Best Places To Get A Traditional Maryland Meal This Summer
Summer means seafood is at its freshest in Maryland. Marylanders, being seafood connoisseurs, are always on the prowl for the best crabs, oysters, etc. to feed their appetites. In Baltimore, these are the best places to get your favorite signature Charm City food.
Vikki's Fells Point Deli
700 S. Broadway
Baltimore, Md. 21231
(410) 276-6996
www.facebook.com/Vikkis-Fells-Point-Deli
One of the oldest, least expensive and most loved Baltimore originals is the coddie. A testament to the ingenuity of Baltimoreans, the coddie, a surprisingly delicious ball of deep-fried fish and potato, is usually served on saltines with a dab of mustard. Surprisingly, these unique treats are hard to find in Baltimore these days, but Vikki's has you covered. Always affordable, Vikki's will sell you a coddie for a dollar. Grab one as a delicious snack, or shell out a fiver and make a meal out of it.
Faidley Seafood
203 N. Paca St.
Baltimore, Md. 21201
(410) 727-4898
www.faidleyscrabcakes.com
There is one food that is synonymous with Baltimore, and that's crab cakes. If you're willing to brave the bustling Lexington Market, you may be in for some of the best crab cakes of your life, no exaggeration. Despite its humble setting, Faidley Seafood is renowned for making the juiciest, meatiest, tastiest and biggest crab cakes you could imagine. The shop's interior is rustic, befitting of its fish market surroundings. You stand at the tables and eat your crab cake by hand in its cheap wrapper. No setting could possible capture the spirit and flavor of Baltimore better than Faidley.
Canton Dockside
3301 Boston St., Suite 102
Baltimore, Md. 21224
(410) 276-8900
www.cantondockside.com
What could be more Baltimorean than steamed crabs and beer? One of the best places in Baltimore for both is Canton Dockside. Certainly not the oldest crab house in Baltimore, Canton has still distinguished itself as elite with its enormous and meaty steamed blue crabs and generously stocked bar. As with any good crab house, Canton has a large outdoor deck with a distinct view of the water. Canton is open year round, so when you're craving this Baltimore favorite, Canton has you covered.
Related: Best Food Trucks In Baltimore
Thames Street Oyster House
1728 Thames St.
Baltimore, Md. 21231
(443) 449-7726
www.thamesstreetoysterhouse.com
Thames Street Oyster House has a diverse, delicious seafood menu bursting with Baltimore style. But the centerpiece of its selection is the namesake of the restaurant itself: oysters. Thames Street serves up oysters in every shape and style, breaking new grounds in salty seafood flavor. The raw oyster bar is a must at any Baltimore oyster house, but Thames serves up its oysters fried or as oysters Rockefeller – spicing up the oysters with creamed leeks, fennel, spinach, Pernod and Gruyere cheese. You can enjoy your oysters in a hardy stew or even in a po' boy sandwich. Already an exceptional seafood restaurant, Thames Street Oyster House is the superior venue for your Baltimore oyster craving.
Canton's Portside Tavern
2821 Odonnell St.
Baltimore, Md. 21224
(410) 522-7678
www.portsidetavern.com
Up and down the New England seacoast, recipes and restaurants bragging of the best clam chowder are hotly contested. Baltimoreans suffer no illusions of being the go-to place for chowder, but they still enjoy a hearty bowl, just like any seaside town. But in Baltimore, crabs are king, which is why Canton's Portside Tavern serves up its chowder Baltimore style with crab meat. A meal unto itself, Portside Tavern serves up a big, steamy bowl brimming with big lumps of fresh crab meat, tender pieces of red potatoes, corn and applewood bacon to give it just the right flavor. Whether it's hot or cold outside, this tasty meal will hit the spot.
Joel Furches is a freelance writer and researcher for The Examiner and Logos Software, and also manages his own catalog of writing on Hub Pages. Joel is on the board of directors for Ratio Christi. He has a bachelors in Psychology and a Masters in Education.
