Baltimore: Thames Street Oyster House

The trip to Baltimore for my sister's graduation was a test of endurance.  And patience.  Due to weather issues, our plane couldn't land in Denver for our layover.  It circled Denver for 30 minutes before announcing that we were going to try Colorado Springs.  But after we got to Colorado Springs, the airport there turned us away because there were simply too many planes trying to land.

Which is how we found ourselves in Albuquerque.  The first thing we should have done after getting off the plane probably should have been to find another flight to Baltimore.  Instead, we made a beeline for food.  My parents were borderline HANGRY and we had to find food fast.  By the time we thought to check for other flights to Baltimore, it was too late for any flights to the East Coast.  So we waited until our original plane was cleared to head back to Denver.  Needless to say, we missed our connecting flight to Baltimore.

The Denver airport was a hot mess.  Everybody and their mama was trying to get the hell out of there.  We were told by Southwest that the last flight of the night to Baltimore was completely booked and so was the first flight out the next morning.  The option we were given was to fly in to Orlando, spend the night there, and then catch the first flight to Baltimore bright and early the next day.  However, if we did that, we wouldn't land in Baltimore until 8:30, which would make us late for my sister's graduation.

Luckily, there were seats available on the last flight to Dulles International Airport in DC.  It was delayed and delayed and the gate changed three times, but we finally touched down in DC at 3:08 am.

Well, we arrived in DC, but our luggage didn't.  We ended up renting a car and gunning it for BWI.  An hour later, we got there just in time to watch someone wheel away the leftover luggage from the flight from Denver.  I flagged him down and we successfully rescued all our luggage.

We arrived at my sister's dorm around 5:30 am.  We had time for a shower and a quick nap before we were up for breakfast around 6:30 am.  My parents and I got to the graduation field around 7:30, which was just early enough for us to be able to be a bit choosy about where to sit.

The graduation was long and hot.  The entire school graduated together.  All 1,500 students.  And my sister wasn't up until close to the very end.  Ugh.  I may or may not have nodded off once or twice, but I certainly didn't miss it when my sister crossed the stage.

Much pride.  Much screaming.

And we all left with very uneven tans.  Yay.

Of course my sister had to have her post-graduation photo shoot (aka where my father followed her around with a camera).  After that, we went back to her dorm and crashed.  Well, everyone else did.  (Even my sister didn't get much sleep due to being stressed out by the possibility of our not being back to make it to her graduation.)  I, on the other hand, had work to do.  So while I was sending out email after email, everyone else conked out.

They woke up in time to make our reservations at Thames Street Oyster House:


Nothing was going to make us miss it.  Not lack of sleep.  Not my mother's leg cramps.  In order to get reservations at Thames Street Oyster House, you have to call exactly a month in advance. 

Seeing as to how small the restaurant is, I guess that makes sense:


Thames Street Oyster House is known for its seafood.  Since it was my sister's graduation dinner, we went to town.

We ordered half a dozen oysters:


Three Wellfleet oysters for a briny start and three Kumamoto for a sweeter finish.

As an appetizer, we got the grilled rock octopus ($10):


The octopus came with Peruvian olive sauce, grilled red onion, roasted bell pepper, ricotta salata, and charred lemon.  Charred lemon.  Yum.

We also got the crispy Point Judith calamari ($10):


The calamari were lightly breaded and fried and seasoned by garlic, parsley, lemon, and hot peppers.  So good until you get the oil at the bottom.

The lobster roll ($23) was bursting with tail and claw meat:


The buttered split-top bun was toasted to perfection.  Forget the lobster.  I just need that bread.  With butter.

Our server really sold the daily special, which was a monk fish on a bed of brown butter cauliflower puree, walnuts, and greens:


One word: succulent.

We ordered a side of roasted cauliflower and aioli ($7) just because we love cauliflower that much:


Wish it was a tiny bit crispier.  But that might just be because we waited so long to get to it.  Everything else on the table just looked so appetizing.

Thames Street Oyster House is just a solid seafood restaurant.  The seafood is noticeably fresh and you can tell how much thought (and skill) is placed into each dish.  Definitely check it out.  It's a great place for a special occasion or just a treat yo self kind of meal.

My sister actually thought to treat us to her own graduation dinner.  Fool.  I ninja snagged that bill out of our server's hands.

You have a lot to learn yet, little one.

Super proud of my baby sister and so glad that I got to be there to witness her accomplishment.  The world is your oyster, little sis!


Thames Street Oyster House
1728 Thames St
Baltimore, MD 21231
(443) 449-7726
http://www.thamesstreetoysterhouse.com/

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