2010 Clipper Park Rd., No. 126, 410/464-8000,
www.woodberrykitchen.com

HOURS: Sun.–Thurs. 5–10 p.m., Fri.–Sat. 5–11 p.m.

COST: Most entrées more than $20

The brains and talent behind Woodberry Kitchen belong to one of Baltimore’s few culinary superstars, Spike Gjerde. This latest venture—a big, contemporary/rehabbed late-1800s-era industrial space with an open kitchen, in an old mill complex just west of Hampden—has quickly become one of the city’s favorites (and hardest to get into on a weekend night).

Completely seasonal menus, based on as-local-as-possible purveyors, mean hearty regional dishes like roasted pears, cider-brined pork chops, shrimp and spoonbread, and wood-oven-roasted oysters. Some of the crowd comes for the social status points, but is often distracted by the quality of the food. On weekend nights, the small bar is packed with slightly younger folks, along with hopeful walk-ins without reservations who will never see an empty table; there are a lot of serious eaters from across the region who plan their dinners here weeks in advance.