37 upscale places in Baltimore, editor-picked. occasion restaurants in Baltimore: destination kitchens for celebrations and visits. All Baltimore food.
Thames Street Oyster House ★ 4.7
fells-point · 1728 Thames Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
Thames Street Oyster House in Fells Point runs Baltimore's deepest raw bar, with chef Eric Houseknecht's Eastern Shore crab cake and a lobster roll.
Tip: Reserve the upstairs dining room for quiet; the downstairs bar takes walk-ins and pours through a deep oyster list.
Little Donna's ★ 4.7
fells-point · 1812 Bank Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
Little Donna's in Upper Fells Point is Robbie Tutlewski's Eastern European kitchen, on the New York Times best list for its pierogies and tavern pie.
Tip: It is small and reservations vanish fast; the bar seats are walk-in and worth the wait.
The Wren ★ 4.6
fells-point · 1712 Aliceanna Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
The Wren in Fells Point is the contemporary pub from Le Comptoir du Vin's team, on the New York Times best list for nettle soup and bar-side cassoulet.
Tip: It is from the Comptoir du Vin owners and just as small; reserve, or take a stool at the bar.
Gertrude's Chesapeake Kitchen ★ 4.5
downtown · 10 Art Museum Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218
Gertrude's sits inside the Baltimore Museum of Art, where founder John Shields cooks the Chesapeake canon of crab cake and Maryland crab soup.
Tip: Lunch on the terrace overlooking the BMA sculpture garden is the quietest, prettiest seat in the house.
Alma Cocina Latina ★ 4.5
station-north · 1701 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201
Alma Cocina Latina in Station North is a rare Venezuelan fine-dining room, where chef Hector Romero plates arepas and roasted duck with guava jelly.
Tip: It is one of the country's few Venezuelan tasting rooms; the rum and cocktail list runs deep.
W.C. Harlan ★ 4.5
remington · 400 West 23rd Street, Baltimore, MD 21211
W.C. Harlan in Remington is a candlelit speakeasy behind an unmarked door, Lane Harlan's first bar, pouring seasonal cocktails and a deep amaro list.
Tip: There is no sign; look for the unmarked door on 23rd Street, then head inside.
Le Comptoir du Vin ★ 4.5
station-north · 1729 Maryland Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21201
Le Comptoir du Vin in Station North is a tiny natural-wine bistro from Rosemary Liss, pouring grower wines beside a weekly-changing French menu.
Tip: The menu changes weekly and the room seats barely a dozen; reserve well ahead.
NiHao ★ 4.4
canton · 2322 Boston Street, Baltimore, MD 21224
NiHao on Boston Street in Canton is chef Peter Chang's Baltimore room, plating Peking duck, dim sum and dumplings in a busy waterfront rowhouse.
Tip: Weekend dim sum brunch is the move; reserve, because the rowhouse seats fill fast.
LP Steamers ★ 4.4
locust-point · 1100 East Fort Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21230
LP Steamers in Locust Point is a classic two-storey crab house, steaming blue crabs heavy with Old Bay and serving a rooftop deck above Fort Avenue.
Tip: The rooftop deck is the seat to ask for; bring cash and patience in peak crab season.
Sugarvale ★ 4.4
mount-vernon · 4 West Madison Street, Baltimore, MD 21201
Sugarvale in Mount Vernon is an intimate basement cocktail bar, mixing inventive, balanced drinks with zero pretension off a frequently changing menu.
Tip: It is small and below street level; arrive early on weekends to land a seat at the bar.
True Chesapeake Oyster Co. ★ 4.3
hampden · 3300 Clipper Mill Road, Baltimore, MD 21211
True Chesapeake Oyster Co. in Whitehall Mill is chef Zack Mills's bay-to-table room, serving its own Jerome Creek oysters and a jumbo lump crab cake.
Tip: The oysters come from the restaurant's own farm; ask the bar which harvest is freshest that day.
Oleum ★ 4.3
fells-point · 701 South Bond Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
Oleum in Fells Point is chef Alisha Adibe's vegan fine-dining room, plating plant-based small plates, house-made cheeses and an internationally spiced menu.
Tip: It is one of the few plant-based fine-dining rooms in the region; start with the tasting menu.
Cosima ★ 4.3
hampden · 3000 Falls Road, Baltimore, MD 21211
Cosima in Mill No. 1 is a Sicilian and southern Italian room above the Jones Falls, plating house-made pasta and seafood with views of the old textile mill.
Tip: The Mill No. 1 setting and water views are the draw; ask for a table by the windows.
Marta ★ 4.3
butchers-hill · 2127 East Pratt Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
Marta in Butchers Hill is chef Matthew Oetting's nouveau Italian room in the former Salt Tavern, built around a porterhouse lamb chop over creamy polenta.
Tip: The corner rowhouse is intimate; weeknights are the easier reservation.
The Bluebird Cocktail Room ★ 4.3
hampden · 3600 Hickory Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21211
The Bluebird Cocktail Room in Hampden is a literary-themed upstairs cocktail bar, mixing hyper-seasonal drinks in a book-lined room above the Avenue.
Tip: The upstairs Green Room is the seat to ask for; the menu leans hyper-seasonal.
Fadensonnen ★ 4.3
station-north · 3 West 23rd Street, Baltimore, MD 21218
Fadensonnen in Old Goucher is Lane Harlan's natural-wine, sake and beer garden in a converted carriage house, pouring skin-contact wines under string lights.
Tip: It is part wine bar, part sake bar, part beer garden; the back patio is the place to be in summer.
The Food Market ★ 4.2
hampden · 1017 West 36th Street, Baltimore, MD 21211
The Food Market anchors Hampden's Avenue, where chef Chad Gauss turns out playful New American plates and his well-known Amish soft pretzels.
Tip: Brunch on The Avenue is busy; reserve, and ask for a booth away from the open door.
Peter's Inn ★ 4.2
fells-point · 504 South Ann Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
Peter's Inn in Fells Point is a former biker bar turned chef's favourite, with a weekly-changing menu around a famous garlic bread and a New York strip.
Tip: It does not take reservations and the room is tiny; arrive early or expect a wait at the bar.
Gunther & Co. ★ 4.2
canton · 3650 Toone Street, Baltimore, MD 21224
Gunther & Co. in Canton is a contemporary American room in a restored boiler building, plating fried oyster tacos and a Thai-spiced seafood hot pot.
Tip: The restored Gunther boiler building and atrium bar are the draw; brunch is a quieter visit.
Mama's on the Half Shell ★ 4.2
canton · 2901 O'Donnell Street, Baltimore, MD 21224
Mama's on the Half Shell on Canton Square is a neighbourhood crab-and-oyster house, working steamed crabs, oysters and a crab cake across two busy floors.
Tip: Weekend afternoons overflow with locals; ask for a seat upstairs or out on the patio.
Sotto Sopra ★ 4.2
mount-vernon · 405 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21201
Sotto Sopra on Charles Street in Mount Vernon plates house-made pasta and an opera-night supper, a long-running Italian room with a deep wine list.
Tip: The monthly opera nights are the room's signature; reserve well ahead.
Johnny's ★ 4.2
roland-park · 4800 Roland Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21210
Johnny's in Roland Park is Foreman Wolf's relaxed neighbourhood diner, plating a tuna melt, raw-bar plates and a wood-fired all-day menu daily.
Tip: Johnny's Downstairs is the more grown-up cocktail-and-dinner room below the cafe.
Dutch Courage ★ 4.2
station-north · 2229 North Charles Street, Baltimore, MD 21218
Dutch Courage in Old Goucher is a gin-focused cocktail bar on North Charles Street, building its list around gin and tonics and a long back bar of botanicals.
Tip: It is gin-forward but the team mixes anything; the patio is a draw in warm weather.
The Elk Room ★ 4.2
harbor-east · 1010 Fleet Street, Baltimore, MD 21202
The Elk Room in Harbor East is a hidden cocktail bar behind Italian Disco, pouring spirit-forward classics in a dim, vintage Atlas Restaurant Group room.
Tip: Enter through Italian Disco; the cocktail list runs spirit-forward and classic.
Petit Louis Bistro ★ 4.1
roland-park · 4800 Roland Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21210
Petit Louis Bistro in Roland Park is Foreman Wolf's Parisian-style bistro, plating a duck-fat roasted chicken and trout amandine on a Left Bank corner.
Tip: Weekday lunch is the under-the-radar bargain; the prix fixe is the value play.
Costiera ★ 4.1
little-italy · 415 South Central Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21202
Costiera in Little Italy marks chef Brian Lavin's return, a coastal Mediterranean bistro plating swordfish meatballs over house-milled polenta.
Tip: It sits where Little Italy meets Harbor East; the patio is the seat to ask for in warm weather.
Italian Disco ★ 4.1
harbor-east · 1006 Fleet Street, Baltimore, MD 21202
Italian Disco in Harbor East is Atlas Restaurant Group's pasta-and-pizza room, plating Roman-style plates and a disco-era soundtrack on Fleet Street.
Tip: It runs louder and more casual than its Atlas siblings; good for a group.
Max's Taphouse ★ 4.1
fells-point · 737 South Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21231
Max's Taphouse on Fells Point's Broadway is a beer hall with more than a hundred taps and a deep bottle list, a Baltimore craft-beer institution.
Tip: The tap list runs past 100; the annual Belgian beer fest is the calendar event to catch.
Grand Cru ★ 4.1
downtown · 527 East Belvedere Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21212
Grand Cru in Belvedere Square is a wine bar and bottle shop in one, pouring a deep by-the-glass list with cheese and charcuterie inside the market building.
Tip: It is bar and bottle shop together, so you can drink a glass then take the bottle home.
Love, Pomelo ★ 4.0
canton · 2933 O'Donnell Street, Baltimore, MD 21224
Love, Pomelo on Canton's O'Donnell Square is a Roman-leaning Italian room, plating spaghetti with bottarga and anchovy butter in a candlelit storefront.
Tip: The storefront is small and date-night busy; reserve for prime weekend windows.
The Owl Bar ★ 4.0
mount-vernon · 1 East Chase Street, Baltimore, MD 21202
The Owl Bar in the Belvedere Hotel is a Mount Vernon landmark since 1903, a wood-panelled former speakeasy with terracotta owls and brick-oven pizza.
Tip: The neon owls signalled bootleg liquor in Prohibition days; the brick-oven pizza is the kitchen's strength.
Cat's Eye Pub ★ 4.0
fells-point · 1730 Thames Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
Cat's Eye Pub on the Fells Point waterfront is a no-frills live-music bar, running blues and rock bands nightly in a cramped, well-worn room on Thames Street.
Tip: There is live music nearly every night and no cover; it is cash-friendly and waterfront.
Wet City ★ 4.0
mount-vernon · 223 West Chase Street, Baltimore, MD 21201
Wet City in Mount Vernon is a brewery, full bar and kitchen in one, pouring house beers and a chosen guest list alongside tacos in a colourful upstairs room.
Tip: It brews its own and pours a sharp guest list; the upstairs bar and the tacos are the draw.
Rye Street Tavern ★ 4.0
locust-point · 225 East Cromwell Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
Rye Street Tavern in Port Covington pours cocktails built on Sagamore Spirit rye, a waterfront tavern with an open hearth and a Chesapeake-leaning kitchen.
Tip: The rye cocktails use the next-door Sagamore distillery's spirit; the waterfront patio is the seat.
V-No Wine Bar ★ 4.0
fells-point · 905 South Ann Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
V-No Wine Bar in Fells Point is a wine bar and shop on South Ann Street, pouring Italian and Old World bottles with cheese, charcuterie and panini.
Tip: Pick a bottle off the retail shelf and drink it in for a small corkage; the patio runs in season.
Bodega & Vino ★ 4.0
locust-point · 1121 Hull Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
Bodega & Vino in Locust Point is a small grocer, cafe and wine bar in one, pouring small-producer bottles by the glass alongside snacks and pantry goods.
Tip: It works as a daytime cafe and grocer too, so you can shop the shelves and drink a glass at the counter.
The Horse You Came In On Saloon ★ 3.9
fells-point · 1626 Thames Street, Baltimore, MD 21231
The Horse You Came In On Saloon in Fells Point claims to be America's oldest continuous saloon, a Thames Street bar tied to Edgar Allan Poe's last days.
Tip: It bills itself as the country's oldest continuous saloon; the Poe lore is part of the draw.