Trident Grill's Maryland Blue Crabcake sandwich ($10) is a pan-fried crabcake covered in red pepper aïoli and nestled on a toasted bun.

Dean Knuth / Arizona Daily Star

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It is a little-known fact that Marylanders live and die by the amount of Old Bay seasoning they use in their food.

That's something I discovered in my 10-plus years living in the Old Line State.

We put Old Bay, a Chesapeake-born mix that includes celery salt, bay leaves, black and red pepper, cinnamon and ginger, on everything. In our salads. On our french fries. In our ice cream (OK. Maybe not our ice cream).

The point is, we use it. A lot.

So, on the eve of my vacation back East, it was nice to have found a Tucson restaurant that shared my affinity for this Mid-Atlantic favorite.

The Trident Grill, owned by retired Navy SEAL Nelson Miller, lets born-and-bred Marylanders travel back to their home state for an hour or two without the hassle of paying for rising airfare costs or checked-in luggage.

A good chunk of some Oregon forest probably had to die in order for Trident to be born. The restaurant is built tough with solid-wood tables, chairs, booths and a lengthy bar next to the entrance.

The restaurant has plenty of military décor. Navy blue and gold banners and posters are plastered all over the walls (FYI, Annapolis, Md., is home to the U.S. Naval Academy). It's also heavy with Washington Redskins memorabilia, most notably the autographed Jason Campbell jersey encased in glass along the eating area.

The comfortable surroundings have made it a hot spot for college kids and sports fans. The restaurant also brings in a decent lunch crowd. Almost every table in the joint had filled up by half-past-noon during our last visit.

If you are stopping in to eat at Trident, you better come hungry. They don't mess around when it comes to portion size.

Take our starter, Nelson's Red Skins ($6), for example, a traditional potato-skins appetizer. The skins consisted of five shelled-out potato halves, weighed down with melted Cheddar cheese, onion and bacon bits along with a bowl of sour cream. We ordered some of Trident's chunky tomato salsa ($1.50) for the skins to put a Tucson twist on things.

Next up were our main courses. My colleague ordered the Trident Burger ($7), a half-pound Angus beef monster of a meal covered in special-ordered sautéed mushrooms ($1), avocado ($1.50) and pepper jack cheese ($1).

It only took a second to realize that there was no way to eat this beast without a knife and fork. It came accompanied with a hearty pile of hot steak fries.

I went for the Maryland Blue Crabcake sandwich ($10), a crabcake about the size of a racquetball that was pan fried, covered in red pepper aïoli and nestled in a toasted bun. The sandwiches were also served with fries, but I opted for a bowl of Trident's chunky potato salad and, of course, an extra side of Old Bay.