130 Best Restaurants in Maryland, USA

Since 1732, this sturdy bluish gray stone home has welcomed travelers along a road called by turns the National Trail, the National Road, the Old National Pike, and (least romantically) Route 40. Historic figures Daniel Webster and Henry Clay stopped here, and during the Civil War, John Brown's followers seized control of the building for a day. Just prior to the Battle of Antietam, it served as the headquarters for a Confederate general. The menu is as elegant as the setting: highlights include fillet Mona Lisa, a seared filet mignon with a cabernet sauvignon demi-glace, served over crispy fried leeks. The extensive dessert list includes peanut butter, fresh apple, and bourbon pecan pies; Godiva chocolate cake; and ice cream sundaes.

A favorite of Johns Hopkins students, this low-key restaurant, café, and bar is open morning until night for tasty vegetarian fare. Settle onto a couch or at one of the small tables for a portobello sandwich with caramelized onions and feta cheese, a wild rice and tempeh burger, or One World's version of that Baltimore specialty: a crabless crab cake. Fresh pressed juices, smoothies, espresso drinks, microbrews, and mixed drinks from the full bar fill out the menu.

With great vegetarian food, cocktails, and doors that stay open until 2 am every day but Sunday, it's no surprise that students love the One World Cafe. In summer, take advantage of the café's sidewalk seating.

With not much more elegance than a neighborhood barbershop, the prices here might seem absurd. But you get your money's worth: no-nonsense seafood and an eyeful of Old Maryland arrested in time. Crab cakes don't get any more authentic than these, presented with just enough structural imperfection to guarantee they're made by hand; the clam chowder—creamy, chunky, and served with a bottomless bowl of oyster crackers—is rendered with similar, down-home care.

Blink, and you may think you’re in South Beach: this trendy restaurant has quickly become the city’s most popular, where the suit-and-tie crowd sidles up to the elevated bar or takes a seat on the cushy outdoor terrace. Try the grilled octopus starter, tossed with lemon juice and capers, or the charcoal-grilled whole fish, be it wild sea bass, sole, or snapper.

The ceilings and walls of this funky, colorful diner are plastered with toys and other interesting objects. People come at all hours (it's open 7 am–midnight every day except Tuesday, and until 2 am on the weekend) for the overstuffed omelets, big stacks of pancakes, burgers, nachos, sandwiches and... bacon milkshakes (a must-try). Stop by at midnight on a Friday or Saturday night to nosh on sweet potato fries with hipsters and students from nearby Johns Hopkins University. The servers have a diner attitude—they don't always seem too interested in serving, and the food might take a while—but the place is always lively and entertaining.

The latest creation from Chef/Owners Spike and Amy Gjerde is a real meat market—as in, a butcher shop. Sit at one of the communal dining tables (they also have private dining) and enjoy a family-style meal. At its heart is an open kitchen with an oakwood hearth. The dry-aged flat iron steak is the perfect balance of tender juiciness in a lean cut, served with a tasty shallot and red onion sauce. Salads and grilled vegetables are served at the height of freshness. The chefs commitment to local purveyors is evidenced by the credit they attribute to them on the menu.

Feast on crab cakes, crab imperial, or stuffed and fried shrimp at the 1956 home of an O.C. institution that is the original of three Phillips locations here and has since grown into a regional chain (Phillips By the Sea 1301 Atlantic Ave.Phillips Seafood House 14101 Coastal Hwy.). Considered the city's most popular dining site, the restaurant has a dark-panel dining area with decorative stone floors, Tiffany-style hanging lamps, stained-glass windows, and funky wall art. Expect big crowds in the summer months. Its seafood buffet is served in an upstairs dining room.

Piedigrotta Bakery is ground zero for tiramisu. Owner/pastry chef Carminantonio Iannaccone is credited with inventing the dessert in Italy, and he brought it with him to Baltimore, making residents forever grateful. You will be, too, after one bite of his spongy confection, made with ladyfingers, mascarpone cheese, espresso, and Marsala. Piedigrotta also serves sandwiches, pizza, and fresh loaves of Italian breads—all baked in-house.

This is the place to mingle with C'town residents as well as with Washington College students and local pols, for good conversation—indoors or alfresco—over fresh coffee (including excellent espresso) or fine wine, by the glass or bottle, to accompany hearty, healthy soups, salads, and sandwiches. Friday night is "wine night" with complimentary hors d'oeuvres, often accompanied by live music. Wi-Fi's in the air here.

Jars of pickled chard stems and radishes, preserved lemons, and pepper jelly line the shelves at this lively spot on Main Street run by a husband-and-wife team who both have impressive culinary resumés and a shared passion for pickling, fermenting, and preserving. The chef's roots in the Pennsylvania Dutch country shine through with chicken potpie, pork and sauerkraut, and a Dutch hash and liverwurst sandwich.

Bustling and crowded, this luxuriously dark dining room is just north of Mount Vernon Square and a five-minute drive from the Inner Harbor. The leopard-print carpet and live pianist lend a swanky 1960s feel to a place that seems untouched by time, including the meat-heavy menu of steak-house classics.

This traditional English-style pub serves better-than-usual tavern fare, as well as more than 100 beers—30 on tap—including five Fordham beers and others from around the world. Brunch is served on Sunday, and nationally known folk, rock, jazz, country, and bluegrass artists perform most nights.

Anyplace with a cheerful red horse perched on the roof has got to be interesting, right? Indeed, this restaurant is not a hokey tourist trap but a popular local institution known for sizzling, thick-cut steaks. The dining room decor with its wagon-wheel chandelier isn't for everyone, but the service is good, the wine and spirits list is extensive, and the menu, though not fancy, features time-honored favorites such as bacon-wrapped scallops and broiled flounder stuffed with crab imperial.

Inside a former chicken barn about 15 mi from Salisbury, inverted bushel baskets now serve as light fixtures at this down-home crab house, where hammering mallets rival the beat of piano and banjo sing-alongs. The Red Roost gets rave reviews for its seafood specialties and ribs, as well as its meaty steamed crabs.

Owned by a charismatic family from Italy by way of Baltimore, this restaurant and wine bar is a favorite of locals and tourists. Black-and-white photos of Italy hang on a textured wall painted warm shades of gold and orange, and candles flicker on tables in the covered patio. Try the slow-cooked chicken Ottaviani, the owner's Italian grandmother's signature dish, or Pasta Chivitella, penne and wild mushrooms in a rich cream sauce. There's an impressive wine list, and decadent deserts—try the tiramisu—complete the experience.

This family-owned restaurant opened optimistically in 1936, the year after the demise of the railroad from Washington. Since then it has remained synonymous with superb seafood. Now part of the Chesapeake Beach Resort & Spa, its bay-side location still provides stunning views. The extensive menu includes succulent southern Maryland specialties such as rockfish stuffed with crab imperial, fried oysters, and the region's ubiquitous crab cakes.

East of Fells Point is Greektown (20 minutes by car from Inner Harbor hotels), home to Baltimore's Greek population. An informal restaurant, done in clean, classic blue and white, Samos serves excellent Greek fare. Portions are generous, with lamb souvlaki and tender, juicy gyros leading the menu. Be warned: the folks at Samos often take the phone off the hook and stop offering carryout during the lunchtime rush. Samos doesn't offer beer or wine, but you can bring your own.

A taste of the Southwest meets Appalachia at this restaurant and bar where a large wooden bear and bar stools carved from saplings greet guests. Hearty portions are welcome after a long day of skiing or swimming. Try the Painted Desert Soup with layers of pureed red peppers, corn, and beans, mesquite-grilled breast of chicken, or the huge rack of ribs slow-roasted in habanero sauce.

The area's German roots may have you hankering for schnitzel, knockwurst, or a cold Oktoberfest beer. If so, head to Schmarkerl Stube. Waitresses dressed in traditional dirndls (recall those St. Pauli Girl beer commercials?) carry heaping plates of homemade sausages, veal and noodles, and sweet and sour beef with dumplings. The house favorite Knusperige Schweinshaxe (marinated pork shank with sauerkraut, apple-flavored red cabbage, and homemade Bavarian bread dumplings) must be ordered 24 hours in advance so that the pork has ample time to marinate. Intricate wood carvings and red-and-white checked tablecloths complete the theme.

Don't let the name scare you: The namesake shark is meant to be your dinner, prepared any way you like. This off-the-beaten-path place in West Ocean City is worth the trek and takes advantage of every bay view, including from the sweeping rooftop bar. Dishes experiment with unusual flavors like the tuna with wasabi-cream sauce and pineapple meringue. Go for the Eggplant Tower stuffed with layers of shrimp, lump crab, and wild mushrooms with fresh-shaved Parmesan. Entrées are $5 from 3 pm to 5 pm, and a live jazz band plays on Thursday nights.

Join regulars at this casual waterside restaurant and bar on the edge of town that has a wide-ranging menu with a Southwestern flavor. Mexican quesadillas are a Snappers specialty, but there is also an array of burritos, enchiladas, and fajitas. Jamaican jerk spices enhance burgers and crab cakes. From waters close to home, there's shrimp, stuffed or simply fried. Sandwiches, wraps, and pasta also satisfy the local lunch crowd.

Popular with boaters who tie right up to the dock, this restaurant overlooking Island Creek has one dining room that actually juts out over the water and another on higher ground with great views from its floor-to-ceiling windows. There's also ample seating—and a tiki bar—outside. Stoney's hefty crab cakes are made with plenty of back-fin meat and little filler. Oyster sandwiches and Stoney's Steamer—handpicked selections of fresh seafood—are also good choices. The intense, house-made desserts, such as the strawberry shortcake and Kim's key lime pie, are not for the faint of heart. If you miss Stoney's in Broomes Island, there are two other locations in Solomons Island.

This hot dog specialist a block from the Fells Point waterfront earns a large share of the lunch and late-night crowds with specialties like the Bmore Dog, with grilled baloney and deli mustard, and the Wild Thing, a Bison dog with blue cheese and diced raw onions. For dessert, the fried Oreo cookies have a certain charm. There's a second location in Federal Hill (at 17 E. Cross St.)

Connected to the Charles Theater, the place for art and indie films in Baltimore, the Tapas Teatro is a popular pre- and post-movie spot. It's often a scene, especially in warm weather, when the glass front is open and tables spill onto the street. Tapas include roasted potatoes, spinach sautéed with crab, and lamb tenderloin. There's also an extensive list of wines by the glass, and if you don't finish them with dinner, you can carry drinks into the Charles. But be careful: it's so much fun to keep sampling that it's easy to run up a hefty bill.

Blue walls and paintings of sea life reflect the owner's childhood home in Thailand; so does the extensive menu at this branch of a busy chain, whose many seafood dishes include fresh flounder and rockfish. Favorites include the mild and traditional pad thai, the spicy goong phuket (grilled black tiger shrimp topped with crabmeat and chicken sauce), and chicken satay. Service is quick and friendly, making Tara Thai an excellent place to stop and rest while shopping in nearby stores.

The Tastees are part of the culinary past in the Washington area, with a handful still left in Silver Spring, Laurel, and Bethesda, the flagship location. These 24-hour diners are sentimental favorites among many area residents, who value them for their hand-formed hamburgers, the tastiness of which is subjective. Students and others on low budgets (or little sleep) ignore the dust and relish the coffee, which flows endlessly. Breakfast is served around the clock.

Twenty years ago, Thai chef-owner Kerrigan Kitikul named his hole-in-the-wall dive in tribute to his Irish wife, but the food has always been as authentically Thai as anything you'll find in Baltimore. All entrées on the limited menu are $8.95, from the spot-on Pad Thai to the sizzling-hot Panang with just-barely-steamed vegetables in a perfect red curry. There are a few tables, but the business is mostly carryout. For the quickest service—this is a one-man kitchen—avoid the lunch and dinner rushes.

Like many historic buildings in Fells Point, Thames Street Oyster House has lived several lives, functioning as a brothel, saloon, and gift shop before opening in 2011 as a seafood restaurant. This might be its best incarnation, yet. The raw bar features a mouth-watering array of oysters, caught in regional, Atlantic, and Pacific waters. Also available are mussels, crab claws, scallops, quahogs, and lobster tails. Speaking of lobster, the delectable Maine lobster roll comes stuffed with poached lobster and is served on a buttered hot dog bun. The antique black bar and white-tiled floor impart a classic, yet comfortable vibe. The stained glass windows and exposed brick are original to the building.