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Baltimore, United States
Photo: DavoP, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Midtown is a district of Baltimore.
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Bolton Hill is a beautiful neighborhood, but probably the single most impressionable and beautiful section is the square immediately around this huge memorial of the composer of the U.S. National Anthem. Key, cast in bronze, stands in a boat returning from captivity on an English ship along with a soldier, presenting a manuscript of what would become the Star Spangled Banner to a figure of "Columbia," who stands tall atop a marble temple, raising the flag to the sky. The enormous domed church on the square is a Masonic building, home to the "Most Worshipful Prince Hall Grand Lodge of Maryland," and is not open to the public.
At the turn of the 19th century, Baltimorians lobbied for a monument dedicated to the United States' first president, and in 1829 Washington's first monument finished construction. It was designed by architect Robert Mills who later designed that other Washington Monument in D.C. It is now the focal point of the Mt. Vernon neighborhood. Visitors can climb to the top (more than 160 feet high) with admission to see a panoramic view of the city.
An excellent museum donated to the city by father-and-son railroad tycoons William and Henry Walter, fervent collectors who purchased much of its massive and diverse collection as well as the buildings that host it. It is best known for its collection of 19th century European masterpieces (top floor), however, the ancient and medieval collections are excellent as well. Be sure to enter or exit from its Charles Street entrance, where you'll pass through a magnificent indoor courtyard modeled after the Palazzo Baldi in Genoa.
An elegant late-classical-era home built in 1850, it was donated to the city of Baltimore by its last owners, Willard and Lillian Hackerman, in 1984. The city renamed the house in their honor and took advantage of its location to expand the adjacent Walters Art Museum. It now hosts the Walters' collection of Asian Art, but is open only on the weekend, and can only be accessed from within the museum. From the front rooms on the third floors you can sneak a bird's-eye view of the monument plaza.
Where you can see the manuscript of "The Star-Spangled Banner" among other things related to Maryland history.
The city's home for swing/blues/lindy hop dancing. Come single or in pairs, and expect to be dancing. Lessons are offered at all levels, and are usual followed by social dancing. Music is often live.
Takes place during May of each year, three days of film screenings in the Midtown/Belvedere and Charles North neighborhoods.
America's largest free festival dedicated to the arts is held every July in Mount Vernon. You'll have the opportunity to experience and purchase arts and crafts produced by Baltimore artisans and tailors, as well as concerts by both local and national talent.
Gourmet, creative, thin-crust, wood-fired pizzas here are easily right up there with the best in the city. The atmosphere is extremely casual, where you will take care of getting your pizza and extra water yourself. Likewise, BYOB.
Vegan soul food in the rough model of Soul Vegetarian, but with extremely friendly service and a convenient location. Regardless of your dietary needs, they will likely be able to accommodate you. Big portions.
Bolton Hill, with its critical shortage of places to eat in the neighborhood, is well served by this little cafe. The pastries and coffee are good, but the specialty burgers and sandwiches are what really shine. Nice outdoor seating in the summer.
Sofi's does an easy trade on being the one truly tasty spot right by the Charles Theatre. The crepes come with cutsy, often theater-related names (like the "Kevin Bacon"), and are designed strictly for take out, to be eaten like a sandwich.
The only real downside to this place is the danger that that awful Heat is on song might get stuck in your head (sorry). There are meat, veggie, and vegan soups available—the menu is actually huge, with options ranging from borscht to Maryland crab to curried persimmon!
This cafe keeps in with the general trend of art galleries residing in bars, restaurants, and cafes. This is one of the cafes. It's a real cheerful sort of place, with an especially great breakfast. Dirt cheap.
Baltimore is a little short on good sushi restaurants, but this is very much a good place for fresh sushi at reasonable prices with a casual atmosphere. Both lunch and happy hour see great deals both on the sushi, including a dollar sushi menu, and the drinks. The cheap BBQ wings are also surprisingly well done. Karaoke in the lounge downstairs F-Sa nights.
D.C.'s U Street mainstay for Ethiopian food has opened a location in Baltimore, and it easily surpasses the original: prices are a bit lower, the atmosphere is more relaxed and friendly, and some would even say the food is a notch higher! As in D.C., Dukem excels in the meat category, with wonderful beef tibs especially, as well as great raw dishes. If you haven't had Ethiopian food before, this is a great place to start—just remember that you'll be eating with your hands, and that you can wind up with some spicy dishes! They roast their own coffee beans daily in an elaborate, traditional, and very elaborate Ethiopian coffee ceremony, down to the white dresses, scented grasses, frankincense, etc. It's incredible.
"Grand Lunch Buffet" available six days a week. In the evening, South Indian, North Indian, and Indo-Chinese specialties.
Iggy's rival to the north has gourmet-ish pizza just as good. And, unsurprisingly, given its location on the hippest strip in town, has really cool atmosphere with local artists exhibiting on the walls and regular live jazz even on weeknights. It's more of a restaurant than its southern rival, with table service and a full bar. Outdoor patio seating is great in nice weather.
Nepalese finds its home on the eclectic jumble of Charles St, with a tasty lunch buffet, and a nice but casual dinner.
A somewhat upscale French bistro with typical bistro fare plus a few Maryland/American favorites. But the standout is the sybaritic dessert menu, making this a great nighttime spot for a fancy drink and slice of chocolate cake or a tart.
While there isn't anything terribly special about the sushi at this college student-friendly place, it's a fun, casual restaurant with good prices and great happy hour specials.
The city papers love it, the locals love it, even the Karzai family loves it—this truly may be Baltimore's favorite restaurant. The decor is urbane and fairly upscale, but it's fine to wear jeans. The food, despite the restaurant's popularity, is remarkably well-priced. Focus on the appetizers; it's not a bad idea to order a bunch of them, and only one entree to share. Aushak is a specialty here, but if you haven't had kaddo (sauteed pumpkin with a garlic yogurt sauce), order it.
This is the original of the three Mid-Atlantic locations, with what is regularly trumpeted as some of the best steak in the country. The restaurant is a beautiful traditional steakhouse, with high backed black leather chairs, black lacquered walls, white tablecloths, and a bar that looks ready for Frank Sinatra to come in and have a martini. The signature dish is an excellent prime rib (and this is the only place you will find it every day on the menu in the city). The restaurant is also renowned for its excellent service—this is a great upscale option in Baltimore. Suit jackets not required, but... wear a jacket.
The Brewer's Art won the reader's poll in Baltimore Magazine and the City Paper for best bar in the city, and Esquire's pick for best bar in the United States. No one is too sure what to make of that wild superlative, but it is clearly a good bar. Their house brews are almost always great and offered at ridiculously low prices, and they have an excellent selection of liquors (especially scotch and brandies) and wines by the glass. The old Mt Vernon townhouse it is housed in is beautiful, with a swanky upscale seating area upstairs and a perfect dark brick dive ambiance downstairs. And even the food, upscale American, is outstanding, making the place a worthy dinner choice, or just an extra good place to get some bar food. Mains run in the $20s, light fare: $8-14.
Check out those hours! What the heck sort of club is open from 2AM-6AM? And BYOB? This is a wild sort of place.
This is basically a run-of-the-mill dive bar in North Charles, but, and it's a big but, the Buffalo born-and-bred owner has brought his special recipe to Baltimore, offering great wings.
An art gallery, club/lounge, live performance venue, and bar, this is one of the cooler places in a very cool city for a night out. Not open every night, you will have to settle for waiting for an event night.
MICA students know this "Dirt Church"—that should give you a basic idea of what to expect. Some artist painted a reproduction of the Sistine Chapel's ceiling if you look up, the bathrooms reek with the stench of death, dirts are mind-bogglingly cheap, you would probably be thrown out the door if you request a martini, etc. There is a good mix of neighborhood folks, heavily tattooed drug abusers, and art school students. This is real Baltimore, and while the masses might hate this sort of place, a true lover of the city will be in a special sort of heaven. Order a shot of rye and a Natty Boh, and you'll find yourself in good company.
This stunning, historic Victorian mansion has been opened as a B&B. It's owner-occupied and offers a 1000-sq ft, 1-bedroom corporate apartment for extended stays, a two-bedroom, one-bath suite, and two bedrooms with private baths. The rooms are large and decorated nicely without the usual B & B clutter. Wifi and off street parking is included. Not yet serving breakfast.
Perhaps the most popular hotel in Midtown, this narrow triangular building is close by the Opera House. For a historic property, the rooms are fairly modern post-renovation, and large. Staff garner near universal positive reviews.
A really pretty old hotel, not-long-ago converted from apartments, right on beautiful Mount Vernon Square. The rooftop bar has a great view over the city. This is pretty straightforwardly the nicest large hotel in Midtown.
A very attractive, large historic building just south of the monument. Open since 1907, originally as the Baltimore YMCA. Operated for years after that as the Mount Vernon Hotel, until reopening as the Hotel Indigo in 2015 after a renovation. Despite the name, it's a little north of what's usually considered Downtown, on the southern edge of Mount Vernon.
A well-known and well-stocked art supply store. It may not be the type of store to attract visitors, but it does show off what this artsy neighborhood is about. Very knowledgeable staff, unsurprisingly.
New (since 2021) independent store a block east of the Washington Monument, selling stationery, notebooks, pens, pencils, greeting cards, and related items.
By train
Amtrak as well as the MARC commuter rail Penn Line from D.C. serve Penn Station, which is a fairly easy walk from virtually anywhere in the district.
By light rail
The light rail leads through Mount Vernon and Station North, stopping at Centre St for Mt Vernon Square and historic Seton Hill, Cultural Centre for the Opera House, Penn Station, and North Ave for…
By metro
The metro subway has a convenient stop at State Center (near the Cultural Centre light rail stop), but it's not terribly clear whether anyone uses the Baltimore metro, nor whether you should either.
By bus
Bus #11 has a remarkably useful route leading north on Charles St from Downtown and the Inner Harbor, and on to the Baltimore Museum of Art and Johns Hopkins' main campus in North Baltimore.
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