N ext time you want to show off authentic local seafood, head for the Maine Avenue Wharf, which now sells not just raw ingredients but fried, boiled, steamed and spiced stuff ready to eat. It' s one of those colorful corners that makes cities great. All day and long into the evening, crowds come to gather the makings of an urban picnic. There are mountains of pink, steamed shrimp, with or without spicing. Or you can buy the less local but perennially popular steamed snow or Dungeness crabs, crayfish or lobsters.
Blue crabs are the best bet here.
They are, after all, what has made mid-Atlantic waterfronts famous in food circles. But if you stopped at crabs, you'd be missing a lot. All are slapped between two slices of flabby white bread and accompanied by a plastic pouch of tartar or cocktail sauce. There's no place to sit, but for such a great slab of fried fish and an invigorating look at teeming urban life, a few discomforts are a small price.