Great Escape: Sunday Brunch at Woodberry Kitchen

My brother-in-law and I happen to share a birthday, though I had the date first, having turned 8 years old on the day he was born.

For the past 12 years at least, since I moved to Maryland, we have celebrated our birthdays together with a family gathering, and I have to say that having a birthday twin is great; it amplifies everything, making the event twice as fun, especially as I get further into my 30s and birthdays become less of thing to mark and more of a thing to cringe about.

This year, we managed to stretch the party out over a whole weekend, capping off the festivities with Sunday brunch at Woodberry Kitchen in Baltimore, located within the historic Clipper Mill, formerly a foundry which has been renovated to house a collection of artisans, shops and businesses. Woodberry Kitchen is a farm-to-table restaurant, offering a menu made from locally grown, organic and seasonal ingredients. With 11 of us at the table, our party sampled a variety of things from the menu and we left very little behind on our plates.

My husband and our kids and I were the last to arrive (we got a little turned around trying to follow directions after turning off of Falls Road – when they say keep going on Union Avenue until you cross the Light Rail tracks, they mean it), and we sat down to see that everyone had their drinks already, from Mimosas and Bloody Marys to delicious coffee poured from press pots left at the table. They’d also already tucked into the “bakeshop in a basket,” an assortment of rustic pastries including a lemon cream cheese coffee cake I was happy to score a piece of.

The menu options made it hard for all of us to decide on our main courses, but I finally narrowed my choice to the French toast, made with pecan challah bread and served with a topping of apple compote. I also ordered what turned out to be a generous portion of thick and hearty bacon. We also chose the bacon for our daughter, who is 3, and I was worried that she would declare that the chunky slabs weren’t actually bacon because she had previously only had the skinny, crispy kind, but I shouldn’t have worried because she gobbled it right up.

This brings me to one of Woodberry Kitchen’s selling points, beyond its lovely food – the atmosphere is great if you have small children in tow as we always do. My son, who is 10 months old, sat in an old fashioned wooden high chair and looked positively charming in it, especially compared to the giant plastic contraption we have for him at home. And our toddler enjoyed the place, too, though that largely had to do with the company of her hip, young aunt and uncle, I’m sure.

If you are the type to feel some trepidation about taking your often unpredictable little ones out to any restaurant fancier than, say, Chik-Fil-A, don’t fear.

Woodberry Kitchen and its welcoming staff, functional layout and relaxed atmosphere– the high ceilings seemed to absorb any sporadic giggles and outbursts so as not to annoy neighboring tables, and the restrooms are separated from the main dining area– make a nice place for a kid who has been sitting too long and allows grown ups to let loose for a minute or two, not that I learned this from personal experience or anything.

For reservations, visit http://www.woodberrykitchen.com/ or call 410-464-8000. Questions may be sent to askus@woodberrykitchen.com. Woodberry Kitchen also has a Facebook page where you can make reservations and look a photos of past events at the restaurant.