My Dad used to lift and test weigh all the crabs to pick the largest ones for himself, until I pestered him so relentlessly and bluntly about how rude it is that he finally quit. (It took several feasts before it sunk in.) It's such a crummy thing to do that I think it's fair game to say something - though that might come easier from one of the guests (rather than the host) who is being cheated out of any shot at the best crabs. And admittedly, it was easier to harass my father than a more casual acquaintance.

I'm lucky enough (as a slow crab picker) to usually eat crabs with people who keep count. (Dad's good on that point.) And out of appreciation, I usually donate one to him after he's finished his so he doesn't have to sit and watch the rest of us eat for too long.

If you're the host, I'd say you should sweetly ask your pawing guest something innocent, such as, "Excuse me, but the crabs must be out of your reach. Here, let me give you this one." Unless the guest is willing to admit to her greed for snagging the biggest crab, she'll shut up and take whatever you give her.

CCH, I admire your tenacity. Faced with the complications you describe, I'd have taken the coward's way out and moved to a burgercentric state.

2 dozen = 24
divided by 4 = 6
8 crabs in front of each of your guests leaves you with none.

My solution: crab cakes.

Oh wow--a problem I have never ever contemplated. Maybe because I'm relatively slow and never eat more than 4 or 5 crabs. (Do people really eat 8 apiece?) Reminder: I'm not from around here!

Isn't there a law against putting etiquette and crabs in the same thought?

When the crabs are delivered to the table, someone in my group always announces, "Basic crab etiquette. The first crab you touch is yours and no making fun of anyone's picking style." We've never had any problems with Heavy Crab Pickers since we started that little announcement, which is never done sternly.

Dahlink, I've lived here all my life and have never eaten more than 4 or 5 crabs unless they are the teeny little crabs. Usually a bowl of crab soup and or some big heavy crabs and an ear of corn and I'm stuffed.

i despise the heavy crab pickers. i'll speak up next time.

i have no off switch when it comes to crabs... or beer... or margaritas... or rice krispy treats... or... i could go on. i can eat a dozen or so crabs even if they are mammoth and still have room for more.

Well, unbelievaboh, usually by the time I'm finishing off crab 4 or 5, someone is coming along with some Baltimore Peach Cake--a clear signal to switch off the crab picking!

What about picking some one else's shells? My sister doesn't like the mustard while other's of us do and will grab her shells for extra goodness.
I will rummage through shells for claws. Perhaps my family is just a bunch or lousey pickers!

rubylynda, all perfectly acceptable crab etiquette as far as I am concerned--just as long as you are not too "grabby"!

Picking over someone's crab shells is ok. Picking over someone's chicken wings is not. Picking over someone's rib bones is only ok if you really know the other person.

Re: the crab shells, I usually make an announcement right up front that I'll happily take them off the hands of anyone who doesn't eat the mustard. People then hand them right over, so I don't have to go rummaging.

I have to admit I am guilty of picking through the pile to find a heavy crab - but I only do this when I am with my immediate family. And, they do it too. We just give each other a hard time about it and there are no hard feelings. I also tend to be on the fastest to pick my crabs so I keep a careful count if we only have a dozen. If we get a half bushel or more, all bets are off. I could sit and eat crabs all day.

My question is, what's with all the people who need to raid a hardware store for tools to eat their crabs? I use a regualr knife. Not a steak knife, not a small paring knife and definitely not a mallet. When I need to get into a claw, I use the knife and the edge of my hand. Give me a knife, some newspaper and the crabs and I am a happy girl.

Amy, I prefer to use a mallet to tap the back of the knife to save wear and tear on my left hand.

The perfect July 4th [South Florida style] -- slot machines and steamed crabs. We were told the crabs were from the west coast of Florida [Rob PCB take note], the spices were pure Maryland and the meal worthy of our backyard in Baltimore. Medium crabs, by the way, were $48 a dozen. How much are they "at home?"

bra1nchild,
Duly noted!
I don't know for sure, but crabs up in MD are pretty pricey as well.

I should go out and find some steamed crabs. There is one place called Steamers Seafood Market that even flies a MD flag, but its in Sandestin, probably a 40 minute drive or so. There is Dirty Dick's Crabs here in town, but this time of year its packed with tourists. And I'm not sure they do steamed blue crabs anyway.

Back to the discussion...

I've never encountered a heavy crab hunter, most of my crab eating experiences have been that pretty much all the crabs were the same in size and weight and amount of meat.

Like Dahlink and Joyce, I'll eat maybe four crabs or so and I'm done, especially if they are really meaty. I remember Jimmy's on Holabird Avenue had the largest crabs I've ever eaten. The backfin lump was a mouthful in itself. Three and I was full, even on an empty stomach.

Speaking of crab, my desk calendar says that on July 5, 1054 A.D. the Crab Supernova exploded.

When I was in Florida I tried the garlic crabs. Apparently they are quite popular in Ft. Lauderdale. I didn't care for them. Maybe I didn't get fresh ones, but I found no sweet crab flavor. I should say that they were out of blue crabs, so they used golden crabs instead. It was the first time I ever heard of golden crabs.

RoCK,
Down in South Florida, especially on the Atlantic side, stone crabs seem to be the crabs most often served. I've never heard of golden crabs either.

We go to Riggins Crab House in Lantana, about 30 minutes from home but worth the drive. The place is full of Baltimore/MD memorabilia including newspaper clippings about John Riggins [formerly of the hated Redskins].

Garlic crabs are available here, too, but I can't imagine why anyone would order them. Just being in the same dining room with them is an ordeal.

Last night, Riggins' special was unlimited small crabs for $27. There was also a deal on a half-pound each of king, Dungeness and snow crab for about ten dollars more.

We have also learned that there is nothing like a Maryland crab cake to be had here in the Land of Hurricanes. It's sad when the best around is from Bonefish.

I totally look for the heaviest crab. So does everyone else I always eat crabs with. Regular butter knife, please-no mallet needed. Vinegar and Old Bay on the side for dipping. Claws get handed off to the highest bidder. Always eat the mustard. The time to stop eating is when there are none left. Slow pickers will learn to pick faster next time. I've eaten a dozen or more, easily. You burn off what you've eaten just picking the next one. It's a neverending cycle :)

people who don't eat their claws are another pet peeve of mine. my fiance does this. sure claws are a pain in the ass to pick, but it's easier on everyone if you just deal with them as you go. leaving a big pile of them usually means they get wasted. passing them off means they get stuck cracking claws while the passer picks through the pile for another heavy crab. the person who doesn't want to waste the claws get's stuck with the lesser, light crabs.

unbelievaboh,

When we get crabs, there's always 2 or 3 people begging for claws. I give the claws to them. I personally don't like that meat, it's not tender.

If there is a small enough group, and you order a definitive # of crabs, then I think it's only fair that you all agree to a per-person limit when ordering them , i.e. "There are 4 of us, so if we get 3 dozen, that's 9 crabs each, okay?" Usually that works just fine and everyone gts their fair share.

WhaI HATE is when someone just arbitraily wants to place the order so that everyone gets 6 crabs per person. Well, what if I'm extra hungry that night and I want 9 crabs, which I'm willing to pay for?

So typically, most times we get people together for crabs (either take-out or dining in a restaurant), we all figure out how many we EACH want to eat before ordering. I'm good for about 8 (depending on size), some people are good for less, and some like to eat more. We just tally up the exact number we EACH want beforehand, and then order that very amount.

At most crab houses you can order any number of crabs. Just because they are "priced by the dozen" ,it doesn't mean you have to buy them by the dozen. If you want 15 crabs, you can buy 15 crabs. But typically we try to round up to the nearest dozen/half dozen. Better to have a few extra than a few short.

I never eat the claws when I am eating crabs. I save them for the next day or so. I always announce to the group that I'll take any claws they don't want. I often end up with 2 to 3 dozen claws.

I refrigerate them immediately and then pack them on ice for the journey back to Kentucky. There is nothing finer than to be in non-crab country and having a late lunch licking the spice and cracking the claws with memories of the original feast.

i'll sometimes throw a few leftover claws in a batch of MD crab soup while it's simmering.

PCBRob and bra,
Hate to tell you both this, but in this part of FL (central) you can't buy blue crabs by the dozen, half dozen. They only sell them by the weight in lbs. Looonnnnggg, skinny state we live in! Good news is, I can get live blue crabs every weekend at Flea World. I always did prefer to steam them myself so this works for me. Only other place to go in central FL is "Tom & Mony's" who are/were both from Cockeysville.

I never really thought about crab etiquette. I've grown up eating them without thought, along with everyone else around me. I don't know that anyone ever picks through to find the heaviest crab, though. We've always just grabbed the one that was closest, figuring it all evens out in the end. I eat some of the claws and pass the rest off to those who ask me for them. No one feels cheated. So if there are people out there counting crabs, watching to see no one gets a heavier crab, or checking to see if I eat all my claws, I'll skip eating with them. It's more fun if the day is about conversation, good food, and good company.

for all you expatriate Marylanders, you can order crabs delivered 2-day shipping via UPS - the best is CrabPlace.com (they have a satellite drop-ship location in Tampa) have all sorts of promotions and deals if you join their facebook page:

facebook.com/the.crabplace

I grew up pulling crab pots from the end of the back deck. I can tell you at our table, if you even thought about sizing, you would get your hands smacked. My grandfather was a stickler for fairness. You took what was in front of you. We've always saved our claws to make soup with. We've always used simple normal butter knives for openings and there was never mallets. Now that I live in Vegas, the best place for me to buy crabs, live or steamed, is Crabplace.com. I've gotten live crab within 12hrs after my order. It's AWSOME!

I grew up pulling crab pots from the end of the back deck. I can tell you at our table, if you even thought about sizing, you would get your hands smacked. My grandfather was a stickler for fairness. You took what was in front of you. We've always saved our claws to make soup with. We've always used simple normal butter knives for openings and there was never mallets. Now that I live in Vegas, the best place for me to buy crabs, live or steamed, is Crabplace.com. I've gotten live crab within 12hrs after my order. It's AWSOME!

I've eaten crabs with all sorts of people with all sorts of "styles". If I'm at a crab feast, we ignore the claws. If I'm with my friends, we only buy the largest males they have. Most of us can eat 4-6 depending on the size. We eat until we're full. Then split the leftovers. We always buy extras!