Weekend in Gettysburg. Restaurant Reviews

When we were in Gettysburg for our KCBS judging class, we decided to try a few local establishments for some good food and drink.  On some local knowledge provided by the staff at the Hampton Inn, we choose the following places to go...

Appalachian Brewing Company

Hauser Estate Winery

The Pub and Restaurant

To start, the Appalachian Brewing Company for lunch...

This brew pub is just outside town on Rt. 30 on the way to Chambersburg, just before you get to the entrance to Little Round Top.  

After scanning the menu, I started with a pint of the Hoppy Trails IPA and Hope had a Mountain Lager.  Both beers were good.  The lager was fresh and crisp with a nice finish.  The IPA was not as hoppy and I usually like, but was good none the less.  Full flavored, good color, and a nice finish as well...

For lunch, I started with the Cheddar Ale Soup...

This was a rich soup created with the house ale and cheddar cheese.  Bits of potato inside and topped with bacon, sour cream, and shredded cheese.  This was a good start to lunch.  Little did I know it would be the best part of lunch...

For my entree, I had the Rockfish Tacos...

The fish was great.  Lightly battered and fried to perfection.  Not overly greasy.  The taste was perfect.  Here is where the goodness stopped.  The lettuce was limp, the tortillas were cold and soggy, and the salsa, while good in flavor, was very mushy.  To top it off, the rice was dry.  

Hope had the Beef Nacho platter...

We were expecting seasoned ground beef.  What we got was cold, heat lamp burgers cut into squares and placed on top.  The salsa was the same as mine, nice flavor, but mushy.  The chips were good, but this dish was lacking in cheese.  

Bottom line:  

1 out of 4 stars for the food, 3 out of 4 stars for the beer.  I realize everyone has a bad day, but 0 for 2 is not a good indicator.  Stop and have a pint and maybe a cup of soup.  

After lunch, we followed Rt. 30 further out of Gettysburg toward Chambersburg and stopped at the Hauser Estate Winery for a tasting...

Local Pennsylvania wine has come a long way over the years.  It used to be all you could get was cloyingly sweet table wine in two colors, white and red.  But, over the years, the vineyards have started to take their craft seriously.  The whites are better than the reds.  I haven't figured out why yet.  But, there is some quality there.  We started with a sample of their house apple cider, Jack's Hard Cider.  Hope is always in pursuit of the perfect apple cider ever since she sampled a pint of nectar in Ireland.  Unfortunately, she has never found any cider that compares.  Until now.  The Jack's Hard Cider has a nice crisp apple taste.  Not too carbonated and with that oak barrel finish that you look for in a cider.  Better than Magners/Bulmers?  Nope.  But, a definite second.  We bought a case to take home.  

After tasting the whites and reds, we liked the Jenny Wade white.  This semi-dry white table wine is named for the only local civilian killed during the Battle of Gettysburg.  Not too sweet, more than half dry, with a nice citrus finish.  I see this pairing well with grilled seafood on a hot summer day.  We liked this wine enough to buy three bottles to take home.  

None of the reds impressed us, but they were OK enough to drink if you are a red fan.  We suggest stopping by Hauser Estate for the cider, their white wines, and the view...

Bottom line, 3 out of 4 stars.

For dinner, we went to The Pub and Restaurant, located in the main square of Historic Gettysburg.  

The Pub still has the original tin ceilings that are in great condition...

Both of us were craving some beef, so we both ordered the strip steak.  I had a Caesar Salad to start as well.  

The salad was Caesar in name only.  Mediocre at best.  Dry lettuce and tasteless dressing.  Where were the anchovies?  Our steaks were lackluster as well...

Sorry for the picture quality.  We ordered our steaks medium rare.  They arrived medium well.  The flavor was OK, but they were dry like shoe leather.  Very unimpressed.  

Bottom line, 1.5 out of 4 stars.  

It has been many years since I had been to Gettysburg.  The town has come a long way.  Very touristy, but it has its highlights and is a nice place for a quick weekend getaway.  Especially if you are a history buff...

Plus, with all of the peach trees, I cannot imagine how good a fresh peach would taste, straight off the tree...

I think that Hope and I will go back for a weekend over the summer.  But, we will be finding some other places to dine.

Thanks for stopping by...

Bill