Restaurant News: Genuine Italian Cuisine Arrives in Howard County

An authentic taste of Italia has arrived in Howard County’s Fulton community! Located at 8110 Maple Lawn Boulevard, Galliano Italian Restaurant & Wine Bar is now open for dine-in, delivery and carryout/curbside pick-up, with full menus available for lunch, dinner and weekend brunch.

Serving classic Italian fare, Galliano has a large patio for outdoor dining (with heaters and umbrellas), and a bar seating area with floor-to-ceiling glass doors that can fully open when weather permits. Look for a new location in Gambrills’ Waugh Chapel in early spring. (gallianoitalianrestaurant.com)

Speaking of all things Italian, husband-and-wife team Gianfranco and Gia Fracassetti, the executive chef and owner, respectively, of Cafe Gia Ristorante in Little Italy, are offering a family-style menu where you can choose pasta, an entree, dessert and some vino by ordering through their website. Linguine Bolognese and cannoli’s anyone? (cafe giabaltimore.com/)

Meanwhile, The Food Market in Hampden has introduced “The Fast Food Market.” From 12 to 4 on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, you can get your carryout in 10(ish) minutes. Check out their website for the menu with tasty treats, including a hot honey crispy chicken sandwich. thefoodmarket baltimore.com/the-fast-food-market

Opening Soon!

Last June, a few months into the pandemic, Brian Boston, the longtime owner and executive chef of The Milton Inn, closed the restaurant after more than 70 years in business.

Now, local restaurateurs Tony Foreman and Cindy Wolf have partnered with Executive Chef Chris Scanga as the new owners of the restaurant in Sparks. Look for a less formal dining style when the restaurant reopens in late spring this year.

FYI, just a few weeks before closing the inn, Chef Boston opened The Veranda, a gorgeous outdoor space with a fireplace, retractable roof and outdoor heaters, a fantastic addition to the property.

“Before I moved to Baltimore, I loved The Milton Inn the moment I saw it,” said Chef Wolf. “As a young chef visiting from Charleston, South Carolina, it was a dream restaurant. Old, with significant history. A house, made out of stone. Working fireplaces in all of the rooms. So many windows! Enough land to plant a kitchen and cutting flower garden, all within the countryside.

“It feels meant to be and I am truly excited about our partnership.”

Stepping Up to the Plate

Giving a shout-out to Paul Saval, president and owner of Saval Foodservice, for his continued commitment to the community throughout the state. Since 1932, Saval Foodservice has been serving restaurants from Philly to Roanoke, and is the largest family-owned, independent broad-line foodservice distributor in the Baltimore-Washington corridor.

From providing meals to neighborhood groups, hospitality workers and first-responders, Paul and his team have joined forces to support Mayor Brandon Scott’s COVID-19 emergency food strategy. The mayor’s program will provide 20,000 food boxes per week through the end of March to Baltimore residents who have been “disproportionately affected” by the pandemic, with boxes being distributed at 100 sites throughout the city.

(On a personal note, I’ve been working with a local group that supplies and delivers baby products, dog food, canned goods and more to people that cannot necessarily get to the food distribution sites around town. Some of those families were scraping by during the holidays, and with one call to Paul, 20 turkeys for Christmas were picked up and delivered before the holidays.)

A Side Note

Looking for something to spice up your meals? You might want to try the (all-natural) chicken or lamb sausages and charcuterie from Landover-based MeatCrafters.

Kudos to partners Aaron Kushner, Mitch Berliner, Debra J. Moser and Stanley Feder, as well as director of production Alex Mejia. They donated hundreds of pounds of product to provide meals to Feed Anne Arundel. This charitable organization pays restaurants to provide meals to those in need, a win-win for the whole community.

You can find their products at Graul’s Market and FireFly Farms Market in Whitehall Mill. OR, you can order from their website. meatcrafters.com/

Randi Rom is president of RJ Rom & Associates. She is a freelance columnist and writer who represents some of the region’s top restaurants and food-related events. Contact her at randirom@comcast.net.