Baltimore, part 2: Dining

     If there is a such thing as a joint talent, the joint talent that Amy and I have developed is finding good food, no matter in what city or country we may be. Our history of discovering gustatory delights began as we dated, initially in Athens, then in Augusta. Highlights include Rae's Coastal Cafe in Augusta, which is hidden off the beaten path in a condo complex off Walton Way. Rae's serves the best shrimp and grits I have ever had, and I have tried them in cities all over the southeast.  We traveled to Bermuda on our honeymoon and found several fine restaurants there, although I can no longer name them.  In Charleston, on our first anniversary, we enjoyed dining at 82 Queen and Blossom.  While in medical school, we took a trip to Margarita Island, Venezuela and enjoyed freshly-caught fish on one of the whitest sand beaches you have ever seen.  On our very brief trip to Italy when I finished medical school, we found great places in Florence and in Venice, and ate gelato twice a day, I think.  In Florence, there was this great little restaurant that seated you with other guest for family-style dining.  The food was superb and you were able to meet and talk with people visiting from other countries.

     In San Francisco, we have enjoyed Chinese food in a tiny hole-in-the-wall deep in Chinatown, we found a great French restaurant on the way to Pac-Bell park, we have taken sandwiches and desserts from Oakville Grocery in Napa Valley, and we have had fantastic sushi in Berkeley (o.k., Amy wasn't there for the sushi, my brothers were).   In Boston, the highlight was a tiny Italian restaurant in Little Italy where we sat shoulder-to-shoulder with the people at the next table.  The cannoli were absolutely delicious.  My mouth still waters when I think about that place.

     In Phoenix, Rustler's Rooste was one of the greatest dining experiences I have ever had.  The restaurant is set up on a hill overlooking Phoenix and the surrounding desert.  As you walk in, there is a live longhorn bull in a pen outside of the restaurant.  It was the largest bull I have ever seen in my life, by far.  When your table is called, you slide down a large steel slide and are then taken to your table.  The restaurant provided entertainment for families with children by sending around a lady who made balloon animals for the kids while you waited for your food.  The steak was possibly the best I have ever had and the whole experience was phenomenal.  I could go on to include great food in Cyprus, New York City, Memphis, Tennessee; Adrian, Texas; and Gallup, New Mexico, but that would take a while, and I am really here to talk about the food in Baltimore.

     This was my first trip to Baltimore, and I really enjoyed it.  We pulled into town about lunchtime and needed to find a place to eat.  We had done a little online investigating and had decided we wanted to try a little Italian place called Vaccaro's Italian Pastries.  The place is primarily known for its pastries, but we were ready for lunch and each ordered a panini.  These panini's were so large that I, a man of generous appetite, could only eat about half.  Mine had turkey, artichoke, pesto, and tomato and was still delicious when I ate the leftovers for lunch the next day.   We returned later that day to pick up cannoli, their specialty, for dessert after the Orioles game, and it lived up to its reputation.

     Dinner that night was at Meli's, in the Inner Harbour district, and was also excellent.  We were looking for crab cakes and wound up at Meli's, thanks to a tip from the fine staff at Henderson's Wharf Inn.  Here is Amy, with her goat cheese salad directly in front of her and the crab cakes in the foreground:

Similar to my tendency to try the shrimp and grits wherever I travel in the southeast, I have sampled crab cakes in locations throughout the southeast.  These crab cakes were probably the best I have had, and it pains me a little to say it, since I would love to give that title to a southern restaurant.  Wait a second, Baltimore is actually part of the historical south, since Maryland did fight on the side of the Confederacy and was south of the Mason-Dixon Line.  Whew!  The title of best crab cakes still resides in the south.

As an aside, I also tried their shrimp and grits, but those should not even be considered to be in the same ballpark as Rae's shrimp and grits.  And I didn't like the fact that they left the shrimp heads on and had their beady little eyes looking at me while I decapitated them.

Baltimore, part 1: Lodging

So, we just spent the night in Baltimore and, I've got to say, it's a nice place. We stayed at Henderson's Wharf Inn at Fell's Point on the harbor. This Inn ranks a very close second to Hotel Metropole in Venice as my favorite place I have ever stayed. There are only 2 reasons that Hotel Metropole outranks Henderson's Wharf Inn in my book. The first is that Hotel Metropole was on the Grand Canal in Venice. That's pretty hard to beat. The second reason is that in Venice we were able to open the windows in our room and have the sea air blow into the room. The windows at Henderson's do not open, but the setting and view are still fantastic. Excluding those two factors, though, Henderson's Wharf Inn was a nicer hotel overall.

There are very few places I have stayed when I have traveled that made me want to stay in the hotel rather than explore the city. Henderson's is one of those places: quiet, peaceful, and beautiful, inside and out. The staff was very helpful and the hotel provided several nice touches which I will describe shortly. Let me preface those comments with one thing that has always annoyed me about nice hotels. Nice hotels, while charging you an arm and a leg to stay there, then proceed to nickel and dime you to death: 25 cents per call, 10 dollars a day for internet access, 3 dollars for a can of Coke from the fridge, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.

Henderson's, in contrast, provides a complimentary bottle of wine at check-in, complimentary internet access, complimentary coffee and tea (available 24 hours), complimentary business center with complimentary printing, and the best continental breakfast I have ever had. They had fresh blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, and pineapple. There was an array of fresh breads, pastries, and cheeses, as well. A beautiful inner courtyard provided a very attractive and serene place to enjoy our breakfast. The rooms were spacious and well-appointed. The feather bed provided one of the most comfortable nights of sleep I have had.

If you ever find yourself spending a night in Baltimore, I highly recommend Henderson's Wharf Inn to you. You will not be disappointed. You should, however, book in advance, as there are only 38 rooms in the Inn.