Good Eats: Centre Park Grill in Columbia

Upon entering the new Centre Park Grill in Columbia - the restaurant that literally filled the void left when Café de Paris shut its doors last August - you're struck by two things: light and restoration.

Gone are the dark wooden booths and heavy partition walls; in their place, contemporary stonework and a floor made from 130-year-old reclaimed wood from Baltimore. The smell of recent renovations was still in the air, though not enough to take away from the delicious scent of cooking food. Sawdust. Seared meat. Fresh paint. Garlic. The smells didn't fight one another; they somehow complimented each other.

Sous Chef and I chose to sit at one of the hightop tables in the bar area - the best of both worlds. Our
server Bailey sported a fishtail side braid and an effervescent smile, and she was more than prepared to make our impromptu date into a full-on Event. There seemed to be a good mixture of experienced and novice staff, including an on-point manager who we noticed right away - he was all business, on top of things but not unfriendly. The way everyone greeted us with a smile, you'd think the place had been open for years, not just two weeks.

Bailey quickly referred us to their extensive list of whiskeys and bourbons - I immediately ordered an American Honey, neat with a splash. Sous Chef had to think a little longer, settling on a craft beer.

The menu is comprised of typical "American grill" fare: crab dip, Caesar salad, burgers, a selection of steaks. Dig a little deeper, however, and you start to see some specialties come forth. Blackened steak bites. Black truffle aioli. Housemade corned beef. Waygu skirt steak. Toasted Brussels sprouts.

Just a few little tweaks, and all of a sudden it's special.

Sous Chef and I ended up only ordering from the appetizers. Actually, full disclosure: I did order an entree, but halfway through our meal I realized how full I was getting, and in a panic I told Bailey I forgot to save room for the molten lava cake. Like a pro, she gently suggested that I simply cancel my entree (she was putting our order in one course at a time, so we wouldn't feel rushed) and just like that she Saved The Day - and my sweet tooth.

We started off with the French onion soup - how we test the baseline for pretty much any restaurant - and liked it right from the start. The soup was flavorful and had the traditional depth that comes from slow-cooking onions all day long. There was a nice broth to cheese to crouton ratio as well. If I was picky I'd say it was a tiny bit on the salty side, but I don't want to be picky today so I'll just move on.

The other dish that Sous Chef especially likes to gauge a restaurant with is fried calamari. Will it be overbreaded? Overcooked? Greasy? It's a roll of the dice when you order it. At Centre Park Grill, it was just plain tasty. The breading was light and seemed to be made of cornmeal or some sort of coarse-ground flour. The calamari itself was cooked perfectly - nice and tender, not a squeaky bite in sight. The aioli was roasty and flavorful as well.

Next up - corn and crab fritters. I'm pretty sure that Marylanders are required to order crab at a minimum of once a quarter, and once a month in the summer. Of course, most of us go far beyond that quota, and with good reason. Crab is decadent yet relatable. Served on fancy plates but harvested by the bluest of collars. Sure, sometimes the fancy plate happens to be the Sunday paper with a wooden mallet holding it down from the breeze, but that works just fine for me, thank you very much.

The crab fritters were nice and meaty - not watered down by fillers or breadcrumbs. Bailey said they use colossal crab meat to achieve that juicy result. The corn added a burst of sweetness in every bite, and the fresh salsa served with it cut nicely through the richness of the crab. It's definitely on my favorites list.

Sous Chef and I played a game of "I'm going to politely offer you the last bite even though I really want it because it's so good, but I'm kinda full anyway so it's really easy for me to make this thinly veiled not at all altruistic gesture" with this dish.

Succulent.

If you're looking for a nice hit of protein without a lot of heavy carbs on the side, order the blackened steak bites. Juicy bite-sized pieces of steak, sizzling hot, served with a fresh tomato salad on the side. It's like it's made for low-carb dieters on the go. The smoked jalapeño aioli is phenomenal as well, adding a nice compliment to the tango tomatoes and earthy meat.

At this point, you're probably thinking, How could they possibly eat more? Well, I am no rookie when it comes to this stuff, friends. And there was lava cake coming.

While Sous Chef and I quoted one of our favorite scenes from Chef (minus the cake razing - we're classy), we dug into the molten lava cake. The center was liquid. Hot melted chocolate dripping off the spoon liquid. When I go to heaven, I am certain that Jesus will be standing there offering me lava cake. Or maybe lava cheesecake...is that a thing?

The cake itself was delightful - spongy outside, above-mentioned dark gooeyness on the inside. It was served with fresh berries and honey. A really nice way to round off a great meal.

It's clear that this isn't this owner's first time at the rodeo. Another quick round of questioning Bailey and we learned that Centre Park Grill is owned by the team that owns and operates The Mt Airy Tavern - so now I have a reason to go to Mt Airy. Bailey's boyfriend is the sous chef here in Columbia. We were really impressed by how smoothly things operated so early in the game. The dishes felt complete, the staff was friendly (even the bussers made eye contact - when was the last time that happened to you at a restaurant?). It was a cohesive, lovely dining experience.

We can't wait to go back and try more dishes - we're thinking of going again this Friday to kick off the weekend with some more American Honey and...the possibilities are delightfully endless.