We celebrated a birthday this evening at Chief's in Tall Timbers. You might miss the restaurant and bar unless you drive (or walk) around to the back of the grocery store to check it out. I'm not sure when the renovation occurred, but it's an update from late 80s/early 90s when my youngsters were at Piney Point Elementary School and Chief's was the hang out after the Parent Teacher Association meetings. A glass door at the end of the bar lets in plenty of light and provides an easy exit onto a deck for smokers. Check out Chief's website at http://www.wjdent.com/. Dave and Andy Dent own the place and it's one of the few spots in the county where you can purchase Southern Maryland stuffed ham. For those who remember Chief (a retired Navy Chief who became an icon at the bar - started working there after retiring from the Navy in the 1960s and bought the place in 1978) raise your glass in a toast to his memory!
There was a variety of food ordered at Chief's this evening: pizza, coconut shrimp, fish and chips, and cheese steak. The portions were generous - there's fish in my frig for lunch tomorrow and half of the cheese steak went home with the birthday girl. The pizza looked good and smelled great - it got a thumbs up from diners. I understand that the coconut shrimp was a little heavy on the dough which made it chewy but the diner said that it had good flavor - I think he's a young man of discriminating taste.
You may order a sandwich from the deli and bring it into the bar/restaurant area for dinner which one in our group chose to do. I forgot to ask how the sandwich tasted but it was piled fairly high with meat and shredded lettuce. I didn't notice any left-overs.
For a neighborhood hangout, Chief's was busy on a Wednesday night. The bar was full and there were at least 30 people at tables having dinner during the two hours that we were there. Starters include sides as well as appetizers and start at $1.79 for cole slaw, mid-range of $4.99 for onion rings or fried pickles (yes, fried dill pickle spears and they are delicious), and higher for crab dip or steamed mussels at $10.99, or a full pound of steamed shrimp for $15.99. Salads included garden and ceasar as well as grilled chicken and grilled shrimp salads and soups were clam chowder and seafood chowder. Entrees ranged from steaks, to shrimp, fresh catch, scallops, and crab cakes. (I'm waiting to see oysters on the menu and I'm sure it will happen. I hit Chief's twice this summer for soft crabs - not just a couple of dinky soft crabs but three legal size soft crabs on the dinner plate.) Sandwich specialties are the cheese steak, chicken cheese steak, stuffed ham, crab cake, fish, and burger.
I had a drink at the bar before the others arrived. Fast, friendly service but no cocktail napkin or coaster (-). Fortunately, I was sitting near napkins so I helped myself. When the birthday girl and family arrived and we sat at a table, we still got no cocktail napkins with our drink order. There are plastic/oilcloth covers on the tables so there's no place for the condensation on your beverage glass to go except on you. When the food was served, we didn't have enough place settings of silverware (-). That was quickly rectified but is one of my pet peeves. There is a roll of paper towels on each table so those eating finger food dug in without hesitation. This is the first time, in a long time, that I've been in a local restaurant and not have the server come to the table asking, "Who got the xxxx?" I was impressed that our server knew who ordered which dish (+).
Chief's is a neighborhood joint. If you're in the hood. stop by. It's worth a visit. Food is served Monday through Friday from 4:00 until 9:00 p.m. and from noon unti 9:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Try the stuffed ham sandwich - only $7.00 so you can afford a few fried pickles on the side. Get ready to pucker!
No comments:
Post a Comment