Chick & Ruth’s Delly

The food was great!!! We met both the owners and one of the owners did a magic trick for my kid! Great service friendly staff.

Chick & Ruth’s has been an institution in Annapolis for many decades. Being on Main Street and not far from the seats of city, county, and state government, there is the connection to local politicians. There is a governor’s booth and sandwiches named for local and national politicians. Some would call it a greasy spoon, but that’s part of its appeal. The portions are generous and freshly prepared. Some consider their lump crab cakes as the best for miles around; having had them I can see why. Corned beef sandwiches are good, but not up to the size of classic NY delis. They are noted for the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance which takes place there at 830am. If you are visiting and want a full Annapolis experience, have at least one meal there.

I’m obsessed with this place. It has so much life to it. The seats are all cramped and everything is outdated and overwhelming, but in the BEST way!
Let me start by saying upon entering, knowing nothing about this place, I see a GIANT milkshake on a table. I was so confused. Then I sat down and noticed on the menu they serve 6lb milkshakes — holy smokes. My friends and I ventured in here to try the crab cakes. The prices here are on point, $ 15 for ½ lb crab cake — yes sign me up. The crab cakes were like 95% crab meat too, I barely tasted any breadcrumbs. It was seasoned really well too. They gave us complimentary pickles and I ate the entire dish.
When I’m back in Annapolis I will definitely be coming back here to eat a full meal. Maybe I’ll take part in the colossal burger challenge! Yea rite!

Let me start by saying the food is good but we had bad service…
We took my uncle here for his birthday dinner because he’s a huge crab cake fan and they supposedly have the best (which is true, if you love mustard.) We asked them beforehand to bring out a cake. The rude, inattentive waiter brought the cake at the wrong time and slapped it down on the table. He never refilled our drinks and my mom ended up just taking her drink to the bar each time she needed a refill. Then I asked the waiter if he could give me the bill directly so that my uncle wouldn’t try to pay. He came with the bill and when I tried to take it he abruptly ripped it out of my hand and gave it to my uncle making sure it was out of my reach. It was really bizarre.

Let me start by saying I love this place, but if you have little ones maybe not the place to come unless you called in a to go order. This past Saturday the fam and I had a little bit of a disappointing experience here. We waited outside in the cold for about a half hour. No problem we’ve done that before for good food. We were finally seated in the downstairs tables and my little girl thought the salt and pepper shakers were toys to be thrown everywhere. The tables are so cramped you will become fast friends with the tables around you. With that said, my little girl started to throw a fit when I tried to get her away from everything on the table.
After about 2 minutes of this I will say I had the where with all to take her outside and tell my wifey to talk to the host and get us a table upstairs. As I was walking through the restaurant 3 tables stood up and clapped as we walked by. Wow, I was truly shocked at the snobs of Annapolis have never heard a little girl cry before. Luckily I am older now and decided not to give this people a piece of my mind for shit and giggles!
Once we were seated upstairs things turned out for the better. There is tons more room and you are not so cramped in like downstairs. My sister and I both ordered the #52 which I think is called the Seafood or Chesapeake Club Sandwich. Shrimp salad with a crab cake on top. Yum, yum worth the wait! My wifey ordered the cheese steak which looked unappealing to me but she seemed to really like. For dessert we had to get the chocolate shake. A must when you visit!
What did I learn by this visit you ask? Always, always have a backup plan when you bring your little one with you. Hopefully, the restaurant learned that the downstairs is not a great idea to sit babies and toddlers!

What a great find while walking around Annapolis. We were greater by so many friendly faces and great wait staff. Loved the garlic pickles brought out to snack on while deciding. We had Matza Ball soup and Bipartisan Soup (Maryland crab with cream of crab on top). The bipartisan soup was excellent Matza Ball was a bit salty for my taste. The onion rings were also great. We brought home Peanutbutter Chocolate and Carmel Apple Walnut, they were both great but like the apple Carmel a little more. We will be back for sure. Love the story behind Delly, be sure to ask.

I honestly have zero complaints on my first visit here. Came for Breakfast with my friend, say within 2 minutes was happy. Space of seating is tight with the walkway for staff but still a great experience. Fresh, Quick, Homemade dishes, huge portions, unbeatable prices. Amazing Experience I’d tell anyone to come, very welcoming staff with a diner feel, all thumbs up for me.

First of all, they give you gobs of food and we ordered plenty.
+++Crab Cakes. Huge, very fresh and delish!
+++ Crab Dip. Fresh, creamy and cheesy deliciousness
++Coffee Shake. Shake with coffee, need I say more?
—Mac and Cheese was lacking and looked better than it tasted; melted cheddar on top of bland mac and cheese sauce.
++Place was packed, but we were seated quickly. We landed in a primo spot, overlooking the kitchen, which was entertaining to watch the cooking action.

I first saw this place in The Travel Channel, so I knew it was going to be a popular spot. I’ve eaten here maybe 3 times and each time have ordered the Reuben sandwich. When I find something I love I tend to stick with it. They bring out a bowl of pickles to your table and they’re surprisingly addicting.
Here’s the best part, they have bagels hanging from the ceiling on pieces of yarn. When I asked the server what the bagels were for he looked me dead in the eye and said «to keep the elephants away». Then he walked away, and that was that.
Bottom line, it’s kitschy and worthy of the hype.

Yet another Man v. Food inspired choice.
Despite hearing that it is a tradition among newly graduated embarrassments of the Armed For… I mean, midshipmen, to visit the hallowed grounds of Chick & Ruth’s to take on one of their many many massive sandwiches, an Army buddy and I figured the place couldn’t be all that bad if it’s in the nice part of town, as far away from the Academy as possible.
Just kidding, Hooyah Navy!
I had heard prior to coming to Annapolis that one cannot truly say they have visited Maryland without eating crab cakes. As I couldn’t really pinpoint at the time any single place that serves a crab cake that would survive vividly ’til time immemorial, I figured we’d just pop into any restaurant and order crab cakes and say we’ve had it instead. I mean who eats just crab cakes for a meal, right?
I ordered a Reuben and my buddy ordered some other sandwich with a silly name and a side of crab cakes to go with it. Neither one of us were able to finish our sandwiches while sampling the crab cakes as the serving portions are ungodly, but I remember the Reuben being pretty standard fare and the crab cakes were just… crab cakes with more crab than cake.
There wasn’t anything particularly distinctive about the quality of the food but the service and the cost performance was beyond excellent, and there were lots of little quirky/​historical tidbits laying around the restaurant for us to keep entertained while waiting for our food (be sure not to hit your head on one of the hanging bagels like my friend did.)
Come for the crab cakes, stay for the good ol’ fashioned no non-​sense deli/​diner experience.

After walking through Annapolis for two days, it’s pretty clear this is the breakfast spot go go to. Not sure what a typical wait is on a weekday but we lucked out and got a table in less than 10 minutes. The booth seats are crammed in there and I give ever waitress credit as you have to be patient when working here.
I decided to have the corn beef hash with eye toast. This is NOT something I would normally order. That being said, I’m glad I did. I wasn’t overly hungry but I ate a good portion of the meal. I probably didn’t need the side of potatoes since the corn beef was already mixed in with other potatoes.
Friendly waitress, we had some pleasant couple sitting next to us that chatted which made for a nice breakfast. Ordered two glazed donuts to go and regretted not picking up an apple fritter. Total bill for two of us was $ 17.

I would highly recommend Chick & Ruth’s if you’re in Annapolis for a day or two. The food was good, but the service was even better.
I was on a day trip to Annapolis with a friend, and we wanted crab (even though we were warned it was out of season). A security guard at the Maryland State House recommended Chick & Ruth’s for their crab cakes. My friend and I got a platter with crab cakes (which were enormous!) with two sides (macaroni & cheese and sauteed spinach), accompanied by beer. The food was great. It’s not fancy, but it’s solid, and the portions are generous. It’s the kind of food you would eat when you’re over at someone’s house. To finish things off, my friend and I split a piece of strawberry rhubarb pie, which was delicious.
Though I enjoyed the food, I have to say that the highlight of my experience at Chick & Ruth’s was the service. From the moment we walked in, I could tell that everybody from the cashier to the servers was actually happy to work there. The owner, Ted, was there throughout lunch to make sure everything was up to snuff. He has a great sense of humor, and I can tell his jolly presence is part of the reason customers want to come back to the restaurant.

First All the food was very good.
My son suggested this place after we ran some early morning errands. Started off at table 19 and waited 15 minutes with no service. Now maybe I just picked a bad table but after seeing two other groups sit down and get service, I decided to change areas. Moved to the upstairs seating area hoping for something better. Only a 5 minute wait this time.
Our order: chicken and waffles (peanut butter milk shake), crab and cheese omelet (chocolate mint milk shake), and lastly Lox, eggs, bacon and onions (coffee).
All the food was very good, people were friendly and we like the vibrant atmosphere. We will come back to this restaurant again. Hopefully the service is better.
Oh before I forget… I saw the colossal sandwich and the milk shake from man vs food. Not a challenge I will take.

HUGE lumps of crabmeat. HUGEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.
They prob could have sprinkled some old bay on it… and it would have improved their rating to about a 5. I had carryout and did not know that they did not sprinkle a little old bay… i guess i thought it was a law for all crab cakes … or anything crab… or anything seafood… or anything seafood and chicken in maryland to have some amount of old bay on it.
Other than that… great crab cake…
More lumpy than Timbuktu or GM (or whatever the other place is called).
Staff were nice as well.

I really wanted to try to spot from what I heard it was suppose to have good food and great Crab cakes!
Well it’s a Dump! Dirty! Employees smoking with the doors open the entire place was just smelling like Newport.
Now the service is below average so don’t expect anything more than that. The food is cooked poorly and sits under the warmer very long.
My kids food came to the table with a burning hot plate that was sitting under the 10 heat lamps for 20 minutes before my soup and burned crab cakes! So the head server she stated that’s how the crab cakes get burnt is normal here.
For three orders 75.26 without any alcohol!
This place is not worth half of what I paid. I wouldn’t even take the food left for my dog!
First and Last time here. Try anything else on the block!

Born and raised in Maryland and today I feel slightly ashamed of myself. It only took me 30 years to discover Historic Annapolis. I mean sure, I’ve been to the areas around the mall, but except for one time as a kid going to the Naval Academy, I know nothing about my state capital.
Now, I saw Chick & Ruths Delly, as i’m sure a few others have, by watching Man Vs. Food With Adam Richman. My lady and I are huge fans of that show, and Triple D. We are always trying to plan our trips around finding a place to visit from one of those shows. As backwards as it may be I think we have been to more places out of state then we have in Md.
Today on a whim I found myself in Annapolis, and it just so happened that I ws hungry. My mother, who was my partner in crime this time also wanted to get some food. So initially I figured we would go grab something closer to the house, but then my brain clicked and I said «You wanna try Chick & Ruths?» So I pull over Unilocal the directions, and off we go. I have never been on this side of Annapolis and i’m just amazed at how nice it is. I have a few things bookmarked on my Unilocal app, but seeing how nice it is down here, I think i’ll stop BS’ing and take the time to make a day ut of it with my family.
We get to Chick and Ruth’s, and here my only complaint. We walk through the door and there is a guy in a black shirt standing to ur right.
The Guy (Jamel): How many, 2?
Me: Yes.
The Guy: Go sit over there. (and points in a general area)
Which he did to about 3 other people after us, and they also didn’t seem to receive it well. He then unfolds his newspaper from his arm, and then stands in the middle of pretty much the most crowded area of the restaurant, reading the paper while ignoring people passing, for at least 8 minutes.
Meanwhile we take a seat, look through the menu, pick our food, and are ready to order before anybody acknowledges us. I’m thinking to myself ooooookay, Thats not a great start. We started to get kind of antsy, and frustrated with out situation, because we’re not sure if anyone is coming. We got seated kind of harshly, and then he never spoke to anyone. so we’re not sure if anyone else knows we are there besides the guy who at this point is still standing with his head buried in the newspaper.
Honesty Time: I will say that if this place didn’t have such a huge variety of food on their menu. I may have left before the waitress even showed up, but after looking at the menu I really wanted to try the food. They have just about anything you could ask for. A bakery full of fresh smelling pastries, breakfast food (All Day), Pizza, Steak, Milkshakes, Crab Cakes, Deli sandwiches that could feed a family, Burgers, and Salads. If you can’t get enough there they will ice pack food, and you can take it home. You can even order it online… SHEEESH!
Before things got to crazy our waitress showed up, and she was very nice. She took our orders, and brought back our drinks promptly. While we waited for the food she kept our drinks full, and kept checking back with us to see if everything was going alright.
The food came out not long after we ordered it. I ended up getting the 2 egg platter with scrapple, and my mother got 2 eggs with steak and grits. I have no complaints about the for whatsoever, and my mom was also enjoying her food as well. Actually no! I will say that the food we received was very good, and definitely worth driving out of the way for. As we finished up, our waitress asked if we would like dessert, but we declined. However I cannot wait to come back, and try one of those colossal sandwiches. I told my mom we would come back and do the Man vs. Food Colossal challenge. She seems to think she can handle that burger. she goes «its only 3 pieces of meat», and I’m like yea, but it looks like its about a foot tall… lol
Overall we were very impressed. Minus the rough start we had a great time at this establishment. All the other members of the staff that we interacted with during our visit, were very courteous, and professional. I cannot wait to come back and get more familiar with this menu. The for we had today was excellent, and just watching the food that was being taken to the other tables it is clear that they really do not skimp on the portions. So, when you go, make sure to bring your appetite. You’re going to need it.

This place is big on tradition and atmosphere having been in business a long time. Though we enjoy coming here the food is barely acceptable for a carry out style restaurant. The Reuben meat was fatty and the burger sub on par with a company cafeterias.

I’m not sure this place needs another review, but I’ll add my two cents…
I went to Chick & Ruth’s Delly (deli?) recently for breakfast. I had a ham and cheese omelet, whole wheat toast, home fries, and coffee.
My ham and cheese omelet was quite ordinary. The ham was diced thin-​sliced deli ham without much flavor. Ditto for the ordinary cheese. My omelet was fine, just very ordinary! The home fries were extremely well cooked and consisted of wildly different sizes — from very large chunks to tiny little bits that were basically chunky mashed potatoes. They had a few onions mixed in. The toast was ordinary whole wheat with way too much butter smeared on top. The coffee was also ordinary deli style.
Chick and Ruth’s is an iconic deli in the greater DC metro area — it would be nice if they served a more memorable breakfast.

Typical diner: loud, crowded, average food with large portions. The atmosphere left something to be desired (did I mention how loud and crowded it is?).
We were staying upstairs at the b&b so we ate breakfast here twice. The first time we were at the counter, it was loud and uncomfortable. The second time we were at a table which was a bit nicer to deal with.
The place is packed to the gills with people and things. The walls are covered in posters and pictures and there’s just no room to breathe in there. There are bagels hanging from the ceiling above the tables and the TVs play an assortment of slides and clips from when Man V. Food paid them a visit. The donuts looked tasty but I did not try one.
This morning while we waited for our food we heard a server loudly complaining about having to bus tables. As someone who worked in a restaurant for 8 years, that made me cringe. At a «family» place like this, you’d expect that everyone would be «all hands on deck» «let’s all help each other», but that did not seem to be in the cards.

Of course you have to come to Chick & Ruth’s! It’s an institution. We went for breakfast and got seated right away in a very small booth. They are all very small but it’s a small place. The menu is extensive and there are some imaginative things on there. I mean, a cheese steak omelet? Who does that? I was sorely tempted but came for the crab omelet and I wasn’t going to be distracted. My wife opted for the crab eggs Benedict. I had read other reviewers rave about both of these but I have to say they were just ok. The crab in the omelet had kind of a bland taste and the crab cakes on the eggs Benedict had quite a lot of filler. The Delly potatoes (hash browns) and the homemade multigrain toast were very good. But if I went back I wouldn’t order either entrée again.
So perhaps I ordered wrong. Even so, the menu is a colorful and fun filled promise of so many tempting taste sensations I know I’d find something I’d love the next time. And that’s not even considering the lunch, dinner, dessert options! And oh my, did the homemade pies look amazing!!!