Heading to Baltimore in a couple days with the fam for vacay (aquarium, zoo, museums, etc.) then a little south thereof to hit up Six Flags. Looking for family friendly brew pubs with decent menu/food and beer. Ideally looking for a place that is geared more towards traditional styles and not hazy, frooty, pastry beers. Thanks!
First, be sure to pack your body armor. This is a city that is bleeding, and while there are some nice neighborhoods, they are outnumbered. Crime is the main reason I moved. The aquarium is nice but Harborplace (immediately adjacent) is a shell of its former glory. The zoo (and Druid Hill Park) is cool but take care getting there. Despite all that negativeness, there are some good breweries in the city (Union, Ministry of Brewing, Monument City, Mobtown, Waverly, Peabody Heights among others) but most have limited food options or rely on food trucks. In South Baltimore, there is Checkerspot (close to the ballparks) and Diamondback.. Both are relatively close to Ft McHenry and its legendary history and both serve mainly pub grub. There are also some good multi tap pub options close by such as Wiley Gunter and World of Beer that offer more of the traditional styles you (and me) prefer. In the 'burbs south of the city are Heavy Seas and Guinness but if you are going to eat at Guinness be prepared for sticker shock (just the food; beer prices are average). If you are heading to Six Flags, that is about 30 miles southwest. Have not been there in years so no idea on what to recommend in that area. I still love my old city; there are a lot of beautiful spots in it (even my avatar is from the Streetcar Museum near the Jones Falls). But I am also a realist. Please plan carefully and stay vigilant.
Unsure where you'll be in the city, but last year I had my wife drop me off at Nepenthe (1st), then I walked to Waverly (2nd) and Union Craft (3rd), then back to the hotel (on the main drag of Falls Rd). This part of Baltimore not nearly as rough as I was expecting.
I hit up Guinness when I was in town on Friday. Incredible space and worth the visit. Yes, the food is a little pricy based on a poster's comment above, but the site itself was great. Beers weren't too shabby either.
I recently visited the Baltimore Museum of Art, which was well worth it. We ate at their on-site restaurant called Gertrude’s which was facing the Sculpture Garden (with indoor and outdoor seating). The food was good, not to pricey, and they had about 10 local breweries in different styles (Pilsner, Lager, etc.), plus a German and Belgian beer, I had a Belgian Tripel and a Maibock.
From the Cambridge English Dictionary: "An attitude that is not hopeful or enthusiastic....." From the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: "....marked by absence, withholding or removal of something positive..." Also see: Vocabulary.com Yourdictionary.cpm Wordhippo.com Wiktionary.org Need more ?
Hey all, Thanks for the recs. Ended up at Nepanthe for dinner one night. Rare combo of Great food+great beer. Had a mliko pour of the pils on their side pull which was excellent. Really enjoyed the Kolsch as well. Went to Guinness the next night. Really cool establishment but as mentioned, it’s pricey. They had quite a few interesting beers on draft (no prices listed anywhere except for when you scan a QR code at your table). I like to try as many beers as possible so I Walked up to the bar to order a flight only to find out flights are only available in pre-selected lots. Some of the beers on the menu were not available for flights and I wasn’t about to order full pours of everything because we were going to Six Flags the next day. I get a flight that suited my tastes best (El dorado amber, Kentucky common, cherry brown and one I had no interest but no choice in, tart-salt lime ale which was actually pretty good. All the beers were solid). Bartender hands me my flight and says “$18 dollars”. Ouch. For meals, The only table service you get is when someone brings your food. You do all the ordering from the QR app. That includes payment beforehand (not sure if I could just leave the tab open for fear of our food order not being placed) and you have no choice in tipping. There’s no opting out of it (not that I’d do that but I often like to leave cash for tips) so you you only have the choice of what they offer in percentages to leave as tips starting at 18%. Server brought our food and a round of waters. Literally Never saw them for anything else after that. Ordered a French dip at $18 that came with fries. Food was good enough but there was only about two ounces of beef in my sandwich. Glad I went but, yeah, not cheap. Overall great experience. Hit up the aquarium, science museum, play museum, zoo, checked out and rented an E-boat in the inner harbor, had some crab cakes, got a snowball (interesting texture, temperature and flavor contrasts with the mallow) and even tried some old bay flavored ice cream. Thanks again!
Any recommendations for a restaurant with good craft and vegetarian options in the Inner Harbor? Going to a concert at Rams Head Live in October with 2/3rds of us vegetarians and not finding much in my Google searches.
I am certainly not an expert but was in inner harbor for billy strings earlier this summer. inner harbor was a disappointment, in terms of food and beer options. I'd expand your search to include fells point, which would be a short walk or easy uber.
If you want to stay rooted in the Inner Harbor area, you may have to choose one or the other. Many good restaurants, some with vegetarian options, are right next door in the Little Italy and Harbor East area but craft beer selections are limited. There is a fairly good beer destination some blocks west called the Pratt St Ale House that is tied to the Oliver Brewery (and has guest taps as well), but cannot recall anything on the food menu that a vegetarian might be interested in. And as @ashellen noted, you may have some luck in the Fells Point area. One place to consider is Of Love And Regrets, about 2-2.5 miles east on the fringes of Canton. If you have tried any Stillwater beers, this is where they used to debut many of their offerings. There are also a number of positive reviews here on BA Places if you want a few other opinions. Pre-pandemic, I recall they had a number of vegetarian options on their menu but check before going as many things may have changed. And have fun at your concert!
