Hook & Vine (North Beach, MD)

Hook & Vine (North Beach, MD) features a menu centered around southern coastal cuisine with a focus on fresh seafood, bacon, bourbon, and wine. Growing up in Charleston, SC, my standards are pretty high for a restaurant with this kind of focus.

My boyfriend and I wanted to have dinner there for a while, but with both of our schedules being really busy, it took several months before we finally made it in. We went for the first time on New Year’s Eve for dinner and went back for my birthday a few weeks later.

The first time we went, I had the shrimp and grits. Shrimp and grits is one of my favorite things, but, again, growing up in Charleston means that I’m extremely picky about my shrimp and grits. It was fantastic! I will definitely be ordering it again in the future. The grits were perfectly cooked, there was just the right amount of shrimp and andouille sausage, and the sauce was flavorful without overpowering the other elements of the dish.

We also had the tempura lobster bites appetizer. It’s a mix of tempura lobster and veggies. The veggies were very well executed – sometimes the batter can be tricky with certain veggies. The lobster pieces were large (think claw). There were more veggies than lobster, but the serving of veggies was generous. I loved the spicy aioli dipping sauce.

The next time we went, I had the jambalaya. Similar to my standards for shrimp and grits, the bar is also pretty high for jambalaya. I will also be ordering this again in the future, and it might be tough to pick between it and the shrimp and grits.

On the beverage side, they serve beer, wine, and cocktails. I’m not a beer drinker, so I can’t offer comments there. The wine list includes selections at various price points and also has enough variety for choosing something that will pair well with the meal. The cocktail menu features signature and seasonal cocktails. I ordered the Southern Cosmo from the signature cocktail list, and it was very good. I also enjoyed the pinot noir I chose to have with the shrimp and grits.

The servers were well-trained and attentive. It was extremely busy on New Year’s Eve, and the service was excellent.

We will definitely be back!