Page 28 - Delaware Lawyer - Spring 2019

FEATURE
Farmer & The Cow, Mike Day Farmer & The Cow
a while, hoping someone would offer us a free meal. Unfortunately, we did not look undernourished and garnered no sympathy, so we headed down Market Street.
Our next stop was Merchant Bar — the relatively new sister to the highly rated La Fia. Merchant Bar was filled with people and we could see the activity through the wide and tall windows that surround it. After seeing the crowds at Stitch and Bardea, we expected lesser crowds further down Market. Not so. La Fia and Merchant Bar were full. La Fia has a charming exterior and an even more charming interior. We found two guests in an unexpectedly attractive seat in the window of La Fia, facing out and looking across the intersection of Market and 5th Streets to The Queen. It is a great spot to savor your bucatini, sip a glass of wine and people-watch. And the best news is that there were plenty of people on Market Street to watch. The sidewalks had not been rolled up.
Our last stop was Farmer & The Cow, a couple of doors down from La Fia. On the wall as we entered was a memento from the recent visit by Guy Fieri, the host of Din- ers, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Network. Guy undoubtedly came for the burgers, and they must be the biggest and most unique burgers in Delaware. Seated at one of the tables near the front of the restaurant was a family with two young children. Mike Day — the owner — and the delightful hostess who greeted us when we entered were proud of families with children coming to Market Street for dinner at night. The kids probably enjoyed the gourmet fries and tater tots (really, come try them) that Mike and his staff serve in staggering quantities, even if they are only sides to the bigger burgers. But the one part of the Farmer that the kids could not experience was the part that also makes Mike proud — a selection of over 200 whiskies, including Scotch, Bourbon, Irish and dozens of others. I asked Mike for a bourbon I would never have heard of and that he thought I would love. He provided. So we took a picture of Mike proudly posed in front of (part of) his whiskey selection.
As Bud and I walked up Market Street from the Farmer, past La Fia, Bardea, Chelsea and Stitch, I knew that downtown is truly experiencing a renaissance. Bud, who lives in the suburbs, told me he would never have believed what he had seen if I had not asked him to photograph it. He never imagined downtown Wilmington could have this much nightlife and so many people enjoying it. He sealed that judgment with the ultimate testament: He said he was going to tell his wife about it and bring her downtown. As we all know, no man wants to disappoint his wife. Bud would not have risked that pos- sibility unless he was confident. By the time this article appears, I hope his wife has also confirmed the judgment that there is a renaissance in downtown Wilmington, and a virtuous cycle has begun of new people attracting new businesses and new businesses attracting new people. Come see it for yourself.
Merchant Bar
La Fia
26 DELAWARE LAWYER SPRING 2019
Wilmington Night Lights