Tavern

Chef Brent Shellem reflects: Being from Annapolis and growing up on the Chesapeake, rockfish is what we know. Just the thought of rockfish reminds me of fishing on the bay, and what better way to fish than with a cold beverage in your hand? I decided on Carolina Iced Tea because the Carolinas have great fishing as well, but mainly because my wife loves it and it pairs well with the citrus and the light nature of the fish.  Pokomoke rockfish Ingredients: •    8 ounces rockfish •    1 ounce extra-virgin olive oil •    Juice of 2 fresh oranges •    2 ounces vodka (3 if you're thirsty)

After a run of the best of the '80s, Lighthouse Tavern's music selection hit its nadir with Eddie Murphy's "Party all the Time. " Most bartenders would have quickly pushed 'skip,' but not mine, who pumped up the volume - and, when asked if the singer was Eddie, said, "[Expletive] yeah!" and did a little jig. Like its music, much of Lighthouse, a bar that opened a month ago, seems caught in a time warp. It looks like a dive in a John Landis movie, its decor as vintage as the music playing on the speakers.

It's busy season at the Baltimore Liquor Board. Every April, right before all liquor licenses are due for renewal in May, the Liquor Board docket swells up with protests of renewal. This year, 12 hearings on license renewals have been set for April 19 and April 26, the board said Tuesday. Two of the protests  - against club Lust and a JHJ Saloon, on Eastern Avenue - were initiated by the board itself. The rest, which include Dionysus and Butts & Betty's Tavern - were brought on by neighbors.

The Manor Tavern in Monkton is teaming up with the Oyster Recovery Partnership for a Sunday afternoon Oyster Festival. The event will feature more than 20 types of different oysters, shucked by Maryland and World Champion Oyster Shucker George Hastings. The Oyster Festival will include displays of local arts and crafts, children's activities -- including a pirate ship moon, bounce -- and live bluegrass music by Slim Pickinz. Smyth Jewelers has donated a pearl necklace and earrings, raffle tickets are $15 with all the proceeds benefiting the Oyster Recovery Partnership . Admission to the Oyster Festival at Manor Tavern is free.

For the better part of two centuries, the stately circa-1804 Dielman Inn has been a dominant features of New Windsor's quiet Main Street and a centerpiece of the town's architectural and cultural heritage. But for nearly a decade, this cornerstone of New Windsor's historic district has stood vacant and dilapidated, ravaged by roof leaks, termites, occasional vandalism and general neglect. Those contrasting factors — the building's overriding historic importance and its precarious condition — have earned the Dielman Inn inclusion on Preservation Maryland's 2010 Endangered Maryland list.

The Manor Tavern sits in the in the thick of beautiful Monkton, where the land is big but the community is tight, and folks know the names of their neighbors' ancestors, children, horses and hunting dogs. Change, when it comes here, comes slowly, which makes the Manor Tavern an interesting case study. The 250-year-old Baltimore County property, in the thick of world-famous horse country, was purchased last summer by two teams of experienced restaurateurs. William and John Mitcherling own Towson's An Poitin Stil, and Patrick Russell and Bill Irvin operate businesses in Fells Point, including Kooper's Tavern, Slainte and the Chowhound Burger Wagon.

Portside Tavern in Canton has a new chef, Freddie Melgar. Melgar, who worked for Washington, D.C.'s Madhatter Group and the northern Virginia-based Great American Restaurants, has introduced a new Prince Island mussels menu. The newly released menu features six preparations including the "Mostard," with spicy bison sausage, leeks, Dijon and thyme broth; the "Jalfrezzi" with red pepper, onion, garlic, curry, tomato and coconut milk and the "Baltimore," with Old Bay, garlic, herbs and IPA beer broth.

Another Gino's Maryland's second Gino's Burgers & Chicken opened Monday in the Honeygo Shopping Center in Perry Hall. Former Gino's executive Tom Romano engineered the current Gino's revival. A company-owned store opened in King of Prussia, Pa., in October 2010, and the first franchise operation opened in August 2011 in Towson. Another store is operating in Bensalem, Pa. Gino's was founded in Baltimore, but the company relocated its headquarters to King of Prussia before it was acquired by Marriott Corp.

There's rarely a day off in the bar industry and that's just how Ben Brengle likes it. As the general manager at Power Plant Live's Luckies Tavern for the past three years, the 29-year-old Federal Hill resident has seen everything from big national acts such as Cage the Elephant perform on the Luckies stage to having another bar handed to him to manage (Luckies Liquor). "It seems natural to work in the hectic atmosphere," said Brengle. "We are open 105 hours a week and it's 100 miles per hour the entire time.

Of the 11 cocktails on the menu at Wit & Wisdom Tavern at the new Four Seasons, several automatically jump out. They carry unexpected ingredients, like Fernet Branca, a herbaceous liqueur, and bitters with a dominant orange flavor. But before I ordered, I asked my bartender to suggest something. Choosing the Aviation, a gin-based cocktail, she explained every detail about its ingredients. She knew that the Luxardo Maraschino gave it a cherry flavor, and that the creme de violette added a floral element.