Chanteuse

Ah Ha!!! I LOVE Galway Bay!! I hadn't thought of trying the oysters yet though!! Thanks for reminding me!!!! The St. Mary's Oyster fest sounds like a great idea too! Thanks. And thanks for the "Les Folies" tip as well. I like the idea of being able to try the oysters from different areas!!!

Would like to buy white anchoivies, but buying them over the internet is too expensive. (It costs more to ship them then the item costs) I live near Philly. I've called around and haven't had any luck yet. I do spend a lot of time on the upper eastern shore of the Chesapeake though. Any ideas?

Please. No more shows on chili comparisons!!!

OK. I grew up in MA and loved fried clams with bellies, but for some reason, never got into oysters raw or cooked. Love just about all seafood/shellfish, but never got much into sushi either. Have kept a boat on the upper east shore on Chesapeake Bay for 8 years. (Avatar is picture of our boat docked in Annapolis) Have had 2 bad experiences with fried OYSTERS where they were inedible and one where they were LUSCIOUS! Never have tried raw oysters, but would like to now. As the Oyster season approaches, I would like some imput into the best oyster places in the area. Naming some NEAR me would be great. (Chestertown, MD) But, I assume we'll be visiting Annapolis and Baltimore at some point as well. Have not tried Crisfield yet, but might get down there at some point. If I'm gonna try raw oysters, I want to make sure I have a good experience so I'm not "turned off" for good. Also, what's the best way to try raw oysters the first time? Plain, lemon, horseradish, mignonette sauce ..... shooter ????

Does anyone know of an online source where I could purchase such a thing. ( I know I could make them, but I'm looking for something already made and bagged) I believe that this is a typical Filipino snack. I've started Googling and looking through "Asian" online stores but haven't had luck YET. Thanks in advance!!

Don't go to Ram's Head, ..... ← OH, but don't rule Ram's Head out. Let's face it. They spend their money on the music ... which is very well spent. If you want some GOOD entertainment, and don't mind "ok" food. DON'T RULE IT OUT. Good music is so hard to find these days. MUCH harder to find than good food.

No, no no no. Yin Yankee Cafe is a muddle of dollar-short day-late trendiness, all ginger-whipped this and fusion that. If you packed Spices' nose with wasabi and gorgonzola and caught the sneeze on a plate, you'd get Yin Yankee's "Crabchops". The sushi tends to be a little fishy; service is young-and-fumbling, not young-and-enthusiastic; and for God's sake just stop already with the "ah, so crever!" chinoiserie. I have eaten waaaay too many times here (the last time was about a year ago, so take my hyperbole with a grain of salt if you wish). ← OK.... it's cool to "warn" people, (I like to be warned) but an alternative selection would be polite, if not more helpful. I read your post respecting your opinion, but was hoping for an a better suggestion. :sigh:

Thanks. We do frequent Watermans and enjoy it very much!! I'm from Boston actually and desperately miss my lobster, but finding GREAT Crab helps my immensely!!! I can't believe I've never heard of Suicide Bridgethough ... I'm going to check out your links right now. See this is why it's worth it to post. Because you never know what "finds" people will help you find! Thanks. edit: OK, near Crisfield. We hope to visit there more this season, so this was a perfect recommendation ... So again --- thanks. Some friends of ours go to Crisfield a lot and even named their cat Crisfield. (They found him in a dumper in Crisfield). Hope people will keep contributing to this thread because I intend to print out a list of the recommendations to keep on the boat!

Until the NEXT kid starts the whining and crying. Besides, at $80 a meal, 30 seconds of having to listen to screaming is more than enough to tolerate. If there were an ADULT sceaming at the top of their lungs throughout the dinner would you find the humor in that, or would you expect the management to do something about it? Let's put it this way. In a restaurant with say ... 100 diners. There's ONE kid at a table of four who makes the atmosphere very unpleasant for 96% of the other diners. Is that reasonable to expect everyone else accomodate the child/family by attempting to ignore the disruption while still paying $80 a person per meal?

BEAUTIFULLY stated. Thank you. As someone who doesn't have a baby, I AM afraid to speak up for fear of being accused of being "unfriendly" to families. I'm not. I'm 1/2 Sicilian. Believe me. Our tradition is to have kids all over the place 99% of the time. BUT, there are certain times, we hope to get away from that. To have a change of atmosphere. And often a nice restaurant is a place to do that. It really isn't about being unfriendly towards children/parents. It's about spending a LOT of money on a meal and having it made very unpleasant ... and having NO control over that at all. For some people, sometimes they're lucky if they've been able to save up enough money to have a romantic dinner at a "fancy" restaurant ONCE every year ... or only on "MAJOR" anniversaries ... only to have a french fry thrown into their creme brulee' from two tables over or listening to a 18 month old sneeze bubbly snot over their high chair. Geez. Kid and families have Disney World, can't adults at LEAST have "Le Bec Fin"???

If it quiets the child I'm all for it!! And if I'm embarrased about it, then I'm aware that's MY problem. It's a child who needs food, and the boob provides the food. If I have a problem with that, then I should get over it. After all, I don't have to look if I don't want to. However, a screaming child is impossible to avoid.

Not running away. Just not wasting my time repeating myself on a subject that, to me, has been discussed to death. Well, since there really hasn't been a real solution to the problem, I doubt it's discussed to death. Restaurant managers and other patrons usually feel powerless to do anything about a disruptive table if the disruption is due to children. If it were common and even EXPECTED that restaurant managers had the right and SHOULD insist that disruptive families be asked to leave, then the subject would be moot. But, since that's typically not the case, I think it's about time more and more people are speaking up about this very real situation. And hope people continue to do it. I agree with much of what you say here. But, I think one of the ways parents can teach kids to behave IS to start bringing them to more "refined" situations. The parents need to understand though, that if they're child can't behave, they have to be prepared and willing to pack up and leave. It may be impractical, but it's the reality of the situation and it's not fair to have their children learn at everyone else's expense. Otherwise, you're right. They should just stay home, or get a baby sitter if they can afford one. I think the REAL issue is that too many parents seem to feel it's everybody else's "duty" to tolerate their children's behavior or conform to their needs. No, if I'm paying $80 bucks for a meal, I think I have a right to not have it disrupted.

Interesting. I had started another topic somewhere else in the forums and it has since been moved... I don't know WHAT we all can do about it. Does a co-diner have the right to go over to the disruptive table and tell the people they're upsetting A LOT of other customers? Or are you afraid that would cause MORE problems? Or is it up to the Restaurant manager to say "We've had a number of complaints from other customers about the disruption at your table. We respectfully ask that you find a way calm things down." I have gone into stores... especially ones with say expensive china, where they post a sign basically saying that guardians need to keep track of what their children are doing and that if there is any breakage, the guardians will be held financially responsible. Is that an option for restaurant managers/owners? A sign saying that "Children are welcome, but it is expected that they are in good behavior and do not cause disruption for other diners." And I know this sounds extreme, and it IS... but, there have been a FEW meals where the disruption was so bad, I secretly wished I could hold the parties responsible for the price of my meal. I admit I've day-dreamed about suing them for the cost of our meal. I know that may sound ridiculous -- and I'm not a sue hound by any means, have never sued a soul in my life -- but the sense of frustration and powerlessness to do anything about it did have me fantasizing a bit. And there's a "reverse" problem doesn't have to be "upscale" either. I remember going into this local "dive", a blues bar that served lunch in the afternoon, sans music, and had blues music at night. So, there's four of us at a table ... and there's a couple with a 4-6 year old boy sitting near us. One of the men at my table was in a particularly funny mood that day ... and yes, the "F" word came out of his mouth about 3 times. Can you BELIEVE the father asked him to watch his language around his child?? They were in a BLUES BAR for goodness sake. It was a dive with LOTS of "character". The man at my table was silent for a moment and then just turned away from him. I was lucky I was able to keep my mouth shut because now I was "F'n fumin'.

Ok... I CLEARLY want to state ahead of time. I'm not bashing children or parents in restaurants. That is NOT my intention. This has nothing to do with not LOVING kids and not being parent friendly. God BLESS parents and the excruciatingly tough job that they do. I KNOW. I was one myself. But, I'm increasingly weary and resentful of going in for a romantic/quiet/adult meal with my husband ... spending $150 (give or take) and having LITERALLY it ruined by the chaos that "too young" or "too tired" or "too spoiled" or " too undersupervised" kids bring. Especially when we watch parents making little or no effort to take responsibility for their children's misbehavior. As a retiring couple, $150 is a LOT of money to be wasted on a meal that becomes very unpleasant/nerve-wracking. A good meal is too expensive to spend it with a kids jabbering/yelling/crying/ Fussy-eater-whining/throwing fits or food nearby. Heck it doesn't even have to be near by. Yet, this happens at at too many restaurants we attend. Depending on the time of year, this can be from say 25% to 75% of the time. (average 40%-50%) And I'm not talking about "family style" restaurants. Of COURSE you go in there expecting kids and families of all sizes. I'm talking about the type of restaurant that anyone would know was aimed towards an adult clientèle. Where ALL of their tables are for parties of 2 and 4 and it takes a lot of logistics to put the tables together for a party of 6 and above. So, my question is. Is there nothing we (my husband and I) can do to ensure a better dining experience? Do (certain) restaurants have the ability to enforce the "If your kids can't behave, you need to leave" policy? Is it reasonable to say to the restaurant owners/mangers ... "The children are extremely disruptive... either you need to do something about it, or we need to leave and would like our money back/need a discount." If not ... then what DO we do? Never go out to eat again? Again, I feel the need to put a disclaimer here. I'm totally aware of the extreme difficulties that parents and restaurant managers/owners face ... and I have deep appreciation, respect and sympathy for them... However, ... when a good percentage of our meals are disrupted, at what point to we have the right to assert OUR rights without being branded 'uncooperative" or "cranky" or "unreasonable"? I don't want to cause trouble. But darn it. If we're going to spend hundreds on a meal, can't we at least expect it to be a pleasant one? How to handle the situation, especially when it's become chronic?

We LOVE Galway Bay in Annapolis. MUCH better than any of the other Irish pubs in the city IMO. This is more quality/upscale food than you might expect. DELISH!! Very well done! I think it's one of Annapolis' greatest restaurant secrets. Also, we've had VERY good luck (3 times) at Aqua Terra right on Main Street. The web site has a menu, but quite frankly, it's always different when we visit. Bottom line is whatever is fresh and in season dictates the menu.