Local Food Finds

Chicken, Candlelight, and Cinnamon Rolls: Your Offbeat Summer Food Guide to Annapolis (and Beyond)

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Chicken, Candlelight, and Cinnamon Rolls: Your Offbeat Summer Food Guide to Annapolis (and Beyond)

Hungry for something a little different? Annapolis is serving up more than just your usual crab cakes and cocktails this summer. From family-famous Guatemalan fried chicken to candlelit rosé nights, blindfolded tasting adventures, and even a surprisingly awesome IKEA feast (no tools required), this week’s roundup is all about bold bites and unexpected delights.

🍗 Pollo Campero: The Chicken Has Landed (and It Means Business)

A New Chicken Joint

There’s a new cluck in town, and it’s not your average drive-thru nugget joint. Pollo Campero has strutted into Annapolis right by the mall, and it brought over 50 years of fried chicken royalty with it. Hatched in Guatemala in 1971, Pollo Campero has always been more than a meal — it’s a place rooted in family history, beginning with a prized chicken recipe that has been passed down from generation to generation. Their fried chicken is hand-breaded daily, and their grilled chicken is secretly stealing the show with its citrusy lime zest and juicy, slow-roasted goodness. Don’t forget the supporting cast: crispy fried yucca, sweet caramelized plantains, and refreshingly bold drinks, such as their fan-favorite mango juice and creamy horchata. And yes, they’ve got family meals—because no one should fight over the last drumstick.

🌹Rosé the Night Away: Thursdays at Reynolds Tavern

Thursdays | 6–9 pm

If you like your wine pink and your evenings in candlelight, Reynolds Tavern is calling. Their Rosé Thursdays on the Terrace turn your typical weeknight into a garden party dream. Sway to live music, sip sparkling or still rosé by the flight, glass, or bottle (you deserve it), and bask in the glow of actual ambiance. 

🍔 Romilio’s Turns 8, and You Get the Gifts

All Day Happy Hour

Romilio’s is throwing a birthday bash from now until July 20, and you’re invited. We’re talking $8 burgers, $8 appetizers, $8 Romilio’s specialty cocktails, $2 glasses of house wine, $4 orange crushes, $3.50 domestic drafts, $5.50 specialty drafts, $12 two-topping large pizzas, $15 for 15 boneless wings, and $12 buckets of beer. Happy birthday, Romilio’s!

🍕Timber Pizza: Now in Edgewater!

Pizza Expansion 

DC and Annapolis’ cult-favorite pizza spot, Timber Pizza, just popped up in Edgewater in the Main Street South River Colony, like it was summoned by a Neapolitan crust-loving genie. Was it you? Swing by their brand-new digs at 3279 Solomons Island Road and prepare to question your loyalty to every other pizza place you’ve ever known.

🍽️ Dining in the Dark at Ashling Kitchen & Bar

Mystery Menu, Maximum Vibes

Ashling Kitchen & Bar is hosting a blindfolded four-course tasting experience on Sunday, July 27 at 6 pm, where you literally won’t know what you’re eating. Choose your adventure (like the old school Goosebumps books!): Meat, Earthy, Sea, or Adventurous. It’s immersive, it’s intimate, and it’s a total sensory reset. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic ticket options are available. 

🥗 Leo’s Is Serving Lunch Now, Too!

Saturdays and Sundays | 11 am–3 pm

Weekends just got a tasty upgrade. Leo’s is now open for lunch with a fresh menu of hand-helds, salads, and small bites — plus your dinner faves. Pair it with a mimosa and call it brunch. We won’t tell!

🌞 Garten Markets: Rise, Shine, and Support Local

Saturdays | 8–11 am

Early birds and breakfast fiends, unite! Garten’s charming patio transforms into a bustling market every Saturday morning. Grab a coffee, chow down on $8 breakfast sammies (the Chicken and the Egg one is legendary), and shop local vendors. This Saturday, local vendors include Blue Door Bakery, Pura Vida Bowls and Java, Lke_mnded Collective, Wandering Word Books, Maidstone Harvest, and Annapolis Juice Shop. Think farmers market meets European café meets cozy Annapolis vibes.

• Pro tip: Get the jumbo hashbrown. Trust us.

🚪 Bread and Butter Kitchen Has a New Door

And It’s Kind of a Big Deal

Yes, we’re serious. There’s a new door at Bread and Butter Kitchen, and no, it’s not just for aesthetics—it’s your gateway to The Hub, their cozy community coworking and event space right next door. This magical little portal now connects your favorite waterfront brunch spot directly to a place where ideas flow as easily as the coffee. Grab a breakfast sandwich, then slip through the door like in Narnia, into a space perfect for working, collaborating, or just pretending to work while snacking on their daily scone. It’s a small update with big local charm—and worth a peek (and a plate).

🧆 Secret Spot: IKEA Is Basically a Restaurant Now

Fika: The Swedish tradition of taking a break in one’s day to enjoy a cup of coffee or tea and a little something to eat

If you thought IKEA was just for bookshelves and lightbulbs with Scandinavian names, guess again. Their College Park store literally has a café and restaurant, and is low-key one of the most affordable (and fun) family dining spots around. A $33.16 platter feeds four (32 Swedish meatballs, mashed potatoes, peas, gravy, and that addictive lingonberry sauce). And until August 5, kids eat FREE on weekdays (buy one adult entrée, get two kids meals free), and there’s a buy-one-get-one-half-off entrée deal on weekends.  Their eating area features plenty of seating, highchairs, kids’ tables/chairs, and play areas while adults enjoy their food.

• P.S. Oh, and they’ll literally watch your kids for you for an hour at Småland for free! Småland is a magical forest full of play and fun – aka a free play area that will keep your kids entertained, like ball pools, coloring, IKEA children’s toys, and movies/animations. Kids who are potty-trained and between 37″ and 54″ can enjoy the space. Shop in peace!
• P.P.S. Snag their frozen KAFFEREP cinnamon buns to go. Thank me later.

So, whether you’re blindfolded over a dish, sipping horchata by the mall, or eating schnitzel for breakfast, Annapolis is dishing out flavor in all kinds of quirky, craveable ways.