Weekly reviews of crab cakes around the MD and DC area

Gypsy Queen Cafe

The best thing about food trucks is that, besides the potential for inventive, high quality food, but the fact that they come to you! Well, maybe not to your front door, but at least close enough that you could more than likely walk to them. Enter the Gypsy Queen Cafe, voted Baltimore's best food truck for the past 6 years. While the name implies they are a brick and mortar restaurant, they are, in fact, a food truck. There used to be a restaurant, actually, if you remember Helen's Garden. But that was then and this is now. And when funky street food involves crab cakes, you know we're there! Read on to see what we thought!

Read more...

Lancaster Brewing Company

What's the first thing that comes to mind when someone mentions Lancaster? That's right, you think about the Amish, who do influence a lot in the area. Which brings us to beer. What the Amish Country is known for goes into every Lancaster Brewing Company beer. Which is, according to their website: fresh country air, clean water, and rich, non-irrigated farmland. What results is incredibly fresh, quality beer made according to German purity laws. Lancaster is a bit out of the way to go for crab cakes, yet there they are on the menu. Do the same attention to quality go into their crab cakes that they put into their beers? Let's find out!

Read more...

Towson Tavern

Usually when you think of a tavern, you think casual. But when you walk into the Towson Tavern, you step into an environment where casual meets upscale. Located where the Reicher Theater and Rec Room used to be, the Towson Tavern creates a sophisticated, but casual, environment serving regional American cuisine. And what's more regional than crab cakes, right? Follow along and see how the Towson Tavern represents Maryland!

Read more...

510 Johnny's

510 Johnny's is one of Bel Air's newest dining and nightlife locations, taking over where Bellissimo used to be next to Target. While the space is mostly the same layout, it definitely got a makeover and no longer sports the inside of a ships hull, but rather a grungy, but classy, restaurant where good food and music meet. So with new owners, a new look, and a new menu, there's only one question on our mind: how are the crab cakes? Read on and find out!

Read more...

Bayard House

The Bayard House in Chesapeake City, MD has a long standing history. Considered to be the oldest building in town, the original building, which was a manor, was built in the 1780's. It wasn't until 1829 that the location was first used as a public building, being converted to a tavern and an inn (then called Chick's Tavern). Since then, the building has changed owners, at one point in time being sold to a descendent of the original owner. Not until the early 80's did Allaire du Pont purchase the property and restore it, along with much of the village, and can still be seen today. But we didn't turn out for a history lesson. We came for crab cakes! Read on and let us let you know how they were!

Read more...

Ocean City Brewing Company

This week, the CCR continues their vacation coverage of Ocean City, MD. A town certainly known for crabs, and where there are crabs, you will find crab cakes. But you'll also find beer. And what better way to enjoy a beer than to go right to the source. That's just what we did when we went to visit the Ocean City Brewing Company. Relatively new to the area, they opened in May 2014 and have enjoyed success since then. The easy formulas are always winners: good beer, good food, good people. Were the crab cakes the perfect accompaniment to their craft beers? Let's find out!

Read more...

Bad Monkey Bar & Grill

Summertime in Maryland means one thing to many -- road trip downy ocean, 'hon! And a trip to Ocean City might involve crabs. If you're not standing in line to sit at a paper-lined table to crack crabs amongst pitchers of Natty Boh and friends, then you're going to get your crab fix another way. Maybe, perhaps, a crab cake? That's where the Bad Monkey Bar & Grill comes in. Located midtown on 58th St, the Bad Monkey is conveniently located to just about anywhere on the island and ready to fulfill whatever your need -- carry out or eat in; breakfast, lunch, or dinner; free water or choosing from a wide selection of beers. Whatever it is, they've got you covered. And they certainly had us covered for crab cakes. Read on to see how they were!

Read more...

Chesapeake Inn

Chesapeake City was originally called Bohemian, or Bohemia Village, until the completion of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, when it was changed to its current name. That's your historical Maryland fact for the day. Why does this matter? Because you can't visit Chesapeake City without visiting, or being told to visit, the Chesapeake Inn. The Chesapeake Inn is a dual-level facility, with the lower portion being known as "The Deck" that serves lite fare, and the upstairs (or main dining area) serving upscale American fare. No matter which level you dine at, the crab cake is still the same. Read on to see if it's worth motoring on over for!

Read more...

Vagabond Sandwich Company

Fresh ingredients and creativity. A sandwich with no rules. These are all things that we can get behind, and all we have to do is pay a visit to the Vagabond Sandwich Company. Located in downtown Bel Air, the Vagabond Sandwich Company is scratch cooking their way into your bellies based on a concept from the 1940's. And they support the local farming community by offering local products for sale alongside theirs. You can find crab cakes in a few forms, although the proper crab cake is a wrap, and not a sandwich. Is that enough to make us follow the vagabond trail to their doorstep? Let's find out!

Read more...

The Salty Pelican

Every now and again, the CCR gets to travel to places outside of the MD/DC area. Sometimes its for vacation, other times its for a work-sponsored vacati....er.....conference. So we had the chance to travel to Amelia Island, FL, just outside of Jacksonville along the Florida/Georgia border. One night of the conference included an excursion to Fernandia Beach, which is home to the Salty Pelican. The Salty Pelican only opened up in 2012, and was awarded Best Restaurant/Neighborhood Bar on Amelia Island by Folio Weekly's Best of Jax in 2014.  Coastal Florida is known for seafood, so we couldn't resist trying some crab cakes. Were they worth the trip? Read on and find out!

Read more...