I will be in Baltimore in early June for a meeting; about 4-5 days. I would like to stay in or near the Inner Harbor area. I will be commuting to the Hopkins Hospital daily. I'm thinking of trying the Renaissance to stay in; any other recommendations? Also, top dining recommendations in town? No price limit; I can flex to either extreme...a great stall in one of the markets to a worthy splurge in a top restaurant.

I stayed at the Renaissance last week. The remodel should be finished by then.

I stayed at the Residence Inn Inner Harbor when my late husband had surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital. I had a very nice two bedroom suite. Breakfast buffet was included and they had a light evening offering (Monday - Thursday). The hotel was a short walk to the Inner Harbor and a seven minute cab ride to JHH.

thanks. any restaurant recommendations?

ncounty, any of the hotels around the Inner Harbor would be fine - including the Renaissance, Marriott Waterfront, Hyatt, and Intercontinental. The Marriott Waterfront has a nice location in Inner Harbor East, which puts it closer to a number of very nice restaurants, and both Little Italy and Fells Point.

As for restaurants, the best restaurant in Baltimore is Charleston. It's close to the Marriott. I'd suggest you check out their website. In Little Italy, good picks are La Tavola, Boccaccio, Da Mimmo, and and La Scala.

Another place I'd recommend is Peter's Inn, which is a small funky kind of place in Fells Point which has great food and is very popular. They change their menu once a week and post it on their website.

Other nice places in Fells Point include Kali's Court (Mediterranean seafood), Black Olive (Greek seafood), and Bertha's (they specialize in mussels and they are quite good).

Another place I love, because of their beer, is Brewer's Art, which is north of downtown in Mount Vernon, about the 1000 block of Charles Street. The beers are great, and the dining room is very nice too - not beer pub at all, but closer to casual fine dining. Right in this same area is an Afghan restaurant called The Helmand, also on Charles Street, which is fantastic.

One other area that would be great for an evening out is O'Donnell Square, which is a short drive east of downtown. Good restaurants around the square include Claddagh Pub (good pub food), Helen's Garden, and Mama's on the Half Shell (seafood). There is also a Vaccaro's desert cafe here, which is a branch of their larger desert restaurant on Albermarle Street in Little Italy.

Many of these restaurants will serve a pretty good crabcake. But if you want the best you'll have to drive outside of town - my favorite is G & M, which is about 20 min. south of the downtown area by car. It's nothing fancy, but their crabcakes are great.

Sorry - Vacarro's is a dessert restaurant, not desert.

By the way - if you're in the mood to eat steamed crabs, Obrycki's will be open in June. It's on Pratt Street just east of Broadway sort of at the north end of Fells Point, so it's pretty close to both downtown and Hopkins. Or you could go out to Bo Brooks, which is on the water in Canton on Boston Street. More picturesque, though I think Obrycki's has better crabs.

wow, thanks so much for the recommendations! just what I was looking for....I lived in Baltimore 78 to 89 but am out of touch with all these great new places. I remember Obrycki's....I think it was the first real restaurant I went to in Baltimore; and Bertha's, we loved that. Most of the others are new to me. Back in those days, Tio Pepe and the Prime Rib were top restaurants.

In summer, I used to like to sit outside at McCormick & Schmick's down near the aquarium. You have to get seafood there, however, don't order a steak.

Is Blue Agave still open? They used to have good food.

Thin

Thin, Blue Agave is still open, and I agree - my favorite mexican in Baltimore. I think you're also right about the outdoor patio at McCormick & Schmick - it's the nicest in the city, IMO. I haven't had the greatest experience with the food there, but ncounty, if you are looking for a nice place to sit outside & unwind late afternoon, maybe with a drink and a couple of oysters, this is your place.

ncounty, Prime Rib and Tio Pepe are still very good, but no longer the only game in town. There are quite a few small eclectic or new american restaurants around town, and many of them are very good. I could list a bunch more if you like.

We were very happily surprised by the food at the Wharf Rat! We went for the beer, which is ok, but the food was good.

Bo Brooks was ok- they were our least favorite crab cake.

Bertha's is one of my favorite places.

We're definitely going to check out Brewer's Art next time we're in Balmer!

I've had good experiences at McCormick & Schmick with food as long as it was seafood.

Thin

cocontom, if you like dark beer, they make one they call Proletary Ale that is one of my favorites!

Try the Helmand for great Afghan food http://www.helmand.com/

The Wine Market in Locust Point has good food and great wine deals- stroll around the wine shop and pick a bottle to have with your dinner.
http://www.the-wine-market.com/

Thanks again. I have great memories of food in Baltimore since I basically "grew up" there as a young adult. My first true Mexican cuisine was a place on Charles Street south of Mt. Vernon, I loved Ikaros in East Baltimore for greek food, and then the strawberry pie at Haussner's was legendary and I would stop there for takeout pie. used to be a great Indian rest. at the Inner Harbor and several spanish restaurants around town as well as an Ethiopian place called Queen of sheba in the early 80s. Is Phillips still at the Inner harbor; I think that was the name of the landmark seafood restaurant anchoring one of the two pavillions (the main food pavillion).

DO NOT EAT at Philip's Seafood at the Inner Harbour! NO NO NO! DREADFUL.

And do not eat at the Rusty Scupper, either, unless you want to be poisoned.

Thin

Hi ncounty, my standard hotel advice for Baltimore is that it is a great city to use Priceline. I've used it at least 6 times, specifying 4-star, Inner Harbor and usually get the Marriott, but have gotten the Renaissance and the Omni as well. I usually pay $90 - $95 per night.

hahahaha, back in the day, I never ate at Phillips because it was too expensive....we did used to go to the Rusty Scupper back when it opened because it was the "in" place for students to do happy hour. Great view but I never ate there either; above my budget at the time.

thanks for the Priceline tip, Suki. I think I remember reading that from you and had planned to do so. I'll reserve something directly with a hotel now just in case and try Priceline closer to the time. (unless Priceline comes through on a 4 star at that price now!)

"The Wine Market in Locust Point has good food and great wine deals- stroll around the wine shop and pick a bottle to have with your dinner."

Sounds very nice, & I hadn't heard of it. It seems a lot like Iron Bridge Wine Co., which is very close to my house. I looked at their website, and their happy hour sounds great!

Sorry ncounty. I'm crashing your post. Before my question, we stayed at the Intercontinental and it was very nice. Now, the last time we were in Baltimore, we had a fish entree that had a custard and crumb like topping on it. It was excellent. The restaurant was a few blocks from the Inner Harbor but I don't remember the name. Does anyone out there know what the name of the this entree might be? I'd love to make it but don't know where to begin looking for a recipe. Thanks!!

I'll second the Helmand.
Also, we just ate lunch at 340 N. Charles at Ban Thai-pretty good food-then went to Bromo Seltzer Building open house. It has been converted to artists' studios. Something different to do. Have a great time in Charm City.

Oh, how could I forget Hampden?! Cafe Hon, Dogwood and Golden West. Don't know if Hampden was a destination when you were there?