Fried Chicken At The BP In Maple Lawn

Fried chicken and potato wedges

I'm not saying you should eat fried chicken at a gas station, but I know where you should go if you're in the mood.

The BP at Maple Lawn has a food counter inside.  They do sandwiches and a bunch of other items, and they sell fried chicken and french fries that are a fast food treat.

I got a box.  I admit it.  I was in a rush, and it was a terrific dinner on the way to a meeting.

I got a wing and a hot juicy chicken breast.  Wedges of fried potato.  I sat at a cafe table and tore in with my fingers.  They have a bunch of hot sauces, and hot sauce goes so well with crispy chicken.  For chicken under a hot light, it was ideal -- a thick crust that comes crisp but not greasy.  Great fun.

Fried chicken makes a great holiday.  On top of the BP chicken, I still recommend a picnic from Harvest Fried Chicken in Woodbine, and I love Bon Chon in Ellicott City.

BP Station at Maple Lawn
8181 Maple Lawn Boulevard
Fulton, MD 20759

NEAR: The station is just north of Rte 216 in the Maple Lawn development.  It is behind the shops to your right if you arrive from Rte 216.  Look at the pet store that overlooks the BP station.

Pho, Crab Cakes, And Farms: Catch Up On Local Bloggers Writing About Food And Drunkeness

Photo from Coriander Dreams -- go check her recipe!

Follow some links to local blogs to get some thoughts on pho, a review of crab cakes, and a recipe for a spicy watermelon spritzer.  Howard County food blogging runs from people talking about farms to providing recipes, and it's rich enough that I can't link to everything anymore.

But I still love to recommend everyone on the "food" page on HoCo Blogs and would highlight a few recent posts:

• The Bare Midriff riffed about pho.  She ate Vietnamese soup in Catonsville, but you could go there or to the Columbia spots like An Loi Pho or Pho Dat Trahn.
• Coriander Dreams posted a recipe for a spicy watermelon drink that looks amazing.  It has a bunch of steps, but you could pre-make the simple syrup and the "orange ice" so that AlyaVille's drink is just a quick blend away.  I love thoughtful non-alcoholic drinks.
• Urban Bushwoman wrote up the crab cakes that she had at the newly-renovated Clyde's -- and they're not her favorites.
• AnnieRie has added a new page about local farms.  She posted this week about some farms and links to the new page where she collects photos and links.
• Balance Salad is getting drunk.  Blasted.  Wasted.  Crazy.  Then posting about how to handle a hangover.  ;-)   She also profiled the farmers market in Glenwood.

What Are You Doing For July Fourth? Some Ideas To Start On Main Street Or On Your Grill

Pork burgers -- portobellos stuffed with ground pork

What are you doing for July Fourth?

It's a weird night for restaurants because people cook out and go out for fireworks.  Portalli's and Diamondback Tavern in Ellicott City sell half-priced gift certificates on Thursday -- their recent tradition to bring people down to Main Street on the holiday.  The only hitch is that you can't use them on July 4.  You get a deal, but you need to go back.

Walking around Main Street should be a nice time if the weather stays good.  Folks say that Scoop-Ah-Dee-Doo is scooping ice cream, and the new Matcha Time Cafe has opened with Japanese food.

Even in the heat, I recommend a walk along the tree-lined path that runs between Main Street and the Breadery bakery in Oella.  That's a hill to walk up, but it's shady and way cooler than most of the outside.  Plus, you can start or end with coffee, sweets, bread and other treats at the Breadery.

If you're staying home, consider expanding your grill skills.  Bacon-grilled eggplant.  Grilled haloumi cheese from Pars Market.  The "firecracker" burger mix at Laurel Meat Market.  Or consider a mushroom stuffed with ground pork below.  It's more of an idea than a recipe.  You could stuff the mushrooms with all kinds of meat options and have a good time.

What are you doing?  Where do you recommend?  If you're going to Portalli's or Diamondback, check out their hours on July 4th.  I think it's noon to 4 pm and noon to 7 pm respectively.

Mushroom Burgers With Ground Pork
serves four

4 med. portobello mushrooms
1 lb. ground pork
1 small onion, diced

1) Clean the mushrooms, removing the stem and the the gills on the underside.

2) Sauté the onion until tender, then add to the ground pork.

3) Put about a quarter of the pork mixture inside each mushroom.  Press it into the mushroom to make a burger shape.

4) Grill, starting on the mushroom side.  Cook them until the mushroom is tender and the pork is cooked through.

Variations:  Use a mix of ground pork and pork sausage.  Buy a bunch of small mushrooms and served the stuffed mushrooms as an appetizer or party food.

Join The Local Food Fun! Make A Foursquare Map, And Enter A Raffle For Concert Tickets

Come join the local food fun by making Foursquare maps with your favorite place.

The HocoBlogs folks want you to build a map -- great wings, great vegan, great dog-friendly joints, etc. -- and they'll try to entice you with tickets.

Jessie X has some Merriweather Post tickets, and she will enter you in a raffle if you make a Foursquare map.  Check out the offer and join in the fun.

Today's Catch Has Joined Facebook; Do You Like?

The Today's Catch seafood market in Columbia has joined Facebook -- with games like "guess the fish."

Check out the Today's Catch page.  Like them! They have 25 "likes."  Let's bump that up.

Hat tip to Anne Ray. 

Squid At Wegmans: Try A Light Summer Dinner That Is As Easy As Grilling Up Hamburgers

Squid Burlissimo

Quick-cooking.  Low-fat.  Fresh-tasting.  How could squid not be part of your everyday kitchen?

Well, the squid part kept me from cooking them for a long time.  Big bodies you need to clean or frozen blocks you need to defrost and use.  But that changed at the seafood counter at Wegmans.

They're easy there.  Sold cleaned -- either as tubular bodies or bundled tentacles. You literally just slice them and cook, no harder than a fish filet.  We go with bodies.  Buy maybe a 1/4 pound per person.  Then find recipes that keep me from deep-frying them into crunchy calamari.

My current recipe was adapted from a Melissa Clark recipe in the New York Times.  Sautéed squid with lime, hot pepper and mint.  Served -- by accident -- on toasted bread when I misread Clark's recipe and then decided that I liked the change.  It's a fresh little dinner, great flavors and dedicated to the famous Duke and Duchess of Burlbaugh.

Squid Burlissimo
serves two, easy to double if you cook in two batches

4 tbl olive oil
1/2 pound squid bodies, cleaned
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 small Thai pepper, seeded
1 lime
1/4 c. chopped mint
thin slices of crusty bread -- 2 large or 4 small

1) Rinse the squid, then drain and dry with a paper towel.  The bodies are long tubes, pointed on one end and open on the other.  Slice them into 3/4-inch-wide rings.  Pat dry, then put in a bowl.

Watermelon & feta salad

2) Heat a skillet large enough to hold the squid over high heat.  Let the pan get very hot.  Add the oil to the pan.  Then add the squid.  Sprinkle with salt and cook them for one minute without touching them.

3) Flip the squid.  Add the garlic and hot pepper.  Cook one or two more minutes.  Cook the squid until it gets firm and opaque.

4) At the same time, toast or grill the bread.

5) Pour the squid, oil, garlic and hot pepper into a clean bowl.  Squeeze the lime to pour juice over the squid.  Add the mint and stir.  You want a bit of oil at the bottom of the bowl.  Add a 1/2 tsp if you don't have enough.

5) Put the bread on plates or a serving platter.  Spoon squid onto the bread.  Spoon a bit of the oil on each slice.  Serve immediately.

Consider serving with a salad made of cubed watermelon, feta and basil.  Dress with a little olive oil and salt.

Cool Food For Hot Nights: The Best Part Of Summer Is Ice Cream, Snowballs And Bing Soo

Snowballs from KyKy's in Ellicott City

This is our summer without Soft Stuff, but you can still keep cool even while the Rte 40 landmark is being redeveloped -- and hopefully revived for 2014.

The beauty of Howard County is that you can get a half dozen major variations on "a night of ice cream."  Get yourself a reasonable dinner, then sit outside with a cone or a cup.  I've done similar posts several times over the years, and your choices just keep growing.

My 2009 recommendations mostly went from ice cream to snowballs -- with Rita's Italian ice as a variation.  

Since then, tart frozen yogurt swept through the county.  You make your own sundaes with toppings that range from fruit to candy.  Terrific fresh fruit makes Red Mango in Clarksville has terrific fruit, which makes it one of our favorites.  But shopping centers are dotted with chains that differ mostly in whether they have adult items like tart yogurt and mochi or whether they're 100% kid-oriented like Sweet Frog.   

At the same time, we discovered some other traditional treats -- like the bing soo at Bon Appetit bakery on Rte 40.  The joke was that we discovered the Korean shaved ice dessert in February, but it's perfect as our weather boils up into July.

Take your own tour -- pairing dinner with a cold dessert.  Some of the places below are stands, so you should check Yelp or the Web to make sure they re-opened for 2013.  I have at least two new places to try this year, and you can't eat too many.  After all, it will be winter before you know it.

Let's start with ice cream and frozen custard:

• Seibel's in Burtonsville may have the best ice cream, although I haven't been there recently enough to crown them officially. They are the closest place that I know that makes its own ice cream.  They're creamy and delicious.  (Pair with Cuba de Ayer.)

We Almost Have Maryland's First Farm Brewery

Maryland's first farm-based brewery will open its tap room this afternoon -- and it's almost in Howard County.

Stillpoint Farm in Mount Airy is now operating the Milkhouse Brewery.  They're a little west of Woodbine and Mt. Airy.  It's officially Frederick County, but close enough count.  The tap room opens Friday afternoon and then will be open Saturday, according to the Facebook invitation.

I haven't seen much about the new brewery.  Anyone else know more?

(Update: Check out the comments below by Trip Klaus.  "First" seems like first to get approved, not first to serve beer.  But it's fun to congratulate all these folks.  Also note that "close enough to count" does mean 30 minutes past Woodbine.")

The Milkhouse Brewery would be a fun place to check out as part of a visit to Larriland Farm.  Thanks to @ADGCreative for the tip.  Stay tuned for more about beer-brewing -- but even closer to home.

Venegas Has Closed. New Restaurant Coming

The Vengas Prime Filet in Fulton has closed, but there is a big sign on the window saying that a new restaurant is coming soon.

Anyone know what new restaurant?  Anyone know the plan?

There has been talk that Robert Gadsby would take over the space in Maple Lawn.  After eating just a bit at his new Laurel barbecue place, I'd be happy to try out a restaurant that he runs.  I'd heard that folks have had a hard time with the space and the Maple Lawn rent.  I'm hoping for whoever makes the next run.

Special Hiramasa With Yuzu At Sushi Sono

Hiramasa with ponzu at Sushi Sono

Sushi Sono has a delicious sushi special -- and you need to snap those up to make sure they don't go down other people's gullets.

Hiramasa is an amberjack apparently farmed in Australia.  When it arrives in Columbia, Sushi Sono turns the fish into a special sushi.  Thin slices of the mild fish, glazed with a tangy citrus sauce.  That's yuzu, a citrus variation that mixes a sour tang into the mouthful of rice and fish.

Sushi Sono has long been one of our favorite restaurants in Howard County -- especially the large special rolls.  We started with the hiramasa special to break out of our standards, and it was perfect.  No soy sauce.  No wasabi.  The two pieces were a perfect balance of fish, rice and glaze.  Before finished that meal, I was already planning another visit with all sushi and sashimi.

Order that hirasama right away.  The kitchen buys a limited amount each day.  We wanted to end the meal with a second order.  But they were sold out!

There is really great sushi in Howard County.  Sushi Sono is stellar -- well worth a drive from one of the cities, and there are so many other great places that sushi is one of the county's deepest cuisines.

The Whole Sign Is Up At Whole Foods

Coming in 2014!! Howard Hughes has posted a Whole Foods sign at the building that they're renovating for the upscale grocer.

Construction has really started at the former Rouse Company headquarters on LIttle Patuxent Parkway across from the Columbia Mall.  Fence up.  Parts of the first floor seem to have been torn down.

Great Sage Smoothies: Great Smoothies, Great Big Price, Good Call When You Want Cool Lunch

Pineapple-ginger-kale smoothie

I'm hesitant to recommend a $7 smoothie, but Great Sage in Clarksville really does whip up something unusual.

Pineapple, kale and ginger make a delicious drink.  That's a professional drink.  I wouldn't have put them together, but the flavor is bright and exciting without being overly sweet.  And without tasting anything like kale.

Mrs. HowChow stumbled on the smoothies when she wanted a snack on a trip to the Roots Market next door.  We have had them a few times after an athletic Saturday morning.  They're delicious.  They're nutritious.  You could almost justify $7 if the smoothie was your lunch -- although then you need to insist that they actually fill the cup, which hasn't happened every time.

Great Sage has a whole menu of smoothies with all kinds of fruit and even spinach.  Pinapple and ginger has become my signature, but "Black Beauty" -- three kinds of berries and soy yogurt -- has other fans and may be my next try.

Howard CC Students Start A Food TV Show, Profile Shanty Grill And Chef Warner's Salmon

Some Howard County Community College students have started a new television show about local restaurants, and you can check out their first episode about Shanty Grille in Ellicott City.

The show runs on local cable on HCC-TV, and the link above goes to YouTube.  Check out the Columbia Patch for an announcement that has channels and times.  The show gives you a tour of the Shanty Grille, then executive chef Charles Warner cooks a pan-seared salmon dish with risottoat the college kitchen.

Anyone know more?  I love a television show about Howard County restaurants.  Feel free to add more details -- like the folks involved -- in the comments.  Thanks to jgamny for the tip.

(Update:  It isn't students.  See the comments below.  Apparently, HCCC has employees who created the shows.)

New Wolf-Foreman Restaurant Aiming To Open In 2013 On The Downtown Columbia Waterfront

Columbia should get a new restaurant this year by the owners by Charleston, Petit Louis and Cinghiale -- filling the lakefront space that used to be Red Pearl, notes the Sun and other folks who got the press release.

Incroyable!

As I had written in April, folks have been talking about Cindy Wolf and Tony Foreman opening a new restaurant in downtown Columbia.  It's une idée formidable.  The Howard Hughes Company is developing a bunch of downtown land, and they're adding the nouveau restaurant down the lake from the Whole Foods coming in 2014.

Foreman and Wolf run wonderful upscale restaurants in Baltimore.  They should bump up the food around that area -- and be a nice pair with Sushi Sono overlooking the water.  One question remains: What kind of restaurant are they opening?  The official word is that no one should talk about that until authorized by .  But then, nous pouvons tous imaginer.

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.

Link: New Matcha Time Cafe In The Patch

The signs for the Matcha Time Cafe have been up in Ellicott City for more than a year, but the small Japanese restaurant will finally open for business on June 15, reports the Ellicott City Patch.

Andre Metcalfe interviewed the cafe's owners about their plans to offer sushi, pastries, and tea in the spot at the top of the large parking lot off Main Street.  They're near La Palapa, and they also have a small Japanese boutique.

Xitomate in Columbia: Rewriting The Review Of Mexican Spots Around Howard County

Fish tacos with good beans and rice

Is it just me, or is the local Mexican branching out?

Four years ago, my summary of Mexican restaurants topped out at Lily's Mexican Market in Columbia and El Azteca in Clarksville.  Soon, I need to update that 2009 round-up, and I may need to declare two separate weight classes -- a super-casual range from R&R Taqueria to the under-construction expansion of Tere's Latin Market, then a heavy-weight class trying to go upscale.

At this point, the new Xitomate in Columbia may top that high-end market.  You get a classy, trendy vibe.  You start with thick, exceptional chips.  You work through a menu full of unusual items like huitlacoche and churros.  I enjoyed our first dinner, and our second meal was memorable even though we split a glorified snack of chips, ceviche, empanada, and tacos.

First, the kitchen really does interesting food.  I loved the fish tacos, especially the warm corn tortillas that contrasted with spiciness of the salsa.  Tilapia is a mild fish, and the tacos went subtle in a way that took skill -- fresh, sharp salsa and the earthiness of the corn tortilla, enough to show off fish that was cooked moist.

Ceviche

Second, Xitomate passes my extra test with beans and rice that are better than the ones that I make at home.  When Mexican places offer lackluster side dishes, I'm more than happy to take my business to R&R -- where the tacos will be spectacular and half the price.  In contrast, this place makes the visit worth your while with cumin-laced black beans and a yellow rice studded with vegetables.  

Xitomate's flavors vary far more than your average Mexican place.  A creamy sauce under the empanada.  A sharp slickness of the ceviche.  The marinated shrimp has a real taste of lime and a bite from onion.  Forkfuls come with the crunch of onion and cucumbers.  The high-end lettuce pushed into the bottom of the ceviche glass becomes a fiery salad, and I used the last of the beans to cool my mouth own.

You get all this in one of the nicer dining rooms in Howard County.  It's still casual, and it still looks out on a parking lot.  But it's a cool, modern design.  Friendly for kids.  Classy enough for a date.

I do want to re-write the 2009 series where I first tried to summarize food around Howard County.  That series was so long ago that Blogger didn't offer pages, and I "hid" the description of the entire series by dating in January 1, 2008.  What would you suggest for Mexican -- the restaurants and the favorite dishes?

Make Your Own Soda - WIth Korean Fruit Vinegar (I Promise. When Have I Lead You Wrong?)

Orange, pomegranate and blueberry vinegars

Nothing makes grocery shopping better than free samples, and that works even if you don't know what you're sampling.

A smiling woman at Lotte in Catonsville got us to try drinking vinegars.  They're sweetened vinegars that we were served as a shot.  Good tasting, and "good for digestion," according to the woman at Lotte.

Honestly, we bought the first bottle on a lark, but these vinegars -- pomegranate, cactus fruit, orange and other varieties -- have become the flavor of this summer as we have learned to mix them down.

Start with bubbling water.  Could just be a bottle of seltzer.  Could be that SodaStream that you splurged to buy.  Either way, a dash of pomegranate vinegar turns a glass of water into a spectacular drink.

We disagree on intensity.  Mrs. HowChow tints the water.  I pour at least a shot, maybe more.  It's a sugary mix, but you definitely get the taste of vinegar to balance out the sweet.  It's a nice refreshment.  Easy for you to personalize.  And ripe for a mixing with vodka or soju if you wanted to experiment with a signature drink.

One problem:  I can't read the bottle because the only English is the ingredient sticker.  Check out the bottles above.  On our last visit, they were in the first row of shelves looking over the produce section.  Show the photo to someone there, and they should be able to find the bottles.  They had large bottles of pomegranate or cactus pear or three-packs of smaller bottles with orange, pomegranate and blueberry.

I haven't looked, but I assume they sell these vinegars in the Lotte in Ellicott City and the H Mart in Catonsville.  All those stores are worth exploring for vegetables, fruits, fish and all kinds of international packaged goods.

Honey Pig Chicken Closes At Lotte

The fried chicken stand inside the new Lotte in Catonsville appears to have closed.

The Honey Pig Chicken stand was closed, and it had a sign that said "Chicken Store Closed" reports John Houser III, who has a legit writing job but offered a scouting report for HowChow.

It's sad whenever fried chicken closes, but don't despair.  Lotte still has a great stand for steamed buns, and you can still get great fried chicken.  Bon Chon does great chicken, especially if you like spicy, spicy, spicy food.   Tian Chinese Cuisine may be my favorite meal -- where you can get an order of chicken and an order of their black bean noodles.

Hat tip to Houser and Gorelickingood.

Frozen Lemonade At Kyky''s Hawaiian Ice

Frozen lemonade at Kyky's Hawaiian Ice

First find of the summer: A frozen treat even better than snowballs.

This felt like the first truly hot weekend, and some Sunday Swings with Shandra left us drained.  Thanks to AnnieRie's suggestion, we ended up at Kyky's Hawaiian Ice off Montgomery Road in Ellicott City.

Look just off menu for the sign about the frozen lemonade.  That's a snowball variation that actually beat out the two snowballs that we also ordered.  (Three cups of ice?  Well, Shandra makes you swing a lot in 90 minutes.)  Kyky's basically makes a lemonade to order -- a cup of ice, then a lemon-and-simple-syrup concentrate, then water.

It's delicious.  We drank a bit, scooped from lemony ice.  Sweet, but tastes like real lemon.  It's as refreshing as a snowball, and it beats those out because we can't really claim that our favorite technicolor flavors actually taste "real."

Kyky's also has the full range of snowballs indigenous to the Baltimore area.  They're good.  They're still not shave ice, which is more like snow than ice chips.  I love the Baltimore snowball and all the local stands.  But they're still not shave ice like we had in Hawaii.  I wrote about this last winter, and I still need to try Baltimore's Hula Honey and Randall's town Original Hawaiian Island Snowball that people recommended in the comments.

Kyky's Hawaiian Ice
a portable stand in front of T-Bonz Grille
4910 Waterloo Road
Ellicott City, MD 21043

NEAR:  Kyky's is a trailer snowball stand parked -- at least in the summer of 2013 -- on an access road in front of T-Bonz Grille at Montgomery Road and Waterloo Road (Rte 104) in Ellicott City.  It's convenient from Rte 100 or Rte 103.