Pick a crab, any crab

Bo Brooks' half 'n' half soup

Cup: $5, bowl: $7

One thing that really gets our goat here at Metromix is when we order any type of crab soup and it's gross. Whether it's straight Maryland-style or cream of crab, it doesn't matter. Too thick, too watery and most of the time with too much Old Bay, getting crab soup can be culinary Russian roulette. That's why it's ironic that some of the best crab soup we have had is at one of the biggest tourist traps in Baltimore. Bo Brooks' half 'n' half crab soup is exactly what its name implies. It's half Maryland-style crab soup and half cream of crab soup. Once the soup was mixed together it was creamy without being thick and gluey, and flavorful without tasting too much like tomato paste or Old Bay. The addition of vegetables offset the guilt about eating a cream-based soup, and it would be a welcome appetizer in the winter or summer months. It was a pleasant surprise to find, and even though Bo Brooks is crammed full of boaters and tourists, we'll be back soon for more.