Best Dishes in Baltimore (2016): Top Restaurant Plates You Had to Try

By liketheteaEATS on December 26, 2016 • ( 4 Comments )

2016 was an excellent year for food in Baltimore. The city saw a wave of new restaurant openings, menu creativity was everywhere, and I ate more memorable meals than I can count. While I definitely didn’t blog as much as I planned, I couldn’t let the year end without sharing the dishes that truly stood out.

To keep things fair (and interesting), I set a few ground rules:

No chain restaurants
Nothing I tried before January 1, 2016
Only one dish per restaurant
No comped meals

With that in mind, here are my favorite dishes in Baltimore from 2016, listed in no particular order. Did I miss your favorite? Let me know—I’ll add it to my list for 2017.

The Best Plates of 2016

In no particular order here are my favorites – did I miss yours? Let me know so I make a point to try it in 2017!

Gazpacho at Café Cito. Café Cito had been on my radar for a while, and I still don’t know why it took me so long to finally go. Everything I tried there was solid, but the gazpacho completely stole the show. Bright, fresh, and perfectly balanced, it was the kind of dish that makes you count down the days until tomato season returns.
Gazpacho
Tea Smoked Duck Breast at Gunther & Co. Gunther & Co. made a huge impression in 2016, and this tea-smoked duck breast is a big reason why. The duck was tender, flavorful, and beautifully executed. If you’re even remotely a duck fan, this dish needs to be on your radar.. [FULL BLOG POST]
Tea Smoked Duck Breast
The Original Steam Bun at Ekiben. The hype around Ekiben’s opening was real—and completely deserved. The Original Steam Bun is overflowing with meatballs, drenched in coconut peppercorn sauce, and gloriously messy. Pair it with the tempura broccoli and you’ll understand how Ekiben converted me into a broccoli believer. [FULL BLOG POST]
The Original Steam Bun
Crispy Fried Mushrooms at All Purpose. I wandered into All Purpose on a cold night looking for warmth and comfort, and left obsessed with these mushrooms. Crispy on the outside, tender inside, and served over an avocado ranch that I’m still thinking about months later. An unexpected standout.
Crispy Fried Mushrooms
Scottish Salmon Crudo at Azumi. People love to say Azumi has the best fish in Baltimore—and after this dish, I believe it. The salmon crudo was delicate, fresh, and beautifully prepared. Even better? It’s available during happy hour, making it one of the best seafood deals in the city. [FULL BLOG POST]
Scottish Salmon Crudo
Pastrami Waffle at Saison Wafel Bar. A casual trip to Union Market changed how I think about waffles forever. This dish combined pastrami, greens, Dijon mustard, and balsamic on top of a waffle—and somehow it all worked perfectly. Proof that waffles aren’t just for breakfast.
Pastrami Waffle
Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb at Corner Restaurant and Charcuterie Bar. This dish checked every box: hearty, salty, peppery, and deeply satisfying. It was easily the best lamb I ate all year—and I eat a lot of lamb. The broccolini underneath deserves its own shoutout, too.
Herb Crusted Rack of Lamb
Street Cauliflower at La Food Marketa. I never expected a restaurant to repeatedly lure me into the suburbs, but here we are. La Food Marketa’s take on Mexican street corn—using cauliflower instead—was the best cauliflower dish I had all year. Perfect spice, tons of flavor, and honestly better than the corn version. [FULL BLOG POST]
Street Cauliflower
Ricotta Dumplings at Pizzeria Toro. I ordered these on a rainy day purely in search of comfort food, and they delivered. Light, fluffy, and subtly sweet thanks to the raisins, these dumplings were exactly what I needed—and then some.
Ricotta Dumplings
Ding-Dong at LB Bakery. LB Bakery never misses, and this dessert was pure nostalgia done right. Executive Pastry Chef Mary Plovanich nailed the balance between playful and refined. It takes real restraint for me not to stop in every time I’m nearby.
Ding-Dong