Judie Golding—owner of Cosima Restaurant, located along the Jones Falls—is a quiet and very kind human and she loves sharing food with people. When she opened Cosima in 2016, I was brought on as a consultant to help the restaurant’s team develop their social media identity and content and do a little PR to get them started. If you know me well, you know how much I love seeing a project mid-build. With Cosima, I actually saw it PRE-build through my friend Jennifer Nolley, whose family owns the building. Seeing the building in its most raw form (same with Whitehall Mill, home of True Chesapeake) was an incredible privilege and walking in for the first time, a mind blowing experience. Just thinking of the mill workers and the commerce on boats floating along on the Jones Falls 200+ years ago made me very happy. I love Baltimore’s deep history in so many industries and culture.
Cosima’s patio is one of my favorite (top three!) places to sit outside and enjoy a meal, especially when it’s about 65-70 degrees out. Watching herons and other wildlife as you enjoy a perfect Negroni is a real treat. When the restaurant first opened, we were thinking of ways of saying “you don’t feel like you’re in the city” and that’s really, really true. Sitting out on that patio, it feels like you’ve been transported…but I love Bmore, so I am happy to know that’s exactly where I am. (p.s. The patio at Cosima is covered –and heated in the colder months.)
From cooking and cocktail classes, private events to tastings, Cosima has a vibrant offering of events, so make sure you are following them on Instagram and Facebook to stay in the loop. I took a pasta class years ago and it was so much fun. When you go to Cosima for dinner, start with a cocktail (you should definitely branch out and try something with amaro), then maybe share a bottle of wine and see where the menu takes you. My favorite way to eat at Cosima is with a friend or two and we order a bunch of small plates from the Italian Street Food part of the menu and go to town! They also offer a small menu of non-alcoholic drinks. Speaking of drinks, during happy hour negronis and spritzes are $5.00 and there are lots of other food and drink specials. I am in love with their warm fried dough for dessert—sfinci—they are absolutely not to be skipped. Complimentary valet parking makes visiting Cosima a breeze.
I hope you enjoy this one. I loved Judie’s answers! Get yourself to Cosima soon.
Cake or pie? And, what kind?
I love blueberry pie in the summer. But the truth is, I love a tender flaky slightly sweet pie crust more than I like the actual fruit.
Your most prized possession?
My husband.
What’s your favorite thing to order out at restaurants?
I’ve been told that I possess the palate of a 10-year-old, so I think I have to say French fries. I don’t ever make them at home so they are a real treat for me when eating out.
What’s your favorite thing to cook at home?
I bake at home more than I cook and my favorite thing to bake is a Chocolate or Cinnamon babka, which takes all day and has a recipe around three pages long. I like that it takes so long partly because I bake with my daughter and we can listen to music and watch Ru Paul while the babka is rising. The longer the better. When I cook, I like something fast, like a spicy stir fry.
What is your morning beverage and how do you take it?
Coffee, no sugar, with cream. When I quit smoking so many years ago, I thought I would never enjoy a cup of coffee again, but that turned out not to be true!
What’s your personal motto?
“I’ll figure it out”
What is your favorite holiday and why?
I like Passover. It’s a group celebration with a lot of symbolism and rituals that involve food. And the message of freedom from overbearing tyrants resonates now as it did then.
Best advice you were ever given? And from whom?
“Decide that you’ll be happy” — Mr. Rogers.
What do you feel is your greatest accomplishment?
It’s a tie between Cosima and making it to the age that I am.
The last text you sent?
It was to my cousin: “Darn, I fell for the Star Trek thing”
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
Of course there’s not just one. At the top is a busy night at Cosima, when people are running into other people that they know, the fire is hot, the food is great, and I feel like I am hosting the best possible party. But wearing sweats and reading a book on a rainy day is up there.
What do you love most about food?
The people who make it and the people who eat it.
Your favorite place in Baltimore?
I love that Baltimore is an old city with so many remnants of its age. I like to walk around places like Mt. Vernon Square and Fell’s Point and try to picture what it looked like a long time ago.
Read more Baker’s Dozen pieces and other writing from Amy Langrehr on her Substack, Cream Cheese + Olives.
