A community leader of the Sowebo neighborhood in Southwest Baltimore, Theodore Jack “Ted” Getzel died on Tuesday, Aug. 12. He was 79.
A native of the Bronx, New York, and son of a World War II veteran who was among the first forces to liberate the Buchenwald concentration camp, Getzel was the co-founder, co-owner and manager of Mencken’s Cultured Pearl Cafe.
The Cultured Pearl was a popular restaurant, art gallery and gathering spot at 1116 Hollins Street. (Today, it is the location of the Rooted Rotisserie restaurant.)
Getzel was also the owner and operator of Sowebo Books, and former president of the Southwest Merchants and Artisans Guild. (In addition, he was reportedly the originator of the neighborhood nomenclature “SoWeBo.”)
In 1983, Getzel, a poet, opened the Cultured Pearl with his friend, investor and fellow New York transplant Stephan Lowentheil. The restaurant — which was known for its Mexican fare — was located across the street from the historic Hollins Market.
Mencken’s Cultured Pearl — named in honor of Baltimore journalist and essayist H.L. Mencken, whose lifelong residence was only a few blocks away, at 1524 Hollins Street — was part of a redevelopment effort to transform that historic community into an arts and cultural district.
Throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, the Cultured Pearl was known for staging poetry readings, provocative art exhibitions and a decidedly bohemian ambience, as well as for its array of hot sauces. Patrons were encouraged to draw, sketch or scribble on long sheaths of construction paper adorning tables.
Along with Gampy’s, Maison Marconi’s, Martick’s Restaurant Francois, Louie’s Bookstore Cafe and Haussner’s, the Cultured Pearl is remembered by old-time Charm City foodies for its idiosyncratic and free-spirited style.
“At first they were trying to be like Marconi’s or Haussner’s restaurants, old style formal dining, and it didn’t work,” wrote local poet and musician Tom DiVenti in a 2017 article about Sowebo’s history for the website Splice Today. “Then Teddy changed the menu to Tex-Mex and it was a huge success. It was also a haven for poets and poetry readings. Just about every poet in Baltimore has read there at one time or another.”
In a 2022 Baltimore magazine article about cherished, bygone local restaurants, contributing photographer Christopher Myers called the Cultured Pearl “an eclectic, bohemian place to hang. Great Mexican food.”
But in October of 1998, the Cultured Pearl closed due to financial challenges and a lack of customers, which Getzel told the Baltimore Sun was largely a result of neighborhood “perception issues,” fierce corporate competition around the metropolitan region and neglect by the city government.
In a post on the website of Sol Levinson & Bros, Getzel’s family called him “a beloved community figure, known for his visionary spirit and dedication to his Hollins Market neighborhood. Ted was the founder of The Cultured Pearl Cafe, the inspiration behind the [annual] Sowebo [Arts & Music] Festival, and a driving force behind countless other community events that enriched the lives of those around him.”
Getzel is survived by his Baltimore family, Laura Marsden and Stephan Lowentheil; his nephew Nathaniel Lowentheil; and his New York family, Julia Getzel, Michelle Han and grandnephews Genevieve and Gabriel Getzel.
He was predeceased by his parents, Louis Getzel and Henrietta Wolf Getzel.
Services for Ted Getzel are private.
Filmmaker Justin Schein looks at wealth and inequality through the very real story of his late father.
This year’s Community Block Party at the JCC of Greater Baltimore will feature classic cars, giant inflatables, games, a rock-climbing wall and roller skating rink, and strolling entertainers.
For 35 years, the late Deborah Brodie, aka Bubbie Cookie, amassed a collection of over 200 Jewish ritual objects, which she used to teach her Hebrew school students with special needs.
In a recent talk at Beth Tfiloh, Elisha Wiesel called on Jews to cultivate joyfulness in their faith and sense of community.