Ananda

FULTON

Open the doors to Ananda and you’ll immediately forget you’re in a Fulton development. A gowned hostess will usher you through a gorgeous restaurant filled with book-lined shelves, stained glass, and roaring fireplaces. Brothers Binda and Keir Singh have created a terrific menu of both traditional Punjabi dishes and more modern creations, from garam masala goat and chicken biryani to burrata salad with gremolata and roasted cauliflower, corn, and crab soup. Ananda has its own nearby farm, so it’s no surprise that some of the finest dishes are created from seasonal produce, each perfectly spiced, with heat calibrated to taste. Among the best on our visit: palak chaat, a bowl of impossibly crispy spinach with pomegranate seeds, tamarind chutney, and housemade yogurt; and roasted broccoli, doused with spices, house-made cheese, garlic, and more tamarind. The Singhs raise chickens and ducks for their eggs and source meats locally, with that attention to quality and detail evident on the plate. Order as many dishes as you can.

Antrim 1844 and The Smokehouse Restaurant

TANEYTOWN

Dining at this restaurant on a 19th-century estate-turned-quaint-hotel feels like being on vacation. The first part is getting there, which, unless you live in northern Carroll County, isn’t easy. But the journey is worth it. Dinner begins with hors d’oeuvres and cocktails in the cozy bar or one of several seating areas before you’re escorted to your table. A piano player often fills the multiple dining rooms with music, adding to the ambiance. On our last visit, we were handed a menu with our name printed on it, along with that of executive chef Inti Villalobos-Coady, whose six-course tasting menu offers a panoply of French-inspired cooking.

There are options for each course, and we started with grilled octopus with couscous, fava beans, sweet corn, and shishito peppers, which added a nice element of heat. Our main dish, an excellent pan-seared halibut, was presented in a mushroom and dashi broth with cipollini onions and foraged mushrooms. Preparing a classic fish like this is a risk, but Villalobos-Coady is more than up to the task—the dish is a marvel. Meals here are not to be rushed, and many couples linger over bites of crème brûlée or a rich cheese plate for dessert. An after-dinner cappuccino—or better yet a cognac—is a perfect cap to a meal that feels like an escape from the monotony of everyday life. Perhaps next time we’ll get a room and stay the night.

Ash Bar

MT. VERNON

From the dimly lit, red-hued dining room to the snake-themed dishware and naughty-but-nice café society vibe, Ash Bar is a true Baltimore original (the same can be said of the Ulysses hotel in which the restaurant resides). But style only goes so far without substance. Here, the menu—overseen by Lauren Sandler, formerly of Woodberry Kitchen—features mostly elevated bistro fare, including a delicate pan-roasted salmon with celery root velouté, a comforting rigatoni Bolognese, and a classic roast chicken with tomatoes. Some offerings do shift with the seasons, but there are signature staples like the 24-hour pressed potatoes with sour cream and trout roe (think blinis) that you should order no matter how often you go. The preparations are solid and at a price point that won’t break the bank. If you want to extend that festive feeling, begin (or end) your night at the Bloom’s bar just down the hallway, which looks like something straight out of a David Lynch film, or stroll around the corner of the hotel to grab a potent craft cocktail from The Coral Wig, the latest creation from Clavel’s Lane Harlan.

Azumi

HARBOR EAST

There are few things as much fun as eating sushi on the Baltimore waterfront, chopsticking up perfectly cut hirame, ikura, and toro as the sun sets behind the Domino Sugars sign. This experience is brought to you by Azumi, located on the ground floor of the Four Seasons Hotel, featuring an omakase menu and fish flown in daily from Tokyo’s famed Toyosu Market. In addition to a stellar list of seafood for that sushi, which includes specialties like truffle uni and A5 Miyazaki Wagyu beef with foie gras, there are also various showy rolls, tempura, and barbecue-style robata, as well as bigger dishes, of which the miso black cod is particularly good. It’s worth noting that the nigiri is divine but smaller than average. (The upside is that this delivers the full flavor in one bite.) If you’re feeling flush, splurge on the Emperor’s Sushi Feast, consisting of 40 pieces of fresh fish for $240. And then maybe order another Serenity sake cocktail with the bill to ease the sticker shock.

Charleston

HARBOR EAST

While perfection is nearly impossible to achieve in any pursuit (let alone the restaurant business), this paragon of white-tablecloth dining comes close. After 26 years, co-owners Tony Foreman and Cindy Wolf still hit it out of the park night after night, sustaining a level of attention to detail that’s worthy of the highest gastronomic honors. There’s a reason why Wolf has been nominated for James Beard Best Chef Mid-Atlantic many times over. (Though we’re baffled by the Beard folks who never actually bestow her with the medal.) Inspired by her frequent culinary travels to Michelin-starred spots in France, the chef works tirelessly to tantalize our tastebuds—and all her plates are an archetype of artistry. A single sea scallop sautéed in lemon brown butter sits on a throne of cauliflower purée ringed by tiny capers on one iteration of the menu; pan-roasted magret of duck is partnered with a sunset-colored strawberry-rhubarb compote on another.

The front of the house is flawless, too; oenophile Foreman, along with genial maître d’hotel Peter Keck, keep things running with military precision, and not a fork is out of place. The positively splendid dining rooms—a series of three spaces, plus the bar, are exquisitely tasteful, each with its own personality, which means that no two visits are ever the same. Need a second opinion? While the ever-evolving tasting menu offers a three-to-six course option, last summer, one patron ordered a whopping 11 dishes, and that’s not even the restaurant record of 13. (Basically, one of everything.) Can’t say we blame them.

The Choptank

ANNAPOLIS

It would be hard to find a more apropos setting in which to slurp oysters, crack crabs, or indulge in the other bounties of the Chesapeake Bay than this second location of the Atlas Restaurant Group’s upscale Maryland seafood house concept. But setting alone—though it’s hard to beat this one, which overlooks the capital city’s famed Ego Alley—does not produce a top-notch restaurant. The food here speaks for itself. Rockfish ceviche features thick pieces of fish, thin slices of cucumber, and chopped tomatoes, onions, and jalapeños. The freshness of each component is evident. Steaks, strips, and sandwiches are available, but you come here for the cornucopia of fish and shellfish that can be seared, broiled, or blackened. On a recent visit, we opted for scallops with a side of amazingly rich ponzu-shiitake brown butter. In the warmer months, it can be a struggle to get a reservation, so plan accordingly. Once you’re here, you’ll see—and taste—why.

Cinghiale

HARBOR EAST

Seldom does a restaurant do so many things so well. At Cinghiale, Tony Foreman and Cindy Wolf’s beautiful Harbor East enoteca and osteria, dinner starts with a worldclass selection of imported cheeses and meats. Antipasti include foie gras, roasted pumpkin soup, and a terrific bluefin tuna crudo with avocados, cucumber, capers, and chile oil. Be sure to order at least one of the outstanding house-made pastas, which come in every conceivable shape and size. (They’re available in full and half portions.) The mushroom lasagna, with roasted eggplant and garlic fonduta, is delightfully rich. Our server heard us mention that we planned to share it and thoughtfully split the order on two plates.

Mains include meats like roasted venison, which is lean and tasty, with sweet potatoes and mustard greens. Veal, duck, chicken, and fish are all complemented rather than overshadowed by the methods in which they’re prepared. (The grilled swordfish, in a hazelnut-anchovy brown-butter sauce, is the perfect example of this synchronicity.) With an impressive multipage wine list—and a sommelier on hand for advice—Cinghiale has every angle covered.

Dok Khao Thai Eatery

COLUMBIA

Don’t let the outdoor mall near the Merriweather Post Pavilion discourage you—Porntipa Pattanamekar’s Columbia restaurant is a bustling gem of a place. There’s a salmon-colored chaise lounge in the foyer for those waiting for a table (no reservations) and a working fountain in the center of the large, inevitably crowded dining room. Plants and birdcages decorate the restaurant—even the chandeliers are enclosed by birdcages—and the whole place evokes a dream-like garden shop.

The large menu is loaded with Thai favorites: The curries are excellent, with spice adjusted to taste, and there are exemplary versions of expected dishes (pad Thai, tom yum soup, drunken noodles) plus specialties like lychee duck curry, lamb massaman curry, and “cry baby noodles,” an addictive sweet-and-sour concoction. Especially on the weekend, Dok Khao can get very busy, but don’t be put off by those large crowds—the service is spectacular, with attentive waiters and dishes appearing as if by magic. There’s also a surprisingly large dessert menu that includes mouth-watering mango parfaits and a Thai tea crème brûlée.

Duck Duck Goose

FELLS POINT

The name might conjure memories of a children’s game, but the fare at Ashish Alfred’s outstanding French restaurant is geared toward the most mature of palates. That said, despite the elevated food, Alfred knows his restaurant sits in a neighborhood known more for partying than pâté, so it’s unpretentious and approachable. Start with a Duck L’Orange cocktail, which he swirls with duckfat-washed Sagamore Rye and gooseberries, cardamom bitters, star anise, and cinnamon. It’s a wonderful drink that sets the stage for the food. Classic Parisian appetizers like escargot and duck liver pâté are excellent, as is the roasted cauliflower, which is brilliantly paired with a date purée. As one might expect, the namesake duck is represented heavily among the entrees (the roasted duck breast is rich and tender), but much else shines as well. If there’s a better place to get coq au vin in the city, we’ve yet to find it. Dessert is not to be overlooked here, and the croissant bread pudding, topped with caramel, is lighter than most but no less delectable. It’s fun and French—a combination Duck Duck Goose has nailed.

Foraged

STATION NORTH

Stew in summer? It’s not the first dish that comes to mind in that season, but Chris Amendola has never been satisfied with the status quo. His menu is ever-changing—sometimes even daily, as a dish might be served with a different kind of pasta or variety of tomato on any given night. But the chef always stays true to his ideals: using the freshest, most local ingredients possible (including, as the name would suggest, some that he forages himself) in creative ways. Take that stew, for example, which is a signature menu item on most visits. It is mushroom-based, and includes ricotta, herbs, pine nuts, and a poached egg. The result is a burst of umami that hits the spot any time of year.

On one recent visit, the seasonal offering of lightly fried squash blossoms stuffed with cheese reminded us of elevated jalapeño poppers; on another, a clever Maryland-style mushroom “crab cake” mimicked our state seafood. And while vegetables really shine here, the kitchen treats meat with similar respect. Take, for example, another offering—a leg of lamb topped with zesty chimichurri served over eggplant purée with roasted tomato and broccoli. As with so many of the dishes here, it was a perfect melding of ingredients and offers an apt demonstration of why Amendola was named a James Beard Award semifinalist in the Best Chef: Mid-Atlantic category last year.

Gertrude’s Chesapeake Kitchen

HOPKINS-HOMEWOOD

Renowned chef-owner John Shields opened this quintessential Bay-to-table restaurant inside the Baltimore Museum of Art in 1998 and, a quarter-century later, it hasn’t deviated from its mission. The menu still highlights the bounty of the Chesapeake in dishes like Chincoteague fried oysters, smoked blue catfish catties, and rockfish imperial accompanied by creamy garlic mashed potatoes that makes a wonderfully rich dish combining the best of land and sea. Shields also excels with less traditional dishes like pleasingly spicy udon noodles tossed in a soy sauce, chile oil, orange zest, and toasted sesame seeds, while lamb meatballs with figs and yogurt sauce are worthy of their menu moniker “Greektown.” Gertrude’s wouldn’t have thrived for 25 years if its chef-owner had rested on his laurels. Thankfully, he hasn’t. And bonus points to Shields for being one of the most congenial chefs in town.

The Helmand

MT. VERNON

There’s little need to change much of anything at a restaurant like The Helmand. For more than three decades, gracious owners Pat and Qayum Karzai have quietly led the fine-dining scene in the city. The kitchen of this Baltimore culinary linchpin has produced a kaleidoscope of flavors that wows both newcomers and customers who have been coming since day one. Everyone knows that The Helmand’s renowned kaddo borwani—pan-fried and baked baby pumpkin seasoned with sugar and served on yogurt garlic sauce—is a must-order. But the menu, exotic yet approachable, is filled with other items to tempt you, like the zardalu challow—chunks of lamb simmered with sun-dried apricots, prunes, tomatoes, garlic, turmeric, and chile peppers—or the mourgh challow: chicken sautéed in yellow split peas and tomatoes. Every time we return, which is often, we’re thrilled that it’s just as we remembered.

Hersh’s

RIVERSIDE

Drive to the southernmost end of Light Street in South Baltimore and you’ll find one of the city’s best pizzerias in a big brick building on the corner that once housed a barbecue joint. Owned and operated by the Hershkovitz siblings, Stephanie and Josh, Hersh’s is strung with Edison bulbs and seems to be guided by the heat and principle of the 5,000-pound, Italian-made, wood-burning pizza oven that the pair forklifted into the space. The Neapolitan-style pies that emerge from this behemoth are spectacular: a margherita with house-made mozzarella, a version of Frank Pepe’s classic New Haven clam pie, and a white pizza with pistachios and kale that keeps regulars coming back. The pasta, also made in-house, is excellent as well: a short list of cavatelli or tagliolini, each perfectly tricked out. In short, Hersh’s has everything a pizzeria should have—great pies—plus everything most pizzerias do not, including rustic entrees (a satisfying swordfish over couscous) and deft appetizers (wood-fired octopus) that you’d expect to find at a white-tablecloth spot.

La Scala Ristorante Italiano

LITTLE ITALY

Little Italy’s La Scala is as old-school as they come. The servers are dressed like steam-train conductors, the pepper grinders are brandished like wands, and the pasta—made in-house—is worthy of all those ancient ladies making orecchiette on Pasta Grannies. Chef-owner Nino Germano has been running the place for over a quarter-century, and it manages to be both traditional and idiosyncratic: There’s a bocce ball court near the front door, and instead of a chandelier, there’s a wooden octopus hanging from the ceiling. Whatever makes Germano happy is fine with us. There are splendid iterations of gnocchi and risotto and antipasta on offer, as there should be. The calamari fritti and veal scallopini are outstanding, as has been every plate of pasta we’ve ever ordered, particularly the Bolognese, puttanesca, and ethereal gamberi fra diavolo. Finish off with a demitasse of espresso and at least one order of tiramisu.

Le Comptoir Du Vin

STATION NORTH

Hidden away in a sliver of a rowhouse on a ramshackle Station North street, walking into Le Comptoir is like stumbling upon a sudden portal to Aix-en-Provence. Rosemary Liss and Will Mester have created a French-ish bistro and wine bar that feels at once upscale and familial, as if your Gallic grandparents had been secretly trained in the classics. Bottles of wine line the walls, the menu is chalked on a blackboard, and the dishes—ever-changing rustic takes on countryside food that are both unconventional and unexpected—come on mismatched china.

One night, there might be a cassoulet or a stew of lentils with goose liver. Another might yield tomato tarts or soup au pistou. An appetizer of rolled pig’s head, green sauce, and grilled bread is spectacular, as is the restaurant’s famous mussel toast with saffron aioli. If there aren’t enough of the tiny dinner tables, there’s a basement dining room that feels like a forgotten wine cellar and which turns into a patio during the warmer months. The bread is made in-house, the natural wine list is long, and the desserts (lemon posset!) are sublime.

Limoncello

LOCUST POINT

The menu at this contemporary Italian restaurant is attractive for many reasons. Let’s start with the food: Antipasti like the torta di melenzane, aka baby eggplant in tomato sauce topped with fresh mozzarella, are excellent, as is the bruschetta with fig jam, Gorgonzola, and 24-month aged prosciutto. Pasta dishes, like orecchiette with crumbled fennel sausage and roasted-garlic broccoli rabe, harken to Italy’s Campania region, where the owners have their roots. And entrees, like a plate of grilled shrimp, swordfish, calamari, and octopus with fingerling potatoes and an arugula-tomato salad, are caringly prepared.

Chef-co-owner Gennaro DiBenedetto allows the seafood to speak for itself while ensuring that its flavors are accented by the right level of char from the grill. But we also love the menu itself—literally. Its colors and fonts are festive, capturing how it feels to dine here. Located on the first floor of shiny Anthem House in Locust Point, the sprawling space is bright and lively, and the large bar has some of the most comfortable stools in town. Reservations fill up on the weekends, so plan ahead or risk disappointment.

Linwoods

OWINGS MILLS

Don’t come to this 36-year-old Owings Mills stalwart if you’re looking for newfangled trends or to fill your social media feed with images of salmon with edible gold leaf or chopped sandwiches—yes, those are both a thing. This white-linen spot—long the ad-hoc fine-dining room for Baltimore County—is all about quality and consistency, resulting in the kind of cooking you’ll want to enjoy with friends or family for a special occasion, or any reason at all. Whether you grab a seat at the bar to sip a pineapple martini and snack on shrimp scampi flatbread; choose to perch at the grill line, with its view of the open kitchen and garde mangers stacking salads in ring molds; or sit at a table for that piece of simply prepared fish that’s been on the menu since the beginning, all roads lead to perfection. The eponymous Linwood Dame, who last year sold the business to his longtime executive chef, Tom Devine, and Erena Vedensky, Linwoods’ chief financial officer, is no longer a nightly presence, but other familiar faces, like veteran staffer-turned-general-manager Stacey Taylor, prevail to table touch and make you feel oh so cared for.

Magdalena, A Maryland Bistro

MT. VERNON

If you want to impress out-of-towners or just want to get glitzed up for a night on the town, head to this epitome of elegance inside The Ivy Hotel. The posh dining rooms and Eden-like patio exude a quiet luxury, but after a post-pandemic relaunch, the bistro-style menu is a bit more approachable. The menu draws from the area’s best fishermen and farmers and leans into the seasons, while always paying its respect to the Mid-Atlantic. Each dish is executed with consistency and care, from a crispy sea bass with chanterelles, Sungold tomatoes, and turmeric oil in summer to a golden Amish chicken with pickled okra in the fall.The whiskey selection, the cocktails, and Wine Spectator-awarded bottle list make for ideal accompaniments.

We suggest going with a few friends for maximum sharing opportunities. Our own perfect Magdalena order includes a basket of house-made bread with ever-changing butters, the artisan cheese plate, and the heavenly dessert board including pastry chef Cassidy Lueck’s phenomenal ricotta doughnuts served with a scoop of seasonal ice cream. For the ultimate experience, splurge for a room upstairs (breakfast from the restaurant is included).

The Milton Inn

SPARKS

Ever since its 2021 opening under the auspices of the Foreman Wolf Restaurant Group and chef-partner Chris Scanga (formerly of Petit Louis Bistro in Roland Park), this bucolic country haven, whose former claim to fame is that it was John Wilkes Booth’s one-time schoolhouse, only gets better and better. Over time, the menu has become more approachable, with less focus on game and more emphasis on the greatest hits from the Louis menu—the iconic crispy squash blossoms with saffron aioli, the Left Bank-leaning quiche Lorraine, the croque monsieur, and the best onion soup this side of the Seine. But there are plenty of items that are unique to the Inn, too, further highlighting Scanga’s mastery of French foundational cooking. The pan-roasted Scottish salmon in sorrel sauce is exemplary, as is a simple New York strip boosted by Béarnaise and the divine steak tartare complete with caviar and a quail egg.

There’s no such thing as a bad seat here—some rooms are bright and airy; others are dark and moody. The patio, replete with a fireplace, is perfect even when the air has a slight chill. Whatever the backdrop, the execution is on-point, the flavors are fantastic, and the hospitality is warm and sincere. Go on Wednesdays when wine is half price. And always visit the dog-themed bathroom near the bar, even if only for the selfie.

Nihao

CANTON

After briefly closing for a reboot last year, NiHao reopened with a new menu that put the Canton rowhouse restaurant more in line with chef-owner Peter Chang’s small empire of Mid-Atlantic restaurants highlighting traditional regional Chinese cuisine. NiHao’s kitchen now sends out plates of its superb signature Peking duck (a holdover from the previous iteration, as regulars would have revolted otherwise), plus huge bowls of flounder spiked with hot chiles or Sichuan peppercorns and cabbage, both takes on the classic water-boiled fish, as well as crispy popcorn chicken laced with bright red chiles—not to mention an impressive list of dim sum. NiHao also features more than a dozen baijiu cocktails, made with the national spirit of China, traditionally distilled from sorghum, which makes for a great addition to the local mixology scene. Be sure to order the xiaolongbao (soup dumplings) steamed in bamboo trays, or the crispy, doughy balloon of bubble pancake that is another of Chang’s signatures. It’s a great, showy start to what is a banquet of a meal.

Peerce’s

PHOENIX

This jewel box of an Indian restaurant, nestled along Dulaney Valley Road, is a beacon from a dark stretch of country road. As you step onto the patio, you’ll find yourself in a verdant Eden overflowing with greenery and a trellis entangled with vines. The interior of the restaurant—think dramatic, curry-scented dining rooms that flicker with candlelight—is equally elegant. Co-owner brothers Binda and Keir Singh of Howard County’s Ananda explore their roots in Punjabi cooking with traditional yet modern interpretations of always well-seasoned dishes like tandoori chicken, fish curry, garam masala goat, and lamb vindaloo. And their vegetable-based offerings, from spiced okra with onions to eggplant curry, crush the concept that vegetarian fare is boring.

The expansive menu also bends with the seasons and nods to Maryland, as evidenced by the crab khumbi with sweet meat tucked into a portobello mushroom capped with coconut chutney. And as anyone who has ever been to Peerce’s knows, no visit is complete without at least a passing conversation with the sartorially suited Keir, who sets the tone with his genuine warmth and is always on hand to make a recommendation. (Ask him about the off-menu butter chicken if you like a lot of heat.)

Peter’s Inn

FELLS POINT

Whenever we have new guests in town, there’s always one place we take them for the most culinarily quintessential introduction to Charm City. Somehow both gritty and quietly cosmopolitan, eccentric yet accessible, this former Ann Street biker bar manages to capture all the wonderful contradictions of our underdog town. Only owners Karin and Bud Tiffany could combine a sidecar-ed martini served on a silver platter with a stereo cranking out The Clash. Or a just-right New York strip steak with a giant taxidermied marlin above the bar. Or Prince Edward Island oysters (with a “bump” of caviar, no less) and the best Texas toast-style garlic bread you’ve ever had.

Hand-written menus mingle with antique oil paintings and the oohs and aahs of both longtime loyal patrons and wide-eyed come-latelys. That’s because Peter’s is the inimitable blend of no-fuss and plenty of frills, with each dish having its own magic touch. On a recent visit, our pasta al limone arrived with an unexpected punch of buttery sautéed shrimp, smashed pistachios, and smoky chile flakes. It’s a sin to skip the surprisingly lovely house salad, decadent smoked trout pâté, or divine pot de crème dessert. And those relatively new French fries rival McDonald’s, which we mean as the highest possible praise.

Preserve

ANNAPOLIS

Occasionally we find ourselves in Annapolis in search of supper, and more often than not, that means we’ll make our way up Main Street to this now-mainstay on the state capital’s most bustling strip. Amidst the throngs of white-hatted Navy plebes and across from the bright lights of Chick & Ruth’s Delly, Preserve is easy to miss, though once you’ve had a bite inside, you won’t soon forget it. Since 2015, husband-and-wife team Jeremy and Michelle Hoffman—formerly of Thomas Keller’s Per Se and Danny Meyer’s Union Square Café, respectively—have been turning out some of the most ambitious food in Anne Arundel County.

Much is in the name here, with the chef’s Pennsylvania Dutch heritage melding with the ingredients of the Chesapeake and pickled and preserved elements dotting the boundary-pushing menu. Fried duck tongues with rice vinegar aioli and chile crisp were an appetizer we never knew we needed, while the pork terrine is a perennial star, especially the version with fennelpeach kraut and Dijonnaise on offer last summer. Always indulge in the daily specials, inspired by provisions from the restaurant’s roster of local farmers, and on that note, consider a bottle from Old Westminster Winery, made just up the road.

Puerto 511

DOWNTOWN

Open since 2014 and reworked in 2019 with a prix-fixe-only menu, Puerto 511 is a hidden gem tucked away off a side street in the heart of downtown. Open the door to what feels like a secret gateway to Lima, and you’ll find Peruvian chef-owner Jose Victorio Alarcon’s minimalist dining room, with 10 small tables next to a tiny open kitchen. There’s lovely artwork on the walls and a steep staircase down to a beautiful dining room for larger parties, with a fireplace to boot. With five courses on weekdays and seven during weekends, Alarcon’s menu is a perfectly orchestrated series of dishes—all sized and paced just right—like shrimp in sweet chile sauce atop a corn tamal; grilled veal skewers over Peruvian corn and potatoes with pepper sauce; and a stunning dish of fish ceviche with sweet potatoes in tiger’s milk, a regional marinade of yellow peppers and lime. Puerto 511 is BYOB, which allows for personalization, but they also offer pisco sours, the traditional Peruvian cocktail—and a stellar accompaniment to Alarcon’s glorious food.

Restaurante Tio Pepe

MT. VERNON

This subterranean Spanish stalwart on the quiet edge of Franklin Street isn’t the hot spot it used to be. In fact, on a recent Tuesday night, we were the only table in the place, but before long, that felt like being in on one of Baltimore’s best-kept secrets. Two servers swept through with glasses of potent house-made sangria and the sort of old-world service that M.F.K. Fisher would praise. By the time other locals trickled into the cavernous dining room—dimly lit, decked in white tablecloths, dripping with oil paintings, and the occasional lipstick-red carnation—we were too busy swooning over the luscious garlic soup off the special’s menu (which hasn’t changed in a decade) to pay them any mind.

With minute steaks and stringbean almondines, the menu is stuck in 1968, the year that Tio Pepe opened, but that makes it kinda cool again. Start with the hollandaise artichokes and Serrano ham with melon. Then, while it might sound sacrilege, forgo the famous paella for near-perfection soft-shell crabs with lemon and butter and, always, the masterpiece suckling pig with pan jus, smoky black beans, and cinnamon-scented apple sauce that you’ll be dreaming about for days. But before you head back out into the modern-day night, find room for a café Americano and slice of the delightful pine nut roll for dessert. Turns out, they kind of knew how to live 56 years ago.

Tagliata

HARBOR EAST

This Italian Harbor East hot spot is the juggernaut of the Atlas Restaurant Group, which has 25 area restaurants (and counting). The vibe is swank—from the oversized card-stock menu (good riddance, QR codes!) to the sophisticated dining room to a lineup of deeply delectable dishes, thanks to co-owner-chef Julian Marucci, who coaxes big flavors from simple ingredients. All the offerings are excellent here, but be sure to order at least one of the house-made pastas stuffed or coated with all sorts of scrumptious items from rabbit to crab with uni cream.

The rest of the menu is a hit parade, too—some signatures with timeless preparations, like the beef tenderloin with spicy black garlic mostarda, others seasonal, like the smoked carrots with ricotta and truffle honey or risotto with roasted corn and crab. Pair it all with a pick from the seemingly limitless selection of award-winning wines, from Piedmont to Puglia. At the end of the meal, lounge on the patio or in the piano lounge over an espresso martini while taking in the spectacle of decked-out patrons passing by. La dolce vita, indeed.

Tapas Teatro

STATION NORTH

Like a classic film, this beloved Spanish restaurant is as relevant today as it was when it debuted 23 years ago in Station North. Adjacent to the Charles Theatre, it still draws moviegoers who down pitchers of the signature sangria (which can be brought inside the cinema). Everyone else seems to love it as well. The bar, dining room, and streetside tables are packed, but the staff remains friendly and unflappable. On a recent visit, we heeded our server’s advice and started with a handful of small plates. All were excellent, but the huevos de cordoniz y chorizo—strips of sausage topped with a rich quail egg on toasted crostini—stood out. After four, we wanted more. Along with the description for gambas al ajillo—shrimp sautéed in olive oil with garlic and parsley—comes a parenthetical: “Add capers or/and chiles for a kick.” To which we say, do both—it takes an already outstanding dish and turns it into a masterpiece. Like most movies, many restaurants fade over time. Only the greats endure.

Thames Street Oyster House

FELLS POINT

It seems like every hip restaurant has a raw bar these days, but well before freshly shucked seafood found itself in the Roaring Twenties-esque revival, there was Thames Street on its cobblestone namesake in Fells Point. For over a decade, owner Candace Beattie and executive chef-partner Eric Houseknecht have helped remind our city about oysters, the shellfish which once reigned supreme along the nearby waterfront long before crab was ever king. And here, in this Chesapeake-meets-New England eatery, those half-shells are served as impeccably as they come.

This is the place for even the least bold to try their first oyster. Your server will guide you from the accessible to the challenging. But the rest of the menu shouldn’t be missed either. The buttery whole-belly clam roll—with fat fried bits of bliss tumbling over the edge of a griddled split-top bun so good we’d eat it solo—would make our last meal. For sharing, a splurge for the five-pound lobster—stuffed with blue crab, shrimp, and scallops—is worth it, though the claw-knuckle-and-tail-packed polenta with English peas, mushrooms, and spring onions makes an ideal and still indulgent substitute. Funnily enough, we get especially jazzed about the seasonal sides, which on one late summer visit included the loveliest brown sugar baked lima beans we’ve ever seen.

The Tilted Row

BOLTON HILL

Executive chef Amy Hessel and owner Ziad Maalouf have created a destination-worthy restaurant on the ground floor of a modernist Bolton Hill apartment complex, with a menu of Middle Eastern dishes with a Maryland twist. Sit at the counter and watch the crew making plates of falafel-encrusted salmon, charred octopus with black-garlic aioli, or lamb kofta with hummus and preserved lemons. There is an excellent Sunday brunch (massive cinnamon rolls! crab Benedict!) and Blue-Plate specials like the fried chicken and biscuits that draws locals on Thursdays with dedicated regularity. Close to Maryland Institute College of Art, there’s a deceptive casualness to The Tilted Row that makes diners feel comfortable, yet the exceptional service, beautifully run open kitchen, and pretty plating elevate the place to fine-dining status. Be sure to order the za’atar focaccia, or the desserts—one regular often just orders the brown-butter toffee cake—as Hessel was also trained in pastry.

Verde

CANTON

Long before gourmet pizza (including gluten-free and vegan) became a thing on menus across Maryland, there were blistered Neapolitan wonder wheels at this convivial hangout with Edison bulbs, marble accents, house-made fior di latte mozzarella, and a wood-fire pizza oven that turns out pizzas with pizzazz. You’d be hard-pressed to find pizza with more personality—Verde’s feature pairings such as prosciutto and fig, smoked mozzarella and lemon, and mushrooms with truffle cream. (And whichever one you pick, make a mental note to come back and try a different one next time.) But the toppings are only part of the equation. We also love the thin crust with its perfectly charred cornicione (outer edge), slight chewiness, and tangy topping of cheese. The menu is rounded out with excellent offerings from the bar (here’s looking at you, negronis!) and an array of outstanding antipasti—we constantly crave the puttanesca-style shrimp—that make this so much more than a neighborhood pizza joint.

Woodberry Tavern

HAMPDEN-WOODBERRY

We’ll admit that it took us some time to adjust when the restaurant once known as Woodberry Kitchen reopened as a tavern after the pandemic. But now that the place has found its footing, we can see that, though James Beard Award-winning chef Spike Gjerde’s original iteration was inarguably ambitious, the tavern is a more understated expression that’s no less charming. With its Windsor chairs, Persian carpets, and nostalgic desserts, the restaurant’s farm-to-fork DNA is still very much in place, with a focus on regional specialties that are at once familiar and novel.

As ever, almost all ingredients are sourced locally and dishes change with the seasons, but the experience is now more intimate. Executive chef Steven Kenny (a veteran staffer who worked at Easton’s famed Bartlett Pear Inn) is laser-focused on what’s available on any given day, but devises dishes that are as pioneering as ever. In early fall, that might mean “crab service” (a trio of dishes including crab salad, a crab pot, and crab fritters) or tortellini with chanterelles and sweet corn. In the colder months, you might find a pretzel-crusted pork loin with miso-buttered cabbage. When the mercury dips, oysters three ways emerges, including fried, roasted, and raw. The pretty-as-a-picture baked Alaska is iconic. Turns out, you can go home again, especially after a total reinvention.