Cafe des Artistes is one of my all-time favorite restaurants and has been ever since Chef Loic Jaffres and wife Karleen opened the upscale bistro more than 10 years ago. It's the perfect place to celebrate a birthday or anniversary, to take out-of-town guests for a special treat, or just to relax and enjoy a good meal. The Cafe is part of "buy local" - Southern Maryland chefs purchasing produce from local farms and orienting their menu to show off what's in season. The Cafe's menu is available at http://cafedesartistes.ws/. There's always a special that's well worth the adventure. The restaurant is open for lunch Tuesday through Friday from 11:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.; dinner Tuesday through Saturday 5:00 until 9:00 p.m.; and for Sunday brunch and dinner 11:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. Outside dining is available and they have an area heater that makes it pleasant even as the evening turns chilly.
Appetizers include foie gras, escargots, crab dip, shrimp, pate, cheese plate, and more ranging in price from $9.50 to $16.00. Soup is always french onion and soup of the day. The french onion is divine but I've become more adventurous in my old(er) age and have recently gone for the soup of the day which has never disappointed and usually includes local ingredients. You have a choice of house or Ceasar salad (always my favorite) and now you can make either a meal by topping with the protein of your choice: chicken breast, jumbo lump crab, seared tuna, salmon, or NY strip ($12-to-$18 depending upon your combo). Dinner entrees ($20-to-$28) satisfy even the most discriminating taste and include dishes of steak, crab, lamb, veal, pork, shrimp, lobster, scallops, salmon, tuna, as well as vegetarian options of portobello mushroom in pastry and eggplant napoleon. Seriously, is there anything else that you can think to include?! The dessert menu also includes tasty treats like profiteroles, apple tarts, creme brule, and limoncello at an average $6 cost.
By the way, the Cafe offers local wines and always has live music on Friday and Saturday evenings. Randy Richie on the piano makes for very enjoyable dining.
We stopped by the Cafe at 8:30 Friday evening following First Friday in Leonardtown. Some members of our group dined a little earlier but everyone moved inside when we gathered following the music events. The Cafe staff quickly seated us at a round table large enough to accommodate eight of us. Everyone ordered drinks, four of us ordered late dinners. The Cafe uses fabric table cloths so the condensation on my water glass had a place to go (+). The carrot ginger soup was absolutely fabulous - I could have eaten two or three bowls of it and been in a very happy place - it was a thick puree and very hearty. I also had a classic Ceasar salad; who doesn't like the taste of anchovies? Given the late hour, I did not want to overdo it with a heavy meal (so I'll have to return soon). Hubby had the prime rib and it was strange that he didn't clean his plate. He said it was a little fatty and that can't be hidden by the aromatic peppercorn sauce. The warm bread with plenty of butter was delicious - bread without asking (+). I was disappointed not to have silverware available when the soup was served (-). Actually, I think my mouth dropped open in disbelief ... one of my favorite restaurants and I've always commented on the top notch service. Hopefully this was just an off night. Hubby says we arrived at 8:30, toward the end of the evening. Doesn't matter to me - we deserve the same fine food and wonderful service at those who arrived at 5:30, or 6:30, or 7:30.
One of my very favorite dishes at the Cafe is the seared ahi tuna. Take half of it home and put it in the frig. Cut it into cubes a day or two later and serve it as an appetizer with Pampered Chef's Ginger Wasabi sauce. This is A++.
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