About the Owner

It was Jonathan “Smiley” Kessler’s vision to create Smiley’s, an independent restaurant and amusement business offering exceptional food and family fun.  Although that may seem like a tall order for little old Deep Creek Lake Maryland… we like to think of it as an important part of down home America.

Mr. Kessler’s nickname, “Smiley,” was coined when a dorm-mate wandered into the McKenzie Complex dormitory suites in 1978 at SUNY Alfred and upon seeing a shy farm kid from Codorus, Pennsylvania wearing his trademark grin said; “Hey Smiley, what’s up?”  That nickname became Mr. Kessler’s trademark and his first restaurant’s namesake.

After graduating from SUNY Alfred, Mr. Kessler moved to Morgantown, West Virginia to work as a surveyor.  A little more than a year later Mr. Kessler made a visit to Oakland, Maryland to visit a former SUNY Alfred roommate. There’s a saying that it’s the people who make the difference in where you live. That’s what made this place home for Smiley.  A job offer and two weeks later Smiley was very happy to relocate from West Virginia to Garrett County and small town American; a setting of mountains, waterfalls, farms, and Deep Creek Lake.

“While surveying real estate subdivisions in 1980, I remember thinking, Wow, this place is behind the times… it should be possible for an energetic hard worker to make a great life here, Mr. Kessler remembers.  The growth of residential real estate was consistently bringing more year-round guests to the area and more often than not, these visitors were asking what there was to do in the area.

“I’m frequently asked how a farm kid came to Deep Creek Lake and found the American dream,” Mr. Kessler remarked.   “I was doing a survey for Tom Bernard of Bernard Realty.  It was a fifty-acre military lot with seven acres on the other side of a road.  Tom (always the salesman) said to me – the new kid surveyor in town – ‘Smiley, you should buy the seven acres.  I’ll sell it to you for $10,000 and even finance $9,000.’  I was intrigued and thought this might be a great way to capitalize on the growth of the area,” he adds. While Mr. Kessler was ready to draw up plans for his newly found occupation, both of the local banks in town thought that his unknown face was not one they should gamble on with a loan of $1,000.  Not discouraged, Smiley walked from his apartment on Alder Street to his surveying office on the same street and noticed Unity Finance.  Mr. Kessler explains, “I stopped to inquire about the cost to borrow $1,000 and proudly walked out with my first loan.  $1,000 at 28.5% interest and $60 a month payments.”   Mr. Kessler then purchased the seven acres from Tom and subdivided it into six lots.  Doug Spaulding of Spaulding Realty told Mr. Kessler the secrets to selling lots and how to advertise…and a real estate developer was born…. Garrett County style.

Taking opportunity where it presented itself Mr. Kessler’s good timing led to the development of several extraordinary parcels of land around Deep Creek Lake.  Within the next decade, Mr. Kessler created 130 lots for the hungry real estate market.  Kessler is proud of the mark he made on the Garrett County landscape by utilizing minimal density, cluster philosophy and quality construction in his developments.

The 80’s saw some incredible growth in Deep Creek Lake.  The little mountain resort community was catching up to the rest of the world.  His Pennsylvania Dutch farm up- bringing had instilled in Mr. Kessler a strong work ethic. In addition, the knowledge he received at SUNY Alfred, provided Mr. Kessler the skills and confidence he needed to become an entrepreneur and open Smiley’s Funzone in 1991.

Smiley’s started with “Frontier Adventure” miniature golf course & arcade, and soon grew to include batting cages, Laser Tag, and Smiley’s Pizzeria. In 1999 Mr. Kessler added two go cart tracks and bumper boats.  Smiley’s Pizzeria was expanded in 2002.

Smiley’s Pizzeria has been making tummies smile for fifteen years and has grown to become far more than just a kid’s pizza joint. 

“At Smiley’s we strive to conquer the challenges of the hospitality restaurant and amusement business," says Mr. Kessler.  “The food and amusement business is not easy in any environment.  We realize that the fluctuating seasonal traffic in Garrett County will always test our ability to provide exceptional service and quality. However, our goal is to continually exceed the customer experience. I sincerely hope that you find your visits to Smiley’s are among the good memories of happy times that make the charm of visits to small town America a joy for the young and not so young memories.”

Smiley's Funzone & Pizzeria

75 Fort Drive, McHenry, MD 21541
Phone: (301) 387-0059
Fax: (301) 387-0049