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Market House Set to Reopen Next Month

Posted on: Friday, 17 March 2006, 06:00 CST

By Jamie Stiehm, The Baltimore Sun

Mar. 17--The mix of Annapolis Market House merchants announced this week will offer rich fare for all comers -- residents, tourists, downtown workers -- when the renovated dockside building reopens next month.

Crab cakes, handmade fudge, frozen custard, ice cream and Italian pastries will be there for the taking, according to Site Realty Group, a Silver Spring-based company chosen by the city to lease and manage the municipal food marketplace. The list of 11 vendors also includes a bank kiosk, an Irish pub and an Aunt Anne's pretzel franchise stand.

Vaccaro's Italian bakery and Lee's Ice Cream, two Baltimore-based businesses, will open stands, Site Realty officials said. Vaccaro's, a popular haunt in Baltimore's Little Italy, is known for pastries and gourmet coffee. Lee's Ice Cream features hand-scooped ice cream treats.

Richard Cohen, vice president of Site Realty Group, said the company found considerable interest in the Market House venue. Most merchants will have a five-year operating agreement.

"We talked to at least 100 would-be vendors," Cohen said. "We looked for those with experience in the food service industry and those with an attachment to the area."

The only seafood vendor will be the locally owned Chesapeake Bay Crab Cakes & More.

In the Market Gallery, Galway Bay, the Annapolis pub, will offer prepared meals such as shepherd's pie. Waterside Gourmet Pizza will also cater to the lunch crowd.

No interior seating will be available, Cohen said. Alcohol is prohibited by the terms of the lease. Outdoor tables and chairs will be placed along the perimeter.

Fresh Stop will sell fruit, flowers, blended juice drinks and breads. Locally owned What the Fudge and a Fractured Prune franchise, an Eastern Shore company that sells hand-dipped doughnuts, round out the mix. BankAnnapolis will provide banking services, including an ATM and a change machine.

Mayor Ellen O. Moyer said she was glad to see new signs of life for Market House after more than a yearlong vacancy and a politically contentious process of finding an outside leaseholder.

"I look forward to the vitality that will come with this dynamic assortment of vendors," she said.

Moyer and Cohen said they hope to bring local farmers offering fresh produce and herbs outside the Market House on a seasonal basis.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Baltimore Sun

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Source: The Baltimore Sun, Maryland

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