Gorman Farm Seems To Have Hit Its Stride; The Share That I Got To Sample Was A Real Gift

Cucumbers sliced and seasoned into kimchi

Gorman Produce Farm seems to have really hit its stride.  Check it out if you want local vegetable adventures.

When I started blogging, I thought that I was going to become entranced by community-supported agriculture.  That's a CSA where you pay a farm's fee at the start of the season, then get a weekly share from the harvest.  In the plan, you get great vegetables, and you get surprises to inspire you.

But I never clicked.  Mostly, it's just that my cooking never got inspired by a box of surprises.  I felt bad when I left something unused, and my mind always ran to menus that required a grocery run to augment the CSA box.  But, in part, I don't think I had the best CSAs.  I did two, both when the farms were new.  Farming is hard.  I got some rough produce and some piles of pedestrian stuff.

Gorman Produce Farm in Laurel changed their model a year or two ago.  They closed their daily farm stand.  Now they just sell through a CSA, and I was lucky enough to sample last month when our friends went away on vacation.  The full share that I picked up in Gorman's barn was an absolute delight.

Spinach, parsley, squash, onions, eggplant, cucumbers, garlic flowers and on and on and on.  I filled two large bags with the full share, and the vegetables blew me away.  They were crisp, fresh and full of flavor.  Mostly, I did simple stuff.  Sauteed the spinach.  Made salad with the lettuce.  But I turned the cucumbers into a Korean kimchi oi-sobagi using Maangchi's cookbook that I need to review in the future.

Monday I steamed Gorman's eggplant that had been in my fridge for at least 10 days.  The eggplant was pristine.  That's amazing for any vegetables.  That tells me that the Gorman folks are able to concentrate on the CSA now -- planning their harvests and caring for the vegetables so that customers get premium supplies.

The Gorman Produce Farm website seems to say you can still sign up for a 2017 share.  I don't know the details.  But definitely check it out, maybe for 2017, maybe for next year.  I don't know that CSAs work for my life right now, but it's not many developed suburbs that have an organic farm sitting right in their midst.

Gorman Produce Farm is right off Rte 29 on Gorman Road.  It's really easy to reach from anywhere in Columbia and for anyone who commutes south towards DC.

Worth Repeating: I Make The Best Burgers In Howard County, And You Can As Well

The Secret Is Meat From Laurel Meat Market

I make the best burger in Howard County.

I don't want to pompous.  I just want to catch your attention because you can make the best burger too. The secret is Laurel Meat Market, and I don't want them to be a secret from anyone.

Laurel Meat Market on Main Street is just across the line from Howard County, but it's a trip worth making because their ground chuck should be the star of your summer grilling.  They grind at the shop. You're not eating industrial product.  You're buying real meat that you can turn into special burgers one-third of a pound at a time.

You have two ways to do that.

First, you have the simple lesson from Mrs. HowChow's family.  Dice a clove of garlic and handful of onion for each burger.  Briefly mix them into the meat -- but don't press around enough to compact the meat.  If you make one-third-pound patties, those will grill up juicy and with more flavor than even many of the gourmet burger restaurants around.

Second, you can go crazy.  Laurel Meat Market will regrind your beef with spicy sausage or bacon.  The sausage-beef combo is called "firecracker mix," and either sausage or bacon will create burgers that will make your guests sit up straight.  With two or three parts beef to one part sausage or bacon,  I have gotten raves every single time -- even from folks who say that they normally try to avoid bacon.

If you want to get even-more specific, you can buy whole steaks at Laurel and ask them to grind your personal blend.  In 2011, Matt wrote me about how he created custom blends of chuck, sirloin and bacon.

Whatever you do, it's the meat that makes the best burger.  I'm sure of that -- and of the value of good buns from Wegmans or the Breadery (which occasionally makes the best hot dog buns that you'll ever find).  Honestly, you can probably do as well with the butchers at J.W. Trueth in Oella or Boarman's in Highland.  I have just never asked those folks to do any special blends.

This is part of a Worth Repeating series highlighting dishes and places that you should hear about even though they aren't new.  I'm suggesting sandwiches, Chinese, Cuban sandwiches, and other items that have been HowChow favorites for years.

Ribs And Chicken Combo At RG's BBQ Grill

Ribs & chicken from RG's BBQ Grill

The chicken may cost a few dollars more at RG's BBQ Grill than your supermarket rotisserie display, but you should check the Laurel joint for takeout because you get their sauce as part of the deal.

Takeout can be an important tool when we don't have time to cook, but I try to take out wisely because it can get pricey fast.  My newest find has been been the chicken-and-ribs platter from RG'S BBQ Grill in Laurel because it's easily three or four meals if you extend it out.

RG's looks like a shack on U.S. 1, but its kitchen tastes like it has ambition.  They make their own sauces, their own pickles, some absolutely delicious sides like greens, beans, and corn bread.  I have already raved about a special like the lamb, but the basics shine just as well.

For about $20, I buy a half chicken and half rack of ribs.  They're both moist, flavorful meat coated in RG's zesty sauce.  While I wait, I fill up two or three more small containers of the sauce.  I split between mild and medium.  The medium is zesty enough that I have left the spicy sauce to the true heat seekers.

Either way, the platter delivers.  The first meal is easy because you get two side dishes.  So dine down on greens, corn bread and maybe most of the ribs.  Then cut up the chicken to pack for lunch.  We get two big lunches if I package chicken with some other leftovers -- a little rice or vegetables, maybe just some cut up vegetables.

A little leftover can even be extended into a fourth meal.  Maybe the risotto with rib meat like I made from Gourmet Griller's earlier this winter.  Maybe a barbecued chicken salad sandwich if I reserve a few ounces of the breast meat.

I have options because RG's BBQ Grill does such a good job.  It is worth a stop and few extra dollars because that meat blows away anything you could grab off the heat trays at a supermarket.  The sauce is my favorite around, and you can just taste the complexity and the care that they put into it.  It's so good that I need to quote Todd Kliman so that I don't just plagiarize him:

[T]he sauce is a pitch-perfect balance of tanginess, sweetness and heat. That sauce is so addicting, you probably will end up forgiving the drier patches of an otherwise tasty smoked chicken and want to either pour it over everything else or even, as my friend said, drink it plain.

This is restaurant food that you're just lucky enough to take home in clamshell tray.  You can take home the ribs and chicken and make them your own.

RG"s BBQ Grill has tables so you can eat there.  It's counter service.  Very casual, very friendly.  Any other great takeout that you recommend?  I'm in the market for weeknight help.

New Curry Leaf Restaurant Opens In Laurel

Eggplant curry -- bagara baingan -- at Curry Leaf

You need the good old media to find the new good new places.

Food blogs are fine, but we can't beat folks like Todd Kliman of the Washingtonian who turned us onto the new Curry Leaf restaurant in Laurel.  As Kliman has posted in recent chats, Curry Leaf's chef came from Udupi Palace, a stellar vegetarian restaurant from years ago.

Curry Leaf has a menu that runs a range from snacks to curries, Kashmiri lamb to south Indian curd rice.  It's an impressive array, and that's a reason to drive into Laurel.  Howard County has wonderful Indian restaurants, but Curry Leaf offers different dishes, different variations, a chance to try another take if you have fallen in a rut in your favorite place.

Start with the lemon rice.  That was Kliman's suggestion, and it was a dish that I had never seen in 25 years of eating Indian food.  Long rice turned yellow with tumeric, flavored with lemon juice, then spiced with fresh curry leaves and mustard seeds.  The lemon rice is light and fresh and studded with cashews for a little crunch.  It comes with Indian pickles and raita that you add as condiments -- little dashes of flavor and creaminess.

Lemon rice and raita

Overall, we had an entire meal of dishes that were new to us.  We love Mango Grove's baingan bartha, but Curry Leaf's eggplant came cooked whole -- they're the small, black skinned ones -- after being slit open and surrounded with a curry of coconut, peanuts, green chilies and spices.  Spicy, tender eggplant and a sauce that we poured over rice.

We left quite happy and already thinking about other new dishes to try.  Like Mango Grove in Columbia, the menu includes south Indian dishes like dosas and Indo-Chinese dishes like Chicken Manchurian.  I have my eye on a paneer dosa, some Sri Lankan breads, and a special called Haleem simmered overnight with wheat flour, lentils, meats and spices.

With a papdi chaat to start -- that's crisp cracker-like snacks topped with yogurt and chutneys -- and an excellent sweet lassi to drink, we were stuffed and carried out half of the lemon rice to star in packed lunches.  (If you want lunch at Curry Leaf, they have a buffet that looks expansive.  Maybe a dozen signs were ready for the next day when we ate dinner.)

Overall, Curry Leaf is a place that you should know.  Terrific if you want to try a new Indian kitchen.  Really convenient if you want to meet friends who live south in Laurel or into Prince George's County.  The space used to be a Korean-Japanese restaurant, and it was a central spot for us to meet a friend who used to live off the BW Parkway.

You should definitely check out Kliman's weekly chats.  That's where I saw his mention of Curry Leaf.  The Washingtonian only publishes monthly, but Kliman eats all over and writes short, descriptive posts and answers questions.  And you should definitely check out the local Indian even if you don't want to drive to Laurel.  We have everything from Nepalese to southern Indian, and I have posted dozens of times about restaurants like Royal Taj, Curry & Kabob, House of India, Akbars, and more.

Curry Leaf
13919 Baltimore Avenue (U.S. 1)
Laurel, MD 20707
301-497-2017

NEAR:  Curry Leaf is on U.S. 1 in Laurel about a mile and a half south of Main Street.  It is an easy drive from Howard County.  Going south, Curry Leaf is on the left side of the street in a strip shopping center with a video store and an African-Caribbean restaurant.

Link: RG's BBQ Cafe on Wong Eats

The new RG's BBQ Cafe got another write-up on the Wong Eats blog -- with raves for pulled pork, a fried fish po' boy, and more.

Check out the Wong Eats post for more reasons to check of this new barbecue place on U.S. 1 in Laurel.  Speciality dogs where a half-smoke gets topped with lettuce, tomato and collard greens.  Ribs, bacon-wrapped quail.  There are pictures.  You need to check this place out.

The Wong Eats blog hits up spots all around the DC area.  Check out the Wong review of Bonchon in Ellicott City.

First Thoughts: RG's BBQ Cafe in Laurel

Spare ribs, collards and corn bread

You have a high-end chef trying to lay low in Laurel -- dishing up barbecue that is very worth the drive to U.S. 1.

You'll know them because it'll be the only hole-in-the-wall dining room that shows the Food Network.

You'll also know them for the food.  Smokey, seared spare ribs, light corn bread, and the best collard greens that I remember eating.

That was my first platter, and it only suggests more good things to find on that menu.  RG's BBQ Cafe is a new restaurant in the U.S. 1 building that used to be the Bar-B-Que House.  It's the same casual spot with counter service and a small dining room.  But it's a new operation.

It's an operation run by Robert Gadsby -- former executive chef at the Biltmore Hotel in LA and a 2007 contestant on Iron Chef America.  I had noticed the new signs, but Gadsby seems to be running a low-key operation with a Groupon, but no new Web site.

He's not going low on the food.  My $14 platter centered on spare ribs -- meaty ribs with a firm bite and smokey flavor.  It was a huge half rack, but the side dishes were the real shock.  Generous portions of special food.  Corn bread with full flavor and the lightest texture.  Collard greens cooked to perfect tenderness and an earthy tone.

If you're honest, you'll admit that the best part of many collard greens is the meat.  I'll dig around good greens to find a burnt end or some other pork.  But RG's greens may be vegetarian.  At least, I didn't see any meat.  I just forked up greens.  It takes real talent to make something that simple taste so delicious.  I ate dinner watching Chopped on the television, and I'm sure that my meal beat everything in the show.

I'm excited to eat more at RG's BBQ Cafe.  This is on my way home, so I'll work through the pulled pork, the baby back ribs, maybe the burger.  There are hot dogs, which I would normally skip but might be special if they're done like the collard greens.

Gadsby is the chef who folks have said may be taking over the Venegas Prime Filet in Fulton.  I need a lookout to watch for a new menu at Venegas.  MoCo wrote a comment last week, saying that folks at Venegas said the new menu could be coming in the next week.  Has anyone seen it?  Tasted it?

RG's BBQ Cafe
9990 N. Washington Street (U.S. 1)

Laurel, MD 20723

(301) 604-2333

NEAR:  RG's BBQ Cafe is the old Bar-B-Que House on U.S. 1 in Laurel.  It's north of Main Street where U.S. 1 has split into separate north-bound and south-bound lanes.  RG's BBQ Cafe is on the south-bound side.

Mango's Grill Re-opening In Laurel

The Mango's Grill restaurant is re-opening in Laurel -- a little farther south from its former location.

Mango's Grill offered casual Mexican to a loyal clientele, but the building was demolished as part of redevelopment of the area around U.S. 1 and Rte 198.  So the restauranteurs rented a new space a few blocks south on U.S. 1 -- the former home of India Gate.

George Berkheimer over at the The Business Monthly has been keeping an eye on the space.  He says the owners were planning to open the new Mango's Grill in the first week of August.  Now, an anonymous comment says that the owners says that they'll open on Thursday.

Crabs And Peaches - The Summer's Best Stuff With Short Drives Around Howard County

Crabs from Frank's Seafood

Summer makes for big food, and you can make short drives to get the best stuff.

The '34 Act Gourmet bought crabs to celebrate his birthday, and Frank's Seafood in Jessup steamed a spectacular bushel and a half.  I ate far more than my share.  Most people are such amateurs.  They knock off after two or three crabs.  The pros power through.

Peaches at Gorman

Frank's crabs were heavy and sweet.  Their spice mixture had flavor without being too salty.  I was super-impressed.

To continue on the summer flavors, drive down to Gorman Produce Farm in Laurel for peaches, basil, and vegetables.  Gorman farms most of the produce, and they sell boxes of tomatoes, herbs, onions, potatoes, beets, and more.  They also bring in peaches from Baugher Farm -- along with the first summer apples and other fruit.

WKitchen's summer cocktail

Gorman is a short drive from Columbia -- just east of Rte 29 on Gorman Road.  Like Frank's crabs, the Gorman produce is special and fresh.  You won't get these flavors from your mid-winter fruit.  I'm especially waiting until the tomatoes really arrive and Gorman sells crates of "seconds" to turn into sauce.

What other specialties of summer do you suggest? Any special shopping?  Special dishes at local restaurants?

It's a farther drive, but we went to Woodberry Kitchen that has the most-amazing summer items -- a like peach desserts and a warm cherry tomato salad with pancetta and rocket. But my absolute favorite was a non-alcoholic cocktail made from watermelon, cucumber juice, hot sauce, and sour mix. It alternatively sounds crazy and simple, but it tastes complex and delicious. I need to start experimenting with cocktails made with the blueberries that I preserved with wine.

Link: Laurel Baker's Win Profiled In The Sun

Patti McDermott, a cake decorator at Kake Korner in Laurel, won a cake-decorating contest in Westminster and got profiled by Sara Toth in the Sun.

Kake Korner is a bakery a few blocks north of Main Street on U.S. 1.  McDermott talks in the article about being inspired by the Ace of Cakes show, and it sounds like her creations are part of the creative trend where cakes can become centerpieces and art on their own.

As I have mentioned before, we're not a big cake house.  We go more for the dense ones like Sweet Streets Desserts' carrot cake and Cuba de Ayer's tres leches.  But Kake Korner seems like fun -- and an option on a scene that includes Touche Touchet, Oh What A Cake, Linda's Bakery and more.

Hat tip to the MM on the 53 Beers On Tap blog, who wrote about Toth's article.  The MM seems to be talking to people who say nothing good is going on along the U.S. 1 corridor, but I'm not sure who that would be.

The Early Bird Gets The Smoked Pig At Kloby's

Chef Kloby pulls pig for the sliders

The early birds got the smoked pig at Kloby's Smokehouse.  I came back from the library just after 5 pm, and they had just started carving.  For $2 each you got slider rolls that the chef filled with meat that he pulled off the whole smoked pig they did as part of their fourth anniversary celebration.

They'd been cooking for 10 hours, and the pork was delicious.  Moist and flavorful, a perfect match to Kloby's Carolina sauce, which I went back to reload midway through my three sliders.  I got pieces of loin, shoulder, and belly with increasing amounts of fat to them.  It was a Goldilocks night where that middle cut was just right for me.

Great fun.  A delicious DuClaw's HellRazer IPA and some fun talking to the Baltimore Beer Guy, his family and other friends.  By the time that I was leaving around 6:30, the pig looked pretty-much picked, but Kloby's has so much other great food that the dining rooms were full and people were waiting in the entry.

Falafel at La Mia In Laurel

Falafel at La Mia in Laurel

Hot falafel falls among the perfect street foods -- piping chick pea fritters wrapped in pita bread and augmented with some shredded salad, a touch of hot sauce, and a creamy sauce to bring it all together.

(Update:  Sorry.  La Mia closed.)

The new La Mia restaurant on Main Street in Laurel kicks out a nice falafel sandwich.  It's certainly the rival of anything that I have found inside Howard County, so it's worth a quick drive into Laurel, especially if you want to nose around the Aladdin Food Market next door or pick up something from the Laurel Meat Market.

La Mia is a new takeout following the trend of serving pizza and an ethnic food.  At La Mia, the ethnic food is mostly Middle Eastern, including a few special-order items like masakhan, ka'ik, and maoul that looked new to me and that Wikipedia says are Palestinian dishes.

I want La Mia to be terrific because they're really nice.  For now, I recommend the falafel sandwich.  The falafel comes out hot and flavorful -- right in that "Goldilocks" moistness where it isn't too greasy and it isn't too dry.  The sandwich had lettuce, mildly hot peppers, some hot sauce and a really nice sauce.  I suggest that you request pita bread because they wrapped mine once in a tortilla, which was all kinds of "American fusion" wonderful but not nearly as delicious.

I'm going to go back and try the schwarma again.  We ordered it with high hopes because La Mia has real meat turning on a spit in the open kitchen.  But our order didn't work.  The restaurant was freezing cold, and we got an aluminum takeout tray with lettuce and a few ounces of shaved, unremarkable meat. They were so nice, and we were too cold to argue.  I'm going to try again.

Where do you go for falafel or schwarma?  I don't have a place in Howard County, maybe because I have a few amazing sandwiches in my memory that set the standard.  I don't want just a pile of lettuce, a pita from the bag, and the main item dumped on top.  A few people have mentioned Turkshish Kebap in Columbia.

La Mia
310 Main Street
Laurel, MD 20707
301-725-9600

NEAR:  This is on Main Street in Laurel a few doors west of U.S. 1.  You can park on Main Street anywhere between U.S. 1 and Laurel Meat Market.  The Aladdin market next to La Mia sells Middle Eastern groceries and breads.  Laurel Meat Market butchers its own steaks, ground beef and sausage.

Pizza With Clams, And It's Not A Joke; Facci Ristorante Has Created Something Special

The weird part about Facci Ristorante is that I didn't go to a restaurant that I really enjoyed for the better part of a year.

Facci opened in early 2010 on Johns Hopkins Road, and the crowds immediately packed the place for casual Italian and wood-fired pizza that stood a notch above most places around.  It became so crowded -- and the hostesses were trained to be so uninviting -- that we stopped even thinking about the place.

They won us back this year with expansion.  More seating, longer menu.  We tried carry out from the dedicated entrance.  We walked in a few nights.  If anything, the food has gotten even better, and we love a place where you're guaranteed a special night.

Imagine a pizza with clams on top.  Littlenecks in their shells.  Honestly, it sounded like a gimmick, but it tasted superb.  Sweet shrimp and parsley, then a few dozen clams.  I pulled those off by hand, and they were plump and salty even though the fire had cooked them through.

Pistachio Pizza At Facci Ristorante

Facci on Johns Hopkins Road has expanded the menu along with the space inside, and it just gets better.

The new find:  pistachio pizza.  That's Facci regular pie topped with great ricotta cheese and the flavors of the charred crust, paper-thin red onion, pistachios and rosemary.  It's unique, and it's delicious -- even after it's driven home.

As takeout, the pizza and an arugula salad made a great dinner.  They'll just be better when we can eat at the restaurant next time, ready to try risotto and the pastas that we hadn't seen on the menu before.  For some reason, Mrs. HowChow got in a pattern of house-made ravioli with pesto, so she hadn't looked for new items when she went with friends.

Has anyone tried the other new pizzas?  There is one listed with clams and other seafood?  And another topped with fries?  Really, fries?

Garam Masala Wings At Tandoor Grill

The folks at Tandoor Grill have converted a sandwich shop into a nice Indian restaurant / takeout, but they have kept much of old menu -- with some spiced up improvements.

The shop on Johns Hopkins Road near Rte 29 sells coffee, salads and sandwiches -- presumably to the APL crowd at lunch -- but it has pushed its own fusion taste into the chicken wings.

Garam masala chicken wings come six or eight to an order.  They're meaty with a mild spice and a real flavor of lemon.  Last Friday was "Girls Night Out" around here, so I ended up a friend's house where three of watched their kids and held a "Boys Wing Contest."

The Tandoor Grill wings held their own with my local favorite Kloby's Smokehouse.  They're equally delicious and interesting with the Indian spices standing up to Kloby's smoke and sauces.  It's definitely worth a head-to-head if you're buying some wings to take back to the office or home.  I suggest "gram masala" versus "dirty and old."  You'll have to have Kloby's explain that to you.

The Indian food at Tandoor Grill has actually been quite good.  I need to go again to get myself an inspired post.

Tandoor Grill

7500 Montpelier Road

Laurel, MD 20723

301-362-4222

Near: Tandoor Grill is in the shopping center with Kloby's Smokehouse, La Palapa Too, Facci and a bunch of other restaurants.  It is on Johns Hopkins Road just west of Rte 29.  The post office calls that area Laurel.  In the only political statement on the HowChow blog, we keep pointing out that's not Laurel.

Grind Your Personal Burger Blend -- Or "Mix The Meat And Bacon At The Laurel Meat Market"

A true scientist knows that the best way to experiment is to change just one variable at a time.

But I had two inspirations since I last made hamburgers, so I ended up trying two innovations at once when I went back to the grill this month.  First up: kimchi.  On the menu at Mr. Rain's Fun House, we had seen a burger topped by kimchi and thought that sounded interesting.  Second innovation: bacon.

You wouldn't think bacon was a burger innovation.  But this wasn't bacon on top.  This was raw bacon ground into the chuck.  Laurel Meat Market ground me a special blend after Matt emailed me about how how the butchers there would make personal grinds.  Matt explained how he had figured that out:

My two go-to burger books are are "The Gourmet Burger" and "The Cook's Illustrated Guide To Grilling and Barbecue."  I can't remember which one mentions it, but one of the books talks about using a chuck/sirloin/boneless short ribs blend. The Laurel Meat Market doesn't have short ribs, so I just go with bacon.  I think it's three parts chuck, two parts sirloin, and one part bacon. Then I'll take it home and add onions or whatever else I feel like putting in. 

Okra Chips At Laurel Dutch Market

The power of RDAdoc is so strong that she got Mrs. HowChow to eat okra.

Mrs. HowChow is the most-flexible of diners, happy to eat whatever I cook except for oysters and the night that my Thai curry was just too hot for human consumption.  And okra.

I vaguely remember her really liking my okra when I cooked on an early date.  But now that the deal is sealed, her lips are sealed to a vegetable that she considers too slimy.

The beauty of RDAdoc's discovery is that it's okra, but not slimy.  In fact, it's dried crisp, then dusted with oil and salt.  It's okra chips at the Amish market on Rte 198 in Laurel as she reports:

When it comes to trying new foods I am not very adventurous. I know what I like and I usually stick with foods I know. 

Several years ago while shopping at The Fresh Market in Quarry Lake, my eyes were caught by a bag of okra chips. I am not sure that I ever had tried okra before but there was something about the chips that I found intriguing so I bought some and ended up eating the entire bag myself. 

They were crunchy, salty and absolutely delicious! They tasted like nothing I had ever eaten before. Since then, I have been on a mission to find a store close by that sells them. Unfortunately I have looked and looked with no success -- until last week. 

While I was shopping for fruits and vegetables at the Dutch County Amish Market in Laurel, my two-year-old pulled me to JR’s Candy and Bulk foods to get him gummy bears .  To my surprise, I saw bags of okra chips!  (That must have been my reward for buying him candy - something I normally wouldn’t do.)  I was absolutely thrilled and left with two bags.

They are close to $12/lb, but well worth the cost in my opinion.  So worthwhile that I was overly enthusiastic about the okra chips to the cashier, and she gave me a strange look when I couldn’t stop raving.  I have to admit that’s not the first time I’ve gotten that reaction from someone who saw me eating okra chips and asked what they were.  It must be hard for people to understand why okra chips could elicit such strong emotions.  I admit they do look a bit odd, but give them a chance if you are ever at the Fresh Market or JR’s Candy and Bulk Foods.

Guar -- Indian Green Beans -- At Eastern Bazaar

Go exotic without leaving your comfort zone by buying some unusual green beans at Eastern Bazaar.

Guar are also called "cluster beans."  They're thin green beans with tiny, tiny beans inside the pod.  Visually different from your regular beans, almost looks more like the green from a chive.

They're $3 a pound in the cooler at Eastern Bazaar in Laurel.  I had never seem them before, but a Googled a recipe on the spot and grabbed curry leaves to round that out.

Very easy to cook with some canned Muir Glen tomatoes and new potatoes.  Eastern Bazaar stands out among the Indian stores because it offers fresh produce.  I had actually stopped for curry leaves because I couldn't find them at the Grand Mart.  Eastern Bazaar often has eggplants, herbs and other items that stand out.

Try something exotic.  Try something authentic.  And it's green beans so it's not like I'm getting you to intestines or lungs.

If you want to try guar beans, check out the "Cluster Beans and Potato Bhaji" on Mamta's Kitchen.  Substitute a small can of chopped tomatoes for the two tomatoes.  And remember that a pound is about 500 grams, so it's about a quarter-pound of beans and half that much in potatoes.

Half-Smokes At The Laurel Meat Market

Okay, so I said that I stopped buying pork sausages in favor of Harris Teeter's chicken links.  But I lied just a little bit.

I experimented recently with half-smokes from Laurel Meat Market because, well, it seems like the local thing to do.

They're lightly spicy.  Firmer than the chicken sausage, and we ate them in sandwiches.

Laurel Tavern Donuts in Laurel

The flavor in a donut comes from sugar and oil, but the magic comes from making fried food that tastes light.

The donuts at Laurel Tavern Donuts comes out soft and puffy, topped with the simplest cinnamon or frosting and easily the best part of a cold morning.  Even the cake donuts are light.  They have a sweet crust that supports the strawberry frosting, then gives way to airy cake inside.

If Laurel Tavern Donuts were owned by some 21-year-old college grads, it would have a marketing story about old-fashioned technique and artisan donuts.  They'd hit up a local farm for some berries, and they'd push a tale of locally-grown produce to get some of the love that food writers have blindly lavished on cupcakes and lawyers who quit to make food.

But this is Laurel.  The "tavern" sits on U.S.1, and its immigrant owners offer coffee and a dozen variations on fried dough.  You should go for a donut worth the calories.  Sweet, slightly oily, but still light enough to make Dunkin Donuts taste leaden and tired.  Check out the donut holes as well.

The Laurel Tavern is in the former location of the Little Tavern chain.  They also serve up breakfast sandwiches and mini-burgers along the lines of the Little Tavern speciality.  I haven't tried those yet.

Laurel Tavern Donuts
115 Washington Boulevard (U.S. 1)
Laurel, MD 20707
301-362-7551

NEAR:  The donut shop is on the south-bound side of U.S. 1 where it separates in downtown Laurel.  It is a few stores south of the light at Main Street.  Look for a converted Little Tavern -- and thus a tiny white building with green trim -- on the right side of the road.

Mango's Grill in Laurel

I want a Mexican restaurant with the uncompromising spirit of Grace Garden.

For now, I'm enjoying Mango's Grill in Laurel, a spot on U.S. 1 that pulls off casual Mexican with a little flair.  The flair is in the food.  The decor is super plain -- plastic table cloths, ingredients in sight of the tables, view of traffic.

But I was sold when our first plate arrived filled with fried yucca and chicharron.  That's little chunks of pork, juicy and flavorful.  Mango's tops it off with pickled cabbage, which tasted fresh and bright on a heavy plate.  I say "heavy" with love.  Fried yucca beats even french fries, and chicharron are delicious.  Mrs. HowChow stopped after a few, but I speared pork and yucca until our main courses arrived.

I went for tacos al carbon.  Mrs. HowChow went light with chicken tamales.  She still dreams of tamales from an LA farmers market, but she said Mango Grill's had good corn flavor -- a strong B+.  My steak was my favorite from any of the local Mexican joints.  Charred and slightly salty, it came with avocado and went great with the salsa that Mango's serves with warm chips.

Mango's Grill has prices so low that many other reviews compare them to Chipotle and Don Pablo's.  Those chains are no competition even though Mango's lunch specials start at $7, and you can eat dinner for less than $10.  Frankly, I don't think you'll actually stay that low.  If nothing else, you want an appetizer because they're interesting -- either that yucca, the tamales, or the pupusas that I have my eye on for our next visit.  And then there is horchata, a delicious Mexican soft drink.  And desserts.

So why do I pine for Grace Garden where every dish pops with flavor?  It's Mango's rice and beans.  They're fine.  The beans are firm, red pintos.  I ate them all.  But the rice was bland.  My steak was so much better than anything else on the plate.  The tortilla tasted like it came from my fridge.  That's not a crime, but why can't there be a Mexican place where everything comes with a zip?  I'll take basic food.  I'll take a small menu.  I'd just love everything as delicious as the cabbage or the horchata.

For future visits, I'm going to lean towards the more unusual items where they're obviously putting a focus.  We should have ordered the ceviche that the Mixed Stew blog highlighted.  Chrysalis recommended the grilled salmon as well.  The high points rank Mango's Grill above La Palapa Too.  Maybe at the same level as El Azteca.  I need to try a few other places and redo my Mexican rankings.

Click here for my 2009 take on the best Mexican food.  Pound for pound, nothing beats R&R Deli's takeout tacos and lamb soup.  

Mango's Grill  (The restaurant moved south on U.S. 1 in 2012.  Look for newer posts.)
600 Washington Boulevard
Laurel, MD 20707
301-776-8834

NEAR:  This is on U.S. 1 at Rte 198.  From Howard County, you take U.S. 1 south from either Rte 32 or Main Street.  Mango's Grove is on the left just before the turnoff from westbound Rte 198.