Cooking For Engineers

[Dilbert]

Dutch's Daughter is one of several well-reputed eateries in the Frederick area; with some 30 years in the business and still thriving. The "new" location is huge - occupancy certificate shows 4xx downstairs and another 3xx upstairs. One is advised to inquire about 'booked events' for your date in question - as gearing up for 800 guests could easily impact your visit.

www.http://dutchsdaughter.com/

Despite the staggering number of allowable guests, the main floor dining areas are divided into smaller rooms with comfortable spacing - which makes the ambiance seriously better than something akin to an October Fest Beer Hall. The facilities are ultra clean and meticulous maintained.

An advertised forte is seafood.

Party of four - very nice hot bread-on-a-board to start.

Appetizer: one order of fried green tomatoes.

Salads were mixed garden and Caesar.

Mains:
one order of sea scallops broiled,
one sea scallops fried,
one crab imperial,
one surf&turf of crab imperial + filet mignon.

Sides: green beans, baked sweet potato.

Desserts:
one peach crisp
two bread puddings

Portions were quite generous.

Now, overall the dining impressions were very good and we would return as the occasion should arise. Service was excellent.

But past that there were a number of issues that preclude a raving review / recommendation.

Fried green tomatoes - kinda' decent, edible - not a memorable dish; not on par to a professional kitchen in agricultural area.

Caesar salad - I could detect not a single scent or any hint of sardine; a mixed salad with croutons . . . no dressing.

Broiled scallops - not so much as a smidge of color; looked to have been baked-in-butter vs. broiled. That was a bit of a shock.

Fried scallops - one might think pan seared & saute; no - breaded and deep fried. The breading was gummy and too heavy - scrape off the breading and the scallops themselves were quite good. But, not a method / execution / dish / use I would recommend for good quality scallops.

The scallops were a decent medium size, a generous 10 +/- scallops per plate, fresh tasting - just poorly prepared.

The crab imperial drew rave reviews.

The filet mignon was done to a perfect medium rare, tender and spectacularly delicious.

Baked sweet potato - curious animal, that. The insides seemed to be 'waterized' - as if removed, pureed, diluted and returned to the (pre-split) skins ala twice-baked. Recommendation: avoid.

The bread pudding - one order would have fed all four of us! Huge serving - hot - nice sauce.
The entire second order came home in a box . . .

The peach crisp (ala mode) - nicely prepared but (egads!) ... hard, semi-ripe, metal canned peaches - right schmack dab in the middle of local peach season. no-no-no-no......

Pricing - moderate.

Bottom Line: if you going for seafood, ask a lot of questions - because one's assumptions could result in disappointment. Decent food at moderate pricing - but the kitchen does not support a "Fine Dining" label.