Appetizers

Xando is a new coffee bar in town with a split personality. By day, it deals in double espressos, lattes and mochas. By night, it serves up something a little stronger. The change occurs at four o'clock, when a mural on the wall is raised to reveal a full liquor bar.Xando's location near Johns Hopkins University on North Charles Street is its first in Baltimore, with others planned for Towson and the Inner Harbor. The Connecticut-based chain started in Hartford in 1994 and now has 15 sites.

Of all the theme restaurants that have opened in the area, surely the most spectacular is the new Rainforest Cafe in Towson Town Center. A large chunk of the mall's second level has been transformed into a jungle, with vegetation that almost grows while you watch; live fish and trained parrots; animated gorillas, alligators and butterflies; shooting stars and rainbows; waterfalls and threatening weather every 15 minutes or so.On my first foray into the...

Appetizers are disarmingly good at Samos, a small Greek restaurant in Highlandtown named for an island in the northeast Aegean.There's garlic shrimp with sharp fried cheese on seasoned rice. Orange-spiked sausage tossed with feta, tomatoes, green peppers and red onions. Creamy taramasalata, the Greek fish roe spread, on golden pita triangles. Fried calamari, crackle-crisp on the outside and tender inside.If you face away from the lighted sub sign and the colorful potato chip display rack, or if you just close your eyes and taste, you will think you are in a much fancier restaurant.

How many times have you shelled out $4 for a shriveled hot dog or stale blueberry muffin when you were stuck at an airport with time to kill and nowhere else to turn for food?Airport food is usually unappetizing, and it costs way too much.Baltimore-Washington International Airport offers plenty of fast-food chains and delis to pick from if you have a half-hour to kill. And there are other options as well.CK's RestaurantCK's has wood-paneled walls and a homey atmosphere. If you're sitting far enough from the entrance, it almost makes you feel you're not really at the airport.

When it comes to Captain Louie's Seafood Grill in Fells Point, it's deja vu all over again. I can't remember how many times I've reviewed this place -- when it was Something Fishy, and then when it was Foster's Oyster Bar, Market and Restaurant. When it was Foster's Restaurant and Wine Bar. When it was down-home. When it was upscale, with chef Gwen Kvavli Gulliksen in the kitchen.Through all its incarnations, though, the space at 606 S. Broadway has been a seafood restaurant. Wouldn't you think the new owner would try something different?

Tasty little dishes. Bites of food that look spectacular and are intensely flavorful. We call them hors d'oeuvres, which translates roughly as "outside the meal." But in the less-is-more '90s, small, savory appetizers are often the meal itself.We're eating that way at home -- a bite of this and a bite of that -- because we don't have time to sit down and have a proper meal.We're entertaining that way because it's more interesting to serve Asian spring rolls and Mediterranean hummus and Italian antipasti than a meat and potatoes sit-down dinner.

In the review of Central Station in the Aug. 15 issue of Live, there were several errors.Lunch hours for the restaurant are 11: 30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. Dinners hours are 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Sunday brunch is from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.Lunch prices are $2.95 to $8.95 for appetizers and $4.95 to $8.50 for entrees. Dinner prices are $2.95 to $8.95 for appetizers and $4.95 to $22.50 for entrees. Brunch prices are $2.95 to $6.95 for appetizers and $4.95 to $12.95 for entrees.

They stayed in luxury hotel rooms overlooking the Inner Harbor, caught a ballgame at Oriole Park, devoured the seven-course feast they watched chefs prepare. They marveled at museums and marine mammals, sailed aboard a schooner at sunset, nibbled endless appetizers and sipped drinks at stops along the way.And they got paid to do it -- all in a weekend's work.In the lexicon of the travel industry, the half-dozen journalists who stayed at the Renaissance Harborplace Hotel recently explored Baltimore on a weekend press "fam," or familiarization, tour.

In the review of Central Station in the Aug. 15 issue of Live, there were several errors.Lunch hours for the restaurant are 11: 30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays. Dinners hours are 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and until midnight on Fridays and Saturdays. Sunday brunch is from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.Lunch prices are $2.95 to $8.95 for appetizers and $4.95 to $8.50 for entrees. Dinner prices are $2.95 to $8.95 for appetizers and $4.95 to $22.50 for entrees. Brunch prices are $2.95 to $6.95 for appetizers and $4.95 to $12.95 for entrees.

Regi's, 1002 Light St., (410) 539-7344. Open every day for lunch and dinner. AE, MC, V. No-smoking area: yes. Prices: appetizers, $5.95-$7.95; entrees, $6.50-$9.50. (Specials are more.) **1/2Along the lines of if it ain't broke, don't fix it, the new Regi's isn't radically different from the old Regi's. After former owner Regi Elion sold her popular Federal Hill bar last winter, it was renovated and some new dishes were added to the menu. But nothing was done that would upset the regulars.

Ask your friends how this economic mess is affecting them, and I bet the first thing they say is that they are eating out less often - or maybe not at all. At a time when you can't cut back on your mortgage payment or your car payment or just about any other payment, dining out is one expense you can reduce. That, and shopping for clothes. While it makes me feel sensible and thrifty and virtuous to give up clothes shopping, putting an end to dinner out with my husband or my daughter or my friend Betsy just makes me feel sad. It isn't the food and wine I am giving up. It's the people.

A friend who eats with me regularly has a conspiracy theory about restaurants that keep opening and closing in one location. He thinks the way to succeed in the business would be to get a long-term lease and every two or three years close down and reopen with a new name, new concept and new staff. That's about the length of time it takes for a hot new restaurant to become yesterday's news. If things aren't going well, you can close down and reopen after six months, like a Broadway show.

When a reader complains about the stars I've assigned to a restaurant, I always say it's an imperfect system at best. And please read the whole review to see what I really think. How, for instance, would you rate the service we had at the Granite Bar & Grille, an appealing place that recently opened in the spot where Rick's Cafe Americain used to be? First of all, the staff could not be nicer. When we asked if we could sit at a table that a waitress said was reserved for someone else, the manager made it happen.

Are you planning an Academy Awards party, but don't know where to start? You don't want the timetable and budget to spiral out of control like a Jerry Bruckheimer or James Cameron production. At the same time, you would like to make the bash a success for you and your movie-loving friends. Here are some tips to get you started. The goal is to maximize the fun and comfort of your guests even as the annual Oscar ceremony stretches well past its usual three-hour mark on the evening of Feb. 29. Getting Started Sending invitations via the Internet is the best way to gauge who is and isn't coming to your Oscar party.

Steakhouses in the Baltimore area are about as plentiful as conservative rants on AM radio. So, whether you like your beef in the form of argument on the airwaves or food on the plate, there's something for everyone around here. For steak lovers, the choices range from the super-fancy, such as Ruth's Chris, with prices to match, to less-expensive, family-friendly chains such as Outback. Into this crowded market comes Tbonz, a steakhouse that opened in Ellicott City about six months ago. The restaurant manages to find its own place in the crowded lineup by combining good food, reasonable prices and excellent service, all in a restaurant and bar that's casual enough for the whole family.

Capsules of recent reviews in the LIVE! section. Rankings are out of four stars. Amicci's 231 S. High St., Little Italy, 410-528-1096 Lunch and dinner daily Appetizers, $3-$9; entrees, $10.50-$15.50 (all major credit cards) It is obvious why Amicci's has been a Little Italy favorite for so long: It serves good Italian food in heaping portions and at rock-bottom prices. Fat, flavorful shrimp, a sprightly homemade marinara sauce, beautifully cooked mushrooms and meltingly tender chicken are just a few of the pleasures that keep customers coming back again and again.

North Charles Street has a new hot spot. And we do mean hot. As in south-of-the-border cuisine. Mahmood Karzai -- brother of Qayum Karzai, owner of Helmand, Tapas Teatro and b -- has just opened Tampico Mexican Grill at 1200 N. Charles St. But this isn't any ol' taco joint. The menu actually is more representative of true Mexican fare than the food most of us gringos generally associate with that country. Sure, you can get your burrito at Tampico. But you'll also find a variety of fresh seafood dishes.

Capsules of recent reviews in the LIVE! section. Indonesian House Allegheny Ave., Towson, 410-825-2181 Lunch and dinner daily Appetizers, $3.25-$6.95; entrees $7.50-$13.95 (MC, V) The extensive menu at Indonesian House includes curried dishes, sushi, and Indonesian noodle and rice dishes. The desserts, however, are among the best things on the menu. The sweet rice with mango and coconut was sticky and chewy, topped with fresh fruit. Food: ** Service: ** Atmosphere: ** Maiwand Kabob 5467 Harpers Farm Road, Columbia, 410-992-7754 Lunch, dinner daily Appetizers $3-$3.

Capsules of recent reviews in the LIVE! section. Maiwand Kabob 5467 Harpers Farm Road, Columbia, 410-992-7754 Lunch, dinner daily Appetizers $3-$3.75; Entrees $6.99-$11.95 (MC, V) Behind the counter at this small Afghani restaurant, customers can watch skewers of lamb and chicken sizzle over an open flame and see the bread being kneaded, shaped and cooked in a tandoori oven. The result is beautifully tender and flavorful meat, and bread that is warm and addictive. Save some bread for sopping up the sauces of the complex appetizers.

Short reviews of recent reviews in the LIVE! section. Ryleigh's 32-36 E. Cross St., 410-539-2093 Lunch and dinner daily, brunch on Sunday Appetizers $3-$9; entrees $6 to $24 (AE, MC, V) Ryleigh's has a loud bar area and a fun atmosphere. It's a fine place to eat a burger or a brownie sundae and catch a game on TV, but don't necessarily hit this Federal Hill eatery for fine dining. Some dishes, like the pecan-crusted catfish, are quite good, while others, like the pork chops and steamed clams, can be overcooked and boring.