"We have decided to take the remainder of the month to reorganize the business into a leaner and stronger one," said co-owner Bridget Sampson, "and will be in touch about a reopening date; we are hoping for September."
Plates, Dogwood's nonprofit culinary training program, cafe and catering, will continue to operate at the Woman's Industrial Exchange.
Maple Lawn changes: : Last weekend oZ. Chophouse in Maple Lawn closed. Jordan Naftal, owner of Jordan's Steakhouse in Ellicott City, will be reopening it with Carlos Venegas of Ranazul, a tapas restaurant in Maple Lawn, perhaps as soon as November.
FOR THE RECORD - In the Table Talk column Wednesday, the name of the magazine that featured Woodberry Kitchen as one of the 10 best new restaurants in America was incorrect. The magazine was Bon Appetit. The Baltimore Sun regrets the errors.
"We've already revamped the menu at Jordan's," Naftal said. "We've expanded the prix fixe and small plates."
The new restaurant will have the same logo and menu as the Ellicott City steakhouse when it reopens after renovations, but it will be called Carlos and Jordan's Steakhouse.
I asked Naftal why he thought another steakhouse would success where oZ. failed, and he said he wasn't sure why the chophouse closed, but "it's difficult to be the first on the block."
After a couple of years, the Maple Lawn development is further along, he pointed out. The first restaurant in the complex, Trapeze, closed as well and has become a Looney's Pub.
Naftal also told me that Jordan's in Ellicott City abandoned its original concept of offering both prime and choice steaks except for the petit filet, because everyone orders prime. Tired of paying top dollar for enormous cuts of prime beef? Jordan's now offers half-sizes of steak as one of its small plates.
"I don't eat 16 ounces of New York strip," Naftal said, "and I don't encourage anyone else to. But I know some people like it."
Woodberry honors: : Food & Wine magazine has named Spike Gjerde's Woodberry Kitchen in Hampden/Woodberry one of the top 10 best new restaurants in America.
Woodberry, the ecologically responsible farm-to-table restaurant that's been a hit since it opened, isn't exactly new - it's a couple of years old - but it's certainly deserving of the honor.
The Deal of the Week
Where: Sascha's 527, 527 N. Charles St., Mount Vernon
The Deal: $18 food and drink combos:
Mondays, steak and martini
Tuesdays, crab cakes and margarita
Wednesdays, seafood salad and sangria
Thursday, lobster roll and beer
When: The month of August
Call: 410-539-8880
