CHAMBERSBURG – Hickory Ridge Restaurant is located on Philadelphia Avenue, but the welcoming atmosphere, friendly staff and tasty food will make it feel like coming home.
The theme for the restaurant, which is managed by Amy Brown, was that of a country farm – with a fireplace, paintings of farmhouses, farm animal décor and even an old wagon sitting in the yard welcoming visitors. There is also outdoor dining for patrons wanting to enjoy their meals on a nice weather day.
I got lucky on my visit on Friday night, Sept. 6. It was seafood night. I started my meal with a cup of cream of crab soup and a glass of hand-crafted cherry lemonade. The soup was amazing. It was the perfect blend of thickness and had plenty of lump crab meat in it. While I waited for my entrée, I also enjoyed some homemade dinner biscuits and real apple butter with little chunks of apple in it. I was glad they brought two.
For my dinner I went with the special of the night, the “Captain’s Platter.” This consisted of a filet of lightly seasoned baked haddock, eight streamed shrimp, and a cluster of snow crab legs with drawn butter. For my side, I chose the coleslaw.
I was not expecting a seafood platter night and was very impressed with the results. The fish was mild and had excellent flavor. The shrimp was cooked perfectly and came with a little dish of cocktail sauce, and you just can’t go wrong with snow crab. That is always a welcome treat. The portion size was perfect, which was good, because I needed to save room for dessert.
There were several options which included a variety of ice cream flavors, strawberry pie, lemon meringue pie and my choice for the evening, apple crisp with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzled with caramel. It was the perfect ending to a great meal.
If you can’t make it out to Hickory Ridge Restaurant on seafood night, don’t fret; there are many choices on their menu to fit anyone’s taste. I wasn’t able to try everything, but I could see and smell the delightful meals as they passed by my table, and it was enough for me to add Hickory Ridge to my list of dining out options.
In addition to the food, there was the great staff. Amy made her way around the dining room to each table, saying hello and checking in on the guests. She was delightful, as was the hostess who brought me to my seat. However, the highlight of the evening for me was my server, Jeffrey. He was funny and friendly, very helpful and respectful. He explained to me that while he was not new to the world of food service, he was a new staff member to the Hickory Ridge family, and how lucky they are to have him. He treated everyone that came in like a long-missed friend and really made you feel important being there. Even when the dining room began to fill up, Jeffrey never missed a step.
Hickory Ridge Restaurant is located at 3875 Philadelphia Ave., Chambersburg, and they are open every day from 8 a.m.-8 p.m., except on Mondays. They also cater for events, so if you have a special occasion coming up be sure to look into their catering specials.
