31 Best Restaurants in Baltimore, Maryland

Chef Kiko Wilson adeptly mixes Latin, Pan Asian, Southern, and California flavors. Tender coffee-rubbed short ribs are balanced by a crunchy daikon cole slaw with miso-ginger dressing. Lamb empanadas are finished with a chipotle aioli. Foreman/Wolf restaurants, Johnny's parent company, is known for its super-fresh ingredients, sourced locally, and excellent service. Johnny's receives high marks in both categories. Just like the food, the decor has a modern twist. Exposed interior brick walls, a Baltimore staple, get an acid-washed update. Comfy booth seating serves as an understated backdrop that allows the food to be the star.

With amazing pancakes, omelets, and French toast, this upscale cafe, now with locations at the Inner Harbor and in North Baltimore's Roland Park, has become the go-to destination for unbeatable breakfast and brunch (neither outlet serves dinner). Lunch entrées like the Chesapeake Club (crab cake, shrimp salad, lettuce, bacon, red and yellow tomatoes, avocado, and Old Bay remoulade on sourdough toast, dusted with more Old Bay) are also excellent. There's another location at 513 W. Cold Spring Lane in Roland Park.

Reservations are a must at Baltimore's best French restaurant. Petit Louis specializes in homey French comfort foods: onion soup bubbling with Gruyere, escargot in garlic butter, duck leg confit, and other things you might find in a French grandmother's kitchen. Save room for the awe-inspiring assortment of French cheeses, and if you're pressed for a decision, order the one with the layer of truffles. The classic bistro setting is enlivened with red velvet banquettes and marble-topped tables spaced elbows-length apart. Once a pharmacy, the Tudor-style building is listed on the National Register as part of America's first shopping center. The service here is exceptional.

A few steps below street level, this small restaurant is usually crowded and always filled with pungent aromas and the sounds of Indian music. Among the vegetarian dishes, alu gobi masala, a potato-and-cauliflower creation, is prepared with onions, tomatoes, and spices. Tandoori chicken is marinated in yogurt, herbs, and strong spices, then barbecued in a charcoal-fired clay oven. The lunch buffet is another good choice.

A Tudor-style dining room in a 1930s apartment building is the setting for superb Indian fare. Go for the classics such as chicken tikka masala (grilled chicken in a sauce of red pepper, ginger, garlic, and yogurt) or alu gobi (spicy potatoes and cauliflower).

At this self-proclaimed "very casual eatery," you don't have to spend a fortune to get a satisfying taste of Little Italy. Blue jean–clad diners and walls hung with movie posters make for a fun atmosphere. Service is friendly and usually speedy, and the food comes in large portions. Try the chicken Lorenzo: breaded chicken breast covered in a marsala wine sauce, red peppers, prosciutto, and provolone.

Open since 1915, this authentic New York–style deli near the Jewish Museum is the only vestige of Baltimore's "Corned Beef Row" operating in its original location. Don't be put off by the long lines—they move fairly quickly, and the outstanding corned beef sandwiches are worth the wait, as are the pastrami, homemade chopped liver, and other oversized creations. Attman's closes at 6:30 pm on Monday through Saturday and 5 pm on Sunday.

Baltimore needs more Mexican restaurants, and Blue Agave answers the call by providing regional Mexican flavors and making sauces and salsas fresh daily. Try the grilled quail served with both green and spicy yellow moles, or the more familiar chicken enchiladas with mole poblano. But tequila's the real star here—more than 130 different kinds are available, and you would be hard-pressed to find a better margarita in the city.

A cozy café with a celestial motif appropriate to its name, the Blue Moon is a favorite for breakfast, served until 3 pm daily. Start with one of the enormous house-made cinnamon rolls, but save room for excellent brunch fare such as crab Benedict and sky-high French toast coated in a Cap'n Crunch cereal batter and served with whipped cream and strawberries. On weekends it's open 24 hours, attracting revelers from Fells Point's many clubs and bars. On weekend mornings there's often a line, but it's well worth the wait.

Picking steamed crabs on Bo Brooks's waterfront deck as sailboats and tugs ply the harbor is a quintessential Baltimore pleasure. Spend a muggy summer day cracking into warm, spicy crabs and enjoy a refreshing pitcher of beer while a cool breeze blows in from the harbor. Brooks serves its famous crustaceans year-round, along with a menu of Chesapeake seafood classics. Locals know to stick to the Maryland crab soup, crab dip, jumbo lump crab cakes, and fried oysters.

The painted retro facade invites visitors to this casual family-owned cafe in the middle of Little Italy, and the simple, well-prepared cuisine only adds to the experience. Downtown professionals and savvy tourists fill the place for lunch entrées, all under $10, including hearty pastas like rigatoni bolognese or sandwiches like La Spiaggia (eggplant parmigiana) and La Adriatica (chicken parmigiana), served on perfectly toasted bread. Delicate dinner entrées like penne Gorgonzola and Shrimp & Scallop Alberto (named after the father of owner Giovanna Aquia) are only a bit more pricey but significantly larger.

At this neighborhood favorite, families come to celebrate milestones—baptisms, communions, graduations, and such. Pictures of the Baltimore landscape adorn the redbrick walls, and some white-cloth tables overlook one of Little Italy's main streets. The reasonably priced pasta selections rely on standards, but there's also more upscale fare such as chicken Giuseppe: breaded chicken breast with spinach, crabmeat, and provolone in a lemon wine sauce.

The owners of Baltimore Little Italy mainstay Chipparelli's recently opened up a second outlet in the Old Chesapeake Hotel, an elegant historic building in the heart of Havre de Grace that dates back to the 1890s. In addition to serving up old-school favorites like Homemade Gnocchi and Spaghetti Toscanini, the location offers guest accommodations—not a bad ideal after all that pasta.

The lofty space and black-and-white tile floors give this casual spot a feeling of classic grandeur. Come here for American fare with a creative twist—shrimp and grits carbonara or juicy lamb burgers. Another standout is the grilled Atlantic salmon with cannellini beans. Service is warm and efficient. For dessert, order the affogato: it's made with salted caramel Taharka Bros. ice cream and served over a steaming cup of espresso. Weekend brunch is very popular.

In the Baltimore Museum of Art, this casual yet classy spot cooks up creative Maryland specialties. Crab cakes, served with a variety of tasty sauces, are one option, Parmesan-crusted salmon is another. Finish with a decadent dessert.

On "The Avenue," funky Hampden's main commercial street, Golden West is the go-to spot for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The place is colorful and eclectic, and so is the menu of diner fare with a Tex-Mex twist. Try the the hefty huevos montuleños—fried eggs with yellow corn cakes covered in beans, feta, salsa, and a fried banana, or the tater tots with a chili-mayo dipping sauce. Large tables make it a good spot for groups, and the bar makes it good for pre- or post-dinner drinks. Occasionally, the café hosts local folk and indie rock bands.

Specializing in homemade, inventive pasta dishes, La Tavola is a cut above other Little Italy spaghetti houses. Don't miss the black, squid ink spaghetti, served with crab meat and a garlic sauce. If you're still hungry after one of La Tavola's generous plates of pasta, the fresh fish is a good bet, as is the roasted veal chop. Save room for the chocolate-espresso gelati dessert.

Behind the redbrick facade of a bank built in 1928, MacGregor's occupies two dining rooms on two levels, with glass walls on three sides looking onto the Chesapeake Bay. The interior is adorned with carved duck decoys, mounted guns, and antique prints of the town; there's also outdoor dining on a deck with a gazebo. Seafood is the specialty, and the kitchen claims to have the best crab cakes on the bay.

Sit down at the counter or make your way to one of the tables as this small sushi place, a Federal Hill favorite. And it's not just popular among Baltimoreans; the walls are covered with awards from local and national press. You can order by the roll, or opt for one of the bento boxes, udon soups, or tempura dishes like the signature crab and shrimp, wrapped in rice and seaweed and deep fried. The narrow, two-story corner row house is cozy but not cramped, and the servers are quick and accommodating.

The once gritty area in central Baltimore called Midtown has buoyed in recent years by development efforts led by the University of Baltimore as well as several restaurants and stores catering to the city's burgeoning Korean community. Nam Kang is the oldest and best of the eateries in this area, increasingly called Little Korea (Nak Won, around the corner on 20th Street, is also excellent). Ornate, clean decor greets you, along with a series of complimentary, shared appetizers, including pickled veggies, edamame (soy beans), and kimchi. From there, all of the traditional Korean specialties are on offer, bibimbap, bulgogi, and barbecue—and all are excellent. The noodle soups, like the very spicy seafood-filled samsung jampong, are a sinus-clearing delight. Open late.

A favorite of Johns Hopkins students, this low-key restaurant, café, and bar is open morning until night for tasty vegetarian fare. Settle onto a couch or at one of the small tables for a portobello sandwich with caramelized onions and feta cheese, a wild rice and tempeh burger, or One World's version of that Baltimore specialty: a crabless crab cake. Fresh pressed juices, smoothies, espresso drinks, microbrews, and mixed drinks from the full bar fill out the menu.

Blink, and you may think you’re in South Beach: this trendy restaurant has quickly become the city’s most popular, where the suit-and-tie crowd sidles up to the elevated bar or takes a seat on the cushy outdoor terrace. Try the grilled octopus starter, tossed with lemon juice and capers, or the charcoal-grilled whole fish, be it wild sea bass, sole, or snapper.

The ceilings and walls of this funky, colorful diner are plastered with toys and other interesting objects. People come at all hours (it's open 7 am–midnight every day except Tuesday, and until 2 am on the weekend) for the overstuffed omelets, big stacks of pancakes, burgers, nachos, sandwiches and... bacon milkshakes (a must-try). Stop by at midnight on a Friday or Saturday night to nosh on sweet potato fries with hipsters and students from nearby Johns Hopkins University. The servers have a diner attitude—they don't always seem too interested in serving, and the food might take a while—but the place is always lively and entertaining.

A tourist favorite, the Rusty Scupper undoubtedly has the best view along the waterfront; sunset here is magical, with the sun sinking slowly into the harbor as lights twinkle on the city's skyscrapers. The interior is decorated with light wood and windows from floor to ceiling; the house specialty is seafood, particularly the jumbo lump crab cake, but the menu also includes an Angus beef burger, grilled rockfish, and filet mignon. Reservations are essential on Friday and Saturday and for the popular Sunday Jazz brunch.

East of Fells Point is Greektown (20 minutes by car from Inner Harbor hotels), home to Baltimore's Greek population. An informal restaurant, done in clean, classic blue and white, Samos serves excellent Greek fare. Portions are generous, with lamb souvlaki and tender, juicy gyros leading the menu. Be warned: the folks at Samos often take the phone off the hook and stop offering carryout during the lunchtime rush. Samos doesn't offer beer or wine, but you can bring your own.

This hot dog specialist a block from the Fells Point waterfront earns a large share of the lunch and late-night crowds with specialties like the Bmore Dog, with grilled baloney and deli mustard, and the Wild Thing, a Bison dog with blue cheese and diced raw onions. For dessert, the fried Oreo cookies have a certain charm. There's a second location in Federal Hill (at 17 E. Cross St.)

Twenty years ago, Thai chef-owner Kerrigan Kitikul named his hole-in-the-wall dive in tribute to his Irish wife, but the food has always been as authentically Thai as anything you'll find in Baltimore. All entrées on the limited menu are $8.95, from the spot-on Pad Thai to the sizzling-hot Panang with just-barely-steamed vegetables in a perfect red curry. There are a few tables, but the business is mostly carryout. For the quickest service—this is a one-man kitchen—avoid the lunch and dinner rushes.

Like many historic buildings in Fells Point, Thames Street Oyster House has lived several lives, functioning as a brothel, saloon, and gift shop before opening in 2011 as a seafood restaurant. This might be its best incarnation, yet. The raw bar features a mouth-watering array of oysters, caught in regional, Atlantic, and Pacific waters. Also available are mussels, crab claws, scallops, quahogs, and lobster tails. Speaking of lobster, the delectable Maine lobster roll comes stuffed with poached lobster and is served on a buttered hot dog bun. The antique black bar and white-tiled floor impart a classic, yet comfortable vibe. The stained glass windows and exposed brick are original to the building.

Candles light up the whitewashed walls of these cellar dining rooms, where the menu covers all regions of Spain. The staple is paella à la Valenciana (chicken, sausage, shrimp, clams, and mussels with saffron rice); a less-well-known Basque preparation is red snapper with clams, mussels, asparagus, and boiled egg. Make dinner reservations in advance; walk-in weekday lunch seating is usually available.