Table Talk

North County High School freshman Jack Andraka stood on the auditorium stage, speaking about the invention that earned him the $75,000 grand prize at the recent Intel International Science and Engineering Fair. Behind him stood Dr. Anirban Maitra, a professor in the Johns Hopkins University's department of pathology who gave Jack use of his lab to craft his invention, a cheap and effective "dipstick-sensor" method of testing blood or urine to identify early-stage pancreatic cancer and other diseases.

The Maryland Live Casino is getting closer.The Cordish Cos.have announced June 6 as the opening date for its $500 million gaming and entertainment complex. The food and beverage team at Maryland Live has been in place for months, preparing for the casino's first guests. The casino's executive chef is Rudy Volpe, most recently of Carmine's in Washington, and the director of food and beverage for the casino is Greg Van Stone, most recently the director of restaurants for the Waldorf Astoria in Orlando, Fla. Volpe and Van Stone will be responsible for the casino's food operations, including the Live Market Buffet , an Asian noodle bar and a Phillips Seafood outlet.

For years, dining in Howard County has been characterized by family atmosphere, and if adults wanted a night on their own, they'd suddenly find themselves right at the top of the price ladder. There haven't been enough of those in-between places. Then came the opening a few months ago of affordable but chic Facci in Laurel, whose crazy and instant success suggested two things: that there had been a great desire for moderately priced, sit-down places that aren't part of a big chain, and that kids are fine going to places that aren't for kids.

Greenberg potato skins, Greenberg potato skins, Greenberg potato skins ... jackpot! The Prime Rib is coming to the Maryland Live Casino — Greenberg potato skins, leopard-skin carpeting, baby grand piano and all. Established in Baltimore in 1965 by brothers Buzz and Nick Beler, the Prime Rib has is now a bona fide dining institution, with additional locations in Washington and Philadelphia. Attracting the Prime Rib to Maryland Live is a coup for the Baltimore-based Cordish Cos., which had originally announced that the casino's premier steak house would be Ruth's Chris . "The Prime Rib kept coming up in internal conversations and on surveys," said Cordish managing partner Joe Weinberg, who is overseeing the casino's design, construction and operations.

"I thought I had had it with the restaurant business," Qayum Karzai says. He has not formally retired, but with the daily operations of his restaurants Helmand, Tapas Teatro and B in capable hands, Karzai has been increasingly able during the past eight years to pursue his other passions, particularly for organic farming. And he was definitely not looking to be challenged again in the restaurant business. But retired prizefighters can be coaxed back into the ring, Karzai admits.

The holiday table creates a festive mood, evoking warm memories and an aura of comfort. Red and green are just part of the story. This year's tableware seems to hark back to a time of Victorian opulence. Shimmering gold and silver are the dominant colors, showing up in items from glassware to ornamental fruit. ,, Look for lush jewel tones in china and linens, and everywhere, an abundance of warm, glowing candlelight. This is the time of year to entertain in style. Bring out the best and let it shine on.SHOPPING GUIDETable Talk(Page 58)

Some restaurants open more loudly than others. The opening in Towson of 7 West Bistro Grille (7 W. Chesapeake Ave., 410-337-9378, 7westbistro.com) has been one of the quietest I can remember - not that it's not doing well. One of the three 7 West partners, Boyko Tachov, says the Towson community has been responding very encouragingly to 7 West's concept, which I would call "the Nice Place": a moderately priced, locally owned, handsomely decorated restaurant that is as welcoming to families as it is to couples.

Christiain deLutis has left Alizee , the turbulent restaurant space at the Colonnade. Before his arrival last August, Alizee in its first half year of operation seemed to be just as jinxed as the other three tenants that came and went after the departure of the Polo Grill . DeLutis was brought in to take over the restaurant's kitchen as well as its catering operations and has been generally credited with implementing a consistent and appealing...

Drovers Grill & Wine Co. opened in early November in Mount Airy, about two-thirds of the way to Frederick from Baltimore. Located at a historic Maryland crossroads, Drovers occupies a fairly plain-looking structure that was most recently the home of the Kettle Kitchen . Drovers is running a season-following, local-minded menu. Chef Kevan Vanek is enthusiastic about the menu, and especially his homemade stocks and sauces: "I love broths, I love soups, I love sauces. I'm more of a sculptor than an engineer.

To start the new year with a bang, Table Talk is getting a makeover. Beginning in next week's edition of LIVE, Table Talk will be transformed into a brand new column: Hot Stuff. In Hot Stuff, Sloane Brown will continue to keep you up on what's new in Baltimore-area restaurants but also will dish up news, notes and quotes from all over the area's social scene - from the big parties to movie premieres to nightclub openings and more. You'll find tidbits about local and national celebrities, high-style fashion sightings, buzz from around Baltimore and, of course, a steady diet of insights into local food and drink establishments.

The Brass Elephant could soon be reopening. Well, not the Brass Elephant exactly. A restaurant named The Museum is set to open within weeks at 924 N. Charles St., the elegant Mount Vernon townhouse that the Brass Elephant called home for almost 30 years before closing in August 2009. The multistory restaurant property remains in the hands of Charles Street Restaurant Inc., which has entered into an operating agreement with Walter Webb, according to longtime owner Stuart Teper.

PABU , the second restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel Baltimore, is scheduled to open this week. The dinner-only restaurant is the first collaboration between Michael Mina, whose San Francisco-based restaurant group also developed the concept for Wit & Wisdom , the Four Seasons' three-meal restaurant, and Ken Tominaga, owner and chef of Hana Japanese Restaurant in Sonoma County, Calif. PABU is being described as a modern "izakaya," a term that translates, very loosely, as a drinking establishment that serves food.

The third annual Foodie Experience is just around the corner, and the Hippodrome has released the lineup of participating restaurants, caterers and other vendors. Among them are a few restaurants that will be making their Foodie Experience debuts, including Bond Street Social , Rye , Shapiro's Cafe , Stuggy's and Waterfront Kitchen . Instead of a post-show reception, the grazing and tasting portion of the May 12 event will take place before headliner Andrew Zimmern, host of the Travel Channel's popular program "Bizarre Foods," takes the stage at 6 p.m. Beginning at 3 p.m., restaurants and caterers will serve samples inside the theater.

Brian Boston, executive chef and owner of the Milton Inn , is opening a new restaurant in Highland, an unincorporated community in western Howard County near Clarksville. A groundbreaking for the "modern-traditional" restaurant, to be called Highland Inn , is scheduled for April 30. The prices, according to Boston, will be lower than those at the Milton Inn, which has established itself as a regional destination restaurant. Located in Sparks in northern Baltimore County, the Milton Inn was recently recognized by the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences with its Star Diamond Award.

Mount Washington Tavern , which was gutted by a two-alarm fire last Halloween, expects to reopen by the middle of autumn, co-owner Rob Frisch said last week. Meanwhile, the Baltimore City Fire Department has listed the cause of the fire as "not fully ascertainable. " That official listing does not suggest foul play. "It simply implies the damages and destruction was too great, which made it difficult and unsafe for investigators to narrow the cause to one specific source," said Chief Kevin Cartwright, Baltimore City Fire Department spokesman.

It's Titanic time. As the world pauses to remember the great calamity of April 14-15, 1912, two area restaurants are re-creating the last meal — or at least some aspects of it — for the 100th anniversary. Langermann's in Canton is offering a special Titanic dinner Thursday through Saturday night. And in Annapolis, the Flying Dog Brewery is teaming with the Rockfish on Saturday night for a "Ghosts of the Titanic" beer dinner. There will be Titanic dinners all over the world this weekend, and most of them will be informed by "Last Dinner On the Titanic: Menus and Recipes from the Great Liner," an attempt to re-create the 10-course meal served to first-class passengers on the ship's last night.

Baltimore now has at least two - count 'em, two - restaurants that specialize in cuisine from Nepal. Mount Everest opened in Parkville last October. And this week, Kumari should open right smack-dab in the middle of downtown. For first-time restaurant owner Mohan Thapa, it's a dream come true. Thapa has spent the last 12 years working in several Baltimore-area restaurants - most recently at Bombay Grill. All the while, he says, he was working his way to his goal of bringing some of his native Nepal to his new home here.

You know how someone will talk about a great little restaurant they found in Europe? "... Maybe in Rome or Prague. The owner greets you personally, there are a couple of waiters. They cook things fresh for you, and you remember it and you tell your friends," elaborates chef Mark Schek. "Now, you don't have to buy a plane ticket," he announces. Schek is hoping you will now have that experience at The Rooster Cafe - the new restaurant he and partner Ali Shirvan have just opened in the Columbia area.

Easter options are plentiful this year, and a few are lavish. The offerings at The Capital Grille (500 E. Pratt St., 443-703-4064, thecapitalgrille.com) include a carving station, raw bar, and breakfast station with scrambled eggs, French toast and roasted Kona tenderloin. Wit & Wisdom (200 International Drive, 410-576-5800, witandwisdombaltimore.com) at the Four Seasons Hotel is serving a three-course brunch with featuring chicory-glazed ham and, for dessert, a banana cream puff with chocolate, coconut tapioca and hazelnut sherbet.

B in Bolton Hill has a new executive chef. Chris Clune came on board March 1 but took over the kitchen for real on March 21. For now, Clune will be happily executing the menu put in place by departing executive chef Jamie Forsythe, who stayed around for the transition. But come May, when the spring bounty really arrives, diners will be start to see more of Clune's personality. Clune grew up in the business — his mother owned restaurants in Oxford and Barnegat Light, N.J. Asked to describe his cooking philosophy, he invokes the French chef Joel Robuchon.