The Barstool Fund - Old Bowie Town Grille
Up next: Old Bowie Town Grille (Bowie, MD)
The Old Bowie Town Grille is a locally-owned restaurant nestled in Old Town. Their contemporary American menu features delicious specialties like Chicken Wings, Fish Tacos, BBQ Creole Salmon Sandwich and Porterhouse Steak.
Reader Email
I have worked in restaurants my entire career. I love being around people, and feeding them, and doing all I can to make sure that their dining experience is a good one. About 15 years ago, my then-husband found a piece of property near our home and told me, “It’s time, you need to have your own restaurant.” It was a three year labor of love with family and friends, but after much blood, sweat, and tears, we opened our doors. It has never been easy, but we have worked hard to build a family-oriented community gathering place, with weekly live entertainment, and we have succeeded. Many community members have met new friends here. Others have rekindled friendships with long lost classmates and friends. Their kids’ bands have showcased on our stage, and their dad’s bluegrass band played on Sunday afternoon. We have built a family here, and we treasure every single cousin.
We are a small, family-owned restaurant. Our reputation has been built on our friendly atmosphere, great food, and superior service. Our live music program showcases the best of local and regional talent. Local music schools showcase their student talent here, and our Wednesday night blues jams have packed the house for years. In March of 2020, we had to close our doors, and change our focus to a carry out and delivery model. The shutdown started the day before St. Patrick’s Day, our biggest day of the year. We struggled to stay afloat as a carry out and delivery eatery, and made it to summer hanging by a thread. In June we were permitted to open up at reduced capacity, and lobbied our local and county governments to add an outdoor seating area. We brought back our live music program slowly and safely, outside and socially distanced. We bought heaters and outdoor tables, and lights for our street level “stage.” We had a good few months, and hope began to return. And then, the virus began to spike. The county shut down our live music, and then indoor dining. We returned to a carry out and delivery model, struggling to stay afloat.
Throughout our time in this community, we have done our best to be a good neighbor. We support fundraisers for local schools, community and charitable organizations. We host community meetings, allowing groups to meet in our upstairs space rent-free. We have hosted breakfast with Santa, Toys for Tots toy drives, and countless fundraisers for local charities. We instituted a “Feed the Frontline” program last spring, raised funds and delivered donated meals to local firehouses and health centers. We partnered with County Councilman Todd Turner last fall to deliver even more meals to local frontline workers. https://wjla.com/news/local/area-restaurants-battle-covid-19-restrictions?fbclid=IwAR2epEwpu5M85zOKZCLhKQZBHWNhM1tIVarua5PNpgDbP2O3yUAvPnpV_8E
We donate gift certificates to school fundraisers. We host class reunions, bridal and baby showers, rehearsal dinners, and funeral repasts. We do surprise birthday visits to our customers and neighbors, dressing up in costume and delivering food, drink, and birthday balloons. We are a good neighbor, an integral part of our community, and hope to continue that tradition for years to come.
I would like to share ambitious plans for the future, but our current hopes and dreams are far more basic – we just want to make it through this pandemic without having to close our doors forever. These funds would help us reach that goal, allowing us to cover our operating costs, and to prepare our outdoor seating area for use as soon as the weather allows. It is our hope that this funding, along with a lot of hard work and superior customer service, should see us through the next couple of months until we can get back on our feet by opening up our outdoor space, and, when it’s safe, welcoming a full complement of guests into the dining room.