Cantler's Riverside Inn

I was in the mood for soft shell crabs and Google Gemini listed Cantler's as a nice restaurant in Annapolis. Although it was cold outside, the inside, as well as the enclosed deck, was comfortable warm. It had a friend ly atmosphere. I had the feeling that the patrons who were there when I was there for lunch were regulars. The waitress professionally timed when she would bring the food, balancing the small orders, like mine with the large orders for big parties. I thoroughly enjoyed my soft shell crabs. There are several other items on the menu I intend to try when I visit in the future. They include the oysters, rockfish and, of course, crabs.

A friend recommended Cantler's when he learned I would be visiting Annapolis for the Sailboat Show this weekend, so we drove over (about 5 miles by car) for lunch. Allie greeted us as we were seated on the back porch, overlooking a lovely section of Mill Creek. Drinks were quick and the food was also. We had the Shrimp Pasta and Softshell Crab sandwiches and everything was absolutely delicious. The atmosphere was exactly what you would expect, down to the butcher paper tablecloths. Several parties around us were working away at extracting morsels from Blue crabs, I'm so glad we came, don't miss a chance to enjoy great food at a reasonable price in a lovely rustic Chesapeake atmosphere.

Amazing crab, as a Maryland native I highly recommend Cantler’s, the employees obviously enjoy their jobs and knew what we wanted or needed instantly the atmosphere is great and was very nice and enjoyable even during a big rainstorm if I can move tables and still love the crab through rain than Cantler’s is an incredible crab place a local favorite although some people may not like Cantler’s it’s truly an amazing crab place and locals from Maryland and D.C. enjoy it. Cantler’s is on the water you can dock boats on it if you wanted! Great place highly recommend if you want a true Maryland blue crab experience!

Cantler's is an Annapolis classic and locals favorite. Crabs are fresh and always plentiful. Great place for a family gathering or taking a date. It's a bit pricey, but that's the standard for Annapolis area crab places. Kids will love checking out the crab tanks down below. Lovely river views and awesome service.

With it's reputation, I was pretty excited to try Cantler's but ultimately felt it was just ok. No complaints as far as service goes, and it's location on the water definitely gives it classic crab house vibes. The food is just ok. My crab cakes needed a bit more seasoning and the platter of food as a whole was warm, not hot. The cream of crab soup had nice chunks of crab in it, but the soup was more on the gloopy side rather than creamy. On the bright side, the whole crabs were hot, delicious and meaty.