New spot serves bar food ‘with a flair’
The Rails at Rockmart opens with excitement from community.
Downtown Rockmart has a new place to eat, drink and find a certain extra charm in The Rails at Rockmart Bar and Grill.
The restaurant and full-service bar at 108 E. Church St. is the brainchild of owner Bill Sportiello, who welcomed members of the community and local leaders to the official ribbon cutting and grand opening last March.
With four decades of experience in restaurants, Sportiello told the crowd that he wanted to offer something different for Rockmart, with a higher grade of food, drinks and service.
“We have some of the food you would find at a regular bar and grill, but it’s got a little flair to it. I have built restaurants and worked at everybody else’s restaurants for 40 years. Now it’s my turn,” Sportiello said.
Sportiello moved to Georgia from New York about 19 years ago. He now lives in Temple but has been working to become a part of the downtown Rockmart community since starting on the restaurant last year.
“I love Rockmart. Every time we’ve come up to visit the people have been great. I haven’t heard one negative thing in the seven months we’ve been working on this place. Not one. Everybody has been great. I can’t wait to be a part of this full time,” Sportiello said.
He, his son, Billy Sportiello, and head chef Miguel Sanchez began work in late 2021 completely overhauling the space that was previously Frankie’s Italian Restaurant. Sportiello said meeting the building’s owner, Sondi Smith Vest, was
an important part in bringing his dream to reality.
“I met her when we first looked at the building. I didn’t know her. She didn’t know me. But to meet someone as kind as her, as a landlord, was one of the strongest reasons I wanted to do this here,” Bill Sportiello said. “We’ve just had immense support from everybody.”
With his son serving as general manager and Sanchez given free reign to be creative in the kitchen, Sportiello said they want to bring something extra besides just a bar to the area.
Themed to the railroad that lies just feet from the front door, The Rails has a menu that includes typical bar fare combined with choices like seafood
and pizza. Chicken wings, burgers and sandwiches are also available.
Weekly and daily specials will be offered, with plans to have special selections on Fridays, and a revolving menu of desserts will be available as well. The bar serves up a list of specialty cocktails, including The Locomotive, which is an old fashioned with a special “smoky” finish.
“Everything we buy and serve is going to be the best possible product we can find,” Sportiello said. “Getting to this point, I wasn’t sure we would ever get here. It has been a struggle. But our neighborhood bank at Century Bank of Georgia here in Rockmart has been tremendous to work with.”