As a Baltimore County native, these restaurants have been some of my favorites throughout the years.

I would often say that being a foodie is in my blood. While my mother hates food with a passion, and often tells us that she wishes humans were born without the ability to need food, my father owned a restaurant in Baltimore County, where I grew up. And like so many other immigrant kids, I grew up in that restaurant (which, for the sake of objectivity, is not on this list). It’s like a second home.

When I moved to New York City for college, I didn’t have a lot of money, but I always wished I could eat out at the nice places that I walked past when going to school. While I make more money now and don’t live in New York, but often visiting, I try to support these kinds of restaurants whenever possible now.

It was moving back to Baltimore County that taught me to eat out more, although 90% of the time I cook at home. I eat out to try the foods that I cannot cook at home, like Brazilian feijoada or momos, and I really like exploring the world through food.

That said, I’ve really curated my taste at this point. Here are some of my favorite places to eat throughout the county—and I’m sure eventually there will be a part two to this blog post as I get around!

Mr. Souvlaki in Perry Hall has become a new favorite quickly.

I though to start this list with a hot new addition, as Mr. Souvlaki just opened their outpost in Perry Hall rather recently (or when I am typing this). Located right off of Belair Road, this location is no frills. You order at the counter, and if you’re eating in, the girl behind the counter delivers the food to your table when it is ready.

My go-to order is the falafel pita wrap. Loaded with spices and tzatziki, each bite is like a wonderful explosion of flavor in your mouth. Add some seasoned crispy fries to your wrap and you’re going to be set for a while with what this wrap provides.

My father likes the gyro platter, but if you can’t eat a lot, you can easily split it it between two people. My mother and I could easily eat it together with the amount of meat that was on the plate, along with the two sides you get with it.

Also try the baklava cheesecake—it’s to die for. We’re all obsessed with their baklava cheesecake.

El Gran Pollo is a Peruvian chain throughout the county with excellent chicken.

I first started going to El Gran Pollo when they had their Cockeysville location, which is closed at the time of typing this. I then realized this place is pretty much a chain, and then I started going to the Towson location because it’s located not too far from the university, which I was attending at the time as a graduate student.

For $13 (at the time of typing this), you can get a fourth of a Peruvian rotisserie chicken, your choice of white or dark meat, and two sides. My go-to sides are the fried yucca, which I adore over french fries, and the seasoned black beans. Their plantains are also really good.

I also usually pick up an Inca Kola can while I’m in here, which is a Peruvian soda that has a bubblegum flavor. For the price of the food, though, I always leave here stuffed and satisfied. Their dishes are delicious.

Konoko, a Jamaican restaurant in White Marsh, has some incredible pasta and jerk chicken.

I first went to Konoko with my mother on a random Saturday for lunch, and we were the only people in the restaurant when we came. Located at the Avenue in White Marsh, I always noticed this place was packed in the evenings whenever I came to the movies with my sister. The aesthetics of the restaurant inside are gorgeous, making it an experience (it’s flight themed).

We split a boneless jerk chicken dish and the rasta pasta when we were there. The waitress suggested the rasta pasta, and had said she would drink the sauce if she could. And man was she right—I often think about that pasta dish and what it entails. What a lovely dish.

I love Konoko, but as a recent graduate, I try to only go there during the lunch menu hours. It’s a bit pricier, so if I had the money for dinner, I would try to support them in the evenings, but I’m a little broke these days paying off my student loans.

My mother also agrees though she would prefer to go during lunch because the dinner prices are a little steeper. I’d like to try their bar sometime though, as it looks so pretty.

Red Pepper Sichuan Bistro in Towson is some of the best Chinese food.

The first time I went to Red Pepper, which is located right off of the circle in Towson, was for my sister’s birthday. She wanted to try it, so we went with our parents, who don’t know what Chinese food really is beyond American Chinese food.

This is one of the most authentic Chinese restaurants near us—there are some that have the hints of more regional dishes, such as Hunan tofu or mapo tofu described under a different name, but Red Pepper does Sichuan food well. I ordered scallion pancakes as a side and a main order of dan dan mian, or spicy noodles.

The portions were big, and I was pleased with the quality of the food. My sister’s sesame noodles were pretty good too, as she let me try a bit of hers. She thought it was too much to eat all at once, as she had never had sesame noodles before this moment.

I want to go back and try their suan la fen, as well as one of their dry pots.

Little Georgia has some Georgian classics done really well.

I met up with a friend to go to Little Georgia one day after I had returned from Korea, as I had been out of town and abroad for two months at this point. This friend is more adventurous with her eating, so I suggested we try the only Georgian restaurant that was left in town.

We arrived at about 4 PM on a weekday and were the only ones in there. The server came over immediately, as we picked up a adjaruli khachapuri, beef khinkali, mushroom khinkali, and the red currant kompot to help wash all of it down.

The kompot came out first, and it was sweet and tart in all the right ways. Then the khachapuri was placed on the table, and it tasted like heaven. I dream of this man’s khachapuri on the daily. The bread was such good quality, and the cheese and butter made it heavenly.

I enjoyed the mushroom khinkali more than the beef, but they were both really good! Next time I would like to try one of their kabobs.

R&R Taqueria has some of the best tacos in town.

R&R has multiple locations, but we tend to be around Perry Hall more, so we pick up our takeout from here. We actually recently rediscovered R&R, as we used to go there a lot, but stopped after a bad customer service experience.

But they truly have some of the best Mexican food in town. Their tacos are to die for, but I usually order the California Burrito. It has pork, it has guacamole, and it has french fries stuffed right in there. What else could a girl want?

I’ve tried many of their other dishes, but the California Burrito has stolen my heart all the way. Try one of their traditional drinks if you want to switch it up, and they fry the tortilla chips fresh.

We love Bombay Nights and Family Kitchen in Perry Hall.

Putting these two together for the sake of space, but I love Bombay Nights and Family Kitchen. Both are Nepali-owned, located in the Perry Hall area, and have incredible buffets. I prefer Family Kitchen’s buffet because it has Indo-Chinese options and tends to be more veg friendly, as it serves more Nepali dishes and less catered towards the American clientele.

Bombay Nights has some of the best samosas though. I’d go there for the samosas, but I tend to go to Family Kitchen for other things, like momos and the buffet, because it is cheaper. Bombay Nights has really good food though, so it slaps when you need it the most.

I crave Nepali and South Asian food often, so both of these restaurants are home-y for me. I also enjoy Mount Everest fifteen minutes down the road when I want a good Nepali style thali.

Follow me below on Instagram and Goodreads for more.