Three Baltimore restaurants close their doors for good.

Three Baltimore restaurants have closed their doors for good, even as new concepts arrive in the city.
The closures include Oohhs & Aahhs in Fells Point, Silver Queen Cafe in Hampden, and Marta al Mare at Harbor Point — which hasn’t even held its grand opening yet.
Oohhs & Aahhs, a Washington, D.C. soul food chain, brought its Baltimore location to Broadway in Fells Point earlier this year.
The restaurant served all-day brunch and dinner, with plates of chicken and waffles, crab and shrimp fritters, catfish nuggets, turkey wings, fire-grilled shrimp, and short ribs.
Its local outpost offered honey Old Bay wings and a crab cake sandwich, served with sides like whipped yams.
Despite those Maryland touches, the location has already closed.
Silver Queen Cafe in Hampden has also shut its doors.
No specific reason for either closure has been publicly stated by the owners.
Marta al Mare, the Italian seafood spot from James Beard Award-nominated chef Matthew Oetting, has not yet opened — but it is already listed among the closures in the report.
The restaurant is set to launch at Harbor Point on Thursday, Nov. 19.

Oetting, who cut his teeth in New York kitchens including Michelin-starred The Modern at the Museum of Modern Art, described the move to Harbor Point as crossing the Manhattan Bridge into the Financial District.
“I bought [the Butcher’s Hill] property because it reminded me of the neighborhoods of Brooklyn, New York, where I was used to living,” Oetting said.
“This almost feels like I went from that Brooklyn restaurant and then crossed the Manhattan Bridge, and now I’m in the Financial District in Manhattan.”
Marta al Mare is the sister concept to Marta in Butcher’s Hill.
At Marta al Mare, diners will find Italian and Italian-American seafood rather than Chesapeake standards.
“You won’t find a crab cake or steamed crabs here,” Oetting said.
“There’s plenty of other places if that’s what you want.”
The 78-seat spot will offer brunch and dinner service Tuesday through Sunday.
It will carry over Marta’s familiar menu structure — crudo, antipasti, pasta, entrées — with an expansion on the mains.
Individual plates include oven roasted black cod in Moscato miso sauce, scallop piccata, and grilled branzino in an herb gremolata sauce.

Shareable options from the “fish market” page include stuffed Dover sole and king salmon alla Florentina.
Oetting said he is excited to be a go-to for the 1,200 T. Rowe Price employees upstairs for business meals.
He has also bought a cart with the hopes of offering caviar and martini service.
Meanwhile, Mighty Quinn’s BBQ, a New York-based barbecue chain, has opened in Columbia’s Merriweather District.
The restaurant offers spare ribs, brisket sandwiches, mac and cheese fritters, burnt-end-smothered Dirty Fries with chili-lime sauce, and cinnamon-bun bread pudding.
Visitors can stop by while enjoying the district’s ice rink and holiday festivities this year.
Baltimore’s restaurant scene has seen a wave of openings and closings in recent years, with rising rents and changing consumer habits putting pressure on both new and established spots.
Industry observers note that even well-known chefs and chains are not immune to the challenges of operating in a competitive market.
The fate of Marta al Mare, which has not yet served its first customer, highlights the precarious nature of restaurant openings in the current climate.
It remains to be seen whether Oetting’s gamble on Italian seafood — and caviar carts — will pay off when the doors open next week.
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