Dine Downtown Baltimore starts its rockfish celebration tonight. The event, which runs through Monday, Feb. 28, features striped bass on the menu of 20 downtown restaurants.
Here's who's got what, rockfish-wise, starting tonight:
Centro Tapas Bar -- Churros de Pescado; crispy rockfish fritters with Estrella Damm beer coating and sweet almond aioli
Charleston - Pan-roasted with oyster & white button mushroom fricassée, lemon beurre blanc
Cinghiale -- Pan-roasted with cauliflower puree, hazelnut and anchovy brown butter
Diamond Tavern -- Appetizer - rockfish cakes with saffron cream sauce; entree -- soy glazed with edamame salad and baby bok choy
Grille 700 -- Pan seared fillet over a cardamom carrot puree finished with jumbo lump crab meat and fried leeks
--
Rockfish Imperial
, a fillet topped with jumbo lump crab imperial, finished with a white wine sauce;
Rockfish San Remo
, a rockfish fillet topped with seasoned bread crumbs, oven baked and topped with fresh tomato
Lebanese Taverna -- Farm-raised rockfish, saffron couscous and chickpea pilaf, grilled vegetables, crispy onions and citron sauce
Maisy's -- Appetizer -- rockfish croquette with squash spaghetti and a lemone beurre blanc sauce; entree: pan-seared rockfish with a wild mushroom medley, cauliflower and feta puree
McCormick & Schmick's -- Pan-seared rockfish served over a mushroom and lobster sauté, topped with a creole mustard buerre
Oceanaire Seafood Room --Four menu items: pan-seared Maryland rockfish cakes served over baby arugula with herbed lemon aioli and oven-roasted tomato & caper relish; grilled Maryland rockfish salad with baby spinach, pickled shallots, & warm bacon dressing; Maryland rockfish bouillabaisse, with sourdough crouton and tarragon oil; and grilled Marland rockfish with warm Mediterranean salad
Phillips Harborplace -- Appetizer -- rockfish & crab ceviche with avocado & topeko wasabi caviar; entree -- Roast rockfish with lobster mashed potatoes, shiitake mushrooms, sugar snap peas & lemon butter sauce
Pickles Pub -- Rockfish/Soft Shell "Fat Boy Club," a triple-decker club featuring fried rockfish, soft shell crab, bacon, American cheese and Old Bay ranch dressing
The Prime Rib -- Four preprations of Chesapeake rockfish: broiled with wine, lemon and butter; blackened; stuffed with crab imperial; or Vielle Maison, broiled and served with tomato, caper and onion sauce
Regi's -- "Dynamite Style" -- pan roasted wild rockfish topped with jumbo lump crab imperial over red bliss parsley potatoes and grilled asparagus. -- see Alan Morstein's much nicer description below!
Roy's has prepared a $55 three-course rockfish menu. Appetizer -- "Crab Dynamite"-crusted grilled rockfish; entree -- parmesan-crusted rockfish, with lobster potato rissotto and crab bique; dessert -- cold-smoked rockfish served with chef's selection of cheeses
Ryleigh's Oyster -- Four menu items: trio of rockfish tacos; pumpkin-seed encrusted rockfish with fried rice and beer-braised brussels sprouts; pan-seared rockfish with fried mashed potatoes; and grilled rockfish Romanesque
Sotto Sopra -- Appetizer -- rockfish ceviche served on potato crisps; seared Maryland rockfish with fennel-basil sauce, vegetable ragu and blood-orange brown butter
Talara -- Pan-seared rockfish served with sweet plantain-chorizo Hash, salsa fresca, and scallion creme fraiche
Taverna Corvino -- Flash-fried rockfish croquettes; cornmeal-encrusted and pan-seared, and topped with diced tomato and onion; or pan-seared and served with mixed citruses and white wine.
Tio Pepe -- Prepared five ways: Cordobesa style, sautéed with garlic, Serrano ham, artichokes and olive oil; A la Malagueña, with pinenuts, raisins and grapes; Marinera style, with shrimp, mussels, and green peas; stuffed with crabmeat; or "a la Vesca," in a garlicky green sauce, with asparagus, peas and boiled egg
Baltimore Sun photo -- Kenneth K. Lam