Stratford University's culinary department opens restaurant

Yes, Baltimore, you can indulge in either a three course lunch or dinner for $12 per person.  The culinary students at Stratford University – Baltimore Campus prepare these lunches and dinners. The dining options are cycled with the daytime students’ curriculum for lunches for five weeks and then rotating to the evening students preparing dinner for five weeks.

Lunches are at noon, Tuesday and Wednesdays and the new five week cycle starts Tuesday, January 9^th and Wednesday, January 10^th. Email reservations required dmicozzi@stratford.edu. 

READ MORE at Dara Cooks at Baltimore Post Examiner.

Amazing dining discounts from Spotluck

Washington DC and surrounding cities, Philadelphia, Annapolis already are taking advantage of the dining discount app for your phone, Spotluck. Just launched in Baltimore this week, there are additional dining discounts to be had by using the promotion code: DININGDISH now through Friday, October 28, 2016 afternoon in any of their cities that they cover.

Now  for the next 14 days for every download of Spotluck using DININGDISH as a promotion code I will donate to a $1 a download to No Kid Hungry.  The Spotluck application is FREE, and available for IPhone and droids available at their website www.spotluck.com

Frederick Restaurant Week March 6 th to March 12 th

Frederick Restaurant Week Dates and Restaurants Announced! Frederick Restaurant Week is a 7-day promotion that features unique and fine dining options available in Downtown Frederick and the surrounding area. Participating restaurants will offer diners multi-course meals at mouth-watering prices the week of March 6-12, 2016. Featuring 20 restaurants, Frederick Restaurant Week is the perfect ti me to visit a favorite restaurant or try something new. Chefs will prepare delicious multi-course menus. During Frederick Restaurant Week, lunches and dinners are offered at various special prices. All costs are exclusive of tax, beverages and gratuity.

2016 Participating Restaurants:  Alexanders Restaurant L/D Ayse Meze Lounge  L/D Brewer's Alley  L/D Bushwaller's  L/D Cafe Nola D Cellar Door D  Family Meal  L/D Firestone's Culinary Tavern L/D Il Porto  L/D Isabella's Taverna & Tapas Bar  L/D JoJo's Restaurant & Taphouse L/D Lazy Fish L/D Mayta's Peruvian Cuisine L/D Pistarro's  L/D Red Horse D Reina Bar & Restaurant L/D Sumittra Thai Cuisine L/D  Tasting Room L/D Volt D Wine Kitchen L/D L = Lunch D = Dinner     During Frederick Restaurant Week, no tickets or special passes are needed. However, reservations are strongly recommended. Contact the individual restaurants to make your reservations. Restaurant menus and contact information can be found on the website.

Discount dining with free app Loupe in multiple cities: Baltimore, Pittsburgh, New Orleans

Loupe, formerly City Dining Cards, is evolving with their new app for both I-Phones and Droids. The app lists a large selection of restaurants in the city and surrounding areas.  A good number of those restaurants offer a $10 discount on $40/ $5 off $20 purchases of food and reusable after 90 days from the previous dining.  Baltimore, Buffalo, New Orleans, Pittsburgh, Rochester and Syracuse are enjoying the discounts now with Chicago, Philadelphia and Toronto to soon come aboard.

The application is free, so you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. New restaurants are being added every day. 

For Baltimore readers here are just a handful of the numerous restaurants on Loupe offering the discount:

Birroteca

Nickel Taphouse

La Cuchara

The Food Market 

Gertrudes

Tapas Teatro

Aldo’s Ristorante Italiano

The Brewer’s Art

Cunninghams

Alewife

 Go to www.loupeapp.io to download the free app and save on dining. Facebook   Twitter and Instagram @getloupeapp 

US Winter Restaurant Weeks - January through March, 2016

I’ve sorted through a number of restaurant week celebrations for January, February and March throughout the country – the dates and cities are especially handy if you are traveling to any of  these cities or municipalities or you call them home.

The holidays are over, winter is kicking in and business slows down for restaurants. Since the inception of New York City Restaurant Week many cities and states have adapted their own restaurant weeks, each with varying discount dining.

Get the full list and links to the Winter Restaurant weeks around the country at the Examiner.com/Travel.

Half price promotion on National Lasagna Day

Tuesday, July 28^th is National Lasagna Day and BRIO Tuscan Grille is offering full-sized portions of lasagna at lunch and dinner at half the menu cost. Yes, you could take the hours it takes to make the lasagna at home but doesn’t half price and a cool kitchen sound better.

Instead of $18.65 for BRIO’S Lasagna Bolognese Al Forno, on July 28^th you will only pay $9.33 for the multi-layered pasta with Bolognese meat and Alfredo sauce blended with ricotta and mozzarella cheese.

The caveats – the half price lasagna promotion does not apply to catering and children’s menus and while supplies last.

BRIO Tuscan Grille www.brioitalian.com/  Facebook Twitter @BrioItalian

City Dining Cards: A deck of culinary delights

I don’t like City Dining Cards, I LOVE City Dining Cards and you will too.  The concept is local dining, at local independent restaurants, fifty of them plus two bonus wild cards for a full deck offering $10 off a $30 purchase of food* - simple. No screwy blackout dates or crazy restrictions -they are good every day at the restaurants in Baltimore, Boston, Buffalo, Capital Region, Chicago, London, Memphis, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Portland, Providence, Rochester and Syracuse. Each city has its own deck of delicious dining.  The cost to you for a City Dining Card deck is $20 – just pick your city. Let’s calculate how much you can save:

50 restaurants X $10 off per restaurant = $500 less the $20 for the deck (you can save more with multiple purchases) plus your two bonus wild cards of freebies.

Get all the details on the City Dining Cards HERE.

Langermann’s restaurants fill the restaurant week gap

Baltimore County, Howard County and Washington DC’s restaurant weeks have and are ending January 27.  Baltimore City’s Restaurant week doesn’t start until Sunday, February 16^th in their Absolutely Fabulous promotions linked with special events and hotels – what is a Baltimore diner to do?

 

Langermann’s Restaurant Group is GETTING A JUMP on Restaurant Week! The two Langermann’s Southern inspired restaurants are offering a special menu from January 27^th through February 2^nd. 

Get the full details and watch the video HERE.

Baltimore City and Baltimore County Summer Restaurant Weeks

The official Summer Restaurant Week for Baltimore City has ended Sunday, August 4^th BUT there are 20 restaurants that are extending the promotion. . From the ever delicious Fleet Street Kitchen to the newest of downtown restaurants, Ozra one can get a taste from the farm to the Mediterranean – check out the Baltimore Restaurant Week website.   The Downtown Partnership and Visit Baltimore are recommending you call the individual restaurants to see how far they are extending the promotion and confirm the menus Those extending have a large “E” next to their names. 

Baltimore County’s Restaurant Week is kicking in on Friday, August 9^th and continuing for over two weeks through to Sunday, August 25^th with 51 restaurants participating from fine dining to casual, independently owned restaurants to chains. They all have set up their own specials for restaurant week for lunch, lunch and dinner or dinner at varying prices. Restaurants throughout Baltimore County will feature fixed price, one to three course lunch and/or dinner menus.

The Milton in is doing a Restaurant Week Sunday Brunch prefix  menu for the three Sundays, Aug 11, Aug 18 and Aug 25^th for $25.13 along with their lunch and dinner menus Monday through Saturday.

I have looked at every one of the menus and there is a terrific selection of culinary offerings, I especially want to give out a gold star to The Grill at Harryman House for the time they took to put together a visually appealing menu as well as menu offerings. 

Where will you be dining?

Dining 1988 Italian style

In 1988 it was Hustler versus Falwell, the Iran-Contra affair conviction of Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North on charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, The Last Emperor won 9 Oscars, Microsoft released Windows 2.1, Haley Joe Osmond of “I see dead people” fame was born and Liberatore’s Ristorante opened its first Italian eatery in Eldersburg, Maryland. That was the start of this five location restaurant family. The second Liberatore’s opened in Timonium in 1993, and then in 2002 in Westminster, 2005 Liberatore’s opened in Perry Hall and their fifth location for their Italian-American cuisine opened in Bel Air in 2007.

Check out the cooking video and the 1988 menu HERE.

Dry scallops on sale at Whole Foods Markets - Lobster at ShopRite Markets

Friday, July 12 only, 10 to 20 count dry scallops are on sale as supplies last.  Normally $20.99 a pound the sale price is $14.99 saving you $6 a pound. The sale is valid in the Whole Foods Markets in Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Ohio stores.

Get all the details HERE and watch the video on how to sear scallops. 

Howard County's Farm-2-Table Restaurant Weeks

“Savor It” is what Howard County Restaurant Week’s website states and that is what you can do for twenty days of culinary savings from Wednesday, July 17th to Monday, August 5th. Your farm fresh menus offer up lunch and dinner options from $10.13 to $40.13.

There are 19 participating restaurants from A (Aida Bistro) to V (Victoria’s Gastropub). One of my favorites, Baldwin Station’s, located in an 1883 historic landmark building on Sykesville’s Main Street. Recently their Executive Chef Darrack Granai left to help run his family’s business. He passed the top toque hat off to one of his protégés, Dustin Heflin. Heflin, who has been working at Baldwin’s Station since high school and has garnered an Associate Degree in Culinary Arts for Professional Cooking from Anne Arundel Community College, an Associate in Arts Degree in Professional Cooking and Baking as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Culinary Management from Baltimore International College. I love a man who can bake!

Watch the video, get the full list of participating restaurants HERE.

Wednesdays at Gia offers $10 pizza, pasta and risotto

Do I have a place for you to dine on Wednesday nights! Every Wednesday night the best place to be for pasta, pizza or risotto is Little Italy’s dining gem, Café Gia. Located on the corner of Eastern Avenue and High Street, this Italian ristorante will be offering a rotating selection of full portioned pastas, pizzas and risotto for $10 EVERY Wednesday evening. For only $2 more, guests can enjoy gluten free pasta or whole wheat pasta. This tasty Italian dining treat kicks off every Wednesday evening at 5 p.m. for dine-in service.Do I have a place for you to dine on Wednesday nights! Every Wednesday night the best place to be for pasta, pizza or risotto is Little Italy’s dining gem, Café Gia. Located on the corner of Eastern Avenue and High Street, this Italian ristorante will be offering a rotating selection of full portioned pastas, pizzas and risotto for $10 EVERY Wednesday evening. For only $2 more, guests can enjoy gluten free pasta or whole wheat pasta. This tasty Italian dining treat kicks off every Wednesday evening at 5 p.m. for dine-in service.

Check out this evening's menu and slideshow HERE