The Duchess is a fusion restaurant prettily styled as an upscale English pub. Its ambience is hipster chic; its menu is focussed on tapas and small plates. Our waitress was friendly but definitely pushed the more expensive tapas items and cocktails on the menu. We chose this restaurant to celebrate a birthday. The "special" cocktails are decent but small and overpriced. The tapas menu is interesting, but the servings are absurdly tiny for the prices charged. My daughter and I ordered fish and chips as our entrees. The fish was appropriately prepared, but the "chips" were tasteless shoestring fries. After asking several wandering staffers, I was brought some malt vinegar just to add flavor to the meal. My husband ordered some type of fish over rice. Honestly, the fish was tasteless and tough, yet quite expensive. As soon as you set down a plate, a staffer will appear to clear it away. I don't like to be rushed in a restaurant, especially when the menu's food and drinks are tiny and carry such inflated prices. Let me enjoy my meal. The staff members, so obviously aware that the tables need to turn over quickly, are intrusive in their constant abduction of plates, some even before the party had finished eating the selections. I think that changes need to be made to the menu if this restaurant wants to maintain a loyal customer base. Small plate sharing is great ... if the small plate portions are actually shareable and the pricing reflects the worthiness of the dish served. I am giving this pub 3 stars because the restaurant space is quite lovely. However, the staff members, though friendly, are intense in their determination to turn tables over within a short span or time. It is quite obvious that a party is not expected to stay for beyond two hours. The restaurant space is large, so parties should not have to be rushed through their meals. Those taking reservations need to consider the fact that, for the prices charged, the diner should have a relaxing, tasteful experience. The hosts/hostesses need to stop overbooking. I really wanted to like this place, but, overall, the food and drinks served were mediocre and way too tiny for the prices charged. I am not one to eat food until I'm full, but I was still hungry after paying the astoundingly expensive bill for a party of five. read more

We went to The Duchess with high expectations because it seemed like a good restaurant from reading their website. Food: spring rolls- 2 pieces cut in half to make 4, did not taste good, tasted more like from a package. Pork belly and chicken skewers-only items we liked, should have not ordered anything else. Duck donburi- what are you trying to achieve with that dish, chef? $39 mistake. Short ribs Kare Kare- 2 small slices of short ribs, 1 piece of bokchoy, pickled onions?? Sauce, $34, rice separate order, you are insane! taste is meh. Fish and chips- fish is dry. Service- staff were nice and plenty of staff walking around getting empty plates and refilling water and asking if everything is ok. Everything is okay except for the food and you are a restaurant! If you are Asian, if you have travelled and had good food all over, if you can cook, don't go to The Duchess. Not going back and will not recommend. read more

Food is good and service is very good, attentive and friendly. The portion sizes are extremely small. Many reviewers have mentioned this and the owner suggests getting additional advice from waiting staff. For example, Cucumber appetizer dish is very small about less than half of the size at dim sum or Shanghainese restaurants. Normally vegetable apps are more generous than others because vegetables are less expensive. The kare kare entree does not include rice and very little vegetable to compensate for this. While it is busy and the ambiance is very nice, I do not think a restaurant with a unique but confused identity like this will have long term success in Baltimore. read more

The waitstaff gave us this intricate story about the Guam menu and how carefully small plates and entrees were developed, so we had high hopes. But food was okay. Nothing special, and the dishes were not specifically Guam. A more accurate description would be average Asian fusion. Portions are extremely stingy for sharing - which the server suggested we do. The drinks were underwhelming, as well. You'll get better Asian fusion at Ekiben and better cocktails at The Coral Wig. read more

For a new restaurant, this has none of the quirks one would expect and all of the charm , exoticism and warmth of most Tony Foreman restaurants. We were celebrating a birthday and they made our guest feel celebrated with champagne and a dessert candle. The tapestry and reclaimed wood eclectic furniture, make one feel that they are dining in the beloved Aunt's chateau. We had most of the appetizers. They are well plated, wonderful Pan Asian flavors- small but so is the price. The entrées were beautifully presented - we had both the steak, the brunch, French toast, and the kimchi fried rice. all in restrained, human portions meaning you will not need a doggy bag and will have room for their gems of a dessert. The service was outstanding. My water glass never got more than a quarter full before someone was refilling it. read more

The Duchess - Dining area - Wine Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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The dining room is very cute - love the English style pub set-up, but it feels elevated. I have been here for dinner twice in the last few weeks and got to try a lot of the food options. We had a special of the day which was a beet salad with creamy tofu which was great. As for the small plates, we loved the tuna poke, the pork belly skewers and crispy shrimp and corn patties. A couple members of my party had the fish and chips and it looked tasty. We ordered a short rib dish but were somewhat disappointed. It was more similar to the short rib you would find at a korean bbq than a fork tender short rib we expected. It looks like the menu has changed already and the new short rib dish seems to be more aligned with what we were thinking. The service was pretty good but a little overbearing. I understand they are trying to be efficient and also perhaps turn a table over quickly for other diners, but I felt we were checked on too many times. They asked if they could remove dishes that we still had some food left and wanted to leisurely pick at while we chatted. After the first visit I thought it was a fluke, as we had a larger group of 5 people and wanted to catch up and talk so we ordered only more wine instead of dessert. But the second time I went as soon as we declined dessert, they immediately whisked away our plates and brought over the check without us asking for it. read more

Great service, but the portions for the price are off on a lot of dishes. Was charged 10 dollars for a tiny plate of plain fries. 16 dollars for the smallest bowl of pancit. 21 dollars for poke that was small in portion, and the fish was borderline fishy. Food quality and service is good, but they need to provide bigger portions for the prices they are charging, or charge less for the food. read more

Not sure what all the hype is about. Four of us ate dinner on a Saturday night, and the place was packed and buzzing. Service was friendly and reasonably efficient. Drinks were good. The food, however, was a real disappointment. The appetizers were tasty - especially the shrimp and corn fritters. The waiter suggested that the 4 of us could share 4 appetizers...however, be aware that the portions are absurdly small. The 'cucumber salad' provided 4 or 5 small pieces of cucumber for each of us. Same with the brussels. The entrees were truly awful. Not sure if the chef had the night off...but the kitchen clearly didn't know what it was doing. The bavette steak was sliced WITH the fibers...instead of against (perpendicular to) the grain. That simple mistake turns it stringy and tough. This is basic technique that any reasonably trained line cook should know.The menu described the steak as being served with 'chimichurri sauce', however, there was only two dime-sized dollops of chimichurri on top of the steak. The 'fish special' was wahoo. It was basically inedible. Two of the four of us ordered it...and neither person finished it. Tough and tasteless...and it led me to wonder whether they had used frozen fish. It was served dry, over rice...and it was in desperate need of some sort of sauce. Maybe they just had a bad night? Or maybe they are the victim of their own success... read more

Great food and apps. Great service. Polite and fast staff. Cool vibe and they have EPL games too

The food was great as usual, but the portion sizes were definitely much smaller than on earlier visits. I'm assuming they were over-portioning to build buzz when they first opened. Hey, it's business, I get it. The very low lighting at our table was so unpleasant. Looking at other tables, everyone was also using their phone flashlights just to see the menu. The lighting was so low that I couldn't tell if I was about to eat a few typhoon fries or a bunch of bonito. There's ambiance, and then there's irritation, and the low lighting was an irritation to the point where we were glad to leave. read more

Noticed this new restaurant on the Avenue, and tried it out on a Sunday night. We were welcomed warmly, and immediately noticed the classy inner decoration-- feels like a pub in England with lots of history. The chandelier, the wall arts, the soft carpet and elegant furniture all showed us that this is going to be a good dinning experience. And the food and the service did live up to the high expectations. The service was great. Our food was ready very quick, with good presentation. The medium-rare duck breast was juicy, tender, and delicious. The miso glaze on the top was definitely a highlight of the dish. The poke was fresh too. We also enjoyed the shrimp and corn tempura a lot. It was fried to perfect, with outside crispy and inside creamy and soft. You can bite into the shrimp and corn and tell that they are well-seasoned and carefully made. The cocktails were good as well. I enjoyed my alcohol free drink a lot (I think the name was international date line). It has lime and passion fruit, with miso honey and warming spices. The spice was definitely the highlight. Sorta feel like fall spice, but mixed well with lime and honey. Gave you sort of sweet-sour taste. Together with the tropical vibe brought by passion fruit. It was our favorite cocktail. Highly recommend. read more

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Our family shared a wonderful dinner at The Duchess. We were welcomed into a British pub with wood panels and leafy plants and chandeliers and pine floors. We ate a delicious meal, sharing small plates of amazing goma-ae green beans, delicious tempura cauliflower, miso sauced Brussel sprouts, incredible corn & shrimp fritters, tasty beef skewers, typhoon fries with pork belly, and pan roasted rockfish with romanesco. The service was attentive. We had a wonderful time! read more

They were very accommodating for our group of seven . Table was well attended to , food interesting in a great way . It's good to go beyond the usual . Wine and drinks priced reasonably and the latter well made . Had fun . Good place to go to any night . read more

Amazing! The staff was so kind to us, gave us a special seat it was our anniversary as well as complimentary champagne. The food was so good, we enjoyed every bite! The decor and ambiance inside as beautiful, highly recommended read more

The Duchess - Beef and rice bowl, fish and chips - Wine Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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I came to Yelp to see if others shared my experience, my main gripe: "excessive bussing" was the best term i saw in the reviews, and I'm plagiarizing it here! Perfectly said. I couldn't enjoy myself because of the frenetic plate removal/hovering of staff! Lively and lovely space. Food was good but portions, even for "small plates" were too small (all four of us, after sharing approximately 10 plates (small & mid) plus dessert, had to eat snacks when we got home-still hungry after spending $400. Probably won't go back. read more

They accommodated a huge group of us. We had a bunch of kids were us and thoughtfully took the children's food order first and brought their food out first as well. The tapas style was fun. We were able to try a bunch of different things. The lumpia was maybe the favorite thing. The kids ordered the ube pancakes which were good the sauce over top was maybe the best. It felt a little silly to pay so much for spam (but that's what we wanted and ordered), but everything with it was also delicious. There was plenty of space for the kids and we didn't feel ok top of other tables. The service was really impeccable despite our chaotic big group. There was never a dirty dish on the table. Highly recommend. read more

The Duchess - Kimchi fried rice with spam added - Wine Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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Nice ambience, mediocre food, slow service. I'd revamped this place with a different concept and menu. The only Foreman/Wolf restaurant I won't be returning to. read more

Our CHamoru family was happy and eager to see a write-up in the Washington Post about a new restaurant in Hampden(Baltimore) with a CHamoru Chef, Kiko! I had dinner there tonight(1/25/25) with my sister Diana and her two kids, Aaron & Alexis. We drove 25 minutes north from Linthicum(near BWI) and was able to find street parking across the street($10 valley parking available). We walked into the warm, spacious restaurant and was greeted by their staff and was shown to our seats immediately(call for reservations) and the dinner crowd had already arrived at 5:15pm. The decor included beautiful wooden tables and different chairs throughout that reminded me of family dinners. The lighting was not too bright and not too dark so reading the menu wasn't a problem. The host passed our request to meet Kiko, the CHamoru Chef and she graciously came out looking professional and of course a warm hug, much like family! We didn't want to keep her from her duties so we scanned the menu and instantly recognized some of our native dishes. We decided to order to share the chicken, beef & pork, belly skewers (chamoru marinate!), the coconut corn soup (perfect for January), the shrimp patties (just like my Sister-in-laws recipe!), we also had the tuna poke ball and an order of fish & chips. No Chamoru meal is complete without finadeni or Donne dinanchi(super spicy) but we got both, as well as some marinated cucumbers and several servings of white steamed rice! The servers were attentive and brought our dishes out as we preferred. We all shared a bowl of the shaved ice that had coconut water, coconut flakes, pistachios and a beautiful hibiscus flower! The meal was completed by one last visit by Chef Kiko who gifted us some pastries to go with tomorrow's morning coffee! Come to The Duchess and get a taste of just some of the culinary treats by the super sweet and professional, Chef Kiko! Enjoy; we did! read more

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Beautiful space with intriguing and well executed menu. Great service. Will definitely return. If you like mezcal, definitely go for the She-Devil! read more

What a warm and welcoming new restaurant! We loved the ambiance with its English pub styling, but the food and service were definitely what made our visit worthwhile. We felt like everyone watched over our table to make sure we had everything we needed (we did!). The general manager is so nice, friendly, and focused on the customer experience! Our waiter seemed so caring. The menu is creative. I love food and have tried many things, but there were items that were new to me here. We tried shrimp keleguan & tatiyas, coconut corn chowder, pork belly skewers, beef skewers, pancit bihon gollai, typhoon fries, and a dish that isn't listed on the website, but was lotus root (never had it) and mushrooms. It was all very delicious, but the pancit bihon gollai was definitely the surprise. I am not a big tofu fan, but this was amazing. A lot of textures, great flavor, fantastic. The pork belly skewers were so flavorful and tender. And the lotus root dish- - also something I had never eaten - - was amazing if you love mushrooms. And I do. I look forward to going back and trying the larger dishes next time!! Just a wonderful evening and can't wait to go back. read more

The place was absolutely charming, the host & severs we very attentive, warm and friendly. The food was good! Loved the corn and also the Tuna. Salmon was delicous too. Such an interesting Resturant, worth the visit. They also did a great job suprising with a birthday dessert, it was wonderful! One suggestion would be to have servers back off a little, give everyone time to relax and finsh their meal without too much oversight. read more

So we sat at the bar and were warmly greeted by Tony the owner. He let us know that it was their first night fully open to the public. The space is really nice and you can see that they have invested a lot in the make over. It's warm and in the dining room they have a small stage which is cool. Take my feedback on the service with a grain of salt considering it's the first night. However do note that they have had soft openings and other events for several weeks now. The service needs a good bit of work. Bar staff were nice when they attended to you. Operative word is when they attended to you. The whole staff threw off this frenetic energy which honestly considering the amount of money you pay was a turn off. They actually took my wife's drink away before she had finished it which was ironic considering they asked me if I wanted another drink and did not ask her and she then had to ask them. Service will get better over time I hope. The bigger issue is the concept which is a mix of an English pub and what I would call Filipino food. Probably not describing that correctly but I do know that multiple dishes we had (lumpia and pancit) I have had with Filipino families and it was not better but portions were small and $$$$. Overall the place felt extremely expensive for what you got. Now this place has potential to be a great neighborhood location and at these prices I really don't think that's going to happen. The food is fine but it's not really destination worthy either. I think they might want to figure out what they wanna be. I don't think we'll go back as it stands now. read more

Great first visit to The Duchess for a late birthday dinner out. Tony was in the house and things were running very smoothly. We had a lovely server and were also attended to by many others who were all pleasant. Can't wait to return! read more

The ambiance in this place is amazing. It was a great vibe on a Saturday night. That was really the best part. The food was all just ok, nothing jumped out as being extraordinary. All sounded better than it tasted and nothing tasted bad, it was all good but nothing blew us away. The drinks are heavy on the rum and I would've liked to see more spirit variety. They were also just ok. Again, read/sounded better than they tasted. Overall, go here for the vibe, decent food and decent cocktails. read more

I tried The Dutches last week. It was pretty good. Good food and nice atmosphere. I will go back there again.

We have been waiting patiently for this restaurant to open, and it was worth the wait! The atmosphere is warm and welcoming, the seating is varied and interesting, decor is gorgeous, and the waitstaff is so friendly and helpful. And the food, of course, is fantastic. It's pan-Asian, so all kinds of interesting flavors and combinations abound. We can't wait to return to try more dishes. The Duchess is really thoughtful about having gluten-free and dairy-free food -- with tons of flavor! Be sure to make reservation, because it's very popular. read more

Great food and atmosphere!Service was awesome too.Very interesting menu.I loved the skewers.They have terrific cocktails as well.

We love the Duchess! Fabulous food and service in a beautiful setting. The small plates are so unique, very clean tastes that are interesting and delicious. They are rotating in new entrees, all of which we love. The staff, management, and chef are very focused on curating a relaxing and memorable experience. Beautiful bar and classy British style pub booths. Great music selection at the right volume. Highly recommend!! read more

Tried The Duchess for the first time tonight and was not disappointed! The inside is very cozy and french colonial feeling. Everything we had was delicious: tempura vegetables, chili cucumbers, duck donburi, tuna poke, corn shrimp cakes, shaved ice with passionfruit. Will definitely be back and glad to have this in the neighborhood! read more

Pretty solid food but it's insanely overpriced. Portions are VERY small. Cute ambiance/interior and solid service. It's a decent date night spot but it definitely won't become a regular in our lineup Edit: duck breast is really mid and lacks flavor read more

Service was great, food was excellent and ambiance was everything we wanted . Would definitely be a frequent dinner !

Ignore The Pills knitpicking with nonsense like Phillipines food with English decor is colonialism Food cooked fresh and delicious. Very attentive staff. Manager came over and asked how everything was. And we sat a good hour after we settled our bill and someone still came by and refilled our water bottle. You can make a meal of small plates. Or just do a small plate appetizer and an entree. Highly recommend. read more

The streak and egg from the brunch menu was delicious. Medium rare was cooked perfectly and portion size was good. The coconut shaved ice dessert was so smooth and creamy and not too sweet. The service was responsive. The ambience was unique and homey. Beautiful sunlight when you eat there for breakfast. Also some very large tables can accommodate large parties easily. read more

We had an amazing experience! the food, drinks and service made our evening really special. Our bartender Alex was exceptional! very patient, attentive and knowledgeable. We were in town visiting our best friend who just had a baby so it was her first night out and chose the right place for sure! Next time we visit baltimore we will be back! read more

The food was excellent. I would say it is island fair with an asian tilt. We had several small plates on New Year's Eve. The place was hopping Patrick our server was great. This is one of the newest place on the Avenue. Upgrade from Cafe HON. Give it a shot. Mikey Likes it! read more

The Duchess is a pretty, proper and fun restaurant. The food is also yummy. The problem is they claim it's shareable, when the portion sizes are not shareable. So after paying $100 a person here tonight I came home afterwards and raided my Taharka ice cream pints. In my opinion, when so few people in Baltimore have money anymore, if you spend $100 a person on a meal in Baltimore , no one should be going home hungry. The Duchess apparently disagrees. read more

My husband and I have been a few times prior but we went tonight with close friends and had a GREAT experience. Because there is no dedicated server, food and drink comes out very quickly. Portions might be smaller (they're essentially tasting tapas) but every single bite packs a punch. Spam musubi, grilled pork belly skewers (my favorite), poke, and the build-your-own steamed buns were amaaaazing. Additional staff and the host were all incredibly polite and personable. Will definitely be making a return soon. read more

We heard about this place from our friends in Charlotte, NC. They said it was a place for perfect food served Pacific Island style. When we arrived, it was like eating delicious late night snacks you wish you had. Highly recommend the short ribs and the pork belly skewers. And for someone who doesn't like shrimp, the Shrimp Kelaguen & Tatiyas was 'to die for!'. We found the atmosphere welcoming and the staff eager to offer a memorable dining experience. read more

I suspected from the menu this was one of those spots that was all fluff and no real flavor. I was right, it's all looks and vibes. Pricey mediocre food. read more

The restaurant was fun and different, but very busy and loud. While the food was delicious, they are mostly small shareable dishes. So you end up ordering many things which does end up being quite expensive. Went for a birthday, so not sure if I'll go again in the future. read more