Crabs in Baltimore
Mar 31st, 2009, 04:54 PM
#22
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Hi SuzieTrue - there are many places to get good crabcakes, in fact it's hard to get a bad crabcake in Baltimore (it's easy anywhere else) but the best crabcakes in Baltimore are at G&M Restaurant:
http://www.gandmcrabcakes.com/index.php It's nothing fancy, but the crabcakes are excellent!
Other good places include:
http://timbukturestaurant.com/
http://www.gunningsonline.com/maryla...amed_crabs.php
http://www.leelynns.com/
http://www.bobrooks.com/
I have also heard that the crabcakes are good at Bertha's on Broadway in Fells Point, though I've never had them myself. It's hard to go wrong with their mussels though!
Also, if you are staying downtown, a good stop for lunch is Faidley's seafood in Lexington Market, which is on Paca Street at Lexington Street, sort of along the northwestern edge of the downtown area. Their lump crabcakes are very good, as are their fried oysters. In fact, anywhere you go for crabcakes, it's hard to go wrong with fried oysters as well!
http://www.gandmcrabcakes.com/index.php It's nothing fancy, but the crabcakes are excellent!
Other good places include:
http://timbukturestaurant.com/
http://www.gunningsonline.com/maryla...amed_crabs.php
http://www.leelynns.com/
http://www.bobrooks.com/
I have also heard that the crabcakes are good at Bertha's on Broadway in Fells Point, though I've never had them myself. It's hard to go wrong with their mussels though!
Also, if you are staying downtown, a good stop for lunch is Faidley's seafood in Lexington Market, which is on Paca Street at Lexington Street, sort of along the northwestern edge of the downtown area. Their lump crabcakes are very good, as are their fried oysters. In fact, anywhere you go for crabcakes, it's hard to go wrong with fried oysters as well!
Mar 31st, 2009, 06:22 PM
#24
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With crab cakes, look for those made from "lump" or "jumbo lump" crab meat... hunks of snow-white meat, rather than flakes and/or claw meat. At some places, such as Faidley's in Lexington Market, there might be a choice between lump and standard (not sure of the terminology). Lump is considerably more expensive, but worth it!
Mar 31st, 2009, 10:13 PM
#26
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I'm loving seeing all the recommendations for Bertha's in Fell's Point. I used to live a few doors from them years ago and Tony and Laura (the owners) were friends. I used to go in there for the mussels a couple of times a week, so they've been doing great mussels for ages. It's fantastic to see they're still so popular! A group of art students lived in FP before it was well-known and we used to buy crabs before dawn at a fish market near the Harbor (it wasn't built up yet) and steam them with Old Bay in a Barrel with corn cobs and polish them off in the yard behind our building.
Lexington market has changed alot since the olden days, to be sure.
Lexington market has changed alot since the olden days, to be sure.
Apr 1st, 2009, 04:37 AM
#27
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>>A group of art students lived in FP before it was well-known and we used to buy crabs before dawn at a fish market near the Harbor (it wasn't built up yet)>>
bellastarr - boy that was a long time ago! When my wife and I were first married, we loved getting up when it was still dark on a Saturday, and going down there to buy fish & crabs. We were so disappointed when they moved the fish market out to the suburbs - individuals can't go there to shop anymore.
Thanks for bringing up a great memory..
bellastarr - boy that was a long time ago! When my wife and I were first married, we loved getting up when it was still dark on a Saturday, and going down there to buy fish & crabs. We were so disappointed when they moved the fish market out to the suburbs - individuals can't go there to shop anymore.
Thanks for bringing up a great memory..
Apr 4th, 2009, 10:15 AM
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Over-fishing/crabbing/oystering are the baddies! If we could only cut back. Our crabber friend said that the moratorium on rockfish hurt the crab population as much as over fishing had. True? Don't know but it really is time to go back to local farming/fishing when poss.
Apr 4th, 2009, 02:11 PM
#32
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TDudette I think you are right, overfishing is a problem with the crabs, but it does not specifically affect the health of the bay. Now for oysters, the lack of the bivalves filtering the water does have an impact, but the problem with the oysters I think is not overfishing, but disease.
I've heard the same thing that you mentioned about the comeback in the rockfish population being a big culprit in the crab decline, since they evidently eat crab. But I think that's conjecture, and not a known fact.
It seems to me, though, that since the moratorium on rockfishing was so successful, we should have a similar moratorium on crabbing to bring that population back, too. Problem, is, the watermen are dead set against it since their livelihoods are already on the wane. But hey, why can't we use some bailout money to support the watermen for the next five years during a moratorium?
Rich - much of the crabs do come from Louisiana - and Texas, too. But this is mostly to augment the supply from the bay.
I've heard the same thing that you mentioned about the comeback in the rockfish population being a big culprit in the crab decline, since they evidently eat crab. But I think that's conjecture, and not a known fact.
It seems to me, though, that since the moratorium on rockfishing was so successful, we should have a similar moratorium on crabbing to bring that population back, too. Problem, is, the watermen are dead set against it since their livelihoods are already on the wane. But hey, why can't we use some bailout money to support the watermen for the next five years during a moratorium?
Rich - much of the crabs do come from Louisiana - and Texas, too. But this is mostly to augment the supply from the bay.
Apr 4th, 2009, 03:10 PM
#33
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DH and I are currently comparing crabcakes in the Baltimore area. Last night had the crab cake platter at G&M. Today it was a crab cake at Faidley's in Lexington Market. Both were good, but we decided the Faidley's cake was moister. Continuing the research for two more days.
ST
ST
Apr 4th, 2009, 05:28 PM
#36
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Well, you have to work pretty hard, and it's a mess. But the beer and social atmosphere make it all worthwhile. The other drawback is the cost - I haven't had any yet this year, but it's not unusual for large crabs to cost $75 to $100 per dozen. But if you want to give it a shot, tomorrow is supposed to be very nice, and Bo Brooks, on Boston Street in the Canton area of east Baltimore, is right on the harbor, and has outdoor seating too. Maybe go there and get a half dozen and try them out! I think they'd be glad to show you how to pick them. The bigger ones are easier to pick.
Apr 4th, 2009, 05:34 PM
#37
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I should add, though, for truth in advertising, that it seems to be more difficult to enjoy picking crabs if you've never done it before. Most people around here have done it all their lives, and were taught by countless crotchety old family members.
Apr 5th, 2009, 02:47 PM
#38
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We decided to go to Phillips on the Inner Harbor for lunch today. Had the Chesapeake Bay crab cake platter. The cakes were a little smaller than the other two places but very moist. DH had the King crab cakes which were very different. Now for Monday and Tuesday!
Apr 5th, 2009, 03:21 PM
#39
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"DH had the King crab cakes which were very different."
Phillips makes crab cakes out of KING CRAB? Heresy!
BTW; you can make your own crab cakes at home, and they're surprisingly good. If you have access to fresh lump crab meat (costs about $30/pound last time I checked) and a packet of Old Bay crab cake mix, you can make 4 crab cakes that are as big and delicious as you're likely to find almost anywhere.
http://www.marylanddelivered.com/ima...aycrabcake.jpg
Phillips makes crab cakes out of KING CRAB? Heresy!
BTW; you can make your own crab cakes at home, and they're surprisingly good. If you have access to fresh lump crab meat (costs about $30/pound last time I checked) and a packet of Old Bay crab cake mix, you can make 4 crab cakes that are as big and delicious as you're likely to find almost anywhere.
http://www.marylanddelivered.com/ima...aycrabcake.jpg
Apr 6th, 2009, 02:28 AM
#40
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Suzie, here is a list of top ten crab cakes in Baltimore, according to Elizabeth Large, the Baltimore Sun food critic.
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/ente...rab_cakes.html
I guess they are all traditional crab cakes, because in that same section of the paper's web site, they also have the top ten crab cakes "with a twist"
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/ente.../post_109.html
I heard Pisces closed, but I'm not sure if that's true.
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/ente...rab_cakes.html
I guess they are all traditional crab cakes, because in that same section of the paper's web site, they also have the top ten crab cakes "with a twist"
http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/ente.../post_109.html
I heard Pisces closed, but I'm not sure if that's true.
