It had been years since either of us walked into Regi’s, the wonderful restaurant that anchors Federal Hill’s Restaurant Row. Our next visit won’t take as long, because Regi’s is a place with fine food, friendly, efficient and unobtrusive service, and the prices aren’t that bad either. What more is there to ask for?

Regi’s was a revelation when it opened in 1978, because Baltimore had the Prime Rib and Marconi’s, and it had carryouts and burger joints, and there was practically nothing in-between.

Regi’s immediately became wildly popular for its crab cakes. The Big Thing then was nouvelle cuisine, and Regi’s served up some remarkable chicken, fish and lamb chops along with the crab cakes, but the real revelation back then was the sides, which were delicious all by themselves.

People flocked to the place, and they haven’t stopped. On a recent sleepy Thursday lunchtime with very few people on the street, Regi’s was hopping, with many hardy souls sitting on the sidewalk patio, which is enclosed for the winter.

We opted for one of the many small, inviting dining rooms. The restaurant is carved out of four rowhouses, and instead of one large dining room, there are several small ones. It’s comfy and elegant without being intimidating.

Regi’s has the dishes you would expect on the menu, but the kitchen dishes them up in unexpected ways. We tried the Buffalo Oysters for a starter, six plump breaded, fried oysters served with the requisite hot sauce and a big mound of blue cheese dressing. We ate the fresh greens garnish so we could finish the rest of the dressing. Delightful.

After such a good start, who could resist something called a garbage salad? It’s Regi’s version of a cobb salad, with a little bit of everything served over a garden salad. The [Read more...]

A hard act to follow.

The words might have been written for stage performers, but over the years, they’ve been applied to just about everyone in every situation: from co-workers to partners in relationship.

Eastern House, that venerable and much-loved establishment on Eastern Avenue, was a hard act to follow. For years, the family-owned restaurant served up not just Greek food but meatloaf, seafood, salads and more. Everyone loved it, and it was a rare day you couldn’t come in and find a good crowd settling in for the oyster stew, peasant salad and more.

Then it closed and became that cliched act that nobody could follow. Certainly, there were attempts, but they didn’t take hold.

But these days, there’s a new chef in town. K&D Restaurant has taken over the premises at 3706 Eastern Avenue, brightened up the decor (although you won’t forget you’re at the former Eastern House as the layout hasn’t changed much) and is serving up breakfast, lunch and dinner with a Honduran accent.

We started off with chips and salsa and then moved right into entree territory. If you’re in the mood to linger, though, K&D certainly offers plenty of options to munch on while you’re perusing the menu. Nachos, wings, taquitos, ceviche, fried plantain, tamales, pupusas — in a wide range of prices ($2 to $12.95, with items in the $6 and $8 range dominating).

Those who aren’t familiar with Spanish will be fine — the menu includes translations. For example: Taquitos dorados (Crispy corn taquitos stuffed with chicken or beef, served with lettuce, pico de gallo, sour cream and guacamole). You really can’t go wrong.

The mariscada, soup with lobster, shrimp, clams and scallops, was one of the pricier items on the entree menu at $19.95, but one of the most beautiful and flavorful as well. A huge lobster [Read more...]

We had a lot on our plate last year—new restaurants opened all over the Guide’s readership area, proof, in this economy, that restaurateurs are incurable optimists.

The best thing is that quite a few of the new restaurateurs have very good reason to be optimistic—many of their establishments are serving fresh and unusual fare that diners can’t help but like.

Others, like Big Matty’s Diner, are serving up comfort food with a side of tradition. When Rallo’s, the treasured little diner at the corner of Lawrence St. and Fort Ave., closed in October after the death of owner Vincent Rallo, it was the sad end of an era.

Except it wasn’t. Matt Gurczynski, a daily regular at Rallo’s, felt the loss just as keenly as the rest of the neighborhood folks, politicians and business leaders who gossiped, noshed, caught up and made deals there. Matt’s in the construction trade, so he spruced the place up and hired the Rallo’s staff to run the place, and South Baltimore continues to enjoy the coddies, sausage gravy and Eggs Benedict.

Speaking of comfort food, Simply Marie’s, 3023 Elliott St. in Canton, is serving breakfasts and late-night hit-the-road chow to barflies, truckers and other nocturnal folk in Canton. The place has been open about a year. The omelets are special, the home fries divine, and the cinnamon rolls soft and sweet. The real reason to go to Simply Marie’s, though, is Marie Branch herself, a woman as good, comforting and earthy as her food.

Diners with a taste for German food should get to Cafe Einstein (1705 Eastern Ave., Fells Point) schnell. Owner-chef Claudia Phillips offers up delightful goulash, sauerbraten, spaetzle, curry wurst [Read more...]

We stopped by Lakis, 3928 Eastern Avenue (at Grundy) the other day for lunch.

The new owner has completely renovated the place, and it’s now a bright, clean, comfortable diner/carryout that also offers Greek specialties and platters.

There is a big notice in the menu that says “THE BEST CRAB CAKE IN TOWN.” Any self-respecting Baltimoron would accept that challenge, so we said “Bring it.”

We were amazed to find that Lakis might just be telling the truth about their crab cake. It’s big, broiled golden brown and made of sweet lump crab with practically no filler. It’s seasoned with enough Old Bay to get the spice along with the sweet, but the seasoning doesn’t cancel the crab. For $14.95, this crab cake is a steal. Order it with the traditional saltines or on a roll or bread, and you’ll be happy. The crab cake comes with fries.

We also ordered another diner staple, the Lakis Burger. The burger is grilled with a nice tasty char, a little pinkish inside, and topped with provolone and grilled onions. It’s served with lettuce and tomato, and fries on the side. It’s a very good burger, and also a steal at $7.50.

A plain hamburger with lettuce and tomato is $6.50. The most expensive burger on the menu is Cordon Bleu for $7.95.

If you are just interested in a snack, try the crab pretzel ($8.95), which is enormous and slathered with enough cheesy Old Bay-y crab dip to make a group of four content. We took half back to the office where it was eagerly devoured.

The menu also features Greek, chef and Caesar salads, club sandwiches, subs and soup. There are daily specials as well—one of the specials of the day was veal marsala.

Everything on the menu is available for carryout.

Lakis himself, as you might have guessed, is Greek. His name is Lazaros Giannos, but he prefers Lakis. He’s been in the country about two-and-a-half years and worked at Romano’s in Glen Burnie (which claims “The Best Crab Cakes in Maryland”) before opening his own restaurant. He’s a very good cook indeed.

Lakis Restaurant, though much smaller, reminds me of the original Eastern House. It’s friendly, the food is great, and it’s quiet enough to hold a little lunch meeting. The restaurant definitely fills a need on The Avenue.

Lakis is where La Sirenita, the excellent Mexican restaurant, used to be. La Sirenita moved up the street to bigger quarters as demand grew for its excellent food.

I’m betting the same will happen to Lakis—once it is discovered it will get very popular.

Lakis Restaurant & Carryout, 3928 Eastern Ave., is open 7 a.m.-10 p.m. every day except Sunday.

by Jacqueline Watts
editor@baltimoreguide.com