The Inn at the Chesapeake Bay Beach Club | 180 Pier One Road, Stevensville | 443-249-5777 | baybeachclub.com
The fine destination, Knoxie’s Table, within The Inn at the Chesapeake Bay Beach Club, is just a few minutes over the bridge from Annapolis or several miles away if coming from Easton. It has become the welcoming venue, winning awards for featuring local farms and watermen within their seasonal menus. In fact, Knoxie’s Table has been voted Eastern Shore’s favorite farm-to-table restaurant by reader of this magazine. Even their own charming vegetable and herb garden provides items for the restaurant. Since dinner is served seven days a week, we decided to make a Sunday night of it, to dine inside Knoxie’s.
Entrance to Knoxie’s Table, The Market, a firepit, and gardens are through The Inn’s welcoming lobby. The Inn continues to expand with individual cottages, a second Inn, dipping pools, and more gardens, so there is a lot to peruse after a meal or even just a drink. In every season, there are events offered to the public. The decor, special events, and food are all orchestrated with a casually chic and friendly style.
The stylish rustic interior of Knoxie’s Table features two fireplaces and our reservation ensured we had a table close to the flames. The full bar is open to the dining room yet placed off to the side. There is booth and table seating under high ceilings, rich neutral tones in the dining area, and even the separate Decanter Room with an extensive wine display for private parties up to 24 people.
Speaking of wine, Knoxie’s Table has a broad range of wine selections by the bottle and a nice variety by the glass. My companion ordered a glass of un-oaked Sonoma Chardonnay. She appreciated the specificity of oaked versus un-oaked and found the wine to be crisp and full-flavored. Every Tuesday and Thursday, select bottles of wine are offered for $20 in the restaurant. It’s an excellent value and fun time.
The menu offers a wide range of dishes for all degrees of hunger. Full entrees, changed seasonally by Executive Chef Paul Shiley, lend a bit of Southern flair. For lighter dining, there are appetizers, soups, four renditions of oysters, and “Food for Friends,” a category within the menu...literally meant for sharing, which conveys the philosophy of community. Blue Crab Guacamole was tempting as our wait person described it as made-to-order with roasted corn kernels, lime, pico de gallo, and served with tortilla chips. Seared Ahi Tuna with crispy vegetables and kimchi aioli also attracted the seafood lover in us. We finally agreed on sharing Burrata and an order of Oysters Rockefeller as appetizers. Burrata was a salad of sorts, with a three-inch round of the cheese floating on tiny, roasted gold and red tomatoes with arugula. Walnut pesto was pooled alongside and crisp bread slices gave a satisfying texture to build your own bruschetta. The classic Oysters Rockefeller was just that. Five medium oysters with a hint of bacon were blanketed with cream spinach and a dab of hollandaise.
The bread basket is a focal point with dinner and includes homemade biscuits, dinner rolls, whipped butter, and a Southern signature—a small crock of pimento cheese. But that is just the prelude to dinner!
We looked over entrees from the “land.” Short Rib Pappardelle jumped out with roasted carrots, peas, and mushrooms in a red wine sauce. And from the water, Seared Scallops over sweet pea, speck, saffron, and mushroom risotto with truffle oil and micro arugula seemed like a masterpiece. In the vegetarian category, Eggplant Steak offered grilled marinated eggplant, portabella mushroom, red lentil pilaf.
Being the seafood eater that I am, the Wild Rockfish beckoned and with seasonal changes, the toppings offered a new twist. A generous golden filet sported an oyster cream sauce made of oyster liquor (made in house from the juice of the shucked oysters) and nipped with wine and butter, tiny ham cubes, and freshly sautéed mushrooms. The crowning glory was a single poached oyster. The filet and sauce topped a layer of freshly wilted spinach and scallions. All of this graced a mound of rich garlic mashed potatoes.
My dining friend decided on a local farm entree, the Duroc Pork Chop. This variety of pork is the second most recorded breed of swine in the U.S. today, and a major breed in many other countries. Two beautifully browned, bone-in pork chops arrived atop a bed of sautéed greens and creamy polenta (which was declared amazing). The pork chops were nicely seasoned with fresh rosemary, salt and pepper, and a slightly lemony jus with capers, whole garlic cloves, and more fresh rosemary; the dish had visual pizazz. The chops were perfectly cooked to medium with crispy edges; a simple, thoughtful, and beautiful dish fragrant with fresh rosemary.
Banana Foster Bread and Butter Pudding, Vanilla Creme Brulee, and Smith Island Cake were the featured desserts on the menu, but there were also their always-famous pies. Even though pastry Chef Kelly Germanhauser has retired, a large and focused dessert menu continues with a new chef, featuring cinnamon buns for breakfast, croissants, and an emphasis on gluten-free desserts. Pies will continue to be a standard as owner John Wilson has always had that vision. Coconut Custard and Peanut Butter are the bestsellers. We ordered the Peanut Butter Pie and it satisfied, being mellow and creamy with a cheesecake-like consistency. The thin layer of ganache between the graham cracker crust and peanut butter layer complemented with a fudgy depth.
The suggestion to stroll through the gardens after dinner with seasonal lights was well-taken to walk off a bit of that decadent dinner. Although the outside wasn’t busy, it was beautifully lit to enhance the gardens. There was a cohesive group in the rocking chairs surrounding the large firepit. The thick plaid blankets for the cool breeze, left everyone cozy happy.
