The corner building at 3023 Elliott Street is still painted green, and it will stay that way. Simply Marie's served its last breakfast there on Sunday, August 23, after 15 years in Canton. The person renovating the building now says she plans to leave the facade green as a tribute to owner Marie Branch. "Marie was in this neighborhood for 15 years," Alisha Adibe told The Baltimore Banner. "I don't want to erase her."
That storefront is one of three Canton restaurant spaces that went dark between August and mid-October. Two of the replacements are already named, and both are going into small rooms on residential blocks near O'Donnell Square. The large spaces on Boston Street are the ones still waiting.
Three closings, three different kinds of space
The closings came close together but in very different settings.
At the Can Company complex, 2400 Boston Street, Outback Steakhouse was scheduled to close after service on October 11, WBAL reported. It had been in Canton for more than 20 years. The Banner noted that its departure leaves Baltimore with no Outback inside city limits, and that the landlord described the restaurant's sales as strong.
Further west, at 2206 Boston Street, Midlina Restaurant and its speakeasy, Poe's Tower, closed after a little more than a year of bringing upscale dining to that stretch. According to WBAL, owner Karim Kiriakos wrote on social media that "Boston Street is a hard location and overpriced," and hinted that the business might reopen somewhere else. He did not give a new address or a timeline.
The third closing was the green corner on Elliott Street. Owner Marie Branch announced her retirement and closed Simply Marie's, the breakfast-only spot, after 15 years.
| Address | Previous tenant | What's next | Expected timing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3023 Elliott St. | Simply Marie's | Dahlia Cocinita, plant-based Mexican | January or February 2027, per The Banner |
| 2907 O'Donnell St. | Nacho Mama's | Ubon, Isan-focused Thai | Reports range from late 2026 to early 2027 |
| 2400 Boston St. | Outback Steakhouse | Space available for lease | No tenant named |
| 2206 Boston St. | Midlina and Poe's Tower | No new tenant reported | No timeline |
The new tenants are looking for smaller spaces
Both confirmed newcomers come from owners who already run restaurants elsewhere in Baltimore. Both picked spaces that are modest in size.
Adibe owns Oleum Vegan Kitchen in Fells Point, which is in the former Bondhouse Kitchen space. The Banner reported that she wanted a smaller building for her second restaurant because the Fells Point location, at more than 2,000 square feet, is a "beast" to manage. She liked the Elliott Street building because it was a corner spot in a residential neighborhood, even though it needs a lot of work. Her contractor is replacing the floors and adding central air conditioning, a new bathroom and a carryout window at the back for takeout. Planned menu items include plant-based "fish" tacos, churros with chocolate and a ceviche made with vegan shrimp and watermelon tuna. Adibe also said she plans to take her time with the buildout this time.
Ubon is going into 2907 O'Donnell Street, where Nacho Mama's operated for 31 years until it closed in early 2025. Montree "Jack" Wongchalee is behind it. He is also part of the teams at Bodhi Corner in Hampden and the Dara in Fells Point. The restaurant will seat 60 to 70 people and serve traditional Thai dishes alongside food from Thailand's Isan region, such as sticky rice, green papaya salad and charcoal-grilled chicken. WBAL reported that Wongchalee is considering a late-night menu of noodle bowls for the bar crowds around Canton Square. Reports disagree on when it will open. WBAL and Baltimore Fishbowl say early next year, while Baltimore Magazine says later this year.
Ubon will also have a neighbor across the street that opened earlier this year. Baltimore Fishbowl covered Sip & Sizz at 2918 O'Donnell Street in July. Sip & Sizz is already open, and Dahlia Cocinita and Ubon are on the way, all within a few blocks of O'Donnell Square and all in storefronts sized for a rowhome block.
Can Company is holding out for a local operator
The biggest open space is the one that changes Boston Street the most. Jeremy Landsman, a co-owner of the Can Company complex, told The Banner that the Outback space is available for lease. He sees it as a chance to bring in a new, local operator.
"We definitely look at it as an opportunity to do better than that," Landsman told The Banner, adding that his portfolio shows "we like local, not national."
Landsman also co-owns properties in Towson and in Hampden. No tenant has been named for the space. Midlina's former space at 2206 Boston Street also has no reported replacement. For now, the two Boston Street vacancies are open questions, while the O'Donnell Square spaces already have names on them.
The Square itself is getting an upgrade
The area around O'Donnell Square is also where the neighborhood is putting public money. The Canton Community Association is leading Project ODSP, a renovation of the center of O'Donnell Square Park. The plan calls for a new covered, multi-use pavilion for shade, shelter and community events in every season. A request for proposals posted by Parks & People also lists an electrical connection, new hardscape, curbed planters and native plantings.
The project's partners are the landscape architecture firm EnviroCollab, Parks & People, Baltimore City Recreation and Parks and Councilmember Mark Parker. It is funded by a $100,000 Community Health & Safety Works Placemaking Grant from the State of Maryland.
The schedule has moved. The RFP projected that construction crews would arrive on September 7 and finish by December 18, 2026, pending state approval. The CCA's September 15 public meeting minutes are more recent. They say a contractor has been hired and that groundbreaking will be "sometime in November or December." The RFP also says pedestrian access around the site has to stay open. If work affects access, the contractor is to use phased barriers and keep an accessible route.
If the groundbreaking happens on that schedule, construction would be underway around the time Ubon's owner is planning a late-night menu for the Square. The pavilion is designed to make the park usable in winter, which matches when both new restaurants are expected to open.
Between now and the first new menus
Canton's calendar from now through December:
- Saturday, October 24, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.: BARCStoberfest in Patterson Park, with a 5K, a pet parade and costume contest, a beer garden, vendors and children's activities.
- Saturday, October 24, starting at 4 p.m.: The Great Baltimore Lantern Parade and Festival in Patterson Park. Registration for the children's costume contest opens at 3:30 p.m. Parade line-up is at 6:30 p.m., and the parade starts at 7 p.m.
- Sunday, October 25, 9 a.m. to noon: Canco's Open Air Market at 2400 Boston Street, the same complex Outback just left. Vendors sell flowers, coffee, pasta, jewelry and candles.
- Sunday, November 1, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Canco's Halloween Open Air Market and Pet Costume Contest. The CCA says more details are still to come.
- Saturday, November 14, 9 a.m. to noon: The CCA's free Community Pitch-In, meeting near the Safeway at 1011 S. Lakewood Ave.
- Tuesday, November 17, 6:30 to 8 p.m.: CCA public meeting at United Evangelical Church, 3200 Dillon St. This is the next likely place for an update on the Square project.
- Saturday, December 12: Canton Day of Giving on the Square, held with the Exchange Club of Southeast Baltimore, collecting canned goods and toys.
Dahlia Cocinita is aiming for January or February at the green building on Elliott Street. Ubon's opening date at 2907 O'Donnell Street is still unsettled, and both Boston Street spaces are still waiting for tenants.
If you own near O'Donnell Square or along Boston Street and want to know how these changes might affect the value of your block, William Weeks is glad to go through it with you. Schedule a Consultation to talk through your street, what's changing on it and what it could mean for your plans.
