![]() ![]() Patrons decide what makes the cut, via sales. When testing new dishes, the owners look for trends and ingredients making a splash in big cities around the globe. So, we focus on being consistent.” One longstanding best seller is the avocado club panini. It’s already very large and diverse, especially for the size of the place. “We don’t change the menu very frequently. “We try to take it to the next level,” says Leon, noting that, while pizza is a strong component of the menu, its depth has evolved to include many other fan favorites. Of course, guests can always customize a pizza with popular favorites like pepperoni, sausage, salami, and, yes, even pineapple. There is also a cheesesteak pizza with smoked gouda and a Greek style that plays on the traditional beef/lamb gyro with tzatziki sauce. The hummus is flavored with roasted red peppers and dotted with purple kalamata olives, spinach, tender artichokes, and Portobello mushrooms while the Tostada features sweet shrimp, cheddar, black beans, chorizo, and Pico de Gallo. Characterized as “California” pizza for its creative toppings and international influences, guests can opt for Tuscan Hummus or Shrimp Tostada versions. Each pie starts with dough made by hand in-house with olive oil and sea salt, then piled with a base of whole milk mozzarella and aged Romano cheeses. In its searing confines, pizza artisans transform dough and toppings into light and crispy, return visit-worthy pizzas in 10” and 14” sizes. The dining room blends sleek black and gray against tones of warm terracotta and wood.Ĭafé del Sol’s huge brick oven is prominently displayed, finished with stony gray tiles for a cozy, rustic appeal. The interior is casually elegant, greeting guests with a view of the kitchen across a substantial marble countertop. “A lot of people comment ‘don’t be scared of the exterior. Type the street address, 1481 Salem Ave., in directly.) Its unassuming situation makes it a hidden gem for thousands of travelers and local fans who find the place and make it part of their regular routine. (Don’t rely on Google search to get you there. It is a petite strip of sand-colored cement blocks among houses and trees that sits somewhat perpendicular to the main road, partially shrouding the facade from traffic. The place, Leon admits, never had a lot of curb appeal, although it is conveniently located off Route 81’s Exit 7A. The next thing you knew, we had lines out the door and there wasn’t even a sign on the building yet.” As Leon recalls, “There was an early review in the newspaper, and it was a good one. Café del Sol Hagerstown opened in January 2006. Amid a housing boom and a corresponding labor crunch, it took a year and a half to complete the building, but they hit it just right. Guests embraced Café del Sol for its imaginative combinations, well-balanced flavors, and consistent quality.Įxcited to press on, the pair united and signed a lease on a second location before it was even built. The new, progressive eatery was doing healthy business in Greencastle, even for a smaller market. “I was a young guy,” he says, “working and saving up as much money as I could.” But he recognized the opportunity when he saw it. “It incorporated more unique ingredients and menu items that were uncommon in smaller cities.”Īt that time, Leon worked at Brother’s Pizza in Hagerstown’s Long Meadow shopping center, owned by Juarez’ brother. ![]() “It was still loosely based on a pizzeria, but maybe a step above,” says current business partner Corey Leon. Over the previous decade, Juarez and his family opened numerous restaurants in Greencastle, Shippensburg, Marion, and Hagerstown, but he wanted to try something different that wouldn’t compete with his existing places. He opened the first 50-seat restaurant in 2004 in Greencastle, PA. It all started with pizza, that humble Italian flatbread Americans adopted as their own.ĭavid Juarez was a veteran pizzeria owner by the time he created Café del Sol, an internationally eclectic cafe with Italian favorites, like pizza, at its core. Café del Sol serves up a bright interpretation of global cuisine. ![]()
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