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Kent Manor Inn's Generations Restaurant
Kent Manor Drive, Stevensville
410-643-7716

The approach to Kent Manor Inn is a long, lovely driveway that terminates at the front steps of a stately country inn. In this quiet corner of Stevensville, it's hard to believe that you're only a minute or two away from the Bay Bridge.

The manor house retains an old-fashioned charm. Several first-floor rooms, appointed with fireplaces, high ceilings and crown moldings, are now used for the restaurant and bar, while others on the balconied second floor are available for overnight guests.

In keeping with the history of the property (which began in 1651), Inn keeper and executive chef Dennis Shakan recently re-named his restaurant Generations, and now features "the foods of the past" along with contemporary favorites.

The new menu is a culinary stroll down memory lane, with items that evoke memories of cherished comfort foods (country ham and biscuits, a "Dutch Oven" stew and green bean casserole) alongside new takes on Greek salad, Asian chicken, and marinated salmon. On a recent visit, the nightly specials included hunter style rabbit, sage chicken pot pie, and lobster newburg done in the authentic style-creamy, but lighter than the standard version. If you're feeling adventurous, try the mouse pie, which fortunately substitutes sausage for the "five fat field mice" specified in the original recipe.

Crab cakes can be ordered to size at $3.25 per ounce; full entrees range from $10.25 to $25. Side dishes are priced separately. If you're in the mood to splurge on a country-inn experience that won't take you too far from home, Kent Manor Inn's Generations Restaurant offers food with posterity.

--Carol Denny