Saturday I crossed final hurdle (aside from actually getting accepted) between me and grad school. I took the GREs. It was a horrendous experience, and left me wound up enough to rival most springs. I needed a stress relief. And being a Baltimorean, there is only one stress relief that would do the trick. I needed to whack crabs.
Baltimore is justifiably famous for its crabs, though the pollution in the Chesapeake Bay means they are now imported from further up north. Nonetheless, crab cakes, crab-shaped hats, and shirts saying “Got Crabs?” (a rather fun slogan, as Baltimore was once the STD capital of the US) can be found in plenty in the touristy areas. Hence, it was little surprise that Saturday night found me at Obrycki’s, a pleasant joint near the waterfront. There presumably are things to order at Obrycki’s other then crabs. However, the only evidence is the menu since every table in site boasts only the world’s finest crustacean.
You order a pound or so. They show up, whole and ready to be smashed. You spend the next hour smashing and crushing and sucking your way through a bucket full, while the crab debris piles up on the table. This is a tasty meal, though not amazingly so. It is a loud meal. But what it mostly is, is a fun meal. You sit around crunching crab bits and scrambling to get out the last bit of meat, while bone and bits go everywhere. By the end of the night I was feeling relaxed and zen. And not the least bit crabby.
Please note: while crab restaurants are fun, I do not recommend you go there on a date, as: 1. you tend to not be a pleasantest good night kiss at the end due to scent and breath 2. Your enthusiasm in smashing the crab may lead your date to worry about your anger management problems, and 3. if the site of you trying to suck the last bit of meat out a crab claw does not turn your date off, the site of them doing this will certainly make you consider other options.