Phillips Crab House
Phillips Crab House started as a small carryout restaurant that sold excess crabs from A.E. Phillips & Son that was owned by the founder's father. Today, the restaurant occupies a two-story building with a dining room that seats about 1,400 people and is full most evenings. Its gigantic menu serves all manner of seafood, but crabs are the biggest reason why you will come. Start out your meal with an appetizer like Phillips Crab & Spinach Dip, a Maryland crab classic served in a bread bowl. For your entree, order a dozen crabs that will be placed on your table that is covered with newspaper. Or you may wish to order something else with crab like Phillips Premium Crab Cakes, which are all-lump crab cakes with a rich, buttery flavor, or Crab Imperial that's baked in a creamy imperial sauce and topped with cheddar cheese.
Phillips Crab House
2004 Philadelphia Ave.
Ocean City, MD 21842
410-289-6821
phillipsseafood.com
Ocean Pride Restaurant & Carry-out
Like other restaurants that serve blue crabs, at Ocean Pride Restaurant & Carry-out you should show up in casual dress and expect your table to be adorned with brown paper awaiting a load of crabs. It helps to arrive with some knowledge of how to attack the crustaceans.You can start your meal with Maryland Crab Soup, with vegetables and pieces of crab in a zesty broth. You then can order a dozen or two large crabs; if you prefer something else, you can order other seafood dishes like rockfish stuffed with crab imperial with spinach and Old Bay sauce or Moroccan salmon that's encrusted with pistachio nuts on a bed of spinach.
Ocean Pride Restaurant & Carry-out
1534 York Road
Lutherville, MD 21093
410-321-7744
oceanprideseafood.com
Crackpot Seafood Restaurant
The Crackpot Seafood Restaurant has been a staple in Towson since it opened in 1971, and it has won countless awards, including Towson Magazine's "Best Steamed Crabs of 2003." The restaurant is a casual place, and it's claim to fame is offering a crabcake that weighs 20 ounces and predictably called "The Pounder Plus." It's menu is three pages long and leans heavily on seafood; although there's no mention of steamed crabs, it's a given that they serve them, since most tables are covered with brown paper. As with any crab house in Maryland, prices of crabs depend on their availability.
Crackpot Seafood Restaurant
8102 Loch Raven Blvd.
Towson, MD 21286
410-828-1095
crackpotcrabs.com
