If you’re looking for a stellar Black-owned eatery to try with friends — or visit on your lunch break — you’ll find no shortage in Baltimore, a Black city with culinary options only rivaled by its love for books or taste in art. Across the city, Black chefs are the curators of meals that people travel for, and single bites that echo in our memories.
“Black chefs are definitely the heartbeat of the city. We tell the story of Baltimore. We’re doing things authentically and using local ingredients,” says chef Catina Smith, co-founder of Old Goucher’s Our Time Kitchen, an incubator space for local food startups. She’s also the founder of Just Call Me Chef, a “national culinary sisterhood” empowering and mentoring Black women chefs.
In honor of the Beat’s very first food issue, I wanted to know who feeds Baltimore’s tight-knit and highly skilled, hard-working network of Black chefs, who fill up our plates before fixing their own. After tiring days spent in hot kitchens cooking for others, most chefs that I spoke to crave something reliable, filling and done right, without bells and whistles.
“When we get off, everyone thinks we go out to a Michelin star restaurant for a five-course meal, and that may be true some days, but most days, after working so hard, you just want something simple that’s going to make you happy,” says Joe Burton, chef and co-owner of Rooted Rotisserie in Southwest Baltimore.
Below, see what some of Baltimore’s Black chefs and restaurateurs eat when they aren’t the ones cooking.
Restaurateur Amanda Burton of Rooted Rotisserie on L.P. Steamers’ Shrimp & Tail
“It’s just a half pound of steamed shrimp and a steamed lobster tail. I get a bunch of butter and Old Bay and then I mix them together, which is a trick that Joe’s [Amanda’s husband, Joe Burton] cousin Jasmine taught me. I’ll pour that all over it, and then I’ll also get a side of steamed broccoli. I unwrap all my shrimp first so I can easily get to them, and then I just go to town.”
Chef Sumayyah Bilal of Codetta Bakeshop on Maiwand Grill’s Monday Lamb Curry
“One of my personal staples, if I just want some good food, is Maiwand Grill, which is on Baltimore Street. It’s Afghan food. It’s all halal, and they have a lamb curry that is so consistent. My thing for restaurants is consistency. If I’m ordering from a place, I want every experience, every time I order something, to be the same as every other time I order something from that restaurant. Maiwand is one of the most consistent restaurants in the city, I think.”
Chef Joe Burton of Rooted Rotisserie on Mamma Lucia Pizza’s Cheesesteak
“I’ve had some pretty good cheesesteaks in Philly, but none like Mamma Lucia’s in Mondawmin Mall. The way they cook their meat is a little different. They put the raw meat down, season it, and add the raw onions in. When it comes time to chop the meat, they chop the onions along with it. If I get a cheesesteak anywhere else and I ask for fried onions, sometimes they’re cut too big. Sometimes they’re not cooked down enough. Sometimes you get a lot of raw bites. But at Mamma Lucia’s they cook their onion to perfection. It literally melts in your mouth and adds a really unique flavor to the steak itself. Make sure you get the bread toasted.”
Restaurateur Ayo Hogans of Mama Koko’s on Rooted Rotisserie’s Duck Confit Gumbo
“What I most enjoy about the duck confit is the amount of love you can feel was put into the dish. It is extremely flavorful, tender, and gracefully slides off the bone. The fried okra, cabbage and rice served beside it make the dish very filling, balance each other out and add texture. From the freshness of the cabbage to the light crisp on the okra, to the aromatics of the rice, to the moist, delectable duck, you can tell the chefs are dedicated to their craft.”
Chef Catina Smith on Taqueria El Sabor Del Parque’s Barbacoa Tacos
“The barbacoa tacos are authentic, unpretentious and thoughtfully made. I mean, the flavor hits you in the mouth as soon as you bite into one. They have a little garnish on the side, and then they bring over the sauces. There are four different sauces, and they’re so spicy and so good. (I love spicy.) When Brady was taking my pictures, juice was running down my hands, so that speaks to how juicy it is.”
Chef Tonya Thomas of H3irloom Food Group on Clavel’s Salmon Crudo
“Once I had it, I just couldn’t believe it. It’s raw salmon on a salsa de tortilla tatemada. It has wasabi mayonnaise, limon, and cebolla roja. The combination of everything is perfect. When you eat it, it makes you want to go back and continue to eat more. It’s funny because at Clavel, I actually forgo tacos. I can go in and say ‘I’m going to get that salmon crudo,’ and I’m good.”
