As coronavirus restrictions lift and people look to eat out once again, one establishment ready to serve up a good meal and a cold drink is the recently-opened Thunderhead Lodge, 2520 W. Penn Pike, West Penn Township. The restaurant is located just off Route 309 at the top of the Blue Mountain.

Owners Meredith and Steve Prange, of New Tripoli, spoke with The Press July 22 about their new business, which shares a name with their farm, Thunderhead Farm.

The Pranges were well-acquainted with the lodge under its former identity, Blue Mountain Summit.

“We would come here as regulars to eat on the weekends, so we got to know it a little bit and it always had this good, homey, rustic feel to it,” Meredith Prange said. “We were always thinking about places to go and things that we could do with this, and then the opportunity presented itself last year.”

She said Blue Mountain Summit’s owner Kenny Lalik sold the lodge to another party who ran the property for about a year before selling it to the Pranges last August.

“We kind of had our eye on it … It was kind of a crazy idea, and then we thought somebody needed to buy it and really do the necessary renovations,” Prange explained. “We also wanted another place that would be an option in the area, so we decided to take the plunge.”

Renovations began in October 2019.

“We figured we had about six months of work to do, and that we would open in the March time frame,” Prange said.

The restaurant hired its executive chef - Michael Yount - at the beginning of March and, shortly thereafter, the front of house manager.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

“One week later, we got shut down,” Steve Prange said. “It also stopped construction.”

Meredith Prange noted the kitchen was done and ready and, for several weeks, the lodge worked to create menus, obtain a liquor license and get the necessary certifications to open for takeout, which it did April 29.

“We had a lot of work to do to prep, and then a couple weeks into it we decided to call the Department of Agriculture and see if we could get our kitchen certified, so at least we could do takeout,” she explained.

“They were very supportive. They wanted businesses to get back and do what they could do,” Steve Prange added.

Meredith Prange said when it started, the lodge’s takeout service was very popular.

“We were really surprised at the amount of takeout, the level of support from the community and the items people wanted to actually takeout. It’s something I never imagined,” she said.

“I think at that point they had been home long enough and really looking forward to having somebody else cook for them.”

Steve Prange noted there are quite a few hikers who stop by.

The Appalachian Trail runs behind Thunderhead Lodge, he explained.

“They love the place because there’s really nothing along the Appalachian Trail for them to go to in this area of Pennsylvania,” Steve Prange said.

While the business was filling takeout orders, work on the lodge’s patio restarted.

The space was completed just in time for outdoor service to begin when Schuylkill County moved into the yellow phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s reopening plan.

The lodge began offering indoor dining in mid-June.

Due to Wolf’s restrictions, the restaurant is limited to 25 percent indoor capacity - around 35 guests - and no bar seating, although outdoor seating remains at 50 percent capacity, or 75 seats.

Meredith Prange said the lodge prefers guests make reservations.

“But, if somebody shows up, we will absolutely take them, if we have space.”

She also said the lodge is well-known in the community for hosting live music events, and they had recently welcomed an indoor saxophone soloist and an outdoor band performance, both of which were very popular among guests.

“It was fantastic. I think people miss being entertained,” she said.

Despite indoor and outdoor group sizes being limited to 25 and 250 people, respectively, the lodge has received numerous event bookings, and will be looking to host more as restrictions lift.

“We’ve done anniversaries. We’ve done 40th birthday parties, retirement dinners, and what we’re finding is people are definitely booking to have those special events here, which is great.”

The lodge is running with scaled-down serving and kitchen crews.

The Pranges, and new front of house and assistant general manager, Joshua Coates, are working to supplement their employees.

To keep everybody safe, guests must wear masks when moving around the restaurant, although while seated at a table they can be removed.

All servers are wearing masks and gloves, and the lodge is cleaning and sanitizing menus after every use, as well as door handles and other common-touch surfaces.

Steve Prange said there are plans for renovations to the three-room bed-and-breakfast.

He and his wife are also planning to transform an area of the lodge into a shop for hikers offering drinks, supplies and homemade, packaged meals even when the restaurant is closed.

The Pranges acknowledged while opening a new business is always challenging, especially with the “extra twist” of a pandemic, they have successfully “rolled with the punches” and look forward to welcoming guests, both old and new alike.

“We are doing this because we love this area. This is strategic for us. We’re going to be here. We’re going to be in the community,” Meredith Prange said. “If we can get through this period, and everybody can help us get through this period, we’re here for the long haul.”

Thunderhead Lodge is open 4-9 p.m. Wednesday-Friday; noon-9 p.m. Saturdays; and from noon-8 p.m. Sundays.

The lodge will be closed the week of Aug. 17 for a staff break and will reopen Aug. 26.

Menus and online ordering can be found at thunderheadlodgepa.com.

Guests can call 610-248-0524 to make reservations.