"Specializing in all things seafood, Sal and Son’s Seafood have been a staple at Broadway Market for over a decade. They offer a variety of Fish, Shrimp and Shellfish to take home or eat onsite," reads the Brodway Market website.



We did some fried shrimp, crab dip and half-and-half crab soup, which is cream of crab mixed with Maryland crab soup.



If pressed, I think I would admit crab is my favorite seafood. Possibly my favorite protein? So, I was happy to gobble as much crab in various forms as I could get. Starting with the dip, it was thick, creamy and had some nice bold flavor - especially Old Bay. The shrimp was only OK - the fried batter easily got steamed in the container and made for a soggy texture. But, let's talk about soup.



Cream of crab is a rich, creamy soup. Maryland crab soup is brothy and packed with veggies. You can get a mix of both - and the best of both worlds - with half and half. Rich creaminess meets veggies? Win-win.



Grade: A

"Hatched in Baltimore, BRD serves creative fried chicken sandwiches and wings made with the finest ingredients possible. We strive to provide old school hospitality and chicken you won't forget," the website reads.

The menu features chicken sandwiches, tender meal boxes and wings. I went for the box, which has two jumbo tenders, fries, garlic bread, pickles and two sauces: BRD SAUCE, HONEY MUSTARD, CAROLINA GOLD BBQ, CHILI MAYO, BUFFALO, BUTTERMILK RANCH, TANGY WHITE BBQ, HOT HONEY OLD BAY.

This meal was tasty... but also pretty similar to so many other fried chicken restaurants out there right now. Chicken. Fries. Sauce. I don't hate it; I just wish there was maybe a new spin.

Grade: B

"Thai Street’s recipes have been tweaked to perfection over multiple generations of Chef/Owner Kesorn Imsin’s family. Using traditional techniques and ingredients we create dishes that allow you to experience authentic Thai street food and regional specialties. Inspiration for our food has been sourced from the streets of Phetchabun (Kesorn’s hometown) to some of the finest restaurants in Bangkok. We’ll take you on a journey to Pratu Phi with our signature Pad Thai then to Charoen Krung Road with our melt-in-your-mouth Kao Ka Moo! We like to keep you guessing “what’s next?” and are always exploring new recipes, ingredients, and techniques in our rotating specials," reads the website.



Located in Broadway Market, the restaurant offers many classic Thai dishes like pad thai, pad see ew, khao soi and more.



I ordered the Chive Cake - pan fried, crispy garlic, rice flour, chive, homemade sweet soy sauce. I wanted the exterior to be a bit more crispy, but I enjoyed this squidgy bite. I also had the pumpkin custard sticky rice, which was so comforting. I love rice desserts.



Grade: B

"Black Acres Roastery is a small batch coffee roaster located in the Station North district of Baltimore. Every roast, we strive to bring out the best qualities in unique coffees from around the world. We ethically source beans and curate roasting profiles that provide each cup of coffee a story," reads its website.



The "salt bae" has salted caramel sauce, espresso and milk. Deeply rich and delicious.



Grade: B

Sophia's Place is a traditional Polish Deli that has been serving Baltimore and the surrounding areas since 1985 at Broadway Market.



They offer delicious Polish specialties, including pierogi, stuffed cabbage, sausages, and pastries served daily.



The many options here will both fill your belly and comfort your soul at the same time. I had a difficult time deciding between the pierogies, cabbage rolls, and many sweet treats.



I ultimately decided on the potato and cheese pierogies, which were perfectly browned and covered in caramelized onions.



I often say that every culture has its own version of a dumpling. There's something special about them because they are so simple but entirely complex to pull off well. I've had pierogies for most of my life due to my proximity to Pittsburgh growing up. And these ones here were some really good ones.



The light crisp on the outside gave way to a soft pillowy filling. The caramelized onions on top added some sweetness. And, altogether, it was a really delicious and comforting bite.



Grade: A

The Boardhouse is a new restaurant located inside Tickers & Timbers, which is a family entertainment venue offering axe throwing, rage rooms, escape rooms and paint splatter. The restaurant is more so a snack counter, but there were several items that caught my eye: Lumberjack Grazer: Charcuterie w/ pickles, olives, pepperoncini, pepperjack & mozzarella, pepperoni, salami, crackers, cashews, dijon & bacon jam. And then there was the Pretzel Stick Flight served with queso and honey mustard. I ordered the Smoked Turkey Handheld - turkey burnt ends, cheddar cheese, house-made cranberry bbq sauce. I liked the sweet and salty combo here, but the bread was too toasted and the edges just crumbled. I also went for the Sweet Crumbles Flight - Strawberry, apple, smores crumbles flight - 1 pie crumbles, sweet filling topped with whipped cream & drizzle topping. A little too much dry graham cracker at the bottom (add melted butter), but otherwise this is a fun and playful dessert.

Grade: B

Have Fun WV with Jay Silverman hosted the Second Annual Pepperoni Roll Contest at GoMart Ballpark. There were 5 competitors this year - all with a unique variation on the classic pepperoni roll. Wild N' Wonderful Rolls

These tasty rolls took home first prize! The round rolls are layered thick with cheese and pepperoni. They're topped with butter and a special blend of seasonings. Cheri's Sugar Shack at the Charleston Coliseum & Convention Center

Taking home second place, these pepperoni rolls are finished with an herby garlic oil that just takes them to the next level. GoMart Ballpark

The home team did a simple version of the pepperoni foll that was pretty classic. Nellita's Cocina

Known locally for her empanadas, Idanelis makes a delicious WV Roni Roll, which has small chunks of pepperoni enveloped in an empanada dough and deep-fried. P.R. Boss Rolls

Brand new to me, these pepperoni rolls were rolled up with pepperoni and shredded cheese on top.

Connie's Chicken & Waffles is located in Broadway Market in Baltimore, as well as other locations around the city.



Connie’s Chicken and Waffles for their modern twist on Baltimore’s classic chicken box — serving up tenders and fries with peach tea “half n’ half.” Inspired by the owners' mother Connie’s hospitality and recipes, the brothers also serve fun new waffles in flavors from red velvet to Crunch Berry to Oreo, according to the market's website.



I went for a blueberry waffle, which was big and fluffy. It was decent, but nothing out of the ordinary. next time, I would like to add the chicken, but it wasn't quite ready yet for this order.



Grade: B

"A classic Baltimore snowball arrives in a Styrofoam cup: shaved ice sloshed with sweet syrup—mostly artificial flavoring and not any of that "real fruit" stuff—and typically topped with marshmallow cream. While the ice is shaved, it's not fine enough to dissolve, leaving the snowball chunky and intact enough to survive humid Baltimore summers," according to Serious Eats.



Stouten's has a full-service marina and more than 100 snowball flavors, milkshakes, ice-cream and more desserts.



The Milky Way had layered ice cream, marshmallow cream, caramel and Hershey's Chocolate snowball. Usually when having an icy dessert, I think of fruity flavors. But the marshmallow cream was a nice change, and between all the goodies on this snowball, there's no way it couldn't taste delicious.



Grade: A

Home to mind-boggling custom cakes created by Chef Duff Goldman's talented team, Charm City Cakes has been featured on the famous Food Network show Ace of Cakes and more.



"When his dream of slaying on the guitar in a rock band wasn't paying the bills, Chef Duff Goldman turned to his talents as a classically trained pastry chef and metal craftsman and founded Charm City Cakes in Baltimore, MD, in 2002. Duff and his intrepid team of cake decorators churned out cakes the world had never seen before: cakes with sound, cakes with smoke, cakes with motorized moving components, life-sized baby elephant cakes—no cake was too crazy to tackle. It wasn't long before Charm City Cakes caught the eye of the Food Network, where the hit reality cake decorating series Ace of Cakes was born. Our Baltimore bakery has had the pleasure of making our awesome clients' cake dreams come true for over two decades! Our cakes have taken us everywhere, from Costa Rica to the 2008 Inauguration of President Obama, from Hollywood premieres to working with organizations like Share Our Strength that help fight hunger all over the world," reads the website.



The bake shop features ready-to-order bakery confections, including cupcakes, cake jars, blondies, ready-to-order sprinkle cakes, and seasonal specialty bakery items.



Plus, there are plenty of super creative, over-the-top cakes that were custom-made orders in the shop.



After perusing all of the different creative cakes, I went to the case to see what I could take home with me that day.



I went with a blondie, a cupcake, and a birthday cake in a jar.



Of course, each of these were delicious in their own way. The cake was moist. The blondie was rich. And the birthday cake in a jar was just layered decadence.



Have you ever been?



Grade: A

Papermoon Diner is an eclectic restaurant covered in funky decorations ranging from mannequins to knick-knacks. And everything inbetween.



The menu is a bit more conventional - consisting of breakfast, sandwiches, burgers, dinner entrees and more.



They feature milkshakes that include Captain Crunch cereal or avocado. Entrees like the crab, spinach and gouda quesadilla caught my eye, as did the cranberry melt with havarti.



I went with the Morning Glory, which had a grilled piece of meatloaf over mixed spring greens and an over-easy egg and crispy potato cake. I added a side of mango chutney.



I think that sauce is what this dish needed to pull it together. I would've loved a specialty sauce made for this exact dish that was maybe a riff on tomato sauce or ketchup. It could eat a bit dry without that.



Grade: B