December 1st, 2010
The Narrows, Grasonville, Kent Island, Maryland, Restaurant, Review, Cream of Crab Soup, Recipe
When having to travel on Rt. 50, over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, towards Baltimore, the airport, Washington, etc., 2 restaurants I hit all the time. It seems they are the only ones I do prefer to stop and relax. Remember, that this is my own personal opinion. Yes, my blog. There are more restaurants in the area but I just like these 2 the best.
So yesterday, Tuesday, I found myself traveling that corridor and it was already about 3 p.m. Not having had lunch I don’t know if my stopping at The Narrows qualified as late lunch or super early bird. Their happy hour had not even started.
There were a few customers and the restaurant was getting ready for a wine tasting. The Narrows is located at 3023 Kent Narrows Way South, Grasoville, MD 21638. Traveling West take exit 42 and traveling East take exit 41. Tel. 410-827-8113. Website is www.thenarrowsrestaurant.com. They are on Facebook and Twitter.
The Narrows was opened in 1983 and it sits on the foundation of an old oyster shucking house.
This restaurant is casual with beautiful views of the water at this time of the day. Yesterday, it was cloudy, but still beautiful.
You can sit indoors or on their porch, which is also enclosed but with windows that are open during the summer months. If you choose the porch then you are on top of the water. I like to see the boats slide by.
I had to give Harris Crab House a rest; lately I have had the craving for crabs and steamed clams. Harris Crab House is across the highway. Having that satisfied, my next craving was the best cream of crab soup, at The Narrows. I am not kidding you it is so delicious, thick, lumps of crab meat; I don’t even want to know the calories.
I started with just a cup of the cream of crab soup; could have had a bowl. It is presented with a cruet of sherry. You practically can put your spoon in and it will stand straight up. Then cut it with the sherry. Some of us put more sherry than others. My parents were in that group. They loved this restaurant and every time they visited; this was a must stop restaurant. Alissa, our waitress, told me that one time somebody asked for a short glass with ice and proceeded to also put that sherry on the glass. So, to each its own.
I told Alissa that I had been given their cream of crab soup recipe many years ago by my mother in law and when I made it; sorry but it was not the same. Could it had been that an ingredient was left out? She then gave me a copy and it is somewhat different from the one I had. I will give it to you in a little bit. You will love it. Well, if you don’t like cream soups, then this recipe might not be the one to try.
The other appetizer ordered was the grilled buffalo quail. Perfectly grilled and seasoned.
For my entree I chose the sliders. After my soup I wanted something lighter; no kidding. Three sliders; mini crab cake, bison, and ahi tuna, served on potato rolls and frizzled onions. I have to tell you that I have never ordered sliders anywhere, but I thought this was an interesting presentation and it hit the spot. I loved the 3 combinations.
I opened them up so that you can see how good they looked.
At this time of the year the crab meat at The Narrows is coming from Louisiana, the bison, I believe, from up the road on Rt. 16 in Delaware and the oysters from the Choptank River.
The Narrows also has a gluten free menu so the catfish was ordered from that menu even though he really wanted the one from the regular menu which was peanut encrusted. Nevertheless, he said that it was very good.
I promised you the crab recipe so here it goes:
Cream of Crab Soup
1 lb. jumbo lump crab meat
1 small carrot, grated
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups half and half
2 cups heavy cream
1 tablespoon dry sherry
1 tablespoon chicken base (I asked what this was and it is bouillon)
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
Remove any cartilage from the crab meat and set the crab aside.
In a thick pot, warm cream, half & half, sherry, chicken base and seasoning to slow simmer.
In a separate pan toast the roux (flour and butter) for a few minutes until it smells of toasted nuts (do not burn). See note below.
Add roux to cream – bring back to a simmer – wisk until smooth.
Serve garnish with the chopped parsley and please pass a cruet of sherry.
Serves 4 to 6
Note: A roux is a cooked mixture of flour and butter. It is used as a thickener for gravy, other sauces, soups and stews. Warm butter, add flour and stir until mixture is thick and starts to turn slightly brown and has that nutty smell.
Now you know why I did not want to even check the amount of calories in this soup.
The Narrows is so well known for its crab cakes and soups that they ship anywhere in the United States. Catering is also available so please give them a call.
I want to thank Alissa for taking such good care of us.
Well, it was time to keep on trucking towards Delaware. I usually take the backroads and as I was driving; not too many cars on the road, I passed this house all decorated; it reminded me that I have yet to put one Christmas decoration on my house.
Talk to you later….have a great day….
Tags: Cream of Crab Soup, Eastern Shore, Gluten Free, Gluten free awareness, Gluten free menu, Gransonville, Kent Island, Kent Narrows, Maryland, Recipe, Restaurant, Restaurants, review, Reviews, Rt. 50 highway, seafood restaurant, The Narrows
Thank you so much for posting this recipe. Someone else posted a cream of crab soup recipe claiming it was from the Narrows, but it was all wrong. You’re awesome!
I love this place from the bread to the desserts.Omy goodness.
The cream of crab is silky with chunks of crab,perfect spice & taste.Crab cakes Wonderful , Steak is melt in your mouth good. And the moose in a bag is scrumptious. looking forward to my next visit . I’m from Maryland but live in Saint Louis Mo & its the first thing I want to do when I get there. I’m packing now:)
Love it too. And, that cream of crab is awesome!! Thanks for your comments.
Can’t wait to try this recipe! Love The Narrows cream of crab. Does the grated carrot get added to the stock and let it cook for awhile?
It will be interesting to see what you think. I love this soup but for some reason it does not taste as good as when I have it there. You can add the carrot to the stock. It is for a bit of color.