In 2017 Sean Nealey felt that the timing was right to open his own restaurant. With almost two decades’ experience in management with Olive Garden, he had proven himself capable of running a business doing millions of dollars in annual sales. Nealey had also earned a degree in organizational management from Midway College and traveled the world as a youth activities counselor in the cruise ship industry before entering the food business.
Meeting one person after another who provided stepping stones, of sorts, led Nealey to his current path of independent restaurateur. One of those people was the owner of a vacant building at 201 Rosemont Garden. On Jan. 1, 2018, Nealey opened what was originally named Pie Hole Wood-fired Oven in that building, a block off Nicholasville Road and a block away from Southland Drive.
“I had the idea that the Southland area needed a pizza joint,” he said.
“It’s not a stretch to go from pasta to pizza,” he said of his Olive Garden experience.
He set up a full-service bar and had things running smoothly, with the added excitement of planning a local-centric menu, naming the dishes after family members and hiring up-and-coming chefs. But a few months later, he got a phone call from a man in Boise, Idaho, who complained that Nealey was infringing on his own Piehole Pizza name.
“The Commonwealth of Kentucky said, ‘No problem,’” Nealey said. “The federal government said, ‘No problem.’ This guy’s attorney said, ‘We got a problem.’”
Expect the unexpected, as the saying goes. Instead of spending time, money and energy on a further legal action, Nealey chose to change the name of his eatery from the Pie Hole to PieTana. Then he went about purchasing new signage and menus, setting up a new website and social profiles and filing for a trademark on the name. “Tana” is an Italian word meaning hole, nook or burrow, as the restaurant’s website explains.
That experience didn’t dim Nealey’s enthusiasm for owning his own business and making a positive contribution to the neighborhood. “We’re trying to grow this area into the next NoLi,” he said, referring to Lexington’s burgeoning North Limestone neighborhood.
“The more local we can get, the better I feel about it.” —PieTana founder Sean Nealey
Open for dinner seven days a week, local is the name of Nealey’s game, from getting to know the residential neighbors to using local ingredients. He gets produce from Creation Gardens and makes Sunday trips to the Lexington Farmer’s Market, around the corner on Southland Drive. He uses cheese from Kenny’s Farmhouse Cheese or Boone Creek Creamery. Pizza toppings include beef brisket from Blue Door Smokehouse, sausage from Marksbury Farm and sausage gravy from nearby Winchell’s Restaurant & Bar.
“The more local we can get, the better I feel about it,” Nealey said.
The signature ingredient in his wood-fired pizzas is in the dough itself. Nealey uses the amber ale from West Sixth Brewing in place of yeast and water to make the dough.
“We sell a lot of their product,” he said. “Pretty much anything that comes out of West Sixth, I love to carry it. They’ve made a good name for themselves, and I’m glad to be able to share the love.”
Coming up through the corporate ranks, Nealey was used to feeding 1,500 people in a day with a staff of 100. Transitioning to a staff of eight with a seating capacity of 32 has been a unique challenge, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“It’s fun for me to be part of this group of talented chefs and restaurateurs,” he said, citing Lexington’s restaurant community. “It’s no stretch to say it’s because of the relationships I’ve built in this town. That’s why I exist.”