Faidley's in Baltimore

Upon first encountering the "World Famous Lexington Market" in Baltimore, Maryland, it seems anything but world famous. It is a non-pretentious food court-type gathering of independent food vendors hawking deli sandwiches stuffed with thinly-sliced cold cuts, unfortunate looking fried rice that has been blackened by sponging up gallons of soy sauce, and mountains of golden fried chicken keeping crisp under orange heat lamps. One definitely notices common food themes as he or she peruses the offerings at the market. But don't be tempted--you must hold off on your lunch purchase until you walk to the very back of the building and reach the promised land: Faidley's.

Faidley's prides itself as serving the "Best Crabcakes in Maryland," and considering that Maryland is the Crab Capital of the U.S.A., those had better be some darn good crabcakes. Indeed they are.

The regular poor-man's crabcake they offer is very good. The crabcake is moist and well-bound together by a punch of tantalizing seasonings. The crabcake literally melts in your mouth. You don’t have to chew at all.

The "big lump" crabcake is even better. It has the same package of seasonings, but the tender texture of the huge hunks of crab nestling within the cake make is what makes it incredible.

The clam chowder and miscellaneous side dishes are pretty good and compliment the crab cakes very well. My only complaint is why they even bother to include a leaf of lettuce and slice of tomato with each crabcake. Those additional items just take up space in the stomach needed for eating more crabcakes. However, I guess they serve the same purpose as the slice of orange and sprig of parsley that they add at Sizzler to the $7.99 Steak and Baked Potato Dinner. DPO. ("Decorative Purposes Only.")