If you’ve been in Annapolis for any amount of time, you’ve probably heard of West Street. Spanning from Church Circle in the heart of downtown all the way to Parole, West Street is the most direct route from one side of Annapolis to the other. It’s a hive of shops, arts and culture (it's home to the Annapolis Arts & Entertainment District), restaurants, and, most importantly, happy hour scenes. One such West Street delight is Metropolitan Kitchen & Lounge.
Metropolitan—fondly called “Met” by those who frequent the establishment—has graced the downtown side of West Street since 2011. Known for its open mic-style music on the first floor, larger music venue on the second floor, and modern, open-aired lounge and bar on the roof, Met has a little something for everybody.
Happy hour runs 4:00-7:00 on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and on Thursdays all night, 4:00 till 10:00 for food and till midnight for drinks. They have an excellent variety of happy hour plates specials at three different price points: five, six, and eight dollars. Of course, I tried one of each. It was definitely hard to decide, though, because they all sounded delicious.
For five dollars I got the Baba Ganouj. It was a generous portion—enough to share—and came with plenty of well-seasoned, house-made flatbread. I’ve never been able to pass up bruschetta, so for six dollars I got their twist on the Italian classic, which came with four crispy ciabatta slices topped with pesto, marinated tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, balsamic, and embellished with microgreens. I must say, even having visited Rome, that plate is not one I’ll soon forget! For eight dollars, I ordered the cheese plate. The cheese selection that day was aged cheddar, drunken goat, and smoked moody blue, and it arrived on a tree trunk slice functioning as cheeseboard. In addition, the plate had bread, walnuts, sliced dates, and apricot jam and honey for dipping.
Check out their music calendar for great live local music, and be sure to visit their rooftop bar some evening for an all-around magical West Street experience.
Metropolitan Kitchen & Lounge is closed on Mondays.
Images courtesy of Leslie Howard-Goddard and Marley Crank
