Our first trip to Maryland in August 2020 was focused on moving my sister into her apartment, so this time we went for a quick weekend trip and found some fun things to do in Baltimore for my sister’s birthday! Last summer, we discovered that Baltimore is a foodie city, so I was excited to try a bunch of restaurants my sister recommended.
THINGS TO DO IN BALTIMORE & ANNAPOLIS, MD
September 17 – September 20, 2021
DAY 1 – FRIDAY
We took an early flight out of SeaTac and arrived in Baltimore around 5pm. My sister picked us up from the airport, we checked into the Homewood Suites in Fells Point, and then went to Ekiben to pick up some fried chicken sandwiches. We picked the food up and took it back to Sarah’s apartment and hung out with her roommate’s cat, Ruth. We all got “The Neighborhood Bird,” which is Taiwanese curry fried chicken in a bao bun with spicy mayo and pickled cucumbers. It was delicious! We also ordered a side of the tempura broccoli, but the tempura was a little soggy, so I wouldn’t recommend it for takeout, but it still had great flavor.
We were pretty full, but we just had to go to BMORE LICKS for ice cream. They have a TON of interesting flavors and have soft serve, regular ice cream, milkshakes, and more. We went once during our first trip and couldn’t resist going back! I got “Guava Carlota,” which was guava ice cream with pieces of Nilla wafer-like cookies.
DAY 2 – SATURDAY
Ovenbird Bakery was the first stop of the day and we ordered a ridiculous amount of pastries. We got a croissant, pain au chocolat, goat cheese scone, ham and cheddar scone, a slice of quiche, and lox bagel. I’m not a huge fan of scones, as most of the ones I’ve had before are cakey and dry, but these ones were so good! Ovenbird is a popular place and there was a short line when we got there at 9am, so get there early, or be prepared to wait!
Next, we drove 45 minutes to Annapolis for a little day of history. We stopped at the Maryland World War II Memorial, which had a bunch of plaques about the effect of the war and all the names of the Maryland veterans.
Then, we went to the US Naval Academy Museum because 1) there isn’t all that much to do in Annapolis and 2) I knew my dad would be interested in it since he loves Top Gun. You can’t drive into the Naval Academy unless you’re in the Academy/Navy, so we had to park at Halligan Hall, then show our IDs to the men at the security booth, and walk half a mile down to campus and the museum. This wasn’t a problem, but the humidity was real, so by the time we got to the museum, I was sweating.
The museum’s first floor is pretty expansive and has sections from all the wars and space explorations that America has been a part of. The second floor had a bunch of ship models.
After exploring the museum, we walked around campus a little bit before driving to the main downtown area for lunch. We weren’t super hungry, but we shared some barbecue from Mission BBQ. The food was great, and we loved how they had six bottles of barbecue sauce on each table.
The main street was appropriately called Main Street and it was an uphill walk from the water. There are some shops and restaurants and plenty of tourist shops for souvenirs. We saw the state capitol building, then tried to tour the inside of the William Paca House, but we ended just looking at the gardens. It cost $5 per person, but honestly, it wasn’t worth it and I would not recommend it.
Running a little low on time, we drove to Edgewater just to drive by the Historic London Town & Gardens as it closed soon, and then we went back to Baltimore for some downtime at the hotel before going to dinner at Alma Cocina Latina.
We had a 6:30pm reservation, but I think it’s more of a late night place because it was getting more crowded as we left. The inside was super cute and aesthetic with plants and mirrors. We were hungry and we ordered a bunch of plates to share. Everything on the fusion menu sounded good but definitely pricey. We got Latin gyoza, arepas, paella, and prime ribeye. The food was flavorful, and I didn’t get good photos of the desserts, but the tres leches cake and chocolate mousse were fantastic!!
DAY 3 – SUNDAY
This day was spent in the Hampden neighborhood near Johns Hopkins University, which was a 10-minute drive from the hotel. We got up early and went to Whitehall Mill Market. It was a food hall with about 8 stalls with tea, coffee, dessert, and more. We really wanted to go to Crust by Mack, but it was closed that day because someone on their staff tested positive for COVID :(. We just grabbed coffee at Ceremony Coffee and drank it at the tables outside. The market kind of felt like it was in a secluded and random area, but it was only down the road from the main shopping area.
Brunch was at The Food Market, which had a lot of fun options. Yelp recommended the French Toast Dippers, and they were delicious! We shared an order, and there were also complimentary cake donut holes. I was pretty full from the past two days of eating, but I got short rib benedict and it was pretty good. Almost all the breakfast dishes came with potatoes which were crispy and well-seasoned. We had a lot of leftovers and took a box full of them home.
Then, we went to the Baltimore Museum of Art. We had to reserve passes online in advance, but the admission was free. There were all types of art in it from classic paintings by the big painters like Matisse and Van Gogh, and then a whole section on modern art. We learned we were visiting on the last day of an experiential exhibition, Katharina Grosse: Is It You?, which was cool to see as well. BMA was a massive museum, and even though the second floor was closed, it took us 2 hours to just get through the first floor. If you love actually reading everything in museums, I’d allot 3-4 hours. Outside, there was also a restaurant and sculpture garden.
Next, we drove through the Johns Hopkins campus just to see it before meeting my sister’s roommate at The Wine Collective, which was at another industrial-food hall area with other restaurants and bars. The wine is all made locally with grapes sourced from within 80 miles of the restaurant. My sister had been there before and raved about the charcuterie board, so we built our own with a couple of meats and cheeses, candied salmon, almonds, and olives.
We went to our third museum of the trip that afternoon. My friend Yael suggested going to the American Visionary Art Museum. Tickets were $10 and had to be reserved in advance. Part of the museum was closed, so it was very small, but it had some interesting interactive pieces and an exhibition on sleep with plenty of photo opps. The Sideshow gift shop was full of interesting little trinkets, so definitely check that out if you go!
Dinner was in Little Italy at Amicci’s, another restaurant Sarah had recommended. It was a small family restaurant, and it was just alright. The entrees weren’t anything special, but the portion sizes were huge, so we sent Sarah and her roommate home with a lot of leftovers. I did like the dessert though, as we got the tiramisu, bread pudding, and cannoli.
DAY 4 – MONDAY
We went to Blue Moon Cafe for breakfast. It’s a tiny cafe that only has a couple of tables inside, so usually, there’s a very long line on weekends. However, on Monday at 9:30, there were about 4 parties in front of us, but when the hostess called the names, none of them showed up, so we were pretty much seated immediately.
They’re known for the Captain Crunch French Toast, so I got it and it was pretty, but it didn’t really taste like Captain Crunch. We had gone to Miss Shirley’s Cafe last summer, and I think that is the better brunch option of the two.
We walked around the waterfront and then went back to Sarah’s apartment. My parents and Sarah went to Costco to get gas and grab some kitchen supplies. My roommate from Los Angeles moved back home to Baltimore, so I got to see her and her golden retriever puppy. We walked around Fell’s Point and took photos.
Then it was time to go to the airport. We picked up takeout from Iron Rooster to eat for dinner on the plane, which was a very good idea. It’s a casual local Baltimore chain that’s tastier, but probably less healthy, than Panera. We ate lunch there before going to the airport last summer and discovered they served “Roos-tarts,” their version of poptarts. This time we ordered one to-go for dessert on the plane. Then, Sarah dropped us off at the airport.
FINAL THOUGHTS & MUST-DO THINGS IN BALTIMORE
After two trips to Baltimore, I don’t think I have to go back, but the food is great! If you’re going to Baltimore, I’d say the things you must do are: The Baltimore Museum of Art, see the view from Federal Hill Park, walk around Fell’s Point, get ice cream at BMORE LICKS, and have brunch at Miss Shirley’s Cafe. Of course, you could do things like go to a baseball or football game, or go to the zoo or aquarium, but none of those things are unique to Baltimore. If I went back to Maryland, I’d want to go to the coast and see the wild horses at Assateague Island National Seashore or explore Ocean City.
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