Tag Archives: Central PA

Gettysburg’s Growing Culinary Scene

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New: Ribeye breakfast sliders marry breakfast and lunch on mini croissants at Christine’s Cafe, Gettysburg

“The most famous small town in America” is gaining a reputation as one of Pennsylvania’s new culinary hot spots. Gettysburg not only boasts a thriving downtown restaurant district, but an abundance of outlying, rural restaurants dotting the surrounding agricultural landscape.

Gettysburg’s growing reputation as a mecca for foodies is thanks in great part to the talented chefs locating to the area. I had the pleasure of interviewing two of the newest chefs in town, for two magazine articles, both published this month (October 2017).

Bon appetit!

At the Crossroads of American Fusion: Christine’s Café in Gettysburg, Susquehanna Style, October 2017 – with photography by Jen Foster, The Premise Studio

 

The Parrot: A Colorful History & Bright Future, Celebrate Gettysburg, Cover Story, Sept/Oct 2017 – with photography by Casey Martin, Casey Martin Photography

Continue reading →

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Introducing TheBurg

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Harrisburg, PA

By Karen Hendricks

Central Pennsylvania is one of the most unique media markets in the country. That’s because unlike most markets geographically focused on one city, the Central PA media market combines four cities clustered together, along with additional medium-sized outlying towns. Often called “Hilly,” for its acroynm of HLLY, the area encompasses the capital city of Harrisburg, along with Lancaster, Lebanon and York.

Each city has its own unique personality, yet together the cities of HLLY form the heart of central PA–a region where urban landscapes give way to rolling farmland, where technology and tourism merge with manufacturing and agriculture to form the top industries.

My career, geographically speaking, has come full circle. I began my work in the HLLY market by living and working in Harrisburg in 1993; a recent move back to the Harrisburg area after 22 years in the York/Adams region feels like a homecoming of sorts.

So I consider it an exciting honor to begin writing for a Harrisburg-based publication that I’ve admired for its quality of writing and journalistic integrity for a long tme, TheBurg.

I hope you enjoy reading my first two pieces for TheBurg, with links below:

Born to Run: Fred Joslyn takes his love of running around the midstate, across the world (TheBurg, August 2017)

Hoppy Trail: Best of the West Shore featured in the Cumberland Valley Beer Trail (TheBurg, July 2017)

Al’s of Hampden in Enola

 

Susquehanna Valley Staycations

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By Karen Hendricks

A “staycation” is defined as “a vacation spent at home or nearby,” according to Merriam-Webster. Here in the Susquehanna Valley of Central Pennsylvania, there are infinite possibilities for summer staycations, saving traveling time and shrinking vacation budgets, with the added benefit of seeing our hometowns in a new light. In fact, some of the state’s top tourism destinations are right under our noses. Continue reading →

Carlisle: All-American Spirit and History

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Colonial-style China, featured at 1794 The Whiskey Rebellion, Carlisle

Colonial-style China, featured at 1794 The Whiskey Rebellion, Carlisle

By Karen Hendricks

As we celebrate Presidents Day, here’s a piece of Pennsylvania-themed presidential trivia:

Only one president has ever acted as commander-in-chief of troops in the field. Which president? What was the situation?

Answer: President George Washington acted as commander-in-chief of troops while staying in Carlisle, Pennsylvania for a week in 1794 when he organized federal suppression of the Whiskey Rebellion in western Pennsylvania. That’s because Carlisle was Washington’s choice for the location of our first arsenal and school for the U.S. Army.

These fascinating facts relate to two stories I recently covered for two regional magazines. Both stories are based in Carlisle, a quaint, charming historical town that also features a fun, hip vibe.  In 2015, Carlisle was named one of America’s Top 100 Best Small Towns in 2015 by Livability.com (Carlisle came in at #16). Continue reading →

Introducing the Ice Man

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ernie-dimartino-img_0937

Ernie DiMartino

By Karen Hendricks

Despite the cold temperatures, a handful of outdoor winter festivals thrive, mainly due to the warm, welcoming central Pennsylvania communities in which they’re hosted. Organizers say warm community hospitality is the key to shaking off the winter blues during Chambersburg’s IceFest, January 26-29, or the Lititz Fire & Ice Festival, February 17-20. Both celebrations feature fantastic ice sculptures lining downtown districts, free or low-cost admission and a festive spirit woven throughout community-wide events.

Click here to read my latest story for Susquehanna Style magazine, Frozen Fever: Ice Festivals Bring Warmth to Winter in Central PA (January 2017). Continue reading →

Culinary Travels: Christine’s Cafe, Gettysburg

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Farmer's Benedict

Farmer’s Benedict: featuring house-made Bacon Jam

By Karen Hendricks

For Chef/Owner Keith Lowman of Christine’s Café, Gettysburg, life has been a journey across America. That 35-year journey is reflected in his cooking, infusing his menu with America’s favorite and iconic regional flavors.

He describes the menu at Christine’s Café as “American fusion,” bringing culinary creativity to breakfast, lunch, and dinner. “American fusion is a combination or fusion of ethnicities combined into one workable dish,” Lowman explains. “Kind of like the way our country is, a melting pot…Having a sense of adventure about new flavors is what American fusion is all about.”

Learn how his journeys shaped the menu at Christine’s Cafe, Gettysburg, PA in my latest restaurant review for Celebrate Gettysburg magazine: Christine’s Cafe: A Melting Pot of American Fusion. Continue reading →

Embracing “Nerd” Status

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nerd-herd-9

By Karen Hendricks

The term “nerd” is thought to have evolved from the 1950  Dr. Seuss book, “If I Ran the Zoo.” Today, “Merriam-Webster” defines “nerd” as “an unstylish, socially inept person; one who is slavishly devoted to intellectual or academic pursuits.”

However, a group of eight Gettysburg teenagers are not only embracing their nerd status, but also promoting it via a successful downtown shop, Nerd Herd Gifts & Games.

Click here for my latest freelance writing piece, “The Nerd Herd: Downtown Gettysburg Shop Takes Fun & Games to a New Level,” published in the Sept/Oct issue of Celebrate Gettysburg magazine. And go behind-the-scenes with photos I snapped during the writing of the story, below. What a great group of kids–check out their unique shop the next time you’re in downtown Gettysburg, PA! Continue reading →