The Rumor Mill
8069 Tiber Alley
Ellicott City, MD 20143
Ellicott City, MD 20143
410-461-0041
If you enjoy old, historic charm, you will enjoy a trip to
The Rumor Mill Fusion Bar and Restaurant.
Ladies be sure to wear your flats.
To reach this restaurant one must first navigate the cobble stone alley
that is as old as the city itself. The
restaurant is housed in a delightfully restored mill. Once inside, guests enjoy a warm, quaint
setting. The dining area is small and
personal with shades of brown, orange and tan to warm the décor. Exposed brick, glass and a half wall of chalk
board add character and visual interest.
Adorable white and brown tear drop lighting adds an artistic flair. There is a small bar with bottles of colorful
concoctions. Their specialty is their house-infused vodkas mixed with juices
and fresh fruit purees, offered in such flavors as apple, blood orange, pear,
pomegranate, raspberry, strawberry or white peach.
The wait staff is knowledgeable and for the most part
friendly. They allow you to eat at a
rather leisurely pace. The chef on the
other hand is one of the most gracious and personable chefs we have met in a
long time. Chef and Owner Matthew Milani came
out, sat at our table, introduced his self and chatted about the restaurant and
the menu. He invited us to stop by again
soon and stick our head in the kitchen to say,“Hi.” It was clear that he loves his job and takes
pride in his restaurant.
The food at The Rumor Mill is best described as down-home,
global fusion. The foundations of most
dishes are traditional southern.
However, Chef Milani adds many global twists and turns. The menu is tapas style, so you can venture
out and sample many different items. We
give the chef high scores for creativity and adventure, however execution left
us wanting on some dishes. Most of his
dishes are rich due to the shear amount of oil he uses. Many of the oils are infused and have a
delightful taste, but there is too much of it.
Most of his meats are cooked well but lack proper seasoning. Desserts on the other hand are some of the
best we have ever had. All in all, The
Rumor Mill’s food is a bit of a toss-up.
This is a good place to try if you are on a romantic date
because you can take a walk through the old historic district before or after
diner, or a good place to meet and hang out with friends. Parking is a chore because there is no valet
and parking spaces are limited in this old historic town. Overall we give The Rumor Mill ♪♪♪.
Baked Brie and Bacon Marmalade
The chef warmed a delicious round of brie and topped it with
sweet and savory bacon marmalade (FYI- you could choose to top it with peach
compote instead). The combination of the
creamy richness from the cheese and the sweet savory-ness of the marmalade were
heavenly. The addition of chives gave a
little earthiness and flare. This dish
was amazing! Please note that this dish is listed as a dessert though it serves
wonderfully as an appetizer.
Yellow Beets
The beets were nicely roasted, which made them sweet and
delicious. The blue cheese was a perfect
addition to the dish because it added a little saltiness. The blue cheese was
presented as if it had been squeezed through an icing gun, shaped into small
florets, and though it started out sort of stiff, it eventually melted nicely
into the rest of the dish. The herb
vinaigrette was fascinating because it tasted like grass; it was not awful,
just peculiar. Overall, it was quite nice if a bit different from any
preparation of beets we have had before.
Cilantro Beef
This is where the drenching began. TOO MUCH OIL!
The delicate and tender slices of beef became lost in all the oil and balsamic
vinegar. We can’t even tell you what the
beef tasted like because it was drowned out.
Strangely enough the accompanying cucumbers had quite an intense
flavor. They stood up well to the oil
and balsamic bath while the poor beef lost that battle. (TAPS playing quietly in the background…)
Duck & Cherries
The chef cooked the duck, Sous-Vide style (in a bag, boiled
low and slow for a very long time). It
was super tender and delicious. There
was a slight gaminess that was delightful.
The cherries were both sweet and tart which worked perfectly in this
dish. The sweetness did not overpower
the duck but rather complimented it. Our
only suggestion for the chef is to sear the duck breast just a tad bit after
the sous-vide process to give the delicious skin a nice crisp finish.
Crab Dumpling
The dumpling dough was way too heavy. The dish was reminiscent of a French style
pastry, much too intense for a delicate crab flavor. The Dijon was also too strong for the crab
and the goat cheese was too tart. The
dipping sauce was too salty. Here we were feeling a little bit like Goldilocks…everything
being just a little too much.
Honey Miso Scallops
This dish was both a hit and a miss. The miss were the scallops. They were over-done and rubbery. It may have
had something to do with the quality of the product, and if this is so, I hope
they get a new supplier, quick, fast, in a hurry. Even if this WAS the case however, they
lacked the much desired char that makes scallops wonderful. To make a perfect scallop you need two
things; a good sear and a sprinkle of sea salt.
These scallops lacked both. The
hit was the creamy wasabi cucumber salad.
Ohhhhhhh… My goodness was that salad amazing! It was sweet, tart and spicy all at the same
time. Absolutely delicious!
Shrimp & Potatoes
This dish was a bit disjointed. The sausage and potatoes were quite
good. We would recommend just serving
those alone. The spiciness of the sausage
was delightful and complimented the perfectly cooked medley of white, red and
sweet potatoes nicely. Unfortunately, the
shrimp just lay there limp and uninvolved in the dish. They lacked the expected deep, oceany flavor
and did nothing for the dish.
Grilled Peach Cake
This dessert screamed summer time. A moist, hot cake topped with a grilled peach
half and homemade vanilla ice cream, and served with homemade caramel sauce on
the side to top it with, was enough to make you want to hurt somebody! It was so unbelievably good! It was truly something you could see a
grandma somewhere deep down south making.
Ginger Panna Cotta
We love our panna cotta. And though not all panna cotta is created
equal, this turned out to be one of our favorites. Amazingly, it was made with coconut milk,
making it super-rich and creamy, and agar-agar, an Asian substitute for gelatin
made from a south-east Asian seaweed.
The ginger flavor was subtle and not too overpowering. There was a slight crunch for all the vanilla
beans used in the dish. The chef then
had the nerve to add candies blackberries and ginger to the dish. How he candied a fresh berry we don’t know,
but it’s possible and it’s delicious. Bravo on both the concept and the
execution of THIS dish!
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