Key Ingredients Exhibit Opens Friday Evening

Dig In with a Downtown Food Loop

“Key Ingredients: America by Food" a traveling Smithsonian exhibit that is making a tour across the nation, opens this Friday evening in Elkton. The show and associated programs, which are being sponsored locally by the Historical Society of Cecil County and the Arts Council, explores the connections between Americans and the foods they produce, prepare, preserve and present at the table.

The opening reception runs from 4pm to 7pm at 135 E. Main Street in Elkton, home of the Historical Society. In addition to the Smithsonian exhibit highlighting the evolution of American cuisine from food gathering by Native Americans to today’s home cooking techniques, the story is also told through a Society curated exhibit containing county photographs, illustrations, artifacts and an interactive computer station. The reception features refreshments and live music by Soul Oh.

As Cecil digs into this exhibit, area restaurants and merchants are joining in with a taste loop in Elkton. Nearly twelve downtown businesses will stay open and at each location patrons will be offered beer and food. There is a nominal charge at each place (approximately $2 to $4). The taste loop kicks off at 135 E. Main Street, where a $2 cup is purchased. A map detailing the business locations that are open for the evening will also be available.

Food service enterprises participating in this exciting evening are: Bentleys, Elkton Diner, the Howard House, the Grist Mill, Judy’s Java, Main Street Café, Union Hospital Café, and the Wellwood Club

Key Ingredients: America by Food, has been made possible in Cecil County by the Maryland Humanities Council. Key Ingredients is part of Museum on Main Street, a collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution and the Federation of State Humanities Councils. Support for Museum on Main Street has been provided by the United States Congress, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, and the Hearst Foundation.

For a full schedule of events for the remainder of the exhibit, which runs through September 22, visit the Society’s web site at www.cchistory.org.