It’s no secret that we Marylanders love super fresh, succulent, salty seafood. We thrive on the fact that much of the state is bordered by water and that rivers and creeks pervade the rest of it. All this access to water rewards us with fresh, healthy food, exceptional views, and even an economic boost. All this culminates to the need for celebration and, low and behold, the 46th Annual Maryland Seafood Festival held at Sandy Point State Park is right around the corner. At this much-anticipated two-day event, locals as well as people from all over the region line up for a taste of what the local waters yield. Clear your calendar the 7th and 8th of September and obtain all the details you need below.
If you’ve been to the Maryland Seafood Festival before, you know there are three major components: the seafood, the entertainment, and the views of the Chesapeake Bay as the backdrop for fun.
This year, the food is predictably delicious. Various catering services and area restaurants provide extensive menus with seafood and (some) non-seafood options for purchase. Brio Tuscan Grille, Stan & Joe’s Saloon, and Red Hot & Blue are some of the big, local names scheduled to be present with clam baskets, shrimp skewers, cheesesteaks, crab fonduta, pulled pork sandwiches, and beef brisket sandwiches just for starters. Other food vendors include Jimmy’s Famous Seafood, Rainbow Food, Phillips, and Maryland Watermen’s Association. Funnel cakes, icy drinks, and ice cream are also on the menu. All the food is reasonably priced, with most dishes averaging at about $8. Some vendors even accept credit cards as payment.
Oysters have an important history in Annapolis and they too will be highlighted at the festival. Oysters from Chesapeake Gold Oysters, Barren Island Oysters, and Broadwater Seafood will be available for tasting. Tickets for oyster samples must be purchased at the event.
If you specifically go for the food knowledge and tasting, attend some of the chef demonstrations, happening both festival days. Chef Keith Long from the newly opened Factor’s Row Restaurant in downtown Annapolis will demonstrate on Saturday at 1 p.m. West’s Chef Kevin Relf will entertain with cooking demos on Sunday at 4 p.m. Also on Saturday at 11:30 a.m., attend the Crab Soup Cook-off in a designated tent, where you can taste over twenty variations of this Maryland delicacy. Admission into the cook-off tent is $10.
To enhance the seafood tasting, enjoy some of the Heavy Seas, Flying Dog, Yards, Boulevard, Terrapin, and DuClaw brews amongst the many other drinks available. Tickets purchased at the Beer Tasting Tent get you samples. Or, enjoy local wines from Linganore, Red Red Wine Bar in downtown Annapolis, Thanksgiving Farm, Cove Point, and Far Eastern Shore wineries. Samples of wine and full glasses of wine are available.
While celebrating Maryland food and local drinks, partake in the entertainment: live music, a crab derby race, lectures about Maryland blue crabs, BMX stunts, beach volleyball, a crab cake eating content, a crab picking contest, and more. Shopping the vendor kiosks will also provide entertainment. Entertainment and vendor shopping start as soon as the event begins (10 a.m.) and continue until the evening (9 p.m. on Saturday and 7 p.m. on Sunday). Coupled with aquarium exhibits and Chesapeake Bay inspired activities, kids will find plenty to do both days.
Tickets–with the exception of VIP tickets–can be purchased until the day of the festival. General admission costs $15 and VIP individual tickets cost $55. There are fees included in all the ticket prices. Military and senior discounts are applicable. Children under the age of twelve get in free.
Parking is available at Sandy Point State Park but is very limited and costs $5 per person. To circumvent parking hassles, the festival committee has organized for buses to transport attendees from Anne Arundel Community College to the park both days, all day, free of charge. The first bus leaves the college at 9:30 a.m. both Saturday and Sunday.
The Maryland Seafood Festival website has additional information. We close with this enticing thought: Don’t you want to taste the Bay while enjoying the lovely views of the Bay?
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