Stopping by Hotel Fiesole for a Pizza

How many people in small-town USA can walk down the street and stop for a pizza at a magnificent hotel that is modeled on a guest house in the hills just outside of Florence, Italy?

Yes, Skippack offers this delightful if unusual luxury. If our village has a center point, it is Hotel Fiesole with its view of the covered bridge that crosses Perkiomen Creek along with an ample parking lot for visitors.

Every time I walk past the elegant brick exterior with large windows and the flame gas lamps, I recall many wonderful experiences I’ve had over the years visiting this establishment—celebratory lunches and dinners, attending a wedding, listening to a live band or local DJs (especially my friend DJ Gerry Kelly), attending the annual dinner of the Skippack Historical Society, or just hanging out and talking.

Time for lunch

Hotel Fiesole is built on a space once occupied by a restaurant called the Trolley Stop. The beautiful building you see today was built in 2006, a multi-million-dollar project. A trolley car that formed part of the original restaurant, now refurbished, remains attached to the newer edifice—a fine example of preserving a bit of community history.

Today, I am sitting in the outside patio, enjoying a white pizza, with summer squash, caramelized onions, and goat cheese. I only know these ingredients from reading the menu, but it’s a delicious pizza.

Perhaps because of the grand exterior, many people think the restaurants inside Hotel Fiesole are just for formal dining. Even many locals aren’t aware of Hotel Fiesole’s full range of dining options—which span from casual to fine. You can come here in a Hawaiian shirt and get a good meal at a reasonable cost. Save the sports jacket for another time – perhaps dinner.

A view of the entrance and outdoor dining patio at Hotel Fiesole

What’s behind this great pizza?

Now I sit at the outdoor patio, under the shade of a Carolina Magnolia tree. Because this is Skippack, everything has a personal touch. We are warmly welcomed by Joe, the waiter who serves our meal. I also get to meet the executive chef, Rashad Clinkscales.

“I got started cooking watching my grandmother cook,” explains Rashad. “She was the matriarch of the family. That’s where my passion and love for food came from. I started cooking professionally at age 16 and went to the JNA Institute of Culinary Arts in South Philadelphia.”

Rashad Clinkscales, executive chef

Following school, Rashad began opening chain restaurants in the local area and then traveled to Texas and New Orleans to hone his skills, including working under a chef from France who taught him a lot about putting flavors together.

Rashad enjoys the challenge of revitalizing the restaurants at Hotel Fiesole, getting people inside to enjoy good food and share a positive atmosphere and good company.

“Whether it’s casual or fine dining, we take care of the food with love. I love to see customer’s reaction, hear they enjoyed the meal, that their taste buds are jumping all over the place. That’s what I love.”

Enjoy the moment

I take another bite of my pizza and think about Rashad’s education and training and everything that goes into a making a good meal when dining out. Then I think about all the work and expense that goes into building and maintaining a magnificent structure like Hotel Fiesole. I look out at the covered bridge to my right and then turn my head to see the traffic rolling down Skippack Pike to my left. Much to be grateful for in Skippack.

Feeling hungry? Come to Hotel Fiesole for a low-key casual, meal or that special occasion dinner. You will be delighted.

Info:

Hotel Fiesole
Restaurants include the Mistral, the Trolley Bar, and Bella Rossa
A range of options from fine dining at Mistral to the relaxed, casual atmosphere of the Ferrari-themed Bella Rossa
4046 Skippack Pike – (610) 222-8009 – hotelfiesole.net/dining/restaurants