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Is there an Eastern Shore thread? I'm searching but haven't found anything but the few posts on Chestertown, MD.

We're going to Cambridge, MD in a couple weeks, looking for where to eat. Last year when we went, we drove 40 minutes away (cannot remember where, will have to ask the rest of our party tonight) to a restaurant on a dock that had the best rockfish I'd ever had - will go back there for sure. But looking for places closer if possible for the rest of the trip.

Thanks!

Looking around more, I think it's covered generally under Baltimore and Annapolis -- found recommendations for a couple places (Bartlett Pear Inn in Easton, Bistro Poplar in Cambridge), though not centralized. But that helps a lot.

The restaurant on the dock that we went to last time was Palm Beach Willie's -- not a name that inspired confidence, but it was terrific, very local, very fresh, very homey. They were hit by a huge party that arrived a few minutes before us, so it took quite a while, but it was well worth the wait. Some kind of sweet potato side was wonderful, too (can't recall the specifics).

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[The following posts have been split into their own threads:

Bistro Poplar (rorkin)]

Edited by DonRocks
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This is a post of mine from eight years ago which is still relevant for the comments about Suicide Bridge outside of Cambridge. Simply, one of Maryland's best "Maryland style" seafood restaurants.

For my wife and I the Narrows (Kent Island) and Captain's Table in the Marriott (15th and Boardwalk) in Ocean City continue as perhaps the best overall. There are a lot of places that receive little mention anywhere such as the Red Roost (crab house) in Whitehaven or Ocean Odyssey (converted 1950's fast food outpost on the side of route 50 which Todd Kliman raved about in Cambridge (much prefer the Narrows). Both Easton and St. Michael's have several very interesting restaurants.

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Thanks so much, Joe!! Will look at these places and get ourselves to Suicide Bridge as well as Palm Beach Willie's. I saw very strong recommendations for Bartlett Pear Inn in Easton and we'll go there. If you have any other recommendations for Easton, would love them - very casual is fine. We don't eat hard-shell crabs, but I love soft-shells and crab cakes, and the rest of my family loves rockfish and other fresh fish.

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We were in Cambridge over the weekend and I want to highlight a couple places. First, High Spot. Had dinner there on Sunday night and it was very good. It was one of those places that you could taste the crispness of all the individual vegetables that made up each of the dishes, despite the winter season. I'd like to try this place in the summer when the local vegetables are fresh. The salmon chowder was stated as New England style.... it wasn't quite as creamy as that... and I liked it better that way. Whatver is in the sauce of the fried calamri was very addiictive. I had the chicken pot pie.... Mrs. RBH had the crabcake. The ice cream (baked apple pie flavor) tasted homemade. Good beer and drinks list. Another place we discovered is Bay Country Bakery. It's on Rt 50 just a little past the Hyatt. Easy to blow right by. Nice little place for breakfast - donuts and coffee, though they had quite a selection of pastries also. They have breakfast and lunch sandwiches, but we didn't try those. Their coffee is from Chesapeake Bay Roasting.

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Driving back from Ocean City we stopped off in Cambridge to visit RAR Brewing, in the historic downtown area.  Vibe is hipster, craft brewer:  the tasting room/brewery is a re-purposed pool hall and bowling alley, open garage door in front, painted murals on the walls (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), in the back is their production facility with a ten barrel system.  There's a bar with about 15 seats and two long communal tables down the middle. 

It was quiet on a Sunday afternoon.  Unfortunately the beer we were interested in buying to-go was sold out in cans.  They do offer growlers and oil cans, but only on their main beers, not their limited production brews.  So we struck out there as well.  But not willing to let a side trip go to waste, we saddled up to the bar and ordered half pints of the Slip On, an unfiltered American Pale Ale, with lots of grapefruit and pineapple flavors up front.  It had the floral flavors without the hoppy slap in the face of many IPAs.  Really smooth drinking.  The two guys working the bar were very friendly and ready to answer any questions about their beer. 

The bar menu is pub grub with Chesapeake influences.  We went with the Waterman Nachos - Old Bay potato chips with crab and melted cheese sauce.  Disgustingly delicious in a I'm-going-to-pay-for-this-later kind-of-way.  I definitely recommend, especially if you have a crowd. 

If you are looking for a quick pit-stop to-or-from the beach, RAR is worth the 3 minute drive off Rt. 50. 

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On the fire in Easton is always good and there seem to be other farm to table places there as well.  Oxford has the Robert Morris Inn and is a nice town.  Cambridge seems run down.  St Michaels is always good, Cracked Claw for Crabs and I know there is a good pizza place on the main street.

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On 4/12/2019 at 1:36 PM, MarkS said:

On the fire in Easton is always good and there seem to be other farm to table places there as well.  Oxford has the Robert Morris Inn and is a nice town.  Cambridge seems run down.  St Michaels is always good, Cracked Claw for Crabs and I know there is a good pizza place on the main street.

You're referring to Out of the Fire? It has been there quite awhile.

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Rise Up Coffee's location right on Rt 50, just past the Hyatt on the left, has a full breakfast menu, which they've branded as Bad Eggs. Biscuit sandwiches and huevos rancheros were all solid wins here. Coffee wasn't spectacular (we hit the Ceremony Roastery in Annapolis on the way over, so it was bound to be a come-down) but was easily better than anything else we tried in Cambridge. Very nice space inside and a good crowd coming through getting their morning pick-me-up, so eating in is a good option.  

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Thanks for the recommendation above to visit Oxford.  We went on a day when both the Creamery and its affiliated coffee place, Oxford Social, were closed.   All was not lost though, as it was a beautiful day and we could easily improvise a picnic lunch at Oxford Town Park with sandwiches from The Oxford Market.  Mine was a riff on a reuben with some very tasty cole slaw inside.  The park is shaded and has several picnic tables and a spectacular view of the Tred Avon.  

 

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We had a similar experience at Oxford Town Park when we made a detour on the way home from Ocean City and found the Scottish Highland Creamery closed (it was a weekday after Labor Day). We were desperate for ice cream after being denied at the creamery, but Oxford Market's freezers were malfunctioning, so they didn't have any ice cream, either. 😭 But we enjoyed the park, which also has a small playground for the little ones.

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RaR Brewing was hopping (haha) on a late Saturday afternoon.  It seemed the Ironman was in town.  We were still able to snag a spot at a long communal table, place your order at the bar.

Sadly, the crazy delicious Waterman Nachos (Old Bay potato chips with crab and melted cheese sauce) are no more, but the regular nachos served with crab meat was still tasty.  RaR rotates through beers on a regular basis and the tap line up is never the same.  The Wood'R is a seasonal American Wheat, not too heavy on the "wheat" flavor like you get with German beers.  I enjoyed the Working On My Base Tan, which was a pale ale at a relatively moderate 5.6% ABV.  RaR is usually heavy on the IPAs, so it helps if you are into that, but overall I think they do a good job and it's always a treat to stop off in Cambridge and enjoy a pint.   

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