The former home of Frank and Nic’s West End Grille is reemerging as a new hot spot near Camden Yards for Orioles opening day.

The Maryland Yards will open for bar service March 28 at 511 W. Pratt St. as Baltimoreans gather to watch their home baseball team take on the Los Angeles Angels. The Baltimore City Liquor Board approved the business for a liquor license Thursday morning.

Camden Yards festivities will give the space a boost as it opens its doors down the block from popular game-day haunts such as Pickles Pub, according to Jared Fischer, general manager of the new Pratt Street restaurant.

Across the street, the Hilton Baltimore Inner Harbor will be debuting its Boots & Brats Biergarten with a small food menu and draft and canned brews, which is expected to further drive traffic to the block.

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“The sheer amount of people they [the neighboring businesses] have and the overflow alone does everyone else wonders. We’re just happy to be a part of the scene,” Fischer said.

He hopes the business will differentiate itself from neighboring eateries by providing an elevated version of the usual bar food. When the kitchen opens, ideally by April 19, he said, customers will choose from a bevy of Baltimore staples, from crab cakes and oysters to clams and rockfish.

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The space expects to seat up to 150 people and employ about 50 staff. A DJ and more entertainment will be available to customers starting opening day. Fischer hopes the business will serve as another venue for Baltimoreans to come together as a community. Frank and Nic’s West End Grille closed after 10 years in business in 2020 due to the pandemic, according to a CBS Baltimore report.

Fischer said the real challenge will be maintaining the business post-baseball season, but he is optimistic thanks to the surrounding hotels and burgeoning residential space, including the 180 luxury downtown apartments next door. A café section in the Maryland Yards will also strive to capture the attention of residents with a variety of lattes and deli sandwiches.

“I’m sure we’ll figure something clever out,” he said of keeping busy year round. “Maybe incorporate ourselves in the football world?”