612743 Fri Apr 17 08:31:18 -0700 2009 31 14 Washington DC & Baltimore Area 0 4604188 I have seen soft shell crabs in a few fish markets (fresh from Florida) for the past two weekends. Are any restaurants serving them yet ? Fri Apr 17 08:31:18 -0700 2009 283448 scarlettb 1 4604793 Annabell Lee Tavern had a soft crab sandwich on their menu last week as a special. Fri Apr 17 11:32:37 -0700 2009 4604188 141082 bmore_flavor 1 4604832 I had a wonderful entree of soft shells accompanied with sweet corn succotash and heirloom tomatoes at IXIA last week. Fri Apr 17 11:42:25 -0700 2009 4604188 256757 abovethewaves 2 4605443 If you are thinking local fresh soft crabs... water temp is still about 50-52F -- another Full moon cycle and a bit higher temp and they will start appearing locally. Fri Apr 17 14:55:56 -0700 2009 4604832 154386 JRCann 2 4608338 Heirloom tomatoes? and corn? from where? certainly not local. Sun Apr 19 00:41:44 -0700 2009 4604832 256995 LuLuBlaubugunder 1 4605945 They are on the menu at Clementine! Fri Apr 17 18:51:20 -0700 2009 4604188 182537 ronandaim 1 4606830 They had the first ones of the season at The Narrows on Kent Island last weekend. Sat Apr 18 09:22:31 -0700 2009 4604188 18274 DanielK 2 4606986 I had some pretty amazing whale size ones in for Mother's Day. I think they were from so Virginia or North Carolina. Very juicy. With the new conservation plan in place on the Chesapeake this year, the crab counts are up over 20% over last year so good news for crab lovers, but I would still steer clear of the Chesapeake crabs this year. One year of good news is not a trend. Sat Apr 18 10:52:13 -0700 2009 4606830 59959 deangold 3 4607736 Virginia crabs are quite likely from the Chesapeake. Sat Apr 18 17:11:16 -0700 2009 4606986 11669 Hal Laurent 4 4607747 The Virginia source I use has been from the James and not the main bay. Sat Apr 18 17:16:15 -0700 2009 4607736 59959 deangold 5 4607843 Wow, I didn't know they harvested crabs from the James River. I have family in Newport News and am familiar with the area. My father who lives in Newport News tells me that it's near impossible to get a proper Maryland-style crab cake there. Sat Apr 18 18:12:40 -0700 2009 4607747 11669 Hal Laurent 6 4609129 The James is tidal all the way to the fall line at Richmond. The lower James, where it enters the Bay, would be brackish enough for crabs to be very happy. Same with the York and Tappahannock Rivers. VA's annual crab harvest equals that of MD. Their culinary traditions are different however. Can you get a decent Crabmeat Norfolk in Baltimore? Sun Apr 19 12:16:52 -0700 2009 4607843 32444 MakingSense 7 4610041 I knew Virginia had a big crab harvest, but I had apparently mistakenly thought that it was all from the lower part of the Chesapeake Bay. Thanks for the enlightenment. I'll have to look up Crabmeat Norfolk. I've forgotten what that is. Sun Apr 19 19:03:44 -0700 2009 4609129 11669 Hal Laurent 8 4610198 It is pretty much the Lower Bay. The State line is the southern shore of the Potomac River and then it cuts across the Bay south of Smith Island and Crisfield on the Eastern Shore. Chincoteague Nat. Wildlife Refuge is part of VA. The crabbing down there is really good. Lots of small estuaries and marshland, similar to the areas around Cambridge and around the Choptank on MD's Eastern Shore. They warm up sooner and stay warm longer than the main Bay does. Crabmeat Norfolk is crabmeat with butter and herbs, often with country ham. Sometimes with a light seafood veloute. Terrific dish. I've never understood why it's not done more often, especially in the DC area and in upscale restaurants. It's perfect for those who like their lump crabmeat unadorned and there is no drama about "binding" or "fillers," frying v. broiling, etc. It's served in a simple dish that you can run under the broiler or bake in the oven. Sun Apr 19 20:29:50 -0700 2009 4610041 32444 MakingSense 7 4611033 Don't know where to get Crabmeat Nofolk in Balto., but if I recall, the Williamsburg Inn (Whitemarsh area) serves Seafood Norfolk--shrimp, scallops, crab etc. It's quite delicious. FoiGras Mon Apr 20 08:14:06 -0700 2009 4609129 180672 FoiGras 8 4612310 Crabmeat Norfolk is a dish that deserves to be resurrected and broadly honored. It used to be a staple of VA Tidewater cuisine. What's wrong with you VA folks???? Bring it back!!! So many people order crabcakes wanting nothing but those hunks of crabmeat that they really don't give a rat's ass about MD traditions or anything else. This would be the perfect solution to their desires. So who has a good recipe? Please post it on Home Cooking. MD commercial crabbing opened April 1, 2009. Mon Apr 20 13:35:06 -0700 2009 4611033 32444 MakingSense 9 4739143 A few weeks ago when visiting my parents in Newport News, I saw Seafood Norfolk on a restaurant menu. Wed Jun 03 10:42:32 -0700 2009 4612310 11669 Hal Laurent 1 4610713 We dined at Christopher Daniel last night in Timonium. They were offering soft shell crabs with preparation options. None of my party were takers, but it sounded delightful! Mon Apr 20 06:07:24 -0700 2009 4604188 56020 maddogg280 1 4611523 I went to Catonsville Gourmet on Saturday, April 11 and my table was informed it was the restaurant's first day offering them. One diner at the table ordered them and said they were amazing. Go get 'em! Mon Apr 20 10:25:12 -0700 2009 4604188 135074 SGI 1 4616994 I saw soft shells at the fish stand in Cross Street Market a couple of days ago...sure sign of spring Tue Apr 21 20:23:54 -0700 2009 4604188 110233 mobtown999 2 4739289 Cross Street Market's are so fresh that they're alive still. Wed Jun 03 11:21:39 -0700 2009 4616994 256757 abovethewaves 3 4739401 You shouldn't buy them if they're dead. Wed Jun 03 11:45:12 -0700 2009 4739289 32444 MakingSense 4 4739453 Yes you certainly can....as long as they look fresh, are cleaned, and kept on ice. They have a shelf life of about 5-6 days after they are caught and kept on ice. You really think all these restaurants that serve them are getting them alive and keeping them that way.... Wed Jun 03 11:58:05 -0700 2009 4739401 256757 abovethewaves 5 4739514 You should hope that they are. Once they're killed and cleaned, the quality deteriorates quickly. You should always buy them alive, keep them that way under damp towels, and kill/clean them just before cooking them. If you are going to use them within a few hours, you can ask the fish market to clean them. And yes, the shedders ship them to brokers and wholesalers alive. They're alive in good fishmarkets for a reason. The shedder up the road from me has about 20 refrigerators full of live crabs right now. It would make his life a lot easier if he didn't have to worry about keeping them alive. Perishability is one of the reasons they're so expensive. Wed Jun 03 12:16:01 -0700 2009 4739453 32444 MakingSense 1 4702786 Definitely soft shell season now! A number of downtown Baltimore restaurants are (finally) getting smart and promoting "Soft Shell Week" with special offers on their menus. Check them out: http://www.dinedowntownbaltimore.com/publications/softshell_crab.pdf Thu May 21 03:43:01 -0700 2009 4604188 11601 crackers 1 4739256 I had great soft-shell at Cinghiale last night: tempura batter, served with a "lettuce" sauce and fried capers. Wed Jun 03 11:15:18 -0700 2009 4604188 47574 bordeauxfan 1 4740400 I dined on delicious, wonderfully prepared soft shell crabs at the Rib'n Reef Grill this past Sundays. The crabs were filled abundantly with sweet, succulent meat and fried without a greasy layer. I have repeatedly mentioned this restaurant as my hubby and I have enjoyed many wonderful meals at reasonable prices. My hubby had the clams casino--he was actually "purring" as they were so plump, not chewy and wonderfully seasoned. One of my utmost favorite features at this particular restaurant is the FRIED SPINACH. Not sauteed, albeit, they do offer that as a side item. But, fried spinach. Almost as good as potato chips. (Probably not any healthier, despite the fact that it is a vegetable- well, just like french fries). Trust me on this one--FRIED SPINACH. Thank goodness I don't have a deep fryer at home. So, I can only indulge in this wonderful side-dish when I dine at Rib'nReef Grill. By-the-way, the restaurant has a wonderful, reasonably priced appetizer of three grilled lamb chops, served on that glorious fried spinach. They also have very good crabcakes. I won't go into categorizing theirs as the best, but they are better then most that I have tried--including but not limited to G&M, etc. That's another thread to tread on. FoiGras Wed Jun 03 16:48:36 -0700 2009 4604188 180672 FoiGras 2 4740700 I Googled it; I can't find it. Crystal ball isn't working. Guess I'll have to go eat worms... Wed Jun 03 18:43:48 -0700 2009 4740400 137946 Scargod 3 4742163 http://www.ribnreefmd.com/ Its where Gibby's used to be on Padonia Rd. Thu Jun 04 09:36:01 -0700 2009 4740700 225697 placidothecat 4 4742174 I'll put Gibby's crabcake against any I have had in the area! Any idea if the two are related? Thu Jun 04 09:38:20 -0700 2009 4742163 129741 gregb 5 4742343 Gibby's still has a carryout place further up York Rd., but the restaurant closed a while back. I have no idea if the ...Reef... place is related in any way. Thu Jun 04 10:24:13 -0700 2009 4742174 225697 placidothecat 1 4742404 Purchased some live from the guys at the Fallsway Farmers Market on Sunday. Lightly floured, then sauteed in some butter...Mmmm Thu Jun 04 10:44:49 -0700 2009 4604188 206445 thecheeseisblue