Apple butter, stewed tomatoes, creamed dried corn from local producer John Cope, potato filling, hot bacon dressing, chow-chow, and whoopie pies all come from the canon of the region's foodways, and have made their way from feeding the region's agrarian population to enticing busloads of tourists to embark on a Lancaster County eating adventure. Interspersed with more run-of-the-mill fare like roast beef, fried chicken, and a 46-item salad bar, you'll begin to notice pans, plates, and pots filled with unfamiliar dishes. Once seated at Shady Maple, it's best to do a loop around the sprawling buffet to get the lay of the land. It's evident in the on-site horse-and-buggy parking (it might provide great photo ops for the out-of-towners that visit the buffet, but it's an amenity provided for the locals shopping at the neighboring market and department store). This family-run smorgasbord is one of a few unique-to-the-county large-scale dining operations that was born out of Pennsylvania Dutch culinary traditions, recipes, and produce. With over 200 feet of hot and cold buffet, the staggering dining area is upwards of 100,000 square feet and seats 1,200 people at a time - but never on Sundays because, after all, this is Lancaster, a largely rural and religious county that's home to a sizable Pennsylvania Dutch population.īuffets pans overflow with local favorites: apple butter, hot bacon dressing, stewed tomatoes, chow-chow, and potato filling. until 8 p.m., cashiers admit eager diners into an all-you-can-eat buffet experience that puts most Vegas offerings to shame. Inside, institutional maroon carpeting covers the floor of the massive lobby where folks mill around debating whether or not to invest in a bouquet of rainbow-hued wooden roses or venture downstairs to the subterranean gift shop for jars of preserves, a buggy-emblazoned t-shirt, or a couple of Amish-themed bodice rippers.īut toward the far end of the room are several wooden podiums where, from 6 a.m.
From the expansive parking lot that’s also home to a local police station, Pennsylvania Dutch department store, and sizable supermarket, the building looks like it could be a retirement home or a catering hall. Situated on a grassy hill in East Earl, a small township about an hour and a half northwest of Philadelphia, the scale of the Shady Maple Smorgasbord takes a while to sink in.
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