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Food & Festivals: The Reading Fair

ferris wheel and Midway illuminated in the distance

Editor’s Note: The Berks County Fair, formerly known as the Reading Fair, has been scaled back, including its food options which no longer include Grange meals.

Berks County has proud agricultural heritage. With fertile farmland and a thriving livestock industry, that tradition continues to this day on family farms throughout the county.

And it is that pride that is put on a pedestal every August for the Reading Fair.

Sure there are the unlimited rides on the Ferris wheel, and there are games waiting to test your skill with a ping pong ball or dart in your hand, and deep fried everything along the carnival midway, but that’s only part of the story.

woman posing with a goat

There’s also the competition in the exhibit halls, the livestock on display in the barns, the horsepower on the track and some of the best fair food around, courtesy of the area’s local Grange organizations.

Beneath the Grange tent, you can find anything you could hope for: from staples like hamburgers and hot dogs to deep fried dishes like apple fritters and funnel cake.

pork sandwich and fries on paper plates

Me, I will always gravitate toward the barbecue. In this case, that means a barbecue chicken sandwich, a pile of roasted, pulled chicken topped with all the Sweet Baby Ray’s sauce I want. Add on a side of fries and a pint of Clover Farms chocolate milk and I certainly don’t miss the greasy pizza or over-salted pretzels on the food wagons.

But the fair is more to me than just a place to eat, it’s a yearly chance for me to show off my own culinary skills.

shoofly pie

It started with my grandmother’s shoo-fly pie recipe. I started baking the Pennsylvania German dessert about three years ago. I first entered it in the fair in 2012, and last year I took home a second-place ribbon for it.

This year, I entered three items in the baked goods competition, my shoo-fly pie, which again took home runner-up honors (seriously, look at that beautiful pie and tell me how it doesn’t win), a shoo-fly cake, which was good enough for third place, and a pecan pie, which earned a blue ribbon in the one-crust pie category.

pecan pie

All of the baked goods entered in the competition are auctioned off for charity at the end of the fair’s first night, so if you want to try any of my pies or cakes for yourself, bring your wallet next year.

wooden wagon converted into a Thomas the Tank Engine

It’s always fun to take a look around at the entries in the other competitions, especially the arts and crafts categories where you will find some very unique pieces.

cows on display at a fair

And of course we have to talk a walk through the stalls to look at the sheep, goats, rabbits and cattle, some of which will end up being next year’s hamburgers.

Out on the track, which hosts a variety of racing events including motorcycle and micro-sprint racing, it was farm equipment on steroids as we watched souped-up tractors (mod-E-fieds as the Dutchy PA announcer called them) pulling a sled down the 300-foot dirt dragstrip.

For 160 years, the Reading Fair has brought together city and country in a celebration of everything that makes Berks County great. Like a fine wine, the tradition keeps getting better with age. Hopefully someone will be writing the same thing 160 years from now.

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Review: Ozgood’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar

Exterior of a restaurant with a witch's hat dome and a sign that reads "Ozgoods Neighborhood Grill & Bar"

The building is hard to miss as you drive west into Robesonia. Between the maroon paint with green trim and the tall spire above the entrance, Ozgood’s Neighborhood Grill and Bar is unmistakable.

Ozgood’s location has served as a restaurant since the 1930s with the White House Restaurant operating on the spot. Once the White House left, it seemed nothing could replace it: the Furnace Creek Inn, the Furnace Inn, the Toll Gate Inn and the Blue Velvet (which I vaguely remember from my youth) all came and went before Ozgood’s came to stay in 1997.

Robesonia was built as a company town, and there are reminders of that on every wall. A large painting of the iron works hangs in the corner with enlarged postcards of the furnace surrounding the dining room.

Stained glass lamps hang throughout, casting a dim light on every table. For a little brighter experience, Ozgood’s offers an outdoor patio and bar along the slow trickling Furnace Creek.

Ozgood’s menu is lengthy and includes a long list of hearty entrees like steaks, burgers and an entire section devoted to pretzel sandwiches. And of course the menu at a “neighborhood grill and bar” wouldn’t be complete without a beverage list to match.

bowl of creamy chicken soup

Despite the summer heat, the soup du jour, a chicken, potato and herb chowder, sounded too good to resist. The presentation would have been beautiful, if not for the two packs of Club crackers that it was served with. However, that did not take away from the soup itself, a thick, creamy chowder with big chunks of potato and a delicious blend of herbs (parsley, dill and more).

Then it was on the main course, a one-pound chopsteak smothered in onions and mushroom gravy called “The Worley.”

plate with a chopped steak smothered in gravy with a side of fries, assorted vegetables and a dinner roll

One pound is a lot more than it sounds on a menu meaning about half of it was still remaining on my plate when I had finished, but that was not to say it wasn’t good. The steak was cooked perfectly and the gravy was good, though it could have used one or two more ladles of gravy to cover the large piece of meat.

My sides for the day were “shoestring” fries and mixed vegetables. Though called shoestring on the menu, the fries were more like McDonald’s than the shoestrings at places like Austin’s. They were still good, just not what I was expecting. Meanwhile the vegetables were very tasty thanks to being cooked in a generous amount of butter.

Every weekend, Ozgood’s has a certain theme for their specials, and on our trip, it happened to be shrimp weekend.

plate with fried shrimp and crab-stuffed shrimp

As such, my wife decided to try a little bit of everything with the shrimp sampler platter. The sampler included shrimp done three ways: fried, broiled and stuffed with crab. All three were good and done just right, but the crab-stuffed was her favorite as the crab added even more flavor to an already good piece of shrimp.

Unfortunately the generous portions left no room for dessert, but we still left satisfied. Our meals were a little pricey, coming in at more than $35 for the pair, but we certainly felt like we got our money’s worth out of them.

Nearly two decades after Ozgood’s ended the musical chairs of restaurants in Robesonia, it is trying to do the same in Kutztown, where it recently opened a second location in the former TC’s Food & Spirits building.

And if the new location is serving the same good food as in Robesonia, Ozgood’s will have another success story to brag about.

BCE Rating
Food: Good
Service: Good
Ambiance: Good
Price: Reasonable

Ozgood’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar
319 E. Penn Ave
Robesonia, PA 19551

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Crowd waits for tickets at the Saint Marco Italian Food Festival
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Food & Festivals: Saint Marco Italian Food Festival

a crowd of people stands in line at a tent with a sign reading "tickets sold here"

I love Italian food.

It seems odd because the closest my family blood line comes to Italy is my great-grandfather’s short stay during his deployment in World War I.

But my love of pasta, tomato sauce and Italian food of all kinds is unquestioned.

And it is with that appetite that I look forward to the first weekend of August and the annual St. Marco Italian Food Festival.

For more than 80 years, the Saint Marco Society has been a gathering place where Italian-Americans preserve their Old World food and culture. And for two days each year, their headquarters in Temple becomes a gathering place for people of all backgrounds to come experience the culinary delights of Italy, including their famous lasagna.

white disposable plate with 13 layer meat lasagna topped with sauce and Parmesan cheese

I cannot fathom how many pans of lasagna (both meat and cheese filled) the servers go through over the course of a weekend, but it seems like there is a continuous line for 48 hours. And for good reason.

The paper-thin pasta is piled high (I counted at least 10 layers ) and topped with the smoothest tomato sauce I have ever seen. It ladles on like a thick soup, drowning the lasagna while creating a small moat around it.

Everything about the lasagna is outstanding, which is why my wife has had one every year since we started attending the festival five years ago.

But there are other delicious options as well, including my personal favorite, the porchetta sandwich.

top lifted off a bun to show roast pork and broccoli rabe

Slow-roasted, juicy pork heaped on a kaiser roll and (for a well-spent extra dollar) topped with broccoli rabe, the sandwich is everything Philly pork sandwiches strive to be. The pork absorbs so much flavor from the seasonings its cooked in, and the broccoli rabe adds just a hint of bitterness to make a sandwich that I never want to put down.

There are plenty of other options including meatball sandwiches, crispelles (fried dough with or without meat) and, ironically enough, French fries.

And then there are the desserts, which include homemade biscotti, pizzelles and for those who crave something creamy, gelato.

two small plastic cups with scoops of gelato - one cannoli favored, the other berries

At first glance, three dollars seems like a lot to pay for a small cup of dessert, but the gelato is very filling, especially after such a big dinner. I decided to try the mixed berry while my wife opted for chocolate chip (chocolate and mocha are also on the menu). There were whole berries (blueberries, I think, though it was hard to tell while frozen) mixed in with my rich scoops while the chocolate chips were mixed in with a creamy vanilla base in my wife’s.

teams play bocce on an elevated court as a handful of spectators hang over a short fence to watch

While we enjoyed our dessert, we ventured around to the opposite side of the building to take in a little of the action on the bocce courts. The tournament seems to have quite a following of its own with lawn chairs surrounding the perimeter and only a few small spaces to stand around the fence.

The Saint Marco Italian Food Festival is one of my favorite food events each year. Even as someone who cannot identify with Italian culture, I certainly identify with delicious food.

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Windy Acres Barbecue Restaurant – CLOSED

small red building with a lighted sign that reads "Restaurant"

Windy Acres Barbecue Restaurant is now closed. The location is now home to the Countryside Eatery.

Berks County is becoming a barbecue hotbed.

Over the last four or five years, the county’s barbecue scene has taken off with the addition of roadside trailers and full-service restaurants.

What I love about barbecue is that all of them are different. Though all of them have ribs, chicken and pork, none of them are doing them the same way. Likewise, each one has its own unique sauce, with its own style and flavor profile.

And as a barbecue aficionado, that variety is what drives me to try as many of them as possible.

Set along Route 222 just north of Kutztown, right where the Kutztown Bypass ends and the traffic jam of two-lane 222 begins, is Windy Acres Barbecue Restaurant, one of the newest additions to the barbecue scene.

The restaurant doesn’t look like much from the outside. Attached to an Agway, you wouldn’t even know the restaurant was there if not for a small sign along the highway and a backlit sign on the building that says “RESTAURANT.”

Inside, it is a cliché of barbecue joints, the walls adorned with wagon wheels, a smiling wooden steer’s head and a pig made out of neon lights that said “Best BBQ.” The wall to the kitchen was made of metal, as if the dining room was built to enclose a tin shed.

Windy Acres prints its menu on its placemats so you can begin planning your meal from the moment you sit down. Barbecue is the main crux of the menu, with rib and chicken platters and pulled pork sandwiches being complemented by burgers and fried foods like corn nuggets and mozzarella sticks.

With my strong desire to try as many menu items as possible in one meal, I could not pass up the combo meal of a 1/2 rack of ribs and 1/2 chicken.

rack of ribs with small bolws of mashed potatoes and beans

My chicken was late to arrive to the party, but that gave me a chance to concentrate on the massive ribs in front of me. Size is the first thing you notice. These ribs are not the perfectly shaped baby backs you see at a chain restaurant, instead they form a beautiful triangle with the largest rib measuring about seven inches long. Looking at the plate it was hard to imagine anyone finishing a full rack, or me being able to finish both this and my chicken which was still to come.

Then there is the color, Crayola might call it burnt sienna. The sauce gets its color, and its flavor, from the addition of mustard, which gives it a lighter color and a distinct flavor. Ripping them apart, it was clear the ribs weren’t fall-off-the-bone, and instead allowed me to bite in without risk of the meat falling to the plate.

Of my sides, the mashed potatoes were far-and-away better than the beans. Similar to those served at Muddy’s, Windy Acres uses Yukon gold potatoes, which have a more beautiful color and more pronounced flavor than Idaho potatoes. The beans had some flavor, but were a little runny and were not all that different from a can of Bush’s.

barbecue chicken breast and fries

When my chicken arrived, it too was glossed in a coat of Windy Acres original sauce (they also had apple bbq and hot bbq available on request) with some extra seasonings sprinkled on. Nearly half of my half chicken had to come home with me for later as the breast meat was more than enough to fill me up after having devoured the rest of my meal.

wrap filled with pork and a side of fries

One of the daily specials on the menu was the southwest pulled pork wrap that my wife order. It featured pulled pork (which is oddly only available on sandwiches and not available as an entree) with chipotle bbq sauce , coleslaw and cheese. The hot pork was mixed with the cold cheese and slaw before the wrap was grilled, and though I am not a fan of mixing hot and cold ingredients, the pork was very good and the chipotle sauce was excellent.  The fresh-cut fries that came with the wrap were also very good, especially if you dipped them in a little bit of sauce.

Though there were a handful of desserts available, it is hard to imagine anyone making it that far, especially if they ordered the ribs. Instead, our stomachs were quite content to quit after our $25 dinner.

The neon pig on the wall may have been overstating things a little. Windy Acres may not be the “best bbq,” at least in my opinion. But it certainly has its own style and I certainly enjoyed it.

And that again is the beauty of barbecue. It’s always different, and it’s almost always delicious.

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Viva Bistro & Lounge – CLOSED

glass doorway with a terrace in front and the word "Viva" in purple letters

Editor’s Note: ViVA Bistro & Lounge is closed. The space is now part of The Block at Wyomissing Square, which features multiple restaurants, including the Vintner’s Table and Cafe Folino.

When you think of Wyomissing, you probably think of the Reading Hospital and the beautiful homes that stretch out to the west.

Or perhaps you think of the other side of Wyomissing, the Berkshire Mall and all the chain restaurants that surround it.

But along Penn Avenue, the town is very different. The VF Outlet Center towers over all the other buildings in the area, a reminder of the area’s industrial past and a symbol of rebirth.

Across Park Road is another example of the resurrection of a former industrial site, where empty towers have been replaced by a Courtyard by Marriott and high-end studio apartments.

At the base of the apartment complex is a lone business, but it was here that the resurrection of the complex began in 2003.

Viva Bistro and Lounge is exactly what the name implies, a European-inspired restaurant with an expansive bar and lounge that features live entertainment on most nights.

Though I had been to Viva before, it had been more than a year and never outside of a large group so a date night with my wife at the bistro was a bit of a new experience.

As I poured through the menu searching for the one that would make me happiest in that moment, I found their Duets menu, a four-course meal for two that included two soups or salads, a shared appetizer, two entrees and choice of dessert for $35.99.

This was what was going to make me the happiest.

cup of chilled berry soup with whipped topping

For our first course, we each chose a cup soup. The soup of the day was a non-traditional mixed berry soup. Served cold and topped with whipped cream, it felt more like I was spooning a smoothie into my mouth than enjoying a bowl of soup. In fact, the soup would have worked just as well for dessert as it did as an appetizer.

cup of lobster bisque with herbs

My wife opted for Viva’s signature lobster bisque, a dish she first tried earlier this year at the Wilson Iron Chef. It’s thick, it’s creamy and it’s rich, with a beautiful yellow-orange color and lobster in every bite.

slice of bread on the edge of a plate of olive oil

As we were finishing our soups, our waitress dropped off some bread and poured some herb-infused olive oil on a plate for us. The oil was infused with a heavy dose of garlic, salt and Italian herbs to create a delicious dip.

flatbread pizza topped with sausage and red pepper

The second course was a shared appetizer, sausage diavolo flatbread pizza. Topped with squared chunks of sausage, strips of red peppers and grated parmesan, the pizza was piping hot and just a little bit spicy. The cheese and tomatoes oozed over all four sides, leaving just the corners clear to grab onto without getting your hands greasy.

In all honesty, we could have skipped right from the pizza to dessert and been comfortably full, but there was still a pair of entrees to come, and I was determined to finish all four of my courses.

steak kabob on a bed of rice with a large broccoli floret

My selected entree was the marinated steak kabob, served over a bed of rice pilaf and served with an entire head of broccoli which was sprinkled with fresh garlic. The marinade made the steak extra tender and juicy. For convenience, the steak, green peppers, onions, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes were removed from the skewer before arriving at the table, making my job a lot easier and ensuring that I received a forkful of the very tasty pilaf in every bite.

chicken breast topped with gravy on a bed of rice pilaf on a plate with a large broccoli floret

Mediterranean chicken was the item that caught my wife’s eye. Served exactly as mine atop rice pilaf with a side of broccoli, the whole chicken breast was stuffed with Feta cheese, spinach, tomatoes and basil and topped with a cream sauce. Despite the enjoyable flavor, half of it went home with us as dessert was still to come.

puff pastry topped with whipped cream drizzled with caramel
small tart with whipped cream and a drizzle of lime green sauce

Our dessert options included either a shared dessert or two mini desserts, but as I learned in pre-school, two is better than one (who wants to share one dessert when you can share two?). Key lime tart and bananas foster cheesecake were our two choices. Placed in the corner of entree-sized plates, the desserts looked miniscule, but they packed a lot of flavor. The cheesecake was moist and the bananas foster, which was dropped on top with a dollop of whipped cream, was done perfectly. The key lime tart lived up to its name as the sweet of the cream gave way to the tasty tartness of the key lime. But it was all well-tempered by a nice, crispy pie shell.

I can say with certainty that we got our money’s worth for our $37 (the lobster bisque was an extra $1.00 upgrade) and we certainly left feeling full and satisfied.

There are still plenty of old industrial buildings in Wyomissing that aren’t full. Some have planned renovations, while others are sit idle. After a meal at Viva, I can’t help but look at these near-abandoned buildings as an opportunity for more great restaruants to add to the town’s already steallar culinary reputation.

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sign on a brick building that reads "Jimmie Kramer's Peanut Bar" with an image of an anamorphic peanut
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Review: Jimmie Kramer’s Peanut Bar

brick wall with a sign that reads "Jimmie Kramer's Peanut Bar Restaurant" and a cartoon peanut

In March of 2012, I made my first trip to Jimmie Kramer’s Peanut Bar. From that visit, Berks County Eats was born.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been more than two years since the blog began, and even harder to believe that it has been that long since I have returned to the place that started it all.

Since my last visit, the Peanut Bar went through a series of changes, first hiring, then firing executive chef Andrea Heinly, former contestant on the reality show Hell’s Kitchen.

But the 90-year-old bar showed no evidence of change as I found it much the way I had left it. The same strings of lights still snaked through branches suspended from the ceiling. The walls were still covered in an assortment of vintage photographs and brewery ephemera.

And the peanut shells still crunched beneath my feet.

We tip-toed to our table, careful not to take an embarrassing spill. We were seated much nearer the bar this time. An antique wooden phone, which could have been plucked from an episode of Lassie, hung on wall. Above the bar, a flat screen played a slideshow of images from Reading’s past.

hand holding a three-chambered peanut

All the while peanut shells were cracked and tossed about the floor. Lady luck proved in my favor as I found an elusive three-chambered peanut in our bucket.

The menu has also gone largely unchanged since our last visit, a testament to the restaurant’s enduring quality. Entrees range from fried chicken and burgers to oyster po’ boys and lobster tail risotto.

chicken schnitzel on a bed of mushrooms topped with cream sauce

I decided to satisfy my German side with chicken schnitzel in leek and onion cream sauce. The presentation truly went above and beyond as it was topped with a bright pink flower and a small herb stem.

The schnitzel came served on a bed of spaetzle—small German egg noodles—and mushrooms. The chicken was lightly breaded, but still heavy enough to give it a nice golden crisp. I tried to get a bit of everything in every bite as the flavors mixed so well together, especially with the creamy sweetness of the sauce. Though the sauce was thick and rich, I would have loved just one more ladle of it to cover the rest of the plate.

softshell crab topped with almonds with fries and broccoli

Soft-shell crab was the dish that caught my wife’s eye. The crab was served topped with almonds and brown butter and served with broccoli and a side of French fries.

After frantically Googling whether it is safe to eat the soft shell (you can), then trying to decide whether she wanted to eat it (she didn’t). Somehow she managed to pick the shells clean of their meat. But much as it was the last time we went, the fries were her favorite part of the meal. The Peanut Bar’s fresh-cut fries are another thing that hasn’t changed, and I hope they never do.

Sadly, another thing that didn’t change is that we had no room for dessert when the meal was over (next time, I will try some of their pretzel pie, no matter what).

Our second trip to the Peanut Bar was as enjoyable as the first. For us, it brought back memories of just a few years ago, while for many, the institution along Penn Street brings back memories decades in the making.

And as long as the Peanut Bar is serving up great food, people will continue to make memories there for a long time.

BCE Rating
Food: Very Good
Service: Good
Ambiance: Excellent
Price: Reasonable

Jimmie Kramer’s Peanut Bar
332 Penn St
Reading, PA 19602

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Review: Dino’s Wings & Things

strip mall storefront with an orange sign with white letters that reads "Dino's"

Along with burgers and fries, there may be no more popular sports bar food than chicken wings.

Every restaurant has the own unique take, tossing them in ever more original sauces and seasonings.

And while dozens of Berks County restaurants are tossing wings on a nightly basis, there are very few that are doing them as well as Dino’s Wings and Thing’s in Temple.

Dino’s is more sports shrine than sports bar. Photos and memorabilia from all of the local sports teams dot the walls, but it is the sport of kings that holds the throne at Dino’s.

Before lending his name to his wings business, Dino Iacarrino was stepping into the ring in the local gyms, where BoxRec.com lists his career record at 5-2 with one knockout. Along with autographed posters of Muhammad Ali and “Raging Bull” Jake LaMotta is a faux Sports Illustrated cover showing a young Dino in training.

three bowls with various wing flavors and a basket of french fries

And while he may never have become a champion in the ring, Dino has established his business as a champion among local eateries.

So we sat down in a booth, Muhammad Ali standing tall over a fallen Sonny Liston on the wall, with diamond plating accenting the orange paint.

The service was surprisingly quick as our food was delivered in less than 10 minutes (our waitress was assisted by two adorable little girls who were tasked with bringing the empty bowls for our bones (and who were both excited to use the spray bottle on the dirty table behind us).

With 24 wing flavors on the menu, decisions are difficult, but we managed to narrow it down to three flavors for this trip.

bowl of wings covered in ranch dressing

First up was the creamy ranch. The wings were dripping with a thick coat of ranch dressing. Maybe it’s me, but I would say the dressing tasted a lot better on the wings than on any salad I have had.

bowl of wings covered in bbq sauce

For the second choice, we went with the standard barbecue. Dino’s BBQ sauce is very sweet with just a little tang on the back end, definitely a winning combination on a wing.

bowl of wings coated with Montreal steak seasoning

Last, and certainly not least, we went with one of the more original flavors: Montreal. As you may guess, the wings were loaded in Montreal steak seasoning, which gave them a salty and spicy taste that was my favorite of the three.

But as the name suggests, Dino’s Wings & Things is more than just wings. Other “things” on the menu include massive subs, six-ounce burgers, fried sides and a host of appetizers that include fries topped with 19 different topping options like chicken parm, cheese steak, and the mac daddy (fries topped with a six-ounce burger, American cheese, onions, pickles and Thousand Island dressing.

basket of fries coated in Old Bay seasoning

But when you’re loading up on wing flavors, a simple order of Old Bay fries is perfect. Besides, you need something to soak up all the extra sauce from the wings.

For our 18 wings and Old Bay fries, we paid just under $20.00, but if you are looking for a little better deal, Dino’s offers 25- and 50-wing samplers. You can also stop in on Wednesdays and enjoy all-you-can-eat wings for $10.99 or visit on Thursdays for build-your-own burgers with bottomless fries for $8.99.

About the only piece of boxing memorabilia not hanging in the dining room is a championship belt, though you could argue they deserve one. Because while Dino may never have been a champion in the ring, Dino’s has certainly earned a place as a champion of wings.

BCE Rating
Food: Very Good
Service: Good
Ambiance: Good
Price: Very Reasonable

Dino’s Wings & Things
5306 Allentown Pk
Temple, PA 19560

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Unique Eats: Shoofly Whoopie Pie from Lil’s Bakery

Shoofly Whoopie Pie - Lil's Bakery

Berks County Eats leaves the restaurant behind in order to try some of the best desserts, snack foods and unique foods from Greater Reading’s best bakeries and food stands. These are Berks County’s Unique Eats.

In my review of The Whoopie Pie Company, I tasted the gourmet version of the Pennsylvania Dutch dessert. The normally simple cakes were given an upscale makeover with ganache filling and chocolate drizzle.

But while the Whoopie Pie Company continues to move the whoopie pie forward, other area bakeries are also putting their own spin on the traditional dish.

Inside the PA Dutch Farmer’s Market of Wyomissing, Lil’s Bakery offers just about every kind of baked good imaginable, from a variety of breads to pies and cupcakes. And like any good Pennsylvania Dutch bakery, Lil’s is putting their own twist on the whoopie pie.

The pies are not glamorous. Instead of an individual box, they come wrapped in saran, with filling bursting out from the sides. In addition to the standard chocolate with vanilla cream, Lil’s offers flavors like peanut butter and red velvet.

But their most unique version takes another Dutch dessert, replacing the chocolate cakes with shoofly for a doubly delicious dish.

The shoofly cakes are very moist, like a wet-bottom pie filling. And it’s just sticky enough to give you an excuse to lick your fingers clean when you’re finished.

The cream is simple, sweet enough that you taste it in every bite, but not too sweet to overpower the cakes. It’s a perfect balance of flavors that makes this a nearly perfect pie.

Another great thing about Lil’s whoopie pies in the price. At about $1.00 each, you can afford to spoil yourself every week. Just remember that the market is only open Thursdays through Saturdays so make sure you stock up to get yourself through the week.

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Review: Taste of Crepes

people sitting at wicker tables and chairs outside a restaurant with an orange awning and the words "Taste of Crepes" on it

(Editor’s Note: Taste of Crepes was sold to new owners in Spring 2019 though the concept remains unchanged)

Variety is the spice of life.

Or so it has been said. When it comes to restaurants, a good variety is important because you never want to limit your customer base.

So it seems odd to find a Berks County restaurant whose menu is made up entirely of crepes – thin, filled pancakes that are popular in France. Where is the variety in that?

But with 35 different flavors available everyday, Taste of Crepes is all about variety.

Like any good Parisian bistro, Taste of Crepes has limited seating inside, with al fresco dining along the sidewalk. But instead of metal bistro seats, the outside furniture is all wicker.

This is Berks County after all.

Many of West Reading’s restaurants have been shoe-horned into their locations, and Taste of Crepes is no exception. What limited seating can be found inside – all tables for two except one four-seater crammed in the corner – places diners in close proximity to one another.

Still, Taste of Crepes manages to feel cozy, not crowded. Maybe it’s the wallpaper, which paints a picture of a Parisian street scene around you. Or maybe it was because so many were choosing to take their meals outside on such a beautiful summer morning.

Behind the counter, crepes sizzle atop the griddle. Unfolded with the filling layered on top, the crepes look like large pizzas waiting for the oven. Instead, the crepe will be folded over to trap all of the flavors inside.

Taste of Crepes is doing crepes three ways – sweet, savory and breakfast. Sweets include hot apple pie (apples, cinnamon, caramel and ice cream) and sweet and salty pretzel (sweet cream cheese, Nutella, ground pretzel, caramel and ice cream). Savories feature a variety of meat and vegetable combinations like the turkey Cali (mozzarella, turkey, red pepper, lettuce, tomato and ranch) and big boy bites (mozzarella, ham, lettuce, bacon, turkey, spicy ranch and Dijon mustard).

The breakfast crepes include a little of both, with sweet variations like cinnamon, maple, and my choice, fresh fruit.

plate with a large crepe in the shape of a horseshoe topped with three dollops of whipped cream, assorted berries and a sprinkling of powdered sugar

Filled with bananas, strawberries, blueberries and whipped cream, the fresh fruit crepe works just as well for dessert as it does for breakfast. The crepe is folded in a giant “U,” garnished with more berries and dusted with powdered sugar.

As you start into it, the first bites are all bananas, then come the strawberries, and finally the blueberries. The three converge in the center where they have been folded together. The crepe, itself, is light and airy, like a razor-thin pancake.

The crepes are thin enough to allow the flavors of the filling to shine through, but thick enough that they don’t get lost, creating a complete dish that is filling enough for breakfast or lunch.

plate with a savory crepe folded to see the bacon egg and cheese inside

On the savory end of the breakfast crepes is the bacon crepe, stuffed with crispy bacon, two eggs and mozzarella. Similar to a breakfast pizza, but not as heavy, the bacon and eggs were cooked right on top of the crepe before it was folded together. Combined, it was a classy, yet hearty start to the day.

Crepes range in price from less than $4 for a cinnamon crepe up to $10 for the smoked salmon, but most fall between $5-8 so that you don’t have to feel guilty about spending an extra dollar to add a scoop of ice cream to your crepe (though some of the sweet crepes already include it). It’s the only actual side item that you can order, unless you count the smoothies, iced lattes and root beer float available on the beverage menu.

Taste of Crepes may be small, but its menu is anything but simple. I never would have guessed their French pancakes could be so versatile as to build an entire menu around them.

Yet this is one restaurant that certainly has brought variety of Berks County.

BCE Rating
Food: Very Good
Service: Good
Ambiance: Very Good
Price: Very Reasonable

Taste of Crepes
617 Penn Ave
West Reading, PA 19611

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The Whoopie Pie Company – CLOSED

Whoopie-Pie-Company-1

Editor’s Note: The Whoopie Pie Company is closed. The bakery closed before the VF Outlet Center closed in 2018.

When you think of Pennsylvania Dutch desserts, whoopie pies have to be one of your first thoughts. A heap of vanilla cream sandwiched between a pair of chocolate cakes makes for a simple, perfect dessert.

But the culinary arts are all about innovation, and that is what the Whoopie Pie Company is doing with these Dutchy desserts.

The bakery is tucked in the back corner of the VF Outlet Center’s Blue Building, on the outer edge of what is an otherwise a drab, generic food court.

It’s a fitting setting for a company that takes a tired (yet delicious) food that has never really changed and jazzes it up in a fresh, new way.

Whoopie-Pie-Company-2

The Whoopie Pie Company offers seven everyday flavors that range from traditional (chocolate with buttercream) to unique (vanilla cakes with buttercream and raspberry drizzle).

Unfortunately I didn’t have enough stomach to try all seven so I decided that if I could only get one, The Classic was the obvious choice.

The Classic is the “traditional” chocolate cakes with cream filling. But this looked nothing like a traditional whoopie pie. First, there is the whipped buttercream filling, beautifully squeezed onto the bottom cake instead of slopped on. Then there is the chocolate drizzle crisscrossing the top cake.

It was almost a shame to take the first bite and ruin the beautiful dessert. The moist, dark chocolate cakes were perfectly balanced by the sweet cream filling.

And because you can’t eat just one, I also took a bite out of The Rebel, which isn’t very rebellious at all. The Rebel is the opposite of your traditional pie, with vanilla cakes and a chocolate ganache that gave it just enough chocolate flavor to remind you that it is still a whoopie pie.

Though the pies were both very good, you are paying for pretty. The pies cost $2.00 each, which is a lot for a pie that really isn’t very big.

And though I might have wanted a little more for my money, the whoopie pies would have left me wanting more no matter how big they were. They were just that good.

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