Great American Bites: Crab heaven at Cantler's in Annapolis
— -- The scene: Maryland is world-famous for its crab cakes, but along the coast of the Chesapeake Bay, including Annapolis, home of the U.S. Naval Academy, steamed hard-shell crabs are an even more traditional local specialty. Fortunately, visitors to Cantler's don't have to choose. The waterfront crab house, which specializes in steamed crabs by the bucketful, also serves up virtually every other imaginable twist on local seafood, from crab cakes two different ways to fried softshell crab sandwiches, the other Chesapeake Bay specialty, alongside shrimp, scallops, oysters and clams.
In the nearly 40 years since it opened, it is doubtful any regular - and there are plenty - has called it Jimmy Cantler's Riverside Inn. Known simply as Cantler's, it is a short drive or cab ride from the heart of downtown Annapolis, located amongst riverfront fishing shacks in a residential neighborhood. It is easy enough to reach, but you have to know where to look, and it is not the kind of place visitors are likely to stumble across. Nonetheless, its reputation attracts outsiders, since it is usually ranked first or second in Annapolis for crab cakes, among stiff competition - and crab cakes are not even the specialty. Once you find it you are glad you did, because Cantler's is about as real and old school as it gets.
The freestanding building contains a mix of individual and larger communal tables, with empty seats filled in as needed. The place feels like a neighborhood bar -- indoor tables feature old newspaper clippings that have been lacquered into history, the metal chairs are straight out of a Lions Club function, and the decorative highlights include a Budweiser blackboard displaying the market price for fresh blue crabs by the dozen ($60 large, $75 x-large) and a huge dispenser roll of brown paper for covering the tables in advance of crab smashing feasts. Beer is served in cans, crabs on plastic cafeteria trays, soup in paper cups, and fried seafood is accompanied by tiny tubs of Kraft tartar sauce. There is an outdoor deck with picnic tables that is enclosed with plastic tarps in winter and heated, so you can still sit "outside." The only concession to modernity added since Cantler's opened is flashing buzzers to let waiting patrons know they have a table. It is often very busy.
Reason to visit: Blue crabs, crab cakes, fried seafood, soups.
The food: The Atlantic Blue Crab, also known as the Chesapeake Blue Crab, is the official state crustacean of Maryland, and its Latin name means "beautiful savory swimmer." Chesapeake Bay yields about a third of all blue crabs in the U.S., and they are revered throughout the state. Because they are notoriously difficult to "pick," or extract meat from, they cost a lot more in forms that involve finished crab meat, like crab cakes, than served whole and simply steamed. As softshell crabs they can be eaten whole, shell and all, usually breaded and fried. Softshells are simply molting blue crabs that just shed their hard shell, available May to September.
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