The Farmhouse Café and Creperie of La Plata opened in October 2023, but it already has a strong following and regular breakfast crowd. Owned by Bill Devane, a long-time businessman, the restaurant is what you might call a labor of love for his daughter, Whitney Muenze, who first ate a crepe about six years ago and wanted to start her own business and restaurant.
Whitney shared, “I tried crepes one time, and I just fell in love with them.” She bought a crepe maker with the help of her mom and taught herself how to make them. Eventually, she considered buying a food truck for a creperie business—something small scale that she could handle on her own—but an old farmhouse with an ideal location (on busy Washington Road, about a mile off of 301) became available.
“We came across this house, and it was up for rent,” Whitney said. She found the owner, and her parents bought the house in February 2020, just two weeks before COVID struck and everything was shut down. Despite the bad timing, her dad had experience with ‘flipping” houses and construction, and he went to work with some major renovations on the house. “I was there every day for 2 ½ years,” says Bill.
During that time, he took note of the traffic. “I was watching cars go by, and every six minutes, almost 100 were going by.” He knew then that it was a great location. He had also noticed the long lines in the morning at IHOP and Maries Diner and knew there was room for another breakfast restaurant. They also added several breakfast and brunch items to the crepes menu.
The café is open 8 am to 2 pm, 7 days a week and especially busy on Saturdays and Sundays. They started out with being closed on Tuesdays, the quietest day, but Bill explained, “By being closed on Tuesday, the people who work for us aren’t getting a full paycheck. On Tuesdays, we break even, and it keeps everybody in a job. You’ve got to watch out for your employees; they are your business.”
Talking to Bill and Whitney, it’s obvious that their 24 employees (full and part-time) are very important to them, and they see them as family. Dominick Tillman, the cook, agreed, “Most places you go to, you might see the boss twice a week. At the Farmhouse, they’re always here. It’s a real family environment that we have.”
This Valentine’s Day, they’re trying out a dinner menu and opening in the evening for the first time to the general public. (They’ve had two catered evening events that went well.) They advertised the event on Facebook and by word of mouth, and they were sold out in 1 ½ weeks. After the Valentines dinner, they’re considering opening for dinner on Friday and Saturday.
The Valentines dinner will serve as a trial run for offering dinner. Bill laughed and said, ”We don’t have a clue what we’re doing,” and Whitney finished, “but we know good food.” Her main focus is quality over quantity when it comes to the food they serve. The brioche bread they use for French toast is only one example. “Our bread is high quality,” she said. “We want to stand out and be a little different that way.”
While learning how to run a restaurant business, Whitney said they didn’t realize how many people it would require. They both wear many hats, from owner to cook to serving tables. The first week they were open, the cook didn’t show up, so they cooked. Bill comes over regularly and busses tables and talks to customers.
The Farmhouse Café fills a niche in La Plata where there aren’t many family-owned restaurants and very few to go to for breakfast. Whitney said, “We already have regulars, and they’re so nice and support us. We love the La Plata community.” Bill added, “I want to thank the people for coming, and most of the people who come in thank me for building it.”
