There’s a combination local butcher shop and restaurant in Baltimore called Parts & Labor, which someone at work recommended to Tony. Normally we wouldn’t drive that far to dinner but we made reservations and went there for our tenth anniversary.
They carry, and serve in the restaurant, locally sourced, pasture raised livestock and other provisions. The restaurant features several hearth-cooked meals and over 20 craft beers on tap. Here are pictures of the store area and, besides small pew-booths, they also have communal dining at these stainless high-top tables.
First we had what is called a full board, which had a variety of smoked meats like garlic salami, pickled krakowska, and lebanon bologna with spicy mustard. It was far different from anything I usually eat, but it was very nice. For dinner we had Korean short ribs which were on a parsley salad with fermented leeks, mushrooms, and daikon (I had to look this up, it’s a mild turnip). A pork shoulder blade steak, charred grilled cabbage, and German potatoes that had a vinegary mustard sauce.
The desserts shown below are an apple pecan skillet pie (don’t recall the exact name) and – get this – chocolate lard cake. I asked the waitress what lard cake means, and she said they use lard instead of butter. I’m sure they have plenty of lard on hand based on the menu. The lard cake was a little dry; I would skip the desserts or get the blondie brownie and share it between 2-4 people.
The food was definitely high quality overall, but it also struck me as an example of why some people classify local, sustainable food as elitist. I ordered a decaf coffee and it came in a press coffee pot, which was lovely, but cost $9. This is not a place you go for reasonable prices, especially since there are plenty of farm to fork theme restaurants to choose from now. But it was worth the trip to Baltimore for a new dining experience on a celebratory night.
