I began The Spring Mill Café began in 1978 in the little back room of the present restaurant with five tables, serving lunches of light French country food. Next the deck was added and the Café began serving one dinner per month. In the next expansion, the Café took over the former craft store in the front of the building and eventually expanded service to dinner five days a week. The entire property, including the farmhouse and gallery was purchased and service was expanded to six days a week including lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch.
Food Philosophy
I grew up in the Touraine region of France and learned how to eat and cook from my grandmother. We started the Café serving traditional French country fare and have over the years added many dishes from cuisines of other countries that I have visited, ranging from Morocco to Vietnam. The Café has always been a BYOB restaurant because I love the idea of a place where you can eat good food and try out new wine.
Institutional Philosophy
From the very beginning I have tried to make the Café into an institution that is involved with the various communities in which it thrives. We have developed or participated in fund-raising events for causes such as Friends Without A Border, the Lupus Foundation, ActionAIDS and Doctors Without Borders. We have staged educational events ranging from a dinner discussion about Charles de Gaulle sponsored by the World Affairs Council to nature hikes through Morris Arboretum.
I am personally intrigued by the links between literature and food. The Café has held special literary evenings that feature menus related to authors from many different cultures accompanied by readings from their works. Recent examples include: Georges Sand, Virginia Woolf, Marcel Proust and James Joyce.
As an ex-teacher, I have also tried to develop a modest apprenticeship program that has helped to develop the talent of young people from The Restaurant School and retraining programs at Montgomery County College.
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