Fells Point

Brunch Review: The Point in Fells

categories: RESTAURANTS

My first visit to The Point in Fells (1738 Thames Street Fells Point, MD 21231) was on Christmas Eve 2014 and I must say I had a jolly good time.  It was the Wednesday night dance party and the DJ played hit after hit.  There were drink specials and the place was packed, so packed that the party seemed to trickle out onto the sidewalk.

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My next visit to The Point in Fells was for Sunday brunch.  A much different atmosphere than the holiday party. There was no DJ or music, but the place was still packed with football fans watching the game. The point has food and drink specials for everyday of the week and Sunday Brunch seems to be a very popular day.

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The restaurant/bar has two-level seating and additional outdoor seating.  I arrived there around 1:30 pm and there was a 30 minute wait because the upstairs area was closed for a private party.  The Sunday brunch runs from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm.   Our table wasn’t available until 2:10 pm and the first thing I ordered was the bottomless mimosas, but I was disappointed when the waitress advised me that the bottomless option stops at 2:00 pm… womp womp.  Another strike out on the bottomless.

My brunch selection was the Happy Crab – a crab cake and chicken sausage sandwich with a sunny side up egg, spinach and  cheddar cheese on a pretzel bun. I’m always a fan of crab cake but I was interested to see how it pairs with chicken sausage.

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It paired pretty well.  The chicken sausage had a little spicy kick that overpowered the crabcake, but still a good combo.

My friend ordered the Chicken and Waffles. It was your basic waffle with a fried chicken breast.  The chicken breast was really big and she couldn’t finish it all, so of course I helped her.  Come to think of it my sandwich was pretty big also. The brunch menu is great for sharing.

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As if our shareable meals weren’t enough, we also ordered dessert.

Our first choice was a bread pudding with a Gran Marnier Liqueur caramel sauce.  It took a while for the dessert to come out and the caramel sauce was hard and had a toffee-like texture which was unexpected because we were expecting a liquid caramel topping.

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The second dessert we ordered was an apple crisp with warm apples, ice cream and strawberry topping.  It was tastier than the first option.

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Overall the brunch at The Point in Fells was decent. It was a family-friendly dining experience with friendly and knowledgeable staff.  I would like to visit again preferably on their Thursday Burger Night or All Day Happy Hour Friday Night.

Have you ever been to The Point in Fells?  Tell me about your experience.

Cap’n Crunch French Toast

categories: RESTAURANTS

Two all-star breakfast favorites join forces to make one awesome meal and leaves you wondering … Why didn’t I think of that?

My recent visit to Blue Moon Café (1621 Aliceanna St. Baltimore, MD ) was my second trip there.  The first time I visited was a few years ago with a few co-workers, back in my “late-night/early-morning” bartending days.  The restaurant is open 24 hours on the weekend, so that makes for a great grub after the club.   I don’t remember the food I ate, but I do remember the place being a very small and kitschy restaurant in Fells Point.  My second time around I was on a mission to taste their famous Cap’n Crunch French Toast.  I have many mention it on social media and I know a few people who’ve visited and raved about it.

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I am officially one of the ravers because this French Toast is awesome!  The Cap’n Crunch isn’t added in the batter mixture because that would be a little nasty, instead The Cap’n Crunch is encrusted on the outside of the French Toast giving it a savory crunchy topping.  The bread is soft on the inside and gives the firm outside a nice balance.  It’s not as sweet as I originally thought it would be, but I could still taste the flavor of the Cap’n Crunch cereal.

If I can remember correctly, the cost of the French Toast is $7.99 and it comes with fresh fruit, whipped cream, and powdered sugar…not bad for two heavenly pieces of delicious carbohydrates.  The only downfall with this breakfast is Blue Moon Café doesn’t serve hot syrup 🙁 forgive me but I like my breakfast breads dripping in hot syrup. I asked the waitress why and she said something about “safety…hazard…hot liquids”  –  O.K. I get it.  Surprisingly without the hot syrup, I enjoyed my French Toast very much.  I’m starting to think that’s the idea…serve the toast with little distractions and lots of flavor.

 

 

Darbar

categories: RESTAURANTS

A hankering for Indian food and a coincidental suggestion from a friend recently led me to Darbar  located on Aliceanna St in the heart of Fells Point.   Just shy of one year in business (opened in April 2011),  this quaint restaurant is slowly picking up momentum as the newest and best in traditional Indian cuisine in Baltimore.

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It’s pretty hard to overlook Darbar  while driving on Aliceanna St; it’s oddly located in the middle of a residential neighborhood and the exterior resembles a city storefront more than a restaurant.  Colorful holiday lights and bright white spotlights border the windows at the front entrance of the restaurant, however once inside, the lights are dim and the mood was subdued, an immense difference from the outer appearance of the restaurant.  Traditional Indian artwork adorns the walls and pristine white tablecloths are neatly draped on every table beneath properly placed silverware and glassware.  The restaurant has two main dining areas, one larger than the other, separated by a single large arch doorway.

The  hostess greets my party of two at the door and we are escorted to the larger, more populated dining area and seated in a quiet corner.  Our waiter dressed in formal black pants, white top, and a bowtie, strikes a match to light the dinner candle in the center of our table. As I looked around I noticed pairs of patrons and I understand why… low lights + candles = romance.  The waiter  quickly brings out the complimentary papadums served hot with an assortment of tamarind chutney, mint chutney, and onion chutney.  Papadums, for those who may not know, is a thin wafer-like flatbread with the texture of a cracker. The papadums was very colorful with visible sesame seeds and grains fried into the dough, this makes for a healthy texture and compliment to anchor the chutney.  The tamarind chutney was especially delicious with its red color and unique sweet & sour flavor; often called “ketchup of the east” it gave a tangy kick to the papadums and reminded me of a slightly upscale version of chips and salsa.

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On to the main course,  we stuck with the basics of Middle Eastern cuisine and ordered naan ($3.95) curry shrimp ($14.95), and chicken tikka masala ($14.95) served with rice and peas.   The curry shrimp was the correct consistency of spicy; enough spice to please my palette, but not too spicy or overpowering.   The highlight of my meal was definitely the chicken tikka masala, this dish absolutely blew my mind – it was just that good.   The tikka masala sauce had a smooth buttery sweet flavor that reminded me of southern cooking or comfort food.  Not all Indian restaurants make their sauce that sweet, but I personally enjoyed it.  The servings were very large, enough for myself and my friend to eat and still have leftovers to take home.

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The service our waiter provided was great, and management also checked in on our table to confirm the dining experience was going well.  As we left Darbar around 9:30 p.m. on a Wednesday night, the dining area was full of patrons and that’s certainly a good sign that this restaurant is doing something right.

Bond Street Social

categories: RESTAURANTS

The historic area of Fells Point in Downtown Baltimore has added another trendy attraction on the cobblestoned corner of Thames and Bond streets. Bond Street Social is a hybrid restaurant that also doubles as an upscale sports bar and cocktail lounge. Newly opened in October 2011, the idea of mixing dinner, drinks, and dancing together in one location is a great one and definitely a change from the previous DuClaw Brewing Company that occupied the same building before closing its doors in 2009. At Bond Street Social the primary goal is to promote a social atmosphere among all guests and patrons that visit the establishment.

Walking up to the entry of the restaurant I was amazed by the large floor to ceiling windows surrounding the sides of the building.  The large windows are inviting. During the day they welcome the light and give a certain ambiance at night with the soft glare of the outside lights.  Once inside the décor is warm and inviting.  The hardwood floors and rock walls have the feel of a Brooklyn brownstone apartment. The wooden panel walls and marbled fireplaces anchor the room along with a cozy fire pit that sits in the middle of the dining area.

 I originally made reservations for a group of six, but later discovered we would be joined by a few more in our group. The friendly hostess and server worked together swiftly to locate a larger table and accommodated our party of eight within a matter of 20 minutes.

The greatest start to any meal is a tasty cocktail and Bond Street Social boasts a full bar complete unique “social drinks” that cannot be found anywhere else.

“Cocoa Cosmo” Martini with Liquid Nitrogen

My personal favorite cocktails on the menu are the Liquid Nitrogen Martinis. They were so exciting mainly because the bartender advised me to wait 2-3 minutes before taking a sip so that the dry ice added to my drink would not harm me. I ordered the “Cocoa Cosmo” martini made with raspberry vodka, cordials, and sprite. The bartenders seem to be very skilled in the art of mixology because I later asked the bartender to make something “special” for me with Apple Puckers and I was pleased with the result of a gingerbread rimmed martini that taste like caramel apple candy.

The menu was described by the server as “social plates,” meant for ordering in groups and shared by everyone at the table. I would describe them as artfully crafted appetizers or tapas. Compliments of the restaurant our party munched on Corn Bread Muffins with Jalapeno Butter.

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Later, we blissfully ordered the Rock Shrimp Tacos, Corn Bread Crusted Mozzarella Sticks, Mac & Cheese Bites, Bond Street Burger Sliders, and the Chicken & Biscuits. I especially liked the citrus slaw that was served on the Chicken & Biscuits. It added an unexpected flavor to the cheesy biscuits and spicy chicken. The shrimp in the Rock Shrimp Tacos were pleasantly fresh, and I must admit I did not expect them to be because normally when preparing seafood for appetizer purposes it can taste old and processed. The tacos were served on soft shell pita bread with black beans, lettuce, and a remoulade glaze. My only regret is that we didn’t order more food because the menu items are served in different quantities; Sliders (2), Tacos (3), Mozzarella Sticks (4), etc. Needless to say I was still hungry after the kitchen closed at 11:00 p.m.

I know 11:00 is a premature time to close the kitchen on a weekend, but it closes early for good reason because midnight is when the real fun begins. The tables are rearranged, the lights are dimmed and restaurant brings in a live DJ to get the guests up and on their feet, ready to mix, mingle and dance the night away.

 

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