Alchemy Modern American Eatery

Great food delightful atmosphere. The red snapper was different but very nicely done. The avacodo was a brilliant addition to an iceberg salad. Totally enjoyable evening the food is interesting without trying too hard to different. Thanks!

Not impressed. Actually, disappointed. Staff, oblivious. Menu, painfully out of season. Compounding the matter, overpriced. Never going back. Wouldn’t waste my time.

Worst bottomless experience I’ve ever had. The restaurant is extremely understaffed in busy Saturday/​Sunday brunch hours. I could not get a refill unless I asked repeatedly. Not a truly bottomless when you see the bottom of your glass constantly through your meal…

Update: at the time, I contacted the store, bc I felt that the managers and owner should know what happened, and she instead passed the buck by first needing to state their cell phone policy (really? That was so important to mention now?!? No one brought it up when we were there, bc WE were not rude!) saying that we were some «incomplete party» and that is why the service was bad. The server sat us, and we were there for at least 5 mins before he got up to answer the call. In no way is waiting more than a minute ok as a service standard.
I’ve been in the business a long time, and people that are worth dealing with, and value their customers have a sense of accountability, especially if they are in the wrong, and don’t place the blame on the guests that are helping them keep their lights on. I’d spend your time and money elsewhere.

Went for the first time this past Saturday for lunch with a girlfriend. Was greeted by a very cheerful gentleman. The inside is very nice but tables a tad too close to each other. Ordered the beet salad and my friend ordered the monte cristo. The beet salad was $ 12.90 and was literally about 7 bites of food. The taste was OK, nothing to write home about. For that price for lunch, I should not have left hungry. The wait staff was also very pleasant. My friends sandwich was very good. Won’t be returning.

We came in for lunch during restaurant week, on the weekend — I had made a reservation, so we were seated right away. They had a pretty nice menu, with a lot of variety, and I enjoyed my meal (and the bottomless mimosas!). I had the stuffed sweet potato to start, and then pulled pork flatbread for the main course. The stuffed sweet potato was nice and soft, with well-​seasoned lamb picadillo and a salty cheese. I really enjoyed it, and it was easy to eat — not as messy as you might expect. The pulled pork flatbread was also pretty tasty, with a great chutney, although I thought little mounds of pulled pork on flatbread triangles wasn’t really appealing. I think they were trying to go for whimsy, and the flatbread triangles weren’t too difficult to pick up and eat, but it was still a little odd.
I will say the host was pretty stand-​offish, which was kind of a turnoff, but our server was friendly and warm, and that made up for it. I think I’d give them another try. I l liked the modern aesthetic and the cozy feel of the restaurant, and they have a great menu and interesting combinations.

I was looking forward to trying Alchemy during restaurant week. They were good to extend it because of the blizzard so we made a reservation for yesterday. I will say that the food was delicious but the service was terrible. Really bad. It started from the host. She did not really greet us. No smile. Once we gave her our name, she took a phone call and made a reservation without even looking up at or apologizing for making us wait. Once we were seated we had plenty of time to review the menu for restaurant week and decide what we wanted before the waitress, Melissa, even came to our table. I chose to do the «wine pairing» which failed to mention on the menu or from our waitress that the wine pairing only came with the entrée. It is basically buying a glass of wine. She also asked if I would like red or white? Isn’t that the point of the pairing? That the chef and the bartenders choose which wine goes best? I’ve never had a wine pairing at a restaurant go like this. Not only that, but our waitress dropped off the wine and walked away. Again, never experienced this with a wine pairing. Usually our waiter would explain the wine. Lastly, the restaurant week menu tacks on a 20% automatic tip «for your convenience». To me, it is a huge inconvenience to the customer, especially since the service did not match that tip amount. Even in South Beach, the automatic tip is 18%.
On a positive note, our food was very good. Well seasoned and well balanced. I noticed another waiter that was much more friendly, animated, and customer based in the section next to us, so our experience may have been a little better if we had him. My boyfriend and I were very disappointed in the service. Also, they left expired discount cards in our bill folder. Although the food was good, I don’t know that it is good enough for a return visit, especially since the table next to us had to send their chicken back since it was undercooked.

Went for January Restaurant Week.
One of the more poor experiences I have had at Baltimore area restaurant in recent years.
–Seated +30 minutes after reservation
–Another 30 minutes before waiter took order
–Server repeatedly forgot to bring drinks, water, etc.
–Food was fine. Indian Chicken was highlight. Snapper was overlooked and under seasoned.
–They charge 20% gratuity and then leave space for additional tips.
My hope is that our poor experience was a result of the busy restaurant and isolated poor service. That being said will not be recommending or returning.

I want to preface this review with the fact that although I travel to a lot of cities and eat at many (MANY) different restaurants, I very rarely write reviews – probably because I almost never feel strong enough feelings toward a restaurant (why would I?) to warrant spending my evenings typing long winded reviews while my cat looks at me funny.
But this restaurant was different. Its spirit animal would be something like a passive aggressive sloth. Or that ex boyfriend who wore sweatpants everywhere. The service was so painfully apathetic, it surely must be intentional, in some sort of ironic way. I wonder, is this Baltimore’s version of hipster waiters? Am I being punk’d? I looked around for hidden cameras, Ashton Kutcher, some kind of confirmation – but to no avail.
I can’t tell you how the food was, because we never got ours. After waiting 10 minutes to sit, 15 more to order, and another 10 to get a coffee (actually half a coffee, I guess it was the bottom of the pot?) we probably should have taken the hint and left. So I really only have myself to blame for still sitting there a full hour after we had arrived with no food, an empty coffee cup, and an entire waitstaff ignoring us completely. I guess I could blame my husband instead, but that hardly seems worthwhile when there are so many other things to blame him for. Considering we ordered eggs and a cup of soup, we had a feeling it wouldn’t have been very good cold anyway.

My experience at Alchemy was very subpar, and for the amount that I paid, I expected so much more.
First off, all entrees are at least $ 25.00, however this is listed as a $$ restaurant.
I ordered the Sauteed Mushroom Tenderloin. It tasted very rich, however it came out room temperature. Our server was a bit standoffish, and throughout the entire dinner, she only came by once to refill drinks, and only
after I had to grab her attention by raising my hand. I also had to ask for the dessert menu myself. However, the server seemed friendlier when serving the desserts and bringing the check.
The ambience is dim and noisy.
Overall, the food was cooked well but the portion was small and the price was high. The server was not attentive nor friendly. I would likely not return nor recommend.

I made reservations for Alchemy during restaurant week. The food was simply amazing. I ordered a tomato and mozzarella salad, Parmesan salmon and apple turnover. I found that I liked more items on the restaurant week menu vs the main menu. I do notice the menu changes seasonally so I’m willing to try Alchemy again. From the food, to the décor to the service, this place is top notch.

Hampden’s an indifferent-​hate relationship, sorry guys. The drive, the location. it’s where city folk go to see Christmas lights on 34^th and where county folk go to see «the city.»
Alchemy. no different. Greeted by «The bar’s not open tonight.» Uh, it’s Friday?! They were cool about us using a table for quick drink and snack. About 75% full for dinner, the crowd was family-​heavy and quite elderly with couples sprinkled in.
Cocktails were middle of the road. The Normandie 75 was disappointingly sweet for rose and lacked bitterness and acidity. The chipotle-​laden Antigua was more satisfying, rounded by the mole bitters and nicely boozy. An egg white would boost the thin body.
We weren’t disappointed by the carpaccio small plate. Dry, low-​salt parmesan but nice acidity from the beets. It needs more salt but the capers delivered good tang (pepper) in the finish, The beef (of good quality) gets lost amidst all the other flavors /​textures, so Alchemy. simplify!
Will prob return in the future but it’s unlikely before the lights.

Alchemy dishes out some fairly solid food at a moderate price point. It’s a trendy looking space with a contemporary menu that combines grilled things with pureed things in a way you’d expect for a «New American» bistro. Sometimes the dishes hit just the right spot, sometimes they don’t. But in general, the execution is competent and there’s nothing to really complain about.
The service has, overall, been very good when we’ve eaten here. We did brunch, lunch, dinner, and even restaurant week and the staff have been pretty uniformly attentive. If I were to ask for any improvement, it would probably be in beverage service — drinks can take a while to show up.
For a business called «Alchemy», though… I’d expect a more comprehensive drinks and/​or wine program. Nothing really shines here apart from a decent selection of non-​alcoholic offerings. They talk up their wine program, but it’s mostly New World (think CA and South America) and not all that adventurous.
Still, while maybe not exactly alchemical, it’s a competent bistro grille where — particularly for brunch or lunch — you can have a pleasant meal with good service.

Magnificent Sunday brunch — exceeded expectations!
I found Alchemy, online, and saw, on Facebook, that it was the second week of a two-​week-​only special: crab cake eggs Benedict. The kids were at grandmas and the bottomless mimosas sealed the deal for my wife and I to have an adult brunch near home.
We started with the chocolate chip zucchini bread which was way better than the description and price suggested. Get it and check out the excellent crust, then melt away into the taste of the high quality chocolate. Yum!
My wife had the seafood omelette, which they were nice enough to do «egg white only.» She was moaning while eating the scallops and shrimp spilling out of the side, before she even reached the egg white, and then entered a quasi-​hallucinogenic food trance that I dare not disturb.
I cannot actually capture how magnificent the eggs Benedict was, in words. The crab cakes alone, all lump, were magnificent. The eggs Benedict — beyond perfect!
Bottomless mimosas capped off the early afternoon feast (some younglings behind us broke a glass and dipped without saying anything — ah Hamden) our server was always filling our glasses and we even got a visit from the chef who I should have kissed.
Do yourself a favor — do this place for brunch. (Leave the kids with grandma)

Alchemy. I liked the name and was curious to see what it was all about. I went on a Thursday night which featured the prefix menu of three courses and a cocktail for $ 30. Bet!
I ordered the Chipotle Macoroni and Cheese and my date ordered the Risotto for the first course. They were good, I would choose the Risotto over the Macoroni. For the entrees we ordered the Chicken and the Cheeks (hehe). Both were delicious especially the Cheeks, they were so tender! The dessert was the highlight, I ordered the Apple Shortbread which melted in my mouth. That had to be my favorite item of the night. You will get enough food to be satisfied unlike some of the other restaurants. We even brought home leftovers.
Service was standard as the waiter and hostesses were alternating attending to our table.
I would recommend this restaurant for special occasions, date night or ladies night out.

I’ve walked by Alchemy a million times and have never stopped in partly because they always seem to have a line. On Saturday I made a reservation for Sunday brunch and yesterday was my first time experiencing Alchemy.
We walked in, mentioned the reservation and were seated right away at a table for 2 upstairs. The table setting was gorgeous and we were helped right away by our server. My boyfriend got the bottomless mimosas for $ 10 and I ordered a coffee. Both were delicious!
For our meals he had the TBLT (turkey BLT) which came out beautifully cut into quarters and a side salad that he said was amazing. I had the Traditional Breakfast and opted for the eggs, bacon, buttermilk biscuit, and potatoes. Everything was cooked to perfection and placed beautifully on the plate.
For such great food the prices were reasonable and the service was impeccable. I am already planning a trip back for my birthday this month!

My first Winter Restaurant Week dinner was had here on a cold Wednesday evening. My friends and I had reservations. When I arrived there was no one in the place except the staff. The décor is nice; its a cute and cozy. I was warmly greeted and seated to wait for my party.
What originally attracted me to Alchemy was the restaurant week menu options. There was a great variety and unique options. When my friends arrived our waiter informed us of some additional items and upgrades to the menu. The best part of dinner with friends is sharing!
For apps we had a beet salad, crab coulis (sp?), and lamb picadillo stuffed sweet potato. All were delicious. As entrees were had red snapper, mahogany (as opposed to blackened) catfish with grits, and the pork on pork, which was a succulent pork chop along side pulled pork hash. I loved the crsip[y batter of seasame seeds on the snapper and the surprise of how well a fresh tomato complimented the protein so well. The pork chop was cooked to absolute perfection with a bit of spice on the back end. Finally, the catfish was expertly seasoned and the grits were to die for! For dessert we had carrot cake and something like an apple dumpling. We were so stuffed!
Of all the places I went for the week. Alchemy had the best combination of service and quality dishes. Our waiter was friendly, funny, knowledgeable and attentive. Overall great experience and I will be back!

For a while now, I’ve wanted to try Alchemy in Hampden. It’s been on my list for quite possibly two years now so I was thrilled the other night when I was going out to dinner with some friends, we were looking for a spot in Hampden and decided on Alchemy.
It was restaurant week, so we were able to sample a little bit of everything. One of the standouts from the first course was the Lamb Picadillo Stuffed Sweet Potato. This was a roasted sweet potato stuffed with ground lamb, onion, olives, tomatoes and a ricotta salata. This was possibly the highlight of the meal, the meat was well seasoned and the sweet potato was incredibly tender.
I ordered, and loved, the Braised Beef Cheek French Onion Soup. The soup had braised beef cheeks, caramelized onion, toasted croûton and torched Gruyère cheese on top. The cheese was perfectly gooey and crispy and the broth was rich and flavorful.
For the main course, the evening we visited there was a Catfish Special. This came with a piece of pan-​fried catfish with lumps of crabmeat and some corn. This was really great, not greasy and packed with flavor.
Another friend ordered the Coconut Curry Glazed Salmon. This came with blood orange crème, sweet potato rosti, arcadian bitter lettuce salad, grape tomatoes, sherry vinaigrette, and spiced candied pecans. This dish was also well received and a little on the healthier side.
For my main course, because, I was instantly drawn to the Braised Beef Cheeks, this came with rice flour, mushroom demi, apple cider butternut purée, roasted garlic mash, spinach sun-​dried tomato sauté. The meat was incredibly tender, as beef cheeks always are, and the mushroom demi added a nice flavor.
For dessert, everyone at the table ordered one of two things. I was drawn towards the Bread Pudding. It happens to be one of my favorite desserts and it’s usually soft and almost creamy and a little on the sweet side. While this bread pudding was definitely sweet, it wasn’t as soft as I would have liked it.
The other dessert my friends at the table ordered was the Apple Turnover. Now, this was great. It wasn’t too sweet and the apples were nice and tender.
I love restaurant week because it gives patrons a chance to fully explore the best of an establishments offerings. And restaurant week at Alchemy in Hampden didn’t disappoint.

We came here for restaurant week. Ambience was okay. We were sat right in front of the door, so we had freezing air blown on us every time the door opened.
Our server was great and very knowledable. For drinks, I ordered the Normandy 75 and the Antigua Stiletto, and my husband ordered the Dark & Stormy. My drinks were okay, nothing spectacular. When my husband got his drink it was clear and we couldn’t taste any ginger beer in it. The server was very quick to fix it however. Apparently they were using another rum which was clear?
For our appetizers we got the mussels and the pear salad, both were good.
For entrees, I got the braised beef cheeks which were delicious and melted in my mouth. My husband got the burger, which he said was also very good.
We both got the carrot cake witih limoncello cream. It was just okay.
All in all, the food was good and the poritons were just right. I’m not sure if I would make it a point to come back here though, I wasn’t too impressed with the food (though the food was good) and the drinks were mediocre. I like the other restaurants in Hampden a bit better.

Decided to pop in here for a late dinner on a Wednesday, to celebrate Valentine’s Day a little early– glad we did! The restaurant had maybe two other occupied tables, and the host seated us immediately.
Our server (I think his name was Tommy) was outstanding. He was very knowledgable about the menu and there exactly when he needed to be. The food and drinks were equally as amazing. We split the crab mac (a must-​do… HUGE lumps of crab!), he had the beef tenderloin, and I had the spinach ravioli, which was on special. The food came out quickly, we even got bonus cheddar popovers, and everything was delicious!
Dessert topped it all off perfectly. I really debated between four and five stars, because it was a little pricey– but we went in expecting that so I can’t complain. Plus, they have a T/​Th prix fixe option for $ ²⁵⁄₃₀. Definitely worth the experience, glad we visited, and we will be back!