In February The Food Network started showing new episodes of DDD and in this new batch they filmed at 5 places in the Baltimore area (1 just north of Laurel, 1 in Annapolis, and 3 in Baltimore). These are pretty easy to get to for me, just a bit over an hour to the furthest location. As I write this I have been to 4 of the 5. It will be some time before I can get over to Annapolis but I'll get there eventually!
I had a weekend off and decided to make a quick trip to try two of the places. My buddy, Barry lives in Laurel so while visiting him I decided to get to the places while he was at work. My first stop was a small place on Route 1 in Elkridge, Maryland just north of Laurel. "R and R Taqueria" is a small place that is attached to both a Shell Gas station and a small mini mart. Although small, the owner and chef Rodrigo puts out some great tasting Mexican food! The fun thing about the DDD episode that featured "R and R" had Guy showcasing the place with former Washington Redskins quarterback Joe Theismann, it looked like they had a great time.
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| R and R Taqueria in Elkridge, MD....It is in a Gas Station! |
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| My Taco Meal - Shredded Pork and Lamb |
I arrived there shortly before 11am and there was a line! The show and the quality of their food have to be why so many people stop at a place that you wouldn't think that anyone would give a second thought about. On a side note, DDD has filmed at several places at gas stations and I have visited a few of them and let me tell you they have all been great, maybe a rule of thumb is don't look down on these small joints, they put out great product!
I decided to try two tacos that they made on the program. The first was a shredded pork taco call Il Pastore and the second was a Lamb meat taco. Both were excellent! As many of you know I am not the biggest fan of spicy foods and these tacos especially the lamb taco were very spicy. You could see the crushed red pepper flakes in the fillings. I was very glad that the attached mini mart was there so I could get some milk to "cool the burn!" I was also able to meet Rodrigo and get him to sign my book, what a great guy, very nice and very appreciative of all the fame and business that DDD has brought him!
From R and R I trekked into Baltimore to try a pizza place that Guy visited with Duff Goldman from the TV show Ace of Cakes. "Joe Squared" is near the Amtrak station in downtown and is very cool. They have a big stage area for weekend band to play and seems like a nightclub from the outside, but as you enter it is a very nice restaurant with very nice furnishings and table settings. Since I was there for lunch it was only moderately busy. Joe Squared features square shaped brick oven pizzas in many different varieties. They also have a very extensive Italian menu and full bar and wine services. I decided on the Fried Ravioli's and a meatball Sandwich. The Raviolis were featured on the DDD episode and were filled with cheese and very good, they came with a nice tomato dipping sauce. The Meatball Sandwich was outstanding. It was served on Ciabata Bread and instead of big meatballs that smashed them up and it made it much easier and cleaner to eat. The sauce was wonderful, one of the best Meatball Sandwiches I have ever had!. I really want to go back and try a pizza.
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| Joe Squared Pizza |
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| Toasted Cheese-filled Ravioli |
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| Meatball Sandwich |
A few weeks later I travelled back up to Baltimore to try two more places. I headed into the Dundalk area of Baltimore, which is an industrial area near the Port of Baltimore and services the dock areas of a very busy seaport. My first stop was a classic diner called "The Boulevard Diner". This classic stainless steel diner has everything that one would expect from this style restaurant: the vinyl menu with about 8 pages of items; the benevolent matriarch greeting guests and watching over the cash register; a full bar at the cash register; and a display case filled with homemade desserts and pastries. I arrived at a 130p and the place was pretty busy but I was seated right away and the waitresses were very friendly and very efficient. I decided to try the appetizer that was featured on the DDD episode, Stuffed Grape Leaves and a Grilled Cheese sandwich. The Grape Leaves were stuffed with a rice and beef filling and covered with a sauce that at first I thought might be a thick chicken stock, but in reality was a very tangy-tart lemon sauce. It really enhanced the dish and made a usually bland dish extremely tasty. The Grilled Cheese was very good, too.
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| Dundalk, MD's Boulevard Diner and Classic Stainless Steel Diner |
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| Boulevard's Famous Stuffed Grape Leaves |
From the diner I headed into the city to my next stop. Along the way I passed by two of my favorite DDD places: G and A Restaurant and DiPasquale's. I arrived at the "Sip and Bite Restaurant" and noticed that a construction crew was changing signs form a smaller one to a larger lighted one. On the sign it stated "Open 24 Hours" so I thought, "Great!" as I approached the restaurant and walked up a small ramp to restaurant it was CLOSED! I guess it is open 24 hours just not consecutively!
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| One day I will get there when they are open! |
My DDD count is now at 231 and I hope to get the count up to 250 pretty soon!
