Best Crab Cakes

Café Maritime

2517 Lombard (at Scott), 885-2530, www.cafemaritimesf.com

This charming neighborhood spot, whose fresh, crisp facade speaks of the seafood delights available within, offers food and drink until 1 a.m. One of Café Maritime's best offerings is its crab cakes, fragile and thin, the kind that favor crab over filler: lump crabmeat, shreds, and flakes, barely held together with a few bread crumbs, and nicely garnished, too, depending on the whim of the chef. A sprightly, garlicky Meyer lemon aioli is a constant, with a contrasting salad and garnish, which might be baby beets and peppery watercress.