Each region in the United States had its regional specialty. Our forefathers, as they settled in the regions, slowly discovered the fruits of the lands and traded with one another using the indigenous specialties to increase the growing power of the country. In the modern era we have refrigerated transportation by truck and even air transportation for express service. We soon discovered that several factors affected the freshness of whatever we were transporting, stress in livestock or refrigeration complications, despite the advances in technology we came to accept that product freshness can only be maintained by keeping food local and regional.
The Chesapeake Bay region is known for its shellfish and fisheries. Its easy access to estuaries and the ocean have stressed the region’s wildlife populations through overfishing sending the populations dwindling. I remember once seeing an image showing the “catches” throughout the years getting smaller and smaller as time goes on and overfishing takes over.
Enter the science of aquaculture. I can’t be bothered to explain the underlying science of it but imagine farming but for aquatic creatures. There are of course risks to the ecosystems the aquaculture is in but it is infinitely better than wiping out entire populations of wildlife.
But enough of that. Although important it won’t exactly make for a great post. This is a food vacation and I’m here to get my fix of crabs especially during its peak season in early may. The reason for eating crab while they are in season is the same reason I go to Maine while the lobsters are in season. The meat has a natural sweetness and freshness to it that you won’t be able to get unless you go straight to the source.
So okay. My top three choices were all filled to the brim with tourists, boo hoo. But the show must go on and I need to start hammering these poor bastards to get my
fix. After getting shut down three times I resorted to my tried and true method of asking around for places to go, with great success I might add. It turns out, the best place to get some Chesapeake blue crabs isn’t by the water fighting with seagulls. The best place for the locals is an inland, far away from any water source, restaurant called Fifer’s Seafood.
The storefront is unassuming, you can easily pass for a regular trip mall store but upon attentive inspection one is quickly corrected. Walking in from the parking lot revealed something exciting for me, a vast majority of cars parked in the lot were local license plates. This is one of the signs that I look for when I look for a quality restaurant in an unfamiliar place. Paired with the fair wait times I was confident that it was a good hit. It’s a pretty basic place that doesn’t try to be something it isn’t. Once inside you’re met with a waft of that Old Bay Seasoning I was talking about in the previous post. The sound of hammering mallets as people worked to get to the meat inside the crabs was pronounced and expected and the general atmosphere was pretty lively.
As a tri-stater I am very familiar with the All You Can Eat (AYCE) restaurant model. And Fifers is one of them. The price changes daily to accommodate the market price of their inventory but generally I was told it is less than 50 dollars per person. That may sound steep but for a dozen medium blue crabs you can pay upwards of 45 dollars especially if you made the mistake of patronizing a restaurant during a peak holiday.
Once seated at a park style bench, you are given a mallet and a menu and a choice of dips including melted clarified butter and apple cider vinegar to name a few. The gambit can run from local oysters to hush puppies and of course local blue crabs and imported snow crab legs, with everything covered in Old Bay Seasoning. Remember, you just pay once price and you can order to your hearts content. Recommendations aside from the
seafood include the in house hush puppies, Fifers makes of the best deep fried cornmeal hushpuppies I’ve ever had. And as far as things to stay away from are the soups, and oh my god, the crab pretzel. If you love eating heavy mayonnaise out of the bucket with a lie of having crabs on the pretzel, then the crab pretzel is the perfect thing for you… it feels like your blood turned into sludge from the cholesterol.
I learned something that particular day after several orders. The naturally occurring fat in crabs and shellfish can really slow your body down as your gut works extra hard trying to process what you’re eating. All that extra effort ends up making you a bit dizzy and sleepy. But here’s the kicker, it won’t come in slowly and allow you time to anticipate it. No, no, no, It comes in one fast wave that
catches you off guard and before you know it you’re feeling full and you still have half a plate of seafood to go through. A fair warning to those who would attempt to brave such a challenge as an AYCE crabhouse, be ready. Oh and don’t forget to bring the beer. Fifers is BYOB friendly despite having its own bar.
Links:
Fifers Seafood Restaurant and Market… (It’s in Pasadena, MD. Not Annapolis)
http://fifersseafood.com/
The Official Ishikawa Arts Special Projects Blog 