Nightlife in Baltimore

Nightlife in Baltimore

1. DrinkInner Harbor

   Angel's Rock Bar

   Don't Stop Believing that the set list will be a little cheesy, but this rock club is regardless one of the better stops within the complex. The clientele is a little skewed towards the male gender, though (because they are sick of the house music at the other clubs). $5-10, free for ladies.

   Thu-Sat 9PM-2:30AM

2. SeeSouth Baltimore

   Babe Ruth Museum

   This museum is actually in the house where the Great Bambino himself was born. The museum isn't huge, but should be considered a can't-miss attraction for baseball fans. There is a white baseball "trail" leading from Camden Yards straight here, so it isn't hard to find. Plan to spend about a half hour looking at the exhibits on his life, and also the neat new one on the 500-homer club.

   Tue-Sun 10AM-5PM·$6 adults, $3 children 3-12

3. EatFells Point

   Bertha's Restaurant

   "EAT BERTHA'S MUSSELS." The famous slogan is mostly true, the mussels at this would-be tourist trap are indeed really good, while the rest of the menu is a little weak. Perhaps the number one reason to come, besides the magnetic fame, though, is simply for the famous bumper stickers that come with every meal! Frequent good live jazz—check the website for dates.

   Sun-Thu 11:30AM-10PM, Fri-Sat 11:30AM-11PM·$15-25

4. DrinkFells Point

   Birds of a Feather

   Fells Point's scotch whisky bar, with a good 120 single malts on offer, poured in generous drams. The bar atmosphere is very atypical for the neighborhood—no TVs, jazz softly in the background, and older, laid-back clientele.

   Tue-Thu 4PM-10PM, Fri-Sat 4PM-11PM

5. DrinkFells Point

   Cat's Eye Pub

   One of the oldest establishments in the neighborhood, this is a great dive bar if you want to get a true Baltimore experience. It's eccentric, has a great sense of place, good prices on Natty Boh and other local craft beers, and live music—mostly blues, rock, or eclectic. Also haunted.

   noon-2AM daily

6. DrinkWest Baltimore

   Caton Castle

   This is one of Baltimore's best, if not the best, jazz clubs, and you will not find a single other tourist given the out-of-the-way location! Kick it with the locals, hang out in the lounge, and listen to some great local players. You won't go hungry either, with large servings of traditional American/Southern food.

   6PM-10PM, music is generally only on Saturdays—call or check the online calendar.·Usually $10 cover

7. EatEast Baltimore

   Chaps Pit Beef

   Chaps has long served the best pit beef in the city, and is the place to come if you want the real deal. The location is seedy (but perfectly safe), next to a strip club and an adult video wholesaler. Chaps itself is a nice place, however, to sit and enjoy your meal on the wood picnic tables enveloped in Ravens colors. The pit beef eclipses all else on the menu, but the dry-rub ribs as well as the rice pudding merit a little extra expense. (The lines, which shot out the door after the gurus at the Food Network, Travel Channel, et al., caught the little sandwich shop in their massive spotlight, have thankfully died down.)

   Sun-Thu 10:30AM-10PM, Fri-Sat 10:30AM-midnight·$5-15

8. DrinkMidtown

   Club 1722

   Check out those hours! What the heck sort of club is open from 2AM-6AM? And BYOB? This is a wild sort of place.

   Fri 1:45AM-5AM, Sat 1:45AM-6AM

9. DrinkInner Harbor

   James Joyce Irish Bar

   A fairly typical and large Irish pub, but a particularly nice one, and just off the Inner Harbor. The beer list is standard, but the Irish food menu is surprisingly good. Frequent live music.

   Daily 11AM-2AM

10. EatMidtown

    Joe Squared

    Iggy's rival to the north has gourmet-ish pizza just as good. And, unsurprisingly, given its location on the hippest strip in town, has really cool atmosphere with local artists exhibiting on the walls and regular live jazz even on weeknights. It's more of a restaurant than its southern rival, with table service and a full bar. Outdoor patio seating is great in nice weather.

    11AM-2AM daily·$12-24

11. EatSouth Baltimore

    Maynard's

    Maynard's is somewhat of a local center for the Brooklyn neighborhood—popular for lunch and dinner in the day, and for DJs and live music after hours. The menu is assertively Baltimorean, with "hon fries," "Greektown gyros," "Bawlmer crab dip skins," "Francis Hot Key sandwiches," etc. Crab manages to show up in over half of the dishes. What the deal is with the Nixon posters is not exactly clear.

    Mon-Fri 11AM-2AM, Sat Sun noon-2AM·$10-22

12. DrinkMidtown

    Metro Gallery

    An art gallery, club/lounge, live performance venue, and bar, this is one of the cooler places in a very cool city for a night out. Not open every night, you will have to settle for waiting for an event night.

    Open for gallery events—check website or call

13. DrinkSouth Baltimore

    Mum's

    Mum's is pure Baltimore. It's dark, dank, local, loud, and free of the occasionally awful wannabe-Jersey Shore Federal Hill crowd. It has been in the neighborhood a long time, and was reasonably well known in the punk/hardcore days of the city (they still occasionally have live music). If you feel like forgetting your evening and waking up in some random part of Baltimore, or potentially another town, try some shots of "Evil." Pool table in the back.

    Mon-Fri 2PM-2AM, Sat Sun 1PM-2AM

14. EatNorth Baltimore

    Papermoon Diner

    A late night diner south of Johns Hopkins that can go head to head with any Baltimore establishment on funky decor—every non-food-related surface in and on this building is plastered with elaborate and brightly painted found/trash art (if you have been diagnosed with OCD, never come here). The colors of the place alone are worth a visit just to cheer up your mood. The food is basically what you would expect from large-serving diner-style comfort food, perhaps a bit more, and is served until late (despite that the management, in a fit of idiocy, decided the place would no longer be open 24 hours). Ultimately though, you come here because you can't find a place this authentically funky outside of Baltimore.

    Mon-Thu 7AM-midnight, Fri Sat 7AM-2AM

15. DrinkInner Harbor

    Power Plant Live

    A collection of bars, clubs, music venues, and restaurants (the most notable being the Ruth's Chris Steakhouse), manufactured to keep the Inner Harbor tourist machine rolling! As such, it is not representative of Baltimore culture, is a good deal cheesy (beware the suburban bachelorettes), and has pretty rotten service, but is nonetheless a good time with the right mindset. They have a large self contained outdoor square where you can escape the usual U.S. rules on open containers and drink outside to your heart's content. The outdoor Power Plant stage is host to an unending string of live music performances in the summer.

16. DrinkInner Harbor

    Ram's Head Live

    A two-level indoor music venue, which is a nice clean, accessible place to see live music.

    Mon-Sat 10AM-10:30PM, Sun 2 hours prior to doors until 10:30PM

17. DrinkSouth Baltimore

    The 8 x 10

    One of Baltimore's best set-up live music venues occupies a Goldilockean not-too-big, not-too-small space, although it does get overcrowded on the weekends with the weekend Federal Hill crowd. Shows tend to be rock, and the dance floor can be a very good time depending on the clientele that night.

    Shows usually get started around 8PM

18. BuyFells Point

    The Sound Garden

    Chosen by Rolling Stone as the second best record store in the country, this is a good stop. In addition to new and used vinyl, the store also carries DJ equipment, CDs, BlueRay, DVDs, and video games. Selections of jazz and hip hop are particularely noteworthy, as is the expert staff.

    Sun-Thu 10AM-10PM, Fri-Sat 10AM-midnight

19. DoSoutheast Baltimore Not mapped

    LatinoFest

    A two-day festival celebrating Latino culture for one weekend in June of each year since 1980, with food, dancing and live music. It draws a multicultural crowd, so if you're not Latino you won't feel out of place, although a basic knowledge of Spanish would help with some of the vendors.

    $5 admission for adults, children under 12 free

20. DoSoutheast Baltimore Not mapped

    The Charm City Kitty Club

    An LGBT-oriented performing arts group at the Creative Alliance.

Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Baltimore (CC BY-SA 4.0).