Terrible service and food. Two orders were completely wrong. Food was way overpriced for the quality. The mashed potatoes tasted like they were boxed and the green beans were extremely undercooked. Also, the employees were sitting down at a table next to ours exchanging personal stories and being ridiculously obnoxious. Not to mention they gave me a water with something black floating in it; gross! read more

The seafood entrée $29. each you can get it fried or have it broiled, the broiled one they leave off the oysters ? I asked them why no oysters ? they said: the could not broil oyster so I said: You should put them on the platter raw or fry them the Waiter said: No way ! I said: you are ripping off the dinners his reply was it does save us some money read more

Reasonably priced seafood. Tuesday $10 crabcake is worth it. Good happy hour menu and prices. I'd go again...

When I went to Towson State in the 80's this was the go-to restaurant. I guess it's still best for college kids. We got stuck at a table back in a corner where the waitstaff hangs out and I'm no prude, but the loud profanity from the servers was distracting. Our waitress was a lovely young woman but she was distracted and inattentive. I had flounder which would have been good if it hadn't been cooked to a state of mush. The veggies were overcooked too. The cream of crab soup, however, was quite good and thick without being over spiced like so many places do. The place could use some sprucing up or at least a HEAVY DUTY CLEANING. It's quaint, but dingy and dirty. Prices aren't bad...gin and tonic was very weak. read more

Was very excited to try the Crackpot and was looking forward to a good meal. First the menu is extremely over priced considering the quality of food and the seafood restaurants in the surrounding area. Second, to claim they have a world famous crab cake is the furthest from the truth. Living in Maryland my entire life and always looking to try someone's crab crake I've never had a broiled crab cake burnt until going to the crackpot. All 3 crab cakes on the table were burnt and very dry. If you want a good crab cake in the area go to Pappas (also whole menu is priced much more reasonable) or if you want a really good meal and atmosphere go to Michaels. The dining experience was also less than to be desired. Apparently they had too many people working so there was quite a few employees sitting around with nothing to do in the back of the restaurant. Instead of being out of sight, they congregated directly behind us carrying on and chatting. After a while they eventually sat at the table directly behind us to put silverware in napkins. I wouldn't mind this if we were dining late but this was at 8 pm. It's one thing to sit next to another couple out to dinner but shouldn't have to sit next to a bunch of kids that are bored at work Needless to say we were all extremely disappointed and wont be going back. Also would not recommend going here with all the other restaurants in the area. On a side note, it's always a good thing to avoid the Giant parking lot. read more

3/28/2105 Made reservations for 10 at 830PM. We were not seated until 9:15, after being seated, we had to get our own menus and drink orders were not taken for another 15 minutes. After placing dinner orders, meals were served 30 minutes later and the quality of food and presentation was very average. There was not any leadership to provide guidance to the young staff to address the issues and no apology for the below average service I would not recommend read more

Terrible! Wouldn't accept restaurant.com discount certificate claiming it doesn't for crabs. It didn't say that anywhere on the restaurant.com site or the certificate. To make matters worse, I ordered 2 dozen of the largest crabs and only got 1 dozen and the second dozen were considerably smaller and... to make matters worse 5 were empty. If I had a failure rate of over 20% I would be fired! Don't eat at the Bait and Switch aka Crackpot Restaurant! read more

Good crab cakes awesome service

Don't even waste your time and money. Overpriced food. Outdated décor. Our server seemed nice but didn't do a good job. He never stayed on top of our refills and wouldn't clear away dirty plates. If Maryland is known for their crabs (and I know they are) then this place is not doing it justice. I had the crab cake sandwich and it was okay. Not good enough to come back to, though. The only thing there that I believe we all enjoyed was the crab stuffed pretzel (It was $13... yikes). If you're looking for a great place that serves good crabs with a relaxed atmosphere... do not go to the Crack Pot (or Crap Pot... that's what all my friends called it once we left). I guess the main reason I wouldn't go back is because they really try to make you feel like it's an upscale restaurant... and I wouldn't mind paying the big bucks if it really was but it's not. It's stuck in the 80s. And beware...they love to add a lot of salt to all of their food. This place needs Gordon Ramsey to teach them a thing or two. Kitchen Nightmares might be calling this place shortly;) read more

I have not been in years but decided to get a crab cake to go - BOY has this place went down hill! I would have gave no stars but it would not let me. read more

Not the best place in the world but decent enough to eat now and then. The wings are good and the sandwiches are decent, didn't think the crab cake was all that great though. A bit over priced for the taste. Service is decent enough, mostly because they don't have that many customers. read more

Totally disappointed. Should've known by the empty seats available on a Saturday night, but we remembered this place to be pretty decent. Seafood was bland and didn't look very appetizing. We had an appetizer of the crab and shrimp sauté, and the little pieces of bread had more flavor the the actual dish. I got the soft shelled crabs, which tasted like overdone fried chicken. My fiance got the crab imperial(which he said was actually decent) The best review would be from my 4 year old who loved her grilled cheese! I hate to write such a bad review, but seriously this place needs a little help! I would suggest a new chef...and a make over! read more

the broiled fish was fine. the crabcakes were pretty OK. BUT EVERYTHING else was skimpy, slipshod, out of a can, school cafeteria style. When they put that plate in front of you, you ARE disappointed. read more

We walked into the store, and waited for 10 minutes to be seated because the woman who should have seated us then, would not put the call on hold for a minute. The discussion of the call? An order for later tonight to reserve extra large crabs. Not a big deal, we sit down and once the waiter arrives, ask to order extra large crabs and are met with : "Unfortunately we are out of those right now sir". The employee at the front door maintained adamantly that she had to save the crabs for the later party. We ordered the next largest size, they were shitty. The only redeemable quality was our waiter who was polite contradicting the rest of the employees. Would not recommend to eat at a restaurant which conducts itself like this. read more

I was visiting the area and was looking for a good seafood restaurant. The crab cake I ordered was good but the customer service was the PITS! I only left $1.50 tip and that was because when I asked about their lemonade, the waiter stated it was not good, and did not recommend it. I appreciated their honesty. The rest of the time I virtually had no type of contact with other restaurant staff or the waiter other than they brought me my dish and something to drink. I waited more than 20 minutes for my meal, I almost left. They slid the bill to me, which I felt was rude, the restaurant was not full in terms of customers. I had leftovers and was never offered a carryout container to take my food, nor was I ever asked if I was okay, was the food okay, did I need anything else, etc. I will be back in that area again, but I will never go there again! read more

I took my husband to the Crackpot to have crabs for his birthday and it was incredible! I called the day prior to make the reservation and spoke with Diane who was very friendly and helpful. Beverly our server was excellent she took very good care of us and the crabs were AWESOME!!! Diane who I spoke to on the phone even stopped by to check on us. We have been coming here for years and have never been disapointed, I can't wait to come back on my Birthday which is next week :) read more

Great old school restaurant with awesome steamed crabs and shrimp! One of the best hidden treasures in MD! Don't go in expecting fine dining... expect a good time whacking crabs, enjoying some beer, and stuffing yourself. It is my favorite place around! There is a lot to be said for mom and pop business instead of chains... I am going to continue to do my part to support them... not only because their food is delicious but because it's a Baltimore staple thats been around forever. read more

I grew up in this "dive bar in college". I honestly think they have the best burger out of any establishment along with their sweat and spicy wings. read more

We are regulars at the crackpot. Come here about once a month. Always a great experience. I usually get the rock fish which is always wonderful. The sides are hhuge and taste great and homemade. The prices are reasonable. The burgers huge and juicy. Awesome gluten free options for people sensitive to gluten. Can usually find a groupon which makes it even more reasonable. One of our favorite restaurants. read more

I went there today, at the end of the O's playoff game. The bar was fairly busy, but not enough to ignore me for 15 minutes. Got a soda and a menu, then got ignored for ten more minutes. When I was acknowledged, the bartender told me he wouldn't take my order until the inning was over. Not he couldnt, not is it OK if he doesnt. He wouldnt. Later I made a remark about resigning a player and he snapped "Are you serious?". The crabcake I got was decent, not the the bartender cared to check til I was done. I have had some ok experiences there, and their food is pretty good. This bartender, on the other hand, was awful. Moved a lot, accomplished very little, and had a piss poor attitude to boot. If you wanna work, work. If you wanna chill and watch baseball, do everyone a favor and stay home. read more

HORRIBLE CRAB CAKES!!! Mushy tasteless gobs of goo! Very disappointed! Cream of crab was tolerable, Maryland crab soup tasted like sugar and no crab. This place has really gone downhill since the old days!! read more

The crockpot was just ok. Three of us got the pick 4 seafood platter. The crab cake had no flavor an it was very dry. The fried shrimp was very over fried an dried out. Oysters just ok. Cocktail sauce was terrible. However the Maryland crab soup was delicious an our server Tatyana was very friendly an attentive. We had a restaurant.com certificate so it was nice to try a new place. Probably won't go back. read more

I went to the Crack Pot with two friends, due to a coupon one of us had from a popular website. Upon entry, we were immediately seated. We literally did not spend ten seconds at the entrance/hostess area. The server was friendly and kind, but we repeatedly felt rushed. We racked up a check of over $160, including an $80/dozen order of steamed crabs. One of the most important qualities one looks for in crabs is their weight. Heavier crabs contain more meat and fetch a higher price. While there were some "heavy" crabs, there were more "light" ones. As a forty-seven year resident of Maryland who has consumed many steamed crabs, it is my opinion that the crabs fell far short of the price charged. The restaurant did replace one crab at our request and probably would have replaced others. In retrospect, we should have asked for more, but one should not have to send crabs back. There is something to be said for getting it right the first time. Unfortunately, the problems didn't end with the weight of the crabs. Upon presenting the coupon, which promised a $75 credit on a purchase of at least $150 we were politely informed that the coupon did not apply to crabs. This was not stated on the coupon and its authenticity was not in dispute. It was also not stated on the menu. The manager pointed out that there was a notice posted stating that the coupon did not apply to crabs. This is technically correct. There were notices, approximately the size of an 8 1/2 x 11 piece of paper posted in the entry and hostess areas. In this writer's opinion, it is not reasonable to expect a person who spends less than ten seconds in the entrance/hostess area to notice the signage. Upon argument, the manager offered a ten percent discount that fell very far short of the $75 discount on the coupon. In fact, the restaurant seemed to be placing the burden on the website for a coupon that had Crack Pot's name on it. If the restaurant has a disagreement with the website marketing the coupon, the restaurant needs to take that up with the website. In summary, this restaurant was not a good experience, and was not a good value. There are many places to enjoy famous MD steamed crabs. Sadly, I cannot recommend this one. read more

Service slow with only 4 customers in the whole restaurant + 8.0% gratuity added to bill for only 2 customers. Prime rib- only 1/2 edible & the crab augratin was so-so. Very disappointed. read more

I have been eating here for more than 15 years, The bartenders are friendly and provide good service. The bar food is some of the best around - burgers, nachos, and especially the wings. read more

Crackpot Restaurant USED to have fantastic crabcakes. Last night we had Clams Casino, crabcakes, cole slaw, french fries, steamed broccoli, cream of crab soup and a salad. Sent the broccoli back because it had no flavor. The only thing good about the meal was the french fries, salad and soup, Crab cakes had a lot of filling and tasted terrible. Only the tartar sauce made them palatable. Clams were very tough and had a fishy taste to them. My husband and mother didn't even like the cole slaw. Don't waste your money going to this restaurant for dinner. read more

The service there is a absolutely horrible. This one manager/ bartender is so rude and unprofessional. I have seen on more than one occasion where his rudeness has upset not only me, but other customers as well. The food is great but I will not go back until they get rid of him. read more

That was the first and last time going there. Obviously the good reviews are from staff or relatives. We had a restaurant.com coupon so we decided to try this place out. When I got there, I had high expectations. Those expectations were lost when my arnold palmer had a starge taste to it, still afraid to think what it was and it was very watered down. After an hour or so, I was able to request a lemonade, but I think this was the source of the strange taste. The table was dirty, but I figured the food is on a plate... During the entire dinner, which took over 2 hrs. we couldn't get drinks. We split the crab pretzel, which was dry and tasted... like a pretzel, not crab. Dinner came along and my son had 4 crabs, which he said weren't bad. My wife had the crab cakes which I thought just tasted like tin, she thought they were OK. I couldn't find any seasoning in the crab cakes at all. My prime rib... what a disaster! It was swimming in some toxic stew, some salty/sour mess, the meat was overdone in the microwave I would imagine. I ordered it rare and had that distinct microwaved meat edge to it. I still managed to eat it... My wifes side, the mac n cheese was made during the mesozoic era, but it had a fresh layer of cheese on top. Hey, the broccoli wasn't half bad! The waitress made a mistake and dropped off 2 Sierra mists at our table. After some time, she came back and said she made a mistake... she delivered the other one to a table, totally illegal! The check came and it was explained to me that the crabs are not included with the coupon, which the coupon did not state. I explained to the waitress that if the manager accepts the coupon, I may take it easy on him on yelp, that my dinner was pretty nasty. She said she'll check about the coupon, never once appologizing for the dinner. The manager came to the table after quite some time and explained the same thing. i told him the coupon didn't say that they weren't included and I wasn't about to pay for over priced awful food. He snatched the coupon from the table and shouted that he'd take it. Rude staff, bad food... was this kitchen nightmares? Where's Gordon? Please, if you find yourself wanting to check this place out... All I can recommend is the low beer specials, but who knows, they might be skunky. Please do not go here, I prayed a lot during the meal that I may survive! I felt bad that I didn't have change, so I left as little as possible to avoid an hour waiting for change. Best news of the night, I found $2 laying in the parking lot outside. read more

My friend and I frequent there for steamed crabs, NOT because they have the best crabs and definitely NOT for their crabs prices(usually the most expensive around) but it's the closest sit-down for crabs. We ordered a dozen of what they called their large male crabs at 70 bucks a dozen. They were absolutely the worse crabs we ever had. The crabs "large" crabs were barely over the size of normal small crabs, they had no weight to them and at least 3 were totally uneatable, the others tasted like they were steamed dead. We did complain to the manager who did give us 1/2 off the price which to be honest, was nice but they weren't even worth the 35 bucks we did pay. We ordered drinks(long island ice tea) and it tasted like a virgin long island.(does that exist?) On our 2nd round we asked our waitress to ask the bartender to put some alcohol in the next round. When she returned with that round she told us that the bartender said, " If we don't like these than go to a REAL bar." Okayyyyyyyy. Until this visit I would have given them 3 stars, but this visit really was a HUGE disappointment. read more

We had a living social voucher, so we thought we would try this place that is apparently known for its seafood. When we walked in, the decor was dark, dreary, and out dated. Carpet was old and nasty and Christmas lights should really only be for Christmas time. Saw a ton of dust sitting on top of light fixtures. How hard is it to clean every night? The place clearly is lacking management. Young staff was standing around and our server even sat down at a table in the front. Really unacceptable, but you can't hold it against them if nobody is leading and directing them! If I didn't have a living social voucher, I would have went into cardiac arrest over what the bill amounted to for the food we received. Hubby got a cup of cream of crab and I got MD crab. Both were lacking crab!!!!!! Mine was watered down and oily, not fresh. The cream of crab was downright insulting. Absolutely no flavor, just a blob of what tasted like cream and milk, ick! My "Chef's salad" with grilled chicken was insulting as well. How do you eff up a salad!?! By putting pre-frozen rubbery chicken with no flavor on top. I mean absolutely no flavor, not even a spec of pepper. I had to spit one piece out because it tasted like serious rubber. Hubby got the fried chicken platter with baked potato and fries. The size and quality of the chicken was terrifying. Wing piece was the size of my pinky finger and the thigh was literally gone in 2 bites, though he did say the flavor was decent and fried correctly. Star of the meal had to be the million bland frozen french fries on the plate, which also had no flavor, but at least they were crispy and plentiful. All in all, I couldn't wait to leave this place and debated stopping at Wendy's on the way home for a 5 piece chicken nugget. read more