Ouzo Bay Greek Kouzina
1000 Lancaster Street
Baltimore MD 21224
443-708-5818
Ouzo Bay is one of Baltimore’s premier
restaurants. This delightful and ultra
trendy restaurant shines like a sapphire gem in the heart of Harbor East. Through two walls of windows the cool blue up
lighting beckons to passersby. As folks
walk past Ouzo Bay they can’t help but peer into the restaurant with a longing
gaze. The beautiful lighting, twinkling
glass and packed house capture your attention.
Once inside, the restaurant boasts multiple seating
areas. There is lounge and bar seating, both
great for socializing and hanging out.
They also have more formal seating on the main side and back of the L
shaped restaurant. The small wooden
dining tables are plain and simple but the chairs in the main dining area are
well cushioned and very pleasant on the rumpus derrière. Just a warning, the chairs in the lounge
area are much less comfy.
The good news is the food is as equally captivating
as the snazzy surroundings. Neither of
these two Soul Sisters have ever been a fan of Greek food. We have quite enjoyed our distant
relationship with Greek Cuisine.
However, Ouzo Bay has given us reason to pause and reconsider. Angela has always been of the mindset that if
you tend not to like a certain kind of food, try it made authentically and see
if that changes your mind. Since we have
not been to Greece, I’m not sure how authentic Ouza Bay is; however, we can
tell you that it is utterly delicious!
This restaurant truly emphasizes fish.
They fly in fresh fish from all over the world. For diner you can select a chef specialty
entrée or you can purchase fish by the pound and have the chef prepare in your
choice of cooking style. The little
fishy’s are on display in a brightly light showcase right outside of the
kitchen. You can stroll over and pick
which ever fish your heart desires. For
non fish eaters there are lamb, chicken, pork and beef selections as well.
Our only major concern about Ouzo Bay is the spotty
service. The bus staff was incredible
but our waiter was cool (not that nifty suave kinda cool, but rather the
distant aloof kind of cool). He appeared
exhausted and a bit annoyed that he had to serve us. I will say that I noticed our waiter was much
less aloof and distant from his other tables.
It did leave me scratching my
head and feeling very disappointed.
Ouzo Bay is a great spot to meet with friends after
work and an excellent spot for a romantic date.
The restaurant has valet parking for an $8 fee. Ouzo Bay is pricy. One can expect to pay upwards of $60-$80 for
a full 3 courses. Overall we give Ouzo
Bay ♪♪♪ and a half note.
Traditional Greek Salad
This is a salad without the salad..aka lettuce. This dish comes with the freshest beef steak
tomatoes, cucumbers, marinated onions, and a delightfully smooth, nutty and
tart goat cheese. The dressing is a
light herby vinaigrette that is delicious.
Tuna Tartare
Ample chucks of raw ahi tuna were mixed with scallions,
and cucumbers and then dressed in rich truffle oil. Atop the tuna lay avocado mousse. As you taste the dish you notice the flavors
blend and equal portion of earthiness, herbiness and fishiness. This is by far one our most favorite Tuna
Tartar preparations EVER!
Thalassina Xtenia Scallops
These jumbo crustation were seasoned to
perfection. Their oceany splendor burst
forth on your taste buds and made you want to scream “Mama!” The roasted eggplant puree and beans were
wonderful and matched the savory sweetness of the scallop. Our
only criticism was that the scallops needed to have a tad more char to them.
Paidskia Lamb Chops
The chef put a hurtin on these little lamby
chops. They were so tender, juicy and
delicious. He used very little seasoning
so that the gaminess of the lamb was prominently displayed. They were amazing. The lemon potatoes were a feat unto themselves. Somehow the chef managed to infuse a lemony
tartness throughout the entire potato.
If you love tartness you will love these potatoes. The braised greens in this dish were not
well seasoned at all. There was a little
more flavor at the bottom of the greens pile but not well dispersed
throughout.
KaridopitaWalnut Pie
This dish is extremely misleading. First off this was not walnut pie. Instead it was a dense walnut cake soaked in
a sweet honey liquid. Neither of these 2
soul sisters like wet cake so this dessert was far from spectacular for
us. We did however LOVE the cinnamon ice
cream on top of our soggy cake..pie..thingy.
It was so light and refreshing.
There were these two other dessert like items on the plate that both intrigued
and confused. They were there mostly for
decorations however they were edible.
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