Photography by Tony Lewis Jr.
By Rita Calvert
Rams Head Roadhouse
1773 Generals Highway | Annapolis, MD 21401 | 410-849-8058
Locals and visitors all know Rams Head as a great spot to meet for an informal jaw, good music, and exceptionable signature beer. Just off the beaten path is their great roadside tavern—Rams Head Roadhouse, doubling as a sports bar and featuring their house brews, Fordham and Dominion beers. The interior is surprising: bigger and brighter than the exterior would indicate. Locals especially love it and families flock there to partake of the kids’ menu. General Manager, Jason White, gives us the lowdown.
P.S. Don’t miss the Rams Head Roadhouse prime rib, steak, and lobster specials!
With other Rams Head Taverns, how did the Crownsville location become a roadhouse?
Rams Head Group is family owned and operated since 1989, with its first location on West Street in Annapolis and has grown to five restaurant locations today. Rams Head Roadhouse was originally named Rudy’s Tavern before the Rams Head Group purchased it in 2004. Although the Rams Head Group owns two taverns, one in Annapolis and one in Savage, each of our locations is unique. When opening a new restaurant, we play into the characteristics and attributes of that restaurant’s location. By definition, the Rams Head Roadhouse is in fact a Roadhouse—a commercial establishment typically built on or near a major road or highway that services
brpassing travelers. Located on Generals Highway, the Roadhouse is the perfect place to have a business lunch, meet friends for happy hour, or enjoy dinner with family. We’re community oriented and the surrounding neighborhoods are part of the Rams Head family.
Rams Head is the leader for music in our region. What do you offer here? Is it a solid spot for live music?
Rams Head strives to provide the best in food, fun, and beer—music is a big part of that at the Roadhouse. There’s never a cover to enjoy music at Rams Head and the Roadhouse offers free live music three days a week. Acoustic acts, energetic duos, and full bands can be found on Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday nights. Our full music schedule can be found on our website at ramsheadroadhouse.com.
Word has it your happy hour is a hit. Tell us about it.
Our happy hour is available Monday through Friday from 3 to 7 p.m. and includes half price apps, $2 off all wine and liquor, $2.50 domestic bottles, and $3 draft beers. Best of all, craft beers are included in the $3 draft beer special. One of the best things about the Roadhouse is the atmosphere, where strangers become friends and all guests are treated like family. Get here early to claim a table or spot at the bar because by 4 p.m. it’s standing room only.
Tell us about your beer flight. Do your beer offerings change frequently? What is your beer club?
Our brewery, Fordham and Dominion, was founded at our Annapolis Tavern in 1995
brand has brewed our house drafts ever since. Our beer flight is a great opportunity to discover a new favorite beer if you can’t decide on one. It consists of five pre-selected drafts and a sixth seasonal, which changes monthly.
Our beer club began in 1990 and originally consisted of 100 beers. Since then it has grown to over 150 beers from around the world and comes with great perks. World Beer Club members receive a free koozie upon signing up, a $15 Rams Head voucher after they sample 50 beers, happy hour priced drafts any time, and a member t-shirt after 100 beers, plus a commemorative glassware set, $50 voucher, and 10 percent off all Rams Head merchandise after they complete all 150 beers. We also host beer release parties which feature a new beer on the first Thursday of every month. Guests can purchase a commemorative glass they get to take home for $4 and it comes filled with the featured beer. Additional fills are only $2 from 4 to 7 p.m. The Roadhouse offers growler fills for all drafts on tap.
What are some of your most popular dishes?
Our most popular dishes are our rockfish bites, Roadhouse chili, Atlantic salmon, cream of crab soup, Reuben sandwich, our creative burgers, plus lunch and dinner specials, which change daily. And of course, we can’t forget our Rudy’s original pizza which features Rudy’s sauce and thirteen toppings to choose from.
You do a special brunch menu on Sundays?
Our brunch starts at 10 a.m. on Sundays and offers both breakfast and lunch items. From crab cake benedict to Grand Marnier French toast, there’s something for everyone, even kids. Our famous “bottomless bloody Mary bar” is also available for $10 with the purchase of an entrée—we provide the fixin’s, you provide the mixin!
Do you have outdoor seating? What about the cool weather months?
We added a deck in the spring of 2014 which seats 60. With lush palms and colorful flowers, the deck is the spot for outdoor dining during the spring and summer. In the cooler months, gas heaters provide a cozy atmosphere when the temperatures begin to drop. As all Marylanders know, the weather can change drastically from day to day, so we offer outdoor dining year-round, weather permitting.
With close to three decades in the food, media production, marketing and public relations fields, Rita has created myriad programs, events, cooking sessions on national television, the stage and The Annapolis School of Cooking. She has partnered in writing cookbooks and product lines to showcase the inspiration, art and nourishment of food. Her work has always embodied the naturally wholesome and satisfying. In The Grassfed Gourmet Fires It Up, Rita supports the effort for Regenerative Agriculture while helping grillers understand what makes ‘grassfed’ different.
1 pound ground beef
3/4 cup diced yellow onion
3/4 cup diced green pepper
2 cups ketchup
3 1/4 cups kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3 1/4 cups canned diced tomatoes
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
2 1/4 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 tablespoons minced jalapeno
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Garnish: shredded cheddar cheese, chopped scallions
In a sauté pan over high heat, brown ground beef. Add the beef to a large soup pot. Do not drain the drippings, but use to sauté onions and green peppers until onions are slightly brown.
Remove the vegetables and combine in a large soup pot with beef, ketchup, spices, and kidney beans. Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat stirring regularly. Add diced tomatoes and simmer for 30 mins. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve in soup bowl with tortilla chips, topped with shredded cheddar cheese and scallions.
Locals and visitors all know Rams Head as a great spot to meet for an informal jaw, good music, and exceptionable signature beer. Just off the beaten path is their great roadside tavern—Rams Head Roadhouse, doubling as a sports bar and featuring their house brews, Fordham and Dominion beers. The interior is surprising: bigger and brighter than the exterior would indicate. Locals especially love it and families flock there to partake of the kids’ menu. General Manager, Jason White, gives us the lowdown.
P.S. Don’t miss the Rams Head Roadhouse prime rib, steak, and lobster specials!
With other Rams Head Taverns, how did the Crownsville location become a roadhouse?
Rams Head Group is family owned and operated since 1989, with its first location on West Street in Annapolis and has grown to five restaurant locations today. Rams Head Roadhouse was originally named Rudy’s Tavern before the Rams Head Group purchased it in 2004. Although the Rams Head Group owns two taverns, one in Annapolis and one in Savage, each of our locations is unique. When opening a new restaurant, we play into the characteristics and attributes of that restaurant’s location. By definition, the Rams Head Roadhouse is in fact a Roadhouse—a commercial establishment typically built on or near a major road or highway that services
brpassing travelers. Located on Generals Highway, the Roadhouse is the perfect place to have a business lunch, meet friends for happy hour, or enjoy dinner with family. We’re community oriented and the surrounding neighborhoods are part of the Rams Head family.
Rams Head is the leader for music in our region. What do you offer here? Is it a solid spot for live music?
Rams Head strives to provide the best in food, fun, and beer—music is a big part of that at the Roadhouse. There’s never a cover to enjoy music at Rams Head and the Roadhouse offers free live music three days a week. Acoustic acts, energetic duos, and full bands can be found on Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday nights. Our full music schedule can be found on our website at ramsheadroadhouse.com.
Word has it your happy hour is a hit. Tell us about it.
Our happy hour is available Monday through Friday from 3 to 7 p.m. and includes half price apps, $2 off all wine and liquor, $2.50 domestic bottles, and $3 draft beers. Best of all, craft beers are included in the $3 draft beer special. One of the best things about the Roadhouse is the atmosphere, where strangers become friends and all guests are treated like family. Get here early to claim a table or spot at the bar because by 4 p.m. it’s standing room only.
Tell us about your beer flight. Do your beer offerings change frequently? What is your beer club?
Our brewery, Fordham and Dominion, was founded at our Annapolis Tavern in 1995
brand has brewed our house drafts ever since. Our beer flight is a great opportunity to discover a new favorite beer if you can’t decide on one. It consists of five pre-selected drafts and a sixth seasonal, which changes monthly.
Our beer club began in 1990 and originally consisted of 100 beers. Since then it has grown to over 150 beers from around the world and comes with great perks. World Beer Club members receive a free koozie upon signing up, a $15 Rams Head voucher after they sample 50 beers, happy hour priced drafts any time, and a member t-shirt after 100 beers, plus a commemorative glassware set, $50 voucher, and 10 percent off all Rams Head merchandise after they complete all 150 beers. We also host beer release parties which feature a new beer on the first Thursday of every month. Guests can purchase a commemorative glass they get to take home for $4 and it comes filled with the featured beer. Additional fills are only $2 from 4 to 7 p.m. The Roadhouse offers growler fills for all drafts on tap.
What are some of your most popular dishes?
Our most popular dishes are our rockfish bites, Roadhouse chili, Atlantic salmon, cream of crab soup, Reuben sandwich, our creative burgers, plus lunch and dinner specials, which change daily. And of course, we can’t forget our Rudy’s original pizza which features Rudy’s sauce and thirteen toppings to choose from.
You do a special brunch menu on Sundays?
Our brunch starts at 10 a.m. on Sundays and offers both breakfast and lunch items. From crab cake benedict to Grand Marnier French toast, there’s something for everyone, even kids. Our famous “bottomless bloody Mary bar” is also available for $10 with the purchase of an entrée—we provide the fixin’s, you provide the mixin!
Do you have outdoor seating? What about the cool weather months?
We added a deck in the spring of 2014 which seats 60. With lush palms and colorful flowers, the deck is the spot for outdoor dining during the spring and summer. In the cooler months, gas heaters provide a cozy atmosphere when the temperatures begin to drop. As all Marylanders know, the weather can change drastically from day to day, so we offer outdoor dining year-round, weather permitting.
With close to three decades in the food, media production, marketing and public relations fields, Rita has created myriad programs, events, cooking sessions on national television, the stage and The Annapolis School of Cooking. She has partnered in writing cookbooks and product lines to showcase the inspiration, art and nourishment of food. Her work has always embodied the naturally wholesome and satisfying. In The Grassfed Gourmet Fires It Up, Rita supports the effort for Regenerative Agriculture while helping grillers understand what makes ‘grassfed’ different.
Photography by Tony Lewis Jr.
Ram’s Head Roadhouse Chili
Serves Four1 pound ground beef
3/4 cup diced yellow onion
3/4 cup diced green pepper
2 cups ketchup
3 1/4 cups kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3 1/4 cups canned diced tomatoes
1 1/2 tablespoons chili powder
2 1/4 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 tablespoons minced jalapeno
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
Garnish: shredded cheddar cheese, chopped scallions
In a sauté pan over high heat, brown ground beef. Add the beef to a large soup pot. Do not drain the drippings, but use to sauté onions and green peppers until onions are slightly brown.
Remove the vegetables and combine in a large soup pot with beef, ketchup, spices, and kidney beans. Cook for 10 minutes over medium heat stirring regularly. Add diced tomatoes and simmer for 30 mins. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve in soup bowl with tortilla chips, topped with shredded cheddar cheese and scallions.
