One of the great summertime pastimes is going to a baseball game.  Traditionally, stadium fare consists of peanuts, hot dogs and Cracker Jack.  Those times are in the past, and stadiums are providing more gourmet options.  So it should be no surprise that Oriole Park at Camden Yards would offer Baltimore's most famous treat:  crab cakes.  New for the 2011 season, the Orioles teamed up with a new food, beverage and retail partner to deliver locally-inspired cuisine.  The crab cakes were inspired by sampling more than 50 restaurants in the region.  How did they turn out?  Read on to find out!

P.J. Clarke's has quite a bit of history to it, with the original location in NYC having been around since 1868, and the name as you know it today since 1912. P.J.'s has only ever had 5 owners, and they all kept the place the same. The location we visited in Washington, D.C. has only been around since 2010, but sports some pretty impressive details that would make you think the restaurant has been around a lot longer. Located just around the corner from the White House, you can rub elbows with some of DC's power lunch crowd while having lunch or a late night meal. Should you stop by for crab cakes, or just go straight for the drinks? Read on and find out!

When you think of Little Italy, your thoughts drift immediately to visions of spaghetti, meatballs, garlic bread, and gelato (mmmm....Vaccaro's).  If you had to think Italian seafood, then you would probably just imagine calamari, and maybe a nice bronzini.  But certainly not crab cakes.  But that is where Pacific Coast is different.  Located amongst the Italian eateries lies this new establishment to Baltimore's restaurant scene, which opened in April 2011.  The idea is a California grill using fresh, natural ingredients, which is something that a seafood town like Baltimore can appreciate.  So how does West Coast fare do on the East Coast?  Continue on and find out!

Last week we reviewed Pappas Jumbo Lump Crab Cake at the repeated request of our friends. And it was very good! Their menu had lots of crab options on it, so we coudln't just leave it at the crab cake. So while we were there, we took it upon ourselves to see how the Crab Melt stood up to the glory of their regular crab cake. Read on to find out how things went down!

What hasn't been said about the Phillips empire?  We here at the CCR have reviewed many of their products, both at one of their restaurants, as well as their retail offerings.  Love them or hate them, they are a big part of the Maryland seafood scene, and are here to stay.  Locals tend to write them off as being too "touristy".  Those very same tourists have heard nothing but good things about Phillips, and come to our town intent on sampling their offerings.  Either way, you will have had them once in your life, and could use them as a baseline for all things seafood related.  

BUT --  you read the label on the box a little more closely.  Coastal cakes.  What does that mean?  Crab cakes are advertised as such, and often time are described further as 'jumbo lump' or 'lump'.  Just to be clear, the coastal cakes are the "lesser" offering.  Made from flake and claw meat, as opposed to the prized backfin and jumbo lump.  Clearly, based on crab classifications alone, they can't be better.  Can they?  This, dear readers, is what we set to figure out.  Follow along and join us on an eye opening quest.