About Us
Learn more about our owners and the history of the restaurant itself!
The Summer House Restaurant was founded in 1862 by a man named Slick Grimbaldi, who won the rights to the property after defeating the previous owner in a sabre battle. The restaurant has seen some hardships over its nearly 160 years in existence, including four devastating fires (only two of which were arson), two World Wars, (both of which are rumored to have been incited in the dining room of the restaurant, but we're pretty sure that isn't true), and three separate, unrelated stabbings.
Today, the restaurant is still in the family, now run by his great-great-great grandsons, Rick and Nick. Rick, pictured left, handles most of the administrative issues of running the restaurant, such as hiring, payroll, pricing, and equipment used in the restaurant. His brother, Nick, shown on the right, handles the rest, namely creating the menu, soups, and specials. Together, the Grimbaldi brothers have turned their great-great-great grandfather's small ice cream shack into a full family restaurant, fulfilling hundreds of customer orders every day.
To still thrive through over 150 years of hardship, there must be something pretty special about the restaurant. So what makes the Summer House so special? For one thing, a family owned restaurant like ours adds a personal touch that can't be found at big chains. Both the owners and the employees know a lot of the customers by name and by order, which you can't find at a place like Ben & Jerry's, for instance. We also make it our goal to cater to all kinds of customers and tastes. Even if you are vegetarian, vegan, pescatarian, ovo-vegetarian, lacto-vegetarian, or lacto-ovo-vegetarian, or have a peanut, gluten, soy, egg, fish, or shellfish allergy, we are sure to have something on our menu that appeals to you. Finally, we are always open to new suggestions! The best way to keep customers back is to listen to what they have to say, whether it is a compliment, a criticism, or even a new menu item! For instance, our blueberry ice cream, our fastest selling ice cream every summer, came to our restaurant after a customer bought some at a restaurant in Maine and suggested we sell it ourselves! If you have any suggestions, we urge you to tell any of our attentive staff, or submit it as a comment on our "Sign up" page of our website!
As always, we want to thank you for supporting the Summer House! As a family-run small business, it can sometimes be difficult to compete with the bigger chains that have infinitely more money and resources. It is for this reason that we are incredibly grateful for every guest who walks through our doors and pays us a visit, as they are the reason we have been a staple in our community for over 150 years! Thanks you all for your support, and on behalf of Rick, Nick, Slick, and everyone else at the Summer House, thank you for supporting us and we hope to see you soon!