STAUNTON — Michael Skipper leans into the wood-fired pizza oven to turn the wood and get the fire to spark up a little bit more. For Skipper, “Shack 3.0” is a dream realized from his childhood days growing up in Reading, Pa., where a slice shop about 50 feet away from his home became his favorite place.
The Shack’s owner Ian Boden says it was something the two of them talked about when Boden interviewed Skipper for a job.
“The whole idea of this started as a conversation that I had with Skip, who was a young kid coming to try out for a sous chef position at The Shack about seven years ago,” says Boden. “Whenever I interview anybody, I always ask them what they want. What's their long term goals? To me, it's important to have somebody there that has aspirations.”
While Boden says he can’t make any promises, if an opportunity shows up where it makes sense and works, he tries to make those things important to his employees happen. And in Skipper’s case, it worked out. But it's more than just someone who loved a pizza parlor back home as a kid. Skipper (who goes by Skip), is also obsessive about pasta, something they both share.
“People think that chefs are the ones that make restaurants,” says Boden. “We set the boundaries and we set the stage per se but we don't make restaurants happen — it's everybody else.”
It’s been 10 years since Boden opened The Shack in downtown Staunton. Along the journey, the restaurant has evolved with the community it serves.During the pandemic, The Shack changed to a tasting menu given the health parameters. Now, it's returning to its roots. Still the same fresh locally sourced ingredients. Just a little more rustic this time for Shack 3.0.
“The restaurant and what we do has always been super rooted in community and locale and where we are and who we are,” says Boden. “Restaurants are a place to break bread and come together and be part of the community.”
Sharing two 12-inch pizzas at a small table in the tiny casual gem downtown reflects the Staunton community. Although it’s been 10 years since Boden first opened The Shack, nothing has changed. Only the medium, he says.
“The Shack has always been casual regardless of what's been on the plate," says Boden. “The environment's the same, it's never been stuffy, it's never been pretentious. It's always been warm and inviting.”
For Skipper, it’s a chance to do something he loves.
“In 2018, I was here doing staff meals and I was making pizzas in the back,” says Skipper. “I think I was really in pursuit of a way to do this job so that you can maintain happiness within and without the restaurant. And what I realized was, it's more about what you're cooking.”
Skipper left The Shack for a few years to figure that out and during that time away took a job at Newtown Baking where he learned how to make wood-fired oven specialty pizzas. And that was it for Skipper. He was hooked.
“I was thinking about pizzas. I was thinking about pasta. The reason I chose wood-fired pizza is it was clear that a love was built for Newtown. And what Newtown brought was the wood-fired pizza.”
When Boden needed someone to fill in at The Shack, Skipper helped out and then stayed for good.
“It felt good to be in a restaurant,” says Skipper. “One thought that I had along the way of doing this wood-fired pizza was to get myself back into a full service restaurant to put my mind back in those routines.”
It’s been over three years that Skipper's been back and the team at Shack 3.0 is ready for the town to come and get to know The Shack again.
And the pizza?
“We're not shooting for a true Neapolitan pizza,” says Skipper. “My idea here was to make it a little bit larger and more rustic. We kind of fell into the 12-inch Neapolitan look with the size of our oven. You can only do two at a time.”
The Shack is still what The Shack was, says Skipper. “Come and try the food. There's other small plates on the menu. There's a bigger focus on the pasta and pizza and I'm slinging the ice creams like we used to.”
When you ask Skipper what he loves the most, he says with pizza, pasta, ice cream, it’s all of it. And what’s better than that?
“The door is open for them to come and try it,” says Skipper. “We're here Thursday through Sunday, five to nine. If you just want a burger, the burger is here. You just want to come try handmade pasta for the first time, come try it for yourself. We're here for you."
The Shack is located at 105 S. Coalter St. in Staunton. Hours are 5-9 p.m. Thursday–Sunday. No reservations needed. For take out, call 540-490-1961. To learn more, visit https://theshackva.com.
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