🍦Vesper opens tomorrow!

Good morning, Columbia. Think you love your work? Fred Baur, creator of the iconic Pringles can, was so proud of his design that he had his kids bury him in it. Not many people know he also designed the chips themselves. Although another scientist, Alexander Liepa, was brought in after Fred couldn’t make them tasty enough.

In today’s Columbia Scoop:

Let’s get to it.

— Michelle Sinclair

Ellicott City’s most anticipated restaurant opens tomorrow.

Vesper at Pike & Main is the new cocktail bar and restaurant from Wine Bin owner Dave Carney and Chef Rachel Bindel, a Culinary Institute of America grad who San Pellegrino named one of America’s ten best young chefs in 2022. The name comes from James Bond’s signature drink in Casino Royale – and the cocktail list matches: classics, seasonal riffs, mocktails, and nearly a dozen wines by the glass.

Bindel’s menu is French-inspired and changes every few weeks, built on ingredients brought in fresh daily. Think crispy pork belly, Maryland blue crab, wagyu skirt steak, and choux au craquelin. Nope, we can’t pronounce that either.

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Two new vending machines in Howard County now dispense free naloxone (AKA Narcan) around the clock – no questions asked. (CBS Baltimore)

The machines, installed at the Health Department in Columbia and the Grassroots Day Resource Center in Jessup, offer two-dose naloxone kits, fentanyl and xylazine test strips, condoms, and QR codes linking to overdose prevention training and treatment resources.

The timing is deliberate. Fatal overdoses in Howard County have dropped nearly 62% over five years – from 26 deaths in 2021 to 10 in 2025. Between June 2025 and May 2026, first responders administered naloxone to 163 people. In 2025 alone, the county distributed 2,351 doses.

The vending machines are part of a broader push to reduce barriers to harm reduction resources. Everything is free, anonymous, and restocked regularly. If you know someone who could use a kit in their glovebox or medicine cabinet, point them to one of these machines.

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Prepare to hear a new sound at Alpha Ridge Park. I’ll give you a hint: POCK. . . POCK . . . POCK (Patch)

Alpha Ridge Park in Marriottsville opened six new courts on July 10, bringing the county’s total to 28 dedicated pickleball courts across five parks. That’s enough space for 112 players at once – which, if you’ve ever tried to get a court on a Saturday morning, still might not be enough.

These courts join six lighted courts at Blandair Regional Park in Columbia, six at Rockburn Branch Park in Elkridge, eight at Western Regional Park in Woodbine, and two at Atholton Park in Columbia.

Alpha Ridge is already one of the county’s most versatile parks – home to the only outdoor regulation-size inline hockey rink in Howard County, two tennis courts, ball diamonds, soccer fields, playgrounds, picnic pavilions, and the Howard Astronomical League Observatory with its 12-inch Newtonian telescope.

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🍕 Slice of the Action – Angeli’s Pizzeria, the Little Italy chain ranked No. 44 on 50 Top Pizza USA and named Maryland’s best New York-style pizza by The Washington Post, is opening its first location outside Baltimore. The new spot takes over the former River Hill Pizza space at 10039 Baltimore National Pike in Forest Green Shopping Center. Expect 30 to 40 seats, a full liquor license, and an opening within two months.

🍽️ Mall Call – Two restaurants are heading to the Mall in Columbia: Nan Xiang Soup Dumplings, a Michelin-recommended Shanghainese chain from Flushing, New York, known for its xiao long bao, and Fogo de Chão, the Brazilian steakhouse. Both are filling spaces vacated by restaurateur Desmond Reilly, who the mall is suing for millions. Nan Xiang already has Maryland locations at Montgomery Mall and National Harbor. ($)

💰 Free Money Advice – Howard County is launching Maryland’s first county-based Financial Empowerment Center, offering free one-on-one financial counseling to anyone who lives, works, or goes to school in the county. Funded by a $250,000 grant from the CFE Fund, the center will help with budgeting, debt, credit, and savings through United Way of Central Maryland.

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92 🌡️ 65 | ☀️ | 7% ☔ | 💨 SW 8 mph

98 🌡️ 72 | ☁️ | 4% ☔ | 💨 W 11 mph

97 🌡️ 78 | ⛅ | 12% ☔ | 💨 WNW 10 mph

Collective Encore | Bywater Call | 7:30 PM | Tickets
Cured 1821 | CHORDY | 6–10 PM

Cured 1821 | Bob Butta | 6–10 PM

Bare Bones | Adam Merkle | 7–10:30 PM
Collective Encore | Jimmy Charles | 7:30 PM | Tickets
The Morgan Inn | The UpBeets! | 6–9 PM

Thanks for reading Columbia Scoop today. If you found something useful, share it with your coworker who has a standing desk but sits back down after about eleven minutes every single time.