Although, we didn't have a full dinner here (we were just doing some appetizers on a happy food crawl), what we saw and sampled of Mama's on a Half Shell was enough to score 5 stars in my book. First off, it is packed for good reason, as the oysters are so fresh they practically jump off the plate. or whatever it is oysters do when they're fresh. I was very impressed with their grilled oysters, but of our two selections, paprika and barbecue, I thought the paprika was much better of the two. Our bartender Matt was very friendly. and he helped us make the perfect selection in our drinks and food. Their grapefruit crush was very refreshing, an excellent compliment to our delicious oysters. yum! My only regret was that we didn't stay to order more from their varied menu; the look and smell of every dish that came out of the kitchen made my mouth water and assured me that like General MacArthur "I will be back!" to lead my assault on some of the most appealing seafood dishes I have eyed in a long time. read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Mama's oyster bar - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

A cool bar and restaurant. I like the interior, which keeps me excited. Taste: Good. Crab-cake is pretty average. I prefer much more simple seasonings. Scallops, oysters, and shrimps are big and fresh. French fries is average. Coleslaw has too much mayonnaise but is tasty. Price: Average seafood restaurant price. Customer service: Good. Atmosphere: Casual. I don't see any kids. Many couples. Parking lot: Street. read more

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If you like mussels- go here! They were nice and big. They offer them 3 ways, I got the wine and garlic - delicious and meaty. Had the spinach salad and that was delicious. I kept eating even though I was full it was so good. The bar area where we sat was so Baltimore! Heavy wooded bar, lots of patrons and decorated with mermaids, old football jerseys- random and fun. The outdoor seating area looked really cool. With a large tarps, pretty lighting and lots of tall plants. Recommend place to chill and enjoy! read more

Service was great Kristen was really nice. I love the ambiance. Really nice place to have a party (whenever restrictions ate lifted). Food was good the chowder was great and the scallops on the potato cake was delicious. So I would definitely recommend you to check it out. read more

On a crazy culinary run through Baltimore, I found myself on the corner of O'Donnell and South Linwood Avenue making my way through the crowded space of Mama's on the Half Shell on a late Sunday afternoon. Asked if we wanted to sit upstairs or down, we chose up because it looked less crowded. Choosing upstairs to sit is a much better choice if you want a more private experience. If you're there to socialize and meet people, hang out downstairs by the bar and restrooms. We were in a rush as one of our dining companions had a plane to catch and we decided on getting a dozen raw oysters on the half shell. They offered three varieties - Bluepoint, Cotuit, and Malpeque, I think. At $18.50/dozen or $9.50/half dozen, it's a pretty good deal for a couple of people from Vegas. After the first dozen, two of our companions had to jam but we wanted more oysters. And that meant two more rounds of oysters for us. The mignonette they served complimented the oysters nicely and it tasted so fresh! Yum yum! We tried ordering their Steamed P.E.I Mussels ($7.99), but realized they had just run out. Figuring we had other restaurants to hit in Baltimore, we said adieu after three dozen oysters. The highlight of this place is their oysters, of course. Their service could use some improvement though. When we mentioned that we were in a hurry, the waitress simply nodded and continued on to the next table without bothering to bring our order to the kitchen. We never got silverware until the second round of oysters arrived. (And that's only because I asked another waitress for it.) The stairs in the back have a funky smell, so watch out. Not sure if it's because it's near the restrooms or what, but I almost wanted to gag as I proceeded down the stairs. (One of the girls in the restroom mentioned that the toilet stall she was in was having some problems with the flushing...as in, the toilet wouldn't flush.) On the way out, I asked the waiter if they had a business card. He responded back that HE (personally) did not have a business card. And then I think he realized then I was asking about the restaurant and not himself! Duh! Another waiter gave me their menu to go since they don't have any business cards. This waiter was pretty nice about telling me when I should call for reservations for large groups and stuff. Overall, I'd go back for more oysters on the half shell. They offer a bunch of other things like 8 oz filet mignon wrapped in bacon ($21.99) or blue cheese crusted ($21.99). You can get your classic seafood dishes here like fresh fish, crab cakes ($14.99), scallops ($19.99), and fried shrimp platters ($15.99). They offer a variety of sandwiches like Fried Oyster PoBoys ($9.99) and Tuna Steaks ($8.99). They also offer clams on the half shell and steamed jumbo shrimp ($14.99). read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Dozen oysters on the half shell ($18.50) - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

Brunch? Yes. French toast? Delicious. Beignets? OMG! And fresh oysters? Died and went to heaven! This place is delicious and cozy read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Beignets - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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Food and service is amazing! Oysters are fresh and delicious. Wasn't crowded when I attended, and I will be back here again.

Mama's on the Half Shell is a wonderful seafood restaurant located in the Canton district of Baltimore. It offers a wide array of seafood choices that make any gathering an experience! FOOD: If you're coming here, definitely get the seafood! It's what Mama's is known for and I can't recommend it enough Crab Cake Platter [5/5]: Probably one of the best crab cakes I've had in the Baltimore area. Very tasty and savory. Comes with two sides so it's up to you whether you want vegetables or carbs. Surf and Turf: [4/5]: Both the shrimp and the steak were delicious. The steak was more medium when I asked for medium rare, but still tasty. I love the sauce and the vegetables combined with udon was a really interesting combination. Dessert included a key lime tart and a creme brûlée. Two classics to end the meal! AMBIANCE: It's a little small in Mama's. Not to the point that you'd feel overcrowded or claustrophobic, but it does get loud. I went on a Saturday night and it was very busy. It's a great place for friend groups to hang out. SERVICE: All the staff was super friendly. Our waitress was very attentive to our needs. OVERALL: If you're going for dinner get there early! 5:30 is best to beat the rush. Mama's on the Half Shell is a fantastic place for you and your friends to hang out and eat delicious seafood. Can't recommend it enough! read more

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Great service food was delicious, our waitress was attentive and friendly nice restaurant overall

The best spot in Canton square for food & drinks. period. I've been coming to Mama's for so many years, I used to live in Canton 6 yrs ago, and have since moved to Philly, but every time I come back to visit friends/family, I always go back to Mama's. Tips: 1. There's always a wait, but don't get discouraged. They usually seat you well before your quoted time, AND, this place is worth the wait. 2. Everyone raves about the Orange Crush, but I personally think its too sweet and I prefer the GRAPEFRUIT CRUSH! The Grapefruit crush is the best I've ever had in my entire life! 3. Order the crab dip. Thank me later. See my photo of the huge portions oozing over the plate. The artichoke chunks are the best. It's probably my favorite crab dip in all of Baltimore. 4. Seafood pizza is amazing... I order it as my meal. Shrimp, scallops, lump crab meat, imperial sauce all on a pizza? Winning! 5. Look at the specials menu, they usually have good stuff. 6. Bloody Mary's are full of veggies on top! Olives, green beans, celery... I Love Mama's! I also love Nacho Mama's, but the grapefruit crush and crap dip keep me coming back to Mama's on the half shell over and over again. Canton square gem! read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Crab & artichoke dip.. Best crab dip in Baltimore! - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

I like this place! The seafood is fresh and the service is great! I went with my friend on a Friday afternoon. Not too crowded inside, there are also seat outside. The food look nice and taste delicious. read more

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Came for dinner but filled up on apps. Delicious apps at that! Totally recommend everything we had--PEI mussels, Buffalo wings, crab dip, and calamari. I even got a crab cake to-go for later that even. Reheated in the air fryer. Tasty! read more

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Great food, great atmosphere, great service. Get out of the Inner Harbor go to this place, you will not be disappointed. Only suggestion would be improve the selection of beer. read more

I hate to give bad reviews and I've generally had good experiences at mamas on the half shell, but I was super disappointed tonight. I came here with a friend for dinner. For the most part the meal was decent and we had a nice time. We ordered a bottle of rosé and the server brought us two glasses of rosé. I clarified that we ordered a bottle and they graciously brought us a bottle. I was surprised to be charged for the bottle plus two glasses, which is not what I ordered. The server chalked it up to a miscommunication. read more

I came here on the recommendation of a friend, and in all honesty, it didn't live up to the hype. I ordered a selection of raw oysters and found them to be uber salty and underwhelming. Compared to Thames Oyster House, I didn't feel like it was the same caliber. I also ordered the Oyster Rockefeller, which was the star of the night! It was Half dozen oysters w/spinach pernod and parmesan cheese and it was fantastic! I would strongly recommend this dish if you come here. Lastly I ordered the Oyster Po Boy, (I know, an oyster heavy meal), which was described as a "New orleans style sandwich made w/oysters, coleslaw & tartar". Sadly the first bite I took left me shocked, and not in a good way... it was fried well, but was EXTREMELY under seasoned... I had such high hopes for this place, but was left disappointed. The service was pretty good, but didn't make up for the disappointing food. Overall: a weak 3/5 read more

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We had the crab dip and the Cajun mussels. Josh S. and Alex H. Are the best best part. Come literally just to the management is great (Bob). Can't wait to come back, loved it here. read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Beer mussels Maryland Crab Dip - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

I was in town on a business trip with my wife we ate at this restaurant and got a food borne illness and when I brought this up with there general manager he laughed at my situation and refused to refund my order. The service was extremely slow and the bartender was also smoking weed on the job . read more

I had Isis as my waitress she was phenomenal . The food was great I love the crab dip and also love their crushes . The maître d was so great and bubbly she would be well suited for a 5 star restaurant. Both the ladies were amazing . I didn't get a chance to ask the young lady maître d'hôtel her name but I can tell you she made our experience even more pleasant . Service was excellent beginning from the wam greeting to the food and our thyme and grapefruit crushes . You have out did yourselves . No more Jimmy Seafood for me . Thank you bringing back great service to the canton area . read more

I had an incredible experience. I ate there twice while in Baltimore. The first night had the most amazing creme of crab soup which had fried soft shell crab on top. Excellent taste and value. The next night we had 20 person team dinner. The service and food was amazing. read more

The would have came back here just for the drinks but the Mac and cheese and chicken wings where surprisingly good. Definitely recommend. read more

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Waiting for them to open at Foundry...if it happens Taking an awful long time. Never been to the downtown restaurant but I'm told the shellfish is good. read more

Food was excellent . Service was good! The hostess was the sweetest hostess I have seen in any of the pubs in Canton Square she was very helpful and genuine . I will be coming more often . read more

What a great local spot to eat in Baltimore! Their Seafood Club is my fav! Everything I've had here has been fantastic.

The food we ordered was really good except for the oyster Rockefeller. We had the crab egg rolls, crab dip, oyster po boy and fish and chip. All were good the dip with the egg rolls just taste like may but since we had the crab dip we put that on the egg rolls instead and it was good. 3 stars because the manager lacked the proper level of customer service for the price of food at this restaurant. The oyster Rockefeller was burnt you could visually see that the cheese and spinach was dark. We tried 2 of 6 to make sure it wasn't all of them that tasted burnt but the flavor was bad. Their policy is no sending food back or taking it off for any reason even if it's their fault. Just sad we had to go back and forth with the manager for 10 minutes to get him to at least replace the oysters with another flavor on their menu and at one point the manager brought the menu back to us to show us the smallest print where it says you cannot send food back to paraphrase it. Unfortunate because the experience was good until this happened. I was so irritated we forgot to take pics of the food lol. read more

Stopped by Mama's on the Half Shell on my way back to Northern Virginia from NYC with family. Gorgeous decor! Ole time feel...kind of felt like I was in the Cheers bar in Boston. They are a wonderful seafood restaurant with attentive staff. The food is delicious. No complaints! Hope to return when I'm in the area. read more

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Ever have one of those incredibly disappointing meals at a place you've been dying to try? That about sums up my brunch at Mama's on the Half Shell... The best thing about the experience was the service. She was attentive and kind, she forgot about us at times, but she did adjust our table when she realized it was wobbly. We ordered a bellini and mimosa. Both were super watered down and tasteless. The Maryland Crab soup was dreadful. It tasted worst than the canned versions, and was reminiscent of uncleaned seafood. We also ordered the Crabcake Benny and the Lobster Hash. The Crabcake Benny was okay, but for the price it wasn't nearly worth it. But the worst was the Lobster Hash. While the portion of lobster was more than I had expected, it was WAY overcooked. Chewy and plasticy, like it had been precooked and sitting on a warmer for hours. For a place with such rave reviews, I was expecting something much more satisfying. A seafood restaurant to ruin prefectly good seafood should be a crime. read more

Crabcake was one of the best I've ever had. Huge lumps of crab. I'll definitely return.

Ohhhhh Mama! This place is delicious! It was a cold night and I was craving some Maryland crab soup...as any normal Baltimorean does. Mama's had just what I was looking for. I had no idea this place had an upstairs, but if they have seats open on the 2nd floor I would highly recommend! Super cool, vibey dining room with a wood burning fireplace. We started with 6 PEI oysters as a starter and they did not disappoint. Then came the Maryland crab soup. WOW when I say this is some of the best crab soup in Baltimore I am not kidding. For starters the cup of soup had an entire crab claw stuffed with meat. The soup itself has the perfect spice and sweet tomato balance. Will 1000% be coming back for it when my next soup craving hits. We followed up with a "side" Caesar salad. The picture doesn't do it justice...this thing was HUGE and my girlfriend said she was completely fully after finishing it. The seafood club was stuffed to the brim...in the best way. The crab cakes were huge and the shrimp salad was the perfect compliment. Needless to say we had leftovers. Great food and service here at Mama's. A Baltimore staple. read more

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Excellent professional but down-to-earth service! We experienced the best Baltimore seafood here while dining out, in a bustling nabe. Seafood chowder was filled with seafood, had a round of Canadian oysters and coddies! Also had the seafood club decker and man, was it stuffed with goodness! Subbed the fries for a Caesar salad, which was a full plate! Def didn't go hungry, well worth checking out if some other known seafood spots have a 2-hour wait :) read more

I have come to this place before and had their crab cake and it was good. However not this time. It definitely had a lot of filler - more than I wanted to notice and taste! The bread on a sandwich was a little stale. Fries are always great tho!! We got calamari to share and honestly I was disappointed! Very chewy and oily without that fresh calamari flavor. I honestly think it wasn't fresh. I get that it all depends on the catch - but since they are such a popular place - I'd hope it will be a better and fresher pick of seafood! I'll definitely be back but will likely order smth else. read more

Very good dining experience overall. I made reservations and was seated immediately... I was seated in the 2nd floor dining area with the fireplace, which was nice and cozy with unique and aesthetically pleasing decor. The food was pretty good; I had pecan crusted salmon served over sweet potatoes and with spinach - very food dish and great portion size... My husband had fried shrimp, mac and cheese and asparagus - his food was good but the mac was a little dry but had really good flavor. The service was excellent - everyone that we encountered from the hostess to the waitress, to the servers were pleasant, prompt and helpful... Whenever I return to Baltimore I will definitely return! read more

Came here for the seafood and wasn't disappointed at all. Crab cakes were to die for. No fillers just real crab. Shrimps were cooked to perfection. Oyster rockefeller wAS a bit overcooked since it was dry. Seafood chowder was a bit salty to my liking. mussels were drowning in old bay and the sauce was mostly oil/grease. The titanic salad was good. On the pricey side. Street parking only. Prepare to wait esp on weekends. read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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My first trip to Maryland and I came here for lunch. When you first walk in you get an immediate homey local bar feel with great energy. It was a bit confusing to find the host because there is no host stand but we only waited like 5 minutes. We were immediately brought upstairs and seated. The table was a small table with two chairs. It seemed out of place but I was just happy to be seated so quickly. Our waitress Laura was delightful. Very bubbly and sweet. She seemed to really enjoy her job. I ordered the Crab soup which wad a little spicy from the old bay seasoning but very flavorful. I also ordered the crab cake platter which came with mac and cheese and fries. The whole platter was amazing. I also ordered the oyster shooter. Very disgusting lol. Not their fault it was just not to my taste All in all it was a great experience. read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

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While on business here in Baltimore I had lunch free and this area was near my meeting so I stopped in at this restaurant primarily due to its Yelp reviews. It is located around a square that has a small park in its center. Not being familiar with the area it looks quaint and popular for people to visit especially at night. Upon entering the restaurant I noticed how much character it has with its interior. It has a neighborhood bar/restaurant feel to it with dark wood furnishings. After looking at the menu I went with the sift shell crab sandwich and their homemade cole slaw. When the food arrived I took a pic of it. It was a large sandwich on thick white bread. It was good and I enjoyed it (3.5). I thought it was a little unusual to serve it on white bread but figured that's how they do it here. The cole slaw was even better. Nice and creamy (4). My service was very good and I would return if in the area. They also have outside seating. It looks like a fun spot to hang out. read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Fried soft shell crab sandwich on white bread with home made coleslaw. - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

Loved it! Stopped for lunch by myself- oysters Rockefeller and a small Salad! Awesome! read more

Mama's on the Half Shell - Oysters Rockefeller - Bars Near Me - Baltimore, Maryland

Stopped by on Sunday for lunch. It was quiet which I enjoyed. Service was friendly and fast. We ordered half and half crab soup, harvest Salas with blackened chicken, tuna tartar and salmon blt. Everything was delish! The Yuna tartar was atop of a circular wonton with seaweed and some kind of sauce. They gave us so much tuna protein! The crab soup was so warm and filling and crabby. The harvest salad was filling and delicious. Everything was a good mix with the pomegranate perils, goat cheese, vinegrette massaged greens. We wanted to order the chicken wings but we had enough food and didn't want to be stuffed for lunch. I would recommend and would return! read more

For my Birthday dinner I decided I wanted seafood and preferably in the form of a sandwich! While picking up dessert from the Cheesecake Factory I decided on the seafood club from Mama's. I would have given 5 stars if the crab cake were more noticeable! read more

Was a little annoyed when I came in and the bartender told me the kitchen was closing around 11pm when I was just told the SAME DAYa few hours earlier it closes at twelve ! We were a bit snippy with each other but he still gave me good service. My personal problem with things like this is i don't like problems either it can or can't be done I don't feel I need to be told the kitchen is closed as if I can't order. The calamari was fried to the point that it was falling off (lots of fried pieces that took away from the taste). overall it was decent it was not anything spectacular it could've been better as far as seasoning the actual moistness of the squid was good though. Oysters were good I meant to order the mussels! read more

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We dined on Monday, June 19th. The food was very good and the watress was attentive.......but two things drive me crazy (1) weak drinks; the restearuant promotes their many types of crushes, but they forgot to put alochol in them. We had organge crushes, but they were not very good. (2) cleanliness is questionable. We ate upstairs, the number of flies buzzing around was disturbing. read more

My bf and I stopped here on our way back to NYC from DC. I love seafood and had this place bookmarked. The mussels were so flavorful. The drinks were also good. The crab cake sandwich was filled with LUMP crab meat very delicious. The salmon was also tasty but a bit salty. Overall will absolutely come back read more

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