Restaurants in Pikesville

Blue Agave's menu features upscale, authentic Mexican cuisine that rotates to include fresh, seasonal ingredients common to the region. Take off your shoes and glide across the floor to your tile-top table encased in exposed brick walls decorated with relics of turquoise and terra-cotta affectations.

Milan's chef blends traditional Italian recipes with creative flair when grilling marinated rib-eye steaks and hand-rolling fresh pastas. Grilled swordfish, spinach pasta, filet mignon, and a braised lamb take separate spotlights on dinner plates, guarded by sidekicks such as butternut squash and roasted fingerling potatoes. Sunday-brunch spreads treat taste buds to gourmet entrees such as lump-crab omelets and belgian waffles with cannoli filling, plus mimosas mixed with only the tears of overjoyed oranges.

Milan's three levels and 12,000 square feet fill with jovial chatter, and an opulent white dining area lets patrons bask in futuristic style without sneaking into an astronaut's nest. The restaurant maintains a fashion-centric ethos, meaning proper dining attire is required.

The Red Star Bar & Grill boasts a refined menu of bar fare for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch. Dive into an order of mussels and garlic fries ($12), and enjoy the butter-topped bivalve cooked in a white wine and basil broth. Spice-seekers can explore the jalapeno mac and cheese ($10), loaded with bacon and jalapenos and topped with panko bread crumbs. Red Star's enticing entree selection boasts eight savory salads (full sizes start at $7), gourmet personal pizzas (starting at $10), and artfully constructed hand-helds, such as the blackened tuna wrap ($13), which includes sushi-grade ahi tuna, fresh veggies, and Creole remoulade sauce, or the bison burger ($12), topped with sautéed onions, pepper jack cheese, and a roasted garlic aioli. Ensure dinner has as sweet a conclusion as Othello with the daily-changing bread pudding ($5) or seasonal cheesecake ($5).

Housed in a grand townhouse, the Mount Vernon microbrewery offers patrons a carefully curated menu of imported sips, scotches, and brewed-on-site beers. For food, Chef Dave Newman keeps diners guessing with a menu that rotates with the four seasons practiced in the United States. For starters, try the house-made artichoke ravioli, glazed with Meyer lemon-infused butter and pistachio-mint pesto ($10). When you're ready to move on to more filling adventures, entrees include the inventive, crispy Utz-crusted cod with baby clams and smoky mountain bacon ($24), grilled shrimp with spring pea and mint risotto ($16), and grilled lamb loin ($28).

Housed in one of downtown Baltimore's oldest brick buildings, the Waterfront Hotel Restaurant offers a weekend brunch menu splashed with traditional southern flavors and deep-sea delights. Fatigued longshoremen can break their fast with a crab hash skillet ($17.95), while languid landlubbers can hunker down with a traditional 8-ounce steak-and-eggs platter ($13.95). Lunch or dinner at the Waterfront may begin with undersea treats such as ginger calamari ($9.95) or buttery mussels ($9.95). Slay a grumbling gut-Grendel with a fried oyster po' boy ($11.95), or contemplate the mystic duality of lunch over a sweet-and-savory turkey-brie quesadilla ($9.95). Evening entrees, served from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m, include the scampi (blackened shrimp, scallops, and crab over linguini, $16.95) and the honey chipotle pork chop with mac 'n' cheese ($14.95).

Talara pulsates with vibrant Art Deco hues and patrons passing tapas, seviche, paella, and an array of Latin and South American specialties. Seven different seviche styles, each with a different mix of fresh seafood, are available from the seviche bar; nosh a 2 oz. serving of traditional seviche ($8) or choose two ($15) or three ($21) different preparations, such as the Peruvian-style tiradito or the curried tropical fruit. Tapas options include Portuguese-style mussels ($9), mini tostadas ($8), and empanadas stuffed with pulled pork and queso blanco ($9). Mid-sized plates, such as coconut-shrimp tempura ($15) and chili-rubbed salmon ($16), fill any appetite bucket to the brim. View the complete menu here.