San Gabriel House Bed & Breakfast | Georgetown

San Gabriel House Bed & Breakfast | Georgetown

By Suzanne Haberman Friday, 09 July 2010

GEORGETOWN — Neil and Dee Rapp’s former careers in corporate finance transported them all over the nation. Of their travels on the East Coast, the place they remembered most was a house in Wilmington, Del., that had once been used as a bed and breakfast. The Rapps converted it back into a residence and lived there for 16 months, every day feeling inspired to open their own bed and breakfast.

In 2005 the couple left their finance jobs and moved back to their home state of Texas. They purchased a historic mansion on University Avenue, deciding to buy the 5,200-square-foot mansion in one weekend. Two weeks later they moved in, and within three months they welcomed their first guest at San Gabriel House Bed & Breakfast.

The house had been a bed and breakfast since 2000. Previous owners John and Sue Wiley renovated the bathrooms and added three more, so that each of the five bedrooms had its own private bath. Some have the original fixtures.

“We really credit them with doing a phenomenal renovation,” Dee said. “They did a great job of staying in the original footprint of the rooms. We’ve redecorated and continued with the grounds and expanded the business.”

Neil and Dee work vigorously in the background to make sure the yard—with its water lilies and arbors for small outdoor wedding ceremonies—stays beautiful, and that the two-course breakfast is served to overnight guests. But the bed and breakfast exudes both luxury and leisure.

“The idea is to have luxury, privacy and peace,” Dee said, explaining the bedrooms are designed for two and the minimum occupant’s age is 12.

Red, sage and muted blue accents of the era complement the hardwood floors on the first story and the long-leaf pine on the second. Soft light from chandeliers and antique furniture create the feeling of stepping back in time. Inspiration for the décor came from the colors in the original bathrooms and a 1908 bride’s book, Dee said.

“Everything in the rooms is functional,” Neil said, explaining functionality was the philosophy of the art and architectural style of the early 1900s.

Bedrooms are decorated in themes, from the stately Lincoln Room, with its Lincoln-era bed, to the French room on the enclosed sleeping porch, where residents used to sleep in the early 1900s to avoid catching tuberculosis. For more privacy, guests can sleep in the the carriage house, which stands alone overlooking the garden.

“We made a real effort not to decorate all the rooms the same,” Dee said.

Breakfasts vary depending on the season and the guest, ranging from business travelers during the week to tourists on the weekends. Dee does the cooking while Neil serves the meal in a formal dining room using china and linens. Over the years, the couple has developed favorite signature recipes. For the first course, a fruit dish, they serve up baked apples or frozen fruit cups. The main meal ranges from quiche to crème brulee French toast.

Such hospitality keeps customers coming back to the house. The Rapps have seen their first customers again, and new ones come every month.

“The indications are this is going to be our best year yet,” Dee said.