BLUE MOON CAFE - 09/12/2011

Blue Moon Cafe is located at 1621 Aliceanna St in the Fells Point area of Baltimore city. It is a breakfast restaurant that has built almost a big following over the years.  It was opened in 1996 & has since been helping Baltimore's residents as well as tourists indulge in great food made with fresh ingredients.  The owner, per Blue Moon's Website www.bluemoonbaltimore.com , imparts her Rock 'n Roll spirit into her menu & every bite of food she cooks.  After appearing on the Food Network's "Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives", The Blue Moon Cafe has become a "Must Visit" for Marylanders & Tourists alike.

Garlic Truffle Mashed Potatoes

This is my first of many recipes I will be sharing with you guys!  I chose this one to share first because it is one of my favorites, & probably the dish all my friends & family like most out of all the food I have cooked for them.  I'm pretty sure all of you know how to cook mashed potatoes from scratch.  This recipe is no different.  It is very simple, & extremely tasty.  The hardest part about this dish is probably the prep work in mincing the fresh garlic by hand (easier if you use a food processor, but inconsistent chunks) or the mashing of the potatoes after they have been boiled.  This is also a pretty inexpensive dish, after the first time.  The truffle oil is the most expensive part of the dish since truffles are probably the most expensive ingredient in the world at about $999.99/lb.  But you can get a very decent truffle oil at a Wegmans or Whole Foods.  The one I bought was about $25 for the bottle.  Good thing is it should last a long time since you only need a couple of drops at a time.  So without further ado here is the recipe for my Garlic Truffle Mashed Potatoes (recipe cooks for roughly 5-6 people):

MELI - May 30th, 2011

Meli Patisserie & Bistro, located at 1636 Thames Street in Fells Point, was opened in 2009 as part of Kali's Restaurant group (Kali's Court, Mezze, Meli, & Adela).  It was named BEST NEW RESTAURANT 2011 - BALTIMORE MAGAZINE, and TOP 10 of BALTIMORE'S 67 BEST RESTAURANTS 2011 - BALTIMORE MAGAZINE.  It is advertised as an American Bistro, although the word MELI is Greek for honey.  Per the website, honey is used in almost all of the dishes to add a little sweetness to the food as well as some of the bar's drinks.  The executive chef, Rashad Edwards, is a born & raised Baltimorian who attained his Culinary Degree at the Baltimore International College in downtown Baltimore.  His bio on the website says he has been in the field for about 10 years & with Kali's Restaurant Group for the past 6 years.

THE PRIME RIB Restaurant - May 18, 2011

"The Prime Rib" Steakhouse has been a Baltimore staple for 46 years.  It is the original Prime Rib Steakhouse out of the 3 open.  The other two are in D.C. & Philadelphia.  It was opened in 1965 by the BeLer brothers with the vision of a 1940's Manhattan "Super Club".  They are known for their Dry Aged Prime Rib & Fresh Seafood.  The decor is Black & Gold everywhere from the walls to the tables, to the bar, & even the black & gold leopard print carpet!  The Waitstaff is decked out in tuxedos.  Even the bus-boys were wearing tuxedos.  It reminded me of a high society club that is very picky of who they let in.  There is a piano player in the main dining room, and I am told a bass player joins him from time to time.  Now, I have been in fine dining establishments before, but I have to admit this was a little over the top in my opinion.  But that is exactly what the owners were going for when they designed the restaurant.

COMING SOON.......

My First Critique:  The Prime Rib 1101 N. Calvert St. Baltimore, MD

Stay Tuned..........Should be up by tomorrow night!

WELCOME TO MY BLOG!!!!!!!!

Where to begin.............

My LOVE for all things food started in my high school years when I started to experiment with cooking.  Unfortunately for my parents, they became my default taste testers!  Haha.  Thankfully I didn't put either of them in the hospital & I'm pretty sure they actually liked most of what I cooked (alas they were probably being good parents & didn't want to crush my spirits if they told me it sucked!).  At this time of my life though, my knowledge of "great" food consisted of the city's steakhouse, red lobster, & the chinese buffet with crab legs!

Once in college, my thirst for knowledge & experience of "great" food started to grow a little bit.  Living in  Fairfax, VA & being so close to D.C. allowed me to try & branch out from the norm & experiment with different foods & flavors.  Growing up as a 1/2 Korean, 1/4 Venezuelan, & 1/4 American military brat, I'd had a decent amount of different cultural foods & flavors.  But Northern, VA/D.C. offered up more choices  than I had ever been privy too.  To say the word "Overload" is putting it a little midly.  Unfortunately, as a broke college kid, the "Actual/Affordable" options were a little limited!

After I moved to Baltimore & started working at a career & bringing in decent money my thirst pretty much took off.  Thanks to my friends who had been privy to such "great" food & flavors growing up in Baltimore, I was able to start actually dining out at the "Fine Dining" places I had been yearning for.  Food became my biggest/most favorite hobby.  I started to really enjoy cooking & food with a passion I hadn't had since playing sports in high school.  

Currently, I have to admit I am a HUGE food junkie.  Always trying new recipes, whether from shows I saw, magazine articles, or even just talking to people.  I'm always wanting to go & eat at the newest restaurants.  But please don't think I am just about "Fine Dining".  I will always love the Mom & Pop Restaurants (usually the best food), the Corporate Chains, Fast Food Joints, Diners, & everything in between.  

So hopefully you will enjoy my latest project - Food Critic.  Thoughts & Observations from a Short, a little Chubby (hey, I love food, don't judge me!), & Multi-Cultural AVERAGE JOE!