Carryouts on the east side of Baltimore, where I reside, like Sunny’s Subs, Stoko’s, Hip Hop Fish and Chicken, and the now defunct Giorgio’s and Tyrone’s Chicken all provided quick, delicious and reliable meals with their own unique spin. During my first summer job as a teen, I spent my lunch breaks hitting up carryout spots with my friends for a then $5.99 chicken box until we became reasonably concerned about the high levels of sodium we were consuming. Growing up in the east side of Baltimore, chicken boxes were more accessible than a bushel of crabs as a summer indulgence, both geographically and financially. Nevertheless, the chicken box remains an important cultural fixture in black neighborhoods amid rising gentrification and commercial whitewashing. A restaurant in Mount Vernon called Square Meal began serving a $21 version of a chicken box in 2018 that set #BaltimoreTwitter ablaze. Whether this meal should or could become a mainstream staple sold in expensive tourist spots and fancy restaurants like Maryland crab is a more contentious discussion. Or you can opt for a jumbo half-and-half (a sweet mix of lemonade and iced tea), best on a scolding-hot summer day. It comes with an ice-cold can of soda and costs under $10. You open it, and inside are four chicken wings, seasoned French fries, maybe a roll. Imagine the feeling of a warm Styrofoam box in your hands. In particular, Baltimore’s other signature meal: the chicken box.Īs a lifelong patron of Baltimore’s food economy, I would argue that the chicken box is the best meal the city has to offer and the best kept secret from tourists and Baltimore’s white middle and upper class. The same sort of large-scale publicity isn’t granted to our legendary carryout scene. ![]() Like most expensive cuisine, there’s an air of luxury and sophistication associated with Baltimore’s seafood industry, hence its national recognition. You can find uniquely decorated crab statues around the city from a local fundraiser back in 2005. They’re a celebratory go-to meal after an Orioles games at Camden Yards for wealthier folks, and almost everyone enjoys them during their summer holiday cookouts. Blue crabs are emblazoned on t-shirts and mugs for visitors. It’s a symbol that follows you everywhere in the most tourist-y parts of state, particularly the Inner Harbor located in downtown Baltimore. Since colonial times, Maryland’s economy has relied on the underwater discoveries of the Chesapeake Bay, including rockfish, oysters, and most importantly the Maryland blue crab.
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