Middleton Tavern

If the true test of a good restaurant is its ability to maintain grace under pressure, then the Middleton Tavern passes easily. In fact, give the place a gold star or two.This venerable restaurant, on the Annapolis City Dock, seemed unflappable on a recent Saturday night after a Navy football game. The wait for a table stretched to an hour and eager diners-to-be crowded the small vestibule, which doubles as a service entrance for the outdoor and upstairs dining rooms. And someone dared asked for a table for 12.But the hostess, with multiple sheets of names and times, kept everyone in order and even helped set tables.

Somewhere along the line, Hal Cummings came up with the slogan "Have Pipes, Will Travel. " That's no exaggeration. On St. Patrick's Day in particular, Cummings, a Naval Academy graduate and retired Navy line officer as well as a master bagpipe player, faces a whirlwind schedule. On Saturday night, the Arnold resident is scheduled to play in Washington establishments including the Irish Whistle, the Mighty Pint, the Side of the Whale and the Uptown Tap House. "Then on St. Patrick's Day, I'll be playing with a group that includes a guitarist, keyboard player and a drummer," said Cummings a few days before the day of green celebration.

The Middleton Tavern, 2 Market Place, Annapolis, 263-3323. If the true test of a good restaurant is its ability to maintain grace under pressure, then the Middleton Tavern passes easily. This venerable restaurant seemed unflappable on a recent Saturday night when the wait for a table stretched to an hour and eager diners-to-be crowded the small vestibule. The service, however, was friendly and competent, the meal well-paced and the food beautifully presented and flavorful. We especially enjoyed the Crab Remick, a rich crab imperial topped with bacon.

Annapolis tourists exploring the museums and historic sites are bound to get hungry. Fortunately, Annapolis is home to dozens of great lunch spots, from casual delis in the heart of town to elegant dining establishments along the water's edge. For history-lovers who have spent the morning exploring centuries-old mansions such as the William Paca House & Gardens (186 Prince George St., 410-990-4538) or visiting museums such as the Banneker-Douglass Museum (84 Franklin St., 410-514-7618)

Annapolis police were investigating yesterday the killing of a cook at the Middleton Tavern, a popular City Dock restaurant.The body of Victoriano Diaz, 29, was found shortly after midnight Friday in front of an apartment building in the 800 block of Bay Ridge Ave. He had been stabbed twice in the chest.Police said Mr. Diaz, of the 400 block of Washington Street, apparently had been stabbed inside the building and dragged to the lawn. His wife, Gloria A. Yanez, who was at the building on Bay Ridge Avenue, told police she saw two men drive off in a pickup truck after her husband was stabbed.

Federal agents shut down two landmark Annapolis restaurants for much of yesterday while they seized files and computers from their offices, an Internal Revenue Service spokesman said.The searches at O'Brien's Oyster Bar and Restaurant and Middleton Tavern were "of a financial nature," said Domenic J. LaPonzina, the spokesman.Businessman Jerome Hardesty owns both restaurants in the historic district near the City Dock. He could not be reached to comment yesterday.LaPonzina said agents also searched two homes in Anne Arundel County and a business office in downtown Annapolis affiliated with the restaurants.

Federal officials are investigating whether hundreds of thousands of unreported dollars have been siphoned from two prominent Annapolis restaurants and the Maryland Wine Festival and funneled into real estate investments in Costa Rica, say sources familiar with the investigation.Internal Revenue Service agents are looking at records of daily food and beverage sales at Middleton Tavern and O'Brien's Oyster Bar and Restaurant -- both owned by Annapolis businessman Jerome Hardesty -- say the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Restaurants come, and restaurants go, but Middleton Tavern is forever -- well, 247 years and counting.The Annapolis landmark, tucked along the side of City Dock, helped fuel the fires of the American Revolution by serving men named Washington, Franklin and Jefferson as they debated our country's future.Our goals these days may be less lofty, but Middleton still holds up its end of the bargain.If you want cutting-edge cooking, look elsewhere, for Middleton does not have what one might call a daring kitchen.

The owner of two popular Annapolis City Dock restaurants, accused of cheating the IRS of about $109,000 in taxes by underreporting his income in 1997, was charged yesterday with tax evasion. Joseph Jerome Hardesty, 58, who also runs the annual Annapolis and Ocean City wine festivals, told the IRS that his taxable income in 1997 was $175,000 -- but he had earned $567,000, according to prosecutors in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. Hardesty owns Middleton Tavern and Fran O'Brien's Oyster Bar and Restaurant, both of which were raided by Internal Revenue Service agents in February 1999.

Sumptuous suppers for SundaysMake Sunday supper an occasion with a new cookbook, "One-Pot Sunday Suppers" (HarperCollins, $17.50), by Pat Dailey, There are 125 recipes for such sumptuous but simple-to-make meals. Cleanup afterward is simple as well.Calling for chickenThere's still time to submit a recipe to the 1996 Delmarva Chicken Cooking Contest. Original recipes must be postmarked by Feb. 1. Twenty finalists will compete in June for prizes such as $1,000 cash, a Caribbean vacation for two, and household gifts.

From Colonial-era taverns to white-tablecloth elegance, Anne Arundel County offers a multitude of restaurants for everyone's palate. The county boasts waterfront dining, intimate dinners for two, picnics, American favorites, open-air crab houses, international cuisine and cosmopolitan fare. Annapolis is the heart of the county's culinary offerings, where visitors can find a multitude of menus on the historic streets of the state capital: Buddy's Crabs and Ribs (100 Main St., 410-626-1100)

If George Washington were alive today, his favorite place to spend the day just might be in the historic district of Annapolis. Almost every street in Annapolis has a story to tell. Many of the homes, buildings and restaurants are more than 200 years old. Annapolis is not only a great place to gain some insight into the past, but today the city also draws people from up and down the East Coast. Just off the Chesapeake Bay, the city attracts boaters and fishermen who frequent the waters.

The owner of two popular Annapolis City Dock restaurants, accused of cheating the IRS of about $109,000 in taxes by underreporting his income in 1997, was charged yesterday with tax evasion. Joseph Jerome Hardesty, 58, who also runs the annual Annapolis and Ocean City wine festivals, told the IRS that his taxable income in 1997 was $175,000 -- but he had earned $567,000, according to prosecutors in U.S. District Court in Baltimore. Hardesty owns Middleton Tavern and Fran O'Brien's Oyster Bar and Restaurant, both of which were raided by Internal Revenue Service agents in February 1999.

A federal grand jury hearing evidence against Annapolis restaurateur Jerome Hardesty, suspected in a 10-year tax evasion scheme, has called in several people familiar with his record-keeping in recent weeks, including his bookkeeper, who regards herself as almost a daughter to him.Christina L. Nokes, Hardesty's longtime assistant who has worked at his Middleton Tavern for almost 20 years since graduating from high school, testified Monday before a federal...

Upstairs at the Middleton Tavern, a near-quorum of Maryland's 188-member General Assembly settled in for a winter's eve of succulent Chesapeake Bay oysters, mounds of colorful crudites, hand-carved meats and an open bar -- courtesy of lobbyist Dennis C. McCoy and one of his many clients, Joseph E. Seagram & Sons.McCoy is host of one of the legislative session's most popular receptions, generating enough good cheer to erase boundaries between Republican and Democrat, city and suburb, haughty reformer and unrepentant schmoozer.

A lawyer for Annapolis businessman Jerome Hardesty spoke out for the first time yesterday, saying his client is "cooperating fully" with federal officials investigating operations at his two prominent restaurants."

Federal officials are investigating whether hundreds of thousands of unreported dollars have been siphoned from two prominent Annapolis restaurants and the Maryland Wine Festival and funneled into real estate investments in Costa Rica, say sources familiar with the investigation.Internal Revenue Service agents are looking at records of daily food and beverage sales at Middleton Tavern and O'Brien's Oyster Bar and Restaurant -- both owned by Annapolis businessman Jerome Hardesty -- say the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

City Council vote planned on renovation of historic tavernThe Annapolis City Council will vote tonight on a controversial plan to enlarge a kitchen in one of the city's oldest taverns.Even though no one opposes expanding the upstairs kitchen at Middleton Tavern, residents and merchants in the historic district are divided over whether the city should require 15 conditions before allowing the project.The council also is expected to approve a bill to protect women against repeated harassment or stalking.

Federal officials are investigating whether hundreds of thousands of unreported dollars have been siphoned from two prominent Annapolis restaurants and the Maryland Wine Festival and funneled into real estate investments in Costa Rica, say sources familiar with the investigation.Internal Revenue Service agents are looking at records of daily food and beverage sales at Middleton Tavern and O'Brien's Oyster Bar and Restaurant -- both owned by Annapolis businessman Jerome Hardesty -- say the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

Federal officials are investigating whether hundreds of thousands of unreported dollars have been siphoned from two prominent Annapolis restaurants and the Maryland Wine Festival and funneled into real estate investments in Costa Rica, say sources familiar with the investigation.Internal Revenue Service agents are looking at records of daily food and beverage sales at Middleton Tavern and O'Brien's Oyster Bar and Restaurant -- both owned by Annapolis businessman Jerome Hardesty -- say the sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.