Baltimore bar owner plans new Locust Point tavern opening in August

Andrew Carter is turning 1401 Decatur St. in Locust Point into Decatur Tavern, with an opening planned for mid- to late-August and room for 40 to 45 seats. The small footprint points to a neighborhood tavern format in a corridor that has been drawing more food-and-drink activity in South Baltimore.

Carter is a familiar operator in the area. He co-owns Delia Foley's and is also involved with AJ's on Hanover, Cross Street Public House and Smaltimore, giving him a footprint across some of the city’s busiest bar districts.

The Decatur Street address already had a bar history before Carter moved in. He purchased the former The Last Penny at 1401 Decatur St. before setting up the new Decatur Tavern concept there, continuing the kind of turnover that has marked parts of Locust Point’s hospitality scene. In February 2022, In Like Flynn Tavern at 1371 Andre St. announced it was closing, a reminder that bars in the neighborhood have changed hands and concepts quickly.

Locust Point has also seen fresh openings, including Good to Great and Bodega and Vino, which adds to the sense that the neighborhood is building a denser nightlife and restaurant strip. A 40- to 45-seat tavern fits that pattern: a smaller room that can draw regulars, nearby residents and bar-hoppers without needing the scale of a destination restaurant.

The opening has already gotten attention from local readers and neighborhood accounts on social media, where the news was met with excitement. For a block that has seen both closures and new concepts, Decatur Tavern will be another test of how much late-night demand Locust Point can support as more operators move in.