Sonoma's

I have recently become quite a fan of Sonoma's in the Village of Owen Brown.  Sonoma's is one of only a few restaurants in Columbia that allow dogs.  Dogs are permitted to sit at tables outside the restaurant that open to the rest of the shopping center.  Almost as soon as I sat down with my folks, a waitress came out bringing me some water.  My folks got drinks as well.  Sonoma's has a full bar and plenty of beers that I wasn't allowed to drink.  But my humans were quite satisfied with the beer options.  With that in mind, the outside seating is also where bar patrons come out to smoke, so please keep that in mind.

My meal began with the crab dip, fused with some cheddar cheese.  I must say, I was quite a fan, plenty of flavor.  Humans get their choice of french bread or pita chips to accompany the dip.  Next the entrees came out.  I sampled the Smokehouse Sampler, brisket, pulled pork, and turkey.  The portions were huge.  While the brisket wasn't quite what I'm used to, the pulled pork and turkey were excellent.  The menu also featured assorted tacos and fajitas, with your choice of meat or vegetarian, which my human said was terrific.  There are also weekly specials featuring seafood and sides.

I'm not allowed to eat dessert, but my humans told me that the fresh-baked monkey bread was excellent. There are also a Reese's pie which my humans loved.

During football season, Sonoma's is packed on game days/nights.  Its not always the best place for a nice meal with family.  Because the seating opens to the shopping center, there is sometimes heavy traffic coming from Lake Elkhorn or other stores in the center.  However, on non-game times, its a great location for good times for dogs and humans alike.  The outside seating has plenty of shade and can be very peaceful, and a walk around the lake after dinner is a great way to end the day.   I recommend taking your dog to Sonoma's.

La Paz, Frederick, MD

Today, my folks took me to La Paz Mexican Restaurant in Frederick, MD.  Its so hard to find sit down restaurants where I am allowed to eat so it was worth the drive.  First, let me just say that Frederick is one of the most dog-friendly towns around, I was welcome almost everywhere up and down Market Street.  The outdoor seating at La Paz is great, if you can get a table with an umbrella, as you overlook a small creek across from the restaurant.  La Paz welcomes dogs and there were water bowls all around the outdoor eating area.  We got there on a perfect Sunday afternoon so it was pretty crowded, but it only took 10 minutes to get a table.  Chips and salsa were waiting.  It turns out I'm a fan of salsa.  Next the burritos, enchilada, and tacos came.  The food was great.  The portions were huge so my folks let me have a small taste of everything and even got a few licks of the plate.  The beef and chicken  were seasoned just the way I liked it.  The refried beans were pretty good too, although I didn't care for them much, my folks told me they were great.  Because it was crowded, the service was a little slow but overall, the food and atmosphere were great.  The best part was that I was allowed.  So I recommend La Paz.  Stay tuned!  Next I'll review Yappy Hour in Ellicot City, the Bowie Baysox, and Baltimore's Greekfest.