Nightlife in Laurel

To get a sense of The Greene Turtle's commitment to the neighborhood, one need only sit at the bar and look up. Dozens of mugs hang above the counter, emblazoned with the pub's logo and a unique number—each one belongs to a recurring patron. The Mug Club awards its members with draft-beer discounts and other specials, but more importantly, it allows loyal patrons to feel as though they own small slices of the venue without tattooing their names on the bartender's arm. This sense of shared familiarity is what fuels the entire franchise, which refrains from calling its locations "restaurants" in favor of friendlier terms: gathering places, communities, havens.

Many of the locations contribute more than mugs to their districts. Staff members who participate in the annual Tips for Tots program donate the entirety of one day's tips to a nearby Toys for Tots initiative, and Tuesday Funds for Friends events benefit local organizations. These efforts have been chronicled by press sources such as Food and Drink magazine, with features that liken The Greene Turtles' philanthropic generosity to the generous portions of comfort food that leave the kitchens.

From cheeseburger sliders and flatbread pizzas to handmade lump-crab cakes, the offerings on the menu embrace barroom traditions along with ingenuity. The steak and chicken entrees arrive with classic sides of green beans and yukon gold mashed potatoes, whereas the eastern shore mac ‘n’ cheese updates a comfort staple with chopped bacon, lump crab, scallions, and Old Bay seasoning. Diners can enjoy their meals by the glow of private flat-screen TVs—there's one in every booth—or beneath one of many larger televisions broadcasting sports games throughout the venue.

Amid the satisfying clinks of cocktail glasses and the glow of neon lights, patrons at Laurel Station Bar & Grill feast on juicy burgers and steaks, lump crab cakes, and succulent steamed shrimp, all while enjoying the exploits of their favorite sports stars. Over 20 high-definition screens deck the brick walls, broadcasting all Sunday football games and most pay-per-view events, and an enormous projector screen unfolds sporting events and shadow-puppet cage matches in jumbo resolution. Guests belly up to the granite-topped bar for frosty draft beers, or book a private party room to ring in special occasions with good company and hearty pub fare.

Vino 100 offers visitors a chance to peruse a head-spinning array of wine and complementing grub that will soothe even the most pork-rind-singed palate. Visitors dining in at Vino 100 will be able to bait a warming buzz by purchasing one of more than 100 wines priced at $25 or less (there is a $7 corkage fee). A boutique-style shopping experience is paired with a casual dining area, allowing patrons to shop and eat just like at the mattress store. Wines by the glass ($5–$9) change on a daily basis, while a wide range of delectable bites are available for noshing. Try a mixed cheese platter ($5), hummus platter ($6), or spinach dip ($6), or chow down on a hot panini (starting at $7.95, available starting June 15). Additionally, several premium beer varieties are available to soothe hoppy cravings and cannonball wounds.

Smokin' Hot Bar and Grille specializes in drenching their hickory smoker meats in their house-made barbecue sauces, from pork and beef to entire turkeys. A buttery wooden bar stretches across the edge of the dining room, where visitors quaff drafts of Sam Adams or Smokin Hot's house ale, order classic or flavored martinis, and enjoy live music on Friday and Saturday nights. Beside their beers, the staff prepares smoked wings coated in one of nine barbecue sauces that range in heat from a pleasant brown sugar to a daringly fiery Black Jack. Steaks coated in house rub char to perfection on the grill, which also cooks pairs of 4-ounce cheeseburgers draped in two different sauces. The kitchen also serves hearty house-made mac and cheese four ways: straight, topped with chili, mixed with black beans, or fried with marinara sauce for dipping. Smokin' Hot Bar and Grille’s team prides itself on creating an atmosphere that’s fun and family-friendly, unlike an R-rated seminar on tax deductions.

Jovial crowds of sports fans line the wooden bars and maroon booths at both Loafers Sports Bar and Grill locations to unwind with cool brews and a tasty spread of seafood and pub eats. Flat-screen TVs broadcast football games for die-hard sports enthusiasts and Antiques Roadshow reruns for appraisal fanatics as they enjoy burgers and plates of wings, nachos, and potato skins. Chef Joe Rocco packs jumbo lumps of meat into his crab cakes and steams pots of crabs year-round to complement pints and the Big Loaf beer, a 1-liter pour of draft ale. A variety of nightly events draw in revelers with specials, karaoke, and live DJs, as opposed to old computers programmed to play "Glory Days" in binary.

Throughout the afternoon and evening, the streets of Ellicott City echo with the footsteps and laughter of revelers making their ways between the city’s pubs and breweries. Bar crawlers visit four local pubs; The Diamondback Tavern, Ellicott Mills Brewing Company, Judge's Bench Pub, and La Palapa Grill & Cantina. Revelers sip domestic beers, spirits, and wines as they tactfully ignore bar-trivia rivals inside the Diamondback Tavern's rustic interior, between the wooden trim and hanging amber-colored lamps of Ellicott Mills Brewing Company and the Judge's Bench Pub, or between the exposed brick walls and colored glass mosaics at La Palapa. To help stomachs soak up excess alcohol, some bar proprietors lay out snacks for touring groups. Participants on both earlier and later crawls walk away with a souvenir T-shirt, as well as a new layer of bar-crawling memories to replace lingering remembrances of high-school-trigonometry lessons.