College students make the meals at the Bay Atlantic Club.
But that doesn?t mean the menu consists of pizza and cheeseburgers.
From the roasted butternut squash and apple puree to the rockfish en papillo, salad dressing and ice cream, Baltimore International College students prepare all of dishes from scratch, said Executive Chef Ben Simpkins.
Simpkins instructs 12 to 15 Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management students during their required five-week course in the club?s kitchen and dining room.
“We introduce them to a real-world experience, with paying customers, where they can apply the skills learned in lab,” Simpkins said. “The students care about each meal they put out, and I critique each plate before it goes up. It?s an intense yet good learning environment here. ”
Each student, including Mary Fowler-Rivers, owner of Ale Mary?s in Fells Point, spends a few days at one food or serving station before rotating to the next. Fowler-Rivers said she?s taking the course to fine-tune Ale Mary?s menu. Unlike Fowler-Rivers, most students are cutting their culinary teeth at the club.
The club, open for lunch weekdays, is inside the former Merchants Club building built in 1882. The club?s greatest assets are its atmosphere, perfect for quiet business lunches, and its attention to detail, evident in their impressive plate presentations, tableside cooking and impeccable service.
On a recent visit to the intimate dining room, complete with fireplace and chandeliers, the standout plate was the California steak, an 8-ounce New York strip pan-seared with Cajun seasoning served on a French baguette roasted in tomato butter, served with tomato concasse and frisse greens toppled with crumbled blue cheese.
The scallop and crab salad with diver Maine scallops, jumbo lump crabmeat, red oak lettuce, baby spinach and avocado mousse with lemon tarragon walnut vinaigrette was fresh, satisfying and nearly addictive.
The only misstep during the meal was two of the three creme brulee dishes served as a trio. While the banana creme brulee was delectable, underneath the torched sugar top, the chocolate was as thick as frosting and the raspberry was as almost as thin as soup.
Though the dish wasn?t amazing, it didn?t ruin our lunch.
If you go
Bay Atlantic Club Dining Room
» Where: 206 E. Redwood St., Baltimore
» When: 11:30 am to 2 pm. Monday through Friday
» Reservations recommended
» Info: 410-752-1448, ext. 24, bic.edu
