The food was very good.  I started with the  butternut squash soup which turned out to be the highlight of my meal.  Rich creamy soup with fried goat cheese balls and a drizzle of olive oil.   I came close to licking the bowl on that one.  I also sampled the sheep’s milk agnilotti, the heritage pork belly and the Border Springs Farm lamb flatbread.  All three of which were delicious.  I cannot stand overcooked pasta and I am happy to report that the agnilotti was cooked perfectly.  The pork belly had a nicely crisped exterior and a juicy inside.   The menu is not huge, but there is plenty to choose from.

Of course, like the name implies this place is about wine.  The best way to enjoy this is get one of their flights.  These are groupings of three wines, thematically tied together.  They come in high quality glassware and each flight was accompanied by a little set of cards explaining the three different wines.  I ordered the Italian Renaissance, which was the only flight that had both white and red wine.  I had the white (Fuso Verdicchio) with the soup, which made for a terrific pairing.  The other two were reds.  The only down note was that I felt like the last wine of the flight, the Marabino Noto Nero D’Avola, was a little old and flat tasting.  I always have a little bit of a concern about freshness in places that have a lot of wine by the glass available on the menu, yet just keep the partially full bottles out on the counter with the corks  stuffed in them.  On the plus side there are lots of interesting flights to try:  Pinot Evil and a flight of three bubblies caught my eye.

The service was good and the lunch with appetizer, entrée and a flight of wine each came to about $40 each including tip.  All of us agreed that it is well worth a return trip.  On the way out we noticed a nice set of leather sofa surrounding a fireplace.  That would be the spot to while away some time while sampling their wines!!

I also really like the ambiance of the restaurant.  It struck me as one of those neighborhood places you find in Boston or New York.  I think it’s due to the fact that when you look out the front windows all you see are trees and residences and no other commercial property.  It really makes it feel like a cozy neighborhood joint, which is exactly what it is!

Il Porto:  200 South Market Street, Frederick, MD 21701-6527 Phone: (301) 620-7480

I paid $14.99 for this from the Frederick Wine House.  I rate it a solid 90.

They make a lot of this so you should be able to buy this almost everywhere for about $10.  Just make sure its the 2009.  Also don’t confuse it their other Reislings: Dry Riesling  and Harvest Select Riesling which I haven’t tasted.

To all those who inquired thanks! I am fine. Sorry for the light blogging.  I’ve done a bunch of fun food and wine related things this Summer and Fall but just been too busy to write about them.  Life just keeps getting in the way.  I fully intend to let you guys know about some of them.

The owners have made some changes and the eating area is stylishly decorated with muted earth tones, pictures by local artists and a zinc bar.  They also have a four table outdoor dining area overlooking East street, but on the day we went it was just too darn hot to sit there.  They are serving a limited menu right now, but their website indicates that they plan to expand it in the fall.  We had a cheese plate, the crostini, a caprese salad special and the vegetable flatbread.  Plenty of food for two moderately hungry people.   The food was quite good.  They have a nice selection of cheeses to choose from and the three spreads that came with the crostini were excellent.  The flatbread was nice and I really appreciated that the vegetable topping had not been cooked into mush and was still crispy and flavorful. The service was also very attentive.  They had about 40 wines by the glass and Mrs. F and I had fun picking and sampling a variety.

While I thought the food prices were a little on the expensive side the wine prices were excellent.  Everything they had by the glass was available in 2 or 6 ounce pours and the wines by the bottle were really a good value.  Most restaurants sell wine by the bottle for double or even triple retail.  Shab Row’s prices were significantly less than that.  Furthermore they have a wine store in the back and they will pour you anything there for a $9 corkage fee.  I didn’t explore the wine store as we were having too much fun with the wines by the glass.  Their website also lists their happy hour times which look worthwhile. 

Bottom line:  If you think of this as an excellent place to drink some wine with some decent finger food on the side you won’t be disappointed.

UPDATE:  went back to get a few more bottles and they were sold out.  Note to self:  must buy the bottles BEFORE I blog about it.  The owner said he thought they would get some more in.