Sponsor Spotlight: Miss Shirley’s Cafe

Noted for beautiful presentation, exceptional service, and award-winning dishes, Miss Shirley’s Café has grown into a Baltimore landmark sought out by both locals and visitors alike. 

Tell us about your company and the restaurants you operate?

Our company, Miss Shirley’s Management Company, owns and operates three Miss Shirley’s Café locations: in Roland Park, Inner Harbor and Annapolis. Miss Shirley’s Cafe offers our guests a unique award winning culinary experience for breakfast, brunch and lunch.  Our specialties are rooted in Southern fundamentals and the abundance of fresh ingredients from the Chesapeake Bay region.  We pride ourselves in beautifully presented plates, prompt and professional service, as well as clean, comfortable and well-maintained premises for our guests.

Established in 2005 by restaurateur and Baltimore native Eddie Dopkin, Miss Shirley’s Café was created as a tribute to an inspirational employee and personal friend, Miss Shirley McDowell. McDowell, a food professional at The Classic Catering People, was known for her sassy charm and sheer joy of preparing dishes for those she loved. Corporate Executive Chef Brigitte Bledsoe has crafted a bold menu that reflects both McDowell’s southern flare and Bledsoe’s love of fresh Maryland ingredients.

We will be celebrating our 10-year anniversary in May of 2015, and we couldn’t be more excited to share this occasion with our loyal guests, friends and colleagues.

You have been a Roland Park landmark for a long time, what do you love about being in that neighborhood?

We love the small town community feel that the Roland Park neighborhood exudes, while still being in Baltimore city. It is a warm welcoming, family friendly neighborhood, and that is exactly what Miss Shirley’s is all about. The Dopkin family has lived in or close by, and built businesses in the area for years.

We take pride in helping to beautify the neighborhood, by regularly planting flowers and hanging baskets along Cold Spring Lane, picking up trash off of the street and sidewalk, decorating the block for the holidays with pumpkins & hay stacks in the Fall, and holiday wreaths & decorations in the winter, as well as maintaining not only our premises but helping others to do the same.

What inspired you to sponsor this year’s neighborhood institute?

We are inspired to sponsor this year’s neighborhood institute, because we love our city and we value the importance of the GHCC’s mission to improve and strengthen Baltimore City neighborhoods. It is essential that we support each other in this effort; if our urban communities thrive so do the business districts.

As a business owner, how do you stay involved in the community?

Miss Shirley’s Café stays involved with the community in many ways!  We support dozens of local charities and foundations, including The Roland Park Community Foundation, Roland Park Baseball, Roland Park Library, Roland Park Fire Station, Church fundraisers, Gilman Bull Roast, Baltimore Child Abuse Center, FARE Allergy Walk & Johns Hopkins Children’s Center, Loyola University, Maryland SPCA, American Cancer Society, American Heart Society, Maryland Library Association, Centerstage, Keswick Foundation, as well as many more!

In addition, we organized a clean up of Stony Run Park with our staff, we have five Sponsor A Highway signs in the area, and we plant the flowers along Cold Spring Lane year round.

What is your favorite thing to order for brunch?

That’s a hard question, since my favorite meal is brunch!  However my absolute favorite brunch item on Miss Shirley’s menu is the Crab Cake & Fried Green Tomato Eggs Benedict!  Two perfectly poached eggs, mini jumbo lump crab cakes on fried green tomatoes, roasted corn & grape tomato relish with asparagus & Old Bay hollandaise – It doesn’t get any better than that for a true Southern style Maryland brunch!

Monday – Friday 7 a.m. – 3 p.m., Saturday & Sunday 7:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.