Great Maryland Crab Cakes?

[mattybumpkin]

Hi,

I am looking for a place that makes/sells/ships a great Maryland crab cake. From my reading on-line, the following seem to be safe bets:

Robert Morris Inn
Faidley's
The Narrows Restaurant

Any Marylanders out there with an opinion?

Thnx,

[bigstereo]

I lived in Maryland for 14 years and Phillips in Ocean City had pretty good crab cakes then. They have expanded since then and they do sell online. But the best ones are the ones you make yourself at home if you can find fresh jumbo lump crabmeat in a store somewhere. Then all you need is some Old Bay, mayo, and Ritz crackers. That is basically all that is in a good crabcake. The mayo and crackers are just in there to help hold the meat together while it fries. It's so easy, even a caveman could do it. :D



http://www.phillipsseafood.com/


RJ

[Dusty Chalk]

Also, it holds together better if you cook it hot. The initial sear gives it a crust.

Now's the time -- people associate crabs with summer, but there's lots to be had well into deep autumn.

There was a place near the bridge, but don't remember the name. Crab Castle? House o' Crabs? I forget -- it doesn't really matter, anywhere around the bay is usually pretty good. Southern Maryland, right by the tip of Assateague Island (on or off the island) is recommended as well.

Don't know anyplace that ships frozen.

[redcoates7]

Over on RT100 near BWI there's a place called Timbuktu...unreal.

[Sandy G]

My parents were stationed at the Army Chemical Center in Edgewood in the early Fifties...I've heard tales of the GLORIOUS food they used to get at Hausner's...We went thru Baltimore when I was a kid once, they stopped at some place called "Maryland Crab House" & got a bunch of crabcakes.. I was dubious at getting something to eat from a joint called "Maryland Crab House", but they were pretty good. Didn't care for the pieces of shell you had to pick thru, though.

[tentoze]

Cardinal Rule For Eating Crab- "If it crunches, spit it out."

[mhardy6647]

Over on RT100 near BWI there's a place called Timbuktu...unreal.
Gunning's is right there, too.

The trick with crab cakes is the right blend of back fin crab meat, spices, and "filler". Far too many crab cakes have far too much filler.

We always liked those from the Sunset restaurant in Glen Burnie, MD. I dunno fo' sho' if it's even still there.

Phillips' are OK.

[tentoze]

The trick with crab cakes is the right blend of back fin crab meat, spices, and "filler".

Okay, I'm going to ask a question here- I grew up catching, killing, and eating blue crabs. I've seen the term used before, but what I want to know is just where the hell is a back fin on this creature?

http://www.cmast.ncsu.edu/images/crab-1.jpg

[Sandy G]

I remember catching crabs as a kid in the inlet behind Pawley's Island...We used chicken necks to get 'em, the more rancid, the better..That inlet water looked worse than commode water, too..And yet we'd eat these foul, vile, ill-tempered little creatures happily...Anything askew w/this picture ? <grin>

[Dusty Chalk]

The trick with crab cakes is the right blend of back fin crab meat, spices, and "filler". Far too many crab cakes have far too much filler. Well, what makes the crab cakes that I have had so special is their freshness. Impossible to do from frozen.

Although I do agree it can still be ruined with too much or the wrong kind of filler. Have you experimented with different types of crackers? Ritz strikes me as the right answer.

[mhardy6647]

'Toze, it's those two fins in the back, there... the back fin(s).

Seriously, those are the blue guy's swimmers (see the paddles?). The fine white meat that powers those, located just inside the shell, is the top o' the heap in terms of crab meat (flavor, texture, and appearance). DISCLAIMER: I quite like the claw meat, too.

Sandy, sadly Haussner's is no more :-( We took our daughter there, with friends of ours, for her third birthday. She insisted on ordering lobster tail and ate the whole shooting match, too!

[mhardy6647]

Gratuitous biology lesson:
The Latin name for the blue crab is "Callinectes sapidus", or "beautiful swimmer". It's a tad ironic. There's a wonderful book on crabs called "Beautiful Swimmers" by William Warner.

... and if you've never visited the Chesapeake Bay... well, you owe it to yourselves.

EDIT: http://www.dnr.state.md.us/fisheries/education/crab/bluecrabfacts.html
The State of MD says the complete meaning of the species name is "beautiful swimmer that is savory". Slightly less ironic.

Jeepers, I am getting hungry now...

[mhardy6647]

... and, when you boys are ready for steamed crabs...
http://www.robinsweb.com/maryland/crab_how_to_eat.html

The above doesn't represent the consensus of the proper methodologies (e.g., mallets are not cool; knives are used to split the claw shells) but it does give some sense of the multi-sensory experience that IS the Maryland crab feast.

Beer is absolutely mandatory. A Baltimore backyard on a 90-degree plus, 90 percent humidity late, late afternoon is optional, but highly recommended.

The best thing about crabs is that they have their own, built-in pop-top (just like a beer)!
http://www.robinsweb.com/maryland/malecrab.jpg

http://aletrail.com/Qstore/uploads/natybohpint.jpg

[tentoze]

The fine white meat that powers those, located just inside the shell...

Never seen any meat from anywhere inside a blue crab body that isn't white...

And, if I had to drink a Natty Bo in order to eat crab, I'd starve to death.

[mhardy6647]

yeah, me too, but it's a Baltimore thing. Well, it was...

Them two big lumps of really white meat in the aft end of the crab, mate. That's what you're after.

[tentoze]

Sit me down to a table full of them things straight outta the pot, and I'm after ALL of it.

[Yamaha B-2]

Price's and MacGreagor's in Havre de Grace and the Waterman's in Rock Hall are all excellent. Price's is seasonal, so is most likely closed. But the other two are year round. Our weekend sails often consist of going back and forth between the two towns (boat is in H de G).

[merrylander]

We had Portobello mushrooms stuffed with crab meat, and of course some white wine in there as seasoning, for dinner on Sunday, very tasty but then this here restaurant has one hell of a good cook.

Rob

[Yamaha B-2]

Are you taking reservations? :D

[mhardy6647]

Bo Brooks is/was my favorite crab place in B-more, but it looks like they've moved downtown and gone upscale. Probably still worth investigatin'.

www.bobrooks.com

EDIT: Never had a crab cake from Bo Brooks, but their crabs are excellent. Try a hard fry (fried hard crab)! It's basically a steamed crab, cleaned, stuffed with crab meat (basically stuffed with a crab cake), coated with batter,and deep fried. mmmmm....

My father likes the crab cakes from the venerable Double T diner. They have locations all around Charm City.

[ehoove]

I lived in Maryland for 14 years and Phillips in Ocean City had pretty good crab cakes then. They have expanded since then and they do sell online. But the best ones are the ones you make yourself at home if you can find fresh jumbo lump crabmeat in a store somewhere. Then all you need is some Old Bay, mayo, and Ritz crackers. That is basically all that is in a good crabcake. The mayo and crackers are just in there to help hold the meat together while it fries. It's so easy, even a caveman could do it. :D



http://www.phillipsseafood.com/


RJ
Ah, Phillips by the Sea, A Maryland Tradition! Big stereo's recipe is close to mine, but if you are like me and think a crabcake should be just crab just go lite on the mayo, substitute egg white for crackers, add melted butter, and ground blk pepper -form the cakes and cover with Old Bay Bake 10 minutes then broil till golden brown on top, and the butter comes out the bottom. serve with melted butter, extra bowl of Old Bay, and the wine/beer of choice. Welcome to Maryland !!
__________________