I admit it – I’m a country girl at heart. Yeah, I may love to escape to Philly every once in a while to hit the sushi restaurants and martini bars, but when it comes right down to it, country roads, open spaces and home-cooked meals feed my soul….Which is where the Country Cupboard comes in.

Located 2 miles north of historic downtown Lewisburg, in the heart of the Susquehanna River Valley, it’s definitely a destination: for large charter buses, for visitors and locals, and for business travelers seeking a home-cooked meal. The Cupboard, as I affectionately call it, has a full acre (yes, one whole acre!) of shopping, plus a greenhouse and flower shop, a bakery that offers dozens of freshly baked items daily (fresh bread, muffins, cookies, whoopie pies and sticky buns to name a few), a restaurant that serves more than 2,000-3,000 meals a day, and 2 hotels (Best Western Country Cupboard Inn and Country Inn & Suites) on site.

Regardless of your tastes, you’ll find something on the menu that entices you (from steamed seafood to liver and onions). You’ll also find some kind of treasure to take home with you (from homemade chocolate walnut fudge to unique kitchen accessories). One of the best things about the Cupboard? Their prices. You can enjoy a HUGE lunch buffet for $10.99 (including a beverage and dessert!) or just $13.49 for their dinner buffet, then take home a whole bag of goodies from the bakery for less than $10.

In my family, the Cupboard is beloved for their warm pumpkin-raisin muffins (my absolute favorite), their gooey shoo-fly pie (my brother’s favorite), their sweet and sour salad dressing (my parents’ favorite) and their chicken pot pie with noodles (an all-around favorite).

I know what you may be thinking – it sounds a little bit like the Cracker Barrel. Ugh. It’s not. It’s a million zillion times better — because it’s been family-owned for generations and the Baylors want to keep it that way. Kudos to them for keeping this wonderful establishment growing and thriving!

It’s definitely worth a try the next time you’re on Interstate 80 or Route 15 looking for a hearty meal, friendly customer service, and some homemade chocolate whoopie pies or sticky buns. After all, the pastries alone are worth the trip.