On the Hill Cafe

Their burrito is so good! I forgot the name of it but it had a green tortilla wrap with chicken inside. It was perfectly seasoned and a tad bit spicy. Their tamale cake looks amazing but they run out really fast so make sure to come before 7pm.
Service is okay, I mean it gets really packed and crazy here so the workers don’t have all the time in the world to friendly. They are friendly enough to take orders and provide good customer service.

On a visit to the Meyerhoff to see the BSO we used Unilocal to find a local place to eat and found this gem! Over the top customer service/​upbeat employees! Reasonably priced and fabulous food! I just played it safe with a turkey blt, but those in my group loved their burgers. There is a wide variety of choices including splurges and healthy choices. Definitely something for everyone. We loved the small town, old fashioned feel. Would go out of our way to go back! (Only drawback is that it’s small and the restroom is tiny)

Have eaten here many times, and mojo burger is amazing (gets 5 stars!). The fries are meh, but you can also get yuka fries for a small extra cost, or a salad– I’d go with the baby spinach salad instead of the fries, because it is also delicious! The tamale cakes are messy (even with a fork) but too yummy to let that be a problem. Nice little café! It can be crowded at times but they are generally pretty fast with orders. I’ve gotten home with the wrong order more than a couple times, which is the reason I give it 4 stars instead of 5, but it is overall a great little place!

The food is heavy, greasy, overcooked, soggy and mediocre at best on a good day. Café reeks, is foggy with smoke, is poorly ventilated, and you will leave stinking of old oil. Bad freeway diner food with café prices that you will wait forever for.

One word: YES.
About a year ago, my sister moved to Baltimore and was on a mission to find new places to eat around Bolton Hill that were not chain restaurants. I am so glad she discovered On The Hill Café. I haven’t had too many items on the menu, but their tamale cakes are to die for. I can’t forget to mention their yummy quesadillas, too. Next on my list will be their signature burgers… Okay, enough daydreaming! Back to the review! Definitely visit this hipster paradise if you’re ever in the area, or make a trip specifically! You won’t regret it.

I really want to like this place, but I wait almost double or triple what I would have at Park Café (which is down the street).
I am literally the only person in the café on a Monday at 7:49am. Perhaps that’s an indicator.

I stopped by here for a quick half hour of work and a drink before another event. The cashiers were nice and recommended some drinks for me — I ended up getting the London fog, which was a little sweet for my taste but good. Next time I’m here I’ll have to try the food, which I was eyeing but not hungry enough for. The lighting is good for work (lots of windows on one side), though I think their Internet might have been down that day.

Love this place! The food was great and the place was cute. If you go first thing in the morning there is probably a line out the door, but that’s because it’s a favorite around the area.

Vegans and clean freaks, skip this.
Staff is never friendly, half of them seem irritated and unhappy to be there. My friend found a dead fly in her salad. They don’t seem to wash their hands, and the whole place doesn’t seem to give the impression of sanitation. No vegan meal option besides the The Mt. Royal which is dry and tasteless. What they charge for the rice beans and plaintains is an appetizer far too much for an appetizer that is 90% salty rice and beans in my opinon. FYI Black Bean Burgers are not vegan, only vegetarian.

Yummy, yummy, yummy for my tummy!
I recently came here with a coworker for lunch.
I dined on the OTH Club. OMG so so good.
These guys have the capability for your to order online from their website.
Their service was fast and courtesous.
Although the spot is fairly small, the turnover on tables aren’t bad.
I’ll have to try them out again!

Oh so disappointed
had such high hopes based on reviews, how cute it looked from the outside and the great sounding menu. We were enjoying our experience until we bit into our sandwich. The Mt. Royal sandwich was served on stale bread with way too much hummus and what they called grilled eggplant but was more like an eggplant relish. After only two bites the sandwich ended up in the trash. so bummed, I really wanted to like this place.

So today was my first visit here. Got a cuppa joe and a breakfast burrito. The restaurant was well lit and clean. Tables were available and the seating was quaint and about 10 spots. The staff was very friendly and helpful.
I chose outside seating as it was a pleasant day outside. I read through the menu which impressed me. Organic choices, eco friendly, varied menu, meat and veggie choices for sandwiches.
My burrito was huge and delicious. It had egg, bacon, red onion, beans, cheese and salsa (and probably a few ingredients I missed). It was hot and fresh and delivered to me outside. The coffee was hot and served with a choice of cream
Or 2% milk.
Overall I was very pleased and will be back for lunch to give it a try. A real neighborhood gem.

Locavore’s, this is your kinda place! Local ingredients, recycling, wind power electricity, composting, and gluten free offerings!
Stopped in for a quick lunch near a job and was intrigued by this place. Tamale cakes (your choice of chicken or pork): one big thing of 2 sweet pancake-​like patties with lots of real corn mixed into patties sandwiching salsa, guacamole, sour cream, beans, and pork– tons and tons of everything. While I expected just a bland miss-​mosh of stuff piled into it, everything was well-​marinated, seasoned, and segmented. The pork in particular was soft, moist, juicy and packed full of flavor. It was def more than I could eat in one sitting for a lunch. The sandwiches the girls ordered next to me looked ginormous. They’re sweet baked goodies? IF I had room, I totally would’ve indulged in a cupcake or brownie or cookie or COCONUT FLAN?! But I couldn’t.
*No wifi when I was there (weekday lunch). They say it’s turned off during the weekdays?
Friendly staff, reasonable prices, and steady stream of people. I like that they named a lot of their dishes after the local places and streets here. Dare I say it? This place might have given me a renewed outlook on Baltimore. Thanks On The Hill!

This is one of my favorite coffee shop in this city. I love coming here every weekend afternoon, enjoy a cup of coffee (hot & cold depends on my mood XD) with cakes, and watch around. I love sitting on the chair outside the place, watching everybody walks, which make me so relaxed.
Besides, the coffee have their own taste that is so different from another place.
What a nice place!

This place is very close to home so I’ve gotten food here often. Every experience has been pretty good, but I guess every time can’t be perfect as last night was the first disappointment. One my way home I called in an order for the tamale cakes with chicken and got there about 8 minutes later. My order was already waiting by the register when I got there. Took literally two minutes to drive home and park. And sat down to eat to find my food wasn’t even remotely warm. Cold, dry corn cakes has the ability to make you sad. But it was freezing outside so I didn’t feel like taking it back and battling with them so I just tossed it in the microwave with tons of butter for add moisture. Still yummy but I rather have hot, fresh food.

Update: the deli around the corner (Bolton Deli) was shut down by underhanded tactics employed by the new owners. I will not allow myself or my friends to support the skeezy lowlifes that run the new coffee bar there.
With that said, I am now happily referring everyone in the area who wants a coffee or a meal to On the Hill. They’ve changed their décor (thank you, OTH) and the past couple times I’ve been in, the cashiers have been nicer. I’ve given up on their sandwiches (maybe I’ll try them again soon), but the tamale cakes are actually really good. They’re a nice combination of hot and cold, sweet and salty, and they’re surprisingly filling. I don’t recommend their chai latte… it still had the teabag in it and seemed more like chai tea with milk (ie watery and lacking in spicy flavor). I’ve made better ones on my stove at home.
So despite all of the cons, my experiences have been better here, and I feel that they’ve earned an extra star.

It’s always cramped in here and full of people, especially when school is on session. I always feel stressed out coming here
— The pomegranate lemonade is really good but I usually feel like it’s too sweet, like it would be really good if it was watered down but my cup is full so there’s no room to do it myself
— Spinach egg breakfast sandwich is great, as is the breakfast burrito
— I like the fries here
–my friend got a tamale cake with chicken here and ended up eating around the chicken because it was spongy and gross like tv dinner chicken
— I used to get the chicken salad wrap here but lately I feel like they’ve been putting too much of that marmalade into it and I don’t like taking big bites of sweet stuff while I’m eating chicken salad
— The food here is usually pretty solid but I hate coming here and sometimes it’s not that great

When I used to live in Bolton Hill, I ate here at least two times a week because there weren’t that many quick food options for lunch. They have really exciting sandwiches that come with a bag chips– but the healthier ones that are like taro chips and sweet potato chips. Sometimes I substitute a salad for the chips but that’s an up charge.
They also have a full service coffee bar so you can get an espresso or latte if you want. As a side note, if you want water to go, they’ll charge you for the cup.
What I’ve had:
The Lafayette: The roast beef is sometime rare and sometimes well down. I’m more of a rare roast beef type of girl so when I open it up and it’s well done and a little fatty, I get sad. I always switch the bread to sourdough and ask for them to grill it. There’s horseradish which is pretty spicy, raw red onions and arugula– a little too many red onions in my opinion but they can be picked out.
The McMechen: Curry chicken wrap. The mango chutney is chunky and sweet. The curried chicken is delicious but I kinda wish it was a little spicier or had more curry seasoning because it’s a little bland. I’ve asked them to make it more spicy but they said it was pre-​made so it couldn’t be done.
Rutter Burrito: Tender marinated pork. My favorite part is the rice because it’s very aromatic, savory, and soft. It can get messy so I usually eat it with a knife and fork. There’s also black beans and guacamole inside.
Burger: Really juicy patty. The fries are the best part because they are so crispy and dusted with paprika.
Mango smoothie: Really thick and delicious.
Chai late: The chai isn’t that spicy and it’s too watered down.
Inside it’s pretty small– Maybe only 7 tables or so? But in the summer, you can bring your sandwiches and sit at tables outside. It’s near MICA so it gets really busy during lunch times and can get crowded.
The service is pretty apathetic. Sometimes you get a smile but most of the time, the cashiers are just nonchalant.
The sandwiches are all around $ 8, which isn’t too bad but when I get lunch for two, it always comes out to around $ 20 which is too much to spend for sandwiches when you’re on a student loan budget.

A go-​to local spot. One of my favorites in the city. MICA is right around the corner, so brace yourself for excessive amounts of creatively distraught 19 year olds.
FANTASTIC food. I’ve had burgers, sandwiches, you CAN NOT go wrong. It’s a small space, so it gets a little crowded during the peak hours, but the curb isn’t too bad of a spot to chow down.

I don’t get out for lunch all that often. On the weekends, that time is kept sacred for brunch-​like foods, coffee and mimosas (or a properly made bloody). I was lucky enough to have a chance to stop into this little café on a Thursday afternoon. It’s on the corner of John Street and Mosher Street in Bolton Hill — right across the street from Mount Royal Elementary Middle School. I am not sure how I haven’t stopped in here before. And, now I am not sure how I am going to go back to brown paper bag lunches.
I headed in there craving a BLT and an unsweet tea. They do have an amazing sounding one — which they call the Bolton. It was one of those days that I kept reading and fell in love with everything. I was so distracted by the menu, that I had a trouble deciding; everything sounding more and more tantalizing. I ended up going with the Lafayette — on the idea that it was a little more unique. Balsamic beets, goat cheese, avocado, lettuce and a pepper mayo on toasted wheat. The rich aromatic beets went great with the fresh, creamy avocado. The pepper mayo and goat cheese added a nice contrast, but certainly didn’t overwhelm.
Despite the size of this place, their menu is extensive — sammies, burgers, salads and breakfast items. They have all sorts of coffees and teas. I have heard that they have gratifying tacos. And, you can see by the menu that the flavors change regularly. I didn’t see it and totally forgot to look until after I ordered.
Don’t you worry… I will go again and update you. Have you been? What is your favorite sandwich?