Julekha Dash

Drinking at your favorite neighborhood bar before the holidays is a time-honored tradition — as essential to getting in the seasonal spirit as putting up twinkling lights or snowflake decorations. Toasting with a pint of Guinness Stout or Guinness Blonde from your favorite bartender will bring you even more yuletide joy. We’ve highlighted some of the most festive bars and restaurants in Baltimore, so you can enjoy good food and friendly service with friends and family this season. Slainte!
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There was a time when Baltimore’s main draw was crab—steamed crabs, crab cakes, crab dip, and crab in so many other forms. But the blossoming dining scene has evolved to embrace so much more.
One of the splashiest newish restaurants, Ammoora, features cuisine from Syria, Jordan, and Lebanon inside the waterfront Ritz-Carlton Residences. You’ll also find Eastern European fare at the nationally lauded Little Donna’s and mouthwatering chicken at Rooted Rotisserie. Of course, standout seafood is ...

A taste of Spain finds eager diners and coastal parallels in a Maryland beach town
Diners entering the bayfront Cambria Hotel Ocean City should be prepared for what awaits on the eighth floor at Spain Wine Bar. Once inside the hotel rooftop restaurant, you’re no longer in a Maryland beach town buzzing with families strolling the boardwalk, buckets of Thrasher’s fries in tow. The restaurant’s textured plaster, Spanish tiles, and exposed brick—deliberately uneven in spots—transport guests to a ...

As a woman of color who grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, Teniola Akinwuntan knows firsthand about the barriers marginalized individuals face.
“Growing up in a community where opportunities were limited fueled my passion to create a platform that provides resources for those who are underserved,” says Akinwuntan.
That personal experience motivated Akinwuntan to found Women of Valor in 2018 to lift up women facing adversity. The Catonsville nonprofit provides food, housing, child-care assistance, and...

Rooted Rotisserie | Baltimore, Maryland
Inspired by a trip to Paris where they feasted on mouthwatering roasted chicken, husband-and-wife team Joseph Burton and Amanda Ngangana opened Rooted Rotisserie across from Hollins Market in October 2023. Order a whole or half chicken with preserved lemon, garlic, and herb oil, or a French riff on the classic Baltimore codfish and potato cakes, or coddies, topped with bechamel.
The Empanada Lady | Baltimore, Maryland
Elisa Milan honors her Puerto Rican...

Nothing beats a cocktail at your favorite bar to kick off the weekend. This summer, Bombay Sapphire, the iconic London Dry gin infused with citrus, juniper, and eight other botanicals, is offering a bright, refreshing signature cocktail that will make it taste like Friday any day of the week. The Bombay Sapphire Sparkling Lemon blends the gin with lemonade, club soda, and a lemon twist — the perfect balance of tart and sweet flavors. We’ve rounded up rooftop bars, food halls, and hotel wateri...

South Asian restaurants across the country are showcasing essential spices in their cocktail menus. (Scroll down to read).

Our first trip to New Mexico started in the best possible way — with cookies to fuel us up before our Airbnb Experiences walking tour of Albuquerque. Crumbly, with a hint of licorice and a dusting of cinnamon sugar, the first cookie tasted like a cross between a shortbread and a sugar cookie. Our guide informed us that these were biscochitos (sometimes spelled bizcochitos) a traditional New Mexican cookie first brought by Spanish colonists in the 16th century and influenced by Indigenous and ...

No summer is complete without at least one beach trip. And great news: Reaching the sand and shore is easy from DC, whether you want to stroll along boardwalks, bar hop, hike, or catch some rays. Some are in state parks, while others are in waterside towns offering live entertainment, museums, and shopping when you’ve wrapped up your time on the shore. Here are eight beaches within one to three hours of DC located across Maryland, Virginia, Delaware, and New Jersey.
Beaches in Maryland
Ocean ...

Pouring drinks at Chicago’s Skylark always felt more like serving an extended family for Sam Mesick, who started working at the Pilsen dive bar 15 years ago. He witnessed regulars advance through various stages—from courtship and marriage to parents of toddlers who stood on chairs to reach pinball machine buttons. Other patrons brought him dinner when he worked on Thanksgiving.
When Mesick, who lives above the bar, heard...
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As a kid, Todd Sheets stocked shelves at Beeker’s General Store, a Pemberville, Ohio, shop built in the 1870s and beloved by customers for its history and eclectic selection of products. Sheets continued working at the store as an adult and purchased it in 1994 from former owner Mildred Beeker, enamored with its wooden floors and tin ceiling. “I’ve always liked the building. It’s magical,” Sheets says.

The store draws both locals and visitors from around the state and beyond who purchase Amis...

Swinging open the doors to Ammoora in Baltimore’s splashy Ritz-Carlton Residences feels like a journey to a luxurious home in the Middle East, full of rose-colored banquettes and tables sparkling with inlaid mother-of-pearl. A warm evening calls for a meal of mezze, grilled shrimp, and chicken kabobs on the serene, open-air courtyard, lined with black-and-white-striped tiles.
“We wanted it to feel like an extension of the homes here, as well for guests to be able to come in and enjoy,” says t...

Here's where and when to source the main crab varieties and how to serve each.
Thousands of crab species wander the depths of the oceans, bays, streams, and lakes, ranging from pea size to a dozen feet long. To devour the delicacies, you’ll find a handful of varieties in restaurants, seafood markets, and grocery stores, including king, snow, blue, stone, and Dungeness crabs. While these five types of crabs share some features, the taste and preparation methods are each unique. Here’s a breakd...

As a 20-year resident of Maryland, I know one thing to be true: Our crabs are the best in the world. This simple fact was proven to me again on a recent outing in the Midwest, where a family member insisted on ordering a crab cake appetizer at a buzzy new restaurant. I dug into the thin-fried assortment that looked and tasted nothing like a Maryland crab cake, dense with chunky, jumbo lump crab browned on top from broiling.
Marylanders take much pride in the delicate, rich flavor and preparat...

Jinji Fraser wants you to rethink how you consume chocolate. In October, she and her father, Guy Fraser, opened Jinji Chocolate, a shop in Baltimore’s Waverly neighborhood that pays homage to Indigenous traditions in the Caribbean and Mesoamerica by serving seven types of drinking chocolate, both hot and cold.