The Local Restaurant Opening On Belair Road

FALLSTON, MD - A new restaurant featuring local food and drink is opening on Belair Road this week.

The Local will serve up what its owners call "elevated comfort food," such as the "buttermilk chicken sando" and cheesesteak egg rolls.

“The menu looks delicious,” Commissioner Susan Burdette of the liquor board said at a hearing Wednesday where the Harford County Liquor Control Board granted The Local a cafe license.

The license allows the restaurant to sell beer, wine and liquor on-site as well as in an outside service area. Outside will have 30 seats, while the interior will have a maximum of 64 seats.

Alcohol will come from local sources such as Independent Brewing Company in Bel Air, Falling Branch Brewery in Street, Slate Farm Brewery in Whiteford, Sagamore Spirit Distillery in Baltimore, Hysteria Brewing Company in Columbia and Blackwater Distilling in Stevensville, according to The Local.

Ingredients for other menu items will come from Brooms Bloom Dairy in Bel Air, Homelands Poultry in Bel Air, Grand View Farm in Forest Hill, Roseda Farm in Monkton, Fresh Source Farms in Elkton, Sagamore Farm in Reisterstown and Shepherd’s Manor Creamy in New Windsor.

Zack Trabbold will be the executive chef at The Local. He has worked at The Bygone at the Four Seasons in Baltimore and Cafe Mezzanote in Severna Park and was the executive chef for the University of Maryland Medical Center, according to World Food Championships, which will be hosting him and other contestants in the World Seafood Championship this November in Dallas.

Samantha Wisniewski will be the manager of The Local. She told the liquor board she has background as a manager and server in the food service industry, including working at Uncle's Hawaiian Grindz in Fallston.

A grand opening celebration starts at 12 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 31. Live music will continue all day, and Ravens cheerleaders will be in attendance.

The Local is at 1918 Belair Rd. in Fallston. Reservations will begin Sept. 1.

Investor Robert Lee Windsor is the 87.5 percent owner of The Local, according to information presented to the liquor board.

For the Harford County Board of Liquor Control to issue a new license, owners must show they have invested $250,000 in the property.

The building where The Local is now used to house a Pizza Hut.

“We have not been able to verify how much, if any [of the equipment] … is new,” Special Projects Coordinator Judi Powell said at a hearing Wednesday where The Local applied for the license.

While the liquor board approved the granting of a cafe license, it was contingent on providing proof that the capital investment had been made.

As of Friday, the liquor board confirmed the documentation had been supplied and the license issued.