By
Theodore Fischer, Sidewalk
Columbia
shops at The Mall in Columbia, just a pedestrian
overpass away from Town Center. Anchors include Hecht's, JCPenney
and Sears (with a Nordstrom opening in September 1999), but the most
outstanding feature is an absolutely gorgeous indoor carousel (pictured at
top; $1.25 a ride except for people shorter than a Bozo cutout about
33 inches).
Of the 170 or so stores, one favorite is the Radio Shack where
Linda Tripp could have purchased phone-recording equipment from $3.99
for a suction-cup pickup to $19.99 for elaborate telephone-control devices
to tape her heart-to-hearts with Monica Lewinsky. Columbia's
more-than-decent food court is ennobled by Bun Penny Deli, a
gourmet-quality store featuring cleverly named takeout sandwiches and
irresistible salads.
Several restaurants are located beside the lake, including two on the
ground level of the welcome center. The readers of a local magazine voted Clyde's
of Columbia, with a menu similar to other area Clyde's
branches, the best restaurant in town. It's connected to the Clyde's-owned
Tomato Palace (left), a cheerful pizza-pasta place with an
appealing children's menu. Both have outdoor seating when weather permits.
Off Town Center, the Mango Grove serves an Indian-style vegetarian
menu in the Dobbin Center strip mall. The Last Chance Saloon has 55
microbrews, an admirable assortment of single malts and English-style pub
grub, plus live entertainment jazz, blues and comedy most nights
of the week. Columbians celebrate major passages at The King's
Contrivance, a dignified Federal-era home featuring classic American
favorites.
For children, Columbia has outdoor playgrounds galore, parks and pools. It
also has the world's first (and world headquarters of) ExploraWorld,
a bright and bustling center of noncompetitive creative play areas, from
sandboxes to firetrucks to TV news studios to computers.
For a place some consider the middle of nowhere, a lot happens in Columbia
after dark and not only during the summer, when the 5,200-seat Merriweather
Post Pavilion brings top rock, pop and blues acts to town. Folkal
Point books good folk acts but has no regular performance schedule.
Along with music, Columbia has plenty of movies 26 screens to be
exact. Town Center has the three-screen Columbia City GCC in Town
Center, and Loews Columbia Palace 9 and United Artists Snowden
Square 14 are located in outlying village centers.
For live theater, the Howard Community College Rep Stage specializes
in bold new work and classics. It's hard to resist the energetic musicals
performed by actor-servers and the better-than-it-needs-to-be buffet
at Toby'sThe Dinner Theatre of Columbia.
Details
The Mall in Columbia, Columbia Town Center, (410)
730-3300
Radio Shack, The Mall in Columbia, (410) 995-0085
Bun Penny Deli, The Mall in Columbia, (410) 730-4100
Clyde's of Columbia, 10221 Wincopin Circle, (301)
596-4050
Tomato Palace, 10221 Wincopin Circle, (410) 715-0211
Mango Grove, Dobbin Center, 6365-B Dobbin Rd., (410)
884-3426
Last Chance Saloon, Oakland Mills Village Center, 5888-A
Robert Oliver Pl., (410) 730-5656
The King's Contrivance, 10150 Shaker Dr., (410) 995-0500
ExploraWorld, 6750 Dobbin Rd., (410) 772-1548
Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 South Entrance Rd.,
(301) 982-1800
Folkal Point, 11130 Willow Bottom Dr., (410) 531-5350
Columbia City GCC, 10205 Wincopin Circle, (410) 997-9010
Loews Columbia Palace 9, 8805 Centre Park Dr., (410) 730-4600
United Artists Snowden Square 14, 9161 Commerce Center Dr.,
(410) 872-0670
Rep Stage, Howard Community College, 10901 Little
Patuxent Pkwy., (410) 772-4940
Toby'sThe Dinner Theatre of Columbia, 5900 Symphony
Woods Rd., (301) 596-6161
See also: Columbia: According to plan |
