Baltimore Spirits Co. unveils Avenue Rum, plans Hampden restaurant

Baltimore Spirits Co. used the launch of Avenue Rum on June 5 to signal a bigger move in Hampden: the Baltimore distillery said it plans to build a new BSC restaurant near 36th Street, with construction slated to start later this year. For a company founded by Ian Newton, Max Lents and Eli Breitburg-Smith and known for copper pot stills, open-top wooden fermentation and geothermal cooling, the project pushes it from spirits maker toward full-service hospitality.

The timing matters in a neighborhood where W. 36th Street already functions as one of Baltimore’s most active dining corridors. Avenue Kitchen & Bar, The Duchess and other bars and restaurants have helped make Hampden a steady draw for foot traffic, and a Baltimore Spirits Co. restaurant would drop into a stretch that is already competitive and well traveled. That can change how money moves through the avenue, from dinner checks and cocktail tabs to the jobs needed to staff a new kitchen and dining room.

Hampden’s commercial activity was on display again the next day, when the Hampden Highlights Festival returned to W. 36th Street with more than 150 vendors. The festival says it has raised more than $31,000 for local nonprofits since it began, a sign that the corridor is not just a place for nights out but a neighborhood engine for business and community spending. A new restaurant from a local distillery fits that pattern, betting that Hampden can still absorb another destination concept.

The expansion also follows a familiar pattern for Baltimore Spirits Co., which has long leaned on limited releases and tasting-room experiences to build its brand. Its online shop lists an Avenue White Rum as its first all-BSC white rum, made from 100% molasses fermentation and double copper-pot distilled. That kind of product rollout suggests the company is not simply adding another bottle to the shelf, but using the rum line to pull customers closer to the brand and, eventually, into a physical space of its own.

Hampden has also seen continued turnover in its hospitality stock. In 2024, Baltimore’s liquor board approved a license transfer for a new restaurant at 1113 W. 36th Street, the former Caravanserai space. Against that backdrop, Baltimore Spirits Co.’s restaurant plan looks less like a side project and more like another vote of confidence in the Avenue, where local operators keep betting that Baltimore consumers will keep showing up.