Shilling Canning Company’s Reid Shilling on Ghost Kitchens and Suckling Pig
To-Go Takes is Resy’s regular feature wherein we quiz the folks behind some of our favorite restaurants about all things related to takeout.
In this edition, we speak to Reid Shilling, the executive chef and owner at Shilling Canning Company, his ode to the Chesapeake region, currently open for indoor and outdoor dining, pickup, and delivery. Below, he shares some of his favorite takeout tips, tricks, cocktails, and regular stops.
Restaurant: Shilling Canning Company
Name + Title: Reid Shilling, Chef & Owner
Peter Prime’s Cane. The snapper escovitch travels so well. A great dish for two people to sit over and share, it’s a cacophony of heat, flavor, and herbs.
Admittedly I’m biased about this, but our new sandwich shop, Ampersandwich, is something I’m regularly ordering from for lunch these days, since we just finished weeks of R&D. The McReid and Baltimore pit beef especially. It officially rolled out to the public as a takeout-only option, but guests can get the sandwiches during happy hour here on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 4 to 6 p.m.
I’m really excited about the chef-driven ghost kitchens that are popping up right now. They are all trying to create lifelines for their businesses despite the fact that it may not be what they’ve intended to do. It’s amazing to see all of these people acting outside their day-to-day comfort zone in an effort to continue to persevere. Espita’s Ghostburger, Columbia Room’s Your Only Friend, Albi’s Pizza, Johnny Spero’s Lonely Hunter & Mort’s Meats, Marcelle Afram’s Shababi and Chris Morgan’s pop-ups at Bammy’s (such as Yazmin and La Tejana), and Kevin Tien’s Wild Tiger are just a few that I’m excited about.
What was your first meal back once restaurants reopened?
Unfortunately, I haven’t had much time to go out to eat but my wife Sara and I had a date night at Reverie towards the end of the year and it was such a treat. That’s really been the only dining out I’ve done, but it was memorable. Everything else, all of my time, goes to Shilling and keeping the lights on, and our guests and staff safe.
What do you miss the most about restaurants?
I can’t wait for FULL restaurants, interacting with guests more, the hustle and bustle of the kitchen. I’m a huge baseball fan, so aside from looking forward to that personally, we need that for our community. To have time to dedicate to creativity in the kitchen again. To have my staff feel secure. To have our farm partners, fishermen, and producers know they can depend on our orders for the long run; that their harvest isn’t in vain. I know it’s going to be a while still, but I can’t wait for our community — our entire industry — to be re-invigorated with a sense of excitement and optimism that is at the core of every restaurant’s soul.
