrapped Chincoteague clams ($9). Small, but every bite was lovely.

And if you're in...

Inland Empire and LA County: In addition to all the praise I must heap on Fresh and Easy (that is, Tesco stateside), I also have great things to say about Pepito's (Mexican - Riverside) who serves a darn fine soft taco, the Ocean Star (dim sum - Monterey Park) with all the dim sum you can eat (I think they undercharged us, too), and the consistently delicious tapas to be found at Café Sevilla (Spanish - Riverside).


New York City: My summer trip to NYC was actually the first trip where I was truly happy with everything I ate. Among the best things I found: the Northeast's answer to In-N-Out: the Shake Shack (burgers, shakes - Manhattan, Upper West Side), who make ALL their burgers from freshly ground meat and ALL their shakes from freshly made ice cream. La Carbonara (Italian - Manhattan, Chelsea) was also a good food find thanks to a lucky recommendation. I haven't been able to replicate those caramelized zucchini slices yet. Plus, for those of us who aren't from New York, we often forget how much great stuff can be found outside Manhattan. The spacious Jackson Diner (Indian - Queens, Jackson Heights) has a buffet that'll knock your socks off, including ready-to-order dosas.


Raleigh: The delicious Asian fusion of Duck & Dumpling (pan-Asian - Inside the Beltline) is a bargain in a beautiful space, just a few blocks away from the city's museums. I am now sold for good on cha chiang noodles. I just hope I can find some in my neck of the woods. I also enjoyed my stop at Flex (Inside the Beltline), one of the friendliest gay bars I've ever had the pleasure to set foot in.

Savannah and the Fort Stewart area: If in Savannah, pass on the Lady and Sons unless you've reserved a few months in advance, and head for the Moon River Brewing Company (Lowcountry, burgers, brewpub - Savannah), whose samplers of microbrew and selection of Lowcountry favorites should have a wait, since it's pretty damn good. And please don't leave Savannah until you stop by the Savannah Candy Kitchen (candy - Savannah and various other locations). Get a warm chocolate praline if you're able. There are also many, many places to find wonderful barbeque in the area, such as the Clubhouse at Rye Patch (Southern, Lowcountry, barbeque - Ludowici). But I am surprised to admit that the ribs and mac & cheese at the Kroger of all places (supermarket - various locations), though not nearly as good as at the Clubhouse or most other restaurants, is better than from any other supermarket.

Washington: ThaiPhoon (Thai - Dupont Circle) gives you some hearty tom kha gai and a hearty and satisfying pad thai. But they give you so much that you might not be able to finish it. Just a warning.

Ten Recipes of Note

Cantonese style stir fried greens and/or seafood - I found myself stir-frying a lot of things this year, Cantonese-style, using Chinese rice wine, sesame oil, soy sauce and garlic, among other things. Sweet potato leaves, beet greens, bok choy, Boston lettuce all work quite well. Swiss chard? Well, okay, I don't like Swiss chard.

Hot Milk Cake - A classic Baltimore sponge cake, if done right it is velvety and moist and will keep for a while. It's also extremely sweet.

Irish Soda Bread - 2009 was a year that I started using the bread machine I bought from my landlady in California for eight bucks. She used it three times. I've already used it about ten times as much. I've made a dizzying variety of breads and rice dishes in this thing. My favorite was an Irish soda bread I found from a recipe on the ChefMom website. It was so much better than the store-bought version that comes out every St. Patrick's Day, with juicier raisins, softer bread and a strong caraway flavor that holds up ridiculously well to the pre-made stuff that I can only describe as "grainy" and "cardboard-flavored".


Mozzarella Cheese - What can I say? I made mozzarella! And it was much creamier than the store-bought kind. Again, it'll be difficult to go back.


Nataing - The first main dish I made in my new Food Ethnography project, this Cambodian meat dish from The Elephant Walk Cookbook is extremely rich with all that pork and coconut milk and fish sauce. I had to make a second for Dara's blogger dinner party.

Neapolitan Tomato Sauce - I haven't used a jarred tomato sauce since I learned how easy it was to make it from scratch, and to freeze it so I can have more later. It freezes very well.

Old Bay Boiled Peanuts - After eating so many boiled peanuts and driving in Georgia this past summer, I had to make my own, with a Chesapeake twist. But you have to add a lot of Old Bay to get the flavor. These also freeze very well.


Old Bay Caramels - I swapped out the sea salt in a Fleur de Sal Caramel recipe for some Old Bay, in a kitchen experiment. While it didn't turn out at first, particularly the ones that I added extra Old Bay to since I couldn't taste it at first, the ones with less Old Bay ended up tasting quite nice after sitting for a week or two - the perfect blend of crumbly, sweet caramel and salty, spicy Old Bay. A strange mix, to be sure, but an interesting one.

Pan-Fried Soft Crabs - Most Baltimore families have a soft crab recipe, I imagine. My mother's mother pan-fried hers with nothing more than some flour and butter. I added cornmeal since I like the taste. Even better in a soft taco with some sliced onions or scallions.

Roasted Vegetables (peppers, chilis, tomatoes, broccoli) - Quite simply, there are fewer things more satisfying than a nice oven-roasted tomato or flame-roasted pepper. Don't even need bread crumbs or anything like that. Just drizzle in olive oil and salt and bake for about an hour at 350°F.

Ten Other Food Items of Note


anything made by Fresh and Easy - Despite their almost-Scientological zeal, the folks at Fresh and Easy (supermarket - various locations throughout Southern California) have every reason to be enthusiastic about their wonderful products, which often end up half-priced in a special, prominent aisle when they are a day or two old. Their lemon bars, brownies, and many of their bottled sauces are sorely missed in my apartment.

Dogfish Head Punkin Ale - On tap during the fall months at the Hippo!

Farmers' Market Milk - Like most milks bought at a farmers' market or CSA, South Mountain Creamery's rich homogenized and cream top milks (available year-round at Waverly Farmers' Market on 33rd Street) have spoiled me for supermarket milk in the same way that Fractured Prune donuts have spoiled me for Krispy Kremes. Just tastes like water now.

Fat Tire (and beers like it) - Since we still can't get Fat Tire in Maryland, the best we can do is the Gordon Biersch Märzen out of San Jose. It has a similar fatty and rich feel in the mouth, I have found.

Fresh Berger's Cookies - The fresh ones you buy at the booth in Lexington Market have now spoiled me for the Berger's Cookies you buy at the store. But if I can't make it downtown, the ones at the store'll do, hon.

Mo's Milk and Dark Bacon Bars - The Dark Bacon Bar (available at Ma Petite Shoe and Whole Foods, among other locations) is better, but the Milk Bacon Bar is still pretty good.

Mrs. Holmes Boiled Peanuts - Fresh out of South Carolina, you had best stop in almost any convenience store to buy some to eat along the way to wherever you're going. Plentiful in Georgia.


Palmiers from Sarabeth's Kitchen at Chelsea Market - I know, I'm the last foodie to ever realize that the Chelsea Market is where the Food Network offices are located (and I'm the first one to accidentally stumble upon the place without that knowledge). The wing-shaped (or "elephant ear") palmiers cookie is the only palmiers cookie I have ever eaten that is, well, edible. And its buttery flakiness makes up for all those other nasty, gummy, sticky, cardboard-flavored ones I've eaten in the past.

Southern Tier Choklit Stout - My favorite part of Baltimore Beer Week was a beer from a brewery I already knew quite well. Southern Tier's Choklit Stout is among the best from a brewery that puts out some of the best beers on the East Coast.

Whoopie Pies - My first exposure to whoopie pies, ever, was this year. Before I just thought they were some type of moon pie. Silly me! They really are tasty, with a rich buttercream filling (or marshmallow, or "bettercreme" - yekhkh - depending on where you get yours) sandwiched between two soft and moist devil's food buns. I guess this Yankee-slash-Amish dessert has crossed the Mason-Dixon Line for good! My favorite is the one Trader Joe's puts out in a six pack (regular or pumpkin). Not so good: the one from Giant, but hey, Marylanders are just learning about whoopie pies, okay?

That's it for what I liked the most in food in '09. Coming soon: what I disliked the most.

El Nayar

As I've said here many times, it's just too darn difficult to find good Mexican food on the East Coast. That holds true for Baltimore, of course. But I was hopeful when I stopped in the Catonsville location of El Nayar, a Mexican restaurant that specializes in the sabor of the western state of Nayarit. Of course, the menu offerings are what you will usually see on most Mexican restaurant menus (though I had never seen the tequila and chicken soup or cactus and eggs, both of which I will have to try on future visits), but El Nayar promises that they are indeed true to their nayarita roots.

El Nayar is a pretty good place to save money - the a la carte and lunch menus offer some inexpensive (my definition: in the neighborhood of $5) choices for diners, as well as more expensive full-blown platters. None of these is too expensive. The priciest dish I found for lunch was about $10, and their dinner platters aren't much higher. Plus, they have a lunch "happy hour" eery day, in which a different thing is discounted: 10% off your bill, 75 cents off a burrito, etc. (They don't serve alcohol, but the place is BYOB)

Among the dizzying array of foods to eat with my complementary chips and salsa, I chose the three taco platter ($6 - yes, I'm a cheapskate, but I kinda have to be) and a tamale on the side.

tacos and tamale

This is some of the best Mexican food I have had outside of California or (natch) Mexico. The three tacos came with onions both raw chopped and grilled, as well as chopped cilantro and some unexpected radish slices. Along with them came two types of salsas, a mild green salsa and a medium-hot red salsa. I can take heat better than many people I know, and though it didn't make me sweat or tear up, it came close. A lot of people would find it hot. I myself like this. In case you're not a "hot salsa" person, it comes in a little ramekin on the side.

The tacos consisted of three little soft corn tortillas, the kind you don't often see "Back East" where we are but which you can easily find in Mexico or (again) California. You can have your choice of chicken, carne asada or barbacoa, or mix and match the three - that's what I did. The chicken was moist and flaorful, better than most chicken I have the misfortune of eating out these days. The barbacoa reminded of cochinita pibil but without the tanginess or citrusiness. This was a mellow but ery juicy barbecue. The taco I liked the least was the carne asada one. I did like it a lot, but it wasn't as good as the other ones, as some of the pieces were a little dry on the edges. But that happens sometimes with carne asada. Each taco went well with both salsas, though my favorite salsa had to be the red one.

The tamale was a welcome surprise. This was just a good, "homemade style" chicken tamale. The corn dough around the chicken reminded me of one of the first tamales I had ever eaten on a visit to Phoenix (the one in Arizona) years ago ("El Andar" was that restaurant. I wonder if it's still open?). I loved that one, and it has become the default yardstick against which all the other tamales I have eaten since have been measured. This tamale measured up well against that one, and better than most I have eaten in years.

Along with my soda my entire bill came to little over $10. I left a few dollars extra for the tip (easy to figure out since a 20% was just $2). The service was good, and the food came out fast, so that was a nice thing, too. All over it was a good, cheap eating experience, and a welcome oasis of tasty Mexican food in a part of the country where tasty Mexican food just isn't that easy to find.

Golden Krust

I stopped by H-Mart today for some provisions. (Okay, kimchi flavored noodles. Sue me.) On the way out I decided to grab a little lunch at the new Caribbean place floating amidst a sea of tasty Korean food options. Golden Krust is that new place, having opened not too long ago. Reaching from Massachusetts to Florida, there are over 130 Golden Krusts up and down the East Coast (most of them are in the NYC area). There are but two in Maryland, one in Hyattsville and the other next to the H-Mart.

I was enticed by their promise of curry chicken for just $4.95. I stumbled into the clean, crisp Caribbean joint and asked about the lunch specials. There were lots of this listed, none for just $4.95. There is plenty of variety on the menu, from baked goods (Golden Krust is also a bakery) to chicken, goat, beef, fish and a variety of rice and veggie dishes. They also had sorrel drink, a fruity, tangy and slightly spiced drink that I've never had before, but also not cheap at $2.50. True, there were many small items for just a dollar or two, most entrées were in the $8 to $12 range. And the woman behind the counter did explain that the $4.95 curry chicken special only fit into one of those donut-sized styrofoam containers (the combo came with side vegetables). Since I wasn't keen on spending $8 for lunch, I went for the special anyway, plus a sorrel drink for a total of about $7.75.

I got it home and was astounded to find out just how "little" portion was.


Instead of a piddly little meal, I still got more than enough to eat in one sitting. You can see that once you dump it all onto a plate, as such:


So yes, that $4.95 worth of curry chicken, cabbage and rice did fill me up quite a bit. And I still have the rice and cabbage in the fridge to use as a side dish with something else. The chicken wasn't dry, and even though I didn't really taste a strong curry flavor it still tasted good. It was savory, a little sweet thanks to the cabbage and plantain, and satisfying overall.

Beltway Snacking Redux I: Places I Missed

I haven't spent much time reflecting on my massive schlep around I-695. Okay, I have. I just haven't written much about it since I finished it up last month. But I never really gave it the closure it merits. So over the next few weeks, time and internet access permitting, I'll be writing up a few postscripts and appendices to my Snackin' around the Beltway blog post series.

In this first one, I give props to a few places that I missed on the first go round. If it seems a little heavy on the west side restaurants, it's not an accident. I noticed somewhere around Essex that by the time I had gotten some practice in this Beltway Snacking thing, I had come to be quite thorough in documenting those places I stopped at, and those places I just passed by. I didn't get that thorough at least until the mid-20's off the Beltway. So yes, you will see more stuff in and around Glen Burnie and Catonsville than you will around Towson, Essex and Dundalk. Perhaps those places most familiar to me are the ones I bothered to explore the least!

The following are in alphabetical order.

1. Cajun Blu Restaurant (Exit 7B) - I pretty much gave up on finding anything off of the BW Parkway. Had I headed into the city and stopped in Cherry Hill, I might've come across the Cajun Blu Restaurant (map). I've found no reviews for this Cajun/creole place. But hey, there was something you could only access from 295 after all!

2. How'd I miss all those places in Glen Burnie? (Exit 3B) - There were exits that I analyzed the heck out of, and exits of which I barely scratched the surface. My excursion into Glen Burnie wasn't the most thorough one. While I slurped on pho at Pho Miss Saigon I passed by more than a few places, particularly Maria D's Sub Shop right next door (map), and the Thai-Gour Café (map) right across from it (Perchi's? I've mentioned it before. Good chicken). When you're driving around Crain Highway, make sure you stop in Martitha's Mexican & Salvadoran Restaurant (map) which is almost invisible online, the Seaside Restaurant & Crabhouse (map) and the Greenhouse Grill (map). Yes, I missed a few other places. I can't mention everything, sadly.

3. Ice Cream Cottage (Exits 10 & 12A) - I've been here before. I think my sister and mother took my niece and younger sister here for an ice cream after buying their Christmas tree last year. It's easy to miss this little Ice Cream Cottage (map) across from Arbutus' fire house and next to the Arbutus Town Hall / Tackle Shop (just kidding - the closest tackle shop is in Lansdowne). Also nearby, Mike's Pizza (map) at the corner of East & Linden. I have been passing by it for years and years, since I was a child, and I still have never ventured in. Now's as good a time as any to change that.

4. Italian delis on the northeast side of town (Exits 31A & 32B) - There sure are molti, molti Italian delis near the northeastern part of the Beltway. Pastore's has not gone unmentioned. But commenters have had to bring others to my attention (the Italian 37 1/2 % of my ancestors are spinning in their graves - Mi dispiace!). And yet I still have to make it out to Mastellone's Italian Deli (map) in Parkville, not too far up Harford Road (soooo close - hat tip to Baltimore Diary). A few miles away is the northeastern branch of Route 1, which takes you into Harford County. Next time I'm around there I need to make a pit stop around Canella's (map) in Perry Hall, whose Italian Hoagie is highly recommended by commenter Chodite.

5. JAD's Caddyshack (Exit 36) - Had Exit 37 ever been completed, perhaps it would've emptied out near here. A few places in and around the Back River Neck/Middleborough part of Essex are worth mentioning, though the one I had the chance to visit is JAD's (map). I had a very good Reuben here for their lunch rush once. They also carry everything from steamed crabs and shrimp to their 10 ounce "Colossal Crab Cake". I've been told that the nearby Pizza John's (map) - not in any way affiliated with Papa John's Pizza - is a favorite with the locals.

6. Kitchen of India Restaurant (Exits 30A & B) - I thought I knew where all the Indian restaurants were. Of course, I thought wrong. Kitchen of India (map) has gotten good visitor reviews, which is enough incentive to visit for me! It's right on Joppa Road in Parkville, near all the big Perring Parkway plazas, so it's easy to miss amid the car dealerships and big box stores.

7. Moxley's (Exits 25, 26 and 27A) - I don't know why I haven't stopped in for ice cream at Moxley's (map) before. Most online users like the place. Moxley's has been around for years, though I rarely buy ice cream out. Maybe this is an excuse to buy some this time. They also sell ice cream cakes.

8. Oh the stuff I missed on Frederick Road! (Exit 13) - It amazes me just how many places slipped me by when I was busy stuffing my face in Catonsville with that delicious cake from Sugarbaker's and that awesome Reuben from Taneytown Deli. Just a floor up from Sam's Bagels is Little Phoenix (map), where I realized one evening that Chinese takeout is MUCH cheaper for lunch than for dinner. Little Phoenix is okay, but I'll have to go back for lunch to see how their lunch is. Further up Frederick Road, among others I hate to leave out, are the Jennings Café (map), Ships Café & Pub (map) and Matthew's 1600 (map). This last place has a popular brunch and regular holiday-themed happy hours (there's a Halloween one coming up soon). Continue west along towards Historic Ellicott City and you reach the Candlelight Inn (map) at the intersection of Rolling and Frederick Roads. A few people were surprised that I had not visited before. It's a lovely yet pricey place, good for your anniversary I would imagine. One place I could not help but miss didn't even exist when I reviewed Exit 13 - the newly opened El Nayar Mexican Restaurant (map) is in the spot where the old Pinocchio's used to be.

9. Peju's Kitchen Restaurant and Lounge (Exit 17) - Peju's (map) is a Nigerian restaurant in Woodlawn that I didn't even know about until someone at the Great Tastes Show in February recommended it to me. I still haven't stopped in yet, but since it's one of a very few West African restaurants in the area, it merits a visit soon.

10. pit beef truck, near Washington Boulevard and Lansdowne Road (Exits 9, 10) - When one thinks of Baltimore's cuisine, several things come immediately to mind. Sadly, pit beef is not one of those things, which is a shame since it's pretty good. But think about it: the pit beef stands and restaurants are everywhere, man! Sure, they're not as ubiquitous as the crabhouses, but I rarely drive a mile in or around this city without stumbling across a hot, steaming pile of pit beef. As native son Steve Raichlen puts it, it really is Baltimore's version of BBQ. One of the first that I had ever encountered is right in Lansdowne, now across from the mega Walmart that just opened up. If I remember correctly, this pit beef stand was reviewed in the City Paper a few years ago. It used to be on Route 1. Now it's up a few car lengths on Robert A Young Way, easily visible from Washington Blvd (map).

11. Scittino's Italian Market (Exit 14) - Not all the Italian delis are in the northeast. Had I driven past the godawful Hunan Joy far enough, I might have found Scittino's (map). It's not like I've never been here, but it's been a while. On the order of years. As I remember it, Scittino's was a small but pretty well stocked Italian deli. I think this merits a revisit. Also nearby is the Caton Tavern (map).

12. Sea King (Exit 15A) - You know, it would be an exercise in futility to list every crab and seafood joint in the Baltimore area. The Sea King Seafood Market (map) is Catonsville's resident crab shack, almost directly across from St. Agnes Church.

13. United Crab and Seafood (Exit 18B) - I pretty much wrote off everything along Liberty Road between the Beltway and Northern Parkway. All I found was a New York Chicken. No excuse here for passing the United Crab & Seafood (map) by! An African market is somewhere across the street.

This is just a smattering of what I missed when I was coasting around the Beltway. Have I missed anything? Please post it in the comments below. But make sure I really have missed it by checking the Beltway Snacking exit posts on the right (or left if I've changed the format of this blog at some point in the future). I eagerly await y'all's input!

Places I failed to write about, whether I have since visited them or not -

Cajun Blu Restaurant (Cajun / creole) - 1810 Cherry Hill Road, Baltimore, MD 21230; Phone: (410) 347-2266

Candlelight Inn (American) - 1835 Frederick Road, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 788-6076‎

Canella's Italian deli (Italian / deli) - 9944 Harford Road, Parkville, MD 21234; Phone: (410) 661-3089

Caton Tavern & Restaurant (American) - 1705 Edmondson Avenue, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 747-6437

El Nayar Mexican Restaurant (Mexican, with another location in Elkridge) - 801 Frederick Road, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 788-8198

Greenhouse Grill (American) - 6914 Ritchie Hwy Glen Burnie, MD 21061 Phone: (410) 787-9880

Ice Cream Cottage (ice cream) - 1348 Stevens Avenue, Arbutus, MD 21227; Phone: (410) 247-3620

JAD's Caddyshack (crabs / seafood / American) - 137 Back River Neck Road, Essex, MD 21221; Phone: (410) 686-2816

Jennings Café (American) - 808 Frederick Road, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 744-3824

Kitchen of India (Indian) - 1842 East Joppa Road, Parkville, MD 21234; Phone: (410) 663 6880

Lansdowne pit beef stand (pit beef) - near the intersection of Washington Boulevard and Robert A Young Way, Lansdowne, MD 21227

Little Phoenix (Chinese) - 730 Frederick Road, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 788-8687

Maria D's Sub Shop (Italian / pizza & subs) - 111 Crain Highway North # 2, Glen Burnie, MD 21061; Phone: (410) 766-9850‎

Martitha's Mexican & Salvadoran Restaurant (Mexican / Salvadoran - also in Annapolis) - 602 Crain Highway North, Glen Burnie, MD 20161

Mastellone's Deli & Wine Shop (Italian / deli / wine) - 7212 Harford Road, Parkville, MD 21234; Phone: (410) 444-5433

Matthews 1600 (pub / American) - 1600 Frederick Road, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 788-2500

Mike's Pizza of Arbutus (pizza) - 1306 Linden Avenue, Arbutus, MD 21227; Phone: (410) 242-2515

Moxley's (ice cream) - 25 Allegheny Avenue, Towson, MD 21204; Phone: (410) 825-2544

Peju's Kitchen Restaurant & Lounge (Nigerian / West African / Caribbean) - 1724 Woodlawn Drive, Woodlawn, MD 21244; Phone: (410) 277-9779

Pizza John's‎ (pizza / Italian) - 113 Back River Neck Road, Essex, MD 21221; Phone: (410) 687-7733‎

Scittino's Italian Market (Italian / deli) - 1701 Edmondson Avenue, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 788-2369

Sea King Crab House (crabs, with another location in Ellicott City) - 5230 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD 21229; Phone: (410) 747-5858

Seaside Restaurant & Crabhouse (American / crabs / seafood) - 224 North Crain Highway, Glen Burnie, MD USA 21061; Phone: (410) 760-2200

Ships Cafe & Pub Incorporated (pub / American) - 828 Frederick Road, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 744-1838

Thai-Gour Cafe (Thai) - 7477 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd, Glen Burnie, MD 21061; Phone: (410) 761-8399‎

United Crab and Seafood (crabs / seafood) - 6010 Liberty Road, Gwynn Oak, MD 21207; Phone: (410) 298-1100

Chef Paolino's

As gentrified as Old Frederick Road already is, Catonsville is really rejuvenating itself. I could swear I saw two or three new restaurants either opening or getting ready to open, including a much-needed Mexican restaurant and a gourmet seafood place that looks like it belongs a few miles down the road in Ellicott City.

I am embarrassed to admit this, but one place has been open for a year and a half and I had no idea. Chef Paolino's (map) has been open for that long in its new location near the Ingleside Avenue park (near the corner of Ingleside and Old Frederick). That is its new location, having moved from the large complex that is overshadowed by Sam's Bagels.

Don't be daunted by its website - lots of gibberish. At least the menu pages work, kind of (just click on the "Subs and Sandwiches" link last). I went last week around lunchtime. It was pretty busy. I asked a passing couple if the food was good. After thinking for a sec they gave a resounding "Yeah!"

Once I figured out how to get in - apparently, one door is locked shut - I was faced with a sizable area to order my food, the only menus being portable and covered in plastic. Behind me, on the other side of the entrance, was a humongous, homey dining room filled with hungry diners. Families, coworkers, tourists - if Catonsville indeed has "tourists" - all noisily, talkatively finishing their food.

There are many options catering to every pocketbook, both cheap and more moderate eats. This isn't a "fine dining" sort of place, so nothing is terribly expensive here. At the same time, it is quite easy to spend $20 or $30 in one sitting. I spent about $10 on my lunch, but I could have easily spent more. Typical lunch offerings range about $7 to $11, dinner prices are about $3 to $4 more. Antipasti range from $2 to $8, and the pizza - rated by some on Chowhound as the area's best, goes by the slice ($2 to $3 depending on the slice), or by the pie (a small plain cheese pizza starts at $10, a large adds 4" to the diameter for only $1 more).

I finally decided on a slice of white pizza - this one with spinach and ricotta - for about $3, and the soup of the day - lentil - for $4.50. That seemed expensive until I saw the size of the bowl. I got a good bit of soup. Add a drink - soda ($1.50), though they also sell wine - and the total comes to around $10. Since it was a lovely day, I piled all my dishes on top of each other and went to one of the outside tables.


I started with the lentil soup. Far from the throwaway item I feared it would be - and at almost $5, that's an expensive throwaway item - it was a filling and tasty part of the meal. The soup wasn't too salty, and the lentils were a bit soft. I would order it again.


Chef Paolino's touts itself as having New York-style pizza. Again, I don't really eat pizza when I go to New York (I stick more to the hot dogs and street food), so I'm not a good judge. But I liked the white pizza. It was a little on the salty side but, again, I was satisfied with it. The ricotta was a nice surprise, because I don't normally expect it on my pizza. To me, it really overpowered the spinach. It was almost like it wasn't even there.

Overall I would definitely recommend Chef Paolino's. Watch out not to order too much, because you could easily order one thing here, another there, and before you know it you're spending $20 on yourself. But still go - you just have to hunt around a little to find it.

Exit 15B: US-40 West (to Ellicott City)

I haven't been eating out much lately, but I did get out to Route 40 for some lunch. Actually, I'm no stranger to Route 40 West. My parents dragged this willing boy and his sisters out to the Enchanted Forest all the time when I was young. Here's what it looked like then; it's now a business park, though the nice folks at Clark's Elioak Farm have carted off lots of Enchanted Forest booty and refurbished it for modern kiddies.

Today there's lots of good eatin' out along Route 40, and lots of so-so eatin' as well. There are the typical fast food joints: the McDonald'ses, the Arby'ses, the Wendy'ses, the Starbuckses, the ToreOres. Wait, what's that last one? ToreOre (all in Korean, but the song is cutesy and infectious, whatever it means), from which I got a free sample the last time I was free-sample hunting at the H-Mart. They deal in fried chicken pieces. And unlike most fast food, theirs is pretty juicy and actually tasty. Most of their locations are in South Korea, but there are five state-side. Two are in Georgia (Johns Creek and Riverdale, both around Atlanta), and one each in Ridgefield, New Jersey; Fairfax, Virginia; and - you guessed it - Bawlmer (map). Look for it past the Korean / sushi cafeteria-style seating, near the kimchi. Next door to the H-Mart is the Cham Mat, the seemingly re-christened food court of the Be-Se-To (BEjeing-SEoul-TOkyo) Department store, which has Korean food served cafeteria-style that is just a wee bit more expensive than I would like to pay. Most of the dishes were around $10 - $13. Okay, I could've paid for it, but for some reason I thought it'd be cheaper. I'll try it out sometime.

For lunch today, I went elsewhere. I entertained the thought of CiCi's Pizza (map) and the Pho Nam (map) next door. But I couldn't help coming back to the ever-famous Double T Diner (map). It's a local chain with diners in Annapolis, Ellicott City, Pasadena, etc. and so forth. I had always liked Double T and was looking forward to a nice cheeseburger, which I ordered as take-out with some fries. What concerned me when I was looking for the phone number to call 'em was the dearth of very good user reviews over the past year floating around in cyberspace. Overall, there were some pretty mixed reviews (note here for a glowing review, here for some mixed ones, and here for some pretty average ratings, and here's a mixed review of the one in Pasadena).

Initially deterred, I forged ahead and decided for myself if Double T was still worth the effort. The place was packed, as it usually is (24 hours a day). Service was brusque but relatively quick for the lunch rush. I paid about $7.50 for my cheeseburger and fries, and went back to work.

Sadly, my suspicions were confirmed, as I was indeed disappointed with the food. The burger was the bright spot of the meal, though it really was your average burger. The cheese glued the roll to the meat, which isn't such a bad thing until you stop to consider that the lettuce, tomato and condiments are put on the side and not on the burger - so when you open up the burger to put them on, half the bun stays on the burger! It was juicy enough, and had a good flavor, but was not something I'd order again. To Double T's credit, they certainly have enough on their encyclopaedic menu. But I've had better burgers, and out of all the things a diner serves, they should at least get that right.

Part of the reason that the burger was the best thing about the meal were the fries. Inconsistent and flavorless all around, half of them were hard and dry as rocks (and tasted freezer burned), and half of them were soggy (not just soft but soggy) and smooshed. Truly a throwaway item (which is what I did with half of them). Don't even ask about the little tub of cole slaw. At least the pickle was good.

I don't see myself going back to Double T for a while. At least there's the ToreOre!


Places I visited:

Double-T Diner (diner / American / Greek) - 6300 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 744-4151

• Would I eat there again? Only because of the variety
  
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? No
  

ToreOre (chicken / Korean fast food) - Located in the H-Mart, next to the kimchi case, 800 N Rolling Rd, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (443) 612-9020

• Would I eat there again? Sure
  
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? Maybe
  

Places to look up later:

Cham Mat (Korean, formerly the Be-Se-To food court) - Located in Be-Se-To Department Store, 822 N. Rolling Rd., Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 744-3027

CiCi's Pizza (pizza) - 6473 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 719-1001

Pho Nam (Vietnamese) - 6 Get Directions477 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 455-6000

Other photos:

The one thing all reviewers in cyberland agreed on was the ambience - Double T does not hurt in this category.

Exit 15A: US-40 East (to Baltimore)

US Route 40 is one of the oldest cross-country highways in the nation. Dating to the 1920's, it extends all the way from Atlantic City, New Jersey, to Park City, Utah (originally going as far west as San Fran). Like I-95, Route 40 - Baltimore's own slice of the National Pike - cuts the Beltway in half, going through Baltimore City. On the west side of the beltway, you can get to Route 40 by Exits 15A (into the city) and B (to Ellicott City).

I wanted a quick, cheap dinner this evening, and this time I had a good idea of where I wanted to go. I passed on the former IHOP-turned-"Shirley's Family Diner" (map, Google Earth still thinks it's an IHOP), which sounds fun enough that I may go there next time. Also passed by the Pho 1 Restaurant (map and review) in the Westview Mall. Instead I decided on Mr. G's Hamburgers (map), a small little place that is quite familiar to me, because I ate there all the time in high school. My high school girlfriend (neither of us knew, okay?) even worked there. My favorite thing to get was the foot-long hot dog, though the hamburgers, onion rings and milkshakes were always a safe and satisfying bet. So unlike many of the places I am visiting for this series, I already know Mr. G's.

Or at least, I thought I knew Mr. G's. After the place got gutted by fire a few years ago, it seems to have expanded, a lot. Gone was the little waiting room where you sat while they made your food. Now there's a small clutch of tables, complete with blob of condiments and flies on top (ick). Still, most of Mr. G's is behind-the-counter space, as before. And behind those counters lie a dizzying array of soft-serve ice creams, burgers, fried chicken, trout, ribs, breakfast foods, spaghetti (or as it was billed by Mr. G's, "SPAGETY"), Western fries (for the uninitiated, the best description I can find is here, on the Royal Farms web site) and mammoth onion rings.

I got a bit buggy-eyed when I saw the prices for the combo platters - especially the half-cheeseburger for $8! It did dawn on me that this wasn't just a cheeseburger but a cheeseburger sub, but I did notice the glaring lack of prices for most items. Not a great way to prepare your change. The young woman behind the counter told me the cheeseburger was $3.50 (or so). To that I ordered some Western fries (mmmm), for a grand total of $5.80. Only later did it hit me to order some of their delicious-looking onion rings (nope, no flies in this case). I would have, but there was a fairly long line at the counter.

Some of the food on display looked wonderful - the ribs and mac and cheese were tempting, and again, there were those onion rings. There were some pretty average-looking items as well, specifically their fried chicken, and some stuff that looked downright inedible. To wit: there were some green beans that had a very unnatural hue; and a large, gummy and dried-out blob of angel-hair "spagety" is hopefully never going near anyone's mouth.

I took my burger and fries to the parents' house and ate it there. The burger, which had provolone, onion, lettuce and pickle (toppings of my choice, instead of a pre-set selection), was juicy and set between two halves of a soft, not-so-thick kaiser roll (I hate the thick ones - I don't eat sandwiches for the bread, after all). I have had tastier, and much thicker burgers than this one, but for what it was worth it was quite satisfying. The dog and cat thought so too, as I threw little shards of meat and roll at them (those two, they are a pair). Along with that were some satisfyingly salty Western fries. They could've been a little crispier on the outside, but you don't really order Western fries for the crispiness of the coating anyway - it's all about the thickness of the fry and the flavor of the coating. And for a small order, it was a pretty large sample of fries that they gave me - easily a whole potato in that bag.

One thing that hits me now: no more foot-long hot dogs on the menu? That much is disappointing. Well, at least they still have those intimidating onion rings.

Gorgeous onion rings, with a gummy lump of SPAGETY in the background

Places I visited:

Mr. G's Fast Lane Hamburgers (American / hamburgers / ice cream) - 5600 Johnnycake Rd

Gwynn Oak, MD 21207; Phone: (410) 744-0011

• Would I eat there again? Depends on what I'd order - at least for the onion rings
  
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? Again, to try the onion rings
  

Places to look up later:

Pho 1 (Vietnamese) - 5764 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 719-7500

Shirley's Family Diner (diner / American) -5600 Baltimore National Pike, Catonsville, MD 21228; Phone: (410) 788-9270