There’s nothing like a crackling fireplace to set the mood for a great winter meal. Whether you’re in search of a romantic venue for a dinner for two, or just looking for a spot to warm up with friends, here are the restaurants with the coziest fireplaces in town.

Ananda: This Maple Lawn gem features beautiful fireplaces to enhance its signature Indian farm-to-table dining experience. Whether you’re seated indoors, or outside on the terrace, the space features marble fireplaces around every corner. 7421 Maple Lawn Blvd. Fulton. 301-725-4800

The Ambassador Dining Room: Often considered one of the most romantic restaurants in town, this spot features majestic fireplaces and nattily dressed waiters serving everything from samosas to lamb vindaloo. 3811 Canterbury Rd. 410-366-1484

The Bluebird Cocktail Room: The fireplace at this dimly lit, literary-inspired Hampden hangout contributes to its overall cozy vibe. Snag an evening table to sip sophisticated drinks and fill up on snacks while soaking up the dreamy ambiance. 3600 Hickory Ave. 

The Brewer’s Art: Retreat from the cold with a pint and a warm meal inside this storied Mt. Vernon brewpub—whose upstairs dining room boasts a classic wood-burning fireplace. Stare into the embers while savoring the famous mac and cheese or an order of rosemary garlic fries, served with a side of mayo. 1106 N Charles St. 410-547-6925

La Jetee: Sleek, oversized fireplaces—paired with the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the Inner Harbor—make chef Spike Gjerde’s Provençal restaurant an ideal spot to retreat from the cold. 1215 Wills St. 443-960-8670

Leinenkugel’s Beer Garden: The best-kept secret of this lively beer garden is its outdoor fireplace. Grab a drink, pull up an Adirondack chair, and unwind with friends at this warm spot in Power Plant Live. 4 Market Pl. 410-908-0650

The Milton Inn: Warm up with a gourmet meal in one of the many dining rooms of this historic house, featuring gas fireplaces. If you’re really looking to kick up the heat, ask to be seated in the Hearth Room and get toasty around the flickering flames. 14833 York Rd. Sparks. 410-771-4366

The Oregon Grille: This charming 19th-century farmhouse has a fireplace around every corner. Whether you’re looking for a place to grab drinks with friends, or just in search of a romantic spot for a date night, the Cockeysville fixture is full of cozy character. 1201 Shawan Road. Hunt Valley. 410-771-0505

Petit Louis Bistro: From its marble accents and brick archways to its sophisticated French fare and fully stocked wine cellar, everything about this Roland Park mainstay exudes an old-school European bistro feel. Cozy up by the wood-burning fireplace to enjoy classics like French onion soup, fried eggplant Napolean, and rainbow trout amandine. 4800 Roland Ave. 410-366-9393

Poets Modern Cocktails and Eats: Complete with funky chandeliers, comfy high-back chairs, and vintage artwork, this trendy bar and lounge inside The Hotel Indigo in Mt. Vernon is a go-to spot to sip cocktails. In keeping with its literary theme, the space features built-in bookshelves surrounding its massive wood-burning fireplace. 24 W. Franklin St. 443-961-3400

Pub Dog Pizza & Drafthouse: The food and beverage scene in Federal Hill has seen some stark changes throughout the years, but this East Cross Street pizza palace remains a stalwart. A loaded pie (the menu lists more than 20 varieties) and a house-brewed pint near the exposed-brick fireplace seems like the perfect winter weekend activity to us. 20 E. Cross St. 410-727-6077

R. House: Grab some grub from this Remington food hall—whose stalls offer everything from pizza and chicken sandwiches to rice bowls and sushi burritos—and create your own campfire around the gas fireplace outside. (Dessert vendor Taharka Bros. even offers its signature honey graham flavor, if you really want to get into the s’mores spirit.) 301 W. 29th St. 443-347-3570

Tark’s Grill: Famous for its traditional American fare, this Green Spring Station restaurant embraces the spirit of the city with vintage photography and modern décor. The spot’s signature outdoor courtyard boasts an artsy fireplace surrounded by a flowing fountain. 2360 W. Joppa Rd. Lutherville. 410-583-8275

The Valley Inn: The glow of two working gas fireplaces fills the dining rooms of this 1800s Greenspring Valley roadhouse. Its menu features classic comfort foods, such as crab cake platters and hearty seafood gumbo, which serve as a perfect main event to any winter meal. 10501 Falls Rd., Lutherville. 410-828-0002

For many years, Richard Gorelick explored the workings of Baltimore restaurants, writing food reviews for The Baltimore Sun and other publications. After taking a break, he’s back in the business—this time on the other side of the restaurant world as a host at Foraged in Station North.

“My job is to manage the people coming in and to make sure that they’re seated in a way that doesn’t tax the kitchen too much,” Gorelick says. “It’s fun. It’s like playing Jenga, switching tables and trying to make sure individual servers aren’t overwhelmed.”

Gorelick, who has been at the restaurant since 2021, when it relocated from Hampden to its new location, likes being part of the front of house.

“It’s a great fit for me,” he says. “I really like it there. It’s what I imagined. The front of house works as support for the kitchen.”

In restaurant lingo, the front of house includes the parts of a restaurant that a customer sees, including servers, bartenders, food runners, and bar backs, and operations like table and bar service. The back of house refers to areas most diners don’t experience, like the kitchen, prep areas, and offices.

While several fields were interrupted by the pandemic, none was affected more so than the hospitality industry. At the height of COVID, many front-of-house staff were laid off as restaurants struggled to remain afloat—others left by their own choice in droves. The volatility of the hospitality industry, the health risks associated with COVID, and worker burnout all contributed to the massive loss of hospitality jobs in the U.S. since February 2020.

But luckily for us, some workers, like the six people we spoke with below, stuck it out. (One even joined the industry on the tail end of the pandemic.) Most of our interviewees agree that, despite the hardships of the past years, restaurant life is getting back to pre-pandemic times.

Peter Keck

Charleston

Maître d’hôtel Peter Keck is the go-to guy at Charleston in Harbor East. The fancy French title on his business card simply means he manages the restaurant, he says.

Though he downplays his role, the restaurant was recently named a semi-finalist for a James Beard Award for Outstanding Hospitality, which is no small feat. If something is amiss with a diner—their table isn’t ready when they arrive, for instance—Keck will step in to smooth out the situation, maybe offering a free glass of wine.

“The best part of my job is I get to make people happy and call that my career,” he says. “The worst part of my job is that sometimes you feel like you are the black hole for everything that’s going wrong.”

Keck has been with the owners, chef Cindy Wolf and Tony Foreman, since they opened Savannah in Fells Point in 1995. While he’s taken a few breaks when his daughters, now 25 and 22, were younger, he has spent most of his career with the business partners. He’s held various positions during his tenure, including as beverage manager in Charleston’s early days. He recalls one evening when a regular guest sat at the bar chatting after his dinner and left a $1,000 tip on an $85 bill.

“It was over the top,” Keck recalls. “It’s not every day you get to pay your rent with a tip.”

Currently, his official 10-hour day at Charleston starts at 4 p.m., but the Fells Point resident deals with myriad issues before even walking in the door. The text messages from staff start around 11:30 a.m., he says, with missives like: “Something is on fire.” “This staffer has a sick child.” “This person fell off a scooter.”

 

“THE BEST PART OF MY JOB IS I GET TO MAKE PEOPLE HAPPY AND CALL THAT MY CAREER.”

 

Once at work, he checks in with the staff before service begins to address any other concerns. There are typically about 23 front-of-house workers, from servers and bartenders to hosts and food runners, on duty each night. Despite being impeccably dressed in an Ermenegildo Zegna Italian suit, Keck has been known to climb a ladder and peer into the ceiling to fix a clogged pipe during his day. But mostly, he circulates through the restaurant interacting with customers.

“I’m driven by the expression on people’s faces and the atmosphere in the dining room,” he says. “That’s all the bottom line I need, people smiling and telling us they will come back again.”

At 57, Keck has no plans to slow down, but he has thought about the future.

“Tony and I talk about being two old guys who hang around the wine shop and pop into the restaurants,” he says with a laugh. “I don’t know how likely that is to happen, but I’m sure we will fulfill that to a certain extent.”

Aaron Day

The Prime Rib

Aaron Day, who has been lugging plates of juicy beef at The Prime Rib since 1973, rattles off an impressive list of diners he’s waited on: Rosa Parks, Mohammad Ali, Joe Frazier, Oprah Winfrey, Montel Williams, Liberace, and Maya Angelou, to name a few of the famous folks who have graced his tables. In the beginning, Day used to get starstruck by the celebrity clientele.

“I would get a little intimidated,” he admits. “But now, it’s kind of easy.”

He remembers talking to Parks about Dr. Levi Watkins Jr., a Johns Hopkins heart surgeon who implanted her pacemaker and would bring her to the restaurant on her check-up visits to Baltimore. Occasionally, Day will drive his well-known customers to their lodgings. One evening, he chauffeured Tom and Dick Smothers of the Smothers Brothers comedy-musical duo to the Lord Baltimore Hotel.

“They lit up some marijuana and told me not to tell anyone,” Day says. “I was worried the police would pull me over.” They didn’t.

Local hotshots also make their appearances at the restaurant, from Ravens kicker Justin Tucker (he’s gracious about taking selfies with diners, Day says) and Fox45’s Kai Jackson to attorneys Billy Murphy and Warren Brown.

“This is where everybody in Baltimore City comes for a dining experience,” he says.

Day, who grew up in Edmondson Village, started at The Prime Rib as a busboy when he was 15, moving up to a waiter position when he turned 21. He was the only African-American server in the dining room at the time, he says, and was thrilled to be more than doubling his salary.  He has been a stickler about finances since he was a boy, cutting grass for his neighbors and learning about the stock market.

“I would go to the bank every day and put money away,” he says. “I came away with this thing for saving money.”

In high school, he bought his first car: a white 1970 Lincoln Continental. “The police used to pull me over two or three times a day and harass me a little bit,” he recalls. “They wondered how a guy like me could afford a car like that. I told them I worked at The Prime Rib.”

Now, Day, 65, arrives at the restaurant around 3:45 p.m. four nights a week to set up his station and make sure each place setting is pristine. He changes into a black tuxedo, the required attire for servers, before the first diners arrive at 5 p.m., usually finishing up his duties at 11 p.m.

He’s going to work as long as his legs hold out, he says. When Day does retire, he plans to trade stocks, take care of his family (a son, daughter, granddaughter, and grandson), and, oh, go out to dinner.

Oscar Galvis

Restaurante Tio Pepe

Oscar Galvis had no idea when he started working at Tio Pepe in 1975 that he’d be waiting tables at one of Baltimore’s longest running restaurants 47 years later.

“I like the people, and besides, it’s a living,” he says. “That why I stay there.”

He’s witnessed wedding proposals and various celebrations in the past decades, but he particularly remembers a couple who met at Tio Pepe on a blind date years ago. The couple eventually married and still come to Tio Pepe, he says.

Galvis, a Colombia native, was drawn to Baltimore because of a romantic interest when he was 19 years old. Looking for a job, he headed to Tio Pepe, known for its Spanish-Mediterranean cuisine, after a friend urged him to apply because “they needed Spanish-speaking people,” he says.

The bilingual Galvis was hired as a busboy, happily slipping into the signature gold jacket that’s the uniform of the job. But the eager worker soon donned a blue jacket as a food runner, working his way up to server with the coveted red jacket of the position.

The colorful, formal attire has been worn since the Mt. Vernon classic opened in 1968. And while much of the old-school restaurant hasn’t changed, there have been some adjustments. Lunch is no longer offered, and the workers, who once toiled six or seven days a week, have more manageable hours.

 

“TO HAVE ALL THESE PEOPLE, SECOND, THIRD, AND FOURTH GENERATIONS, COME HERE IS THE BEST PART.”

 

Galvis, now 69, works between three and five days a week, starting at 5:30 p.m. The years have taken a toll on him physically, though, causing knee problems. He shrugs off the discomfort, saying, “That’s part of life.”

During his work evenings, Galvis juggles up to nine tables a night, depending on how busy the restaurant is. His secret to dealing with diners: “You need patience,” Galvis says. “You have to make things more relaxing.”

Over the years, he’s watched customers bring their children, grandchildren, and even their great-grandchildren to the restaurant. That’s his reward, he says: “To have all these people, second, third, and fourth generations, come here is the best part.”

Jillian Garner

Kooper’s Tavern

At 26, Jillian Garner sees waiting tables as a means to an end. “I want to start on a psychology degree,” she says. “I’ve always dreamed of being a Towson Tiger.”

Garner, who lives in the Oliver neighborhood of East Baltimore, strives to be financially independent. “I have to do everything on my own,” she explains. “I have to put myself through [school].”

After graduating from Glen Burnie High School, Garner enrolled in a medical-assisting program at a local trade school, ending up at a plasma center. She realized that wasn’t her calling and took a job at Outback Steakhouse in Canton in 2018. She eventually ended up at the now-closed Lucky Buns in Fells Point in early 2022. After rumors flew that the restaurant was closing for “renovations,” she applied for a job at Kooper’s Tavern in Fells Point and has been a full-time server since last April.

“I decided to give it a try, and I love it,” she says. Garner starts her five-day workweek at 9:30 a.m. on weekdays and at 9 a.m. on weekends, when she works double shifts. “It’s a good money maker,” she says with a laugh. “I’m always down for a dollar.”

Before diners arrive, Garner gets the tables ready and sets up the silverware, among other duties. She appreciates the customers who engage with her.

“I love that they ask me for my name and ask me how my day is,” she says. “It makes a huge difference.”

She’s also prepared for cranky customers. “Of course, we have moments when people aren’t happy, and we do everything to make it right,” she says. “Even if we think they’re not going to tip, everyone gets treated the same way with a smile.”

Thebonus is the people she’s met. “I’ve made great friends along the way,” she says. “The clientele is a family in itself.”

Teresa Marconi

Thames Street Oyster House

Only Teresa Marconi can make wolffish—an Icelandic specimen prized by chefs for its sweet, crab-like texture—sound like a dish you’ve been waiting for your whole life.

She’s done research on the fish, a special on some evenings, before she even approaches the upstairs tables she waits on at Thames Street Oyster House, gleaning information from executive chef Eric Houseknecht and exploring questions like, “How ugly is a wolffish? How lean is the meat?” Her resulting spiel gets everyone’s attention.

“People don’t know what this stuff is,” she says. “How will they order it if I don’t tell them?”

Marconi, who has been with the Oyster House almost from the beginning, when it opened in 2011 in Fells Point, takes great pride in ensuring the restaurant’s diners leave satisfied.

“I like to make people feel like they’re in good hands with me and the food,” she says.

One of her customers drives from out of town just to order the restaurant’s signature five-pound lobster stuffed with crab, shrimp, and scallops. He’s ordered it so often—probably at least 10 times over the years, Marconi says—that the kitchen has named the dish “The Paris Brown” after him.

“He and his wife eat what they can and take the rest home,” Marconi says. “Then, they eat it for the rest of the week.”

 

“WE’RE BACK TO BEING BUSY. IT’S PRETTY MUCH A STRAIGHT RUSH. THERE’S A LOT OF PHYSICAL WORK TO IT.”

 

Marconi, 60, has been wowing customers since 1983, when she worked as a summer waitress at Brass Balls Saloon in Ocean City to earn money to pay for college. Even after she graduated from then-Towson State University with a degree in mass communications, she leaned toward the hospitality business, settling in at John Steven Ltd. in Fells Point for 14 ½ years before following her friend, chef-owner Jason Ambrose, to Salt Tavern in Butchers Hill in 2006.

Along the way, the Idlewylde resident and her partner, Bruce Dombeck, had two sons: Clay, who is now 23, and Beau, 18.

During the pandemic, Marconi helped with the Oyster House’s carryout service and outdoor customers until the restaurant was fully operational again.

“It feels the same to me now,” she says. “We’re back to being busy.” Marconi’s day starts around 3 p.m., when she checks in for her shift, setting up the dining room and making sure the wine station is organized. At 4:30, diners begin to arrive for what Marconi calls “four and a half hard hours.”

“It’s pretty much a straight rush,” she says. “There’s a lot of physical work to it.”

She usually avoids making any serious mistakes during service, though occasionally she’ll inadvertently knock over a diner’s water glass (“Thankfully, not red wine” she says.) And, sure, various local sports figures like Ravens kicker Justin Tucker and linebacker Joshua Bynes pop in, but everyone gets the Marconi treatment if they’re sitting at one of her tables.

“They’re VIPs,” she says. “But everybody is a VIP to me.”

Richard Afrookteh

The Bygone

Richard “Rich” Afrookteh at The Bygone in Harbor East came into the hospitality field in a roundabout way. First, he practiced law; then, he became a business owner, running a bus company that transported students to private and parochial schools.

But in 2018, Afrookteh realized it was time to pursue his dream of working in the restaurant field.

“I decided that I’m going to do what I really wanted to do and be in the food industry,” he says.

Today, at The Bygone, he serves a range of customers, from groups of teenagers celebrating birthdays to prominent diners with deep pockets. Recently, he waited on a couple who enjoyed a meal with pricey bottles of Champagne and red wine. At the end of the $3,000 meal, the husband tacked on a $2,500 tip.

“I was floored,” Afrookteh says. “I still have the receipt.”

Afrookteh, who grew up in Catonsville, had always been fascinated by food, influenced by his dietitian mother, TV cooking shows, and watching his grandmother cook. After high school, he worked as a server in Ocean City, where he experienced one of his most embarrassing incidents, at Mario’s Italian Restaurant.

Afrookteh was dishing out scoops of shrimp scampi from a serving dish to a table of diners when a man began gesticulating, causing the dish to tilt and drip some of the gooey contents onto the man’s toupee.

“He had venom in his eyes,” Afrookteh recalls. “It was mortifying.”

That didn’t deter the 19-year-old from wanting to pursue a hospitality career. However, his father, a general surgeon, “never supported that kind of notion,” he says, so he went to the University of Delaware and then University of Baltimore School of Law before working in the Maryland Office of the Attorney General.

When Afrookteh’s children arrived—two daughters, now 28 and 25—he went into private practice. After he left the bus enterprise, he saw an opening for a server at the now-closed Alexander Brown Restaurant in downtown Baltimore.

“I applied online, and they hired me,” he says. “I thought, ‘I guess I can get back in the front of house.’”

When the restaurant closed during the pandemic, Afrookteh, who lives in an Inner Harbor condo, headed to Antrim 1844 in Taneytown and The Valley Inn in Lutherville before landing at his current post in April 2021.

“When I arrived, I was nervous about The Bygone, wondering, ‘Is it going to be corporate and stuffy?’” he says. “But the Atlas Group was very welcoming.”

Afrookteh, who wears a blue dinner jacket, black slacks, bowtie, and white shirt for his role, arrives at the restaurant’s 29th-floor dining room by about 3:45 p.m. on workdays to prepare for pre-shift meetings and the family meal, when staff members share food before their shifts begin. Dinner service starts at 5 p.m.

“Once I’m finished, I’m home at 11 p.m. or midnight,” he says. “It’s a long day.”

The effort is worth it if his diners enjoyed their meals. “I don’t think I do anything unique,” he says. “I try to allow people to experience the feeling they want in that moment. I want them to feel that No. 1, they’re welcome, and No. 2, that this is a place where they are special.”

In honor of our annual Best Restaurants issue, we polled our staff about the best things they’ve eaten at local restaurants in the past year or so. While some were blown away by the sophistication of a dish at a fine-dining destination, for others, nothing could compare to a simple (albeit well-executed) cheeseburger or cup of soup. Read on to browse for yourself, and pick up a copy of our Best Restaurants issue on newsstands to check out more best bites from deputy editor Jane Marion and her team of seasoned restaurant reviewers.

Alicia Corman, Assistant Art Director

Despite living only a few blocks away, we finally made it to CookHouse for dinner at the end of the year and were blown away by the steak frites, cocktails, and dessert (which we never go for, but everyone around us had these amazing concoctions and it was my birthday, so we had to indulge).

Amy Scattergood, Research Editor

My last dinner at NiHao in Canton, the outstanding Peking duck, was also my favorite—and the last I’ll have for a while, as the restaurant just closed for a reboot. They say they’ll keep the duck on the menu. Please. It’s the best version of the dish I’ve had, other than one in, well, Beijing.

Christopher Myers, Contributing Photographer

The cannoli at Vaccaro’s are just ridiculous. Can’t be in Little Italy without a pit stop there.

Isaiah Winters, Contributing Photographer

The vegan burger at Bar 1801 for me.

Janelle Erlichman Diamond, Home Editor

For me it’s the gambas al ajillo at Tapas Teatro. You can’t beat shrimp sizzling in olive oil, garlic, and parsley. It’s so simple, but like a punch to your tastebuds.

J.M. Giordano, Contributing Photographer

The smashburger at The Royal Blue.

Jodi Hammerschlag, Senior Account Executive

The French onion soup at Petit Louis Bistro…every bite is the best.

Lydia Woolever, Senior Editor

Last winter, Le Comptoir du Vin had this sourdough toast with braised leeks, Stilton, and anchovies—a seemingly simply but brilliantly decadent culmination of flavors that I’ve thought and talked about many times since.

Max Weiss, Editor in Chief

I’m cheating and picking four: the pancit bihon from Heritage Kitchen, the white pizza with sausage and hot peppers from JBGB’s, the clam spaghetti from True Chesapeake Oyster Co., and the sesame balls from Asian Court.

Michelle Coughlan, Senior Account Executive

The Greek avgolemono soup at Ouzo Bay. Tastes just like my YiaYia used to make.

Mike Unger, Senior Contributing Writer

The short rib at Thatcher & Rye in Frederick. It’s smoked then cooked sous vide, then grilled, and every bite is blissful.

Ron Cassie, Senior Editor

Don’t know which was the best bite, but I know it was at Little Donna’s.

Stephanie Shapiro, Vice President of Sales

My best bite was the matzoh ball soup at the Reisterstown Diner. Who knew.

In honor of our “Kitchen Classics” cover story in our May issue (on newsstands now)—which revisits time-honored regional recipes and lets you know how to make them at home—we polled our staff to ask about classic Baltimore restaurants they wish they could revive. Here’s what they had to say:

Christopher Myers, Contributing Photographer

The Cultured Pearl which was in Sowebo. It was an eclectic, bohemian place to hang. Great Mexican food.

Christianna McCausland, Special Editions Editor

The Country Fare Inn in Owings Mills. To this day I wish I had the recipe for their September 7th cake.

Jane Marion, Food and Dining Editor

I miss Martick’s. On my last visit, my snakeskin handbag matched the wallpaper.

Jon Timian, Production Manager

Brian Badger’s gumbo stand that used to be in the Broadway Market. I miss that gumbo.

Justin Tsucalas, Contributing Photographer

The Dizz. Last place I ate before I got married. Also ate there about 50 times before that.

Lauren Cohen, Digital Senior Editor

Lobo! The cocktails, the toasty sandwiches, the onion dip with ripple chips, the staff! It was the perfect spot to unwind after a long day. RIP.

Lydia Woolever, Senior Editor

Martick’s. What I would give for a martini at that bar. Preferably with Jane Marion.

Marty LeGrand, Senior Contributing Editor

Maison Marconi. Its menu was as staid as its tuxedoed waiters, but that was its charm. My hazy memories: chopped salads, a shambling waiter, decadent chocolate sauce.

Max Weiss, Editor-in-Chief

I’m going to cheat and go with the entire artsy, bohemian Sowebo dining corridor: Cultured Pearl for grilled burritos, Tell-Tale Hearth for wood-fired pizza (ahead of its time), and the Gypsy’s Café, which had Baltimore’s most charming deck.

Megan McGaha, Digital Advertising Operations Specialist

Stewart’s Root Beer. The classic, vintage vibe is still so dreamy.

Michael Teitelbaum, President

Sid Mandell’s deli (Woodmoor) for special family meals when I was a kid. Famous for the Four by Four.

Michael Tranquillo, Senior Graphic Designer

I took for granted that Thairish would just always be around. It was a neighborhood staple for years. I’m not an expert in pad Thai, but nowhere else has come close since. The owner/chef had so much joy, and would greet you with a smile every time you walked in. Just a one-of-a-kind place.

Suzanne Loudermilk, Senior Contributing Editor

I’d like another chance to crack crabs coated with that wonderful black-pepper seasoning at Obrycki’s on Pratt Street. There’s a location at BWI now, but it doesn’t serve hard shells.

Vicki Dodson, Advertising Design Director

I’d choose Gampy’s or Louie’s, circa 1980s, or Donna’s (all in Mt. Vernon). But I’d enjoy them best in a time machine. That’s paramount.

Last week, many area restaurants quickly responded to the COVID-19 crisis, taking precautionary measures by increasing sanitation efforts, printing disposable menus, sanitizing surfaces, and distancing tables.

As concern heightened throughout the weekend, some restaurants announced voluntary closures, including Fells Point businesses Max’s Taphouse, Kooper’s Tavern, and The Horse You Came in On Saloon.

Tony Foreman, whose Foreman Wolf Restaurant Group owns Charleston, Petit Louis, Cinghiale, Bar Vasquez, and Johnny’s, says there was a major downturn in diners over the weekend.

“Saturday night was fine, but you could feel it coming,” he says. “On a typical Sunday at Johnny’s we do 150 to 180 dinners. Last night we did 35.”

And then today, the hammer dropped.

While many restaurants continued to weigh what to do, Governor Larry Hogan ordered the closing of all Maryland bars and restaurants by 5 p.m. on Monday, March 16 to slow the spread of COVID-19. The deadly virus has wreaked havoc on businesses across the state—and nowhere is this more acutely felt than in the restaurant industry, a business based on social contact.

According to figures from Resy, a national reservation platform for higher-end restaurants, as of last Wednesday business was down by 20 percent across the United States from a year ago, by 30 percent in New York City, and as much as 60 percent in Seattle, with the highest reported number of cases and deaths in the country.

At his press conference Monday morning, the governor said the unprecedented steps “may seem scary,” continuing that the state has never faced anything like this before. “This is going to be much worse than anyone is understanding,” Hogan said.

Hogan is allowing for area businesses to stay open for delivery and curbside takeout. Many restaurants have been making the switch in the past few days, including The Corner Pantry, Foraged, Baby’s on Fire, Bon Fresco, Nepenthe Brewing Co., R. House, Stone Mill Bakery and Cafe, Orto, Sobo Market, and Clavel, which is offering its signature dishes along with special batches of spicy mezcalitas to-go.

In Little Italy, Aldo’s chef/owner Sergio Vitale is leading the charge with a new website for patrons to get food delivery and curbside pickup from neighborhood favorites including Aldo’s, Café Gia, La Scala, and Lew Gambino’s.

“Gia [Fracassetti] and I came up with this in response to these challenging times,” says Vitale, who points out that his full menu will be available to patrons. “My own father, chef Aldo, is 75 years old and at risk. We must all do our part to mitigate and combat the spread of COVID-19.” Vitale also points out that purchasing online gift cards to Little Italy restaurants is “another way to support the businesses you love.”

Even restaurants that don’t usually do a big takeout service are encouraging diners to place orders and pick them up curbside. All Foreman Wolf restaurants, with the exception of Charleston, for instance, will offer takeout, as well as delivery services at their Bin 201 and Bin 604 wine shops in Annapolis and Harbor East.

Josh and Stephanie Hershkovitz, the siblings who own Hersh’s in South Baltimore, embraced the carry-out only model over the weekend, even before Hogan’s mandate.

“It was a difficult decision to close,” said Josh, in a lengthy email filled with emotion. “At the end of the day, we both feel that if you believe in the human endeavor of science, you have to live by the practices that bear the best results, with respect to pandemic mitigation.”

This past Friday evening, Hersh’s saw a packed house and hosted a rehearsal dinner in the upstairs dining room.

“This crazy night filled us with joy at our restaurants’ impact on our community, but also a sense of dread as we watched folks waiting for tables, reaching over each other to get drinks, and rubbing up against each other as servers walked by them to get food to tables,” Josh added. “It was this packed night that steeled our resolve and made us commit to closing. We put so much love into our food and our hospitality that we have no doubt that our customers will see this move out of love, as well.”

At La Cuchara in Hampden, chef/co-owner Ben Lefenfeld said he and his team spent the whole morning preparing to shut down well before the governor made his announcement.

“I think that Governor Hogan is doing the right thing,” Lefenfeld says. “As a business owner, it was tough to figure out what to do. I’m glad we finally got some guidance.”

On a good day, the service industry operates on razor-thin margins. As workers scramble to make a living, employers are no doubt facing the tough decisions of laying off staff.

Alex Smith, president of Atlas Restaurant Group, concurs with Lefenfeld. “I agree the governor made the right decision for everybody,” he says, adding that his restaurants tried to stay open as long as possible to support their hourly employees, who rely on a base wage and tips from customers. “As a business with 1200 employees we can’t afford to pay all of them without revenue coming in.”

Lefenfeld adds that he and his team are weighing whether or not they will be open for carry-out next week, but for now they are selling gift cards.

“Twenty-five percent of the sale of the gift cards is going to our staff,” he says. “We are doing all that we can to keep people afloat.”

With regard to his 60 employees, Lefenfeld says that he is attempting to not let anyone go. “Everyone is using paid time off and we are hoping to pay our salaried employees through this entire ordeal,” he adds.

The Hershkovitz’s are trying to create other employment opportunities for their team.

“Being creative, we’ve come with several options for each staff member, from temporary unemployment to being part of our carry out/delivery operation to working at our father’s supermarket, which has no lack of positions for folks interested in working,” says Josh. “We have predicted our temporary closure will last about two weeks, but we will monitor the situation as it progresses.”

Though many chefs and restaurateurs are working diligently to secure employment for their staff, there is still a fear that some might not survive an indefinite shutdown: “This will close a lot of restaurants,” Foreman says. “A lot of places won’t be able to sustain this.”

Adds Smith, “It’s going to hurt.”

While the impact will be felt for some time to come, Lefenfeld points out that Charm City is uniquely resilient.

“The Baltimore restaurant community is a pretty tight-knit group,” he says. “People will rally, not just around the restaurants, but all of the small businesses in the city and support each other.”

Walkability was a huge factor for Michael Neall when he decided to open Blue Dog BBQ in the former Heavy Seas Alehouse space, which sits on the corner of Central Avenue and Bank Street near Little Italy.

“One of the first things we did was check out the walk score for our location,” says Neall, who opened Blue Dog with partners Sean Stoll and Jon Royce last October. “It was a 96. That’s about as good as it gets for a business that would rely on foot traffic.”

After months converting the space from a brewpub to a barbecue joint, the team was finally ready to fire up its signature all-wood smoker and welcome the first wave of customers. But just five days before the grand opening, jersey walls were put up along Central Avenue as the city’s Departments of Transportation and Public Works prepared to begin a large-scale infrastructure improvement project in the area—which included installing new subterranean electric, sewage, and plumbing conduits.

“When the barriers went up, our hearts skipped a beat,” Neall says. “We immediately just thought, ‘Okay, how are we going to deal with this?’”

This is a question that many small business owners have been asking themselves in the midst of ongoing development throughout the city. Specifically in the Harbor East and Fells Point areas, where detour signs and traffic cones have become routine, restaurateurs have been struggling to cope with construction projects that have taken years to finish.

Take Sunni Gilliam, who opened Teavolve on the corner of Aliceanna and South Eden streets in 2008. The cafe preceded many of the shiny residences and luxury shops that have since sprouted up in Harbor East, and it’s now stationed in the heart of construction for the new Liberty residences—which will be anchored by a 50,000-square-foot Whole Foods on the ground floor when it debuts this summer.

“We’ve seen some challenges,” Gilliam says. “There’s definitely been a decline in our figures, but we’re very fortunate that people still find a way to get here. They’re still making a point to come in and support us.”

Gilliam mentions the loss of parking on South Eden and Aliceanna Streets as a major deterrent for customers. She speculates that it contributed to the closure of the neighboring Mussel Bar—which shuttered last year, but is reopening as a jazz club this spring. Just a few blocks over in Fells Point, businesses are facing similar issues as a result of the redevelopment in Broadway Square.

“It hasn’t been easy,” says Carrie Podles, co-owner of Alexander’s Tavern on the 700 block of South Broadway. “We’ve lost so much parking, and there doesn’t seem to be any parking replaced. Business was booming four or five years ago, and then it was one thing after another and it just seemed like it was never ending.”

In response to the construction—which began with the Marketplace at Fells Point apartments and continues with the overhaul of Broadway Market—Podles says she has been encouraging customers to use ridesharing platforms when coming in to the restaurant. Additionally, Alexander’s has been amping up its off-site catering to make up for the loss of diners.

A self-proclaimed optimist, Neall at Blue Dog has also been searching for innovative ways to drive business throughout construction. He and his team recently participated in the Baltimore Wing Festival to spread the word about his restaurant, has been promoting their private party room, and has found success using delivery apps like DoorDash and Uber Eats.

Despite the barriers and heavy equipment that will likely surround his barbecue spot until the end of the year, Neall remains positive about how the city has responded to his concerns. He says that officials have been gracious about sending notices of planned outages and potential water shutoffs so that the restaurant can prepare accordingly.

“So often you hear about antagonism between businesses and government, but I haven’t had that experience at all,” he says. “I found that they have been very understanding. We all recognize that this is a needed infrastructure project, and that, if the city is going to progress, it’s going to have to do these types of things.”

He also mentions that the city is working on adding a crosswalk at the corner of Bank and Central so that potential patrons can access the restaurant without having to deal with the extended pedestrian detour.

“When I’m walking down a sidewalk and I see a sign that says ‘sidewalk closed,’ what that says to me, and to any potential customer seeing it, is ‘don’t go there,” he says. “And that’s the direct opposite of what we want.”

Though dealing with construction remains tough, business owners agree that the ongoing projects will benefit the overall vitality of their neighborhoods in the long run.

“We’re fighting the fight,” Podles says. “We just need to make it to the end to enjoy all of the benefits.”

Gilliam sees the light at the end of the tunnel for Harbor East: “It’s going to feel like an entirely new area,” she says. “We were here when hardly anything else was. Before it was stagnant, so we welcome the construction because we know it’s going to pay off big time. We just have to hold on for a couple more months.”