So you’ve decided that you’re going to take advantage of Baltimore Restaurant Week—the city’s annual dining-out event that offers prix-fixe menus ranging from $25-45 from January 10-19. But soon after comes the inevitable question: “Where should we go?”

With so many options to choose from, we’ve found it’s easiest to start your search based on what you’re in the mood to eat. Whether you’ve been craving a colossal crab cake, oven-fired pizza, or a winter vegetable dish, the restaurant scene has plenty to offer. Here, we break down eats to consider based on what sounds good to you.

Ahi tuna: Bookmakers Cocktail Club

Federal Hill’s cozy cocktail club is offering a three-course menu that highlights a dish of seared Yuzu Kosho tuna accompanied by rice, Szechuan green beans, and wasabi cream. Round out the meal with a requisite drink, like the gin-based “Sweater Weather” or the “Over-Under” made with Bookmakers’ single-barrel Elijah Craig bourbon.

Bibimbap: Jazz + Soju

Restaurant Week is a great excuse to get to this Korean restaurant and live music venue in Locust Point if you haven’t already. In addition to spicy edamame and a Bulgogi burger, the special menu includes Bibimbap—the Korean delicacy that tops rice with fried egg, mixed veggies, and spicy gochujang sauce. Diners can customize the bowl with beef, chicken, or tofu.

Blondie: The Food Market

Known for its upscale spins on classic comfort foods, this hotspot on the Avenue in Hampden always goes all out for Restaurant Week. After savoring cornmeal-crusted pork schnitzel and “unstuffed” shells with lobster and shrimp, end on a sweet note with the restaurant’s “Half-Baked Blondie”—which arrives topped with torched marshmallow and vanilla ice cream.

Bread pudding: Wicked Sisters

Sweet tooth fiends should look no further than this Hampden hangout, which will be serving a bread pudding with almond clusters, caramelized bananas, and bourbon crème anglaise as one of its dessert choices. After the polenta fries and sous vide country short ribs, be sure to save room.

Burger: Blue Hill Tavern
Sometimes it’s best to go back to basics with a classic burger. Blue Hill’s version stacks a Wagyu beef patty between a brioche bun with cheddar cheese, fried onions, bacon, and spiced ketchup. The Canton mainstay will also highlight tavern favorites including loaded baked potato soup and wild mushroom pasta.

Ceviche: Alma Cocina Latina

Start your Venezuelan dining adventure off with the Asian-Latin ceviche at this Canton favorite. The appetizer combines octopus, shrimp, yellow corn, sweet potato puree, and spicy lychee-miso leche de tigre (tiger’s milk) that’s meant to be savored atop spicy tortilla chips. Alma’s special spread also features roasted duck and crispy polenta with confit beets and grilled fennel.

Chicken parmesan: GDL Italian by Giada

Leave it to Giada de Laurentiis to warm our souls with Boot Country classics. The celebrity chef’s local outpost inside Horseshoe Casino will offer a chicken parm over spaghetti with mozzarella, arugula, shaved fennel, and crispy bread crumbs. For a more localized version of her family recipes, try the crab arancini with Old Bay aioli.

Coq au vin: Le Bistro du Village

Take your tastebuds on a trip to Paris at this Mt. Washington haunt. The restaurant’s coq au vin is the perfect winter warmer, flavored with red wine sauce and served alongside a helping of mashed potatoes. For even more French flair, save room for the mousse au chocolat.

Crab cakes: Annabel Lee Tavern
The crab cakes at this Edgar Allan Poe-themed corner bar in Canton are a must-try—along with the duck-fat fries and honey-drizzled Brussels sprouts, of course. Order a platter of two served alongside sautéed kale and mashed potatoes.

Cream of crab soup: Charmed Kitchen

Speaking of crab, if you like your lump meat to come in the form of soup, enjoy this creamy iteration at Charmed Kitchen in Butcher’s Hill. Customize your second course with dishes including linguini and clams, lasagna, and Norwegian salmon with roasted potatoes.

Filet mignon: The Prime Rib

What would a meal at this decades-old Mt. Vernon steakhouse be without a fresh cut of meat? Follow the leopard-printed carpet to your table and dig into filet mignon or a special cut of prime rib served with all the fixins’, including creamed spinach and mashed potatoes.

French toast: Gunther & Co.

Don’t forget that, in addition to lunch and dinner, many restaurants are offering two-course brunch menus as part of Restaurant Week. At Gunther & Co., enjoy the lemon ricotta doughnuts and cheesy grits before getting into the house-made brioche French toast. The thick hunks of grilled bread are topped with sautéed bananas, spiced rum-maple syrup, brown sugar, and orange butter.

Maryland Rockfish: Gertrude’s Chesapeake Kitchen
Experience chef/owner John Shields’ dedication to Chesapeake cuisine at this 20-year-old gem inside the Baltimore Museum of Art. The rockfish filet wrapped housemade bacon is served alongside rainbow chard and celery root and potato puree—made with produce that Shields gathers himself weekly at the 32nd Street Farmers’ Market.

Mac and cheese: Sobo Cafe

As far as nostalgic meals go, mac and cheese is about as comforting as it gets. Embrace your inner child with the version at this Federal Hill standby, which tops its noodles with cheddar, chopped tomatoes, and toasted bread crumbs. Other fare to look out for includes veggie burgers, chicken pot pie, and spinach pie with crispy phyllo.

Oyster stew: True Chesapeake Oyster Co.

Retreat from the winter winds at this newbie inside Hampden’s Whitehall Mill. Chef Zack Mills presents his soul-satisfying oyster stew with bacon, potatoes, and tarragon. Course two highlights seared rockfish or roasted squash with chive cream.

Pizza: Verde

Settle in with a glass of wine and a plate of burrata before digging into the wood-fired pies at this Canton pizzeria. From pistachio pesto and truffle cream to caramelized onions and zucchini, there are tons of options to choose from. Order a few for the table to mix and match.

Salad: Noona’s

This Bolton Hill restaurant might be known for its pizza and pastas, but it also offers some enticing greens to pair with all of the carbs. The first-course menu offers a fall salad mixed with walnuts, plum jam, sage, and a caramelized apple vinaigrette. If you’re more of a purist, go for the caesar with pecorino and herbed bread crumbs.

Salmon: The Tilted Row
One of the hottest openings of the year, this Bolton Hill restaurant offers global dishes and a sizable bourbon collection. Among chef Andy Thomas’ creations on the special menu is a fig-glazed salmon with wild mushrooms, tomatoes, and a crispy polenta cake.

Spaghetti: Cinghiale
Treat yourself to a trip to Italy by way of Harbor East at this veteran osteria. The squid ink spaghetti with calamari, shrimp, mussels, lemon, fresno chili, and oregano is a surefire bet to quell seafood cravings. Other featured entrees will include a ricotta cavatelli, pan-roasted Icelandic cod, and braised veal with broccoli rabe.

Tacos: The Urban Oyster
If you’re really looking to get more bang for your buck, this Locust Point seafood spot is offering a two-course lunch deal for $20. Among the choices are oyster or shrimp tacos with honey-cilantro slaw in warm flour tortillas. On the $35 dinner menu, chef Jasmine Norton is highlighting surf and turf tacos filled with grilled shrimp, steak, pico de gallo, and chipotle aioli.

Foo Fighters
July 6. Merriweather Post Pavilion, Columbia. 7 p.m. $60-125. Over the past two decades, the Foo Fighters have done it all: toured the world, won 10 Grammys, and even soldiered on as lead singer Dave Grohl performed from a makeshift throne while resting his broken leg. In their first-ever show at Merriweather Post Pavilion, the guitar gods will rock the sold-out crowd with hits from their latest album, Concrete and Gold, as well as time-honored classics such as “Best of You” and “Everlong.”

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Cirque Du Soleil: Crystal
July 5-8. Royal Farms Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St. Times Vary. $45-165. Theater. Cirque du Soleil has long been revered for its world-class acrobatic performances, but now, in true awe-inspiring fashion, they’ve decided to up the ante by taking their show onto the ice. For the first time, ice skaters will join acrobats in challenging the laws of physics during this winter wonderland-themed show at the Royal Farms Arena. From the edge of your seat, follow the story of a young girl as she discovers herself in a world of her own imagination.

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The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
July 7. The Legendary Arch Social Club, 2426 Pennsylvania Ave. 8 p.m. $18-21. Music. Back in March, prominent Baltimore voices—Joy Postell, Christen B, J Pope, and more—paid tribute to this Fugees rapper’s monumental debut album, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, with a sold-out performance at Creative Alliance that left attendees (and those with FOMO) begging for an encore show. This month, hear some of the same local artists celebrate the 20th anniversary of one of the greatest albums of all time with back-to-back performances, this time at the historic Arch Social Club in West Baltimore.

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Snail Mail
July 12. Parkway Theatre, 5 W. North Ave. 7 p.m. $15-18. To say that Snail Mail—aka 18-year-old Ellicott City native Lindsey Jordan—has achieved indie-
darling status is an understatement. Since releasing her debut EP, Habit, in 2016, the guitar-shredding singer’s emotionally charged music has garnered praise from The New York Times, Pitchfork, and Rolling Stone, and this month, her band will premiere its first full-length album, Lush, at the historic Parkway Theatre in Station North. Catch the wunderkind during this hometown stop on the band’s summer tour and revel in Jordan’s beyond-her-years talent.

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Baltimore Caribbean Carnival
July 14-15. Clifton Park 2803 St Lo Dr. Noon-10 p.m. $15. For one weekend, follow the sound of steel drums to Clifton Park for this lively weekend-long celebration of Baltimore’s Caribbean communities. After kicking off the festivities with one of the city’s best parades—featuring colorful costumes and masquerade bands—join hundreds of attendees for traditional eats, a pop-up marketplace, and live music in the East Baltimore greenspace.

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Artscape 2018
July 20-22. Multiple locations. 11 a.m.-9 p.m. Free. When Kailah Foreman learned that she won the prestigious Fred Lazarus IV Artscape Prize in May, one of the first people she told was her AP Art teacher, Matthew Adelberg, who encouraged her and his five other students to apply for the annual award. “I sent him a screenshot of the email, and he called me immediately,” says Foreman, a senior at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute on Cold Spring Lane. “He was screaming; that’s how excited he was.” The oil paintings and pencil drawings that she submitted for the fifth annual award, which grants one Baltimore City high school student $1,000 and a solo exhibition, will be on display at the 37th annual arts festival. Foreman, who will attend the Maryland Institute College of Art this fall, says the award will help jumpstart her fine arts career. “The fact that I won tells me that people are really looking at my art,” she says, “and that they see something special in me.”

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Union’s Sixth Anniversary Celebration
July 28. Union Collective, 1700 W. 41st St. 6-11:45 p.m. $35-100. Ever since bursting onto the local beer scene seven years ago, Union Craft Brewing has thrown can’t-miss anniversary parties to commemorate another year filled with Duckpin ales. This month, to celebrate both the brewery’s birthday and the grand opening of its new Union Collective complex, party the night away with an epic lineup of live music, including Baltimore rockers J. Roddy Walston & The Business, Cumberland indie-folksters Michael Nau & The Mighty Thread, and the talented DJ James Nasty, plus local eats and, of course, plenty of signature Union brews.

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Baltimore Summer Restaurant Week
July 27-Aug 5. Multiple locations. $12-35. Twice a year, dozens of Charm City restaurants—stalwarts, newcomers, and everything in-between—allow new and returning customers an affordable front-row seat to the region’s booming dining scene. With multi-course $12-20 brunches and lunches and dinners for only $20-35, this 10-day feast is sure to include at least one meal you won’t forget.

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Ronald Jackson
June 30-July 28. Galerie Myrtis, 2224 North Charles St., 2-6 p.m. Free. Exhibits. Virginia painter Ronald Jackson uses mixed-media collage techniques to reimagine African-American portraiture, layering vivid hues, geometric shapes, and rich fabrics into works filled with emotion and complexity. Get to know the emerging artist and his powerful paintings during Profiles of Color III: Fabric, Face, and Form at Galerie Myrtis in Station North.

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Janet & Walter Sondheim Artscape Exhibition
June 20-Aug 5. The Baltimore Museum of Art 10 Art Museum Drive. Wed-Sun 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Free. Exhibits. Each year, in conjunction with Artscape, The Baltimore Museum of Art celebrates local visual artists in one of the summer’s most anticipated exhibitions. Explore works by six of the city’s most prestigious artists, who are all in competition for the Sondheim’s grand prize, including multidisciplinary artist Erick Antonio Benitez, photographer Nakeya Brown, sculptor Sutton Demlong, photographer Nate Larson, painter Eunice Park, and mixed-media Baker Artist Award finalist Stephen Towns.

Let’s be honest—as much as we want to work toward our bikini bodies this season, summer is meant for eating. Of course, lots of that eating will take place at home (crab feast anyone?), but it’s time to get out of your kitchen and give your Weber a rest with the help of these food-driven festivals across the state.

Global Gourmands

MARYLAND LATINO FESTIVAL
8/5-6: Maryland State Fairgrounds, 2200 York Road, Timonium. 11 a.m.-11 p.m. $30. Dig into the spicy flavors of Latin cuisine with live music and dancing to boot.

MUSLIM FOOD FESTIVAL
8/12: Islamic Society of Baltimore, 6631 Johnnycake Road, Windsor Mill. Noon-10 p.m. $5-10. Indulge in roasted lamb, curries, falafel, and homemade fruit pops at the fifth annual fete. 

FEAST OF ST. GABRIELE
8/19-20: Little Italy. Sat. 12-8 p.m., Sun. 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Prepare to carbo-load (and cannoli overload) with Italian classics and vats of vino during this beloved Little Italy street festival. 

AUGUSTOBERFEST
8/26-27: 14 N. Potomac St., Hagerstown. Sat. 11:30 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 11:30 a.m.-6 p.m. $5. Head to the hills to celebrate German heritage and culture with steins of bier, brats, and pretzels to support scholarships for exchange students.

Local Pride (& Produce!)

MARYLAND STATE BARBECUE BASH
8/11-12: Bond & Thomas Sts., Bel Air. Fri. 4-10 p.m., Sat. 12-10 p.m. Free. More than 50 BBQ masters compete for the state championship title (and a spot at the world finals in Tennessee).

PEACH FESTIVAL
8/12-13: Weber’s Farm, 2526 Proctor Lane, Parkville. 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Free. Bite into just-ripe peaches and take home baked goods during this county festival.

HEIRLOOM TOMATO FESTIVAL
8/19: Carroll County Ag Center, 706 Agricultural Center Dr., Westminster. 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Free. Celebrate the juicy goodness that is the end-of-summer tomato with tastings and seed exchanges during this summer tradition. 

NATIONAL HARD CRAB DERBY
8/22-23: Somers Cove Marina, 715 Broadway, Crisfield. Thu. 6-10 p.m., Fri. 9 a.m.-10 p.m., Sat. 7:30 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 8 a.m.-4 p.m. & 7-9 p.m. Free-$17. The 70th annual crab derby includes piles of piping-hot steamed crabs, a parade, a boat-docking contest, and fireworks.

Renowned Restaurants

BALTIMORE COUNTY RESTAURANT WEEK
8/4-19: Locations & times vary. $15-35. For two weeks, dine out with discounted lunches and dinners at the county’s top eateries—places like Linwoods, Ruth’s Chris, and The Milton Inn.

BEST OF BALTIMORE PARTY
8/17: Hippodrome Theater at the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center, 12 N. Eutaw St. 5:30-11 p.m. $90-150. Celebrate Baltimore’s 110th anniversary and feast on dozens of eats from the city’s “Best Restaurants.”

8/5-20: Restaurant Week
Participating restaurants. Whether it’s brunch, lunch, or dinner, enjoy 15 days of prix fixe menus from 60 of Baltimore County’s top chefs and best restaurants.

8/6: Frederick Wine Festival
Carroll Creek Linear Park, S. Market St., Frederick. At this inaugural festival, feast on eats from local chefs as you wine your way through vintages from Maryland vineyards.

8/6-7: Caribbean Wine Splash
Dove Valley Winery, 645 Harrington Road, Rising Sun. Sip wine, shop local artisans, and soak up the sounds of Caribbean music, steel drums, and reggae in Cecil County.

8/12-13 MD State BBQ Bash
2 S. Bond St., Bel Air. Join thousands of meat lovers for this annual food truck rally and competition for the best barbecue in the state.

8/13: Sip and Stroll
The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, 1876 Mansion House Dr. Take an intimate evening tour of the zoo while enjoying wine, beer, and hors d’oeuvres.

8/20: Vegan Soulfest
Baltimore City Community College, 2901 Liberty Heights Ave. Learn about the vegan lifestyle with guest speakers, local purveyors, food vendors, and local artists.