This summer, The Yard reopened in the Marriott Camden Yards, and it has certainly turned up the local heat. What used to be a typical bar and grill in a city hotel is now a bustling social scene with an open atmosphere and a lot to offer the Baltimore drinking community.

The layout for The Yard follows the Marriott hotel’s new “great room style” concept: the restaurant and bar are open and face the main entrance, so it's easy to slide in for a drink or a bite as you enter the hotel. There are dining tables and a bar within the loose confines of the restaurant, but there are are also ample tables in different nooks around the lobby near the bar that have service.

According to senior food and beverage manager Michael Baez, the menus at The Yard have been overhauled along with the decor, and are chiefly inspired by Chesapeake Bay. Chef Bill Downes came to The Yard from DC, and is committed to farm-to-table fresh — he uses oysters from the bay and Maryland crabmeat, among lots of other local ingredients. New additions to the relatively fair-priced drink list include the Sweet Baby Jesus Milkshake and a series of barrel-aged cocktails, including the Elegant Margarita.

The Yard Card is one of the most unique new attractions for this inner harbor bar. Similar to the way a tap table works, a Yard Card is preloaded by your bartender to allow you to pour yourself up to 20 ounces of beer or 12 ounces of wine. But instead of being confined to a table or a booth, you can take your beer on the go — all of the taps are on portable “walls.” Choices for self-serve sips include four local beers (look for Cutlass from Heavy Seas and Balt Altbier by Union Craft Brewing) plus four different wines.

110 S. Eutaw St.; 410-209-2853