6 seafood club sandwiches around Baltimore worth every messy bite

Maryland has no shortage of ways to prepare and serve crab, but the seafood club may be the most over the top. Around Baltimore, crab cake and shrimp salad form the foundation of the sandwich, followed by bacon, lettuce, tomato and thick, toasted bread to hold everything together.

Some versions even work fried oysters and melted cheese into the stack. Nearly all arrive with a long skewer through the center to keep the towering creation intact, though some of the filling still tends to escape onto the plate.

These are some of the seafood clubs around Baltimore worth seeking out.

Mama’s on the Half Shell

• 2901 O’Donnell St., Baltimore

Mama’s on the Half Shell has served classic Baltimore seafood for more than two decades in a Canton tavern that feels like an old-school seafood house. The lively raw bar makes it a logical stop for oysters and an orange crush. The seafood club takes things several steps further, combining a 3-ounce crab cake and shrimp salad with bacon, Swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise on toasted white bread. The shrimp salad is creamy, the bacon adds salt and crunch, and the crab cake turns the sandwich into a seafood platter (barely) held together by bread. When you want the most impressive dish on the table, this is the order.

Loch Bar

• 240 International Drive, Baltimore

Loch Bar brings an upscale seafood restaurant to the Four Seasons Hotel in Harbor East, with one of the city’s largest raw bars, nightly live music and a patio overlooking the Inner Harbor. The space is bright and lively, with large windows facing outside, though I usually head to the patio for some of my favorite views in the city. The Chesapeake Club starts with one of my favorite crab cakes in Baltimore, then piles on shrimp salad, a fried oyster, applewood-smoked bacon, Gruyère, tomato and garlic aioli on toasted white bread. The oysters give it a crisp, briny layer between the crab cake and shrimp salad, while the Gruyère and garlic aioli deepen the richness. With the water in front of you, there is no reason to rush through it.

Ampersea

• 1417 Thames St., Baltimore

Ampersea sits along the water in Fells Point, with an expansive patio and an unobstructed view across the water to the Domino Sugars sign. The setting makes it a prime place to begin a day in the neighborhood before walking Thames Street and browsing the nearby shops. Its seafood club layers lump crab and shrimp with bacon, lettuce and tomato on brioche toast. The buttery bread carries a generous amount of seafood, though pieces of crab and shrimp will inevitably fall out, leaving extra bites on the plate. The sandwich is so filling that a walk through Fells Point afterward will feel necessary, although a stop at Pitango for gelato may still be hard to resist.

The Food Market

• 1017 W. 36th St., Baltimore

The Food Market has been one of my go-to restaurants in Hampden for years, especially when I’m hosting visitors or celebrating a special occasion. The converted storefront is usually packed, with the open kitchen visible from the dining room and an eclectic crowd filling the tables. The menu takes familiar comfort food in more playful directions, so it is hard not to start with the giant mozzarella sticks or French onion rings. But the Baltimore Club is a meal in itself, pairing a crab cake and shrimp salad with bacon, lettuce and tomato on soft potato bread, with hand-cut fries on the side. Order accordingly, unless you are already counting on leftovers.

RockSalt Grille

• 65 W. Main St., Westminster

I grew up in Carroll County, so I was excited when RockSalt Grille opened, bringing a new seafood option to downtown Westminster. It has become one of my preferred stops when I am back in the area, especially for its rotating oyster selection and Chesapeake-focused menu. The Seafood Club is a fan favorite for good reason. Built around a broiled 5-ounce crab cake, it has more crustacean than the other sandwiches on this list even before you add the shrimp salad. With bacon, lettuce and tomato on top, too, the dish is so large that the half you take home is enough for another meal.

Costas Inn Timonium

• 2200 York Road, Timonium

Costas Inn Timonium brings the crab cakes and seafood sandwiches of the original Dundalk restaurant to the Maryland State Fairgrounds. Located on the second floor of the grandstand at the racetrack, it is a natural stop during the upcoming Maryland State Fair. The Sandwich Chesapeake pairs a warm, broiled crab cake with creamy shrimp salad, crisp lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise on toasted 12-grain bread, with fries on the side. Sweet lump crab comes through in every bite, even as the shrimp salad slips from the edges. It’s a sandwich that requires both hands and lots of napkins.