The abundance of fresh blue crabs off Maryland’s shores for much of the year means it’s easy to find any number of restaurants slinging crab legs, crispy fried soft shell crabs, and crab cakes galore. I’ve lived in the Northeast for most of my life and vacation frequently in Maryland, which means I have a healthy appreciation for Old Bay seasoning — and an excellent crab cake.
Whether you find them in a hole-in-the-wall shack or an upscale restaurant, good crab cakes will share similar features. They will ideally be made with jumbo lump crab — the biggest chunks you can harvest — so that each bite of the cakes are full of succulent, slightly sweet crab meat. They will also be low in “filler”: the panko bread crumbs, mayo, and egg needed to bind the crab cake together. A minimal amount is normally necessary for the crab cakes to hold their shape during cooking, but when you put your fork into them, you should pull away with chunks of crab, not soggy clumps of breadcrumbs.
While crab cake recipes are fairly easy to make on your own, it can also be easy to make some crab cake mistakes, too. If you’d rather let the experts cook your crab cake to perfection, here are some Maryland restaurants that offer crab cakes a cut above the rest. Several even deliver their crab cakes nationwide, if a crab cake craving strikes from across the country.
Woody’s Crab House (North East)
You’ll eat off of butcher block paper at this rustic but charming restaurant, located in the heart of a former fishing village in North East. Many of the recipes from Woody’s come from families who call the village home. The restaurant is famous for its generous portions of any number of popular entrees, but Woody’s gets a lot of love from repeat patrons for its crab cakes…