Prince Frederick, MD – A Lusby restaurant that has been vacant for several months is about to reopen under a new name with new ownership and management. During the Thursday, June 25 meeting of the Calvert County Liquor Board the owners of Salsa’s Mexican Café on H.G. Trueman Road in Lusby were granted a Class B license for on-site sales of beer, wine and liquor.
Majority owner Carlos Bravo said the eatery will be “family-oriented and will not be open past midnight. Bravo owns a restaurant in Leonardtown, also called Salsa’s Mexican Café. Bravo stated he has had no liquor license violations at the Leonardtown location.
Bravo resides in Leonardtown. Commercial real estate agent Arthur Roy “Art” Carson, a Calvert County resident, owns a small percentage of the new restaurant.
Liquor Board Chairwoman Beth Swoap told Bravo she had received a call from a Leonardtown official assuring her that Bravo and his partners were “great business people.”
Bravo said he still has a few permits with Calvert County Government to finalize but anticipates opening the Lusby location of Salsa’s by mid-July.
The building that will house Salsa’s previously was Monterey’s Mexican Restaurant, which closed down last fall after a federal judge ruled in favor of two of the eatery’s former employees. The employees alleged the owners violated the Fair Labor Standards Act.
Board changes
Liquor Board Member Malcolm Funn announced the June meeting was his last on the panel. “It’s been a joy,” said Funn, who served one full two-year term on the board. “I hope I had some impact. We have to look out for the citizens.”
He joked, “you won’t have Funn on the liquor board anymore.”
Swoap also announced that while she remains on the board, Governor Larry Hogan has appointed a new chairman, Bob Arscott of Dunkirk. Arscott, who was recently named the Calvert County Republican Party’s Man of the Year for 2014, has a background in law enforcement.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com