2016 in Review: The best (sometimes random) food in Baltimore

What better time to come back to blogging than to talk about the best (and most interesting) food in Baltimore in 2016?

Best Fries: The skinny fries at CaliBurger remind me of McDonald’s. They so thin and salty and delicious and so addictive.

Best Classic Cocktail: Bee’s Knees at B&O American Brasserie is a light mix of gin, lemon, and honey. Does Brendan ever create something that isn’t amazing?

Best New Restaurant/Bar in Canton: Lee’s Shell and Pint is way nicer than I expected. I was actually able to order a decent bottle of wine!

Best New Restaurant/Bar in Federal Hill: Urban Deli has so many delicious sandwiches AND sells THB bagels! The owner is so nice, too.

Best New Restaurant/Bar in Harbor East: Sweetgreen may be a chain, which I’m generally against, but IT’S SO GOOD.

Best Go-To Restaurant: Wit & Wisdom always makes me happy. I like the drinks, I like the food, I like the view, I like Zach, I like Julie. It’s all good.

Best for Celebrations: Gunther & Co. has so many options! I’ve been there for a company holiday party, a girls’ dinner, several lunches, and my OrderUp goodbye happy hour.

Best Competition for Ryleigh’s Orange Crush: Boathouse has a variety of crushes, and the orange crush is pretty close to Ryleigh’s, which is my personal favorite in Baltimore.

Most Exciting Opening: R. House in Remington is another welcome Baltimore food market. Mt. Vernon Marketplace and R. House seem to have spurred unrest in older markets, with Broadway, Cross, and Lexington Markets all in renovation talks.

Best Surprise: Arba opened at R. House! Farid opened another restaurant! I’ve frequented Baba’s for years and always said we couldn’t leave the neighborhood because I’d miss it so much. If we ever end up back in North Baltimore, at least we have Arba.

Best Wine Flight: La Cuchara has a flight of three delicious Tempranillos, my favorite Spanish red. Paired with their delicious pinxtos, you have a hit.

Best Baltimore Dessert: Kinderhook Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies are the best thing ever and I miss them dearly. The Kinderhook crew would deliver them fresh to the OrderUp office, while the layers of chocolate were still warm. The most amazing treat.

Most-Liked Baltimore Food Instagram Pic: Fancy coffee at the opening of Order & Chaos had everyone pretty excited.

Best Way to Eat My Feelings About 2016: Machado’s soft serve ice cream is made of the tears of butterflies or something else magical. It’s apparently just soft serve Hershey’s with sprinkles, but I think there’s some kind of crack in it.

What were your favorites in Baltimore this year?