Walk into The Fishmonger’s Daughter in the heart of downtown Catonsville and you’re likely to see several members of the Faidley family doing what they’ve done for five generations: welcoming patrons, doling out platters of ice-cold oysters, posing for photos, and sharing their Maryland pride.

Matriarch Nancy Faidley Devine, her daughter, Damye Hahn, her son-in-law (Damye’s husband), Keith, and grandson, William, stop at every table as they move around the dining room where black-and-white photos capture the family’s storied legacy: There’s Nancy with her father, John; a Chesapeake waterman hauling the day’s catch; and there are many photos of the legendary raw bar in Lexington Market where their story started 140 years ago at Smith & Faidley (and later simply Faidley Seafood). Every inch of the 22,000-square-foot space oozes nostalgia.

Nancy’s grandfather first opened his popular stand on Eutaw Street in 1886 but the stall’s glory days came in the early ’80s when she came up with the concept of creating crab cakes from jumbo lump, then a novel idea given the high cost of the prized meat. (The market stall is wallpapered with awards, including GQ’s coveted Golden Dish for one of the best dishes of the year in 1992.)

Ever since, Nancy has become the belle of the Bay. And now her daughter, Damye, as co-owner of The Fishmonger’s Daughter (Keith and William are the other primary owners), has become something of a torchbearer for the family, whose last name is synonymous with Maryland seafood.

For some 25 years, Hahn had been searching for a restaurant property for the next generation, but nothing felt like the right fit until William and his wife, Julia, discovered that the Plymouth Wallpaper Building, another local landmark, was for sale. Before becoming a wallpaper company in the ’60s, the 1925 building was once occupied by Heidelbach & Company, at the time Baltimore’s only gourmet grocer.

Preserving that tradition and bringing the building back to its glory has been six-and-a-half years in the making. The original steel beams still support the structure; the original heart pine floors have been lovingly restored—some even turned into tables—and the grocer’s shelves have been repurposed into a bar area and small retail space stocked with glug jugs and even crab-themed jewelry. A massive wooden fish fashioned from shingles and copper from a once-adjoining storefront presides over the dining room. And rustic wooden tables and red-and-white-striped linen napkins lend a modern seafood house vibe that is also reflected on the menu.

The aim of the menu, says Hahn, “was to be Maryland-centric,” while also showcasing seafood from the central coast of the United States.

“Faidley’s has always supported the local watermen and the local industries in the Chesapeake Bay region,” says Hahn. “I wanted to make sure that visitors would get a true taste of the best we have to offer.”

Mission accomplished. The menu is a nod to seafood standards that highlight the bounty of the Bay, including Faidley’s famous Maryland crab soup, oysters broiled and raw, and crabby creations of every kind, from soft-shell tempura to crab Imperial. If you want to kick off with crustaceans, the crab dip is loaded with marvelous meat and bolstered by house-made soft pretzel spears for easy scooping.

Other options include a classic Caesar, which imparts bold anchovy flavor, and a plate of fried oysters. The just-shucked bivalves—on a bed of creamed spinach, sprinkled with bacon, doused with beurre blanc—offer briny luxury in every bite.

Ordering a crab cake is mandatory here. Chances are high that Nancy, who churns out some 50 an hour and has made tens of thousands in her culinary career, has had a hand in it—literally. Much like the specimens at Lexington Market, the golden orbs are exactly the size of her hand and accompanied by house-made pickled tomatoes, red potatoes, and slaw.

There’s also shrimp salad made from an heirloom recipe at Mary Mervis, a beloved delicatessen at Lexington Market; Maine lobster piled high on a house-made split-top buttered bun; plus, more composed plates from executive chef Scott Bacon (formerly of Magdalena), like a pan-roasted rockfish with curry corn chowder purée and a creative take on shrimp and grits with delicate white North Carolina grits, dukkah, chile oil, and collard greens, a delicious nod to Bacon’s Maryland roots and South Carolina heritage.

There’s also a whole fried sea bass drizzled with chimichurri. It was a challenge to eat because of the bones but once the tender flesh is pulled from the frame of the fish, there’s a delightful sweetness in every bite.

Speaking of sweets, Hahn revived Hendler’s ice cream, an iconic Baltimore brand born in the basement of a home in East Baltimore. (The pioneering company was the first to use a flash-freezing method and deliver ice cream with a fleet of custom refrigerated trucks.)

The ice cream is made by Josepha Hendler and Lindsay Devon, the great-granddaughters of L. Manuel Hendler, who founded the 121-year-old company. Dips come in a rotation of nostalgic flavors, including coffee, butter pecan, and butter brickle, and arrive in old-timey glass-footed bowls accompanied by a plush house-made sugar cookie.

It’s a fitting ending to a new beginning.

THE FISHMONGER’S DAUGHTER: 720 Frederick Rd., Catonsville. 410 525-7385. HOURS: Sun.-Thurs. 10 a.m.-9 p.m.; Fri.-Sat. 10 a.m.-10 p.m. PRICES: Appetizers: $14-30; entrees and handhelds: $22-57; desserts: $15-18. AMBIANCE: Modern seafood house.