Tickler's Crab Shack And - Tilghman

We have had a vacation home on Tilghman for 11 years. Since the Wylder has been remodeled we have not been to the restaurant. Starting with the general remodel and the understated holiday decorations let us just say; bravo. They did a fantastic job revitalizing this historic property that is so iconic here. From the refurbished floors to the understated holiday decor the whole place is had a laid back yet elegant Christmas vibe. Tilghman chic at its best! Service starting with them accommodating us with a last minute reservation for 5 on Christmas Eve; we couldn’t have asked for a more welcoming, attentive staff! They Eve took time out to help us out with a family photo. Ok the food: delicious, upscale, captures local sprit without being to bougie. We had the crab cakes of course). Meaty, well seasoned and prepared just what you’d expect from a Chesapeake restaurant. The oysters Rockefeller our starter) we plump local oysters cook just the right amount with enough “ juice” to taste the Chesapeake. 5 oysters spinach and parm were present but didn’t overwhelm the oysters. Cream of crab soup right balance of crab n cream. This fish tacos with lightly breaded and gently fried local rockfish were on point. The pickled veggies with the taco reminded us of some of the best bang mi in the DMV. The shrimp scampi with house tortellini was excellent. Garlic was present but understated enough to not overwhelm. The slightly sautéed spaghetti squash was a revaluation one which I was skeptical about when I read on menu but I was WRONG!! Delicious. The star of the show was the beef Wellington!! We never order this in dc restaurants; just seems to uk I mean who needs pastry with a delicious cut of beef? WRONG again. They don’t prepare it until you order-so you have to wait about 30 minutes. It’s worth it!!!! The pastry was light and the meat was perfect. Summary: skip St Michael’s restaurants and come enjoy this hidden gem!!

Service was slower than usual. They are normally very good with that. Not sure if they were short staffed or what was going on.

Ribs were horrible and service was terribly slow. Manager did comp ribs.

I have a lot of trouble finding restaurants that I feel safe eating at with celiac disease. I was glad to see a we accommodate allergies type statement on their menu. It probably depends on the dish, but I was able to find a couple things here to eat since we had a fantastic server (Kevin, I think; we were there on 10/01/2021) who checked directly with the chef whenever I had a question about the food prep process for my safety. He was super nice and took my medical need seriously. Food was delicious too!

We had visited a couple years ago for crabs and oysters, and repeated that meal again. It was perfect and nice to sit there cracking crabs as the sky changed colors in the evening, over the water.