Brasserie Tatin in Baltimore

Brasserie Tatin

Brasserie Tatin reminds you more of a contemporary French restaurant located in Manhattan, than a old bistro located in Paris. However, the food is spot on French. Unlike Petit Louis, located less than a mile away, Brasserie Tatin is authentically French but with a dash of creativity. It is located in the Broadview apartment building near Johns Hopkins and pulls a clientele of JHU teachers and staff as well as Roland Park/Guilford/Canterbury residents, both groups of which love (and can) spend. However, you do not have to spend, as the menu can support a $30 meal, but can be stretched into a soup-salad-entree-dessert four course meal. The orange-blue decor seperates it from most French restaurants who try to be French but lose an individual spirit, which is the hallmark of a Parisian restaurant.

Salade Caesar Tatin ($6.50) was a classic Caesar salad with Romaine lettuce, grated Parmesan, croutons with a delicious dressing, which is uncommon for me, as I do not usually like salad dressings.

Steak Frites ($22) is a Hanger Steak (authentic French!!) with delicious handcut French Fries

Tarte Tatin ($7.50) is the signature dessert of the restaurant, as well as what it is named after. The Tarte Tatin is a caramelized apple tart served with one scoop of cream and another scoop of vanilla ice cream (behind apple shaped cracker).

Brasserie Tatin
105 W. 39th Street
Baltimore, MD 21210
443.278.9110
Dinner: Sunday – Monday: 5:00pm – 9:00pm, Tuesday – Thursday: 5:00pm – 10:00pm
Friday & Saturday: 5:00pm – 11:00pm
Brunch: Sunday: 11:00am – 2:30pm
http://www.brasserietatin.com/

Baltimore Architecture Part Three

All of these pictures are available at:
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The Washington Monument looking north on Charles Street

The Washington Monument

The Washington Apartments

Another view of the Washington Apartments

The Stafford Hotel (now apartments) with a monument to John Eager Howard, an American revolutionary war hero

Another view of The Stafford hotel

The Washington Apartments and Stafford Hotel

The Stafford Hotel and Graham-Hughes House

The Graham-Hughes House

Another view of the Graham-Hughes House

Baltimore Architecture Part Two

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Temple Gardens apartment building facing Druid Hill reservoir

Severn Apartments at corner of W. Monument and Cathedral streets in Mount Vernon, Baltimore

Johns Hopkins Hospital

View of downtown Baltimore City from the East

Alpha Phi Alpha building on St. Paul’s street

The Walters Art Gallery on Charles Street

Charles Street facing south from the Washington Monument

Mount Vernon Place Methodist Church

Another view of the Mount Vernon Place Methodist Church

The main building of the Peabody Institute

Another view of the Peabody Institute

The monument to the Marquis de Lafayette in front of the Peabody

The Lafayette Monument from the Peabody

The Hackerman House, which is connected to the Walters Art Gallery

Another view of the Hackerman House

Restaurant Reviews!!! Coming Soon

This is a list of restaurants that I am going to review in the future when I visit them:

Morton’s Steakhouse- Baltimore
Tio Pepe- Baltimore
Cinghiale- Baltimore
Fleming’s Steakhouse- Baltimore
Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse- Ocean City, MD
Brighton’s Orangerie in Intercontinental HarborCourt Hotel- Baltimore
Linwood’s- Baltimore
Palm Court in Plaza Hotel- New York
Harry Cipriani- New York
Grimaldi’s- New York
Sylvia’s- New York
Peter Luger Steakhouse- New York
The 21 Club- New York

Matchbooks at Restaurants

Matchbooks, the hallmark of the American restaurant are disappearing due to laws against smoking in restaurants and public areas. However, the stalwart of the matchbook industry, the steakhouse in many cases retains matchbooks and keeps the tradition going. This list, which is to be constantly updated will list the restaurants that I have travelled to that have matchbooks, and for you, if a restaurant does not display their matchbooks, they may still have them.

Bellagio Hotel (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Mon Ami Gabi (Las Vegas, Nevada)
Rio Hotel (Las Vegas, Nevada)
The Buttery (Lewes, Delaware)
Bethany Blues (Bethany Beach, Delaware)
McCormick & Schmick’s (Baltimore, Maryland)
Ruth Chris’s steakhouse (Baltimore, Maryland)
Obrycki’s (Baltimore, Maryland)
Cafe Hon (Baltimore, Maryland)
Sabatino’s (Baltimore, Maryland)
Fogo de Chao (Baltimore, Maryland)
The Prime Rib (Baltimore, Maryland)
Capital Grille (Baltimore, Maryland)- must ask for!
Tio Pepe (Baltimore, Maryland)
Schlosshotel im Grunewald (Berlin, Germany)
Hotel Raphael (Paris, France)

Maria 300′s Garlic Bread

Maria 300 was the most popular restaurant in Little Italy from 1934 until 1974, when Maria Allori, the owner died. Henry Louis Mencken ate here along with Gene Autry, Rocky Marciano and Dean Martin.

Here is a recipe from http://www.chowhound.com/topics/471992  for their garlic bread

“

Two loaves of seeded Italian bread
3/4 pound of unsalted Irish butter (or unsalted Vermont butter)
one head of garlic, minced (yes, a HEAD of garlic, minced. A LARGE head of garlic!)
caraway seed
crushed basil
crushed hot pepper flakes
Reggiano parmigiano

Slice the bread with a bread knife approximately one inch thick
Coat each slice with a heavy layer of the garlic mixed/blended well with the softened butter-there may be a bit more than a tablespoon for each slice; perhaps two tblsp. It is easiest to let the butter soften to room temperature for an hour or so before blending it with the garlic.
Grate fresh Reggiano over each slice; coat the slices with the Reggiano for a full layer of cheese on each.
Sprinkle caraway seeds over this
Sprinkle crushed basil over this
Sprinkle a few hot pepper flakes over this

Bake at 350 degrees for approximately ten minutes until the bread is crusty and the interior of the slices are soft from the melted garlic butter. Serve HOT.”

French Open 2007

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Hotel Raphael in Paris

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The Hotel Raphael, unlike other expensive hotels in Paris was not built as a palace and then converted to a hotel, but was built as a hotel in 1925. The guest rooms, all of which are shaped different and furnished with antiques each have character which seems to have disappeared with the emergence of the chain hotel. The hotel is located in the posh yet quiet 16^th arrondissement district which is the home to the mansions of the Parisian riche and many financial firms (not a coincidence). It is located the Avenue Kleber, which radiates from the Arc de Triomphe and is located a few blocks away from the Champs-Elysees. Its not the Crillon or the Ritz, but this hotel is reasonable yet having the class and luxury of hotels, twice its price.

View of the Hotel Raphael from the south

Lobby of the Hotel Raphael

Street entrance of the Hotel Raphael

Portrait of the original owner of the Hotel Raphael

One of the many tapestries placed throughout the hotel

Staircase of the Hotel Raphael

Stained glass located on each of the stairways

Double room at the Hotel Raphael

Double room at the Hotel Raphael

The rooftop bar/restaurant that gives great views of Paris, night and day

Hotel Raphael matchbook, availabel in all rooms, bars and restaurants in the hotel.

Hotel Raphael
17 Avenue de Kleber, 16th
Paris, France
http://www.raphael-hotel.com
Matchbooks: yes

Paris Restaurants: Angelina, Brasserie Lipp, Laduree

Angelina

Going to Paris and not going to Angelina would be like going to New York City and not getting a slice of pizza. Located in the arcades of the Rue de Rivoli opposite the Louvre, it has been serving hot chocolate and pastries for almost 100 years. Angelina with gilt, marble covered tables and the copious amounts of mirrors creates an atmosphere that is not stuffy at all. Even with the opulent interior, casual attire is fine but business casual often receives you better service. Angelina serves breakfast, lunch and light dinner and is a great respite from the crowds and pushing of the nearby Louvre. It is difficult to get a table from about 12pm on, but if you arrive early, a table is often available for the taking. The L’chocolat Africains (6.80 eur), a thick hot chocolate is the special here as well as an accompanying Mont Blanc (8.60 eur).

Pommes Frites (5 eur) (french fries) at Angelina

Pommes Frites (5 eur) and Tarte aux Pommes (5.10 eur)

L’Chocolat Africains (hot chocolate) with whipped cream (6.10 eur)

Angelina
226 Rue de Rivoli, 1st
Daily: 10:30am-5:30pm
Paris
Credit cards accepted

Brasserie Lipp

This brasserie, called by some the best in Paris, has had a big reputation. Ernest Hemingway was the first man to drink here, after its liberation in 1944, and the owner, before it was purchased, used to choose who would get a table and who wouldn’t. The restaurant has character, as the sign on the door says “no shorts” in English, which is definitely designated towards Americans. The specialty is the choucroute garnie, which is a mixture of ham, bacon and sausages over sauerkraut and potatoes.

Brasserie Lipp
151 Boulevard Saint-Germain, 6th
Paris
Daily: 12:15pm-12:45am
Credit Accepted

Laduree

Laduree, the Parisian café has three locations throughout Paris, two are antique and one is modern. I went to the modern one, which is located on the Champs-Elysees. It is located on the ground floor of a building that had scaffolding and hid most of the beautiful exterior. The restaurant’s color was mint-green and used dark wood and gilt, where green would not be appropriate. The specialties of the café were the pastries and without a doubt, were the best that I had in Paris. This café seems to be the most popular for tourists, especially those from Asian countries who have seemed to have built a following for Laduree.

French Toast in upper left background, Croissant and Tarte aux Pommes (apple turnover), iced tea (very bitter tasting), and omelette in upper right background.

Laduree
75 Avenue des Champs-Elysses, 8th
Daily: 7:30am-12:30am
Credit accepted

 

 

 

 

Altes Museum in Berlin

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Bust of Nefertiti

Mosaic from Hadrian’s Villa