Ocean City Restaurants
4 reasons to eat, drink and be merry at Ocean City's Restaurant Week
By KristinNovember 1, 20174 min read
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Get fresh fish from the Shrimp Boat all year - OceanCity.com
Summer has been winding down for months and as we approach November, Joe White still is keeping busy serving crowds at the Shrimp Boat. Traditionally there have been peaks and valleys in Ocean City, with insanely busy summers followed by deadish falls and winter doldrums, but that hasn't been White's experience in recent years.
You'll expand your palette
There's always a wide variety of restaurants that participate in Restaurant Week and in the kinds of foods they offer. Participants range from Touch of Italy (serving Italian fare, of course), to The Crab Bag and other seafood joints (mmm, crabs), to Happy Jack's Pancake House (pancakes for lunch, anyone?). This year, 18 restaurants are involved in total, which means you could eat dinner somewhere different every night for two weeks if you wanted to and still have restaurants left to hit. And remember, despite what the event's name might tell you, Restaurant Week is actually two weeks long. Come for the entire two weeks or just take a few days off and spend a long weekend enjoying all the delicious grub that Ocean City has to offer. The full list of participating restaurants is available here.You can satisfy your sweet tooth
While you might have come with only the main course in mind, be sure to save room for dessert. Sometimes, you'll even be treated to a seasonal dish; for example, Horizons Oceanfront Restaurant has offered a Pumpkin Lust cake from Desserts by Rita in the past, in addition to pumpkin soup made with sage and apples, an autumn salad with candied pecans and roasted sweet potatoes. Many restaurants offer deals that include a multi-course meal, so for what you'd normally pay for one dish, you can get an appetizer and dessert along with it.Margaritas and other perfect things at the Longboard Cafe - OceanCity.com
Usually I go on my Happy Hour Adventures on a whim. I don't scout these places out but rather pop in with my camera and ask if I can hang out and take some photos. The Longboard Cafe was the first place I made a conscious decision to visit.
You're eating fine cuisine on the cheap
No matter what your budget is or what your tastes are, you'll be able to find something satisfying during Restaurant Week. Participating restaurants offer $10-$40 meal options. So with $10 you could get, for example, a gourmet breakfast or specialty burger, for $20 a two-course lunch or dinner, for $30 a three-course meal and for $40, four courses that emphasize upscale dining. Different restaurants have different specials, so what you get also depends on where you go. Horizons, for example, has offered a 20% wine discount during the entirety of Restaurant Week, while for $28.95 Touch of Italy has served a multi-course meal that included an appetizer, a pasta dish, a meat dish and a dessert.It's an excuse to come back to Ocean City!
Not that you really need an excuse--I think we've established by now that the off-season is never completely "off" in Ocean City. The town is beautiful in the autumn, and on the second-to-last day of Restaurant Week, the holiday season begins early with the Light Up Downtown Festival and a Turkey Trot Golf Open at OC's award-winning Eagle's Landing golf course. Winterfest of Lights will begin during the second half of Restaurant Week, too, so you can check out the beautiful light displays after eating a delicious, discounted hot meal. (If you need another reason to partake in Restaurant Week, here's a bonus: this year, you can win a gift card just by eating at two participating RW restaurants and sending in your receipts. More information here.)
About Kristin
Kristin is a writer and photographer in Ocean City, Maryland, and is the content manager for OceanCity.com and other State Ventures, LLC sites. She loves getting reader-submitted stories and photos, so send her an email anytime. She also works part-time at the Art League of Ocean City and the Ocean City Film Festival and lives just off the peninsula with her dog and fiancé. Her photos can be found on Instagram @oc_kristin.
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