Front Page Chef Kevin Greene (left) and owner Terry Plowman will be making sure the restaurant and bar is making headlines for its eclectic menu and not just its entertainment this summer. (Photo by Gregg Kirk)

By GREGG KIRK

June 1989, Big Shout Magazine

In a recent dining guide featured in the Wilmington News Journal, an entry described the cuisine at the Front Page Restaurant and Bar in Rehoboth Beach, DE as “passable bar food.” This unfortunate choice of wording might not have bothered the average bar and grill owner whose stock of beers is more important than what’s on his menu, but Front Page owner Terry Plowman was more than a little distressed.

You see, Plowman has been offering an eclectic menu that ranges from Asian, Mexican and European to traditional American fare since the restaurant and bar opened its doors in 1984. The dining guide description only confirmed Plowman’s fears that the Front Page was becoming better known as a place to see a live band and get a drink than a comfortable place to sit down and enjoy a gourmet meal. However, while the Page obviously deserves all the attention it’s been getting for its “Acoustic Jam Night” and its healthy supply of live bands, it’s an injustice to ignore its food.

It’s even more of an injustice when you consider the changes and fine tuning, Plowman and Chef Kevin Greene have made to the menu over the years. While the bulk of the menu is similar to the original one developed in 1984, Greene — who graduated from the Balymaloe Cookery School in Ireland in 1987 — stresses that each entree and appetizer has been improved upon bit by bit.

“We make our own mayonnaises, butters and special ingredients to give the dishes our own flair,” says Greene. “And we’ve changed the menu to make it healthier for you. For instance, we only use whole wheat breads and pitas, we steam or stir-fry all of our vegetables to keep the vitamins in them, we only use low-cholesterol extra-virgin olive oil for cooking, and we offer some vegetarian dishes as well.”

Most of these changes came about when Greene returned from Shanagarry, Ireland after spending four months of intensive training in European, French, Asian, German, Italian, Indian, and of course, Irish cuisines.

“Going to a cookery school in Europe was nothing like going to a school here in America,”Greene notes. “There, instead of taking different classes throughout the course of the day with a break here and there, you worked every day of the week from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. It was a much more intense way of learning.”

According to Greene, the students were also required to grow their own herbs and spices and contract local farmers for the livestock that they used in their cooking. “We even had to go out to the henhouse to get the eggs we used,” laughs Greene.

Because of this experience, Greene almost literally left as a cook and came back as a chef. When he returned for work at the Front Page the next summer, he helped change the face of the menu. Now, the restaurant offers several dishes that are unique to the area and are a favorite among locals.

“Our stuffed peppers are probably one of our more unique dishes,” says Greene. “They’re served in a minty tomato sauce and are stuffed with hamburger, sausage, rice and Italian spices. We also have blackened mahi-mahi, tuna and mako, and a lot of people like our hickory burger. We grind our own meat and season it before it’s cooked.”

The Front Page also boasts 15 different types of mayonnaises, several different types of butters, specials every week for lunch and dinner as well as offering a catch of the day. Not bad for “bar food.”

Plowman also noted that since he complained to the News Journal about his dining listing, the wording has been changed. “It now says, ‘decent bar food,'” Plowman says shaking his head.