The Sputnik Café, by far the Annapolis area’s hippest restaurant, sits shyly on Generals Highway in Crownsville. The demure barn-wood exterior of this funky eatery is freshened with whimsical art, like the giant red tulip standing sentry at the front door, serving as a promising first impression.
Stepping into the foyer—decorated with a black velveteen, overstuffed couch, tangerine polka-dotted rugs, and walls covered with fabric sporting lime green peppered with hot pink flowers—the immediate attention-grabber is the 200-pound chandelier. Shaped like a giant sunburst dominating the main dining room, its lights sparkle from the 150 chrome-plated antennae jutting from its center.
Owners Bill and Maria Buszinski and David Brown found it on eBay and named the restaurant after the fixture’s resemblance to the Sputnik (“little traveler” in Russian) satellite. Three diaphanous zebra-print curtains—room dividers—undulate from circular steel ceiling rails. The tables are complemented with ’50s-esque off-green and orange plastic chairs. A semi-private sitting area in the back room, upholstered in tangerine “pleather,” is a favorite spot for groups of eight to twelve. During the warm-weather months, patrons can eat in the café’s outdoor patio, enclosed by a fence
decorated with fanciful flowers painted by Maria and Bill.
The trio opened the café in 2001 on a whim and a shoestring budget, traveling to New York, Paris, Mexico, and San Francisco in search of ideas for their new venture. While only David had any formal training in running a restaurant, all three loved to cook. They set out to break the mold with a place that relied on the unique—both in food and in décor. “We wanted to create a place where all three of us would like to come to—more modern and more whimsical than anyplace else in the area,” says Bill.
The menu is delivered by young, typically black-clad servers, and sends mixed messages of hot and sweet. (The kids’ menu is written atop a toy bus.) Its “global fusion” theme is inspired by the cuisine of the Pacific Rim, Mexico, and Latin America. Take a path less traveled with the house vegetable salad, a symphony of sliver-sized daikon radishes, carrots, cukes, cabbage, and peanuts in a sinus-clearing wasabi dressing, with a spiky garnish of fried blue corn tortillas. The house salad, a medley of field greens, fresh raspberries and blueberries, toasted walnuts, and gorgonzola cheese in a berry vinaigrette, is also memorable.
Another option, and ideal way to experience Sputnik’s signature tastes, is to share a starter sampler that includes Filipino lumpia rolls, Vietnamese spring rolls, Thai grilled chicken, and tamales. The platter comes decorated with a baby orchid and a pretty trio of dipping sauces—spicy green and red salsas plus what seemed to be plain white vinegar—arrived lukewarm. The rolls, stuffed with chopped vegetables, shrimp and chicken, were light and crisp. Chicken, wrapped around a wooden skewer, needed a sauce bath to give it any flavor, and the cold tamale was left on the plate after one bite.
Main courses boosted our satisfaction level, specifically a pair of flavorful elk chops (flown in from Colorado) ordered rare and served with slices of fresh golden beets and bright broccoli. The other winner was a snow white slab of steamed sea bass in a pungent red curry sauce, accompanied by white asparagus, shrimp chips, and a mound of sticky rice. My fellow diners recommended the Mongolian-marinated rack of lamb served with molasses sweet potatoes, Sichuan scallops partnered with coconut couscous, and achiote-marinated and pan-seared moulard duck breast topped with an apple-Asian pear chutney and garnished with toasted tequila and lime pineapple.
The excitement carries over to the desserts, all made in-house. Try the avocado, ginger, and coconut homemade ice creams as well as the signature carrot cake and a lush flourless chocolate cake with raspberry sauce. Maria’s specialty is Asian pear pie, served with ginger ice cream.
And there are other surprises. The Sputnik Café has an extraordinarily eclectic wine list, with eighty-four labels representing Alsace, Australia, France, Germany, New Zealand, South Africa, and Spain. While there is no specific house wine, five whites and five reds are available by the glass. The restaurant has attracted considerable interest in these unique selections, and on Fridays from 5-6:30 p.m. there is a tasting of four wines for $10, while wine dinners featuring five courses and six wines are held every other month.
The Sputnik Café is not a place for All-American comfort food—or even a comfortable chair. But boring is not on the menu, and the owners’ courageous experiment in international cooking is to be admired. Expect the unexpected—and you won’t be disappointed.
Mary Lou Baker has been a food and travel writer for more than twenty years.
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