Phillip Ponticelli has joined The Imperial Restaurant as its new executive chef and food and beverage director, coinciding with the opening of a new outdoor Imperial Terrace. He directs all facets of the food and wine service, including the terrace, ballrooms and banquets.

Ponticelli is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. After a five-year internship under Chef Tom Filomina in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, he spent two years abroad, living and working in American Samoa, and then as a pastry chef in Washington, D.C., for Hyatt Hotels, followed by a 25-year career with Walt Disney World Resorts, opening several of their award-winning restaurants.

The Imperial Restaurant is unique––its green roof covers over half of the 5,000-square-foot open-air space––and the new Imperial Terrace offers a great city vibe as it overlooks the new Lancaster Public Library next door, the new Ewell Plaza below and Binns Park across the street. It accommodates table seating for up to 160 guests under its roof, as the uncovered area next to Ewell Plaza captures the sunshine by day and the moon and stars at night.