MY MARYLAND
Locally grown veggies, a great cup of joe and the people watching at Nick’s Seafood
Faves and raves by Gary Vikan
- Age: 61
- Neighborhood: Guilford
- Occupation: Director, The Walters Art Museum
- Self Description: “I think people would say I have a dry sense of humor, make light of things and think very quickly on my feet. I’m creative, quite a good public speaker, strategic thinker, good cook and quite a good photographer.”
FAVORITE SUNDAY MORNING ACTIVITY
“I love the market. Whatever I get there I bring home and cook.”
Where: Every Sunday under the Jones Falls Expressway at Holliday and Saratoga streets
What: The largest producers-only market in Maryland, the Baltimore Farmers Market offers fresh fruits, vegetables, eggs, breads, homemade baked goods, pit beef sandwiches, pastries, cheese and gourmet treats from over 50 vendors.
Info: 410-752-8632
BEST CUP OF COFFEE IN TOWN
“I don’t think there’s a better cup of coffee in the City of Baltimore than in my backyard. I challenge anyone in the coffee business to take me up on it. But if I’m out, I do go to the Daily Grind in Fells Point. It’s the theater of human kind at 7:30 on a Friday morning.”
Where: 1720 Thames St., Baltimore
Info: 410-558-0399
FAVORITE NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION
What: Art on Purpose. “Peter Bruun [Art on Purpose founder, artist, educator and curator] is it. He’s smart, energized and totally committed.”
Where: 4th Floor, 2002 Clipper Park Road, Baltimore
Info: 410-243-4750
BALTIMORE’S HIDDEN GEM
What: “Baltimore is itself a best-kept secret, Mount Vernon Place especially. It’s so spectacular. I’ve looked out on the square for 15 years, and now I see it’s alive with young people and their pets. All of L.A. doesn’t have a place like this, it’s a European space. In the last five years, I’ve seen people are embracing it and using it. It’s really just amazing. It’s such an easy place to be.
Where: Mt. Vernon Place, Baltimore
FAVORITE ARTIST
Who: “I love Joe Sheppard. He paints in a very traditional kind of a way. He’s a white-haired man of great distinction with a nose with a dent or two from boxing. He typically wears a beret. I like his work not just for the aesthetics but the combination of person he is and what he’s committed himself to in life. He paints and sculpts working people. He’s quite a special person and I’m very fond of him. [Sheppard, a internationally renowned Baltimore native, will create a 7-foot tall bronze statue of Pope John Paul II for The Pope John Paul II Prayer Garden at the corner of Franklin and North Charles streets.]
PLACE TO TAKE OUT-OF-TOWNERS
What: “Nick’s Seafood in the Cross Street Market for oysters, crabs and beer. I’ve been going to Nick’s since I got to town more than 20 years ago. He’s a personal friend. Nick and Joe [Sheppard] are the type of people who make this town interesting.”
Where: Nick’s Inner Harbor Seafood, Cross Street Market, Baltimore
Info: 410-685-2020
SPLURGE
What: The Prime Rib. [The city’s posh, premier restaurant for steak recently earned a spot in the first-ever Esquire Almanac of Steak.]
Where: 1101 N. Calvert St., Baltimore
Info: 410-539-1804
FAVORITE PLACE FOR GLASS OF WINE
What: “Sotto Sopra. It’s a very nice, quite elegant place that’s near The Walters.”
Where: 405 N. Charles St., Baltimore
Info: 410-625-0534
