Five things to eat, drink, see, hear, and do with your Charm City weekend.
EAT
June 10-11: St. Anthony’s Italian Festival
St. Leo’s Church, 227 S. Exeter St. Sat. 12-8 p.m., Sun. 12-7 p.m. Free.
It’s easy to eat your heart out in Little Italy, and this weekend, beach bodies beware—the tiny neighborhood will be celebrating the Feast of St. Anthony with even more Italian food. All weekend long, enjoy live music, cooking demonstrations, bocce tournaments, mass amounts of vino, and plenty of pasta, pizza, and cannoli. Just be sure to swing by on Sunday, to participate or observe, for the Roma Sausage-eating contest. Chin chin!.
DRINK
June 9: Pints in the Park
Center Plaza, N. Chares & Fayette St. 5-8 p.m. Free.
On second Fridays through the summer, head to the heart of downtown for al fresco drinking under the city skyscrapers and setting sun. During these monthly happy hours at Center Plaza, start your weekend with Heavy Seas beer, tiki bar cocktails, and Linganore wines, plus BrickNFire Pizza bites, corn hole, ping pong, and live music, this month by Brave Noise. Kids and pets are welcome, know before you go: the bar is cash only.
SEE
June 10-11: HonFest
1002 W. 36th St. Sat. 11 a.m.-10 p.m., Sun. 12-6 p.m. Free.
There are few more truly “Bawlmer” celebrations than HonFest in Hampden. This weekend, for the 24th year, don boas, beehives, and other 1960s garb to honor the blue-collar spirit and historic workingwomen of Baltimore. It’s a rite-of-passage block party with lots of local food, three stages of live music (Caleb Stine, Raindeer, Fractal Cat, etc.), dance contests, and, of course, the colorful crowning of Baltimore’s best hon.
HEAR
June 9: Paul Simon
Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Pkwy., Columbia. 6 p.m. $55-175.
After a handful of memorable concerts at Merriweather over the course of his five-decade career, Paul Simon will once again grace the Baltimore region for the first time in more than 10 years. This Friday, catch Rhymin’ Simon for a night of enduring favorites from his classic albums—fingers crossed for “The Boy in the Bubble,” “Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes,” and “Obvious Child”—and new hits from his most recent release, Stranger to Stranger. (He’s also bringing Lilith Fair songstress Sarah McLachlan along for the ride.) We, indeed, are still crazy for Paul Simon after all these years.
DO
June 11: Tour Dem Parks Hon
Druid Hill Park, 900 Druid Park Lake Dr. 7 a.m. $20-55.
With this weekend’s weather looking like something close to perfection, there’s no better way to soak up that fine line between spring and summer than hitting the pavement for this 15th annual bicycle tour of Baltimore’s local parks. With the wind in your hair, cycle through the city’s diverse neighborhoods and luscious green spaces and make new friends along the way. Best of all, there’s a post-ride barbecue with live jazz.