Amish Country

Last Saturday, 3 close friends from church and I took a day trip to the Amish Country in Ohio, a 1.5 hour drive from Columbus. It rained the whole day, but despite the inclement weather, it was a lovely trip. I can't believe how different Ohio is outside of the city. Talk about state-schizophrenia: once you get out of Columbus, the countryside is rolling with fields (and fields and fields) of green that are dotted with charming small towns.

This is Ohio

Our first stop was the Amish-Mormon bakery, Troyer's Home Bakery, located at 28991 Mickley Rd, Danville, Ohio 43014. Three Amish families converted to Mormonism a few years back, which led to them being ostracized by their community. These families banded together and opened a bakery and a furniture shop. It's a sad situation, and I admire their tenacity and courage.

And their food. Oh my word, their homemade pies... HEAVENLY. I tried their blueberry pie and chocolate peanut butter pie a few months ago, and could not believe how delicious they were. I'm not a huge fan of berry pies because they tend to be tart, but not this blueberry pie. It wasn't tart, and had the right amount of sweetness. And their chocolate peanut pie didn't look appealing but you don't understand how good it is until you taste it.

This time, I bought a strawberry rhubarb pie because I've never had a rhubarb pie before. It's a 9 inch pie, that should be shared among, what, 6-8 people?

Sorry, not going to happen. That pie was so good, I've already scarfed down a good portion of it all by myself. Oops!

And we picked the right day to visit, because it was Customer Appreciate Day, and they gave out homemade soft pretzels and root-beer floats to all visitors. Let me tell you, their pretzels were A-PLUS A-MA-ZING!!! Like, seriously the best pretzel I've had, and my friends agreed. It was soft, with the right balance of salty-sweet flavor. SO SO SO SO SO GOOD. It's too bad they don't sell their pretzels though-- I would totally buy some home.

Buggies parked outside of Mrs. Yoder's kitchen

Anyway, after the ton of samples at the bakery, a root beer float, and the most delicious pretzel I've ever had, we went to eat at an Amish restaurant, Mrs. Yoder's Kitchen. Yeah, maybe not the best decision, but whatever. Day trip = eat and be merry right? Their buffet was $11.99, and had a variety of meats, salads, mashed potatoes, bread, homemade peanut butter and apple butter. It reminded me of another Amish restaurant in Ohio, Der Dutchman. Der Dutchman had a slightly wider spread, but Mrs. Yoder's Kitchen has Mennonite Amish people as part of the staff. Take your pick! Whichever your selection, however, the food is wonderful! Good old American country food... especially their roasted chicken and ribs. Amish people sure know how to cook homemade, comfort American food.

We then toured Heini's Cheese Chalet, where a group of Amish people make their own cheeses. Visitors can go on tours (click HERE for more info), and those who miss the tour can still sample the eye-popping variety of cheeses they make. Think of a savory flavor (bacon? Red pepper? Onion and chives?) and I'm pretty sure they make that flavor cheese-- no kidding! Really cool, though some taste better than others. They also offer a variety of fudges.

Our last stop was at the Berlin Antique and Craft Mall, where I found this "antique" for 2 dollars:

I'm enjoying my new CD even as I'm typing this. Brings back fond memories :) And um, this time I can actually understand what the lyrics are. Lol! The antique mall was really cool, while the craft shop had tourist-y stuff. Be warned.

We then drove home, tired but oh so satisfied. I definitely want to take my family there when they visit me. If anything, the pie is worth the drive alone!

[UPDATE on 26 JUNE 2016: I am devastated that Troyer's Home Bakery has closed business. NOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!]