Wednesday 4th of July 2012 07:50:27 PM

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There are plenty of shops and eateries along Ellicott City's Main Street. Massive 300 million year old monolithic rock lines the north side of the street, and this makes for a lovely sunny day stroll (or crisp evening crawl). For beer hunters, I recommend three stops which span just 1/3 mile. Ellicott City's best draft selection is at Judge's Bench, the best bottle selection is at Phoenix Emporium, and freshly brewed craft beer is offered at Ellicott Mills brewpub. I really enjoyed my visit to this charming town.

The Phoenix Emporium is located just across the street from the antebellum B&O Railroad Station Museum on the Patapsco River. I found it interesting that a small creek flows under the building. Pale green and black decor is rather rustic, and stained glass panels hang from the low ceiling. They have several dilapidated wooden tables, and a 15-chair bar that overlooks three refrigerators full of about 150 global craft beers. They have an excellent bottle selection, but I regret is that there are no taps, so some one-off brewery offerings would be missed. All things considered, I enjoyed my visit.

Sunday 15th of July 2007 06:27:58 PM

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The Phoenix Emporium is a "bottles only" beer bar - but with 100 or so to choose from (five or six of which are always rotated to provide variety if you visit often, which I do - it's been a favorite or mine for years) you'll seldom run out of choices. This is a pub, not a fine restaurant or a sports bar: there's a bar to lean on while you discuss Iraq, sports, sex, your boss, whatever; and there is also a comfortable restaurant side where excellent table service is provided. The historic district of Ellicott City is known for its restaurants, so no place can survive with bad food: Phoenix is no exception and is known for fantastic burgers, awesome salads, delicious chili, and perhaps the best "fish and chips" outside of the U.K. (ok, I listed my favorite menu items, but yes, of course: there are others). (By the way, yes, I've had fish and chips in the U.K., so I have a basis for comparison.) They almost never update their website, and as I write this review, the online menu is about a year out of date. My advice: just stop by and risk it. You won't be disappointed.