“I’ve been in this building for 23 years,” says Charlotte, longtime manager of Coins Pub & Restaurant on 28th Street in Ocean City. “Our staff is one big family and we treat our customers just like family when you walk through our door.” Indeed, Coins is a family-friendly dining haven at the beach. The extraordinary quality of its homemade food—from the hand-breaded veal to the made-from-scratch gravy—is consistent, year after year. “Even when the Coins family sold its business to a new owner, we stayed exactly the same,” says Charlotte. “We’re all about good product, good price.”
    Ask any customer who dines at Coins, and they’ll agree. The food quality is top notch. Everything is fresh and made-to-order, including the freshly breaded Fried Shrimp with homemade cocktail sauce. High quality isn’t Coins’ only consistent feature. Happy Hour, Early Bird, and weekly food specials have been around at Coins for decades, even before the economy caused tough times.
    Throughout the spring season, Coins offers 1/2-priced entrees each Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. On Wednesdays, customers are welcomed to Prime Rib Night from 5-9 pm. You simply can’t beat the prices. Happy Hour takes place in the expansive sports bar seven days per week from 3-6 pm. Here, you can play Keno and arcade games, and watch sports action on a wall of flat screen televisions. The bar is exceptionally large, offering plenty of comfortable seating while you wait to be seated for your made-to-order meal.
    The dining room fills to capacity with large tabletops taking advantage of Early Bird specials from 4-6 pm. Flounder, Crab Cake, Prime Rib, Sirloin Steak, Seafood Marinara, Chicken Teriyaki, Chicken Parmigiana, and Spaghetti & Meatball are all specialty items on the Early Bird menu—all under $13.
    After the dinner rush, Coins is a happening nightspot for live music. During Cruisin’ Ocean City weekend, Tranzfusion brings its popular classic rock lineup to Coins on Friday & Saturday night, May 18 & 19. The next weekend, Tranzfusion returns for a live show on Friday, May 25, followed by Smitty on the Edge on Saturday, May 26. Then, mark your calendar for June 1 when one of my favorite bands—the immensely talented Full Circle—is sure to draw a huge crowd to the dance floor at Coins.
    Last week, I enjoyed a delightful dinner with a journalist-in-training, 10-year-old Nevaeh, on a 1/2-priced entrée night. We parked in the rear parking lot and entered through the easily accessible rear entrance. A friendly and professional hostess greeted us and led us to a spacious booth by a wall of windows in the dining room, which is completely separate from the sports barroom.
    Our knowledgeable server, Devin, recited the daily specials and let us know that the vegetable of the day was “peas and pearls,” and the catch of the day was salmon and swordfish. The soup of the day, a tempting Maryland Crab & Vegetable Soup, will be available throughout the season. For our appetizer, Devin recommended the Steamed Shrimp and the Clams Casino. Craving a taste of all the homemade goodies on the Appetizers menu, Nevaeh and I ordered the Seafood Sampler for Two—crab balls, clams casino, BBQ shrimp, and stuffed mushroom caps.  Topped with cheese, bacon, and garlic butter, the topneck clams are a special treat. The colossal shrimp are smothered in a zesty BBQ sauce. Both the crab imperial-stuffed mushroom caps and the appetizer-portion crab cake balls are fresh and bursting with real, lump crabmeat. “This appetizer smells divine, is nicely presented, and is overloaded with butter—awesome!” reports Nevaeh.
    For our entrees, we selected the Fried Shrimp and Seafood Imperial. Broiled in a delicate cream sauce, the Seafood Imperial is overstuffed with shrimp, sea scallops, and jumbo lump crab. Other delicious seafood entrees include Stuffed Shrimp, Stuffed Filet of Flounder, Soft Shell Crabs, Twin Lobster Tails, and the Broiled Seafood Platter—flounder, scallops, shrimp, and jumbo lump crab cake. Land entrees include Veal, Chopped Sirloin, Prime Rib, Filet Mignon, Chicken Imperial, New York Strip Steak, and Chicken or Veal Marsala or Parmigiana. Combination platters are available, and each entrée is accompanied by two homemade side items: baked potato, French fries, roasted garlic mashed potatoes, homemade coleslaw, beer-battered onion rings, pickled beets, applesauce, field of greens, and vegetable du jour. Each meal also includes a basket of freshly baked, hot-out-of-the-oven bread.
    For one of my sides, I ordered the Field of Greens, which is a fresh mix of spring greens, crushed walnuts, blue cheese, and raspberry walnut dressing. Coins serves up a hefty Salad menu with add-ons that could satisfy any appetite. Homemade Soups are Cream of Crab, French Onion, and Chili Con Carne. Sandwiches and Burgers are homemade, too, including Sesame Teriyaki Tuna and an Open Faced Reuben. Still hungry? The Pasta menu features spaghetti, fettuccini, and linguini dishes that are sure to fill you up.
    A display case at Coins boasts irresistible desserts, such as German Chocolate Cake, New York Cheesecake, Five-High Chocolate Cake, and Four-High Carrot Cake. Nevaeh opted for the Fried Ice Cream served with graham crackers.
    As promised, our food was awesome. My mom, Nancy, stopped by and joined us for a late 1/2-priced entrée too. Charlotte made sure to greet our table and show us a photo of her adorable 5-week-old granddaughter, Vayda. Congratulations to Vayda’s mom, Crystal, who also has worked at Coins since she was a teenager alongside her brother, Dennis. Check out mother/son duo Charlotte and Dennis in the staff photo.
    Coins offers catering, private parties, and carryout. Their homemade lump crab cakes ship worldwide. Find out more at www.coinspub.com  or dial 410-289-3100. After happily stuffing our bellies with appetizers, entrees, and dessert, Nevaeh stopped to play an arcade game on our way out the door. “I’m definitely coming back again,” she says.