Every year, Annapolis Restaurant Week rolls around and the message is clear.

Eat out.

This popular business promotion mixes civic pride, discounts and the chance to try something new. It begins Saturday and runs through March 2. Is it worth your time and money?

The Downtown Annapolis Partnership and its predecessors have run Restaurant Week for years, charging participating businesses a fee to organize and promote the event. This year, 37 eateries jumped in. They are:

• 49 West Coffeehouse, Winebar & Gallery
• Annapolis Market House
• Blackwall Hitch Annapolis
• Buddy’s Crabs & Ribs
• Café Mezzanotte
• Café Normandie
• Carpaccio Tuscan Kitchen & Wine Bar
• Carrol’s Creek Café
• Chart House Prime
• Chessie’s Wharf
• Chick & Ruth’s Delly
• Cooper’s Hawk Winery & Restaurant
• Federal House Bar & Grille
• Galway Bay Irish Restaurant
• Harry Browne’s
• Latitude 38
• Libations Modern American Tavern
• Light House Bistro
• The Lodge Annapolis
• Luna Blu Ristorante Italiano
• Main & Market café
• Melting Pot
• Metropolitan Kitchen & Lounge
• Middleton Tavern
• Mi Lindo Cancun Grill
• Miss Shirley’s Café
• O’Brien’s Oyster Bar & Seafood Tavern
• Paul’s Homewood Café
• Pearl Restaurant and Ponche Tiki Bar
• Picante Cocina Mexicana
• Rams Head Tavern
• Rodizio Grill Annapolis
• Ruth’s Chris Steak House Annapolis
• Severn Inn
• Stan & Joe’s Saloon
• Tuscan Prime Italian Chophouse & Dolce Bar
• Urbano Annapolis

Here are some things to consider.

Annapolis Restaurant Week is pitched as an opportunity to try something new. There are surely places on the list you haven’t tried.

Three participating restaurants opened within about the last year: Pearl, Chessie’s Wharf and Urbano. Other new places around Annapolis — such as SeaSalt, Rumhouse, Tatte Bakery and Cafe, Adams on Fourth, InGrano and Timber Pizza — aren’t taking part.

There also are old favorites. Eleven — Buddy’s, Cafe Normandie, Carpaccio’s, Carrol’s Creek, Federal House, Galway Bay, Harry Browne’s, Main & Market, The Melting Pot, Ruth’s Chris and The Severn Inn — were in the original lineup.

If you go, the food is the point. Lots of highly regarded places to eat on the list, but others in the same leagues opted out.

Is it a deal? Single-course, two-course and three-course meals cost from $12.95 to $44.95 per person, up $3 from previous years. To judge if the options offer real bargains, compare the prix fixe special menus with a la carte offerings on the regular menu.

Two final points.

Alcohol is not included, although several restaurants offer discounts on a bottle of wine or other beverages. Mixed drinks, beer and wine can add 20%-30% to your bill.

The promotion is intended to get people in the door. That can mean crowds and lines. Plan accordingly.

Here are some other great things to do in the coming week.

Dance, dance, dance

7:30 p.m. Friday

Choreographers and dancers at the Ballet Theatre of Maryland will experiment with neoclassical and contemporary styles over two nights in an annual mixed repertory show at Maryland Hall.

“Momentum: A Mixed Bill” includes world premieres by guest choreographers Roman Mykyta and Ashley Taylor mixed with works by current and former company dancers.

Mykyta’s “Elizabeth” is a biography of America’s first Catholic saint, Elizabeth Ann Seton, while Taylor’s “Leave the World Behind” explores nostalgia and introspection.

Other pieces are from company dancers Lindsey Bell, Isaac Martinez, Karen Fleming and Emily Carey.

The performance repeats at 7 p.m. Saturday and then again at 3 p.m. on March 29 at the Prince George’s Community College Center for the Performing Arts.

General admission for the Annapolis shows is $62.35. Discounted tickets are available for seniors, students, children and military. A virtual streaming ticket is $36 plus fees.

Another SNL alum

8 p.m. Friday

Did anyone else notice Colin Quinn skipped the Saturday Night Live 50th anniversary spectacle?

The former host of “Weekend Update,” who was an SNL cast member from 1995 to 2000, has long since established himself as a wry social commentator.

He explained on X that he missed the anniversary show because he was on the road with his standup act.

He’s at Rams Head On Stage for one show. Tickets are about $56 to $125.

Closing show

Saturday

It’s the final weekend to catch works by 42 artists in “Digital Directions,” a show competition of digital works at the Maryland Federation of Art Circle Gallery.

The winning work by Cecil W. Lee is a portrait created using software and hardware tools. Other works include portraits, collages and sculptures.

Selected works will be on exhibit at the Lowe House of Delegates Building through April 8.

Cuppa Cuppa

11 a.m. Saturday

Before the revolution, Americans drank tea just like the Brits, by the chest full.

Head to Historic London Town and Gardens in Edgewater for “What’s the Tea: History of Tea in London Town.” The winter lecture will look at tea in this once-bustling Colonial port and offer a tour of the gardens, where winter camellias are blooming.

A cup of tea is included. Admission is $14 for members and $20 for nonmembers.

Vinyl market

11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday

Browse music the old-fashioned way by sorting through boxes of records. The Naptown Vinyl and Vintage Market sets up for its first show of 2025 at Maryland Hall.

In addition to the records and other items inside the Bowen Theatre, there will be music and food trucks. Admission is free, with records and other items priced separately.

Midweek music

7:30 p.m. Wednesday

Collage rock? It was popular on college radio stations in the 1990s.

The Annapolis trio MR VCR has been keeping this blend of genres alive for years in a high-energy show.

Key members Soren Mattson, Tucker Hinkel and Benjamin Bays will be joined at 49 West Coffeehouse by friends Tom Coster and Ron McMorrow. Admission is $10 at the door.