Have to write a year end blog, right?

Boatyard crab cakes shipped all over the US - that's a day's shot of crab cake prep just before Christmas - almost every state got at least one order between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  We have now sold this year over 70,000 crab cakes.  Wow - Chef George you da man!

We joined the FoodyDirect platform offering the best and most iconic specialty foods from around the nation.  Customers go on our site or theirs to order.  Chef ensures they arrive overnight fresh, cold (never frozen), ready to cook.   Sous chef Nestor Gonzalez is supervising the five trips it took to get them all on the UPS truck!

So how did we partner with FoodyDirect?

.....talk about 6 degrees of separation.  I was attending a Friends of St John’s College Board meeting and Michael Smith (a founder of White House Black Market and now owner of South Moon Under) said he had met Brad Koenig of FoodyDirect.  Brad mentioned to Michael about taking Microsoft public in 1986 when he was with Goldman Sachs.  Michael brought up my name as a friend from Annapolis who was also involved in the Microsoft deal.  (It was a joint Goldman Sachs/Alex Brown managed deal).  Brad said he remembered me from way back when.  Long story short I contacted him and he came by the Boatyard and had our crab cakes.  We shipped him some to his home in Palo Alto and we became a FoodyDirect provider.  How did he start the company?  After retiring from Goldman he happened to be in NYC walking to his favorite New York bagel store.  He said to himself “why can’t I get these bagels tomorrow in Palo Alto.”  He and his chef brother started the company and well, now he can.  We are proud to be a part of the FoodyDirect portfolio of the best. 

Winter is here but we have passed the winter solstice and days are already getting longer-starting Dec 22.  The end of rockfish season has passed. The morning skies are amazing.....  Not a lot of boats on the Bay except AYC Frostbite sailing series on Sundays, the pilot launch taking pilots to merchant ships going into Baltimore and several watermen heading out or an occasional hardy soul trying to shed cabin fever.  I love the gray days actually with the only color being the red and green marks in the entrance to Back Creek.  Our friend, singer-songwriter Scott Kirby, wrote a great song about the gray days on the coast of Maine with the only color being one float from a lobster pot that was left over from summer-love the image.

The Boatyard Full Moon Party returns January 11, 2018!

The January Full Wolf Moon party features live music with The Shatners.

SailUniverse has named the Boatyard as one of the 10 Most Famous Sailors Bars in the World.

When owner Dick Franyo envisioned the Boatyard Bar & Grill, he saw it as a place where the casual sailor or Kiwi pro, avid boater or yacht owner, boat mechanic, fisherfolk and general lovers of the Chesapeake lifestyle would sit at the bar casually chatting up the last regatta or sharing briny tales of the big one that got away.

The Boatyard's famous Sunday Buck-a-Shuck oysters have returned!  Local grown Patty's Fatty's for just a buck an oyster - freshly delivered to our door by Wild Country Seafood.  Pat Mahoney, owner and one of the last authentic Eastport-Annapolis watermen, personally braves all Chesapeake Bay weather to be sure we have the best oysters around!   Our fabulously fresh raw bar offerings also include clams, oysters and of course, oyster shooters.

If you were wondering what happens to the tens of thousands of oysters the Boatyard serves each year, we work with the incredible Oyster Recovery Partnership  to ensure a healthy oyster population and environmentally sound Chesapeake Bay........

Shop online for Boatyard Crab Cakes, Soup and Dip - Give someone a gift and get one too!

Make the most of this once-a-year special, starts midnight October 20 and ends November 5, 2017.  Our amazing All Killer, No Filler crab cakes are terrific gifts, for yourself too.  Make entertaining oh so simple with the same freshly made crab dishes that our restaurant customers love.  Ships fresh to your door, ready to cook - never frozen!   Order here!

The MRE documentary Eastport 21403  had its debut at the Annapolis Film Festival, followed by an exclusive, red carpet screening at the Boatyard, then aired on Maryland Public Television.

Now it is available for your viewing pleasure in its entirety anytime - meet the characters, feel the energy, reflect on the history revolving around the creation of the Maritime Republic of Eastport!   Enjoy the best darn original film in Eastport, produced by the Boatyard Bar & Grill and t2p.tv.

The 2017 Boatyard Bar & Grill CRAB Regatta

A sunny day without much wind was not a deterrent for all those who turned out for this fun, family-friendly pursuit race to support CRAB (Chesapeake Region Accessible Boating).  Upbeat Regatta participants were joined by party-goers and generous donors at the after-party featuring a live auction and music by Misspent Youth.  With proceeds raised from the event, CRAB can purchase a brand new Beneteau First 22A!    A big thanks to the event Sponsors including the Boatyard Bar & Grill for the delicious food, and Heineken and Mount Gay for refreshing rum drinks and beer!  Enjoy the photos!

Boatyard Beach Bash 2017 on the waterfront

A balmy night of stellar entertainment under the stars delighted the sold-out crowd.  The laid-back sounds of current members of Jimmy Buffet's Coral Reefers Band Doyle Grisham and Peter Mayer, along with the amazing talent of Keith Sykes, Brendan Mayer, John Frinzi, Scott Kirby, John Patti and Aaron Scherz (and sometimes our very own Dick Franyo) filled the evening.  Annapolitans and Parrotheads turned out to benefit the Annapolis Maritime Museum, sponsored by the Boatyard Bar & Grill with other generous supporters, raising $90,000.  Enjoy the photos!

NEXT FULL MOON PARTY October 5, 2017 with The Shatners 

Come howl!

Eastport 21403

Produced by the Boatyard and filmed by t2p.tv, Eastport 21403 airs on Maryland Public Television on Sunday, September 17 at 4:30pm. 

Since 1868, Eastport had been an independent small town on a peninsula, connected by a bridge to the City of Annapolis. Even when annexed by Annapolis in 1951, it never lost its own character, later described as charm. In 1998, when the City of Annapolis closed the bridge for repairs without any notice to the Eastport residents, long-standing resentment boiled over into a "tongue and cheek" revolution and the Maritime Republic of Eastport was born. "Eastport 21403" is a short film that takes you on the journey of their "revolution" and through what Eastport has evolved into today. What started out as simply a way to drum up attention for local Eastport businesses turned into a forum for Eastport's unique kind of lifestyle: "We like it this Way".

Click here to watch the trailer

 Cheap Eats' Ali Kahn talks stuff about the Boatyard all killer, no filler crab cakes!

The Vitals:
the spot: Boatyard Bar and Grill 112A Annapolis St. Annapolis MD 21401
the eats:  Crab Cake Sandwich 
the bucks: $15.99
the full nelson:  all killer and no filler. an absolute beast of a crab cake sandwich

Grab an extra napkin, and sit down to the tastiest wonders ever assembled on bread.

SouthernLiving.com, July 2017 by Julia Rutland

Maryland

Boatyard Bar & Grill -
Annapolis

On the corner of Severn Avenue and Fourth Street in Annapolis, the Boatyard Bar & Grill is just a few blocks from the water in the historic neighborhood of Eastport. Walking up the planked ramp and into the spacious restaurant, you might feel as if you’ve just strolled into a maritime museum. Photographs, paintings, and trophies cover the walls from floor to rafters. Look closely and you’ll even see singer-songwriter Jack Johnson’s autographed surfboard hanging from the beams. This gathering spot for local sailors and visitors alike keeps fresh Chesapeake Bay seafood prominent on the menu and maintains a loyal following for the Best Crab Cake Sandwich You’ll Ever Eat. The generous crab cake is rounded high with jumbo lump crab that appears to defy gravity. Chef George Betz’s secret recipe involves gently folding the crab in a rich sauce that helps hold everything together. The crab cake is broiled to a light golden brown and served on a tender brioche roll. A lemony house-made tartar sauce is included on the side and makes a great dipper for the fries that come with it. Don’t fret if you can’t satisfy your craving with a visit to the restaurant— the Boatyard ships crab cakes nationwide from its online store.  boatyardbarandgrill.com

Order Boatyard Bar & Grill All Killer, No Filler crab cakes online.

Read the full article

How to Spend a Day in Annapolis - the Washingtonian Welcome Guide explores a day trip to Maryland's quaint capital....be sure to stop at the Boatyard Bar & Grill for the freshest local seafood specialties and amazing crab cakes!

NEXT FULL MOON PARTY September 7, 2017 with Jess McQuay Band

Come howl!

Next date: TBD

2018 will be our 13th Annual Bands In The Sand party at and to benefit the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.   Los Lobos was last year's headliner, joined by Mad Planet and Misspent Youth and the future musical line up promises to be just as stellar!

The Boatyard owner, Dick Franyo, a Trustee of CBF, saw the opportunity for the best beach party in the area while out at another event up on the porch at CBF almost a decade ago.  He said to himself “this is nice but CBF needs to have its largest fundraiser right on the beach by the Bay overlooking Thomas Point Lighthouse.”  Since he had already founded and produced the Annual Boatyard Spring Fishing Tournament and Annual Annapolis Maritime Museum Boatyard Beach Bash, he knew a lot about throwing outdoor “life-style events”.  It meant generators and wires for power under the sand, large professional stage, sound system, lighting and setting up a full kitchen right on the sand.  Dick says “the CBF team and my Boatyard staff have really stepped up and produced the very best party of the year in the area.”

The event has raised over to a million dollars for CBF.   This year our good friends at bambeco were the Title Sponsor again. “Thank you bambeco, you are truly dedicated to Saving the Bay, such a natural treasure!”

The Chesapeake Bay is a national treasure.  America’s largest estuary is worth more than one trillion dollars, home to 17 million people, and populated with iconic wildlife.  But despite some recent signs of improvement, the Bay is still a system dangerously out of balance.  Poor water quality is threatening our local rivers, streams, and the Bay; endangering the health of thousands of species of plants and animals; putting human health at risk; and deflating our region’s economy.

The Chesapeake Bay Foundation is committed to making the Bay and its rivers and streams healthy again.  And, with the help of dedicated members, we work across the six-state Chesapeake Bay watershed to do just that.  Our vision is a restored Bay with healthy rivers and clean water; sustainable populations of crabs, fish, and oysters; thriving water-based and agricultural economies; and a legacy of success for our children and grandchildren.

 View the Bands in the Sand Photo Gallery