Berks Jazz Fest and Speckled Hen

Speckled Hen – Return to the English Countryside.

Tom and I dined at the Speckled Hen in Reading .  What a great evening!  The atmosphere was amazing - an authentically restored 18th century log house. It reminded us of the pubs in the Cotswolds in England; complete with two working fireplaces.

Of course, we ordered fish and chips along with butternut squash curry soup and beer battered fried calamari with a sweet and spicy Thai chili dipping sauce.  Delicious!!!

For those looking for an outstanding deal, Wednesday and Thursday are Burger and Beverage Nights; The Pub Burger with fries and choice of either a draft beer or a glass of red wine is only $11.....Many of our guests at the AmethystInn love venturing to Reading to experience a true English pub.

In conjunction with the ReadingJazz Fest, the Speckled Hen will feature Jim Meck on Friday, April 12th from 7pm – 10pm and Bev Conklin Combo on Saturday, April 13th from 7pm – 10pm. If you are looking for a last minute date suggestion, consider The Speckled Hen- some smooth Jazz, absolutely first-rate food and a brilliant atmosphere.

PA Dutch Experience

 We are approaching Daylight Savings time, which reminds me, It's time I push the Mud Sales yet again.  I shared with you on a recent post, the wonderful opportunity to experience a distinguishing feature of Lancaster County by planning your excursion to one of the many Mud Sale auctions taking place in our area.  Thus, I simply want to reiterate that these sales are ones you do not want to miss.  In fact, some of our Adamstown Inn and Cottages family will be in attendance of a couple of these and we would love to see you there.
After an exhilarating day of bargaining and buying, I would suggest a sit down family style meal at a PA Dutch favorite; Good-n-Plenty.  The family style restaurant (where everyone is seated at long tables) offers all of the favorites of PA Dutch Cooking.  Each day they have various menu items; such as Roast beef, Fried Chicken, Sausage, Ham, Meat loaf as well as buttered noodles (with lots and lots of brown butter), mashed potatoes, corn, peas, red beets, apple sauce, homemade bread, and the list goes on.  However, you do not want to fill up completely on the main course because they also have homemade ice cream, various homemade pies, cracker pudding, tapioca, cheese cake...  I'm sure I am forgetting something.
So if you are looking to have a quintessential Lancaster County PA Dutch experience, I've just provided you with your itinerary for one day at the Adamstown Inns and Cottages.

Antique Extravaganza in Lancaster, PA

The EXTRAVAGANZA mayhem is only a month away. The weekend of Antique shopping until you drop is quickly approaching. In "Antiques Capital USA," otherwise known as Adamstown in Lancaster County PA, we are looking forward to another exciting weekend this April 25-28 when the Antique stores in the area explode with stuff. Antique Extravaganza will be taking place only minutes from the Adamstown Inns and Cottages along 7 miles of Route 272, antique shops will have more dealers, longer shop hours, and more bargains which translates to the best antique shopping anywhere. For this reason you may want to plan your antique shopping excursion around and an Antique Extravaganza weekend like the one happening in April. I'm always amazed how the little town of Adamstown becomes a bustling Metropolis during the Extravaganza weekend. I will have to remember to travel the back roads during that weekend to avoid all the traffic.

It's always fun for us here at the Inns to see all the treasures brought back and listen to all the stories about their history. After hours upon hours of walking around all the shops, I'm glad we can offer you some time to relax and rejuvenate at the Amethyst Inn, or if you are traveling with friends and family perhaps our Adamstown Vacation home, Dragonfly ,and Firefly cottages may be more accommodating. We look forward to experiencing with you another eventful Antique Extravaganza weekend.

Things to do in Lancaster City and Reading City

Today feels like spring is just around the corner here at the Adamstown Inns and Cottages, so I thought I would share some more happenings in Lancaster County, PA to gear you up for warmer weather.  The Berks Jazz Fest, which is an activity we promote every year, is just around the corner once again.  This is the 23rd year for the Boscov's Berks Jazz Fest and it begins on April 5th and runs through April 14th.  The festival will once again feature a plethora of musicians and artists playing all hours of the day at various local venues.  From a midnight set on Friday April 4th and Saturday April 5th, to a 10am show where you can also enjoy some brunch while you are serenaded with the sweet sounds of jazz.  If you are a lover of jazz music the Berks Jazz Fest is one you definitely do not want to miss.

If you would rather travel to the city of Lancaster than the week of March 4th would be a great time to plan your trip.  From March 4-10 Lancaster City will hold their restaurant week, which will "showcase the creative talents and diverse dining opportunities" throughout the city.  Over 40 restaurants will offer special menus and different promotions to highlight a unique and delicious dining experience.  From places like Annie Bailey's, to the Lancaster Dispensing Company,  to 551 West or 915 Cafe, The Bakers Table, Captain Gus' Steak Shop and the list goes on and on.  So stop eating now so you can leave some room for all of these great places to dine in the historic city of Lancaster.  We look forward to seeing you in the area soon.