The Front Porch - Leonardtown, MD

Last weekend, we ventured over to Leonardtown for a 50's Festival which we realized once we got there was actually taking place two days later.  Whoops.  But, we were there so we figured we might as well eat.  We decided to try out The Front Porch.  We had gotten drinks at the bar here before, but never tried the food.  The location is a remodeled historic home with a beautiful wrap around porch.  If the weather is behaving, drinks and food out on the porch makes for a lovely day.

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This time, since it wasn't the best weather, we ate inside.  The interior is cute and kitschy with antiques decorating the walls.  My only complaint about the interior of this restaurant is that, as it is I'm sure with most historic buildings, it's a little grimy and seems like it could use a really deep cleaning.  The walls right next to our table were a little dirty which isn't entirely appetizing.

My view:  Mike and some decorations

Looking around the room

An aspect I love about this location is that it is a remodeled historic home which means the restaurant is broken up into rooms.  It allows for a more intimate setting and helps keep the noise level down on busier days.  The room we sat in had a fireplace, large windows, and about 5-6 tables.  It would have been really cozy and lovely on a cold winter night and would be perfect to rent out for a bridal shower or any kind of small event.

The service was good; really friendly and enthusiastic.  I think we got in there right as they were opening because our food came out really slowly.  Once the crowd started to get larger, it seemed like people were getting their food quicker than we did so it might have just been that they weren't ready for us when we showed up. 

The lunch menu is pretty simple and classic with many American favorites.  The specials were a little more unique than the rest of the offers and they were seasonal which is something I always really like.  I ordered the grilled chicken and avocado sandwich with a side salad that had raspberry vinaigrette on it and Mike ordered the chicken cobb salad without cheese and with honey mustard dressing on it.

We both enjoyed our meals and are freakishly excited to have found a local place that makes a good salad.  Both of our chicken was cooked perfectly and the sauce on my sandwich was delicious.  I loved that my side salad included feta cheese which you don't see very often in American restaurants.  As you can see in the picture, Mike's salad was very fresh and all his veggies were nicely chopped and were perfectly ripe. Our only complaint was that neither of us really liked our salad dressings.  His was more like a sauce; in fact I'm pretty sure it was the same sauce found on my sandwich.  Mine was far too sweet and didn't have enough oil in it.  

Overall, our meals were very satisfying, fresh, and nicely cooked.  I noticed on the lunch menu, that they do lunch boxes to go which, if we lived closer, is something I'd definitely be tempted to do since they have such good salad and sandwich options.  We're both interested to go back for dinner to check out the quality of their higher-end entrees and deserts. 

Here are some links to help you check out The Front Porch:

Website

Facebook

Urbanspoon

Yelp

Enjoy!

Cafe Des Artistes - Leonardtown, MD

Last weekend, we ventured over to one of our favorite little towns in this area - Leonardtown, MD for the Earth Day Festival.  While, in my mind, I thought the festival would be filled with organic produce stalls and the like, it really was mostly booths aimed at getting kids to play games that taught them to recycle and be more green.  Useful, yes.  Relevant to Mike and I, no.  So, like any good Earth-loving American, we ditched the festival and bellied up to the nearest bar.

We ended up at one of the area's best restaurant's - Cafe Des Artistes.  We have had dinner here several times and it never disappoints.  The chef consistently serves up fresh, quality, classic dishes with just the right amount of butter and heaviness that you expect from a good French restaurant.   The ambiance is exactly what you want it to be; dark lighting, kitschy decorations, and friendly staff and the location couldn't be any better - right in Leonardtown square in a perfectly East Coast brick, historic building.

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This visit, we intended to grab a couple cocktails at the bar to make up for our bust of a festival day.  The bar here is really cute and comfortable with plenty of room for multiple guests to enjoy drinks and dishes.  Once the bartender informed us that they had Hendricks gin, we quickly ordered a couple gin and tonics.  Any bar that serves Hendricks gets an extra point in my book; gin and tonics made with it just cannot be beat on a warm Spring/Summer day.  

After enjoying our drinks for a few minutes, we decided to grab an appetizer because...well why not?  The only complaint from this visit was that the bartender disappeared for a pretty long time in between handing us our menus and coming back to take our order.  We were there at an odd time of day so he was probably doing some daily tasks that took him away from the bar, but in my mind, if you have paying customers in the restaurant, pay them attention while they're there.  A woman walking around who I would guess is the owner noticed our wait and had a waitress grab the bartender and he took our order right away after that.  I appreciated this; there's nothing like an owner or manager that stays on top of things and takes care of customers before they get irritated and angry.  

This restaurant always has unique specials on its menu and today we ordered a special of venison and hazelnut terrine.  The texture of the terrine was perfect; not rubbery, not too thick, just perfect for slicing and eating on the warm baguette they provided.  

Overall, it was another perfectly pleasant and delicious visit to Cafe Des Artistes.  If you've never been, add it to your schedule soon!  It's a perfect place for a date night or just a quick drink at the bar.  If you're coming for dinner, make sure to make reservations; they book up quickly. 

Here are some links to help you earn more about this restaurant:

Web Site

Yelp

Facebook

Enjoy!