USA Guide
The Capital Region
Eating
1 Babalu Grill 332 Market Place, just north of Inner Harbor 
410/234-9898 Popular restaurant serving well-priced traditional Cuban and Nuevo Latino cuisine in a lively setting. Good for its ceviche, ham croquettes, lamb shank, and Cuban sandwich with fried yuca.
2 Bertha's 734 S Broadway 410/327-5795 Casual and inexpensive (yet stylish) seafood restaurant, tucked away behind a tiny Fell's Point bar. Known for its delicious mussels, crab cakes, high tea, and nightly live blues, jazz, and Dixieland.
3 Black Olive 814 S Bond St, Fell's Point 410/276-7141 Expensive but succulent Mediterranean restaurant that has affordable meze (small plates) like grilled octopus salad, calamari, and pan-seared zucchini, as well as pricier entrees like rack of lamb and lobster tail.
4 Da Mimmo 217 S High St 410/727-6876 Intimate, upscale Little Italy café, with a wide-ranging menu that includes favourites like clams, saltimbocca, gnocchi, and pasta fagioli, live piano music, and a romantic ambiance.
5 Donna's 800 N Charles St 410/385-0180 Delicious sandwiches and burgers for lunch, and savory, mid-priced pasta, steak, and seafood for dinner in an elegant Mount Vernon locale.
6 
Faidley's 203 N Paca, downtown 410/727-4898 Located in Lexington Market, the best and cheapest of many outlets serving oysters, clams, and other catches from the Chesapeake Bay, including terrific crab cakes – a business dating back to 1886. Stand-up dining only.
7 Helmand 806 N Charles St 410/752-0311 Inexpensive but chic dinner-only Afghan restaurant in Mount Vernon, with plenty of lamb dishes as well as aushak (leek-filled vegetarian ravioli) and the delicious kaddo borawni (a fried-pumpkin appetizer).
8 Matthew's Pizza 3131 Eastern Ave, west of Greektown 410/276-8755 Old-line hole in the wall that still boasts the city's best slices – rich and tangy, with a solid crust and traditional ingredients, or nuovo toppings like crab.
9 Obrycki's 1727 E Pratt St, just north of Fell's Point 410/732-6399 Baltimore's longest-established seafood restaurant, with delicious steamed, soft-shell, and broiled crabs at premium prices, as well as other excellent seafood. Closed in winter.
10 Peter's Inn 504 S Ann St, Fell's Point 410/675-7313 Top-notch but casual restaurant with a fine, rotating menu, where you can get anything from shrimp bisque to seared tuna to a New York strip steak, for $14–28 per entree. Also has an enjoyable bar on-site.
11 Vaccaro's Italian Pastries 222 Albemarle St, Little Italy 410/685-4905 Great spot to load up on cheesecakes, cookies, and other sweets, and to indulge in the kind of delicious gelato they make in the Old Country.