Hampden : Development News

The relocation of a Hampden business gives neighborhood dogs something to bark about.
 
The nine-year-old Good Doggie Day Care will be moving from 3500 Ash St. to a larger space at 529 W. 29^th St. by early July.
 
The 14,000-square-foot location gives business owner JoAnne Garrett 5,500 square feet of more space and 13 playrooms instead of six. The new space, which formerly housed the Hanover Uniform Co., has two floors with a large ramp for the dogs.
 
“The new location is much easier to get to, and it won’t crowd the dogs,” Garrett says. “Also, some of our dogs are aging, and we’ll have a place for our ‘older kids’.” The new location will have a “Senior Paws” area dedicated to older dogs.
 
Garrett employs 23 and will will hire one assistant manager, one evening assistant manager and four daycare attendants for the new location.
 
Good Doggie takes care of 50 to 100 dogs per day. Prices range from $20 for one half-day session to $28 for five full-day sessions. One-third of the customers come from the neighborhood while many also come from downtown, Garrett says.
 
Contact: JoAnne Garrett, owner of Good Doggie Day Care
Writer: Jolene Carr

The owner of Waverly’s Darker Than Blue Café is talking to the developers of two of Baltimore City’s biggest residential and retail projects near Johns Hopkins University about relocating the popular restaurant to a bigger spot. And he’s cooking up plans for a new eatery at his current home on Greenmount Avenue.

Casey Jenkins says he is working with Artios Retail LLC, a Bel Air leasing and brokerage firm, to assist with the expansion by 2015. The business owner is looking at the Rotunda in Hampden and the lot at 32^nd Street and Saint Paul Street in Charles Village as possible locations for the expanded Darker Than Blue.

“Our dream is to move to a large development,” Jenkins says, noting that a larger development will give the restaurant more visibility.

Jenkins opened the 85-seat Darker Than Blue at 3034 Greenmount Ave. seven years ago. The move will hopefully allow him to seat as many as 150 in the expanded location. The new Darker Than Blue will be more polished and upscale and have less of a mom-and-pop feel.

The restaurant will still serve Southern-inspired food, including catfish and grits and chicken and waffles. Jenkins will also continue to feature regular live jazz. A bigger restaurant will allow Jenkins to feature new items, including a rotisserie with ribs, pork and chicken. 

Virginia’s Armada Hoffler and Baltimore’s Beatty Development Group LLC are leading the redevelopment of the lot near Johns Hopkins University. Formerly a condo project called the Olmsted, it is now dubbed the St. Paul Street Project in Charles Village.

New Jersey’s Hekemian & Co. is leading the $70M Rotunda redevelopment in Hampden, slated to include a local grocer, apartments and restaurants when it is completed in summer 2015.

Meanwhile, Jenkins says he will open a new restaurant in the current Darker Than Blue location — most likely West Indian or Latin. Jenkins says he’ll probably open up the space a little more, and that the new place will be a bit more casual than Darker Than Blue. The as-yet unnamed restaurant would seat the same number of people.

Jenkins is in expansion mode. In May, he’s opening Birdland Sports Bar and Grill in Cedmont.
 
Writer: Amy Landsman
Source: Casey Jenkins, owner of Darker Than Blue and Birdland Sports Bar & Grill

Maybe you've tried bar-hopping, but what about restaurant-hopping? Dishcrawl, which launches in Baltimore this month, dubs itself as a “gastronomic adventure” and encourages guests to try a variety of foods in selected neighborhoods.

Baltimore’s first Dishcrawl will be held in Canton April 17, taking diners to four “secret” restaurants. Founder Tracy Lee says the company will expand the culinary social experience to Fells Point, Federal Hill, Charles Village and Hampden, though no events have been scheduled yet. If Baltimore City crawls are successful, Lee says she will consider expanding Dishcrawl to Baltimore County.  

Lee launched Dishcrawl in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2010 as a way to share her favorite restaurants. Though it's now up and running in New York, Montreal, Ottawa, San Jose, Toronto, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., it wasn’t an instant success.

“In the beginning, it was really hard to figure out how to get the word out,” Lee says. “I would spend 20 hours promoting to get 20 people to an event.”

Lee turned to social media to help promote the crawls. She and her team, which includes ambassadors in each city, use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other social media outlets to spread the word.

“I love Baltimore and the diverse food scene,” Lee says. “The community and coming together as a group of foodies is what makes Dishcrawl successful in cities.”

Curious as to which Canton restaurants will be included in the inaugural crawl? Keep an eye on Twitter, where the team will drop hints at @dishcrawlbal. Ticket holders will receive an email with the meeting location 48 hours prior to the crawl.   

The first three restaurants will feature one dish each and the the fourth will serve dessert. Chefs and restaurateurs will share stories, as well. Tickets cost $45, excluding alcohol.


Writer: Renee Libby Beck
Source: Tracy Lee, Dishcrawl 

Two independent clothing stores in Hampden, Sixteen Tons and Doubledutch Boutique are moving into a shared space on the Avenue next month.

The move will allow the two stores to share overhead expenses and carry a wider array of merchandise, Sixteen Tons Owner Daniel Wylie says. 

The two-story, 1,400-square-foot spot at 1021  W. 36^th St. is the former home of Denova furniture store. Doubledutch — a women's clothing store owned by Wylie's wife Lesley Jennings and Sixteen Tons will retain their separate names and brands.  

Wylie says he hopes the central block on the Avenue, next to the Food Market — a restaurant named a "hot spot" by Open Table diners — will give both stores more visibility and foot traffic. For Doubledutch, it's a chance to move off Falls Road and onto Hampden's central thoroughfare, the Avenue. Wylie opened Sixteen Tons at 1100 W. 36th St. in 2010.  

Moving into a larger space will allow him to sell more shoes, accessories, shaving products and house wares. Diversifying his inventory will hopefully increase sales, Wylie says. If someone doesn’t want to buy a pair of trousers, maybe they might buy a table or shaving cream.

Wylie says he does not yet know how much the move will cost. He says the store is profitable, though sales fluctuate with the seasons. 
 
Learn more about Sixteen Tons in this video made by Shine Creative. 

Source: Daniel Wylie
Writer: Julekha Dash

After being closed for nearly three years, renovation is underway at a revamped David’s Restaurant and Deli in Hampden.

Restaurant owner David D. Morgan has submitted an application to the Baltimore City liquor board for permission to house a full bar and hold live music.

In October, the Hampden Village Merchants Association gave Morgan a conditional letter of support. The conditions being that the restaurant open within three months, and the ownership doesn’t immediately transfer to somebody else.

Community leaders say they are looking forward to seeing the vacant property at 3626A Falls Road put to use.

“This has been sitting vacant for several years,” says Benn Ray, president of the Hampden Village Merchants Association. Ray is also owner of Atomic Books, located next to David’s Restaurant. The block could use a viable restaurant, he says.

“Having that amount of real estate right next door being inoperable is not at all helpful.”

Ray says the space is essentially two properties: the former David’s and an old toy train store. He says construction is underway and it appears it’s to be shaping up as a sports bar and restaurant.

Morgan could not be reached for comment and Hampden community leaders say they do not know what kind of food the restaurant will serve. The old David’s Restaurant featured breakfast, burgers, and sandwiches.

The Hampden Community Council also voted support of the new restaurant’s new liquor license application.

The Baltimore City liquor board will hear Morgan’s request on or after Jan. 31. 

Writer: Amy Landsman
Sources: Benn Ray, President Hampden Village Merchants Association; George Peters, Chairman Hampden Zoning Committee

A new business on the Avenue in Hampden allows visitors to try holistic healing on a budget.
 
Mend Acupuncture opened last month at 1008 W. 36 St. above Hampden Junque. Owner Sarah O’Leary offers $25 acupuncture sessions to clients in her 600-square-foot studio.
 
Mends houses six reclining chairs but O’Leary may be purchasing two more. She currently works with ten independently contracted acupuncturists. The Mends acupuncture procedure is a more modest version than your average, O'Leary says. It  focuses on areas from the elbows down and knees down and sometimes the ears and head.
 
O’Leary also owns Seeds Center for Whole Health and decided to open a separate drop-in acupuncture studio after noticing a growing interest in the healing technique. Acupuncture is commonly used to treat back pain, infertility and digestive difficulties while enhancing overall well-being.
 
“The acupuncture aspect really expanded, there was a two month waiting list at Seeds,” O’Leary says. “More and more insurance companies are covering it, but people who don’t have insurance can’t afford it.”
 
O’Leary says the low price is bringing a lot of newbies to acupuncture, many of whom are graduate students, artists and people who work in the hospitality business. Mend stayed open late along with other businesses on the Avenue for First Fridays during the holidays and administered 200 acupuncture treatments by the end of December.
 
O’Leary rented the space above Cafe Hon to open Seeds in 2007. Seeds offers services like reiki, massages and organic waxing. O’Leary enjoys being a business owner in Hampden, where it’s affordable and where there are fellow moms who own their own business. 

Writer: Jolene Carr
Source: Sarah O'Leary, Seeds

Hampden’s Breathe Books will add a café in February that offers beans, grains and greens.
 
Owner Susan Weis-Bohlen is spending $150,000 on the café, generated from area foundations and investors.
 
Vegan, vegetarian and Ayurvedic foods will be on the menu, in addition to café staples like scones and muffins. The new-age bookstore will also offer vegan cookies and cupcakes and raw macaroons, along with light meals like the Chick Pea Pick Me Up and Your Tart’s Desire and a daily blue-plate special. All treats will be made without white sugar and white flour. Weis-Bohlen is looking for local coffee products to sell at the venue at 810 West 36^th St.
 
Joann Goshen, the former pastry chef of beloved Mount Vernon institution Louie's Bookstore Café will be working in the kitchen. Joining her will be Rene and Don Gorman, formerly of Pikesville’s Puffins Restaurant. Weis-Bohlen will also prepare dishes that conform to the Ayurvedic tradition. Ayurveda is a form of alternative medicine that relies on food for its healing properties.
 
In addition to the chefs, Weis-Bohlen will hire three additional employees as the hours extend from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Breathe currently employs four.
 
The coffee bar will be in the front of the store, with a lounge area in the back, outdoor seating on the porch and as many as six tables upstairs. The store will carry magazines and international newspapers once the café opens.
 
Weis-Bohlen says she considered finding a new space for the café but decided to include it in her 750-square-foot store, a renovated house that already has a kitchen. She says she wanted to stay in Hampden because of the support from the community and the Hampden Village Merchants Association.  
 
Breathe’s café will bring in another source of revenue as more people turn to digital books. “Books themselves aren’t what they used to be,” Weis-Bohlen says. “Customers need a healthy, happy living. Food makes a bookstore more comfortable and casual.”
 
Writer: Jolene Carr
Source: Susan Weis-Bohlen, Breathe Books

A three-year-old interior design firm whose clients include Millennial Media and Penn Mutual Life Insurance Co. is scouting for office space in Baltimore City and adding to its staff.

Kelly Ennis, founding principal of the Verve Partnership, says she is looking at Clipper Mill and other historic properties in the area with the hope of leasing a 2,000-square-foot office in January. “We’re looking for an office that reflects our brand — less formal but creative and professional,” says Ennis, who has been working out of her Hampden home. Ennis has hired Doug Kaufman of AGM Commercial Real Estate Advisors LLC as her broker. 

The six-person firm will soon add another designer and a project architect and grow to about 20 employees over the next three years. Ennis says she eventually would like to expand to other smaller cities, such as Denver and Pittsburgh.  

A Pennsylvania native, Ennis moved to Baltimore in the 1980s to get her BFA in interior architecture at the Maryland Institute College of Art. She moved to Los Angeles for eight years, where she worked for HOK, the largest US-based architectural engineering firm. Locally, Ennis has worked for Gensler.

Ennis wanted to start her own firm because she wanted to design offices where the company’s brand is incorporated in its interior design. For instance, Verve blended a casual and corporate environment on behalf of Millennial Media, designing a “park like” area for flexible meeting space and a “jam room” for the staff musicians.

OmniTI, an IT services firm with offices in Fulton and New York City, wanted a space that fostered creativity. Verve incorporated graffiti and musical instruments in the office design. 

Writer: Julekha Dash
Source: Kelly Ennis, Verve Partnership 

There’s a new place in Woodberry where Baltimoreans can do their downward dog.
 
Respite Wellness Center opens for business at 2000 Girard Ave. Oct. 1. The Center offers yoga, Reiki, and Zumba classes along with massage and acupuncture sessions.
 
Certified yoga instructor and massage therapist Angeline Gentile has partnered up with acupuncturist Tiffany Houchins to open Respite. Gentile, a Hampden resident, found the 1,500 square-foot location on Craigslist and thought it was ideal since the space was already set up for a wellness center with three treatment rooms, a yoga studio, a kitchen and reception area.
 
 “We decorated the space with a Woodberry urban-organic vibe,” says Gentile. Gentile says she plans to work with Artifact Coffee and offer lunch for afternoon yoga sessions provided in the backyard, which she will set up with hammocks as a place to socialize.
 
Gentile, who also holds corporate yoga classes including sessions at Baltimore City Public Schools for teachers, enjoys providing classes for Baltimore workers like artists, writers and small business owners who need to relax but have tight budgets, and she often offers sliding scale prices.
 
Respite is currently offering intro specials, like $70 for 90-minute massage sessions that usually cost $100. Walk-ins for yoga classes are $15, and $10 for seniors and students, or 10 classes for $120.
 
Respite currently employs three acupuncturists and five yoga instructors. There will also be a life coach and licensed social worker later this month. Gentile would also like to add bars and Pilates instructors in the future.

Source: Angeline Gentile
Writer: Jolene Carr

Baltimore Burger Bar, a restaurant specializing in farm-to-table 'foodie' burgers, plans to relocate  from its present location on the Avenue in Hampden to another spot on the same street with a larger kitchen.

Store Owner Anisha Jagtap says she is spending $50,000 on the move and renovation and hopes to open the new location by the end of September.
 
The new space is currently zoned as retail space and Jagtap will go before the city's zoning board Aug. 21 for approval.
 
Currently housed in a two-story, 1,400-square-foot space at 830 W. 36th St., Baltimore Burger Bar will relocate to 840 W. 36th St. to a 1,200-square-foot space.

Jagtap also plans to construct a 166-square-foot addition as well as provide outdoor seating, making the overall space larger and more conducive to table service. The additions and renovations are pending approval and are scheduled to happen along with the restaurant opening this fall. 

 
The Burger Bar sources their food locally and offers "not the average burger," Jagtap says. A current menu item includes "The Squash Blossom," which includes grassfed beef, stuffed squash blossom, smoked bacon, chevre, and strawberry basil ketchup.
 
At the new location, Jagtap plans to take a "classic French approach" to the menu that is still developing, and offer coursed dinners throughout the week. She also plans to add organic, cage-free chicken wings.
 
Additionally, Jagtap plans to add wait staff to double her staff from three to six.
 
Source:  Anisha Jagtap, owner and executive chef of Baltimore Burger Bar.
Writer: Alexandra Wilding, alexandra@bmoremedia.com

Downtown Baltimore will have a new fitness venue with West Coat flair this fall.
 
Pop Physique, an exercise studio franchise that originated in Los Angeles will add a studio at 339 North Charles St. Sept. 10. Owner Kim Quinn plans on opening more Pop Physique studios in the city within a year, looking at possible locations in Federal Hill, Fells Point, or Hampden.
 
Created by former professional ballet dancer Jennifer Williams, Pop Physique classes are hour-long workouts that combine ballet, Pilates and light weight work designed to tone and sculpt the body.
 
Quinn, originally from upstate New York, wanted to open a Pop Physique somewhere on the east coast and chose Baltimore. “I did research on Baltimore about its young urban population. It fits our targeted age demographic of 25-to-40-year-olds,” Quinn says.
 
According to Downtown Partnership of Baltimore Inc., more than half of all Baltimore residents are between the ages of 31 and 54. 
 
Pop Physique instructors from California will come to Baltimore next month and select five local instructors after a tryout. Quinn will also be trained as an instructor.
 
Each class holds 20 people. New clients can get 30 days of unlimited classes for $100. Other package deals will be available as well.

The Baltimore will be Pop Physique’s 13^th location nationwide.
 
Writer: Jolene Carr
Source: Kim Quinn, Pop Physique

A new, locally brewed beer is coming to a pub near you.
 
After months of preparation, Union Craft Brewing in Woodberry will launch two styles of beer this month. The brewery also plans to open its tasting room to the public in mid-July. Union Craft is one of several new breweries and beer-themed restaurants to debut in the last year. 
 
On June 29, Union Craft Brewing will launch Duckpin Pale Ale and Balt Altbier, a German-style Altbier at a launch party at Max's Taphouse in Fell's Point. The beers will be on draft and also in specialty firkins, or small kegs, with slight variations to the original which make them one-off rarities, says Union Craft Brewing Co-owner Jon Zerivitz.
 
"I'm super excited, really nervous, but really ready to take the plunge into this. I'm feeling incredibly humbled and grateful for the support the city has shown us so far," Zerivitz says.
 
Following the launch, kegs of the two styles of beer will roll out to "better beer bars around the city," Zerivitz says.
 
The company launched with an $800,000 investment from private sources and Zerivitz says it has taken the whole investment to build the company.
 
Located in a 7,200-square-foot space in Woodberry right outside of Clipper Mill and near the Jones Falls River, Zerivitz says he found an ideal setting to start Union Craft Brewing.
 
"Manufacturing is often pushed to the outsides of the city. We tried to find a space within city limits. We have a reverence for Baltimore and its history, and Woodberry was ideal," Zerivitz says.
 
The space was at one time an annex for the original mill and has served a variety of different functions over the years including a furniture company and most recently a large-format sign company.
 
The tasting room will be open to the public and offer tastings, tours, and beer to-go.
 
Zerivitz started Union Craft Brewing with co-owner Kevin Blodger, an award-winning brewer with nine years of experience at various breweries in the area.
 
"Him and I collaborate on recipes…he uses his vast knowledge to make them come alive," Zerivitz says.

The company plans to brew about 1,000 barrels in its first year of operation. They expect to launch a seasonal as well as some special single-batch beers. 

"There is no limit to the number of styles we might produce except for fermentation capacity and demand for our flagship Pale Ale and Altbier. We do also plan to expand the flagship line," Zerivitz says.
 
Source: Jon Zerivitz, co-owner of Union Craft Brewing
 Writer: Alexandra Wilding, alexandra@bmoremedia.com
 
 
 

A new boutique at 3610 Falls Road offers women another place to shop for vintage threads in Hampden.
 
My Dear Vintage opened June 2. Owner Brandi Foster rents the 200-square-foot space from entrepreneur Sue Caldwell above her shop Lovely Yarns.
 
My Dear Vintage sells fedoras, purses, dresses,  jackets, among other items, ranging from $3 to $65. The selection is a mix of both lesser-known brands and high-fashion designers Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Hermes. Pieces date from the 1950s to the 1980s.
 
Foster wants to keep My Dear Vintage in Hampden but look for a larger location as the physical store becomes profitable. Within the next few months, Foster plans to add apartment items to her collection. In the next year, she hopes to offer retro clothing for men and kids, which she says she  believes are in high demand but often overlooked by shops.
 
Foster named the boutique in honor of her grandmother who sparked her passion for vintage clothing and whom she affectionately referred to as “my dear.”
 
Foster originally established My Dear Vintage as an online store in the summer of 2010. Once she was successful, the former Pikesville native wanted to scout out a physical location for the boutique in Hampden.
 
“Hampden has really changed. It’s a great place with young hipsters who like to shop,” Foster says.
 
She now lives 3 blocks away from her shop and enjoys perusing the boutiques of fellow Hampden merchants like Avenue Antiques for household gadgets. She runs the boutique solo. 

Writer: Jolene Carr
Source: Brandi Foster 

Once a grocery store, The Food Market's rebirth as a restaurant will happen just after Memorial Day.
 
After months of construction and a complete gutting and renovation, The Food Market plans to debut chef Chad Gauss' concept of chef-inspired comfort food in approximately two weeks in its new industrial-modern space, says General Manager and Co-owner, Elan Kotz.
 
Kotz describes the menu as known and approachable food, but executed from a chef's perspective. Dishes that Gauss prepared at other locations include Kobe beef meatloaf, linguine with crab meatballs, duck-fat fried cashews with fried catfish served on micro greens, and Heath bar crunch bread pudding. The 3,000-square-foot restaurant on the Avenue will seat 90 people, and will include a 14-seat bar. The restaurant plans to offer free valet parking and a dinner menu available until 1:00 a.m. The restaurant will employ approximately 45.
 
Prior to being a restaurant, The Hampden Food Market was a grocery store that also sold beer and lottery tickets.
 
Kotz and Gauss signed a lease to take over the space in June.
 
Kotz and co-owner Gauss were drawn to Hampden's originality and personality in a place that Kotz says is as much of a neighborhood as it is a destination for visitors. The boutiques, restaurants, and lack of big-box retailers gives Hampden a down-home feel, Kotz says.
 
Baltimore Magazine recognized Gauss, formerly executive chef at City Cafe, as the Best New Chef of 2010.
 
Writer: Alexandra Wilding, alexandra@bmoremedia.com
Source: Elan Kotz, general manager and co-owner
 

A new Hampden shop selling vintage clothing and threads from smaller designers hopes to appeal to both men and women in their search for that perfect T-shirt or unique accessory.
 
Hunting Ground opened last month in a 170-year-old church on Falls Road near the Avenue in Hampden.
 
Co-owners Jessica Soulen and Jenna Hattenburg have years of experience working in retail and decided to open a store where both men and women can shop together. They were looking to fill a void in Baltimore.
 
"Guys especially have a hard time finding stuff in Baltimore," Soulen says.
 
The 1,100-square-foot Hunting Ground aspires to create a casual atmosphere where shoppers can find interesting items, and neat accessories. Additionally, the shop buys clothing from people looking to sell items. The store's owners sell items that fit into a modern wardrobe versus having costume pieces, Soulen says.
 
The shop wanted to work with small designers to acquire its new clothing. The shop carries no big labels or anything you could find at the mall, Soulen says.
 
Soulen says that she and Hattenburg wanted to open a shop in Hampden to be close to a major shopping destination for Baltimore locals, but they didn't want a narrow space on the Avenue for their shop. Instead, they waited for a spot with more space and ended up with what Soulen describes as a very unique, warm, and inviting location with big windows and lots of light.
 
After acquiring the property, Soulen and Hattenburg worked on building out the space starting in November.
 
"We did everything ourselves from building racks to painting. Everything is custom-made," Soulen says.
 
The new project for the owners is to establish their e-commerce site to extend their sales to an international market.
 
 
Source: Jessica Soulen, co-owner of Hunting Ground
Writer: Alexandra Wilding, alexandra@bmoremedia.com