Sue Island Grill
and Crab House
850 Baltimore Yacht Club Dr
Baltimore, MD 21221
410-574-0009
- by Allison H. McAlister -
It's summer
time, the living is easy and there's just nothing better than enjoying
a meal at one of the many waterfront restaurants in eastern Baltimore
County. If you're looking for a place to take family and friends that's
got a laid back, welcoming atmosphere, a beautiful view of the water
and pretty darn good food, head on over to Sue Island Grill and Crab
House, overlooking the picturesque Sue Creek. The restaurant is under
new ownership and opened for business on May 25. Mark and Pam Fuchsluger,
owners of the neighboring Sue Island Marina, bought the restaurant
in February when it went into foreclosure and was put up for auction.
They brought in their friends of 30 years, Jim and Amy Revty, to help
them out with their first foray into the restaurant business. A lot
of work was put into refurbishing and redecorating the place, both
inside and out. The nautical decor indoors in both the bar area and
the dining room is fitting for the waterfront eatery that features
predominantly seafood on its menu. The outside seating area looks
so inviting, complete with picnic tables under roof as well as brightly
colored pastel picnic tables and Adirondak chairs in a sandy open
area. Its exactly the kind of place Id like to be on a beautiful day
to enjoy a drink and a meal in the company of loved ones, with some
Jimmy Buffet music playing in the background. It was a little too
humid to really eat outside on the day my coworker and I visited Sue
Island Grill, so we chose a table inside by the window so we could
still take in the view. Amy, the restaurants manager, took good care
of us while we were there. Friendly, bubbly and talkative, it was
clear she was excited about this new venture. The restaurant is under
new ownership, with new management, a new chef, new servers, everything,
she explained, adding that the employees are like a family and they're
committed to working hard to ensure Sue Island Grill is successful.
We work as a team, it takes everybody and were all on the same page.
Amy says business has been picking up since they got their liquor
license. In addition to a full bar, the restaurant also features steamed
crabs which are served with steamed corn. Diners will also find a
few soft crab entree? on the menu. We started our meal with a couple
of the appetizers - the BBQ Grilled Shrimp & Bacon and the Crab Dip.
The crab dip, served with toasted French bread slices, was really
good, so creamy and cheesy and well seasoned. We imagine the crab
pretzel must be just as good! The BBQ Grilled Shrimp & Bacon, nice-sized
flavorful shrimp wrapped in bacon and topped with a dollop of tangy
barbecue sauce, was off the hook. The wonderful flavor brought back
childhood memories of my dads famous grilled shrimp wrapped in bacon.
Delicious! These delectable morsels were gobbled up quickly! We also
had the opportunity to sample both the Cream of Crab Soup and the
Maryland Crab Soup. The cream of crab was excellent, very creamy and
tasty. The Maryland crab soup was full of crabmeat and mixed vegetables
and was mildly seasoned. If you prefer your soup more mild than spicy,
you'll enjoy this one. For our main dishes, we tried the Crab Cake
and the Chicken Chesapeake. The crab cake was delicious, not overly
seasoned and browned to perfection. The Chicken Chesapeake was incredibly
tasty. The chicken was so moist and tender, and the Crab Imperial
over top was spectacular and oh so flavorful. We had french fries
(yummy!), onion rings (some of the best onion rings I've ever had,
said my coworker) and cole slaw (very good) as our sides. We saved
room for dessert, but we had to take a raincheck on that. Chef Beau
has been so busy concentrating on the lunch and dinner menu items,
he simply hasn't had the time to put together his desserts as yet.
My plan is for homemade desserts, like pies and cakes and brownies,
he said. I cant wait! The current menu features a good selection of
appetizers, steamed seafood, soups, salads, sandwiches, pizza, steak,
seafood and more. They also have a kids menu. Currently featuring
daily and weekly specials, Amy says they plan to make a few seasonal
menu changes in the fall. Grab the family, or a few friends, and check
out the new Sue Island Grill. As their sign says, good friends gather
here. Sue Island Grill and Crab House is located at 850 Baltimore
Yacht Club Drive in Essex. Hours of operation are noon - 2 a.m. Tuesday
through Sunday. For more information, call 410-574-0009.
