Harbor East

20
Sep
2017

Sandlot Baltimore

It seems like just yesterday I was sitting on the patio at the Harbor East Gordon Biersch location, looking out at the cranes and construction equipment at the newly open Harbor Point. Fast forward to summer 2017 and Harbor Point is up and running complete with apartments, a coffee shop, a furniture store and Baltimore’s newest outdoor attraction – Sandlot. It’s a concept by Chef Spike Gjerde of Woodberry Kitchen. The name is an homage to the baseball movie with the same name. Sandlot can be described as a Baltimore Beach but on the harbor – a manmade beach with sand, sun and fun without the swimming. It’s an adult playground with volleyball courts, giant jenga, sidewalk chalk, hammocks, corn hole, bocce ball and top 40’s blasting from the speakers. I’ve been to Sandlot about five times since it’s opened and I’d say by day it’s family and dog friendly and at night it has a laid back beach party vibe that us locals enjoy. Also, the views at night are incredible, you can see across the Baltimore skyline. It’s normally open from 4-11pm daily but times can get delayed if it rains.

My first visit to Sandlot was their opening day and it was packed, so packed that I stood in the line for about 45 minutes just to order a cocktail. They’ve since worked out the cocktail kinks by adding extra beer stations around the site and allowing servers to take orders at your seat. The cocktail selection normally includes your normal liquor selection, beer and a few frozen drink specials…gotta have the frozen drinks at the beach.

The food options include traditional American Fare such as Nachos, Specialty Hot Dogs, Chicken, Fish, Potato Salad, Onion Rings and many more options. Since I’ve visited several times, I’ve been able to try a variety of entrees.

Soft Shell Crab Sandwich – Lightly fried, topped with fresh, crunchy, tangy cole slaw on a soft toasted bun… This soft shell crab sandwich was one of the best I’ve ever had.
Rotisserie Chicken – I had the chicken twice. The photo above is my first sampling and it was flavorful and falling of the bone good. My second time having it, wasn’t that great. I guess it’s a hit or miss.
Crab Fritters– Lots of corn, not enough crab. But the chilli pepper jam made up for it…so good.
Chessie Nachos – The menu offers a variety of five nacho options. The Chessie is topped with smoked fish, crab, corn salsa, beer cheese, onion and jalapeños. I ordered them because I’ve never had smoked fish nachos. Lots of fish and crab on every chip. These are great if you like seafood.

Sandlot is definitely the place to take out of town guests to show them how cool we are in Baltimore. Or visit for a chill weekday evening or a people watching weekend.

And always follow my foodie and cocktail adventures on social media …

05
Sep
2016

Happy Hour at Fleming’s Steakhouse

categories: Happy Hour

Hail to Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse and Wine Bar– one of my favorite restaurants in Harbor East, Baltimore. The title of this post mentions “Happy Hour,” but the photo above is the delicious dinner I shared with two friends after we ate the following happy hour items (don’t judge us).

Can I just fawn over this Calamari for a minute? Fleming’s Steakhouse hands down has the best calamari I’ve ever had! It’s served with a sweet chili sauce and it’s lightly breaded on the outside, tender on the inside with a spicy pepper kick. I wanted to eat the entire plate myself, but unfortunately I had to share.

flemings3 — The Prime Rib Dip with Homemade Potato Chips

I especially enjoy the cocktails at Fleming’s Steakhouse, they are always delicious and they offer a variety of options with various liquors. You can’t go wrong with calamari and cocktails at Fleming’s Steakhouse happy hour, I’d go there everyday of the week just for that!

And always follow my foodie and cocktail adventures on social media …

10
Mar
2016

Happy Hour at Bagby’s TEN TEN

categories: Happy Hour, RESTAURANTS

It’s March, the weather is finally breaking and Spring is upon us. One of my favorite things to do is sit outside and eat. Whether it’s near the water, or on the street, It always makes me feel like I’m in another city or country. Bagby’s Ten Ten American Bistro (1010 Fleet Street) has an incredible interior design, but they also have a quaint and somewhat hidden outdoor eating area also. I recently went there during Happy Hour to enjoy the food and fine weather.

I visited with a friend and we have the same food philosophy — The More The Merrier! We like to order lots of food to share and sample. The Happy Hour menu offers six small plate options and we ordered five of the six “Bites” items. I especially like the 13 beer, wine and cocktail specials.

tthh6 — Korean Tacos with Mongolian beef, avocado, asian slaw, jalapeno and sesame

tthh5 — Chili-Glazed Wings with fried garlic, pickled daikons & carrots, cilantro and black sesame

Look at those chicken wings, they are huge!! The chili glaze flavoring I liked because it was sticky and spicy and unlike any other flavor wing I’d had before. The Korean Tacos were also delicious they were small and not shareable, so we ordered another…why not, they are only $6.00. My absolute favorite were the Herb Parmesan Fries, they were hot, crispy and seasoned well topped with fresh parmesan cheese. I think these are my new favorite fries, they are giving Gordon Biersch’s Garlic Fries a run for their money.

Be sure to follow my foodie and cocktail adventures on Instagram.com/Arlisappetite and twitter.com/ArliBaby.

01
Mar
2016

Bottomless Brunch at Cava Mezze

categories: RESTAURANTS

If you mention the word “Bottomless” to me I get excited, especially if you are speaking about food or drink. I’ve recently heard some buzz about Cava Mezze (1302 Fleet Street), a fairly new restaurant in Harbor East, Baltimore. The main thing I heard about was their .1 bottomless mimosas…yes one cent! This Sunday I went there with my best friend to check it out.

The weekend bottomless brunch is from 11:00 am – 3:30 pm, so we knew we had to get there extra early or a little late to beat the crowd. As my best friend and I pulled up to the restaurant around 2:00 pm, we noticed there was a small crowd of seven people outside. Inside all tables and booths were occupied. I overheard the host ask a party of five if they had reservations and there would be a 30-40 minute wait. Because it was just us two, the friendly host advised us that there was seating space at the bar. We actually prefer the bar seating because you get better service and a faster return on your requests because the bartender is in eyeshot. If you are coming with a party of three or more, I would suggest making reservations.

We went to the bar and was greeted by a the bartender, he began to tell us the deal with the bottomless brunch and mimosas. The brunch is a $30.00 flat fee and it’s all you can eat, you can choose whatever you want from a menu of 21 items. The items are served on small plates in smaller portions, perfect for sharing. The mimosas are .1 if you purchase the brunch option and they are also bottomless. If you don’t want the all-you-can-eat brunch, the mimosas are $5.00 each. They also offer $2.00 Bloody Mary or Sangria with the bottomless brunch option. I ordered an orange juice mimosa and my best friend ordered a grapefruit juice mimosa.

We chatted with two young ladies sitting beside us at the bar and they had already ordered six items and gave us their suggestions. Needless to say we went to town with out brunch choices…

MINI CAVA BREAKFAST – fried egg, potato hash and bacon

CM2 — BREAKFAST BURRITO – chicken sage sausage, eggs, feta, tomato, onion, harissa topped with Greek yogurt

cm9 — SALMON BENNIE – hickory smoked, dill, hollandaise and capers

cm10 — CHICKEN SAGE SAUSAGE- house made chicken sausage and sage

cm11 — GRILLED CHEESE- tomato, aged barrel feta, oregano and olive oil

cm12 — NUTELLA WAFFLE- walnuts, nutella, bananas and cream

cm8 — SKILLET CAKE – pancakes with chocolate chips, powdered sugar and whipped cream

cm13 — VILLAGE FRITATTA- spinach, egg, feta, leeks and green onion

cm14 — FRENCH TOAST- thick cut challah, honey, berries and cream

cm15 — BANANAS FRITTERS – honey, walnuts and powdered sugar

cm16 — CRISPY PORK BELLY- Berkshire pork, thyme and honey

The food came out really fast, maybe 10 minutes after we ordered it. I would suggest ordering items in sets of three or four because it can get cold fast if you aren’t eating it right away.

Everything that we ordered was delicious. I especially liked the meats and the sweets. The chicken sausage with sage was so good that we ordered another serving. The bacon that came with the Mini Cava Breakfast was think and filling. The Crispy Pork Belly was excellent and the honey added a sweetness to the savory pork. All of the sweet items were great. The Banana Fritters were my favorite, they remind me of the apple fritters my grandmother makes and my best friend especially liked the Nutella Waffle.

This restaurant atmosphere was chill and relaxing, letting all the light come in from the large open windows at the front. They played 90’s music and kept the mimosas coming. When the weather breaks I know this will be a popular brunch location in Harbor East.

Have you been to the Bottomless Brunch at Cava Mezze? What did you think?

Be sure to follow my foodie and cocktail adventures on Instagram.com/Arlisappetite and twitter.com/ArliBaby.

03
Feb
2016

Mussels and More at Mussel Bar & Grille in Harbor East

categories: RESTAURANTS

On Monday evening, I visited Mussel Bar & Grille (1350 Lancaster St, Baltimore, MD 21231) with a few friends. I frequently visited the previous tenant/restaurant Townhouse Kitchen & Bar before it closed in early 2014. Mussel Bar & Grille has managed to keep everything the same – the furniture, the large middle bar, the large televisions around the bar, everything except the self-serve table beer taps and the menu.

The open floor plan and exposed ceiling is the first thing you notice when walking into the restaurant. The space features pub-style wood topped tables in all shapes and sizes with leather seating and a private room in the rear of the restaurant for intimate parties and gatherings.

All the action seemed to be going on at the bar located in the middle of the restaurant. The long rectangular-shaped bar is also a focal point of the space because of the 10 large televisions that surround the bar overhead. This makes it easy to watch any sporting event from every angle, no matter where you are sitting in the restaurant, you won’t miss any of the excitement.

MB6 — Provencal Mussels – tomatoes, garlic, parmesan, cream, capers and basil

Of course with a name like “Mussel Bar,” you know the mussel options are SERIOUS. The menu features five mussel options, each with distinctly different flavors. My best friend ordered the Provencal Mussels and they were delicious, loaded with garlic in a creamy tomato based sauce. She also ordered oysters but I can’t tell you how they were because I don’t eat them. I did notice a lot of people ordering them, so they must be good.

We were feeling a little ~~greedy~~ hungry so we ordered a few additional items. My favorite side item was the oven baked feta which was melt-in-your-mouth good! Feta is the perfect cheese to bake in the oven because it keeps its shape and tangy taste. They drizzled the feta cheese with honey and olive oil and added eggplant, these ingredients toned down the pungent cheesy bite.

The Maine Lobster Mac & Cheese was also a hit with chunks of lobster and lots of cheese. They were NOT stingy on the lobster, I had a fork full of lobster with every bite I took.

MB3 — Sweet Potato Fries and House Cut Fries with three dipping sauces

MB4 — Housemade Ice Cream with Caramel Popcorn

The presentation of the food items were wonderful. I love it when my food is served in pots and cast iron skillets, it makes me feel special almost as if the items I ordered were cooked in a home kitchen specifically for me.

Have you visited Mussel Bar & Grille? What is your favorite mussel flavor?

12
Jan
2016

Contemporary Japanese Flair at Azumi in Harbor East

categories: RESTAURANTS

The word “Azumi” means “Safe Residence” in Japanese. I recently visited Azumi (725 Aliceanna St), the Japanese fine dining restaurant at the Four Seasons in Harbor East Baltimore, and it’s safe to say this restaurant is here to stay.

Outdoor seating, breathtaking harbor views, bright colors and a DJ booth are all things you will remember when visiting Azumi. It was recently named one of “Baltimore’s 15 Most Beautiful Restaurants” by The Baltimore Sun. Think of Azumi as a fancy pants Ra Sushi.

There is an open-seating lounge area when you walk into the restaurant. Behind the lounge area is a long bar against the wall that seats about 10-12 people and the other half of the restaurant is for table seated dining.

I visited with my best friend during Happy Hour and we ordered four items from the Happy Hour menu and one from the appetizer menu.

Azumi2 — Clockwise From Top: Pork Spare Ribs, Edamame, Rock Shrimp Tempura (Not on the Happy Hour Menu) Spicy Tuna Roll and Salmon avocado Roll.

I especially liked the Pork Spare Ribs, they were sweet and sticky. But the serving size was too small, it left me wanting more. But of course that’s what you get for Happy Hour prices. The sushi rolls were also fresh and delicious.

But the real star of the show was my dessert! It was an artisan dessert. It was so pretty I forgot to ask for the name. It was a cold custard drizzled with caramel sauce accompanied by a peanut brittle slice, thin-sliced chocolate bar, fruit, and edible flowers. It also had a few pieces of Japanese Guava Candy. Pretty fancy huh?!!

As you can see from the Happy Hour menu above, the prices are reasonable. Azumi would be a nice place to visit for a birthday celebration or to impress someone during a business meeting. Speaking with the bartender he told me that the place gets a good crowd on the nights when they have a DJ. I would love to visit during the Summer on a Saturday night when the DJ is there, I think it would be a cool party scene.

Harbor East

Sandlot Baltimore

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Mussels and More at Mussel Bar & Grille in Harbor East

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Contemporary Japanese Flair at Azumi in Harbor East

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