Pennsylvania

Pickles were the last thing I expected to fall for on a quick suburban lunch stop in Pennsylvania.…

By John Palmer · Oct 14

No golden ticket required. Although the minute you start designing your own candy bar, the whole thing does…

By Lenora Winslow · Oct 14

Cinnamon sugar on your fingertips is the best souvenir a farm stand can give you. Across Pennsylvania, some…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 14

A big windmill on a country highway is a strange thing to use as a dinner landmark, but…

By John Palmer · Oct 13

Fall color clearly did not get the memo to stay in the trees. Here, it spills into flower…

By Renata Holcombe · Oct 13

Broken pretzels sold on purpose turned out to be the best surprise of my whole winter drive through…

By John Palmer · Oct 13

Bridges are supposed to help you get somewhere. These may ruin that idea by making you stop halfway.…

By Adeline Parker · Oct 13

Gravy was the last thing on my mind when I slid into a cracked vinyl booth on a…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 13

Warm potato chips, handed to you minutes after leaving the fryer, taste nothing like the ones that rattle…

By John Palmer · Oct 12

Cash in my pocket turned out to be the smartest thing I packed for a hungry morning drive…

By John Palmer · Oct 12

A good hard pretzel should make itself heard. Snap. That is the sound you are chasing here. These…

By Adeline Parker · Oct 12

The hills are hiding something. From the road, everything looks perfectly normal. Farms, small towns, wooded slopes. Then…

By Gideon Hartwell · Oct 12

Crunchy, sugary almonds stuck to a square cake might not sound like the start of a road trip,…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 12

Ordering a cheesesteak sounds easy until somebody asks which cheese. Now we have a situation. The basic idea…

By Renata Holcombe · Oct 11

Orange swirls start showing up on roadside menu boards across Pennsylvania right about the time the maples turn…

By John Palmer · Oct 11

Most architects would put the house near the waterfall. This one practically sits in its lap. Water moves…

By Daniel Mercer · Oct 11

A paper bag with a buttery stain on the bottom is usually the first sign you found something…

By John Palmer · Oct 11

Thirteen pastries in one box was not what I planned when I pulled off a busy Pennsylvania road…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 11

A bright blue shack beside a busy industrial road was the last place I expected to find the…

By John Palmer · Oct 10

Five pieces of crispy bacon on one plate was the first clue that this tiny Pennsylvania breakfast counter…

By John Palmer · Oct 10

Rivels are tiny, lumpy dumplings, and they turned a quick lunch stop into the meal I keep talking…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 10

Goats were the first thing I noticed, not the pies, which says a lot about how quietly this…

By John Palmer · Oct 9

Cornmeal, water, and a little patience should not add up to anything exciting, yet one bite of crispy…

By John Palmer · Oct 9

Walnut dust on a paper bag was the first clue that this little stop was something special. One…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 9

Fries that arrive in a pile big enough to feed a family of five were not what I…

By John Palmer · Oct 8

Silos rise beside the road, a peacock calls from somewhere behind the barn, and a line of families…

By John Palmer · Oct 8

Broccoli rabe was the last thing I expected to crave at seven in the morning, yet there I…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 8

Crinkle-cut fries dusted in crab spice, with no crab in them at all, turned out to be the…

By John Palmer · Oct 7

Gravy should never need a life jacket, but at one small-town Pennsylvania diner, the roast beef practically swims.…

By John Palmer · Oct 7

Four plump dumplings in a warming box, glistening with butter and onions, were all it took to change…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 7

A seeded roll with a crackly crust taught me more about Pennsylvania sandwich culture than any guidebook ever…

By John Palmer · Oct 6

Fifty flavors of doughnut sat behind one small glass counter, and I could not pick just one. The…

By John Palmer · Oct 6

A wrong turn on a country road led one traveler to a bag full of apple dumplings, fresh…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 6

Sugar crackling against hot oil makes a sound you can hear from halfway down the block, and in…

By John Palmer · Oct 5

A paper bag, a handful of coins, and a row of glass jars can turn a grown adult…

By John Palmer · Oct 5

Gravy was the last thing on my mind when I pulled off a busy Pennsylvania highway looking for…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 5

Three million donuts a year is a number that makes you stop chewing and do the math. I…

By John Palmer · Oct 4

The first thing that hits you is the smell, a warm cocoa cloud that drifts out the doors…

By John Palmer · Oct 4

Wood smoke drifting over a small-town street in Pennsylvania is the best kind of road sign. I followed…

By Laura Sullivan · Oct 4