Our Story
Before the streetcars, before the automobiles, there was a place to stop, eat, and gather on West Market Street.
The City of Germantown dates The Florentine’s original brick section to 1816 and identifies town founder Philip Gunckel as its first owner. The inn served travelers along stagecoach and traction routes and became known by more than one name, including the Leighty House and, affectionately, The Flo.
Today, the hotel rooms belong to the building’s past. The welcome is still very much alive. The Florentine is a town tavern for classic comfort food, a cold beer, and another story around the table. Some guests have been coming here for years. Others are walking through the door for the first time. There’s a place for both.
Come for the history. Make memories of your own.
Historical source: City Website
A Building with Character
The details are part of the experience here. Exposed brick, warm wood, and rooms with different personalities give The Florentine a character that comes from being used, cared for, and enjoyed over generations.
Look at the old street photograph, then look around today. The streetcar, horse and buggy, and early automobile belong to another chapter. Inside, the building is still doing what a good gathering place does: making room for people.
Explore the rooms, take the interactive tour, and get to know the town around us. Germantown’s unusual diagonal alleys are another part of that story. Our Historic Germantown page pairs the town’s history with an 1899 map so you can see the pattern for yourself.
Still a Gathering Place
An old building earns its place in a town by staying part of everyday life. At The Florentine, that can mean lunch with a neighbor, dinner with family, a drink after work, or a celebration that brings everyone back together.
It can also mean trying the microphone on a Tuesday, hearing live music on a Thursday, or settling in for our monthly wine tasting. The calendar changes, but the reason to come is familiar: good food, good company, and time together.
We’re proud of the history. We’re just as interested in what happens next. Come as you are, bring someone along, and make The Florentine part of your own story.
