Food Truck Finder

If you work downtown, chances are you've seen or tried a food truck.  The problem is often that you don't know if there's one nearby.  The Baltimore Sun now has a useful tool...The Food Truck Finder!  Go see what's nearby for lunch!

New Businesses at the Inner Harbor This Spring

A slew of new places to visit are on their way to the Inner Harbor.  Brio (Italian) will be opening on Friday, March 2nd on the ground floor across from the Gallery.  Coming soon to the Light Street pavilion we'll see a Ripley's Believe It or Not!  Odditorium, a Bubba Gump Seafood, McCormick World of Flavors, Johnny Rockets, Subway, Chicken Now, and China Max.  These should all be open by Memorial Day, which gives us more reasons to make it to the Inner Harbor this spring (as if we needed any more).

UPDATE:  Here's a great little video from WBAL.

Free Water Taxi

Did you know you could cross the harbor for free?  While the normal harbor taxi provides lots of routes and stops to fit your needs for only $10 a day, the Water Taxi Harbor Connector helps to connect residents completely free of charge.  Right now only two routes exist, but another is on its way this spring!  The existing routes are Fells Point to/from Locust Point and Canton to/from Locust Point.  Coming soon, Harbor View to/from Harbor East!

My Bug World at the Science Center

If your kids like bugs (or maybe even if they don't), the Science Center has a great little exhibit called Harry's Big Adventure; My Bug World!  Kids get to go through bug-themed rooms and get to see live bugs ranging from ladybugs to scorpions.  Check it out!

The Red Line: Baltimore's Transportation Future

With mass transit ridership continuing to climb locally and nationwide, we must look to expand our options.  The metro already ranks #11 in ridership in the nation (despite the city being #21 in terms of population), so Baltimore's red line just makes sense.  The 14 mile long red line will be a sleeker, quieter version of the light rail line, with the exception that it will go underground downtown for a total of almost 4 miles.  This helps to avoid traffic (and subsequent delays) that the current light rail experiences.  The route will go east-west from Bayview on the east side at 95 and 895 to Security on the west side servicing 695.  This route will allow downtown workers to access the line easily from major roads to simplify commuting downtown.

Here's a map of the route (a larger, zoomable map can be found here):

Want to find out more information?  Check out the Red Line's official site here.

Want to get involved?  The Red Line Now PAC is working to solidify the future of the red line.  Check out their main webpage, or Facebook page.  They are throwing a fundraiser for only $10 at Bond Street Social in Fells Point on Tuesday, March 6th from 6-8PM.

Finally, for more renderings, check out the picture page.

Kitchen Nightmares - Cafe Hon

Tune into Fox tomorrow night to see Chef Gordon Ramsey save the term Hon for Baltimore and help put Cafe Hon back on the map!  Here's the quick piece in the Sun about it.

Reminder: Fest of All this weekend

Reminder that the Fest of All party is this weekend at the Museum of Industry!  Check out our previous article on it for a bit more info, or go to Federal Hill's page for tickets!

Mardi Gras in Baltimore

Happy fat Tuesday!  Looking for a taste of Mardi Gras in Charm City?  Here's a run-down of a few options:

• Cooper's, Slainte, and Woody's are doing "Mardi Gras North" where you can dress up in your best costume and come out for great drink specials.  Check this flyer out for more information.
• Pazo and City Paper are throwing "Big Fat Tuesday Party" with a DJ and $42 three course menu.
• Mad River is $10 all-you-can-drink from 8-10PM, and drink specials afterward.
• Soundstage is having a Free Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras party with DJ Sal Flip and Code Kansas tonight at 8PM.

No doubt there are many more places to check out (and tons more specials), so get out there and explore tonight!

Belgian Beer Fest at Max's

Max's on Broadway in Fells Point will be hosting it's annual Belgian beer fest this weekend (Feb 17-19th)!  With over 100 Belgian beers on tap at all times, and almost 200 in bottles, this is the place you want to be if you love anything from a pale lager to lambic or flemish red!  Check out the bottom of their website for more information.  Oh, and NO COVER CHARGE.

Fells Point Redevelopment Coming!

Big changes are coming to the Fells Point area.  Breaking ground April 1st, the $40 Million "Marketplace at Fells Point" project looks to revitalize the neighborhood around the north market.  In addition, the north market itself will be torn down and rebuilt as it once was before a fire took it.  Other parts of the project should include 159 apartments, 27,000 square foot of retail, and a new parking garage (hidden from main streets)!

Baltimore Grand Prix is Back!

"Streets of Baltimore", the new name for the event, will take place on September 2nd of this year.  While I'm not thrilled with the name, it's fantastic to get the event going again!  Here's the Baltimore Business Journal article with a few details (more to come out over the next 24 hours).

Charm City Circulator Expansions

Two big bits of news for the Charm City Circulator!  First comes the most concrete news.  The new route coming this spring is the "Banner" route (Blue).  This route (pictured above...click to expand), will take tourists and residents from the inner harbor to Fort McHenry along Key Highway and Fort Avenue.

The second announcement was included in Stephanie Rawlings Blake's State of the City speech the other day.  She intends to expand the Purple line north to Johns Hopkins University.  It currently only goes to Penn Station, so this would be a very large expansion.  I do wonder if Johns Hopkins will help pay for the expansion and retire their own aging shuttles that already do that route.  If nothing else it provides a free ride to the Baltimore Museum of Art for downtown tourists.

Baltimore Auto Show Pictures

While slightly smaller than in previous years, the Baltimore Auto Show still did a decent job impressing.  Car manufacturers showing off models included Toyota, Honda, VW, Ford, Chevy, Jaguar, Mini, Jeep, Subaru, Land Rover, Hyundai, GMC, Ram, Chrysler, Acura, Lexus, Fiat, Mazda, Buick, Cadillac, Volvo, Scion, Nissan, Dodge, Lincoln, Kia, and Infiniti.  Notable companies not present included Mercedes and BMW...where were you guys?  Anyway, on to the pictures!

Baltimore Grand Prix Nearing Announcement!

It looks like the city has chosen a new group to manage the Baltimore Grand Prix.  Last year's event was wildly successful, though mismanaged by the previous group (leaving the event $12 Million in debt).  More details should be coming next week!

Here's the Baltimore Sun article on the subject.

William Williams, Defender of Baltimore

In honor of Black History Month, I present you with a man whose story is little known, but deserves to be heard.  198 years ago this month, 21 year-old Williams escaped to Baltimore from a slave owner named Benjamin Oden in Prince George's county.  According to Oden,Williams was actually named Frederick.  He most likely changed his name to avoid being taken back to Oden.  Baltimore at that time had the largest free black population in the nation, so Williams was able to find safety and shelter in the city.

Papa Johns 50% Off Today

The Washington Capitals won 4-0 last night against the Florida Panthers.  Because they won and scored 4 goals, Papa Johns offers %50 off your entire online order (remember not to call the order).  To get this deal, just put in CAPS50 in the promotion code spot when you put your order in.  There's also another, seperate discount offered in 2012 of 10% off online orders by using promo code SS200 in honor of the Star Spangled 200.  Only one of the promo codes can be used at a time though.

So go get that lunch or dinner 50% off today:
www.PapaJohns.com

This Day in History: Great Baltimore Fire

108 years ago today, a fire broke out in the John Hurst and Company building on the west side of downtown.  It quickly spread from building to building, and within 3 hours a urgent telegraph went out to surrounding cities for any help that could be spared.  By the next day crews from Washington DC, Philadelphia, and New York were on the scene doing what they could.  When the fire was out, a total of 1,545 buildings had burned in 70 city blocks over some 140 acres.  Damage was estimated at $150 Million, but that didn't deter city leaders from putting together a plan to rebuild.  Such was the determination and will of the city, that a mere 2 years later the downtown was rebuilt with an eye to averting this type of fire again.  Streets were widened, electricity was buried, fire code was standardized, and the city was reborn.

National Pinball Museum Pictures

With the National Pinball Museum moving from DC to Baltimore, it was only a matter of time before I went to check it out.  The Museum sits on Water Street next to Power Plant Live, in a building labeled "The Chocolate Company".  Signage isn't great yet (I assume some nice neon sign is on the way), so you need to know what you're looking for.  There's no mistaking where you are when you step inside though.  The first floor consists of the main desk, lots of VERY old pinball machines and mechanisms, and a history of pinball room (we were unable to take pictures in this room).  The second floor is where the fun is.  You get the opportunity to play on machines from the 40s all the way up to modern(ish) times.  I have to admit that machines like Jurassic Park, Barb Wire, Guns and Roses, Indiana Jones, Star Trek, and the Adams Family had me in flashback mode.

Happy Birthday Babe (Pictures)

Today would have been George Herman Ruth Jr's 117th Birthday.  The picture below is the actual room that Babe Ruth was born in...all shots here are from the Babe Ruth Birthplace Museum only a few blocks from Camden Yards.

Babe Ruth House Free for 2 Days

In honor of the Sultan of Swat's 117th birthday, The Babe Ruth Birthplace Museum is completely free on February 5th and 6th.  If you haven't been, the museum is pretty neat.  You can walk through the rooms the Babe grew up in and get a chance to see some amazing artifacts from his life.  I highly recommend you stop by...check out their site for more info.

Kinetic Sculpture Race - Sign Up Now!

For 14 straight years, Baltimore has held one of the most unique races in the country.  The Kinetic Sculpture Race (Sponsored by the American Visionary Arts Museum) will be held this year on Saturday May, 5th.  It's hard describe until you see it...but let's just say it's a people-powered, odd-themed, all-terrain race.  If you want to participate, the paperwork is due by April 1st.  That gives you less than 2 months to assemble a team, get an idea, and start designing.  It costs $75 to enter a vehicle and anywhere from $10-50 per person on the team (not to mention the costs to build out your idea).  Each team member does get access to the post-race cook-out though...so that makes it totally worth it.  Keep your eye on this site for exclusive pictures and video from last year's race sometime in the next month.  Check out the race website for more info and the entry form.

Bmore Interested now on Twitter!

Yeah, yeah, yeah...I've been slacking at getting the twitter feed going until today.  Now you can follow the latest happenings here at Bmore Interested through Twitter or Facebook!  Click the buttons on the top-right of the page anytime to check it out.

Looking for a Challange? GORUCK Challenge Baltimore

On February 11th, you have the opportunity to try something physically and mentally challenging.  The GORUCK challenge is inspired by special forces training and pushes it's participates to work together to finish.  It's not a race, but a team endeavor.  The cool part...it's all centered around the downtown and inner harbor in the middle of the night.  Check out the GORUCK Baltimore page for more info.

Motor Trend Auto Show in Baltimore

From Feb 9th-12th, the Baltimore Convention Center plays host to the Motor Trend Auto Show.  For only $10 (discounts for kids/seniors/military...and $1 off if you purchase off the website), you can check out the latest domestic and import models.  Everyone who goes also gets a 1 year subscription to Motor Trend Magazine.