The Best Seafood Restaurants in Baltimore

People flock to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor not just to visit the Maryland Science Center and The National Aquarium, but also to sample the incredible seafood that Baltimore is famous for. While it’s true that there are plenty of seafood-focused restaurants near the Harbor, Baltimore offers a plethora of such eateries throughout its neighborhoods, from Canton to Oldtown and Westport to Bolton Hill. So just where do residents and diners in the know go for seafood? Welcome to the Tastemaker Lists. We’ve studied the data from thousands of restaurants to help diners eat at the favorite places of OpenTable’s most prolific and demanding foodies. Sample some of the freshest softshell crabs and oysters from the nearby Chesapeake Bay or break open a lobster flown in from Maine—whatever ocean treats diners crave, they’ll find them when they book a meal at one of these restaurants serving the best seafood in Baltimore.

The OpenTable Team

14 Restaurants

Updated February 26, 2020

Restaurants:	Citron, Gunther & Co., Loch Bar - Baltimore…
Price Range:	$$ - $$$$
Cuisines:	American, Seafood…
Neighborhoods:	Towson, Canton, Harbor East…

Citron

$$$$

American

Towson

4.5

1997 reviews

Citron sits in the northwest corner of greater Baltimore, overlooking Quarry Lake. In nice weather, diners can sit on the lakeside patio or terrace (open year-round)—the location serves as an inspiration to choose any one of the best seafood in Baltimore offerings on the menu. This includes sushi and sashimi, as well as a locally sourced crab soup and the customer favorite sea bass. Happy hour runs for three hours on weekdays, with special days like Mussel Monday and Wine Wednesday on offer. Feel free to ask the friendly servers for recommendations—they’re happy to oblige.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Gunther & Co.

$$$$

American

Canton

4.7

2524 reviews

This converted brick brewery on Brewer’s Hill houses a spacious restaurant with open kitchen and a fresh, local take on classic American fare. Perfect for a date night or a business lunch, Gunther & Co. has menus for lunch, brunch, dinner, kids, the bar, and even “Sunday Supper,” with seafood choices such as Thai red curry soup with mussels and seared sea scallops. Diners with dogs may want to bring them to “Yappier Hour” on the patio on Tuesdays, while true foodies should try to snag a chair at the 16-seat kitchen counter for a weekly five-course chef’s tasting menu. Enjoy a cup of locally roasted coffee to round out dinner or accompany brunch. Bonus: Parking is free and plentiful. This converted brick brewery on Brewer’s Hill houses a spacious restaurant with open kitchen and a fresh, local take on classic American fare. Perfect for a date night or a business lunch, Gunther & Co. has menus for lunch, brunch, dinner, kids, the bar, and even “Sunday Supper,” with seafood choices such as Thai red curry soup with mussels and seared sea scallops. Diners with dogs may want to bring them to “Yappier Hour” on the patio on Tuesdays, while true foodies should try to snag a chair at the 16-seat kitchen counter for a weekly five-course chef’s tasting menu. Enjoy a cup of locally roasted coffee to round out dinner or accompany brunch. Bonus: Parking is free and plentiful.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

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Loch Bar - Baltimore

$$$$

Seafood

Harbor East

4.7

1161 reviews

Loch Bar, on the ground floor of the Four Seasons hotel, occupies prime real estate on the mouth of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. This raw bar offers both indoor and outdoor seating and enforces a dress code after 4 p.m. Some of the best seafood in Baltimore is on offer here, including splurge-worthy shellfish towers of five to eight different choices and two kinds of caviar. As expected from a restaurant with a partly Scottish name (loch means lake), there’s an extensive whiskey list here with an exceptionally large selection of whiskeys, most from Scotland.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Ampersea Restaurant

$$$$

American

Harbor Point

4.5

1129 reviews

Modern in both décor and attitude, Ampersea combines the ethos of locally sourced food with the spirit of community-building. Produce served here is often grown by urban farmers through restaurant-supported initiatives, and the restaurant invites diners to ask their server for more information about these. The pretzel with blue crab dip is a crowd-pleaser, and crab also appears on the plate with the fried green tomatoes appetizer. Maryland Half & Half Soup also beckons crab lovers, with promises of both cream of crab and Maryland crab in one bowl. Ampersea is off the beaten path, but still on the waterfront.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Gertrude's - Baltimore

$$$$

American

Charles Village

4.6

6575 reviews

Gertrude’s, in the Baltimore Museum of Art, has served as a bastion of local, farm-fresh Chesapeake Bay cuisine for more than two decades. Diners here rave about consistently good food and consistently good service, whether coming for a family brunch or a romantic dinner. The view of the museum’s sculpture garden serves as a unique backdrop for a variety of seafood dishes, from the blue catfish cakes and seafood hash for brunch to the crab cake du jour available at lunch and dinner. And Chincoteague oysters prove that the nearby island offers more than just wild horses. Vegetarian “crab” cakes (featuring zucchini) are an intriguing option.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Michael's Cafe

$$$$

Contemporary American

Timonium

4.4

2181 reviews

Depending upon where diners sit, Michael’s Café has the vibe of a chummy men’s club (think dark wood, leather accents) or casual gathering place (industrial lighting, high ceilings, communal tables). The restaurant also has patio dining in good weather. The hands-down menu favorite here are the crab cakes, which go perfectly with any one of a selection of craft beers. Happy hour at Michael’s lasts for at least four hours, depending on the day, and includes buck-a-shuck oysters. Steamers, lobster rolls, New England clam bake, crab imperial, and a raw bar are just some of the myriad seafood selections.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Bluestone

$$$$

Seafood

Timonium

4.6

6055 reviews

Although not an intimate dining experience, Bluestone more than makes up for its restaurant chain vibe with good service and good food. Neither the lunch nor dinner menus are large, but meat eaters and seafood lovers alike will find several dishes to choose from. This includes two different crab soups to start, shrimp tacos, Chesapeake Bay softshell crabs, an assortment of fish, and a seafood and avocado salad. Diners still hungry at the end of the meal should consider the crème brûlé for dessert.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Costas Inn

$$$$

Seafood

Downtown

4.6

266 reviews

Costas has been serving the freshest crabs, flown in daily, for nearly 50 years. It’s the perfect place for casual get-togethers both large and small, with a noisy, slightly boisterous atmosphere and steamed crabs by the dozen. This unassuming inn may serve some of the best seafood in Baltimore—including a raw bar and steamers, crab soups, deviled eggs with crab, orange roughy, crab cakes, and more—but cold beer and hot crabs are what they’re known for.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Oceanaire Seafood Room - Baltimore

$$$$

Seafood

Inner Harbor

4.7

3772 reviews

For fine dining right near Baltimore’s Waterfront Promenade, check out the Oceanaire Seafood Room. White tablecloth service and artfully presented meals are perfect for a special night out. While the menu features a mouthwatering selection of prime steakhouse cuts, the proximity to the marina and harbor suggest the seafood is the thing to order here (along with the restaurant’s name). The hardest part will be choosing—will it be the grand shellfish tower, selections from the oyster bar, seared scallops, sea bass, or one of a host of other seafood dishes?

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Barrett's Grill

$$$$

Contemporary American

Hunt Valley

4.6

3074 reviews

This contemporary restaurant sits in a shopping mall north of Baltimore, offering lunch and dinner daily, as well as brunch on the weekends. Live jazz on Tuesdays and Thursdays is the perfect accompaniment to a nice selection of wine, beer, and cocktails. Seafood selections at Barrett’s Grill are interspersed among the other menu offerings, with favorites such as the crab and roasted corn soup and scallops risotto. Try the shrimp cargot for a unique take on an “escargot style” dish featuring shrimp instead of snails.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Mad Chef Kitchen & Bar

$$$$

American

Ellicott City

4.6

888 reviews

Mad Chef Kitchen & Bar in Ellicott City is a casual eatery with a low-key, rustic vibe. While the menu features seafood stalwarts like the ubiquitous crab dip, shrimp & grits, and calamari, it also surprises with drunken mussels (lemongrass, coconut milk, Thai chili) and paella for two (clam, calamari, shrimp, lobster, and mussels with sofrito and saffron rice). Even the fish and chips get a makeover here, incorporating fingerling potatoes and rosemary garlic. Something else that’s special? Mix-your-own cocktails during happy hour.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

The Capital Grille - Baltimore

$$$$

Steakhouse

Downtown

4.8

3676 reviews

No two Capital Grille locations are the same architecturally, but the restaurants in this extensive national chain share a clubby steakhouse atmosphere with lots of leather and wood, and white tableclothed tables. While steak, in all its glory, is the star here, seafood isn’t neglected. This includes meal starters and soups, as well as pairings such as the poached lobster tails that come with the tenderloin and the lobster mac ‘n’ cheese. Scallops, sea bass, tuna, and salmon also get their own dishes.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

Captain James Landing

$$$$

Seafood

Fells Point

4.5

1536 reviews

The exterior of Captain James Landing tells diners they’re in for some of the best seafood in Baltimore. That’s because Captain James looks like an ocean-going ship, complete with deck dining and porthole windows. It’s a casual atmosphere—the kind of place that places buckets on the table for shells and serves galvanized buckets of beer. This is the place for all-you-can-eat steamed crabs, along with an order of boardwalk fries, corn on the cob, and hush puppies.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

The Grill at Harryman House

$$$$

American

Reisterstown

4.6

1225 reviews

In Baltimore’s northwest suburbs, the Grill at Harryman House serves modern American cuisine in a slightly eclectic, casual setting (muted lime green walls, exposed brick, zebra-striped banquette) within a 200+ year-old house. Come for a celebration, a romantic dinner, or just a regular night out, and enjoy seafood in many different forms. These include blackened mahi-mahi bites and crab & artichoke dip for appetizers, Maryland crab soup and shrimp & corn chowder small plates, and Mediterranean branzino large plate. The Grill even offers pizza, one of which comes topped with shrimp scampi.

At the moment, there's no online availability within 2.5 hours of your request. Do you have another time in mind?

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The Best Seafood Restaurants