foodnerd.org

DTBarton I can't thank you enough for all this info. What I'd like to do is drive down to St. Mary's and try a few places, and if they exist try some from other parts of MD. I've heard tell there's a deli in Baltimore that sells it this time of year. And then finally, after I have a good sense of what it *should* taste like, try making it at home. If you come across any interesting ads, let me know and thanks again!

Wow really? Can you point me to some specific places? I had no idea thanks so much for the reply!

Hey all! Easter is coming up, and I am engaging in some research regarding stuffed ham. Anybody have recommendations for restaurants? Or any suggestions regarding home preparation? I've had it exactly once about 12 years ago, while on a B & B mini-vacation. I remember it being extremely spicy, and strangely addictive. It is absolutely nowhere to be found here in central MD. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Is her recipe more like the Angelina's little/no seasoning cake or Faidley's highly seasoned? I'm having a showdown next weekend, my crab cakes, which are based on the surprisingly widespread Senator Mikulski recipe (seasoned well with torn bread filler) v my ex's mom's, whom she claims to make the best, and are the very mild and barely held together type. I think a cake should be a cake - if you want just meat, heat up a bowl of crab meat with some butter and be done with it! But that's just my view.

Actually the meat quality (one of the criteria by which i judge a crab cake) was still good at faidley's. Again it was the filling and cooking that really hurt it, plus the really surly service, but I don't hold that against them. I think there is a huge difference between domestic and South American or Asian jumbo lump, but the difference between Carolina, Florida and Maryland is pretty slight when made into a crab cake. Eaten straight it's more noticeable, I think MD meat has an edge in texture, being more "feathery" and delicate. But generally FL and Carolina meat is perfectly acceptable imo. I'll have to check out Fernando's - never heard of it - but my gf is a tex-mex nut and is always looking for good fake mexican, and I'll be sure to try the crab cake, so thanks!

ghostrider - I'll be checking it out today thanks for the heads up! I live right down the street and it simply never occurred to me. I'll report back later.

Patapsco Mike - I forgot to mention that I too hate when places insult the crab cake by "dressing it up" or adding random crap. That being said, for a long time I thought one of the most heinous transgressions was to smoke it, like they do at Pierpoint. In fact, I boycotted it for almost ten years before trying one last week. I have to admit, it was pretty damn good. Very light smoke flavor, more like an added spice than actual smoke flavor. Not too remarkable other than that, but solid nonetheless. I think OC is a little outside of my driving radius for this project, but thanks for the heads up. Any other places you think are worth a look?

Here's the thing about Faidley's: I've lived in Baltimore my entire adult life, over 15 years now, and Faidley's has served as my crab cake benchmark. Again, I am not a fan of the very mild type of crab cake that is exemplified by Angelina's. In any case, recently I have been saddened to find that Faidley's crab cakes have really begun to show signs of deterioration. In fact, the first time I discovered this (about a month ago) I was so shocked I went back three more times on consecutive days, convinced it was an anomaly. Four in a row precludes anomalous events in my mind. The cakes were overseasoned with mustard, had significantly more filling than before (and I like the filling!), and were frankly greasy. In fact, this is what spurred my current search for a new benchmark. Also I can't figure out why the mods decided to merge my thread with one that is two years old. This is exactly why it's important to have up to date information for restaurants - things change, and sometimes not for the better! I plan on hitting Pappas in NE B-more, Mays in Frederick, The Narrows, G & M, Suicide Bridge, and Robert Morris Inn. In case anyone's interested, Angelina's is under new ownership yet again, and this time the food (and crab cakes) are pretty much back to the way it used to be. Old school fans I urge you to give them another try. Thanks for the reply - anyone else have a new/lesser known favorite?

Hmm excellent that is the first recommendation I've gotten in Silver Spring. Indeed crab cakes fried in butter are all too rare. I find that most people can fall into two schools of thought - the "no Old Bay, little or no seasoning, as little filler as possible" types, or the "Old Bay, highly seasoned, visible pieces of bread in the filler" type. I am of the latter. I like the filler, but of course it should be far outweighed by big lumps of good quality (not the south american or asian stuff, which is more dense and sometimes almost mealy). Thanks so much, I will swing by next time I hit Oriental East for dim sum!

Hello all I am a new member and would like to ask others in the Maryland area to suggest and share their favorite places to get crab cakes. I've tried most of the heavy hitters in the Baltimore area, does anyone know of any out-of-the-way spot elsewhere, maybe on the Eastern Shore? Thanks in advance!