Carl Koch’s six favorite local restaurants
My review of Jalapeno’s was published in the Collingtonian five years ago. It was the first of about three dozen restaurant reviews from which I have selected the six best restaurants to revisit.
Harvest Thyme has been open for two years this past November and we have eaten there about twice a month, mostly for lunch. The food is consistently good. Among the favorites of Joyce and I are the steak frites because the meat is a tender culotte cut and the fries are always thin and crisp. The mussels and the daily specials are invariably “special”. Harvest Thyme is ten miles from Collington via Central Avenue so the diner need not use the Beltway or Route 50. It’s a good meeting point for friends from Annapolis. Several farmers markets are nearby so you can pick up local tomatoes, melons and other fruit on the way home.
My “go to” restaurant for birthdays, anniversaries and out of town visitors who might want a view of the Annapolis Marinas while they eat is Carrol’s Creek in Eastport near Annapolis. Its cream of crab soup has won many awards and I love it! Joyce often orders the appetizer portion of seared scallops in phyllo dough as an entree. I like either the rock fish or crab cake platters.
Of the same genre is the Narrows Restaurant just over the Kent Narrows Bridge. The food is of the same quality as Carrol’s Creek plus you get this beautiful view of the marshland when you travel the bay bridge which elevates the viewer. In the restaurant is a view of the water, boats, ducks and marsh. I like the cream of crab soup and the fried oysters. The view and food makes the thirty mile trip worth it.
The Old Ebbitt Grill at 15th and G St. NW is a great place to rendezvous with out of town Washington visitors who cannot spend the time for more than lunch. Their crab cake and hamburger are delicious and they are known for their oyster bar. This is an expensive way to eat oysters but you can select from local varieties to New England imports. All are good.
Nonna Angela on Route 450 at Route 3 is new but a real find. I became aware of this restaurant after several Collingtonians who had previously lived in the area recommended it. The penne bolognaise is my favorite dish, Joyce is partial to the veal Marsala with rosemary potatoes.
Amber Spice is my favorite restaurant anywhere because the Indian food is so different from ordinary Indian restaurants and the flavors virtually jump off of the plate and hit you “along the side of your head”! Located just south of Laurel on Route 1, it is an easy drive most of which is on the BW Parkway.
The above six restaurants are recommended to the reader. My Honorable Mention of recommended places are these three: Jalapeno’s for good Spanish and Central American food, Soul for its excellent New Orleans cuisine and Sams on the Waterfront for fine dining on local seafood.
All restaurant reviews are the personal opinions of Carl Koch