As Halloween is rapidly approaching, it always helps to ring in the holiday spirit by telling spooky stories, watching scary movies, throwing Halloween parties, or whatever else you may do to get spooky-fied.
In order to help all you foodies out there get into the Halloween spirit, I thought I’d tell you all about the two times I’ve eaten at one of the most haunted spots in America.
For all you history nerds out there, here's a little background information: The Farnsworth House Inn, located in Gettysburg Pennsylvania, originally housed Confederate sharpshooters during the three-day Battle of Gettysburg. With hundreds of bullet holes poked through the walls, the home later served as a hospital after the short battle.
Now on to the food. The Farnsworth House Inn serves traditional food from the era of the Civil War, taking patrons back in time to a day in the life of a soldier. With dishes like Goober Peanut Soup, Pennsylvania Dutch Chicken Pot Pie, Sweet Pickled Watermelon Rinds, or the house specialty, Game Pie, there is something for everyone to take a trip back in time.
If you're not brave enough—like myself—to try something like the Game Pie, no worries, there are more modern dishes too. Their menu is pretty small, but you will be sure to find something you like. Plus, they have the BEST bread and apple butter.
Besides the phenomenal food, another factor that makes this restaurant such a gem is the decorations and the employees. For starters, when the server first brings out your bread and pickled watermelon, they're served on silver plates, or the customer is given silver flatware to serve it to themselves.
The game pie is also served in a deep silver metal dish as well, also complimenting the Victorian style furniture that decorates the dining room. Additionally, the employees are dressed up in clothes that fit the time period—suits, ankle dresses, bonnets, the whole nine yards. It truly feels like you're in a time machine.
Now onto the SPOOKY. Both times I've eaten at the Farnsworth House Inn, I've had some creepy experiences. The first time I ate there is when I was 13, and I also took a tour of the building as well.
In the dining room is was cold in some spots, and warmer in others (just a side note: every time I've been here it's been on blazing hot summer days), I would look around for air conditioning units, but I could never seem to explain why it felt so cold. On my tour however, I heard LOTS of creaking floorboards when we weren't moving, and just in general lots of in-explainable sounds. When I returned again this past summer, it was eerily cold upon entering and in the dining room, giving me the feeling it wasn't just my friends joining me for dinner.
If you ever have the chance to go to the Farnsworth House Inn, definitely do it. It's worth the trips and the scares.