Mama's on the Half Shell - Canton, Baltimore

Hey Everyone! The FI (still getting used to writing that) and I met up with college friends for a relaxing weekend lunch. They took us to a popular seafood spot - Mama's on the Half Shell in Baltimore. Thankfully there was zero line when we arrived because we passed one going out the door as we were leaving. It is in the city, so parking can be found on the street.

The place is pretty small, thus creating the line of waiting patrons. It is two levels of dark, colonial looking decor which looks like 'Baltimore seafood place'. Not sure what that means, but it fits! The vibe is casual, but airing on the nicer side.

Our friends ordered a 1/2 pound of Steamed Jumbo Shrimp with chipotle lime cocktail sauce, drawn butter and bread ($9.99). The shrimp were big, and delicious eaten with the sauteed onions. The cocktail sauce didn't taste like it had chipotle lime in it, but was still good.

I was craving Cream of Crab, so I ordered the closest thing on the menu. The Seafood Chowder ($6.99) had shrimp, scallops, clams and applewood smoked bacon in a heavy cream base. It was so good and satisfying. It was quite heavy so if I didn't want to stuff myself (which is never), then I could just eat this as my lunch.

Our friends high recommended this ginormous sandwich! What you see below is only HALF. The Seafood Club ($14.50) comes with a 3 oz crab cake, shrimp salad, lettuce, tomato, mayo, smoked applewood bacon and swiss cheese. You also have the option of fried oysters instead of the crab cake. The shrimp salad had big chunks of shrimp, the bacon was flavorful and you can't go wrong with a crab cake in Baltimore. It's hard to eat because it's so tall, so I took it apart and ended up getting rid of an extra slice of bread in order to fill up on the good stuff.

After our meal we stopped by the famous Vaccaro's to pick up some Italian desserts for the road! A little on the pricey side, and not as sweet as typical desserts.

The service was quick and nice. They sliced the sandwiches for us and I have no complaints. We didn't get a chance to try any raw oysters as their name suggests, but next time!

2901 O'Donnell St
Baltimore, MD 21224
www.mamasmd.com

Hot N Juicy Crawfish - Woodley Park, DC

When the weather is cold and rainy, I typically turn to hot, Asian soups to calm my mood, but Hot N Juicy Crawfish provides the same effect. Picking at spicy seafood warms me up and helps me forget that it's gross outside. Thank goodness for my readers because I mentioned wishing the Boiling Crab (San Jose) was closer, and they told me about this place! Living Social offered a deal just in time too.

When it's nice outside, they offer outdoor seating. If you drive, good luck finding street parking. We took the metro because it's literally across the street from the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan stop on the red line.

I love exposed brick. The place is a decent size with rooms that are slightly sectioned off. Top 40 music was blasting during dinner, and the vibe was DC mixed Louisiana.

As the name suggests, the place is known for their crawfish. You can order other seafood items like crab, shrimp, lobster and clams too. They are all cooked in a plastic bag within your seasoning of choice. Simple concept, huh?

We ordered The Drool (crawfish, shrimp, snowcrab legs, sausage, corn on the cob, and side of fried calamari) for around $30-35. SUCH A DEAL! We also ordered a side of Cajun Fries (less than $5) that were good, crispy and spicier then expected.

Can you see the joy in his face?

They offer 5 seasoning flavors: Louisiana style, Cajun, Garlic Butter, Lemon Pepper and Hot N Spicy Special. Spice levels: Baby Spice, Mild, Medium, Spicy, and Extra Spicy. We ordered the Hot N Spicy Special, Mild. The server warned that they do not play when it comes to spice. Holy crap, the Mild I would consider Medium/Spicy. I would describe the sauce as thin, garlicky and spicy. The calamari was fried to perfection as a tasty side.

I was a crawfish-peeling virgin. They advise that you twist off the head, suck out the juices, then fold the tail in half to crack it, and then peel out the tail meat. Gosh, crawfish are tiny creatures! The shrimp tasted very sweet.

When you walk into the restaurant, they have this huge wall of Polaroids. It didn't say what it was for, so I asked and the server joking said "it's for people I like" and she added our picture =)

The servers are great. Very friendly, helpful and want to hear their customer's opinions. The food is good, however I wish the sauce was thicker/richer because it doesn't adhere to the seafood. Its a low-key place where you can get down and dirty with your food. Check out their Happy Hour of $1 beers all-day Monday through Wednesday! Can't beat that.

2651 Connecticut Ave NW
Washington, DC 20008
(202) 299-9448
hotnjuicycrawfish.com

Phillips Seafood - Rockville, MD

"There's a Phillips Seafood in Rockville?" Yezzir there is. I was recently invited to try some of their signature items along with Girl Meets Food, Johnna Knows Good Food and Cheap Eats in Charm City. It's nice to be with other people that know you can't eat until pictures of the food have been taken! There is plenty of parking in front and behind the building. The closest metro stop is Twinbrook on the red line.

Phillips is known for their Maryland blue crabs, crab cakes and buffet. However, there is no buffet here, so hit up the Washington DC location if that's what you want. Rockville's is an upscale seafood restaurant. The atmosphere is more conservative, and quiet.

$4 Happy Hour is all-day Sunday, and 4 - 7pm Monday - Friday. I ordered a mojito, which was ok. I would've preferred it sweeter with the mint leaves more muddled.

Executive Chef Arra Lawson was very personable and I enjoyed having him around our table telling us stories and teaching about seafood.

Isn't this gorgeous? We started off with the Chilled Sampler (king crab legs, oysters, clams, jumbo lump crab, shrimp cocktail, tuna tartare) for $28.99. Everything tasted very fresh, but what stood out to me was the tuna tartare. It was in a spectacular sauce.

We got to try the Steamed Mojito Clams (fresh garlic, chiles, lime and cilantro) for $9.99. It's a delicate dish with a lot of ginger.

The Famous Chesapeake Crab Cakes for $28.99. SO GOOD. All jumbo lump crab meat with minimal filler (secret: no bread crumbs). These reminded me of my childhood. I'm from MD baby!

We got to try the Key Lime Pie, Kentucky Bourbon Pie, Chocolate Lava Cake, and Black and White Chocolate Mousse Espresso. I enjoyed the Bourbon pie and Mousse Espresso the most.

These Crabby Nuts were in our gift bags! The bf killed the entire thing in about 1.5 days.

Thank you to Phillips Seafood for the invitation. Check out the specials they offer like $4 Happy Hour, 1/2 price wine bottles on Thursdays, $19.99 lobsters on Mondays and $2 Oysters Rockefeller on Sundays.

1775 Rockville Pike
Rockville, MD 20852-1621
(301) 881-4793

Bethesda Crab House- Bethesda, MD

4th of July weekend was the perfect time for crabs! Some friends and I looked around the area for an All-You-Cab-Eat place and decided upon Bethesda Crab House.

You have to make a reservations because they only have limited number of crabs. The outside was packed! It is a very casual place with newspaper covered tables.

We decided to eat inside to avoid the wait. The inside is small with 2-3 tables in the middle and booths along the wall.

All-You-Can-Eat medium male crabs for $40 a person. It also came with unlimited corn on the cob and cole slaw. Sorry this pic is blurry and that I don't have pics of the slaw and corn, but we were dying to eat! No time, lol.

These bad boys were covered in Old Bay Seasoning and came with butter, white vinegar and extra seasoning on the side.

There's a 2-hour time limit to eat as many as you can! The trays came out by the dozen, except for the last one that came out in a 1/2 dozen. Our group of 5 probably ate 5 trays. The table wasn't big enough for all the shells. A trash bucket would have been convenient, but our server came by to remove some of the trash.

It was a great time with friends! Some of the crabs were smaller than I'd consider "medium", but over all the crabs were hot upon arrival. The service was nice and I would say it's similar to other crab houses I've been to. They also offer other seafood options and crabs a la carte.

4958 Bethesda Ave
Bethesda, MD 20814
(301) 652-3382
bethesdabigcrabs.com


Open 7 days a week 9AM-11PM

Hook- Georgetown, DC

Hi Everyone! DC Restaurant Week was a month ago, so I apologize for this being late post. Hopefully it will still give you an idea about the place if you're deciding whether to try it or not.

3 of us made reservations to try Hook because I was recommended by some friends. Restaurant Week dinner was $35.09 per person for a choice of 3 courses off a pre-selected menu.

It's located in the heart of Georgetown. I parked in the garage that is about 1-2 blocks away. Street parking is always a nightmare. Closest metro stop would be Foggy Bottom-GWU on the Blue/Orange line.

FYI: The place was very dimly lit for the ambiance, so some pics are either dark or blurry. Sorry!

It was a Thursday night, so the bar was packed with people grabbing a drink. It can get quite loud in there.

There are two areas to sit. This is the main dining room. Sorry its so dark! It's quite beautiful when you look at it in person. We were seated in the front of the restaurant near the window. There are only about 3-4 small tables up front. There is also a long table next to the bar which fits larger groups of around 12.

The bread was soft with grains in them. The spread was a kind of garlic mayonnaise.

Starting with appetizers, my friend ordered the '½ Dozen Oysters (New York)- coriander mignonette'. She let me try one, and I thought it was good. I love all oysters as long as they're not gritty.

My cousin ordered the 'Tomato Gazpacho- jumbo lump crab, fava bean pesto, lemon, olive oil'. I didn't try it, but she said it was ok.

Look at this plate! I ordered the 'Beet Salad- goat cheese, pistachio, wheat berries, pickled watermelon, vanilla'. The server recommended it as well as reviews online. It was amazing. I'm a fan of strong flavors, so the salty pistachios, pungent cheese, and sweetness of the beets were to die for.

Now onto the main course (wow, that's blurry), my cousin ordered the 'Yellowfin Tuna (Florida)- barley, pattypan squash, strawberries, tomato jalapeño sauce'. She didn't know it was going to be seared, so she wasn't prepared to eat that much raw fish. Tasted fine to me, but if you're not into raw fish/meat, I would stay away.

My friend ordered the 'Artic Char (Iceland)- basmati rice, peas, carrot curry sauce'. It was so good! I think she had the best fish dish of the night. I would order this fish next time.

I ordered the 'Barramundi (Massachusetts)- parsnip puree, raspberries, cucumbers, baby heirloom tomatoes, chives'. I think I ordered it because the name sounded cool. It was good with an interesting flavor combination of raspberries and parsnips. I thought it was slightly bland, but I did finish the entire plate, so I can't complain.

We were already full, but made room for dessert and shared all of them. First one was the 'Apple Tart- almond frangipane, vanilla ice cream'. I liked it a lot. The pastry was perfect.

The 'Lemon Cake- honey lavender buttercream, honey ice cream' was very good with the lavender buttercream. I thought it gave an interesting twist to a lemon cake.

Lastly, the 'Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding- chocolate hazelnut biscotti' was good as well. It had a great bittersweet taste that I prefer over milk chocolate pudding.

Our server was really nice and helpful when we asked for recommendations. Their pastry chef won "Pastry Chef of the Year" in 2008, so you can't go wrong with anything you choose. The Restaurant Week menu was a great deal because the entrees regularly are in the mid-20's range. I loved the beet salad, thought my fish was good, and liked the desserts. I also appreciate the restaurant's locally grown produce, eco-friendly and humane meat/dairy practices that they mention on their site.

3241 M St NW
Washington, DC 20007
202-625-4488
Website

Monday Dinner: 5:00pm-10:00pm
Tues-Fri Lunch: 11:30am-2:30pm Dinner: 5:00pm-10:00pm
Saturday Brunch: 10:00am-3:30pm Dinner: 5:00pm-11:00pm
Sunday Brunch: 10:00am-3:30pm Dinner: 5:00pm-10:00pm