06-29-2023 Howard Magazine - Flipbook - Page 17
“We’re trying to have items you’re not getting anywhere else,” says Samaras. The menu
will change with what’s available, she says,
always featuring “coastal creations, basically
from Maine to the Carolinas.”
In May, the well-edited menu included seafood dishes like tuna with a sesame and wasabi
pea crust; a cioppino with lobster, shrimp
and scallops; or crab cakes. Diners could also
choose salads; a Maryland crab chowder;
vegetarian options; and heartier fare like duck,
lamb chops or filet mignon.
Samaras recently sold a women’s lacrosse
tournament business she had developed with
her mother and sister, and was looking for
a new venture. As lead vocalist for Foreplay,
a 70s tribute band, she wanted to open a
business that capitalized on her love for
music. When The Soundry became available,
it seemed like the perfect space, not least because it had opened in 2018 as part of Clyde’s
and had a fairly new high-end sound system.
However, Howard Hughes Corp., which
owns the property, wanted one operator for
both the restaurant and the entertainment
space. Samaras and her husband Randy Smith,
a tech director and Foreplay’s drummer and
vocalist, decided to take on the restaurant as
well, but they needed partners with experience in the food industry. They found them in
Joshua and Joyce Butts, owners of HoCo Brew
Hive.
Whitefish and
lump crab with
asparagus and rice.
The four added other investors and got to
work updating the space. Joshua Butts became
operating partner. Demitian Gilbert, who had
been beverage director and assistant general
manager at Clyde’s, became a partner and
general manager.
Encore, which replaces The Soundry, is
filling its calendar with artists playing blues,
jazz, punk and nostalgic covers.
Samaras says the music calendar will remain
eclectic. Tickets for local acts will cost between
$15 and $30, she says, although national acts
may command a slightly higher price. Patrons
get an assigned seat and a menu of bar snacks
and drinks.
The entertainment for Encore’s soft open at
the end of April was none other than Foreplay.
“We honestly feel like we could be the stewards of this great space for the next generation,” says Samaras.
The Collective — Offshore & Encore
10221 Wincopin Circle, Columbia, 443-545-1030,
thecollectivecolumbia.com
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