I get asked all the time about the best spots to go out to eat. People like nothing better, it seems, than to pick the brain of a restaurant reviewer, and I'm fine with that.

Occasionally, folks are even curious about my own personal favorite eatery. And that inevitably leads to their asking whether I know of "any secret place [wink, wink], a place that flies just under everyone's radar, a place no one knows about, a place that's, you know, awesome!"

And that's when I feel like saying, "Do you really think, in a town of 25,000--where people aren't the least bit shy--there could possibly be a dining secret left to uncover?"

But, wait a second. What if such a place really did exist? (And I'm not saying that it does.) Just suppose, for our purposes, that you were to stumble, as people often do in Paris, on that perfect little sidewalk bistro. The one with little or no fanfare but with fantastic food and cooking aromas to die for.

Let's say, in the historic part of Old Town, just beyond the chalkboard listing daily specials like prime rib, pork tenderloin and rib-eye steak at impossibly low prices, lies a carpeted alley. And at the end of that alley--past the cafe tables, the wicker chairs, the patio umbrellas--sits a food counter, with a friendly staff ready to take your order and runners practically racing to deliver your food.

And as long as we're daydreaming, let's make sure the entrees are not only impeccably prepared but are each accompanied by the perfect side items and that all the portions are huge legendary, in fact.

The place I've been describing actually does exist. It even has a name--The Gazebo. It's located beside Fredericksburg Square on Caroline Street, not far from the train station.

I have been there on no fewer than four occasions and have tried everything from the chipotle chicken with vegetables du jour and corn on the cob ($7) to duck breast with rice pilaf and roasted root vegetables ($9) to the eggplant parmigiana with garden salad ($8) to the applewood-smoked barbecue sandwich with slaw and chips ($7). And let's not forget the gumbo or the salmon with beurre blanc and fresh asparagus. Each dish was expertly executed, not a misstep in the bunch.