Crab cake lessons I have learned
Of course, the obvious one is don't mess with somebody else's favorite crab cake; but less obvious is that there are many more places that have excellent crab cakes around here than I thought. Out of well over 100 comments on my two crab cake entries, I thought this one from Mike was the most insightful:
Kudos for taking on a topic that I suspect has as much to do with personal history and loyalty than culinary reason.
I also hadn't thought much about the role of the media in all this, and how much a crab cake's reputation becomes self-perpetuating. I mean, who would think to order a grilled crab cake at Sip & Bite, even though it's only $6.50? Richard tells us it's better than G & M's and Timbuktu's. ...
(Sun archives)
One crab cake aficionado pointed out that the Washington Post ran a "Crummy But Good" column a long time ago anointing the G & M's cake as its "road trip fantasy crab cake"; and he believes that's where its reputation started. Then things snowballed, and now you can't have a crab cake contest without trying G & M's. Not that it isn't worthy, but is it worthier than Sip & Bite's, given the price difference? I have no idea.
Comments
What happened to you in Italy? You have just been a ball of controversy since you got back. First you took on Italian restaurants and then crab cakes and now you have the temerity to point out that there are many reasons that one crab cake is perceived to be better than others and they are not always tied to the taste of the crab cake. We are not allowing you to travel again until next summer!
In all seriousness, I do look forward to next year's discussion of all things crab during Crab Week.
Yes, I'm thinking Christmas teas for next week's Top Ten. Ha ha, just kidding. I'm giving myself a good long time to recover before Crab Week. May it is.
Posted by: Regina | November 1, 2007 10:29 AM
I lived in Linthicum for a number of yrs and couldn't see the reason why people flocked to
G&M. I find their crabcakes bland. They could use a little more Old Bay. My favorite crab cakes come from a place that isn't even a restaurant: Roy's Kwik Corner on Crain Highway in Glen Burnie! I love their baseball crab cake.
Posted by: Kim Moore | November 1, 2007 10:31 AM
I have always enjoyed the crab cakes at Eichenkranz. This may not be normal for a place more known for German food but what do I know, I'm originally from Oregon. Actually, in the past 34 years I've had good and bad crab cakes all over the region and these remain among my favorites. They are large with lots of lump meat and very reasonably priced (a meal with 2 for 18.25 or 1 in a sandwich for 7.75). In fact, our group has never had any bad food from this restaurant and we’ve tried a wide variety.
Posted by: Rochelle | November 1, 2007 11:52 AM
Perhaps you should delete all crab cake entries and pretend like this never happened.
Don't make me laugh out loud at work.
Posted by: SGI | November 1, 2007 12:30 PM
How old is that picture of the Sip & Bite? I don't think that I have ever seen a sidewalk like that.
I'll look it up when I get back to work. And you have to wonder what was cropped out to make it that shape when it was published.
Posted by: MB | November 1, 2007 3:56 PM
How nice to be almost remembered! I developed and wrote the "Crummy But Good Restaurants" column as a freelancer for the Washington Post for several years. The "Crabcake Wars" series was by far the most popular and most debated and most fun. That column turned into a book (Quest for the Holy Grill") and a run on a local NPR station. Alas, my traveling fork has been sheathed for a while. Keep up the good work. Donovan
Posted by: donovan kelly | November 10, 2007 8:38 AM