If you live, visited, or just popped in for a day to Baltimore, it would be unfortunate and remiss not to stop by Woodberry Kitchen in Clipper Mill. While the volumes of rave reviews, litany of happy customers, and a staff so informed and well educated on the making, creation, and presentation of the cuisine, it’s an experience like nothing else in this city.

Whether you go for their five-star dinner and their stellar cocktail list or their delectable Sunday brunch, they manage to pull off the most fantastic farm to table restaurant this city has to offer.

Since I’m a brunch girl to the core, let’s focus on that, huh?

Their beverage offering is as extensive at Sunday brunch as it is at dinner (Ok, well, their dinner has  a wee bit more on the cocktail and wine side-as in a lot). 

From a freshly squeezed blood orange juice..

to an iced maple latte-hearty in size,sweet, refreshing, and an ideal Sunday summer time drink-their morning offerings lack nothing. If you’re a coffee fan, you simply must try their Counter Culture coffee, complete with a French press delivered to your table and a wooden timer to let you know when it’s ready!

No brunch would be complete with out a bread basket. And while we could easily order these individually, isn’t it much better and easier to order an entire basket?

From a home-made cinnamon “toaster tart”, to my favorite the blueberry quark danish, an apple confection, and a croissant, the bread basket has sweet, savory, and a whole lot of home-made freshness.

Also, I love the touch of the cloth napkins that have a true farm table feel, from a checkered pattern to a paisley, everything is one of a kind.

After hearing many, many recommendations for the Morning Flatbread, I felt obligated (ok, I wasn’t exactly having my arm twisted) to order it.

The crust is soft with a crispness on the edge and a sweetness to it that compliments the salt in the sausage and the egg smack in the middle. A whisper of cheddar and potato accentuate the potato and sausage and make it one meal that is what everyone only hopes for when they arise. I gladly took half home and enjoyed it later.

Similarly, Woodberry takes another what would be lunch staple and puts a brunch spin to it-the Breakfast Burger.

An english muffin houses house-ground chuck, a fried egg, bacon, cheddar, and generously sized potatoes (and let’s not discount the home-made ketchup and pickles). I think the picture speaks for itself alone with the vast array of colors and hybrid of breakfast meeting lunch.

For a more lunch feel, the Fried Marvesta Shrimp Roll is bright, loaded with deliciously fresh shrimp, a chile mayo, and potato salad. It’s akin to a shrimp po-boy but that would only be insulting it.

Sadly, I failed at my mission of being hungry enough for dessert. Which is yet another course WK masters (I’ll be back for their C.M.P.-look it up on their site)!

Opting for a lighter side, their homemade gelato and ice cream is sinfully good.

Tangerine, chocolate, sweet cream, etc., their flavors are bright and bold and melt in your mouth!

Woodberry Kitchen is simply one of my favorite restaurants in all the land (and I’m not alone). I can only strongly encourage you to go for dinner, brunch, a special occasion, just because, after work, with friends-you get the idea.  It’s one true place where I can say you won’t be disappointed in anything you order and the service you receive. WK is a gem in Baltimore and every time is a new experience with the farm to table change overs!

I am fairly certain I have stumbled into the Woodberry Kitchen of Brooklyn this past weekend when visiting friends. Any good whirlwind weekend filled with NYC shopping, dining, cocktails, and good friends warrants a much needed relaxing, hearty brunch. Rose Water offers indoor or outdoor seating tucked away in Park Slope and organic, fresh, farm to table inspired dishes that give reason for the 30 minute wait we incurred. 

The cozy, small room in the back hosting merely 5-8 tables is warm and inviting with surrounding cookbooks and coffee table books in shelves along the proximity. 

Deciding to get their fresh squeezed orange juice as my beverage (they also have rose water lemonade and hibiscus iced tea), I loved the bright orange color of the juice-definitely not something you see in Tropicana or Simply Orange. This is the real deal, folks.

Despite getting their $14 prix fixe beverage and entree, their bread basket sounded like the most ideal basket of autumn goodies.

Apple coffee cake, lightly buttered challah, and corn bread overflowed and each one was gone within 5 minutes. Light, sweet, and served with a side of fresh butter and applesauce for spreading, the breads were irresistible! 

As for entrees, selections were diverse and each sounded flavorful and incorporating a distinct component of the season.

I opted for their 3 eggs that comes with potatoes and bacon. I highly enjoyed the light, fluffy eggs sprinkled with sharp cheddar cheese. The potatoes were perfectly cooked as was the the bacon. 

Of course it wouldn’t be a true seasonally changing menu if it didn’t offer at least one apple inspired entree for the fall. And boy did it.

Macoun apple pancakes accompanied with spiced butter and toasted walnuts. 

I think the juicy apples popping out of the pancakes speak for themselves. The pancakes were hearty and not one was able to finish the entire serving.

One of the things I always enjoy when visiting NY is discovering new food finds, trying creative pairings, and channeling my inner ‘foodie’ for places that are undeniably outstanding. This is one of them.

For all you Woodberry Kitchen lovers of Baltimore, a stop to Rose Water is a must when in Brooklyn! Sure the farm to table trend is here to stay but places like these have simply mastered the concept.

Grab a Bolt Bus and make your way here for brunch, dinner, or dessert-then swing by BluePrint for an after-dinner drink to cap off the night!

Ever since I was young, my mother said I should have been a Southern Belle (despite being born and raised in Baltimore-not exactly the deep south)! From my love of home made biscuits and the need to always be accessorized and styled whether I’m taking out the trash or heading to the gym. Needless to say, it was a tough call when I was accepted way back in the day to College of Charleston (BWI had yet to offer non-stop flights so it was the transportation hardship that swayed my decision) not to jump at the opportunity of good southern cooking, shopping, men, and weather! Did I mention southern cooking?!

This past weekend, I unintentionally found myself having a very southern inspired theme in Baltimore. And loved and ate up every moment of it!

On Saturday night, I ventured to Blue Grass Tavern for the first time-a sweet little restaurant tucked on a corner of a rowhouse community in the heart of Federal Hill. A refreshing deviation from the sports bars that seem to fill up the streets of Fed, Blue Grass offers up a nice southern escape (and valet parking for $5!) for a hearty meal accompanied by a yummy cocktail and the relaxing sounds of, well, bluegrass and country!

First up, I ordered-for just a $1-their yummy cornbread that literally melts in your mouth along with their honey butter. Between my date and I, the pan they served it in was down to a crumb!  

The past week my work held a fairly large event there and I got good tips and snippets as to what to try-the main one being their charcuterie plate! Consisting of local meats and cheeses, as well as pickles, thin, crusty bread, and pickled peppers, my date and I opted for bacon jam (YES-it exists!), a goat cheese, and a very smoky sausage. 

Yes, if you must know, we were completely full by that point. I know they say man can’t live on bread alone. They’re wrong. Fortunately, there was a little bit of wait time between our plate and our bites. I opted for their Daily Grind, a fresh burger with a slice of colby cheese served with a sweet house ketchup (my guess is there’s a bbq sauce of sorts in there) and thinly cut fries. My date opted for their lobster ravioli which is on their Medium Bites roster-we both split their spicy Mac & Cheese. 

You can kind of make out the almost-gone lobster ravioli behind the mac-it was just that mindblowingly good that both my date & I forgot to snap a pic before it was almost gone! The macaroni was creamy with a subtle spicy kick to it and definitely something to be shared! While I wasn’t able to finish my whole burger, the soft and buttery brioche bread accompanied with the fresh beef was everything I had hoped for! I think I’ll go out on a limb here and say Paula Deen would approve!

Finally-because who can resist a hearty southern dessert-my date and I split their apple pie. Rich, creamy, and topped off with a maple sauce on top it hit my sweet teeth right in its sweet spot! 

As we were leaving (around 7:15sh), the bar downstairs was hopping and tables were filled to the brim! A mixture of older couples dining and young city dwellers catching up over cocktails made the southern inspired tavern a great place for that windy, February evening! I think all it needs is a roaring fire upstairs to overcome some of draft but no doubt come summer, all will be good!

Continuing my below the Mason-Dixon line themed weekend, the next morning my family and boyfriend I did a tradition that I hold near and dear-Sunday brunch! I introduced my mom to Langermann’s just last Saturday-she loved it so much she brought her friend this week for lunch then made another return trip for brunch this Sunday!

A new classic in Canton, Langermann’s nails southern dishes and has the space and warmth for parties of all sizes! I had yet to dine for brunch but knew I was in for a treat!

Starting the meal off right were warm biscuits brought table side with butter and jellies. Certainly not packages of mass-produced jams but homemade fruity spreads. The blueberry was good enough to put on top of pancakes and the strawberry was rich and thick and reminded me of a daiquiri. I was torn what to put on my biscuit-so I opted for both!

Another great thing about Langermann’s brunch (and a great way to kick off Sunday Fundays like I know many of you do!) is the complimentary mimosa they offer between 10-3. Fresh, fruity, and just enough kick to get you out of whatever daze you might be in from the night prior! 

As I’ve said many times, I’m a gal who loves her bread and carbs (also the reason why I’m trying to amp up my gym time!)-whether it’s in the form of potatoes, pasta, biscuits, or in that morning’s case-French Toast! 

Sweet, raisiny, drizzled with chocolate and topped with strawberries-it’s a brunch to beat! My date opted for the Breakfast Blitz-a morning staple of eggs, meat, potatoes, and a biscuit! 

A Langermann’s speciality, the Langermann’s Hash, was also ordered-chorizo sausage, short ribs, corned beef hash all served beneath two eggs. This dish is wholesome, hearty, and sure to leave you full for hours to come!

Langermann’s is a big fave of mine-the open space, the southern fine dining, and the half price wine Wednesdays are all reasons why I return time and time again. In fact, I’m lucky enough to have my alma mater host a Young Alumni Happy Hour there in April! 

Needless to say, Baltimore offers up a lot of big city style and flavor-however, for me, it’s the taverns and the homestyle, rich cooking that I adore in this town! Sure you can find Lebanese, Thai, Italian and all sorts of ethnicities downtown-but let us not forget the south, hon!