When I’m traveling outside of NJ, one of my main missions is to try new foods, classic regional dishes, and find the best, local baked treat. Before I travel to new places, I always check on Yelp, TripAdvisor, and tweet at any local foodies who will tell me their favorite foodie spots. Wouldn’t you agree that food can be the highlight or downgrade of your travels?
This past week, my travels took me to the coast of Delaware and Maryland for a small summer vacation. From the lump of crabcakes to crab chowder and homemade donuts, my stomach and palate were deeply satisfied. My family and I loved the seafood entrees we ate because they tasted fresh, well-seasoned, properly cooked, and the service was great. The treat of the week was homemade doughnuts and these doughnuts cannot compare to Dunkin’, Krispy Kreme, and other chains. Here are the following restaurants and food establishments featured in this blog post: Crabcake Factory, Fractured Prune Doughnuts and Warren’s Station, .
My first dinner in Maryland was at the Crabcake Factory, a chestnut wooded restaurant/bar with various plasma TVs on each side of restaurant featuring the latest ESPN baseball game. When I was first seated, I immediately knew I wanted to try their crabcakes. The menu spelled out many other delicious seafood dishes such as Boston Lobster Roll, Surf and Turf Burgers, steamer bowls, and more seafood variations. I ordered an All-lump Jumbo Crabcake dinner with two sides- potato chips and steamed mixed vegetables and a side of tartar sauce. The crabcake itself was a large round ball of crab meat which I drizzled with lemon. The creamy tartar sauce complimented with the crab meat. The golden- brown potato chips were crisp and crunchy and the steamed vegetables were not too soggy or hard. From other online reviews, the restaurant’s crabcake benedict and bloody mary with bacon/crab are visitors’ favorites too. Crabcake Factory is a great restaurant if you’re looking some classic and tasty seafood dishes and some thirst-quenching cold drinks.
When I’m traveling, late night desserts are my guilty pleasure especially the homemade doughnuts I found on the Ocean City boardwalk. I was so excited to find Fractured Prune which is a small corner shop on the crowded boardwalk. The quirky name doesn’t give away that they sell the most hottest homemade doughnuts in town! The numerous doughnut flavors are appetizing and mouth-watering such as strawberry shortcake, margarita, peach pie and more! Some interesting tidbits I noticed were that their order tickets are from deck of cards, free doughnut if you wear their Fractured Prune t-shirt, and all the doughnuts were made, glazed and topped in front of your eyes. At first my cousins and I shared two donuts: OC Sand (most popular one made of cinnamon, sugar and honey glaze) and Banana Nut. The doughnuts instantly melted in our mouths and I could tell we wanted more than two. I convinced them we had to buy half a dozen more for breakfast and some midnight snacking! Our second order included the OC Sand, Blueberry, Black Forest, Morning Buzz (oreo and mocha flavored), and Peanut Butter (topped with chocolate chips). My top 3 favorites were: OC Sand, Morning Buzz, and Peanut Butter. I would definitely skip the funnel cakes and fried oreos for this hot homemade treat!
My recommendations and verdict on Fractured Prune’s doughnuts: Eaten best when you immediately pick em’ up
Hot
Slightly sweet
Not too doughy or chewy
Mouth-watering
Homemade goodness in one customized treat
Finally, the last meal of my travels was at a local, family owned restaurant called Warren’s Station in Fenwick Island, Delaware. The restaurant is a replica of the United States Livesaving station, and there’s plenty of seating within the restaurant’s family friendly atmosphere. The restaurant contained reasonable prices, large portions for dinner, and overwhelmingly large slices of pie. First, I ordered a cup of their Manhattan Clam Chowder. I wished they had more clam meat instead of potato, but the flavor made up for it. My dinner entree was their Chicken Chesapeake, moist and succulent chicken breast topped with crab imperia and side of whole roasted sweet potato and green beans. The crabcake and chicken was an unusual pairing but the flavors worked out well. Another dish my family enjoyed was the bourbon glazed salmon which came with two sides. Our dessert included a large slice of lemon meringue pie, chocolate cream pie, pecan upside down apple pie, and peach pie. If you’re not crazy for more than 2 inches of whipped topping, then skip the pies. I thought the pies were just good, but I wasn’t a fan of their gelatinous filling and large amounts of whipped cream. However, Warren’s Station dishes give you a filling, home style cooking with a family friendly atmosphere for your relaxing and quiet stay on the Delaware coast.
In addition to my food discoveries, I kayaked in the afternoon sun, played mini golf, lounged by the poolside, and enjoyed the sounds and sights of the ocean. Overall, my mission was accomplished, and I would rate my food experience in Delaware and Maryland a 4 out of 5 stars. The extra star would have gone to another great local restaurant if I stayed longer.
Where have you eaten along the coast of Delaware and Maryland, and what dishes would you recommend eating there?
Bakers Block 
There are a lot of awesome places down at the Delaware beaches like Rehoboth and Dewey. Definitely worth checking out during the summer, in my opinion!
I definitely want to go back and wished we visited Rehoboth! What places or dishes would you recommend to try?
Generally you can’t go wrong with any of the places on the Boardwalk at Rehoboth, but I really enjoyed The Greene Turtle which is a local chain, Dogfish Head Brewery is down there, and Saketumi was a good place for sushi that was close by. I stayed in Dewey for a few days and there a lot of great places there too. I love Delaware! Haha.
They all sound delicious especially the Saketumi! If I’m ever around Delaware again, I’ll definitely ask you for more food tips! Thanks!