We'll be visiting Annapolis this week and wanted suggestions for restaurants for lunch and possibly dinner. We will be at the Naval Academy during the day. Any suggestions?

There are several nice restaurants down by the harbor. I haven't eaten down there in years though so I can't reccommend one over the other.

Lunch or breakfast at Chick and Ruths Delly, classic old time deli.
http://www.chickandruths.com/

Prefer the food at the Ruth's Chris in Annapolis over the Chart House, but Chart House has better views.

Cheers,
Jeff

I used to live in Annapolis. I liked the Ram's Head Tavern, Cafe Normandie, and Middleton Tavern.

For dinner, I highly recommend you make a reservation at O'Leary's for seafood. It's in Eastport, just across the harbor (water taxis go over, great part of town). It's definitely the best in town. A second choice, also in Eastport -- and with great views -- would be Carroll's Creek Cafe, right on the water. These probably also do lunch (I know Carroll's Creek does, not sure on O'Leary's), if you don't end up staying for dinner. The Charthouse has a great view but it's pretty tired and worn out.

For lunch, I'd recommend doing something casual down around the city dock (steps from the Naval Academy). Riordan's was always my stand-by for competent burgers, crabcakes, etc, and Ram's Head for drinks but not really the food. If you really like oysters, go to McGarvey's. Chic and Ruth's Deli is a classic, as someone has already stated, for grubby deli food.

Or you could do lunch in Eastport, then grab a beer or burgers for dinner at any of these spots.

I second O'Leary's. It is wonderful!!!

What about Cantler's for blue crabs? Or somewhere better? I usually end up at Mike's down Riva Rd.

I preferred Cantlers during warmer weather.

Sorry if this is a little late, but whenever there's Naval Academy event in town, the downtown restaurants get pretty packed. Yellowfin is a great restaurant about 10 minutes outside of town right on the South River off Route 2.

Also, a new parking garage opened this winter on West Street about a half-mile from Church Circle. Parking has been filling up faster than usual downtown so the new Knighton garage can be a nice alternative that's more convenient than parking at the Naval Academy stadium.

The Chart House was completely renovated last year - it had been badly damaged along with a few other Eastport restaurants by Hurricane Isabel back in 2003. I haven't been there since it reopened, but I hear it's pretty nice.

Annapolis needs greater parking options. The owners will make a killing on their parking lot.

There's been alot of talking about parking in town the last few days. First, parking rates are going up in the three city garages (Gotts, Hillman and Knighton). I believe the rate increase is a quarter an hour with the maximum going from $8 to $10. The first hour free has also been eliminated, although those of us who are city residents will now get two hours free in the garage once the city figures out how to differientiate between residents and nonresidents.

Nothing is changing at the county garage off Calvert Street although the county raised the daily maximum to $8 (from $4) a few years ago and there was never a first hour free offerred.

Part of the issue of parking is that city law prohibits private businesses from operating for-profit stand-alone parking lots. The only public lots are run by the city of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County. There is a lot on Greene Street run by the county schools vocational program, but the county school system wants to subcontract it, which the city is fighting.

Perhaps the city could get more people to ride the stadium shuttle if it were to operate the shuttles more reliably.

Well that explains the dearth of parking right there; it's government run. I never knew that. Annapolis needs better parking availability and parking at the stadium is very inconvenient.

So how did this new parking lot come to be? It's got a personal name on it so I have to wonder how that can happen if the private sector is clearly not wanted.

What is the logic of not offering people the opportunity to run their own garage business? West Street seems like a perfect place to have competing parking garages as it's within walking distance of the circles and the Academy.

The new Knighton garage was named after the guy who donated the land to the city that the garage was built on (I believe). The other city garages are also named after individuals (Gotts and Hillman), but I don't know the reasons behind those names.

The stadium is very inconvenient and that's where most state employees are expected to park. For nine months of the year, the parking garages under the house and senate buildings sit empty. Legislators claim "security reasons" for not at least opening them up to state employees to free up more spots for visitors in the public garages. (I believe the state leases the majority of the spaces in the Gotts and county garages).

At least the city stadium shuttle service is free now. In the past, you had to pay to park (unless you were a state employee) and then pay 75 cents to ride the shuttle (again, unless you were a state employee). Now, it's just a flat $5 to park, which is a ripoff unless you're staying at least 6 hours.

There is at least one privately owned parking garage open to the public on Calvert Street. It's underneath a private building and is primarily for building tenants, however, and that's why it is allowed. Some restaurants near City Dock offer valet parking, but I have no idea where they actually park the cars.

The city and county do not actually run the parking garages. They contract it out to ParkAmerica. It is a VERY poorly run operation, perhaps even more so than if the city ran it itself. I pay cash every day for parking and when I leave (at a normal time), no one is ever in the booth. Usually the worker is on the phone or watching television and it is usually a minute or two before anyone actually comes out to take my money. This only happens in the county garage though. In the city garages, I get to listen to the person in the booth holding a cell phone conversation. With the electronic price signs, she doesn't even have to stop talking to her friend...she just points to the sign.

There are several new buildings going up on West Street between the circles. So much so that you wouldn't recognize it if you haven't been here in awhile. Most, if not all, of the projects include parking, but I don't know how much of it will be available to public.

My jaw dropped when I read that. I lived in Annapolis for a few years and never knew there were such garages. With the need for parking so great, they keep it closed? Unreal....