Maryland

Chef’s Night at By The Docks Seafood Restaurant

categories: RESTAURANTS

If you haven’t heard, By The Docks Seafood is a very popular restaurant in Maryland.  They won a several awards in Baltimore Magazine: Best Brunch, Best Crab Cake Sandwich, Best Crab Balls, Best Crab Dip, Best Crab Imperial and Best Cream of Crab Soup.   The brunch buffet I can attest to because I visited the restaurant for the first time about two months ago and the food was great.  My recent visit, I was invited to join other Baltimore food bloggers in sampling a few items from the new Wednesday Night Chef’s Menu.

We started our meal with a wine lesson on the wine selections from Lanterna Wines. I ordered the Pinot Noir to start with my appetizers and the chef made recommendations for each entrée option.  Let me just say that the glasses of wine at By The Docks are huge, well over the standard six-ounce pour.

Pinot Noir by Lanterna Wines

The Chef’s Menu features 4 for $24.00 – Maryland Crab Soup, Garden Salad, Homemade Dessert and a Seafood Entrée served with a loaded baked potato and asparagus. For the purpose of this dinner, we were also given a few family style appetizers.  Because we had such a large group, we managed to order and share everything on the menu.

Crabby Nachos

 

House Cut Onion Rings
Mediterranean Grilled Octopus
Surf and Turf

 

Jambalaya
Crab Cake and Lamb Chops
Stuffed Shrimp
Baklava Cake, Cheesecake and Smith Island Cake

Here’s a quick rundown of my thoughts on the menu items…

Crabby Nachos  – The cheese pull is insane! Lots of crabmeat, crab and cheese on every chip
House Cut Onion Rings – Crispy, fragrant, fresh out of the fryer
Mediterranean Grilled Octopus  – Chargrilled flavor is perfect served with the Greek cucumber and tomato vinaigrette
Surf and Turf – Large sweet lobster tail, equally large cut of steak
Jambalaya – Huge portion, spicy, lots of sausage and shrimp
Crab Cake and Lamb Chops – Large crab cake with all crabmeat and no other fillers
Stuffed Shrimp –  Large, juicy shrimp, lots of crabmeat
Dessert Sampler  – Out of this world. Best Cheesecake I’ve ever tasted. All desserts served at By The Docks are made by their family owned Yia Yia’s Bakery

Our group was also gifted with two bottles of Le Grand Courtage wine to kick off our holiday celebrations.

By The Docks is a great restaurant with hearty portions and delicious food.  Definitely check them out for Brunch or the Chef’s Night Special and be sure to visit and tell them Arli’s Appetite sent you!

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

  

The Best Lunch Ever Pop-Up with The Local Fry and Ekiben

categories: RESTAURANTS

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I’ve wanted to check out Ekiben‘s sweet buns forever!  I know that sounds a little weird but, I’ve seen Instagram photos of their sandwiches with white fluffy sweet buns and I had to try it.  On Monday, a friend invited me to “The Best Lunch Ever” pop-up collaboration with Ekiben and The Local Fry.  The event was held at the Ekiben location (1622 Eastern Ave) and featured customer favorites from both restaurants.

The event was from 11:00am-3:30pm and I arrived around 2:15pm.  There  seemed to be a good turnout because the place was full with customers who were waiting for their food. The cashier was friendly and explained the menu items in detail.  I decided to order “The Original” which is two Thai chicken meatballs with coconut peppercorn sauce and slaw.  Let me tell you how that sandwich was everything I imagined and more!

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“The Original” – Thai Chicken Meatball Sandwich with Peppercorn Coconut Sauce

The meatballs were freshly made with chopped onion and green peppers inside and they were cooked to a medium well consistency – not too hard or over cooked.  The bun was soft with a little hint of sweetness.  I also ordered plain fries from The Local Fry with a side of the peppercorn sauce.

ekiben

My friend ordered the Korean fried chicken wings with gochujang sauce and of course I had to taste one.  The sauce is a savory, traditional Korean condiment and had a sweet and spicy flavor, truly awesome sauce.

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Korean fried chicken wings with gochujang sauce

I think “The Original” will be my new favorite sandwich! I also want to visit The Local Fry and taste their gourmet and unique french fry options.  What is your favorite fry from The Local Fry?

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

  

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