B&O Brasserie

Well, I really wanted to like this restaurant. I love the fact that it is in the historic B&O railroad headquarters with beautiful architecture and beautiful They were named one of the top 10 restaurants in Baltimore by Baltimore magazine. Unfortunately, I can only report that it is ok.

First of all, they have a great cocktail list with some great concoctions. The only better list I have seen is at Alizee.

I absolutely love their take on a Manhattan. Woodford Reserve bourbon, port, maple syrup, brandied cherries. That drink alone is what made me want to go back for a second time after our first mediocre experience.

Food is really where it falls apart. Some things are good, but others really miss the mark. On our first visit we had duck fat fries, which seem to be trendy at the moment (apparently started by Chicago restaurant Hot Dougs). I had the well executed, refined fries of Salt in my mind which have the incredibly yummy trio of Aoili's. B&O's came across as regular french fries complete with catsup!?!?

On our most recent trip we had mussels which were of high quality, but the broth was uninspired. The mussels were supposed to be garnished with "herbs" but came out ungarnished. Similarly, I got a pizza which was baked in their impressive ovens, but had a very average taste and subpar crust. This pizza was also supposed to have arugula as a garnish, but it too was missing.

Lastly, the service on both occasions was really not very good. Neither of our servers had much knowledge of the product, and had a flat affect.

Verdict: Beautiful restaurant, great for drinks before moving on to somewhere/something else.