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The Spy last talked to Tom Mitchell in the fall of 2019. At the time, Tom could not have been happier with the rollout of his new fine-dining restaurant, Mamma Maria’s, in downtown Trappe and his early efforts to rebuild the town’s small commercial district.
After a lifetime of professional home runs, including five successful businesses, Tom was the least likely to start a new one during his “golden years.” But after losing his wife Maria to Alzheimer’s disease, he felt one of the best ways to manage that overwhelming grief was to start work again.
For the last five years, he’s done just that. Over that period of time, Tom jokingly suggests he’s bought the town, but the fact is, he and his family-run LLC, Delmarva Management Group (including his daughter, son, and son-in-law), have indeed purchased and started developing most of the historic downtown.
However, as one will note in our latest interview with Tom, the last five years have not been a bowl full of cherries. Shortly after we talked, COVID suddenly threw the entire restaurant business into a tailspin. He and his family found workarounds like catering and carryout to survive, but he had not anticipated the serious impact the Lakeside housing project would have on all their plans to bring Trappe into the same category as desirable communities like Oxford and St. Michaels.
With more than a bit of tongue in cheek, Tom talks now about his campaign to make Trappe great again and proudly wears a red baseball cap to drive home the point that it is time to get past the negativity caused by the land use and wastewater debate and allow Trappe and its residents to thrive again.
This video is approximately nine minutes in length. For information about Momma Maria’s please go here.
