ragin' reef

Never would have known of this spot except for some locals. Hope I can find my way back. Cooked to perfection, have to see next time if they have lobster

This was a reasonable seafood joint in Frederick. Better than average crab cakes (which are thankfully mostly crab without much bread), but it prices itself like a big city restaurant. I guess Frederick has changed into the weekend spot for the DC crew?

The staff was friendly, accommodating, and competent.

There is limited space inside the restaurant, so plan ahead. Either make reservations, or hope that you don't go on a popular night.

Good food, good atmosphere. The arrangement of the tables makes it a little hard to have an intimate dinner or conversation. It's set up like a diner with all of the tables in one long row which is probably the only thing not great about this place.

Since we were expecting more rain in the area I decided to explore Frederick a bit. After walking around I went to Ragin Reef and was able to park with no problems although they were busy. Wait for a table would have been over 90 minutes unless I sat at the bar. After getting comfortable I ordered the fried shrimp and scallops basket with thin cut fries. The female bartender was helpful and served me. The meal was very satisfying and it came with ketchup, cocktail sauce and tartar sauce. The food was good however, half way through my meal one of the Male workers decided to clean up the two bar seats that was just vacated. Instead of using a rag he used two paper menus to scrape up the crumbs and wet counter. I was appalled that he put the menus for reuse instead of trashing them. The bar has their glass draining board directly on the bar table instead of underneath. This means the bar top will get wet often. Warning to call and reserve a table ahead of time.

Wasn't expecting much when we walked in, but was very happily surprised at the outcomes. Four very happy diners worked through appetizers, entrees and a shared dessert and everything was very good. They had a particularly nice take on calamari. They have a nice lunch menu with numerous choices at a very reasonable cost for what you get.