Luminous is the hotel bar/restaurant located at the Westin BWI.  Usually hotel restaurants can be hit or miss, but the Westin name sort of carries along some cred for being better quality than your average Courtyard.  And when you walk into the lobby, you certainly get that from the allure of the decor to the attention to detail.  And while perusing the menu trying to see if it shall be here that you dine, or the Bob Evans down the street, your eyes happen to notice the crab cakes.  You're probably here on business, which begs the question if you should get your crab cake fix here, or find somewhere else.  Well look no further!  Read on and see for yourself....

For over 10 years, Luna Del Sea has been entertaining tourists and locals alike with fresh seafood and sizzling steaks. And the location is prime: right on Pratt St near Camden Yards, M&T Bank Stadium, the Convention Center, a good number of the major hotels in the downtown area, and so forth. If you're like us, you've noticed the place many times, but haven't been able to stop in, either because of traffic, time constraints, or the line out the door on a busy night (they do have a pretty nice outdoor seating area). But despite how fancy the establishment appears, the dress code is casual, so feel free to wear your Oriole's orange or Ravens camo. We happened to stop by after a phenomenal Orioles win one night, and checked out one of the specialties of the house -- crab cakes! Check out the review to see what we thought!

Lures is a local watering hole that prides itself on its extensive craft beer selection and regional cuisine, and has been around since 2008. They were even voted Best Hidden Gem by the Annapolis What's Up? Mag in 2011 (and we also reviewed their Chesapeake Chachos back in October 2011). Just glance around the place, and you'll wonder what they love more -- beer or fishing. The two naturally go hand-in-hand, so for now we'll call it even. But where there is beer and fish, there are crab cakes. And Lures provides. How were they? Let's find out!

McCormick and Schmick's runs a variety of seafood restaurants across the United States under differing names.  The M&S Grill is their take on providing fresh seafood and aged steaks in a more relaxed setting.  Located in the Inner Harbor next to the Harborplace amphitheater, you can enjoy views of the USS Constellation, National Aquarium, and watch the hustle and bustle around Harborplace.  With the main McCormick and Schmick's around the corner, the CCR decided to sit outside on a nice day, enjoy the sun and a cold beverage, and see how the crab cake at the more causal location fares.  Continue on to see how it all went down.

You may already be familiar with MaGerks from their Federal Hill location. Back in 2000, a couple of brothers from Philadelphia decided to open their second location down in Baltimore to serve displaced Eagles fans, and quickly grew to encompass 3 bar areas and an outdoor patio. In addition, they brought you real Philly-style cheesesteaks, authentic down to the Amoroso roll. They did so well that they decided to open another location up in Bel Air. And while the Federal Hill location may have expanded their menu to include sushi, the Bel Air location's menu expanded to include crab cakes! So how did a couple of cheesesteakheads do with their version of the Maryland classic? Read on and see for yourself!