There are certainly several hot spots in Baltimore where you go both to see and be seen (Sloane Brown knows a thing or two about this). When these local joints actually have food and cocktails that are completely top notch and have chefs who are something of a magician in the kitchen-sign me up.

Tucked away on a Canton corner, with a pretty fun view of the Natty Boh Tower, you’ll find Blue Hill Tavern. A modest building that holds one of the city’s culinary treasures, and the most beautiful and well dressed people in the 410, this tavern is more of a funky, upscale restaurant meets bar. Two floors with two bars, swanky drapery, rich decor, and corners perfect for private dining and cocktail chatter, this spot is the place to go for a dressed up date night or a low-key girls night out.

The cocktail list is not for the faint of heart. An avid dirty martini sipping girl (you can refer back to previous posts for some other finds in the city that make a mean one), I had to go with their Clearly Dirty Martini. Olive infused vodka. Say no more. 

Better yet, they offer several different types of olives. Blue cheese stuffed for me, natch. The martini certainly kicked off the dinner with an uber glam touch that also gave a wink to Blue Hill’s creative side-essentially what this place excels at mixing.

What’s unique about Blue Hill is that they rotate their menu according to season. Catching this dinner on the cusp of summer, I made the choice to get their watermelon feta appetizer. Had to get my last chance at this juicy summer fruit!

The colors in this dish speak for itself. A juicy and fresh watermelon round served as a base for rich feta cheese and bright greens garnishing the plate. To say that it was ripe is an understatement. Everything complimented each other perfectly and I’m fairly certain that watermelon was just picked off the vine. 

Of course I must pay tribute to their bread bowl. A nice array of doughs and a plate of oil and fresh whipped butter came out around cocktail time-amazingly fresh and warm! 

As for dinner, I opted for one of their many salads. 

A thinly sliced array of mixed greens is heavily decked out with sun dried tomatoes, feta, cucumbers, a kalamata olives that really resonate in the salad. Topped off with a crispy garlic crouton and a red wine vinaigrette, the salad was flavorful and beautifully presented!

Always a sucker for mac & cheese, I simply had to order theirs to split. This macaroni and cheese just shot up on my list of Top 3 Mac & Cheeses in the city (Blue Grass, Langermanns, and now-here). 

This photo does not do justice. Rich, creamy, velvety cheddar, is the star in this baked wonder. It was impossible to finish but I easily took it home. The caliber of this side dish is not to be discounted. I would dare to say this alone would make for a wonderful, hearty winter meal paired with one of their many wine selections and accompanied with a light salad. I think I may have just decided what I’m getting next time I go!

My date ordered their Tavern Burger. Another great winter dinner that is juicy, fresh, and chock full of aged cheddar, a fried onion, spicy ketchup, bacon, and kobe beef. The brioche bun is what sets this burger apart from most places.

What was my rookie mistake when going to Blue Hill was my lack of appetite for dessert. Their pastry and dessert menu reads like a delectable sensory experience. From local ice creams to “the candy bar” to brioche bread pudding served with apples and vanilla ice cream, their pastry chef is one of the tops in Baltimore. Upon my return trip here, I may just go simply to indulge in dessert. Life’s short no?

Whether you pop into Blue Hill for a post-work happy hour or a Saturday night on the town, their menu is rich in flavors and creativity.

Throw on your skinny jeans and heels this weekend and head over to what may be my new fave restaurant in Canton-head upstairs and let the amazing experience that is Blue Hill begin!

Occasionally-and I do mean occasionally-I enjoy venturing into the county to find the new hotspot happy hour and dining dish!

While it’s not exactly new anymore, just last month I made it all the way to Ellicott City’s Main Street ( if you haven’t checked out one of the three new vintage shops on the street, do it. Now.) to try out Portalli’s for some Italian fare!

I love the upscale casual vibe that they have managed to pull off beautifully. The lighting and color combinations paired with the amazing high quality food could make it an ideal swanky date night but the great prices, happy hour specials, and easy walk-in vibe it has being on the Main Street makes it inviting and not pretentious whatsoever.

Immediately, I went for the dirty martini. Their house cocktail list is lengthy and each one sounds up my alley with a splash of something that has a signature Italian twist.

My perfectly chilled martini hit the spot, with a few ice flakes in and a whole lotta dirtiness it went down all to smoothly!

Amongst the four of us out to dinner, we decided to split one of their flatbreads. 

The meatball flatbread was amazing. Surprisingly light and not overly cheesy or bready, we each were able to steal a square and enjoyed the chopped pieces of meatball scattered in the mozzarella that’s lightly topped with some fresh herbs and marinara. If it wasn’t for my, ahem, second and third course coming (I must admit, it was my birthday dinner) I probably would have dove in for seconds of this flatbread.

After the flatbread, everyone enjoyed some sort of ‘first course.’ I had what was probably one of the best caprese salads I ever had outside of Little Italy ( and could easily rival a caprese or two down there)!

The tomatoes were red and juicy, the mozzarella was thickly cut and lightly salted, all topped with basil and the softest hint of EVOO.

Others enjoyed the caesar salad which had two favorite components I love on a good caesar-hardboiled egg crumbles and a parmesan crisp! Yum!

After quickly and easily chowing down on first courses, our main events came out!

I opted for the salmon accompanied with string beans-so glad I did! The grilled salmon has a killer sun dried tomato basil butter that it’s lightly coated with the veggies made for a light sidekick. The salmon was flaky and had the best taste to it-such a creative pairing!

Others went for some more traditional Italian dishes-the signature spaghetti and meatballs as well as their lasagna, which has two different cheeses as well as veal and beef Bolognese sauce in layers. 

As crazy as it sounds, after these delicious main courses-dessert was actually being entertained!

The great thing about this restaurant is that as amazing as the food all was, not one dish is too overpowering with garlic, or too heavy in cream, or too rich in basil. Which is perfect because it allowed for one of their very tempting desserts.

If it’s any indication at how incredible the dessert was, it was absolutely killed by the time it hit the table. Literally spoons went flying and it was done within moments-sadly, allowing for no time to take a picture.

Here are the remnants of their delicious “S’More”-a mixture of a chocolate mousse topped with a caramelized marshmallow and a few shortbread cookies on the side for dipping. Let’s just say, those cookies didn’t stand a chance on the table.

Overall, the dinner was out of this world! I’d easily go back to try one of their numerous dishes since they all read so beautifully and what we had is clearly a great indicator of their gourmet abilities!

If you plan to check our Portalli’s, make sure to grab a window seat for prime people watching on Main St, grab a happy hour cocktail, and be ready to have a hearty and delicious Italian experience straight out of the mother country!