Wild blue Gulf or Atlantic shrimp boiled in Old Bay seasoning and served chilled with cocktail sauce, a beer-and-newspaper plate at every DC seafood counter.

Old Bay seasoning was developed by Gustav Brunn, a German-Jewish refugee who arrived in Baltimore in 1939 with little more than a hand-cranked spice grinder. He started the Baltimore Spice Company in a Light Street basement; Old Bay (named for the Old Bay Line steamship that ran the Chesapeake) launched the same year. The blend of celery salt, paprika, mustard, bay leaves, black pepper and red pepper became the regional seasoning for steamed crabs, but in DC kitchens it travelled to shrimp boils, fries and cocktails. Wild blue Gulf and Atlantic shrimp boiled in Old Bay, then chilled, are a beer-and-newspaper plate at Hank's Oyster Bar, BlackSalt, The Salt Line and every casual Chesapeake-leaning room. McCormick acquired Old Bay in 1990; the recipe is unchanged.

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