As new residents of Maryland last fall, Stefan and I decided to visit Baltimore for some NPU and food adventures. We set out early Saturday morning, hoping to knock out Ft. McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine and Hampton National Historic Site. Between NPUing and trying to hunt down Charm City Cakes, we were able to hit up several local Baltimore foodie places...
Baltimore Cupcake Company
We started out the day visiting the Baltimore Cupcake Company. The impetus for this stop was initiated by my recent obsession with cupcakes after visiting Cake Love in Washington, DC. Having realized my love of cupcakes, I now search for cupcake bakeries in all the cities we visit. The Baltimore Cupcake Company is located right down the street from the Fort McHenry and is an easy stop for you NPU-ers. The bakery offers 10 flavors of cupcakes each day which are listed on the web-site, but be advised that these flavors are available on a first come, first serve basis. If you visit later in the day, they may be sold-out of some flavors. On our visit, the only flavors remaining were cookies and cream, vanilla with white icing, and vanilla with chocolate icing (named by the baker as vanilla-woo). We tried one of each and, surprisingly, found them to be even better than the Cake Love cupcakes. The cake was very moist and had a hint of amaretto, making for a unique cupcake taste.
Faidley’s Seafood at Lexington Market
The “World’s Famous” Lexington Market offers local Baltimore flavor, featuring vendors that sell everything from baked items to international specialties. Although the Market is located in a very ghetto part of town, it is worth the trip to taste the famous crab cakes from Faidley’s Seafood. The menu offers crab cakes at different prices, but be sure to splurge and order the jumbo lump crab cake. It is loaded with fresh crab and contains virtually no filler. It is undoubtedly the best crab cake I have ever eaten, and probably the cheapest. If you are not willing to brave the crazies in Baltimore, or do not want to make the trip, Faidley’s crab cakes can be ordered and shipped fresh by calling the market.
Café Hon
For dinner, we ate at Café Hon, featured on Rachael Ray’s Tasty Travels. Café Hon is well known for its comfort food and eccentric décor; this restaurant is a throwback to 50’s soda fountains and corner grocery stores. The owner’s obsession with flamingos is apparent, as a giant pink flamingo outside on the building welcomes you to the restaurant. Once inside, the menu offers a variety of comfort foods. I ordered the turkey dinner, complete with cornbread stuffing and gravy. The dinners were so filling, we were unable to save room for Café Hon’s famous pies and shakes. If you really like the 50’s look, on your way out, you can pick up cat’s eye sunglasses, t-shirts, and feather boas from the restaurant’s gift store to take home.
Baltimore Cupcake Company
We started out the day visiting the Baltimore Cupcake Company. The impetus for this stop was initiated by my recent obsession with cupcakes after visiting Cake Love in Washington, DC. Having realized my love of cupcakes, I now search for cupcake bakeries in all the cities we visit. The Baltimore Cupcake Company is located right down the street from the Fort McHenry and is an easy stop for you NPU-ers. The bakery offers 10 flavors of cupcakes each day which are listed on the web-site, but be advised that these flavors are available on a first come, first serve basis. If you visit later in the day, they may be sold-out of some flavors. On our visit, the only flavors remaining were cookies and cream, vanilla with white icing, and vanilla with chocolate icing (named by the baker as vanilla-woo). We tried one of each and, surprisingly, found them to be even better than the Cake Love cupcakes. The cake was very moist and had a hint of amaretto, making for a unique cupcake taste.
Faidley’s Seafood at Lexington Market
The “World’s Famous” Lexington Market offers local Baltimore flavor, featuring vendors that sell everything from baked items to international specialties. Although the Market is located in a very ghetto part of town, it is worth the trip to taste the famous crab cakes from Faidley’s Seafood. The menu offers crab cakes at different prices, but be sure to splurge and order the jumbo lump crab cake. It is loaded with fresh crab and contains virtually no filler. It is undoubtedly the best crab cake I have ever eaten, and probably the cheapest. If you are not willing to brave the crazies in Baltimore, or do not want to make the trip, Faidley’s crab cakes can be ordered and shipped fresh by calling the market.Café Hon
For dinner, we ate at Café Hon, featured on Rachael Ray’s Tasty Travels. Café Hon is well known for its comfort food and eccentric décor; this restaurant is a throwback to 50’s soda fountains and corner grocery stores. The owner’s obsession with flamingos is apparent, as a giant pink flamingo outside on the building welcomes you to the restaurant. Once inside, the menu offers a variety of comfort foods. I ordered the turkey dinner, complete with cornbread stuffing and gravy. The dinners were so filling, we were unable to save room for Café Hon’s famous pies and shakes. If you really like the 50’s look, on your way out, you can pick up cat’s eye sunglasses, t-shirts, and feather boas from the restaurant’s gift store to take home.
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