City: Baltimore
Population: 2.7 million, metro area
Local specialties: Crabs, pit beef, lake trout, tiramisu (allegedly invented in Baltimore!)
Markets, artisans, farms, and groceries: Where do you shop in Baltimore? Where are the best spots for cooks and food-lovers? Rachel Monroe of Urban Discoveries Baltimore put together an absolutely fabulous guide to the best eating in Baltimore; read on to discover Baltimore and to add your own suggestions!
Foods You Must Try
• A sweet snoball on a hot summer day
• Crab, crabcakes, crab soup… you get the picture
• Smith Island Cake (Maryland’s official dessert)
• Berger Cookies
• Smearcase – a Baltimore version of German cheesecake
• Eastern shore tomatoes, summer corn
Farmers' Markets
• Downtown Farmers Market – Sundays, on Saratoga Street between Holliday and Gay Streets (under the I-83 overpass)
• 32nd Street/Waverly Farmers Market – Saturdays, 400 block of E. 32nd Street
• Other Baltimore-area farmers markets
Food Halls
• Lexington Market - The world’s largest, continually-running market makes for stellar people watching, as well as good shopping. Come on Saturdays for the live music, or anytime for Faidley’s Seafood and Mary Mervis sandwiches.
• Cross Street Market - Look for Utz chips in paper (not plastic) bags — that means they were baked that same day.
• Belvedere Square - More upscale, but beloved for Atwater’s Breads and the Neopol Savory Smokery.
Best Grocery Stores
• Eddie’s of Roland Park; Eddie’s Market - Yes, Baltimore has two grocery stores named Eddie’s.... owned by entirely different people.
• Graul’s
• Wegmans - A bit out of town, but worth it!
Specialty Shops of Note
• Trinacria – Beloved Italian grocery shop with cut-rate wine, homemade olive oil and droolworthy sandwiches
• DiPasquale’s – Another popular Italian deli/market
• OK Natural – Health food store with bulk grains, vegan staples, prepared foods.
• Greg’s Bagels
• H-Mart - It’s a bit of a drive to this Asian supermarket, but we always come home with tons of surprising things.
• The Wine Source – Booze, natch, but they’re also our favorite source for artisanal cheese.
• Prima Foods – amazing international wholesale selection (Bulk feta! Huge tubs of olives!)
• Home Goods (Reisterstown) – huge inventory, bargain prices… for those who know how to hunt.
Independent Food Artisans
• Puffs & Pastries – Amazing new bakery, emphasizes use of local ingredients
• Sweet Sin Bakery - Gluten-free desserts
• Bonaparte Bread
• Bluebird Coffee – Sustainable, organic, artisanal coffee
• Brewer’s Art – A bar that brews its own Belgian-style beers.
• Really Raw Honey
• Firefly goat cheese – Their farm is located in the Allegheny mountains, but the goat cheese is available all around town and in many farmers markets.
• Taharka Brothers Ice Cream – Delicious homemade ice cream (try the key lime pie flavor) by a non-profit that gives entrepreneurial training to at-risk youth.
About The Kitchn's Food-Lover's Guides
We focus mainly on home cooking here at The Kitchn, and we know that one huge source of inspiration is travel. We want to give you ideas for things to eat and places to visit even when you're away from your home kitchen. We want to inspire your inner chef and introduce you to the best spots for food-lovers in a dozen or so major cities.
These guides don't deal with restaurants; there are plenty of other resources for that. These are the spots for food-lovers and cooks: the markets, specialty cookshops, and best small-batch artisans. If you're traveling in one of these cities this summer, we hope these guides help you find something inspiring. And if you live here, maybe you'll find a new resource to inspire your daily cooking!
We need your help, too, with these guides. Each city's thread will have at least some recommendations, but of course they will be incomplete. So we need your insider help. Tell us where the best markets, food shops, jam-makers, brewers, butchers, independent groceries, bakery supply stores, and quirky, strange, out-of-the-way food experts are. What are your favorite places to shop, as a cook?
(Images, clockwise from top: Flickr member David Davies licensed for use under Creative Commons; Flickr member dane Brian licensed for use under Creative Commons; Flickr member Tom in NYC licensed for use under Creative Commons; Flickr member NoirGuy licensed for use under Creative Commons; )
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The sight of an all-year market makes me happy. I know that if I ever visited Baltimore I would go there.
About Taharka Bros- I quite agree with Rachel, their key lime pie flavor is INCREDIBLE! I've had it the past two years during Artscape, and it was so refreshing while walking around in the heat.
http://tasteofbaltimore.blogspot.com
Hooray!
Thank you, thank you, thank you for this little guide to Baltimore. I was so disgusted after seeing Bourdain's mini "showcase" of B'more. Yes, there is a lot of crime here but you find that in every major city. I'm tired of my city being portrayed as nothing more than "The Wire". There are good, hard working folks here too, ya know.
Here's my list:
Foods-
Zeke's coffee: local and delicious. several locations. The stand at the Downtown Farmer's market usually has a long line.
Dangerously Delicious Pies: That's the actual name of the bakery and the pies are tasty.
Natty Boh's: good stuff. well, if you don't like beer, the little icon looks so cute on the merch.
Places/areas to see--
Ace of Cakes homebase: 'nuff said.
Hampden: home of the Hon Cafe which will add 5 yummy pounds to your waistline and Puffs and Pastry which offers tasty treats. You really experience Baltimore's quirky side around here.
Yabba Pot and One World Cafe: great vegetarian food offered at these spots.
Paper Moon: go for the ambiance, stay for the food-- bright decor and they've got the weirdest (yet artsy) crap glued to the ceilings. Also, they are a few minutes from the Ace of Cakes location.
DuClaw Brewing Company: several locations around Maryland and Baltimore. good, local microbrews. try their crab based foods.
Fells Point: Mr. Yogato will offer a discount on his frozen yogurt if you are willing to have your forehead stamped or if you answer a trivia question correctly. The yogurt with it's myriad of topping choices plus the 80's nostalgic games are worth it. You can find his original location in D.C. Brick Oven Pizza is a good late night snack. Kali's Court is a little pricey but oh so good.
Lexington Market: go during the day, please. Faidley's crab cakes are some of the best around and I know he was featured either on the Travel Channel or Food Network. Pollock Johnny's brings back happy memories for my dad so you have to go there too. :)
sushi maryland baltimore: not a location. type it into your search engine. do it. start with the one in Mt. Washington.
Blue Agave: if you like tequila, you will really like this tequileria. If you don't like tequila straight up, try their margaritas. (but be warned: they will NOT serve it in a shaved ice format. ice cubes only. it's better that way) .nice interior, huge portions of upscale Mexican food. try the infused concoctions sitting on the bar.
Whew, that's all I can think of for now. I'm hoping other folks can add to this list b/c there are sooo many other good restaurants. Canton, Mt. Vernon, and Charles Street have a lot of tasty offerings. check them out.You don't need to visit the Aquarium or the Inner Harbor. Just come and eat. We're not New York or anything, but I don't think you will be disappointed.
Oh, and I second H-Mart. It's a nice change of pace from the usual super market. You see a mix of different cultures here which tells you this is the place to be.
The Paper Moon diner by the John's Hopkin's Homewood campus is a delicious 24-hr spot with lots of great vegetarian and vegan choices. And I can't believe you guys forgot Charm City Cakes!
Also, Berger cookies... *droooool*
I like LA and everything...
but damn do I miss Baltimore. Such a great city, I can't wait until I'm back to visit.
DO NOT eat a cannoli from anywhere but Vaccaro's. There's one in Little Italy and one in Canton right on the square. Go there after a 1/2 price burger at JD's on wednesday or some awesome nachos at Nacho Mama's. They even sell their shells and filling separately so you can make cannolis at home. Dangerous! If you're looking to go a little snootier, there's always Philips, but it's really best to wander a bit until you find a nice little hole-in-the-wall crab shack. They're awesome. Be prepared to get dirty and a little cut up by the end. If your hands aren't stinging, you did something wrong.
ooooooh no I am not a Phillips lover - I feel like there are so many other amazing restaurants that make a better crabcake then that chain. Check out the Baltimore magazine for their article on the Best Crabcakes - I agreed with a lot of them.
Also- there's now a Vaccaros in Hunt Valley as well. I agree, LitNerd, their cannoli cream is heaven!!! I love to get their cannoli chips and cream dip. WOW!
tasteofbaltimore.blogspot.com