The Duchess

An old coworker and I hadn't seen each other in forever and neither of us had tried The Duchess. The Duchess is the newest restaurant from my favorite Baltimore Restaurant Group, Foreman Wolfe and they have hit another one out of the park.It is billed as an English Pub with an Asian flair. The inside was beautiful in an upscale English pub way. Warm rustic furniture and we were encouraged to take a look around and notice the design details. This space was the old Cafe Hon and I can't even picture that in the place now.Now the food. Most of the menu is a section called Snacks that are meant sharing. The tuna nachos were a special and so good. I can't begin to understand how they fried those chips. I really loved the shrimp and corn patties. They were both light and full of that is possible. We jumped into some pork snacks and got another round of drinks and Typhoon Fries instead of desert. I have a video of the fries that couldn't load in this review but the toppings move. You just have to get it. The waiter tired to explain it and we didn't understand until we saw it. Next time I will try out the More than a Snack section. I will wrap this up by saying the service was amazing. It always is with Foreman Wolf. We were told they have live music and we saw the cute little stage. I can't wait to go back.

I had an absolutely lovely meal at The Duchess! The menu was a lot of small dishes, note some of them are extremely small, but the variety allowed us to try a bunch of things! All of them were unique and delicious. The cocktail menu was interesting and I was a bit skeptical about the mixes but all of the cocktails were balanced and flavorful. Towards the end of the Friday evening there was a live band and it created the perfect ambiance for post-meal drinks and snacks. I would highly recommend even if you couldn't get a reservation for dinner! I will note that because the restaurant is really popular right now we got put in a booth that was clearly made for 2 but we squeezed in as a party of 4. There was another party of 6 behind us and they had clearly squeezed in as well. I am sure this will improve over time but just be ready!

When I booked the dinner reservation for Valentine's Day about a month out, I did not know what exactly to expect. An English styled pub with Chamorro food. I really had never had that cuisine before but a look at the menu showed plenty of vegetarian options as well as non pork options with some seafood offerings.They offer valet parking but we found parking a couple of blocks away luckily. Hampden on a Friday night around 8.. I consider ourselves lucky lol.The interiors were inviting but nothing about it screamed pub to me. I think the pub aspect is mostly only in play when they are mentioning that they air footie games at the bar, and there is that vibe around the bar area maybe? I guess also to be fair we were there for Valentine's dinner, so no pub vibes there that night.They did have a pre fixe Valentine's menu but considering 2 of the items on the menu were dietary restrictions for me and they could not do substitutions we went a la carte.We got the shrimp and corn patties, the Brussels sprouts, the da kine pickles,ginger soy beets, pancit bihon noodles, and a main of rockfish sinigang to share. Between the two of us we liked most everything. The one or two things I did not like my bf did, and vice versa. My favorites were the roasted beets with the tofu cream , Brussels sprouts with the miso soy glaze and the shrimp and corn fritter patties. My bf really liked the pancit noodles and beets as well. He did not like the broth of the sinigang soup whilst I enjoyed it. My chocolate namkala dessert was lovely too, very light chocolate pot de crème, with chantilly cream and sesame brittle.I do wish the menu had more meat options that were non pork. There was one chicken bbq skewer and then the duck donburi. And only the beef skewer as well. There are no mains that were vegetarian either. Just feedback for the group.Our server Liam did a good job looking after us. There happened to be live music as well which was nice and vibey with the Valentines dinner theme. They have live bands every Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, which is nice to provide exposure to local bands.Would absolutely come back for dinner or brunch. Never had Chamorro cuisine before, but am definitely a fan of the flavor profiles.

The Duchess has a fun trendy vibe. The service was excellent and the food was creative and delicious with pleasant presentation. We went on a Thursday and caught the beginning of live music. A nice touch!

Miso Beet Salad ($10) and Chili Garlic Cucumber Salad ($8) was good. Surprised the garlic chips and chili in the Cucumber Salad had no taste. You'd expect it to have the kick of freshly fried garlic, which I'd have loved. It's a bit pricey for the Cucumber Salad, considering it's about the size of a coffee cup. The Miso Beet Salad didn't have a miso flavor, but the peanut crumble on top was good. The Kimchi Fried Rice ($14) was lacking in flavor. Really it was the added kimchi on top that gave it the flavor. It was served in a bowl about the size of what you'd normally get for ramen or pho. Overall pretty pricey for the portion size and quality. Stopped at these since it is lunchtime. Would be willing to come again and try other dishes.

I have visited The Duchess twice now (once for drinks and Brussels, once for a full meal) and have been thrilled both times.The cocktails are creative and flavorful, and the ambiance is great. Staff are plentiful and attentive throughout your visit.On my most recent visit, I shared several small plates as well as the Wagyu steak. The corn chowder was perfect for a cold day, and had plenty of complexity. The tempura vegetables were tasty and not too heavy, and the sauce that came with them complimented them nicely.The star of the show though was the Wagyu steak, which we ordered medium rare and came just so. It was served with an incredible butter (they did something to it but I can't recall what), and some excellent sweet potato. I'd come back for that alone, but we closed out the meal with dessert, and the chocolate namalaka had the perfect balance of sweetness, chocolate, and crunchiness.Perfect for an early or late drinks, dessert after a show, or a meal shared with many.

4.5/5 stars. The Duchess is an interesting concept which offers Asian fusion cuisine in a Victorian pub setting. After perusing the menu, we decided on an array of appetizers (as pictured) and a shared entree - Grilled Jurgielwicz Duck Breast Donburi (basically a duck rice bowl). Although the portions were on the smaller side, each dish was precisely prepared and presented. Cocktails were expertly crafted. Servers were attentive and knowledgeable of the menu. Definitely a safe pick if you're in the area!

Where do I even start to begin to describe this food experience?! I'm still trying to find the words and all I have to say is truly one of a kind! Leave it to Tony Forman to provide an amazing culinary experience ! From the moment you walk in you feel like you have been transported an elevated pub in England! The decor -10, the bar-10 and the food -10! I would recommend making reservations as this is definitely a new hot spot that everyone is trying to experience! We had little to no wait for our table which was awesome. The staff were very friendly and attentive. The only reason that I didn't give this five stars is I do think our server could have paid closer attention to our food allergies than he did. On several occasions we had to say this has nuts in it etc even after saying we were allergic. Other than that everything else was a 10 even with mistakes! The menu is so creative and like nothing I have ever had before! Packed with flavor this is a menu that is simply indescribable! Some of my menu highlights are the following: the bar menu is a must try! The cocktails are amazing! The Shrimp Keleguan, The Pancit, the fish and chips, the duck , the dish with the mushrooms! Lastly all the deserts are simply wow! Everything is very shareable which is great too! I highly suggest checking them out just for drink or a whatever the occasion might be!

I couldn't believe my eyes when I walked into this restaurant. WOW. Absolutely stunning. It feels rustic in the well loved way. So cozy and comforting, like going to grandmas if she lived in an English farm house and had impeccable taste. And if grandma made sure her house was handicapped accessible! No steps to get into the restaurant. Our waiter, Liam, was so attentive and kind! He paced our brunch courses out so well and kept it flowing amazingly. The cocktails and cocktails were so delicious. Everything had a really pleasant zip to it. I can't get over how beautiful everything was. And everyone absolutely loved their food. I got tofu and spam dishes, things people tend to hate. And it was amazing. Everything was crispy and well seasoned. I don't think you can go wrong here!

Noticed this new restaurant on the Avenue, and tried it out on a Sunday night.We were welcomed warmly, and immediately noticed the classy inner decoration-- feels like a pub in England with lots of history. The chandelier, the wall arts, the soft carpet and elegant furniture all showed us that this is going to be a good dinning experience.And the food and the service did live up to the high expectations. The service was great. Our food was ready very quick, with good presentation. The medium-rare duck breast was juicy, tender, and delicious. The miso glaze on the top was definitely a highlight of the dish. The poke was fresh too. We also enjoyed the shrimp and corn tempura a lot. It was fried to perfect, with outside crispy and inside creamy and soft. You can bite into the shrimp and corn and tell that they are well-seasoned and carefully made.The cocktails were good as well. I enjoyed my alcohol free drink a lot (I think the name was international date line). It has lime and passion fruit, with miso honey and warming spices. The spice was definitely the highlight. Sorta feel like fall spice, but mixed well with lime and honey. Gave you sort of sweet-sour taste. Together with the tropical vibe brought by passion fruit. It was our favorite cocktail. Highly recommend.