bluegrass tavern

food.bluegrassvery quickly established itself in the top 10 of places that i would entertain out of town company to show some good baltimore eating.

my friend and i were looking to mix it up a little for dinner without leaving federal hill. i had read aboutbluegrasstavern and that they serve delicious southern comfort food. i also had a dining card for bluegrass which was an added incentive for me to head over there.bluegrasstavern

very disappointed.... i had been looking forward to trying outbluegrassfor months, and we finally went last week. i had heard great things. we started by ordering the cornbread, which was very dry and similar to what i can make at home (that's not saying a lot!). i ordered the steak, which was by far the worst steak i have ever had. it was so tough my steak knife could only get through with aggressive sawing! the steak was so chewy it was laughable. it is the only 6 oz steak i haven't been able to get through! even if the prices weren't so high, i will never go back.

on a more positive note, the staff was very friendly and helpful!

quality dining and outstanding service. i've been tobluegrasstavern about half a dozen times. it's become my favorite and my mouth starts watering when we decide to make the trip from southern maryland to b'more for a change of scenery. the ever-changing menu is a great enticement. we were there opening night and arrived a little early. the owner gave us the grand tour, yes - even to the basement kitchen! a bourbon tasting is well worth the time, especially if you have a waiter who is familiar with the brands. truly a wonderful experience.

just a quick comment. we triedbluegrasstavern last weekend for appetizers and drinks and had a great time. it was really nice to find a restaurant in federal hill that didn't cater to the "can't seem to leave college and my coors light" 20- and 30- something crowd.

there were three of us, we each had two or three glasses of wine and a cheese platter with an order of the bacon jam on bread. a nice group of people were seated near us and conversation was easy. lovely decor and the food and service were both great.

i hope to come back to blue grass soon for dinner.

i want everything on the menu. having been tobluegrassfour times now, i've seen most of it. the weekly menu changes (including a "just passing through" wine section); the top notch housemade charcuterie, currywurst being a consistent favorite; the friendly staff who seem to enjoy the food as much as the chefs and customers; the neighborhood vide; and the inventive food. it's worth the visits i've made and many more in the future.

each time i've visited i have said, out loud, that there was not a single thing on the menu i didn't want to order. not just that everything sounded well-prepared and tasty, but that i literally wanted to order one of everything on the menu because they all tasted so good. oxtail tacos as part of the tacos three way; a steak sauce (a2, hah) geleed and used as the filling in ravioli placed on your strip so that when you break the ravioli the sauce is perfectly placed over your steak; veal sweetbread 'tots' that were crispy and sweet and unctuous in all the right ways.

there's a meat and south theme here, housemade charcuterie, some more exotic meats like elk and oxtail, cornbread in a mini-skillet for your table, anson mills grits done right accompanying your loin or braised what-its-meat. it's not trying to beat you over the head with 'south,' but the regional flavor is there.

excellent from beginning to end.. after the preakness, we dined atbluegrasstavern. great menu- clever, well-executed, well-presented entrees. we had crostini with bacon jam which was excellent. the hanger steak and antelope loin were perfectly cooked and seasoned, and the quail chop salad was also very good. service was friendly and competent. it is an attractive setting, including outdoor seating- i especially like the photographs for sale on the walls.

only suggestion is that the menu needs to be clarified. for example, the antelope loin was actually a loin chop and the chop salad was not chopped, but whole friend quail and veg. dessert was a decontructed peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which included freeze dried penaut butter. more surprising is that this place is quite new. other than the chop/not chop issue, this was as flawless a dining experience one could have. i hope to return. well done.