The Prime Rib opens its Maryland Live! location

The Prime Rib at Maryland Live Casino opened, quietly, a few weeks ago, six months after the casino's grand opening and 10 months after the surprise announcement that Buzz Beler's storied Baltimore steakhouse was joining the casino's lineup.

Operated, Beler has said, as a "joint venture" with the casino's developers, the Baltimore-based Cordish Cos., the new restaurant has been designed with respect for Prime Rib icons like leopard skin carpeting, black-leather booths and Icart prints. But the casino restaurant is not intended as museum replica.

"This is the 'Live' interpretation," said the casino's marketing director Mario Maesano. Notable features of the contemporary version of the classic steakhouse are the greatly increased bar and lounge area and an enclosed outdoor patio — a beauty — that will be used as a both a dining area and lounge.

The casino menu is a close, but not exact, copy of the Baltimore menu. There are a few additions, like an appetizer of artisanal cheese and charcuterie and a porterhouse steak entree, and a few trims — the casino has no escargots.

Also missing at the Prime Rib at Maryland Live is the Piney, but I've been told the signature pineapple-infused vodka concoction is on its way.

The Prime Rib at Maryland Live is at 7002 Arundel Mills Circle. For more information, call 443-445-2970 or go to www.marylandlivecasino.com/dining/the-prime-rib.