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It’s the biggest game of the year and it’s come down to Baltimore at Pittsburgh for the AFC crown. The Ravens are a 3 1/2-point favorite to beat the Steelers and host a playoff game after a 1-5 start and a wild weekend for Derrick Henry in Green Bay and Aaron Rodgers without D.K. Metcalf in Cleveland. Nothing makes sense. But here’s what we do know…
What a wild holiday weekend and big finish ahead for the AFC North crown! Luke Jones and Nestor discuss all of the trappings of a Ravens at Steelers game on Sunday night at The Confluence with the loser going home and the winner hosting a playoff game.
With the grand opening of the state-of-the-art Planet Fitness on York Road in Timonium, we told our friends Justin Drummond and April Fowler that we’d bring the Maryland Crab Cake Tour by to welcome them into the new year if they’d provide the inspiration and the awesome PF Times Square party hats.
It’s an election season and we’re welcoming plenty of political candidates and sitting elected officials onto the Maryland Crab Cake Tour. Councilman Mark Conway has told us about his challenges and triumphs in the 4th District of Baltimore City and now is focused on running for the current seat of Congressman Kweisi Mfume in the 7th U.S. Congressional District, encompassing large parts of the city and edges of the county.
Our annual “two old sports guys” holiday visit with longtime communications pro John Maroon came on turf very familiar to all parties: Costas Inn in Dundalk, where no one was crabby but the ramping up of artificial intelligence in the world of public relations, marketing and advertising was spicy on our tongues on the Maryland Crab Cake Tour. Always changing, always evolving…
We’re not at the Black Monday stage of the NFL’s open season on hiring and firing but the Baltimore Ravens and owner Steve Bisciotti along with general manager Eric DeCosta might find next week to be the ugliest week of a long and tiring season. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss the latest dust-up in the organization where the head coach has blown a lot of leads and an oft-injured, two-time MVP quarterback will need a contract renegotiation this winter. Is change coming in Owings Mills?
At some point, you’ll embrace artificial intelligence because it’s here to stay. In our continuing effort to learn, grow and evolve, Nestor hosts local AI trainer Denis O’Donovan of Profit Comm at the brand new Planet Fitness in Timonium to share the power and purpose of getting involved and learning basic usage now to help efficiency and wisdom.
The Dundalk boys reunite at the bar at Costas Inn for a little rocking around the Christmas tree catch up as John Allen of Stone Horses joins lifer pal Nestor to spread some holiday cheer and music memories from the soul of the neighborhood. The miracle of music, the new heart of our friend Ed Lauer and the beat of seeing The Go-Go’s Gina Schock perform with Cyndi Lauper at the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame induction in Los Angeles. Rock and roll never forgets…
Most oddsmakers have the Baltimore Ravens’ playoff chances at less than 10% heading into Christmas weekend and a Saturday night “stay alive” game with the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss the reality that the franchise is far from “one player away” from a real Super Bowl run with this roster. The offseason is coming soon…
There will be plenty of time in the offseason to send out report cards and walking papers but Luke Jones and Nestor begin to assess the totality of the efforts of the starters and star players of the Baltimore Ravens and wonder what Eric DeCosta and John Harbaugh see. And, more importantly, what Steve Bisciotti will see once the season ends and the bill comes due for a season of constant disappointment and under performance across the roster.
It all started to fall apart once again as the Baltimore Ravens had another doubit-digit lead evaporate at home for the holidays against the New England Patriots. Leonard Raskin and Nestor lick the purple wounds of a mostly sickening Ravens season and pick up the pieces of parking Derrick Henry while John Harbaugh squirms in the aftermath of another embarrassing loss.
It stands as the fourth largest jackpot in American lottery history and John Martin of The Maryland Lottery gets Nestor ready for almost two billion reasons to have some fun with “the big one” as Powerball powers past $1.7 billion for Christmas. Ho Ho, hope you win!
With the grand opening of the new Planet Fitness in Timonium underway, Luke Jones joined Nestor on York Road at Planet Fitness to discuss the Orioles’ acquisition of former first-round draft pick Shane Baz and a Christmas primer on ways the Birds have improved heading into 2026.
In the spirit of the holiday season, we bring friends and family together. Chesapeake chef extraordinaire and proprietor of Gertrude’s at The BMA John Shields hosts Nestor once again for a Christmas and New Year’s Eve celebration (at an hour we can all appreciate) along with former MLB outfielder Casper Wells for chat about seven fishes, sauerkraut and Pete Alonso.
John Hoey of The Y returns to give Nestor the receipts and warm trail of holiday fun from the 5K Turkey Trot on a chilly Thanksgiving morning that took place all over the community and wound up being featured on the Ravens’ NBC broadcast for the world to see with their pumpkin pie.
It didn’t even seem possible that colleagues Calvin Statham (59 years) and George Scheulen (46 years). who once taught Nestor at Holabird Junior High School in 1979, could still be teaching him about the important things in life beyond chorus and physics all these years later. Two beloved Baltimore County educators continue trying to tame their rambunctious student for the holidays with music and love (and crab cakes) at Costas Inn in Dundalk.
His next stage production at The BMA begins on March 5th and Dan Rodricks returns to Gertrude’s for the holidays to take Nestor back to his Aparicio roots with the 1966 Baltimore Orioles winning the World Series – and the realities of the city, race, politics and a colorful upcoming show “No Mean City: Baltimore 1966.”
When you park Derrick Henry with a two-score lead at home and the season on the line and lose the game, it’s time to discuss the job security of the head coach. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss yet another blown 4th quarter home lead, this time to the New England Patriots and the future of John Harbaugh became quite the hot take topic amongst Baltimore Ravens fans on the internet in the aftermath. But it’s a fair question: who is running this mess?
We’re all fed up and should be. Congressman Johnny Olszewski joined Nestor to discuss the lack of focus and progress on Capitol Hill and potential solutions for health care, transparency in government and the use of Trump’s absurd pardons as a grifting tool.
Two-time Grammy Award winning percussionist and Marylander M.B. Gordy returns from Los Angeles to tell Nestor about the beat of his latest – and fourth – Grammy nomination with “Seven Seasons” in the Classical Compendium category.
This stands as a warning to anyone who invites Nestor by their place for the Maryland Crab Cake Tour: you’re an invite and a taste away because he’s en route to meet more great local folks who want to promote their business. Owner Soo Mi Kang of Honey’s in Halethorpe invited us over and must’ve known that offering “Crabby Toast” would invoke the legend of Charles Markwood Eckman. Competitive billiards, great food and the game is always on at this old-school joint on the south side.
The always fun Ravens scratch-off super prize winners made their way to frosty Cincinnati where even the famous chili was chilly but as Doug Lloyd of The Maryland Lottery tells Nestor, great seats, a big win and a wild adventure with a flat tire made a Cumberland memory. And everyone was a big winner on the flight home with the team from Kentucky.
“It’s the best book ever written about the modern National Football League,” so says Nestor about Big Game. And that’s why we love having its author Mark Leibovich back on when his New England Patriots proudly return to Baltimore for some playoff knockout style football. Now with The Atlantic, the longtime political insider for The New York Times is also heavily immersed in Trumplandia and weighs in on the ongoing Epstein saga and the usual D.C. shenanigans.
Lamar Jackson hasn’t practiced on a Wednesday in almost three months. Luke Jones and Nestor continue to spend midweeks discussing the health of the Baltimore Ravens two-time MVP quarterback and how it can’t be helping the offensive operation. But, a win against the New England Patriots at home will keep hope alive in a wild and zany finish to the NFL regular season.
Reaching back to his Italian heritage in East Baltimore, Nestor returns to DiPasquale’s in Canton to learn about the Feast Of The Seven Fishes and some Highlandtown holiday magic with legendary UMBC soccer coach Pete Caringi and friends of the family.
The New England Patriots are back in first place in the AFC North and coming to Baltimore, which always brings venerable Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy back to his onetime workplace to tell old stories of The Evening Sun, Orioles Magic and always brilliant insights on the NFL franchise of Robert Kraft and the 2.0 build out of Mike Vrabel and Drake Maye.
The return of 2nd District Councilman Izzy Patoka to the Maryland Crab Cake Tour at Honey’s in Halethorpe provided Nestor a clear view of his key campaign issues and goals in a spring run as a Democratic candidate to be the next Baltimore County Executive.
The Baltimore Ravens have their hands full with the New England Patriots here this week and the Green Bay Packers awaiting on the frozen tundra next Saturday night after Santa arrives. But, will the Pittsburgh Steelers play the Grinch once again? Luke Jones and Nestor discuss all eyes on the NFL holiday slate as the rematch awaits on January 4th at The Confluence.
It was years in the making, finally getting Torbin Green of St. Francis Community Center to visit for a Faidley’s crab cake for the holidays. Turns out it’s a busy job serving 20,000 folks in West Baltimore with youth programs, family love and food distribution in West Baltimore. Let him tell you about the pride in the work they do and its impact in the neighborhood over generations.
As the upstart New England Patriots come to Baltimore, it’s not lost on Luke Jones and Nestor that it’s probably the first of many battles with MVP candidate Drake Maye. The AFC playoffs will include some new faces and old places as the changing tides of the Super Bowl race crystalize through the holidays with big games ahead.
It’s always a treat to welcome Matt Gallagher of The Goldseker Foundation back to Faidley’s Seafood at Lexington Market on the Maryland Crab Cake Tour to discuss the progress and challenges of Baltimore City, while shouting out more holiday dining options and civic celebrations than any other podcast or radio show in the market. We love Baltimore – and it shows!
It’s the holidays and time for traditions and trimmings so we ventured back to DiPasquale’s in Canton with former UMBC soccer coach Pete Caringi to ask Domenico DiPasquale about the Christmas tradition of the Feast of The Seven Fishes and bringing family together for good cheer and great food.
It’s another holiday season but no one in the Baltimore Ravens community is feeling much of the purple Festivus spirit given the suspect play on the field but Leonard Raskin tells Nestor that the team coming back to life in Cincinnati and in time for New England to arrive is its own gift in a season with a 1-5 start and plenty of disappointment for having so much hope. And no one is betting against them hosting a playoff game the weekend of January 10th.
Did you know that Tom Davis was once in a movie scene in Baltimore with the legendary Al Pacino? We did and Max Weiss has promised Nestor a full treatment of all memorable local movie history in the next edition of Baltimore Magazine. They continue their holiday chat about bad referees, big money Orioles signings and what’s on the table at Di Pasquale’s in Canton on the Maryland Crab Cake Tour.
With the Maryland Crab Cake Tour back in Baltimore County, it’s always important to discuss the issues in an election year with prospective candidates who tell Nestor what they like – and don’t like – about the direction of current leadership. Nick Stewart returns to update Nestor on his pitch and platform at Honey’s in Halethorpe as the conversation about the future of the county of our business and life is open for debate and big 2026 local ballot looms in the spring.
Bringing the Maryland Crab Cake Tour back to DiPasquale’s for an Italian tour of the holidays, we knew Darren The Sausage King would bring us some seasonal favorites. Nestor explores some East Baltimore holiday flavor at DiPasquale’s in Canton just in time for kielbasa and sauerkraut on the dinner table while talking World Cup fever with Highlandtown soccer legend Pete Caringi.
Yes, Faidley’s is coming to Catonsville very, very soon in the frontage of The Fishmonger’s Daughter on Frederick Road but before then you can still pay a holiday visit to Lexington Market or ship those tasty crab cakes and all of the sides and trimmings anywhere in the country this week. Let Damye Hahn of Faidley’s Seafood update you for Christmas and beyond with the first family of downtown jumbo lump crab cakes.
The newest and shiniest Baltimore Orioles addition arrived for a bizarrely timed Friday afternoon press conference at Camden Yards and won the day. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss the Pete Alonso emergence at The Warehouse alongside David Rubenstein, Mike Elias and Scott Boras and what the future holds for the slugger, whom the owner compared to Frank Robinson coming the Charm City.
The mighty Max Weiss makes a holiday visit with Nestor at DiPasquale’s in Canton bringing cinematic celluloid gifts, local tales of film lore and always a fresh copy of her beloved Baltimore Magazine. From “And Justice For All” to “The Baltimorons,” she gets us ready for a winter where we all need a good movie.
A big effort on a frigid day in Cincinnati has renewed hope for the Baltimore Ravens. Luke Jones and Nestor discuss the heartening 24-0 shutout win over Joe Burrow and the Bengals with a complete effort and a clear path to a January success style.
