Cafe Normandie

An Annapolis restaurant could be fined $93,600 for knowingly hiring four illegal aliens and failing to keep proper documentation of workers, the Immigration and Naturalization Service said.The fine against Cafe Normandie would be the largest ever levied against a restaurant in Maryland, said Ben Ferro, the INS district director."We don't look kindly on employers who repeatedly choose to either ignore or wink at their responsibility under the 1986 act," he said. "This is the second time they have been fined and the third time we have found violations."

Health inspectors temporarily closed two Annapolis restaurants and one in Pasadena during routine inspections from April 1 to 15.The three restaurants did not meet county codes because of emergency conditions. They were:* Morrison's Cafeteria, 900 block of Jennifer Road, Annapolis. Closed for lack of hot water.* Roy Rogers, Annapolis Mall, Annapolis. Closed because of fire.* Beefalo Bob's, 100 block of Mountain Road, Pasadena. Closed because of fire.All three establishments have re-opened.

Today's groundbreaking ceremony for the Main Street reconstruction project is expected to be colorful and loud with its singing fifth-graders and historians snapping photographs. The mayor will even get a commemorative brick.But many downtown workers and residents say they have no reason to celebrate the rebricking project in the heart of the city's historic district."This will kill us," said Monica Nader, manager of Cafe Normandie at 185 Main St. "We are definitely going to lose business."

Annapolis has a new French-inspired restaurant, Cafe la Mouffe, at 909 Bay Ridge Ave., (410) 263-2233. The cafe is in a handsome old house; its garage has become the bakery, which turns out bread, croissants and focaccia from an authentic French oven. Everything is made on the premises with all fresh ingredients, promises owner Joyce Gomoljak. Entrees range from $7 for half a chicken and salad to $12 for salmon with mango chutney and sweet potatoes.* Citronelle in the Latham Hotel will be open for Sunday brunch beginning Sept.

Hummer's Olde Bay, 8322 Pulaski Highway, (410) 687-2544. What you see at the Olde Bay is a low, plain, brick building with randomly parked vehicles in the lot and electric beer signs in the windows. But what you get is good food, skillfully prepared and nicely served in a comfortable, unpretentious dining room. There are, in fact, no pretensions at the Olde Bay. But, then, there don't need to be. The food is so good that it would stand out in much showier surroundings. We particularly enjoyed the sherry-tinged cream of crab soup ($2.95)

Until a few months ago, Cafe Normandie was Brasserie de Paris, but the word "brasserie" doesn't fit very well in American mouths, so the brasserie isn't a brasserie anymore (and maybe never was, brasseries tending toward Alsatian wines, beers and choucroutes). Also, under the old regime, the brasserie offered some fairly fancy, pricey entrees like rack of lamb in truffles sauce. Under the new regime, fancy is out.The departed brasserie's menu read "Restaurant Francais"; the cafe's says, "Your Neighborhood Cafe."