In 1989, Dan and Donna Leigh Wecker took stewardship of an historic iron forge property that consisted of decaying buildings and 16 acres of land along the Patapsco River in Howard County, Maryland. The venture, a unique partnership between the Weckers, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the Patapsco Valley State Park system, allowed the Weckers to settle into a dream.
The Elkridge Furnace Inn dates to 1744.
Dan grew up playing baseball in the Manor Ridge area and went to school in the city at Sacred Heart. “I don’t have a single bad memory of my childhood growing up,” Dan says, leading me on a pre-dinner walk around the Elkridge Furnace Complex.
Returning to Lancaster County after serving in the Korean War, Dan’s father worked at Sperry-New Holland and Donnelley Printing before packing up Dan and his six siblings in 1970 and heading to a new job in Maryland. “I am Pennsylvania Dutch,” remarks Dan, who also notes that his great-grandmother was Amish. “There are a lot of things that we learned growing up in Lancaster County, like responsibility and work ethic. We had never been taught to be prejudiced about anything, and we all thrived.”
Donna and Lancaster native/chef Dan Wecker
He still has family members in Lancaster County, and he credits his aunt and uncle, who owned a small farm on Owl’s Hill in Lititz, for spurring his interest in cultivation. His restaurant, The Elkridge Furnace Inn, was farm-to-table before it was a trend. As we round the side of the building, he points toward a thin copse of trees and low bushes, reporting, “We have figs, raspberries, plums, persimmons, all grown using organic practices.” There are hothouses filled with greens and herbs, as well as a mushroom house with Pleuratus ostreatus (oyster mushroom) clinging to suspended bags of sawdust.
On-premise greenhouses provide year-round greens.
Steps away from the gardens, a soon-to-be bride and groom are planning their big day, which will be held here in a few weeks. Weddings are a forte of the Elkridge Furnace Complex, as are celebrations such as showers, vow renewals, engagement, anniversary and birthday parties, as well as corporate events.
HISTORY RESTORED
Dan and Donna met in their early 20s, and they have been a culinary and creative team ever since. “We were young enough and naïve enough to take on a project like this, to restore and maintain this building and the lands,” recalls Dan.
When the couple moved onto the property 35 years ago, the tavern (circa 1744) and manor house (circa 1810) were scheduled for demolition. Their task was to restore the buildings, upgrade the property, and create a successful restaurant and event space. Dan, Donna and their children lived on the property in a small country home now referred to as the Garden House. “This house didn’t look like this when we got here; it was boarded up. Donna could tell you lots of funny stories, but it was difficult at the start. We had no money, and it was a lot of work. But it’s a cozy little house,” says Dan.
The event space, which is steps away from the Patapsco River, can hold up to 250 guests.
The property, which was officially listed on the National Register of Historic Place in 1990, was first used for hunting and fishing by the Susquehannock people. It was explored by John Smith in 1608 and surveyed by James McCubbin (who built the original tavern) in 1744. The Wecker family took on the task of restoring the complex of Federal- and Greek Revival-style buildings and opened a catering facility in 1992, followed by a restaurant in 1994. The nature of their unique public-private venture does allow for some rent credit today, but the Weckers’ capital and “sweat equity” were used to restore the property on behalf of the state.
A CULINARY EXPERIENCE
What do the French Ambassador to the United States, Liberace and Vice President Walter Mondale have in common? They have all eaten dishes prepared by Dan. But his culinary voyage started small. “My sister got me into the food service industry at age 14, working at the Columbia (MD) Ice Rink concession stand,” says Dan. In high school he worked at a local, fast-casual restaurant. He began to consider cooking as a career option and entered an apprenticeship under French chef Michel Beaupin in 1976. “I trained in every position of a traditional French kitchen – pastries, sauces, butchery,” says Dan, who credits Beaupin as an important influence.
“This is Dan’s signature dish,” says Donna, who has joined us at an upstairs table. “This is far superior to any cream of crab soup. It’s crab soup with a twist.” Chef Dan learned the recipe for his Cream of Baltimore soup from retired Charm City chef, Debbie Crabtree. The soup is based on two of the colors of the Maryland flag. Potato leek represents the white and sweet potato curry crab is the gold. “They are both good soups by themselves, but when you put them together, they become Cream of Baltimore,” explains Dan, as I sip from a complimentary sample portion … and wished I had more!
I realize as entrées arrive, the key to dining at The Elkridge Furnace Inn is taking time to enjoy the accoutrements of each dish. Meats like smoked duck breast, bresaola and veal pinenut salami are made in house, just like the cheddar cheeses, pickled vegetables and fragrant mustards. “All of our meats are butchered here, and all of our steaks are hand cut,” explains Dan.
Overall, the entrées appearing from The Elkridge Furnace Inn kitchen can be best described as localized, rustic French, somewhere between haute and provincial cuisines. The emphasis is on quality ingredients and seasonality, but there is a definite homage to necessity and invention.
“We are not really a trendy restaurant. We update the menu for each season,” says Dan, who eventually leaves me to the rest of my meal and heads back downstairs. A visit to Elkridge Furnace is definitely worth the trip!
The Elkridge Furnace Inn is tucked away in a quiet area of Howard County, where Chef Dan runs the kitchen and makes sure to visit with each diner. Donna is also on site, usually planning one of her popular tea events. For more information, visit elkridgefurnaceinn.com.
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