unrwapped foil paper with white lining holding a turkey panini next to a bag of chips and a glass of Cheerwine
— Leave a Comment

Review: Kirbyville Farm Market

windchime hanging down in front of a sliding door at the entrance to Kirbyville Farm Market

Berks County has long been known for its picturesque farmland. With it, comes some of the best farm stands and markets around. Some remain as roadside stands where passersby can pick up produce and flowers. Others have grown to become much more. 

One of those places is the Kirbyville Farm Market. 

Located along Route 222 just south of Kutztown, the Kirbyville Farm Market opened in the summer of 2019. Stepping through the front doors, the market opens up with produce, baked goods, and bulk foods spread out on wooden tables. To the left is both the cashier and the ice cream freezer where they are dipping hard ice cream. 

ice cream freezer with large sign showing cones and milkshakes at Kirbyville Farm Market

Toward the back and to the right is the deli and sandwich stand. Beyond that, a row of fridge and freezer doors leads to a coffee bar. Here you’ll also find a bakery case filled with fresh donuts and pastries. 

On my most recent visit, I was there specifically for a sandwich because it was my lucky day. Literally. Each week, the market posts on Facebook a name for each day to receive a free sandwich, and my name popped up on a recent Tuesday. 

deli counter at Kirbyville Farm Market

Kirbyville offers a range of options on the sandwich menu, including subs, wraps, toasted cheese, and paninis.

I opted for a build-your-own panini of turkey on wheat bread with Provolone cheese, lettuce, tomato, onions and ranch dressing. 

unrwapped foil paper with white lining holding a turkey panini next to a bag of chips and a glass of Cheerwine

It was an excellent sandwich, exactly what I was hoping for with plenty of meat and just the right amount of ranch to get that flavor throughout. It wasn’t huge, but it was large enough, especially with the bag of chips I grabbed. 

I rounded it out with a bottle of Cheerwine (the soda that Cherry Coke has always aspired to be). The meal would have cost just a little over $10, but with my free sandwich, I paid $3.50. 

top shelf of a bakery case with rows of donuts

As I mentioned, the market is more than their deli sandwiches. I have stopped a few times for donuts over the years. It’s a more limited selection than places like Becca’s or Dutch Maid that focus on donuts, but there is still some variety including Boston cream, peanut butter, cream filled, and glazed. They also offer sticky buns and other baked goods. Personally, I enjoy the simple sweet glazed donuts. 

small seating area with wooden wall on left and tables and chairs on both sides of an open aisle

Kirbyville offers limited indoor seating – it’s tucked along a narrow hallway behind the cashier counter with window seats overlooking the farm. But if it’s a nice day, consider taking your meal outside, especially if you have kids. 

large playground equipment with two slides in the middle and a set of three swings on the right side at Kirbyville Farm Market

The outdoor pavilion has plenty of covered seating and there is a large play area for the kids to enjoy before and after their meals. 

goat stares at the camera through a fence at the Kirbyville Farm Market

The seating and play area is also right next to the goat pen so it’s easy to make new animal friends during your visit. 

You won’t find a large menu or table service, but you will find some good food and good prices with a little of that roadside farm stand experience thrown in. All those things combined make the Kirbyville Farm Market a great place to grab a quick meal. 

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

Kirbyville Farm Market
14030 Kutztown Road
Fleetwood, PA 19522

More Berks County Farm Markets

More Restaurants Near Kutztown, PA

Farmers Market Meals Lunch & Dinner
prime rib on a dark blue plate with a cup of au jus and a side of steak fries
— Leave a Comment

Review: Giannotti’s Country Manor

round table with a blue umbrella on the patio of Giannotti's Country Manor

Two weeks ago we visited Giannotti’s Italian Kitchen in Robesonia. It was an alright meal, but we were certainly hoping for something better.

(Editor’s Note: Giannotti’s in Robesonia closed in 2017).

I always feel guilty about writing less-than-stellar reviews because that’s not why I write these blogs. I know that there are items on the menu that I would love, but I can only write about what I ate and the experience that I had.

On the same weekend that I visited my old hometown, I made a visit to another Giannotti family establishment: Giannotti’s Country Manor.

Giannotti’s Country Manor is just a short drive north of the city along Route 12, right next to Chatty’s, another restaurant that we’ve visited, and almost across the street from the original Muddy’s location.

pitcher and glass of iced tea

It was a beautiful Friday night so we decided to enjoy our meal out on the patio. The dining rooms were empty as it seemed everyone who came in either grabbed a seat at the bar or took their meal outside.

The traffic on Route 12 wasn’t too loud to bother us. The only time that we wished to be inside was when a guy pulled up in a bright yellow, 1930s-era pickup truck that was spitting exhaust across the patio.

One thing that’s clear right away is that Giannotti’s Country Manor is not an Italian restaurant. Sure there are a few pasta dishes and pizzas, but the menu highlighted their steaks and seafood.

basket of bread from Giannotti's Country Manor

While we waited for our meals, the first thing to arrive was our bread basket, a nice sized loaf of Italian bread. It was excellent. I always appreciate good bread before the meal, especially on a night when we were both extra hungry.

salad with a cup of ranch dressing

Both of our meals came with starter salads, but we could have easily done without them. A pair of cherry tomatoes, some croutons and a little bit of red onion were the only additions to the lettuce.

I had a hard time making a decision for my entree, but finally settled on Giannotti’s “often imitated, never duplicated” prime rib (which is only available Thursday through Sunday).

green plate with prime rib and a cup of au jus with a pink plate of steak fries and yellow dish of applesauce

The prime rib is available in two sizes – 16-ounce and the King size 24 ounce. I wasn’t feeling very regal so I stuck with the one-pounder.

It looked massive compared to the cup of au jus that shared the plate. It was also really moist, to the point where the plate was wet all around.

I sliced off my first piece and dipped it in the au jus, and have to say that it tasted better than it looked. It was on par with a good French dip sandwich. Not the best prime rib I have ever eaten, but solid.

My only problem was that there was just so much of it. Even without touching the fatty chunks, there was a half-pound of meat on the plate.

Plus all entrees come with two sides so I had a plate of steak fries and a cup of applesauce to get through as well. At this point the salad seemed completely unnecessary.

The steak fries were good, but nothing special. I’m guessing they’re not homemade, but I still made them disappear.

Normally I wouldn’t even mention applesauce when I get it, but I really enjoyed it here. It had a sweeter, almost caramel flavor to it that was better than the typical side.

lobster tail split in half with steak fries

While I went turf with my dinner, Julie went surf with hers, ordering the 8-ounce lobster tail, the smallest of the three sizes available.

Julie reminded me that she had lobster on the beach in Malibu once. This wasn’t the same, but she enjoyed it for what it was: a seafood dish served in the hills of Berks County.

Neither of us had any thoughts of dessert when we were finished. We were more concerned with divvying out what we were taking home with us.

The bill for the day came in at around $50 for the two of us (the lobster is market price so it could be more or less on any given day).

Giannotti’s Country Manor had its share of really good and okay items. That’s to be expected at a restaurant that has such a large menu.

The trick is to find something you enjoy. Because the only thing that matters is whether you enjoyed it.

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

Giannotti’s Country Manor
3118 Pricetown Road
Fleetwood, PA 19522

More Country Inns in Berks County

More Restaurants Near Fleetwood, PA

Bars & Pubs Country Inns Lunch & Dinner Reviews
— 1 Comment

Review: Chatty’s

two stripmall storefronts with the words "Shoppes at Woodside" in green script at the top and a smaller sign reading "Chatty's" underneath

In today’s world, it is very rare for any business, especially a restaurant, to not have a website. At the very least, one would expect a popular restaurant to at least have a Facebook page.

Sometimes I have been frustrated when I try to look up a restaurant only to find nothing but an automatically generated Google+ page.

One restaurant where I ran into this is Chatty’s, a breakfast and lunch spot that continually shows up at or near the top of review sites, but which has no web presence of its own.

Not wanting to miss out on a place that had received so many four- and five-star ratings, I decided to make a trip and accept whatever surprises awaited.

Chatty’s is the centerpiece of the Shoppes at Woodside strip mall along Pricetown Road. It’s a place I had passed by many times on my way to and from the old Muddy’s BBQ location.

On the outside, there is not much to distinguish Chatty’s from the custom kitchen store next door. Inside, the restaurant exudes a more vibrant atmosphere than the exterior lets on. The two long side walls are covered in bright murals, with unique art work, including a three-dimensional painting of a horse and a Rajah Shriner clown. The seating areas, including the counter, have a faux diner look, with the painted black and silver as if it were stainless steel.

The sign inside the door invited us to seat ourselves so we sat down at a table for two in the back corner and perused  the single-page menus that sat on the table.

Saturday and Sunday, Chatty’s serves breakfast only, serving from 7 to 11:45 a.m. That means it’s all breakfast: French toast, pancakes and omelets make up the bulk of the menu.

The day’s specials were listed out on a dry erase board at the entrance, and that was as far as I had to look for my choice: cranberry walnut pancakes.

fluffy pancake stuffed with cranberry and walnut

I normally gravitate toward French toast when I dine out for breakfast, but cranberry and walnut are two words that will always get my attention. My waitress warned me that because they were the daily special, the pancakes were only a stack of two. One would have been sufficient. Though not the largest I have ever seen, these were big enough: thick and fluffy, and as big as the plate. The walnuts added a crunchy texture that you normally don’t get in pancakes, while the cranberry provided a different kind of sweetness than syrup alone could provide. After spreading a pad of melted butter on top, my plate achieved pancake perfection.

closeup picture of corned beef hash

Not knowing how much food I was going to get with “just” an order of pancakes, I also committed to a side of corned beef hash. Though it was a little salty (then again, I think that’s a requirement), it was tasty enough that I cleaned the plate.

plate with an omelet and two slices of wheat toast

Once she took her first look at the menu, Julie had her heart set on an omelet, opting for a smoked sausage omelet with toast. It is safe to say that Chatty’s did not skimp on the sausage.

a deconstructed omelet filled with cheese and sliced sausage

Inside was a full sausage link (think Johnsonville-sized) sliced thick and spread throughout. It wasn’t quite as smokey as she was expecting, but it still made for quite a dish. She obviously still enjoyed it as there were no traces left when she was finished.

The diner vibe continued all the way through from fast service—we were in-and-out in less than 45 minutes—to the prices. For all of our food, plus a glass of orange juice for me, our total came in at under $15.

We went in to Chatty’s knowing almost nothing about it, ready for whatever experience was waiting for us. Sometimes a little surprise is a good thing.

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

Chatty’s
3130 Pricetown Rd
Fleetwood, PA 19522

More Diners in Berks County

More Restaurants Near Fleetwood, PA

Breakfast & Brunch Diners Reviews