Birches Restaurant

I've been to Birches a few times and have always been impressed. Although from the outside it does not look like much, the atmosphere and the kind staff on the inside make you want to come back again and again. The food is delicious, everything from the steaks, soups, and even their pizzas. Even the salad was delicious. I'd recommend this restaurant to anyone looking for a cozy, heart of Baltimore culinary experience! more

I went to Birches on Friday night for a few drinks and a nice meal. The drinks were great b/c they serve Brewer's Art Resurrection, but we were waiting for close to an hour and a half for our table, which was after calling in our name, expecting it only to be about 45 minutes. Once we got our table, we put the order in and were waiting at least another 45 minutes for our app, when we realized that there was no food on any table in the restaurant and it was going to be a lot longer than we were willing to wait. Bartender/Waiter did not charge for our drinks and let us go on our way, but I am not sure if I would be willing to go back to this place for food if this is what I am to expect. more

Birches is my favorite neighborhood restaurant. They have incredible food and a very hospitable staff. Do... more

Birches is my favorite neighborhood restaurant. They have incredible food and a very hospitable staff. Do not go if you are in a hurry, because the... more

I took my wife to this restaurant last week for her birthday. The service was slow and the food disapointing. more

Use to enjoy the food; however, after our thrid consecutive bad experience, my wife and I have decided to never eat at this restaurant again. On our most recent visit the food had absolutely no flavor. In addition, we had to witness the owner and his wife have a very loud argument. Three strikes, your out Birches. Pros: USE to be a good place to go Cons: entrees lack flavor more

I took my wife to this restaurant last week for her birthday. The service was slow and the food disapointing. more

As a local restaurant/tavern owner in Baltimore for almost nine years I take an incredible amount of pride in furthering the culinary scene of our city. Unfortunately from time to time we have to deal with people like BKelly. This was a table of three people who felt a right to self entitlement and therefore believed they could treat my staff, wife and me however rudely they wanted and then justify it by saying they are spending money.\r To sum things up, people who treat us with respect and kindness are treated in kind, and vice versa. I invite all of you who enjoy great food and friendly people to come check Birches out for yourself. Thank you, Brian Bruso Executive Chef/Owner Birches Restaurant Pros: Great food & friendly people Cons: Closed on Sundays.. more

As a local restaurant/tavern owner in Baltimore for almost nine years I take an incredible amount of pride in furthering the culinary scene of our ... more

Birch’s was one of the absolute worst dining experiences in my life. We were rudely treated and insulted... more

Birch’s was one of the absolute worst dining experiences in my life. We were rudely treated and insulted by not only the server, but the actually o... more

Birches was one of the absolute worst dining experiences in my life. The incident occurred on March 14, 2009. We were rudely treated and insulted by not only the server, but the actually owner, Brian Bruso. I have never been so insulted by a human being, let alone a business to where I had just spent $200 for a meal. Not knowing the policy, and having split checks between multiple credit cards at many other restaurants, we (myself and two friends) innocently provided three separate credit cards. First, the server became very rude and barked, “if you’re going to pay this way we automatically include 20% gratuity”. We replied that that was fine. Next, she returns to let us know that she can now only accept one credit and that the policy is written on the menu. We were not only shocked at her tone and attitude; we were at a loss for why this was a policy. … especially in today’s day and age when most people use credit cards. That’s when a man with a dog (yes, in the restaurant!) called us "A$$holes". If this is their policy, fine. But to treat us like we had just committed a hennas crime is unacceptable. I later found out that this is the owner of the restaurant. Can you believe this! He then went on to rant about how he “weeds out customers like us” and began making these comments that were flat out lies, such as my friend was rude when he asked for water. As God is my witness, this did not happen. I have never in my life posted a negative comment on a blog, sent a letter of disappoint about service, etc. However, this experience was horrible, completely out of line, and appears to be a regular occurrence at Birch’s as noted on The Baltimore Sun's blog dining@large where you can actually read the owners defence to another bad review. Just by reading his reply you can tell this guy is a nut job! There are plenty of great restaurants in Baltimore that would gladly appreciate your business,especially in our current financial times. After reading about other bad experiences, and now having a similar experience myself, it appears that this is a common occurrence at Birches. I can't help but wonder how many other people have had a similar experience at Birch's but never shared. I have eaten at this restaurant many times, in fact my 40th birthday party was hoted on their upper level; however, I can assure you that my friends and I will never step foot in this place again. Pros: within walking distance to my house Cons: horrible service more

Birches is warm and cozy. Great place for dinner during the chilly winter months. They have a great beer list that impressed my beer snob husband. Unfortunately I can't say the same for the wine list. The selection was not impressive, so I went with a beer instead. They offered a few season items that were very yummy. The winter squash soup was AMAZING and the French onion we just as good. Our dinners both had Lobster in them and it was very fishy tasting. I think the dishes (the paella and mac and cheese) would have been better with out the lobster, so don't splurge on the addition. They offer lots of comfort food items. Definitely will be back again to try a new dish with out the lobster! more