With the encouragement of our dear and talented friend, Kelly Walker, VSC has launched a rotating art exhibition featuring the works of talented local artists. Our first exhibition features seven paintings by Kelly Walker in a series called “Life Code.” This series was inspired by the intersection of Kelly’s creative & business life and the constant bombardment with numbers that comes with the latter. While balancing the two worlds can be overwhelming at times, Kelly has finally surrendered herself to the numbers and the end result is something beautiful! Please stop in to see them. All paintings are available for purchase. Ask our staff for details. For more information about Kelly, visit http://kellywalkerfineart.squarespace.com

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Join us for a fun evening on Thursday, June 4, 6-8 pm, when Terry Gourley will hold her annual end-of-year student recital at the VSC. Hear the voices and music of more than a half dozen talented, young Baltimoreans. From beginners to advanced students, it promises to be an entertaining evening.

Terry, who performs regularly at our Café, has been teaching voice and guitar to students of all ages for more than 25 years.

Original Blend, an a cappella group from Towson University, will give a special performance at the Village Square Cafe this Friday, May 1, 6-8 pm. The group is composed of individuals with a passion for singing and sharing music with the community. The strong synergy between group members helps Original Blend to collaboratively arrange creative new spins on popular songs.

When Roseann and Robert Glick opened the Village Square Café in 2008, they had a specific vision in mind. They wanted to create a place where everyone felt welcome, from start to finish – like the patrons of the TV show bar “Cheers,” where “everybody knows your name.”

Six years later, they’ve done just that, establishing themselves as a reliable spot for good, homemade food and friendly, attentive service. Here, Roseann Glick shares some of the story behind the café:

How did you get started at the restaurant?

It was clear that there was a need at the Village of Cross Keys for a casual, quick service café to serve shoppers, retail workers, office workers, village residents and the many others who frequent the village. We opened six years ago with the hope of not only serving these customers but also becoming a welcoming neighborhood destination for those in the surrounding communities, including Roland Park, Evergreen, Mount Washington, Hampden and Guilford.

What is your favorite item on the menu at Village Square Café?

That’s a tough one! I can tell you a few of our most popular items. First and foremost is our turkey club, made with house-roasted sliced turkey breast. We roast two whole turkeys each day.

Our made-to-order half-pound burgers and our Reuben sandwich are probably tied for second place.

We also serve breakfast all day, seven days a week (including nights, on the three evenings we’re open for dinner).

Last, but certainly not least, we make all of our yummy soups from scratch and offer two varieties daily. They are very popular as well – especially this time of year!

What holiday meals or plans would you recommend for your diners?

Since the holiday season tends to be a busy time of year for most, with gift shopping and extra social commitments, the Village Square Café is the perfect place to stop in for a homemade meal instead of taking the time to cook at home. We are open seven days a week (7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and three evenings a week (Thursday, Friday and Saturday until 8 p.m.)

Just so we can get a sense of the vibe of the cafe, who is someone who we would know who you could see dining at your cafe?

We’re not big celebrity followers, but I Googled “laid back celebrities” to get some ideas. One article included Tom Hanks among their nicest and most laid back celebs. Since one of the things we pride ourselves on is not being fussy and pretentious, I thought, yes, I could see Tom Hanks hanging out at our café.

What’s new and exciting at Village Square Cafe?

We’re not the kind of place that is always offering something “new and exciting.” We are the kind of place that folks can count on for a good, freshly prepared, made-to-order meal, always served with a warm welcome.

And we feature live music every Saturday evening from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., showcasing a variety of talented local musicians.

Thank you to our friends at Baltimore Fishbowl for allowing us to repost.

Hopkins Graduate and Author Ebonye Octavia Gussine will discuss her debut novel, Somewhat Close to Normal: A Native New Yorker Examines September 11th’s Impact on the Lives of Minorities.

About the Book:
Somewhat Close to Normal is set in a post 9/11 New York City where a group of friends and the people they encounter struggle to face a world irrevocably changed by the terrorist attacks on the United States of America. Spanning a cultural and ethnic mosaic, the characters learn to love, live and stay strong in a world unlike the one they have ever known.

Hope and determination are at the center of this novel. The rules of their world have changed, but the cast of characters learn not only how to live with these new changes, but how their efforts can help define the way society sees them, and the way they see themselves.

About the Author:
Ebonye Octavia Gussine is a Jamaican-American who was born and raised in Queens, New York. She earned a B.A. from John Hopkins University and a M.S. from CUNY School of Professional Studies. Two years after she witnessed the fall of the Twin Towers, she began writing about the impact of that experience. These drafts evolved into her debut novel, Somewhat Close to Normal. She has one child and lives with her husband in Northern California.