Business News: Main Street Pizza and Deli is staying in the family

A third generation is now managing the oldest restaurant in the Uptown Lexington Municipal Service District, Main Street Pizza and Deli located at 13 North Main Street.

Sisters Rachel and Rebekah Skinner reopened the eatery January 30, 2024 after being closed for about a month for renovations. Their grandparents, Joe and Jackie Hearn, founded the business in 1985.  Jackie was the front-of-the-house manager and the sisters’ mother, Wesley Skinner, was the back-of-the-house manager.

But after decades of running the restaurant, Jackie and Wesley decided to retire from the family business at the end of this past year and hand over the management to the sisters, who grew up working in the restaurant after school and during school breaks.

The sisters are both still in college but they are taking online classes. Rebekah, 20, is working on an associate degree at Davidson-Davie Community College. Rachael, 23, is in her junior year at Appalachian State University in Boone, where she is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in business administration.

While completing a few more renovations and adding a few items to the menu, the Skinners have plans for the restaurant to expand, too. “Our long-term plan is to expand into the space next door,” Rebekah said of the corner building her grandfather has been renovating for years.

While the exterior of that historic building on the Square is complete, she noted much remains to be done inside. But when that can be accomplished, Rebekah said she and her sister envision having more space for the bakery area and a dining room that would be open later for dinner and have a more diverse menu.

“We definitely want to extend our hours and menu,” she said, noting they have discussed adding steaks, pasta alfredo and Caesar salads, for example. “But we don’t want to change too much too soon.” For now, the completed renovations include replacing carpet with light gray wood laminate flooring, painting the dark walls a light gray and painting the high-backed booths black as well as adding new lighting fixtures to brighten up the dining room. “I remember when I was younger and waiting tables I would actually see people taking out flashlights to read the menu,” Rebekah said with a laugh. “We just wanted to give it a fresh and brighter look.”

The 10 booths on the left side of the dining room will soon have upholstered backs in addition to the seating cushions but the high backs that separate booths will remain in place. “People love that,” she noted.

More booths will be installed on the right side of the dining room near the new foyer and front door. A new hostess stand will also be added. There will still be tables in the middle of the dining space that can be put together for larger groups.

One thing that hasn’t changed much is the menu.

Main Street is known for its fresh Italian yeast bread that is baked daily for sandwich rolls and garlic bread, shredded roast beef, pizza, lasagna, spaghetti, homemade pimento cheese, homemade soups and hot fudge cake. The bread recipe goes back to when the Hearns first bought the restaurant 39 years ago from Prince of Pizza, which had a bakery in Salisbury. The pimento cheese recipe dates back to 1947 when the late Joe Hearn Sr. made it for Tesh’s Supermarket and, later, Pickett’s Supermarket. Rebekah said there are three new appetizers but they combine food already on hand, such as loaded fries with the shredded roast beef and hot chips with the roast beef as well as a hot pimento cheese dip with chips. Two new desserts are skillet cookies — a chocolate chip and a caramel apple on oatmeal base, both topped with ice cream.

While pizza, made with their own fresh dough and sauce, has always been on the menu, Rebekah said that item has been helping grow the business. The 6-inch personal size pizzas are popular with children and adults who don’t want a whole pie to share. They continue to offer a “take and bake” option to cook pizza at home as well.

The sisters are also using social media to promote the restaurant since they are trying to broaden their customer base. While many people presumed Rebekah and Rachel might one day continue the family legacy since they worked there on and off throughout their lives, Rebekah said it wasn’t really planned all along until the Covid pandemic hit and they were needed to keep the kitchen running for takeout orders and replace people who retired or left because of a lack of business. During that time, the sisters learned how to cook all the menu items and Rachel learned to bake the bread, which she still does now. “After covid, we just felt we could step up and take it in a positive direction and let them step back,” Rebekah said, adding Rachel wanted “hands-on” business experience to go along with her schooling. “We feel really good about continuing the family business.”

Current hours are 11:00 AM until 8:00 P.M. from Tuesday through Friday and the restaurant  closed Saturday through Monday. Rebekah said they hope to add the same hours on Saturday within a month or so.

Rebekah Skinner stands in the newly renovated dining room of Main Street Pizza & Deli in uptown Lexington. She and her sister, Rachel Skinner, are the third-generation managers of the 39-year-old, family-owned restaurant. {Photo By: Vikki Broughton Hodges/Davidson Local}