Popular Maryland food creator Nomtastic Kim has shared her “Maryland Dumpling Bucket List,” highlighting eight must-try dumplings from restaurants across the state, with Montgomery County well represented among the selections (full list below).

Kimberly Kong, better known as Nomtastic Kim, selected everything from soup dumplings and pan-fried pork dumplings to har gow, siu mai, mandu and Nepalese momos.

Bob’s Shanghai 66, located at 305 N. Washington Street in Rockville, comes in at No. 2 for its soup dumplings. Kim calls them the “BEST soup dumplings in MD and the entire DMV,” with the pork and crab-and-pork varieties among her favorites. Kim has previously singled out Bob’s Shanghai 66 for its soup dumplings, calling the Rockville restaurant a must-visit for fans of the dish.

Shanghai Taste, located at 1121 Nelson Street in Rockville, is No. 3 for its Sheng Jian Bao, or pan-fried soup dumplings. Kim also recommends the restaurant’s traditional soup dumplings.

A&J Restaurant at 1319 Rockville Pike is featured at No. 4 for its pan-fried pork dumplings. Kim also recommends pairing the dumplings with the restaurant’s spicy beef noodle soup.

Peter Chang at 637 N. Frederick Avenue in Gaithersburg comes in at No. 6 for its har gow. Kim notes that the restaurant makes its dumplings by hand and recommends its all-you-can-eat dim sum as an opportunity to try a variety of dishes.

The four selections outside Montgomery County are Pepper House’s Zhong Dumplings in Ellicott City at No. 1, Shin Chon’s Mandu in Ellicott City at No. 5, Mai Dragon’s Siu Mai in Hanover at No. 7 and Momo Hub’s Jhol Momo in Clarksville at No. 8. Momo Hub also has a Montgomery County connection, with a location inside Commas Food Hall at Ellsworth Place in downtown Silver Spring.

 

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Food & Wine has selected Baltimore-based Angeli’s Pizzeria as Maryland’s representative on its new “50 States of Award-Winning Pizza” list, which highlights an acclaimed pizza destination in every state.

For the list, Food & Wine sought out pizzerias that have received recognition from major pizza competitions, rankings, local publications, and reader polls. The publication described the selections as pizza destinations “consistently recognized for the quality and taste of the competitive pies.”

Angeli’s has accumulated several national accolades in recent years. The pizzeria ranked #44 in the 2026 edition of 50 Top Pizza USA, climbing three spots after making its debut at #47 in 2025. Food & Wine also noted Angeli’s previous appearance on Yelp’s 2023 list of the Top 100 Pizza Spots in the U.S., where it ranked #77. The restaurant also received additional recognition last year after being named Maryland’s top New York-style pizza spot by The Washington Post.

Angeli’s story began well before its recent run of national recognition. The family-owned pizzeria originated in New Orleans in 1986 before the original operation eventually closed following the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina. The concept was later revived in Baltimore’s Little Italy, bringing its New York-style pizza and family recipes to Maryland.

Angeli’s has since expanded beyond Little Italy. The business now operates multiple locations in Baltimore and recently opened an Ellicott City restaurant at 10039 Baltimore National Pike, Suite C, in the Forest Green shopping center. The approximately 1,500-square-foot restaurant replaced River House Pizza Co.

The Food & Wine recognition adds to a growing list of national accolades for Angeli’s, which has gone from a neighborhood Little Italy pizzeria to one of Maryland’s most frequently recognized pizza destinations.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created one of the most beloved fictional detectives of all time in Sherlock Holmes, spawning countless novels, films, TV series, and so forth featuring the sleuth. Far fewer people know about the real-life inspiration for Holmes: a renowned surgeon at Scotland's University of Edinburgh named Joseph Bell, who taught Doyle when the author was still a young medical student. Bell is the subject of a new, eminently readable biography, Sleuth-Hound: The Case of the Real Sherlock Holmes, by medical historian Lindsey Fitzharris.

A noted science communicator with a fondness for the medically macabre, Fitzharris published a biography of Scottish surgical pioneer Joseph Lister, The Butchering Art, in 2017—a great, if occasionally grisly, read. She followed up with 2022’s  The Facemaker: A Visionary Surgeon’s Battle to Mend the Disfigured Soldiers of World War I, about a WWI surgeon named Harold Gillies who rebuilt the faces of injured soldiers.

In 2020, Fitzharris hosted a documentary for the Smithsonian Channel, The Curious Life and Death Of…, exploring famous deaths, ranging from drug lord Pablo Escobar to magician Harry Houdini. Fitzharris performed virtual autopsies, experimented with blood samples, interviewed witnesses, and conducted real-time demonstrations in hopes of gleaning fresh insights. And last year she and her husband, caricaturist Adrian Teal, collaborated on an illustrated children's book, Dead Ends! Flukes, Flops, and Failures that Sparked Medical Marvels.

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The Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA) continues to warn drivers about scam text messages claiming they owe money for unpaid tolls, including messages that imitate the appearance and logo of DriveEzMD correspondence.

“DriveEzMD will NEVER request payment via text message,” the agency states. Drivers should not share personal information or make payments through links included in these messages. 

According to MDTA, authorized ways to pay Maryland tolls or manage an account include visiting DriveEzMD.com⁠, using the DriveEzMD app, visiting a customer service center, or calling 1-888-321-6824. Drivers can also follow payment instructions on mailed citations or Notices of Tolls Due, including QR codes printed on those notices.

Anyone who receives a suspicious text should check their account directly through the official website or contact customer service using the verified number, rather than following information provided in the message.

MDTA recommends reporting the texts to the Federal Trade Commission or the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center⁠. Reports should include the sender’s phone number and the website listed in the text. After preserving that information for a report, recipients should delete the message.

The scams are not new. In a 2024 public service announcement, the FBI reported receiving more than 2,000 complaints beginning in early March of that year about texts impersonating road toll collection services in at least three states. The messages used similar language, often claiming a small unpaid balance and threatening a larger late fee.

The practice is known as “smishing,” a combination of SMS and phishing, and is designed to trick recipients into sharing sensitive information or sending money. Anyone who clicked a suspicious link or provided information should take steps to secure their personal information and financial accounts and dispute unfamiliar charges.

Jimmie Cone has officially wrapped up its 64th season, with both its Damascus and Mount Airy locations now closed for the year.

The longtime local favorite opened for its 64th season on March 17, continuing a tradition that dates back to 1962. The original Jimmie Cone is located at 26420 Ridge Road in Damascus, with a second location at 1312 South Main Street in Mount Airy.

Known for its soft serve ice cream and frozen yogurt, Jimmie Cone has become a seasonal destination for generations of customers from Montgomery County and beyond.

The business is currently owned by Chelsea Hamilton and her husband Brett. Hamilton’s father, Dan Leiter, purchased Jimmie Cone from the Harris family in 1990, and Hamilton and her husband took ownership in March 2021.

With the 2026 season now complete, Jimmie Cone is expected to return for its 65th season in March 2027.