Out of the Fire at 111 South Washington
EASTON, MD
In 2021, Easton, Maryland’s beloved Out of the Fire restaurant celebrated 20 years with an announcement that they would be relocating to 111 South Washington Street. Encore, several years earlier, served as architect on the nearly 200 year-old-home, and was honored to be invited back to the property to adapt it for its next phase of life. With design drawings completed and permits in hand, construction started off with a bang with the demolition of a rotten outbuilding and leaky shed-roofed addition. The new design includes three dining rooms and a bar inside and seating on a side porch. The delicious food will be prepared in the large, new commercial kitchen addition with a cathedral ceiling and skylights. The upstairs rooms are configured for private dining and meeting space. The restaurant was complete in September 2022 and reopened with fanfare.
Each dining area has a unique theme. Particularly impressive is the front room decorated with paintings by famous local artist Howard Lapp. Over the mantel is a striking painting of the building and adjacent rowhouses before renovation. The Out of the Fire owners support artists by displaying their works for sale without a commission.
Encore previously completed the historic rehabilitation of the 1824 property in 2017. At that time, our services combined historic preservation with adaptation to create a small, elegant office building. Scrollwork brackets added subtle elegance to the Italianate style front porch. Wrought-iron and cast-iron pintle hinges on the louvered shutters defined different construction phases the property had gone through. The previously gutted second floor was modernized with a ductless heating and cooling system, and low energy LED lighting. Maryland’s Small Commercial Tax Credit program and the Federal Historic Tax Credit programs made the project economically feasible.
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