Food and Travel – Special Blog Post

Are you looking for the perfect getaway with a relaxed coastal vibe? Do you enjoy outdoor dining and seafood? How about nature walking trails, water inlet marsh views, and beautiful sunsets? Yes? Then get packed and ready to travel to the quintessential town of St. Michaels located in the Chesapeake Bay area of Maryland. This quaint town is a seafood lovers paradise with the star attractions being blue crabs, oysters, and rockfish prepared in the most diverse and amazingly delicious ways. Keep reading to see some of our food favorites from the area.

Foodie faves:

1. The Crab Claw –
   • Here we experienced eating steamed blue crabs for the first time. It was quite the experience! Luckily there was a paper placemat with detailed instructions on how to open the crab shell. We used a small wooden mallet and a knife, but we discovered your hands work just as well. You can immediately smell all the different spices that were used to season the crabs. We learned that Old Bay seasoning is the secret spice used to flavor the crabs as they steam over a mixture of beer and water. This was definitely a memorable experience that everyone should partake in when visiting the area.
   • As much as you can enjoy the steamed crabs on their own, you can also enjoy them in soup. Maryland Crab Soup is prepared two distinct ways. One is a tomato based broth with a variety of vegetables and crab meat. The other is cream based with onions and crab. A local favorite is to enjoy both soups together in the same bowl!
   • Side note: The crab season begins in April and runs through November when the largest crabs are harvested.

Looking to read a little more about steamed blue crabs? Check out this article here from Girl Carnivore’s blog “How to Steam Fresh Blue Crabs”

2. Ava’s Pizzeria and Wine Bar –

• St. Michaels is an incredibly dog friendly town and at Ava’s you can bring your pup to their gorgeous covered patio outside. They even have a pup menu! Speaking of menus, all of their unique and diverse offerings are house made including the mozzarella and potato chips. We had the opportunity to try a wasabi marinated oyster po’ boy which was absolutely delicious. Dressed with sliced tomato and remoulade on a house made toasted roll with a side of greens, this sandwich certainly did not disappoint.
• Aside from the seafood options, be sure to order the charred and blistered pizzas hot out of the 800F oven, as the name of their restaurant suggests. We were lucky enough to try 3 different types of pizza: the Pizza Caprese, Margherita (Red), and the Mediterranean. All came with generous toppings, including house made mozzarella, and were equally delicious.
• To top off this outstanding meal, we ordered beignets for dessert which were served table side in a white paper bag. On its way to our table, our waitress shook the bag coating the piping hot beignets with powdered sugar. These pillowy and slightly crispy donuts were ready to dunk in the 3 different dipping sauces: a thick raspberry puree, warmed Nutella, and a spiced cream cheese.

3. Stevensville Crab Shack Restaurant-

• About an hour from St. Michaels, we ventured out to Kent Island and discovered the Stevensville Crab Shack Restaurant. We enjoyed a deliciously fried beer battered cod seasoned with the J.O. spice, lump crab cakes, and butterflied jumbo shrimp. The J.O. spice is slightly different than the Old Bay seasoning but both are important in the local cuisine. The J.O. spice blend is more paprika heavy than the Old Bay so it lends a slightly smokier flavor. A little off the beaten path, this restaurant is not to be underestimated. A super casual atmosphere, there are picnic benches situated just outside the restaurant on a dog friendly patio. You will definitely enjoy your meal at this relaxed and friendly crab shack.

4. Awful Arthur’s –

• A local seafood joint located right on the main street in St. Michaels, this restaurant also serves up Maryland’s official dessert – the delicious Smith Island cake. It’s definitely a regional favorite! The cake is super sweet and sugary, and it comes complete with about 9-12 layers of vanilla cake stuck between a fudgy chocolate frosting. This upscale casual restaurant offers an outside patio with beautiful string lights and is dotted with numerous propane fireplaces that provides for a very relaxing dining experience.

5. Crepes by the Bay –

• Last but certainly not least, we were very lucky to discover this hidden gem also located right in the heart of St. Micheals. Owned by an incredibly nice couple, Istvan and Ildiko were warm, inviting, and friendly. Little did we know, it was supposed to be their day off, but the owners spotted us and a few others standing outside and opened the restaurant just for us! They were happy to share the story of their business and their livelihood. They began this business about 5 years ago and explained how they purchase all of their ingredients fresh; especially in the summer when a local farm stand provides them with all locally grown produce. Each of the crepes are made fresh to order and a little patience is required but it is absolutely worth the wait. They have an interesting and diverse menu including a few regional specialties such as the “Crab Breakfast,” “Crab with Spinach,” and “Loaded Mediterranean” (Crab & Bacon) crepes. Each overstuffed crepe comes folded in different ways and they are all full of tremendous flavor. The crepe itself is thin, delicate, a little chewy, and sweet. Crepes can be enjoyed sweet with fruit or savory with meat, cheese and or veggies. A couple of our favorites were the Monte Cristo (savory) and the lemon (sweet). If you visit, be sure to mention you read about this lovely restaurant right here on The Creative Eats food blog.

*Disclaimer: There are many wonderful restaurants in St. Michaels and the surrounding Chesapeake Bay area and sadly, we did not have enough time to visit them all. The above is only a sampling of the few great places we had the unique pleasure of visiting and dining at.

*Also, we are in no way profiting from this post and the recommendations above are based on some fantastic meals we indulged in while visiting this beautiful area.