Trinidad Gourmet

Trinidad Gourmet
418 E. 31st St.
Charles Village/Waverly, Baltimore
410-243-0072
Cost: $
Reservations: take-out
Date of meal: Friday September 28, 2007 (7pm)
National Price-Quality Frontier: Inside It
Baltimore Price-Quality Frontier: Inside It

Trinidad Gourmet isn't really a restaurant. It has a counter, but that's about it. It is designed for take-out. It also has a rather extensive barrier between the counter and the patrons; the proprietor is obviously worried about crime.

The menu has a wide variety of Trinidadian food. Oxtail stew, goat curry, jerk chicken, etc. Entrees in the $7-$9 range. I had the jerk chicken dinner ($9) which includes rice and beans (mixed together), sauteed spinach (my choice of vegetable) and plantains. The jerk chicken was tasty and well-cooked. I would have liked it with a bit more spice, but it was juicy and fell right off the bone. The spinach was simple but excellent; it was fresh, perfectly cooked and not overly oily or creamy. Rice and beans were good but standard. Plantains are always yummy, but these were a bit mushy for my taste.

Trinidad Gourmet is a solid choice for inexpensive take-out in the Charles Village and Waverly area. I prefer The Yabba Pot (which serves Caribbean-inspired vegan food nearby at the same price point with nicer decor and more inventive cuisine), but others who want more meat may not.

Organics @ Waverly Market

I just came back from my usual Saturday morning shopping trip to Waverly Market. The vibe there is great.

Why are there so few (only one) organic produce seller at the Waverly market? It seems like the whole point of going to a farmer's market is so you can get local and organic fruits and vegetables. These sellers are local (and I'm guessing what they sell is mostly from their own farms) but generally not organic.

Generally, folks who favor eating happy free-range lettuce and such (I count myself in this group) like organic food because it is healthier and better for the environment. Buying locally is allegedly better for the environment because you don't have to use as much energy in shipping. However, the latter rationale was recently undercut in a recent article by James McWilliams in the New York Times. So why do Baltimore consumers value local produce but not the organic stuff? Why don't these farmers find it worthwhile to farm organically and pass the increased cost on to consumers? That's what farmers who sell to farmer's markets do in most other big cities.

From the look of it, the Waverly market crowd is exactly who you would expect to buy organic food. We bring our own re-used plastic bags and carry our purchases in re-usable totes bearing NPR or Whole Foods logos. In short, they look just like shoppers at other farmer's markets, who demand and get organic produce. Maybe the marginal purchaser of these local producers' produce is not farmer's market customers at all. Perhaps in Seattle these growers can sell overstock to crunchy local markets. In Baltimore, such places don't exist or exist in fewer numbers (I think Whole Foods is the only game in town, and I believe they buy organics mostly from industrial, non-local organic farms), so these farmers have to sell to producers who don't value organics. So even if farmer's markets have similar clientele the world over, they are still left with different products.

Thai Restaurant

Thai Restaurant
3316-18 Greenmount Ave. (at 33rd St.)
Waverly, Baltimore
410-889-6002
Thai
Cost: $$
Reservations: Not Needed
Date of meal: several
National Price-Quality Frontier: Inside It
Baltimore Price-Quality Frontier: On It


Yes, that is really what this restaurant is called: Thai Restaurant. I guess this does not bode well for creativity. I've done take-out from this place several times, and eaten in a few times as well. Thai Restaurant is supposed to be the best Thai place in Baltimore. This is a better-than-average Thai place but is far from earth-shattering or original. Like the Ambassador Dining Room (which serves solid Indian fare), there are dozens of equally good Thai places in most major cities. Ambiance too is pretty standard for decent Thai places. Whereas comparable places would have $10 entrees in other cities, entrees here are in the $13-16 range. If one thinks of this as the premium for quality food in Baltimore, then pricing is about right. Outstanding Thai places in other cities (Djan's in Seattle comes to mind) have better food, nicer atmosphere, and lower prices. Still, I'd be happy to order take-out from there or wanted casual Thai food.