Leave Me Alone with My Chicken Baby

These are the leftovers! Leftovers!

It's no wonder that Gertrude's – John Shields' restaurant in the Baltimore Museum of Art – only serves its moist, crispy-skinned fried chicken once a week. Based on the massive platter of thighs, drumsticks and wings that arrived at our table they'd quickly go out of business if it was offered on a regular basis.

This was my first trip back to Gertrude's since our first wedding anniversary. My wife and I were married on the museum's patio in the midst of a pounding rainstorm in September of 2003 and we had our reception in the restaurant. The chicken – along with a pepper speckled turkey meatloaf and crab cakes based on those served at the Long Beach Island, NJ restaurant my wife's family owned for over four decades – was on our reception menu but that night is a blur of family and friends, highlighted by the smiles of my parents, who never thought they'd live to see the day.

Coincidentally, last night's weather – dreary and rainy – was a throwback to that September night a dozen years ago, but this time we got to enjoy it with our eight year old daughter (and burgeoning foodie). Just walking into the inviting, cozy restaurant with its impressive bar and low but not too dark lighting brought back a flood of great memories.

Actually, I probably shouldn't say "flood" as our honeymoon on OBX was cut short due to Hurricane Isabel which forced us to evacuate the island and sent my bride of a few days off to work as her station covered the damaging storm. On to more pleasant topics... like the food!

Despite doing a brisk Tuesday night biz – thanks to the aforementioned fried chicken and reduced price $15 entrees – we were quickly seated at a quiet corner table and munched cornbread slathered with sweet, creamy butter while we looked over the menu.

Chris had been eyeing the chicken since we made the decision to go while I had a hankering for Shields' signature crab cake – served with hand cut fries and a crisp, refreshingly different cole slaw – and Ryan settled on a whopper of a cheeseburger from the kids menu, which she quickly slathered in the ketchup that was probably intended for her fries.

While Ryan was disappointed the starters didn't include calamari (her "go to" appetizer) I was happy to get a cup of rich, velvety Cream of Crab Soup that reminded me of the Lobster Bisque I love at Howard's Restaurant on LBI. A platter of Corn & Chicken Fritters featured more than enough to go around, and the surprisingly light app paired just fine with a local Union Brewing Duckpin Ale, served in a can but poured into a glass.

We skipped dessert but you can combine one of the reduced price entrees, soup or salad and dessert into a three course meal for $30. While Ryan and I polished off our dinners  there was enough chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, biscuits and broccoli – aka My Chicken Baby – to bring home for another dinner or two.

Looks like I'll have to push my Andy Nelson's plans till Friday! – Dan Taylor

You can pick up the anniversary edition of John Shields' influential cookbook Chesapeake Bay Cooking at Amazon as well as at the museum store if you happen to be in the area.

Summer's Gone Part I: Charm City (And Surrounding) Edition

The Spaghetti & Meatball Pizza at Joe Squared in Baltimore.

Now I'm standing in a doorway, thinking of summers gone by
It ought to make me happy, but it just makes me want to cry.
– Summer's Gone, The Kinks

So, uh, anybody out there want to tell me exactly where it is that summer went?

Seems like just yesterday I was picking Ryan up on the last day of school, ten weeks of opportunity and adventure looming large ahead of us. Swim team, fishing, boat trips, the beach – ahhh, yes, the beach – and so many other things to do.

Turns out ten weeks isn't as long as I thought and ten 10 days ago I was packing my third grader (?!) in the car for the first day of the new school year.

But between vacation trips, beach weekends and catching up with old friends, THG has been doing a lot of out and about drinking and eating recently. And I do mean "a lot".

One of our favorite treks of late was down to Columbia, MD which, while only a 30 minute drive, always sounds much further away. But when old friends were in town to visit their daughter it seemed like a great chance to try Victoria's Gastropub. Set amidst one of those confusingly cobbled together groupings of stores, banks and chain stores, Victoria's is quite the craft beer and upscale pub grub oasis.

Though our reserved table netted us nothing more than a cramped booth next to the kitchen, I was happy to see they offered a robust beer menu in addition to the varied dinner fare. Bonus points, too, to the server who admitted that our friends were much better off hitting nearby G&M for their legendary softball-sized crab cakes than ordering at Victoria's. Love the honesty, dude.

Chicken Liver Pate was smooth and not at all gamey – though still not as great as my father-in-law's but on par with the Smoked Chicken Liver Spread I made back in 2009. I must admit, though, that we were definitely disappointed that steamed clams were already off the menu at such an early hour. On the other hand, entrees were met with a lot of enthusiasm, especially my juicy Wagyu burger with mushrooms and Swiss cheese which had me scrambling for my napkin to stem the tide of juice running down my hands.

The ambience doesn't quite capture the gastropub/craft beer feel they're going for and our second round of beers was completely mixed up, but any hiccups were smoothed over by the hearty sides of addictive Duck Fat Fries that were devoured by everyone, even the 8 year old diner in our midst.

Two recent trips to Ryleigh's Oyster House in Cockeysville, MD met with definitely mixed results. (They have a couple other popular locations but we've never been.) While I love noshing on seafood at Mama's on the Half Shell down in Baltimore, the opening of Ryleigh's in Cockeysville has brought some of that convenience a lot closer to home. We're talking ten minutes versus thirty, not to mention no lengthy wait for a table.

On National Oyster Day I accompanied my buddy and his son out for lunch, which resulted in picture perfect service, ice cold Natty Boh drafts, smooth and chunky Cream of Crab Soup and my usual, a Fried Oyster Po' Boy that may not be as good as Mama's but is worth stopping in for every month or so.

Unfortunately, another recent trip to Ryleigh's resulted in the first time I was officially disappointed in the restaurant. We had decided to meet an old friend there on a Saturday afternoon and sat under an umbrella on the steamy patio, which sits, unfortunately, right along busy Padonia Road. To be frank, I'm still trying to find a nearby Baltimore County patio/deck bar that doesn't butt up against a busy thoroughfare.

Service from the patio bartender was a little shaky – a bit too much time between courses, forgotten soup – and my Grilled Fish Tacos were a major letdown, though everybody else seemed to enjoy their lunches. Unfortunately, my flour tortillas were a dense, soggy mess, the grilled fish limited to one nearly tasteless strip per taco, with whatever flavor the fish might have had overwhelmed by the pico de gallo.

More impressive was a Sunday afternoon trek to Joe Squared on North Ave. for some pizza and beers before catching a documentary at The Ottobar. I've always liked the food and drink at JS, even if parking your car and walking three blocks reminds me of my days walking from classes at Drexel to a bar or friend's house in West Philly. And not in a great way.

Despite an air conditioning system that was clearly struggling on a sultry summer afternoon, I loved the Spaghetti and Meatball Pizza that my buddy Dave suggested. To be honest, I was expecting something far heavier but JS once again elevated the simple concept and delivered a delicious thin crust packed with red peppers, meatballs and just a hint of pasta.

Dave and I ordered a 14" pie, but I could have definitely housed another few slices. And maybe another small pizza before we headed to The Ottobar for a screening of DON'T YOU WISH THAT WE WERE DEAD about one of my favorite punk bands, The Damned.

And, yes, we even spotted two large rats cavorting in the Ottobar parking lot afterwards, so it was an official Baltimore trip!

I'll be back with Part II of our Summer Wrap-Up soon, with some thoughts on new and old haunts on our home away from home, Long Beach Island (NJ). – Dan Taylor

Dan Taylor is the editor and publisher of The Hungover Gourmet. Be sure to check out THG on Facebook and Twitter.

TAKE OUT TUESDAY: The Maine Course

Lobster Roll

Our family spends a lot of time on Long Beach Island (LBI), NJ, especially during the glorious summer months. My wife spent most of her life there and I've been a faithful visitor since my buddy and I started heading there on Saturday afternoons after our weekly, intrusive swim meets were over. It usually takes about a day of running on its flat roads, soaking in the sun and sea air, and playing in the surf with my daughter for me to ponder selling everything we own and moving lock, stock and barrel to this 18-mile barrier island.

And after last fall's destructive visit from Super Storm Sandy I wasn't sure what would be left or re-opened once the summer rolled around. But LBI, like many other shore resorts, has been true to the "Restore the Shore" slogan. A far cry from the debris-strewn scene that greeted me as I drove over the causeway the first time after Sandy, favorites like Howard's Restaurant, Fantasy Island, Crust & Crumb Bakery, Marvel's and the trusty Wawa up the street have all returned in full force.

One place I figured might have been lost forever was The Maine Course, a seafood take-out joint that had opened up on the Boulevard a year or so ago. I'm a sucker for a lobster roll but I never got around to trying it last summer after I read about it in one of the local papers.

Despite fearing the worst, I was pleasantly surprised when someone informed me that while their original location had taken a beating due to Sandy, The Maine Course had relocated to Schooner's Wharf at Bay Village and was open for business.

So, on a recent Friday night with no desire to either cook or stand in a long line at a restaurant, we decided to give The Maine Course a try and see if it was worth adding to our list of nearby take-out.

If you're going to order from a place called The Maine Course – which bills itself as "Seafood New England Style with a Boardwalk Twist" – you had better try their Lobster Roll ($13.99 or $17.99 for the "Jumbo" version), which is served warm or cold on a New England-style, split top frankfurter roll. While I'm a fan of the cold style, my wife – for whom anything below 75 degrees is considered fleece weather – went with the warm version. I had a hunk and thought the salad was pretty tasty and appeared to be heavy on the lobster. I like a little more mayo with mine and the toasted roll probably suffered from the car ride, but a solid offering and not something you see at a lot of other area take-out joints.

We also sampled the Crabcake Sandwich ($10.99) and it was given the thumbs up, though not on par with some of our other LBI favorites in that category. The Sweet Potato Fries were a hit – thick and crinkle cut – and available for a $1 upcharge over the traditional french fries that come with all meals and sandwiches.

Fish N Chips

Being in a fish and chips mood I went with, well, the "Fish N Chips" meal ($14.99) which was pleasantly surprising. I was expecting the typical catcher's mitt-sized slab of fish caked in beer batter that tends to slide off after the first bite (and, honestly, would have been totally happy with that). What I got instead was like a kicked-up version of a fish stick, with thick, firm cod (?) in a textured coating that was more in the breadcrumb/panko family. Again, not what I was expecting but tasty and perfectly cooked with firm but moist fish dominating. My only disappointment? I asked for extra tartar sauce (preferably in the range of a vat or trough) and only got one measly container.

Appetizers were more hit or miss than the solid, albeit unspectacular, entrees. An order of Fried Green Tomatoes ($7.99) were mushy and devoid of any crunch from the coating but that again can probably be attributed to being transported a mile-and-a-half.

Fried Green Tomatoes (top)
and Cheeseteak Dumplings

The Cheesesteak Dumplings ($9.99 for an order of five) were far more polarizing, with two of us rating them the highlight of the meal while my wife thought they were terrible. I thought the filling actually tasted like a real cheesesteak – no small feat – but for $10 could probably just swing by Panzone's and grab an actual cheesesteak... or two. Still, I would have wolfed down about ten more.

I was glad to see that The Maine Course was able to relocate after the storm and a recent walk by on a gloomy Saturday showed a brisk business at their new location. Though it won't supplant any of our other take-out spots it's certainly a new addition to the list and I'm intrigued enough to give it another try next time I'm down by Bay Village.

The Maine Course is located at Schooner's Wharf, 325 9th Street in Beach Haven, NJ... 609-492-2328.

Obycki's Makes List of Local Airport Eats

What's the worst part about being stuck in an airport? The soul-crushing boredom? The germs you can almost see swirling about trying to fight their way into your lungs? The moment you decide the floor is more comfortable than the chairs... until you take a look at the people who have been walking on that floor?

All these things are awful but it's probably the food I hate the most. I usually resort to grabbing a Starbucks coffee and a package of overpriced Fig Newtons from the newsstand, secure in the knowledge that both will be better than anything I'll find elsewhere in the airport or on the plane.

Luckily, there are some airports where good food has been able to push its way through the sliding glass doors and wedge itself into a spot between a Sbarro and a Cinnabon and I'm happy to report that Baltimore standard Obrycki's has made this list alongside such well known eateries as Pink's and Gordon Ramsey's own Plane Food.

Old Bay Turns 70, THG Reader Gets Present!

As we get set to flip the calendar from June to July and embrace the summer holidays, I can't help but think about the wonderful tastes and smells that define the season: the aroma of hot dogs and hamburgers as they sizzle on the grill; the salty sea air drifting off the ocean and mingling with suntan lotion; the refreshing splash of an ice cold Yuengling Lager.

But few things really get my mind thinking about summer treats like shrimp steamed in beer, the mallet-cracking goodness of Maryland crabs, and even state fair comfort foods like the smell of Old Bay seasoning. Heck, I've even been known to enjoy the occasional bowl of Old Bay Ice Cream!

Created by Gustav Brunn, a German immigrant who luckily for us settled in Baltimore, Old Bay started as "Delicious Brand Shrimp and Crab Seasoning". Eventually, the secret blend of spices got the name Old Bay from a steamship that traveled the waters near Brunn's spice business in Baltimore's Market Place.

Packed in its distinctive yellow and blue tin, the seasoning is still made right here in Maryland and shipped to stores nationwide. As an unofficial Old Bay ambassador I've even been known to ship tins of it to friends overseas who sampled it at one of our backyard crab feasts.

This year Old Bay celebrates its 70th birthday but a lucky THG reader will be the one getting presents. We're happy to be able to give away an awesome Basket of the Bay Gift Package featuring:

• Old Bay Seasoning
• Old Bay Seafood Steamer bag
• Old Bay Beach Towel & Beach Bag
• Old Bay Keychain with bottle opener
• Temporary Old Bay tattoo
• And some great new Old Bay-inspired recipes

All you have to do to enter is send us an e-mail with the subject line OLD BAY before 5 PM EST on Friday, July 10, 2009. We'll select one e-mail at random and that lucky winner will receive the great Old Bay gift package. (If the above link gives anybody problems just e-mail editor@hungovergourmet.com but remember to include the subject line "OLD BAY".)

Only one entry per e-mail address, please. E-mails will only be used for drawing of winning name and contacting the winner. You will not receive any marketing or other communication from either The Hungover Gourmet, Old Bay, etc. Odds of winning are based on the number of entries received.

For more on Old Bay check out their Facebook and Twitter pages.

Good luck!

THG vs The World's Largest Crabcake

I'm not someone who gets into the whole Baltimore "hon" vibe. First off, I'm not from here so it's not like the beehived denizens of Charm City have any kind of cultural kinship for me. Yeah, it's cute and it's fun but my Aunt Jo was from Bridesburg, PA and had a beehive, wore cha-cha pants, smoked and was as much of a hon as the celebrated Bawlmer species. In other words, there's "hons" everywhere, especially in places like Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Philly.

On top of that, the whole thing is organized by the owner of Cafe Hon, an establishment I'm loathe to patronize after a series of meals that have ranged from simply mediocre to among the worst I've ever had. Anywhere.

That said I'm also predictable as can be so when Chris sent me a link to an article about the festival's attempt to break the record for the world's largest crabcake I was on board.

Unfortunately, our festival pre-planning wasn't in high gear. We'd gone to a baby shower beforehand and in the rush to get ready and head out I'd forgotten to put Ryan's stroller in the car. With temps creeping up and parking sure to be at a premium I quietly cursed myself as it dawned on me that we'd be probably be carrying our three-foot, thirty-plus-pound daughter a good deal of the time.

In actuality the forgotten stroller turned out to be a bit of a plus as the warm weather and somewhat sunny skies had brought out tens of thousands who were there to shop, eat, drink and witness the spectacle of Hon Fest. (A spectacle that was best summed up by the burly 6'5" "hon" whose sundress could barely contain the broad, hairy shoulders and hands that dwarfed even the comically-oversized pack of Marlboro Reds.)

But we were there for the crabcake and after standing in a lengthy line at one of the few ATMs on the Avenue (another symptom of piss poor pre-planning) we headed to the booth where sandwiches made from the record-setter were on sale for $10 with proceeds benefitting Special Olympics.

The brainchild of Jim Cupp, sales manager for seafood processor Handy International, the crabcake weighed in at 253 pounds, besting Cupp's own record. Now, anytime something is billed as "the world's largest" anything I'm generally dubious about the taste, flavor and quality. Throw in the fact that the crabcake had been mixed around 3 AM and started cooking around 5 AM and well, you can see why I viewed the $10 more as a donation than an actual purchase.

After briefly chatting with the folks manning the booth we ordered our sandwich with Chris making the astute request for a "crispy" piece. The sandwich we were given had a nice, baked crust on top, unlike some of the platters on the table that looked like little more than scoops of crumbly crabcake filling had been dumped atop them.

Before settling down on the curb to sample the record setter we swung by the front of the booth to get pictures of Cupp and the custom made pan that had been used to fire up our lunch. With Ryan between us happily munching Utz Chips and calling our attention to every dog that walked by we poised our forks and dug in. (We both passed on the warm packets of tartar sauce that felt hot to the touch under the steamy Baltimore sun.)

I think "shock" and "surprise" would be the two words that best describe our reaction to the crabcake. While folks at G&M, Faidley's and Michael's certainly shouldn't be quaking in their boots this was far from the worst crabcake I've ever had (some restaurant on OBX whose name I can't recall at the moment wins that award) and was actually downright tasty. I'm not sure how Cupp was actually able to get a 250 lb. plus crabcake to have some spicy flavor and bite, but he did.

With chips and crabcake in our respective stomachs it was time to hoist Ryan into our arms and make our way back through the crowd to where we'd parked, pleasant memories of Honfest in our head and the world's largest crabcake in our bellies.

Louis Fowler's DEVASTATOR Tour '09: THG Style

Ever wonder what it's like to spend a day eating your way around Baltimore with yours truly?

Louis Fowler does a pretty great job of capturing the high and low lights of his all-too-brief visit to Charm City including going to Attman's Lenny's for lunch, a visit to the one and only Atomic Books, and breaking crabcakes at Michael's Steak & Lobster House with yours truly and Smile Hon editor Patrick Tandy (aka The World's Most Prolific Zine Publisher).

As my daughter would say, "Check it!"

REVIEW: Pleasantly Surprised by Patrick's

When we headed to Baltimore County mainstay Patrick's Restaurant & Pub on a recent Friday night, I wasn't sure what to expect. Their website touts the cuisine as "A Maryland menu with European flair" – a tagline that seems like a nebulous catch-all – and a so-so review from Sun critic Elizabeth Large did little to boost my expectations.

Situated in a bustling strip mall setting, the facade, name and location might suggest a sports bar while the inside strives for a not-quite-fine-dining experience. Because we were with a large group it's hard to tell how our service compared with the rest of the restaurant. Our separate room included our group of a dozen-plus and another table of probably half that, all served by one slightly harried waiter. It took me a good half-hour to get a drink ordered and even then it was only because I all but tackled our waiter – after they'd taken and brought the order of the person next to me and headed out the door.

Luckily, Large's review of the restaurant and a look at their on-line menu gave me a good idea what to expect, not to mention what to avoid. I was pleased to see Fried Maryland Tomatoes (singled out in Large's write-up) were still offered and though the evening's specials held some promise, I didn't think a big order of liver and onions was going to make me any friends among the casual acquaintances and neighbors with whom we were dining. Not to mention my liver-hating wife!

Frankly, the one menu offering that did jump out at me was an entree of Broiled Idaho Rainbow Trout. The dish always reminds me of a trip that I took with my sister and her family back when I was a pre-teen. One night at dinner my brother-in-law ordered the rainbow trout and it was one of my first exposures to "real" fish at dinner. For a kid accustomed to fish sticks and the Howard Johnson's all-you-can-eat fried flounder, the head-on presentation and moist, flavorful fish I tried that night in the mid-to-late 1970s may have been one of the early stepping stones toward my current culinary state.

But, considering that this was more a social event than an exploratory dinner out I decided to file the trout away with the liver and go from something that wouldn't be quite as much work. I settled on an entree of Grouper Monte Carlo, a huge portion of firm and flavorful flaky white fish sautéed in white wine with artichokes, lemon, tomato and fresh basil. I couldn't really find the artichokes in the dish but the lemony sauce went well with the mild but tasty grouper.

The Fried Maryland Tomato appetizer was an even bigger hit. While most menus offer fried green tomatoes, Patrick's uses ripe, red tomatoes in their dish and they somehow keep the thick slices from falling apart in the process. And at just $4.99 the packed plate features six thick slices fried in olive oil and topped with cheese and fresh basil. Though my grouper was tasty and filling (thanks in part to a huge house salad and baked potato on the side), it was the fried tomatoes that would make me head back.

Other portions seemed equally large and the varied menu pretty much had something for everyone – steak for some, fish for others, even eggplant parmagiana (which is served in a towering stack) and sour beef with dumplings, a long-standing offering dating back to Patrick's early days. A bite of fried Maryland crab cake was tasty but the folks at Michael's, Faidley's, G&M and Patrick's (in Baltimore) don't have anything to worry about.

While I won't be running back to Patrick's anytime soon, you could do worse than this Baltimore-area institution that is sure to please even the most diverse group of appetites and palates.

What Was Tops in Food & Drink for 2008?

I usually like to get this list wrapped up while the year is still fresh in my mind and 2008 is already starting to feel like a dark, distant memory. But if the NCAA feels comfortable concluding their 2008 season on January 8th, I guess it's okay that my year-end wrap-up gets posted around Elvis' birthday.

If you'd asked me this morning – bleary-eyed and tired from watching the BCS Championship Game last night – how I felt about 2008 from a Hungover Gourmet standpoint I probably would have said that it was a disappointing year. But then I got some coffee in me and started jotting down all the great tastes I experienced, excellent meals I had, fun trips I took, and the wonderful people I spent time with and guess what? 2008 was pretty darn good after all!

Here's some of the highlights from the past 12 months...

TASTE OF PHILLY: Excellent cheesesteak shop in Denver of all places. Run by Philly-area ex-pats the place features pics of Mike Schmidt and Amorosso's roll boxes, not to mention meaty, delicious steaks.

NEW RECIPES: I frequently fall into recipe funks and end up making the same things over and over but I did add some new options to the rotation this year including Thai Tilapia, Summer Shrimp Salad Sandwich, Slow Oven Cooked Ribs and a couple new ways with pork chops. I also rediscovered my love for big bowls of Tuna Mac Salad during the summer.

COSTCO MEATS: Speaking of chops, I wasn't sure how I'd feel about purchasing meat in bulk at a place like Costco. How wrong I was. Their pork chops, so thick and meaty that I end up splitting them in half, have become a "must have" in our freezer and I've never been disappointed with any of the meats I've purchased there, whether it's an expensive cut of beef for entertaining or a huge boneless pork shoulder to be slow cooked and pulled for sandwiches.

CULINARY EXCURSIONS: I was lucky enough to take two food-and-drink-packed trips in 2008, one to Seattle and a southern road trip that took us from MD to GA and OBX. Both featured so much great food and good times it'd be impossible to summarize them here though I will single out the Cuban Sandwich at the King & Prince in GA and the Deep Fried Banana Leaf Wrapped Chicken Thighs at Ayutthaya in Seattle.

THE TERRACE STACKER: I love me some multi-tiered burgers and this heart-stopper from The Terrace Tavern on LBI is no exception. Any time you combine a mushroom cheeseburger with two thin slices of pork roll you've got me.

GREAT MEALS IN BALTIMORE: We didn't get out as much this year as we usually do, but when we did it was usually pretty great. Top dishes for me: Choucroute Garni (Chameleon Cafe); Spicy Curry Catfish (Saigon Remembered); Flounder Stuffed with Crab Imperial (Michael's Steak & Lobster House); Deep Fried Soft Shell Crab, Crystal Wonton Soup (Jumbo Seafood); Mashed Potatoes (Todd Conners); Chicken Liver Pate, Crabcake (Patrick's Restaurant); Coq au Vin (Rocket to Venus); and the consistently awesome sushi at San Sushi Too in Towson.

INDULGENCE: Edy's Fun Flavors Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream. I'm not a sweets lover and could usually take or leave any ice cream you put in front of me. But it's a good thing this coma-inducing blend of vanilla ice cream with chunks of peanut butter cups (probably my favorite candy ever) and fudge isn't usually available within 50 miles of me.

BACON AND BEER: These two are already great on their own but when you start putting them in other things I love, well, let's just say you have a customer for life. To wit, Bacon Salt, Baconnaise and Yuengling Lager Barbecue Sauce.

JULY 27: Maybe the best food day of the year. With friends in from out of town we decided to go grab lunch at Mama's On the Half Shell where I indulged in their awesome Oyster Po Boy Sandwich, Clams Casino and several draft PBRs (perfect for sitting outside on a warm summer day). After lunch we drove to Little Italy and stopped at Vacarro's (my fave Baltimore bakery/dessertery) where we picked up sherbert, pistachio ice cream and tiarmasu. From there it was home where Chris whipped up a couple homemade pizzas, one of which could only be described as decadent.

THG GETS SOME PROPS: I've been writing The Hungover Gourmet in some form or another since the early 1990s when it debuted in the pages of Exploitation Retrospect, my drive-in movie and pop culture zine. Since then we've added a print version of THG, this blog, a Yahoo Group and a website not to mention a continuing column in the pages of Carbon 14. Writing can be sorta lonely, so it's always nice to find out that not only are people reading what you wrote but that they're also enjoying it. 2008 saw THG appear with fellow area food bloggers at the Great Tastes Food & Drink Festival in Baltimore, featured on both Food Candy (more than once) and SlashFood, added to UrbanSpoon, and splashed across the pages of The Zine Yearbook. Thanks to everybody who took the time to write, comment, mention or link to us, send a product in for us to try, or show their support in any way. Changes are in store for 2009 as well as the publication of the long-overdue THG #11 but I'll leave all the details for an upcoming post.

What are some of your favorite food & drink meals, memories and experiences in 2008?

FOOD TUBE: 'Hon' Overuse Watch in Effect! Food Network Hits Charm City on August 26

Tired of hearing about Baltimore golden boy Michael Phelps? Sick of 'Ace of Cakes' and Duff Goldman (who will be getting his own action figure courtesy of Baltimore-based Diamond Select)?

Well, you might want to avoid The Food Network on August 26th when 'Road Tasted with the Neelys' comes to town. The show – which basically sounds like 'Food Finds' but with two hosts – features a husband & wife team who travel across the country seeking locally-produced food. (Does The Food Network come up with any new ideas anymore or is it all about recycling old concepts with new hosts ala 'Rescue Chef' and 'Food Detectives' and contest winners?)

The August 26 episode finds the pair in Charm City where they'll feature Faidley Seafood and Dangerously Delicious Pies.

Thanks to Chris for the tip!

FOOD COURT: Restaurant Denies Role in Shellfish-Related Death

Ruby Tuesday staff and management are standing behind their claim that a customer who died after going into anaphylactic shock got the dish he ordered, despite his wife's claim to the contrary.

Rodney "Krook" Hawkins, a welder and aspiring rapper, died after being served the restaurant's Chicken Oscar, an entree featuring "tender jumbo lump crab meat with asparagus tips and lemon-butter sauce atop a fresh grilled chicken breast". Hawkins' wife insists that her husband, who had been allergic to shellfish since childhood, ordered the Chicken Fresco, "a fresh, grilled chicken breast topped with seasonal vine-ripened tomatoes, lemon-butter sauce, and a splash of balsamic vinaigrette".

While the Georgia Bureau of Investigation suggested that the death was the result of a mix-up the restaurant maintains that the server's order pad and the kitchen ticket confirm that Hawkins ordered the crab-topped dish.

Return Trip to Michael's is Just as Good

I'm pretty sure my first visit to Michael's Steak & Lobster House was pre-THG blog existence. Pals of ours were in town for the Baltimore Boat Show and we ended up taking in dinner at this Baltimore institution, regularly lauded for their steaks and immense, tasty crabcakes. Hardly fancy, the restaurant is dark with lots of wood paneling and a nautical motif that reminds me of the Bridesburg, PA basements where my relatives entertained us back in the 70s.

Yesterday, those same friends were in town for the Orioles/Yankees game and wanted to meet for dinner. With Chris working the holiday Ryan and I jumped at the chance to get out for dinner and headed over to Eastern Ave.

Nothing much has changed at Michael's since the last time I was there, probably a good six-plus years ago. The same dark interior, nautical motif, menus... heck, I think we might have had the same waitress from my last visit, a Baltimore-area lifer who could have passed for my beloved Aunt Josie.

More than the decor and wait staff, the food at Michael's hasn't changed either. And coming on the heels of my friends' disappointing visit to Amicci's in Little Italy the night before, this was a good thing.

Generous bowls of Cream of Crab Soup are, as Bobby Hill might say, "All cream, no crab," but that's okay. It's a hearty bowl and when you do get some chunks of crab (which I'm never quite sure are real or imitation) it's a nice surprise. As a plus, Ryan really loved it, lunging for the spoon when I dared put it down out of her reach. A bread bowl filled with a Creamy Crab Dip is more the real deal, clumps of crab fighting with garlic and the Old Bay that inevitably gets doused on top.

Though I had previously made up my mind to get their signature crabcakes – a large platter filled with two oversized, zero filler hunks of Bawlmer goodness – my mind started wandering when I saw the menu and I decided to get a little adventurous. The Soft Shell Crab Stuffed with Crab Imperial turned out to be a great choice and I got the best of both worlds without feeling like a giant pig for eating two crabcakes. Which I could have easily done.

I suppose my only complaint with Michael's would have been the large, loud party that was seated in the same small room as us. Our party included three adults and three well-behaved kids. Their party included eight extremely loud adults all involved in individual conversations that forced them to scream over each other and everybody else.

Old Bay Ice Cream

After a hearty dinner at our favorite local sushi joint (Kyodai in Towson with its friendly staff, great service, excellent food and fun, interactive rotating sushi bar) we decided to walk off a a few calories, enjoy the nice weather and perhaps end up at Moxley's, a local purveyor of ice cream.

Naturally, the words 'OLD BAY' on the flavor board caught our eyes, especially since the flavor was writ in large letters with a sign tacked next to it that proclaimed 'TRY ME!' Immediately, I took this as a sign that the uniquely Maryland flavor was a surprise hit and I should do as the sign suggested.

Chris and I both gave it a taste, and were surprised at the slightly spicy, unique flavor. Unfortunately, my wife was not prepared to be as bold as I was and simply ordered the coffee mojo, a blend of coffee ice cream and crushed Oreos. My order led to the following exchange:

DT: "I'll have a Moxley sundae with Old Bay."
BOTH CLERKS (in unison): "REALLY?!"
DT: "Wait – is that not good? Am I the first person to order this?"
CLERK 1: "Well, no. Somebody else came in and bought a pint."
CLERK 2: "But other than that? Yeah."

Well, all the naysayers don't know what they're missing. The Old Bay ice cream – despite Chris's comment that it got worse with each bite she tasted – was an interesting, and I think successful, attempt at blending a distinctly Baltimore spice into your everyday ice cream, creating something I'm certainly glad I tried and wouldn't hesitate to try again.

Check out McCormick's Old Bay page for some recipes featuring the spice, unfortunately none of them of the ice cream variety.

Crabcakes to Kill For...

As a crabcake lover, living in Baltimore is both a blessing and a curse. A blessing because you can find top-notch crabcakes at a half-dozen or so area eateries. And a curse, because, well you can find top-notch crabcakes at a half-dozen or so area eateries.

Of all the crabcakes in the area, the ones at G&M Restaurant in Lithicum Heights are among the best. They are not, however, worth trying to kill someone over.

Thanks to THG contributor WP Tandy for the tip.

Of Crabcakes and Birdmen

The crabcake sandwich is to the Baltimore area what the cheesesteak is to Philly and its suburbs. You'll find many places claiming to serve the area's best specimen and an unscientific poll of the foodstuff's fans will produce as varied a result.

Having lived in the Baltimore area for a few years now, I've sampled many of what people claim to be the "best" crabcakes and while I may not rank it at the top of the list (Faidley's in Lexington Market takes that prize), the softball-sized mound of crab that makes up the legendary Crabcake Sandwich at G&M Restaurant and Lounge is a very close second.

After an earlier, aborted attempt to introduce my friend and drinking buddy Pat to the wonders of G&M we decided to give it a shot last night on our way to DC. I pulled into the G&M parking lot -- at about 7 PM on a Wednesday night! -- and gulped as we saw the line stretching out the door. Again. Luckily, the wait for two hungry people willing to sit at "first available" was only about 10 minutes.

Once inside we sat in the Lounge ("Proper Attire Required") where we could keep an eye on the Keno screen (I've seen this three hundred times in various bars and eateries and *still* haven't figured it out).

I started off with a big, chunk-filled and slightly peppery bowl of Cream of Crab Soup while Pat wisely passed and waited for an order of Large Steamed Shrimp to arrive. Shrimp were hot and meaty, though not quite as good as those served at John Steven in Fells Point (still the shrimp gold standard in my book).

The arrival of two crabcake sandwiches was met with wide eyes and gasps from Pat and a wide smile that said "Get in my belly!" from yours truly. Though it's been a couple years since my first (and last) visit, that softball-sized mound of crabcake was like the return of an old, but edible, friend.

Though I'm still partial to Faidley's, the crabcake sandwich at G&M is top notch and is deserving of its lofty rep. Having had one I'm now kicking myself for not dragging my out of town friends there when they visited a few weeks back.

While dinner settled we drove to DC and saw Aussie garage legends Radio Birdman in what was their first tour of the United States, ever. Normally a Guinness drinker, Pat begged off the heavy stuff and joined me in downing a couple pints of cold, but far lighter and more crabcake-friendly PBR as the night rocked on.