Monocacy Crossing

Delicious meal and excellent service. Worth a trip. Monocacy Crossing doesn’t disappoint

We read that this restaurant had as good or better ratings than the Tasting Room and AYSE and our experience lived up to that reputation. The food was excellent, the atmosphere was great, and the service was perfect!

The quote below captures how we felt about our bland Sat night dinner at Monocacy Crossing:

"To ‘rest on your laurels’ means that you get lazy or complacent about what you could achieve because you’re too busy basking in the memories of former glories."

Perhaps some people have read too many of their own reviews. Maybe they've started to mail-it-in. The chef (and or owner if different) should visit 4-5 restaurants around Frederick and another 4-5 in Baltimore or DC. Then ask if they've tried hard enough. We don't mean to suggest Monocacy should try to act like some other restaurant. But we do mean that somebody needs to try harder.

If the above seems too abstract, then let's get specifically critical:

- The appetizers seemed uninventive. The scallops tasted fine, but we can make better-tasting and fancier scallops at home. And we couldn't find any appetizer that looked better than the scallops

- The menu seemed so uncreative that we both chose different cuts of beef. What a mistake. The chef cheaped-out with low-grade (i.e., not tender) meat and did nothing to make it taste good. (Ms./Mr. Chef, go get some rib-eyes at CostCo if you can't do better.) Don't order steak.

- My wife got the poundcake (again). Why? Because nothing seemed better. You wonder if the poundcake acts like the bride at the wedding, with all the other desserts serving as bridesmaids that can't look better than the bride. We hope so. Because if the chef meant to put effort into the other desserts then s/he really missed the mark.

- At first, our server seemed cold. Maybe she had a bad day. By the end of the meal she rose to luke warm. No atrocious story to tell, but as a guest you feel uncomfortable if your server seems like they strain to serve you.

All bad? No. Somebody brewed some rich tasty decaf coffee on Sat night. Unfortunately, mentioning the decaf coffee constitutes damning further with faint praise.

Celebrating 12th Wedding Anniversary

Best kept secret in Frederick!

Our favorite restaurant for special occasions as well as for just a night out. There are always interesting menus options and we have always been pleased with the temperature and plating of the food. The servers contribute to a calm atmosphere and you do not feel rushed even if they are busy. We highly recommend Monocasy Crossing.

Food and service top notch great place to enjoy dinner with your wife and friends .

Good food and great value worth the drive. Spend a little time in the area worthwhile,

Soneone recommended this place. Mind you, it’s a 1.5 hour drive and was well with it.

Best kept secret!

It’s now a regular Sunday brunch for me.

Killer Cosmos! Great food and service. The outdoor patio is fun.

More vegan meals and menu changes. More simple salad choices. Strip steak was grizzly and tough. More Keto friendly food choices. Pretty tired of snow peas.

Food was very good but service was a little slow. We were in a room by ourselves so noise was not an issue. Would come again if you were a little closer to where I live in Rockville.

The food from the appetizers and fresh bread to the main course and dessert was well prepared and excellent. Our service was excellent as well. Took my mom for her birthday and it was the perfect choice for that special event. The prices are comparable to any good restaurant with a well trained chef.

Wonderful experience for lunch. Returning today!

On the patio, waited for service for 20 minutes. Waitress said she didn't see us. Food heat everytime. Jerk Salmon was excellent. Place fans on the patio to circulate air or create a breeze. Lovely patio. Too stifling to stay long.

Very good food and lovely, accommodating wait staff. My second time for lunch. Something on the menu for everyone. My friend had recommended it after hosting a rehearsal wedding luncheon in April. Not a complaint, but a comment on my last lunch. Ordered salmon which came with a flavorful rice and snow pea pods. The woman across from us had ordered the same entrée. Her plate had an ample single piece of salmon---mine had 4 tail pieces---still prepared to order but would not have ordered had I known I would get the small tail pieces. Still would definitely return.

My wife and celebrated our 48th Anniversary at Monocacy Crossing. As usual, we had a wonderful experience - our martinis (just 1) were very way to begin our evening. Our entrees were delicious - pork loin and chicken dishes followed by a wonderful dessert - homemade coconut pound cake. We have been to Monocacy Crossing many times - we have never been disappointed. ;-) .

Went early on a Sunday evening to enjoy the outdoor patio. There was a band playing that made conversation somewhat difficult. Enormous servings of appetizers, $10 off bottles of wine on Sundays, and discounted appetizers made for an inexpensive but satisfying meal. Not an extensive wine list, either by the bottle or by the glass, but what they had was sufficient. Casual atmosphere; seemed like mostly locals. Service was initially efficient and as it became more crowded was slower, but not a deal breaker. Overall it was a good experience and we would definitely return.

Excellent. Pork sirloin best we ever had. Will go back again. Wonderful service and food was hot and delicious!!!!!

Broad menu with choices for everyone. Great value for the quality of food and presentation. Very attentive and knowledgeable service

Amazing menu, cozy dining, terrific food, great service, and nice wines at a nice price. Can't wait to come back to dine on the patio and experience happy hour! This is going to be our new Friday night date night venue!

Food was excellent with wide variety on menu. Sit outdoors if you can -- noise level indoors was significant (even though the room is not large). Country dining atmosphere. Outdoor patio dining under umbrellas is relaxed and atmospheric.

One of our regular spots. Just as good as ever. Glad to see Rosa promoted.

Ended up sitting at the bar and had a great dinner. Monocacy Crossing consistently delivers flavorful, imaginative food at a fair price. Love it!

Had the chipotle braised beef brisket and it was amazing! Also enjoyed the watermelon refresher - one of the drink specials - also delicious. Had s wonderful time.

Cozy dining room indoors where we ate. There also was a very nice outdoor dining area. Food was very good. Service was adequate-not awesome, but not bad enough to complain about.

I had a lovely lunch with my mom to celebrate her 75th birthday. Loved the fish tacos and the waitress was very attentive with drink refills. The blueberry dessert was excellent, kind of like a bread pudding with a blueberry cobbler mixture. And the outdoor seating under umbrellas was pleasant and relaxing.

The service was very friendly and accommodating, but a bit slow, considering that it wasn’t very busy. The prices were reasonable, but the food was mediocre and not very well presented. It had gotten good reviews on the internet, but I would not go again.

It was A+ in every way possible!

Monocacy Crossing is a nice restaurant offering moderately price meals that are nicely prepared with great service. The staff is efficient and responsive to the customers' needs. The menu offers a good variety, and several menu selections offer half portions. I am already looking forward to my next visit.

Food is good, prices reasonable, desserts outstanding

Excellent food at a moderate price for lunch. Presentation is superb. But ambiance outdoors leaves much to be desired. With some trees and shrubbery, the restaurant could block the busy highway from the outdoor patio and make an outdoor lunch there even more memorable.

For a pleasant dining experience this is one of the best spots in the area. Always worth the drive for a substantial meal at a more than fair cost.

Not as good as past visits

Monocacy Crossing, was an unexpected surprise. I was heading in that direction from Potomac and a friend told me I should take all the back roads, enjoy my convertible and stop for dinner. my friend told me that the first thing I should order is the pound cake because it was so good she wanted to make sure that I could reserve an order if they were running low. the weather was fabulous, ate outside, food was fabulous, staff was so friendly and made me feel like a welcome old friend. what a gem of a dining experience.
beth g
potomac, md

Because of the price, I wouldn't recommend this restaurant to a friend. I had higher expectations I guess and expect 5-star from a place like this. First, I had seen the chef on public television in the past. They claim to have a farm to table menu, using local seafood and in season fruits and vegetables. The fish of the day (can't remember exactly what it was) was not local. I looked forward to a seasonal creation by the chef for dessert, but cheesecake, brownies, coconut cake and an apple dessert were on the menu. I'm pretty sure apples aren't in season in the summer and coconuts are definitely not local; seemed like a holiday dessert menu to me. Secondly, the service was just okay. The waitress was only semi friendly and helpful; regardless, we left her a 25% tip then stayed for about 15 min. to finish our drinks. She never acknowledged us after that and upon leaving I saw her and said thanks and got no response. The last time we were there was 10 years ago and our experience was much better. Too many good restaurants in the area to go back to this one or recommend to anyone else.

Great food, great service! Nice place to enjoy a special day with family!

A little loud when we first sat down but they moved us upon request. Food was delicious and the service was excellent. Not a particularly romantic place, but we were inside as it was just too warm to sit on the patio.

Excellent service...excellent staff...Food was great!!

Creative dishes in a cozy atmosphere, service was very friendly and knowledgeable yet gave us plenty of time and space to talk and make meal decisions. Highly recommend!