Head To This Maryland Eatery For Crab Cakes The Size Of Softballs

Maryland has the best seafood in the United States, according to Reddit, due in no small part to its proximity to Chesapeake Bay, where millions of crabs live in its brackish waters. With all those delicious crustaceans swimming around, it's no surprise Baltimore residents and restaurants take full advantage. That's why the city has some of the freshest, tastiest crabs in the world. And according to locals, few restaurants deliver better crab than Koco's Pub. The restaurant is known for delicious crab cakes the size of softballs. 

The restaurant serves up fresh, house-made 11-ounce jumbo lump crab cakes with hardly any filler — as is the Baltimore way. If those monster crab cakes sound like too much, you can order a 6-ounce version, but it's only available Wednesday through Friday before 4 p.m.

When Koco's Pub opened in 1985, the small hole-in-the-wall bar without much of a kitchen served around 20 crab cakes per week, which they cooked in a countertop pizza oven. Today, the Baltimore pub sells 2,000 per week and has become one of the best restaurants in the entire country to order crab cakes. But crab cakes of this quality aren't cheap.

A single 11-ounce crab cake — which comes with crackers, lettuce, tomato, and a pickle — will set you back around $50, depending on the market price that day. For around the same price, you can get it as a sandwich, with or without a Caesar salad or as part of a platter (with french fries, coleslaw, lettuce, and tomato). For double the deliciousness, you can order a double crab cake platter for around $90 (depending on market price). The smaller 6-ounce crab cake will set you back around $25. If a trip to Baltimore isn't in the cards, you can order fresh crab cakes from Koco's Pub, but be prepared for sticker shock. Just two of the 11-ounce crab cakes costs $104, and that doesn't include shipping.

Are they worth it? According to many customers, absolutely. One Yelp reviewer says, "Best crab cake I've ever had. Every bit worth the 3 hour drive. The amount of crab was incredible." Another reviewer agreed: "Probably the meatiest crab cake I ever had." It's no surprise, then, that Koco's Pub won Baltimore Magazine's Best of Baltimore Reader's Poll in 2025 for having the best crab cakes in Charm City.