A Rude Awakening in Easton
Since opening Rise Up Coffee in the spring of 2005, Tim Cureton has been drawing crowds on the Eastern Shore and beyond with his culinary establishments, including Rude BBQ and Rude Burger. A Salisbury University alumnus, Cureton earned an undergraduate degree in Sociology and a master’s in education, which he credits as his ticket to the Peace Corps. He served in Micronesia and while traveling around the Pacific cultivated an interest in coffee that quickly turned into a passion and later an obsession, and became the centerpiece of his nascent business empire.
Rise Up Coffee opened in the spring of 2005. Nineteen years in any business is quite an achievement, especially one where food trends come and go and chefs burn out at a higher rate due to long hours, high stress, and hot kitchens. The restaurant business is not for the faint of heart. A successful restaurant or group of restaurants is a small miracle and one for which the town of Easton is grateful.
“I never took a business course in my life,” says Cureton. “Something I’m quite proud of.”
Cureton has taken the same approach to his newest venture: La Bodega in Easton, Maryland, near his Rude Burger and Rude BBQ locations. The casual Spanish-themed restaurant offers Latin American cuisine, with a menu that includes a variety of dishes such as fried yucca and plantains, salsas and guacamole, empanadas, ceviche, pork platters, and tres leches parfaits. Chips and salsa and a la carte tacos round out the offerings. Play it safe or go for a little more spice and adventure, with lots of small shareable plates and platters. The Sunday menu includes waffles and huevos rancheros, and a build-your-own mimosa with a bottle of a cava and a pitcher of orange juice.
Since opening in the summer of 2023, La Bodega has become a local fixture, with indoor and outdoor seating and a vibrant bar serving craft cocktails (try the margarita!), beer, and wine. The scene is piping hot in every sense. Everything shines—food, drink, service, clientele—creating a party in the best way.
“La Bodega has been a true passion project, including an all-consuming eight-month buildout,” laughs Tim. “To have the response and to hear directly how much folks love it has been affirming beyond belief.”
He credits the Eastern Shore with his early success. “Honestly, the local support for Rise Up and Rude for me personally is literally overwhelming at times,” he says. “When we opened La Bodega, we were simply overrun, in a beautiful way.”
Tim’s older brother Brett had a 30-year culinary career separate from Rude Food. For so many years the two siblings tried to figure out a way to work together, which led to Rude Food. For the brothers, coining ‘Rude’ as slang for rudimentary means taking food back to basics, like real ingredients and ethically sourced meat.
“Initially we were just going to open one restaurant, Rude Burger,” says Tim. “Through 20+ years as a chef, my brother’s go-to meal was always a burger!”
One Rude led to the next, resulting in Rude BBQ, Rude Burger, and now La Bodega. Brett is Executive Chef for all three restaurants. As far as the menus go, the Curetons subscribe to another practical, albeit underappreciated and insufficiently used, business tactic: the art of listening.
“Our menus are a result of us listening to both our local community and the fine-casual restaurant world as a whole,” says Tim.
An example of this strategy is Rude Burger’s latest addition: the Fish Fry Burger, a fresh fish fillet, lightly fried and served with their house-made tartar sauce. Created after researching that Americans are eating 54% more seafood than two years ago, the new offering has been a big hit.
“This kind of response makes it impossible for us not to consider more retail locations,” says Tim. “At this point we know a Rise Up location when we see one and without fail the universe seems to provide them.” The latest is a Rise Up in Severna Park, Maryland, launched in February to rave reviews and a constantly full house.
As for Rude, all three restaurants are in operation for summer 2024, and new efforts including a catering division, Curated Catering by Rude, which specializes in fun food, comfort food, and affordable food suitable for weddings, parties, and events.
“We’ve never been better from a human standpoint,” says Tim. “We have the absolute best staff and of course we wouldn’t exist without the support of our amazing customers.”
“The food, the vibe and service at Bodega are all stellar,” says Kentavius Jones, Executive Director of Talbot Mentors and La Bodega regular. “They created a setting that calls you to keep coming back.”
Visit all the Rude Food locations in Easton, Maryland
La Bodega, 216 E Dover Street
Rude BBQ, 216 E Dover Street
Rude Burger, 4 S Aurora Street
833-HOW-RUDE
