Absolute five-star experience. Definitely a little bit out there but we went on a Saturday early…read moreSeptember and it wasn't too bad. They do apple picking on the hour most days. It's all listed online and very user-friendly. We showed up around 1130 and wandered around. Picked apples at noon. Then had some live music at one. Very well planned and I'm proud of the way we did it. If you're driving from Asheville, old fort is a great stopping point. We got cinnamon rolls on the way there and Hillman on the way back. It did look like this Orchard had some very affordable barbecue on site. Tons of snacks in the gift shop too. The parking lot was pretty big and they have extra parking. The staff was super kind. I love that it's a nonprofit and there's tons of educational pieces. You will find a bunch of maps and other displays. They have a bee and caterpillar to stay for kids and adults alike. The gift shop. Also both a lot of local crafts like candles, ciders, and honey. No drinking on site. The apple picking is around back. You can get a little bag or two sizes of a basket. We opted for the bag because there is no reason for us to keep a basket around. For eight dollars it's all very affordable. It got us about 12 big apples. The trees are well marked. For picking. It is lots of space for wandering. Definitely not in the shade so it's pretty hot. For me, I really like the extra things that this place had. Cornhole, checkers, Jenga... They usually have bands on the weekend too.

My husband, our 8 year old daughter and I were excited to head up to the orchard at Alta pass…read moreyesterday! We've been apple picking at a couple of the orchards to the south of Asheville, and wanted to check out this nonprofit orchard near Spruce Pine. When we arrived we were pleasantly surprised to see that the crowd was reasonably sized, and we could walk around without feeling pushed and prodded. But the pleasant surprise ended there. We headed around back where we purchased two buckets for apple picking at $15/each. They were small buckets that could fit, we were told, 4-5 lbs of apples each. Okay, fine. But it was not until after purchasing the buckets that we were placed into a very touristy feeling group, and told that we'd be picking "these small and ugly (..."but delicious!") green apples. Huh? No one is going apple picking for just green apples. Are you kidding? The guide proceeded to inform us that as we walk through the orchard we absolutely, positively, should not pick the red apples because they "aren't ready and will most certainly give you a tummy ache". What?!?! Okay....still on board but feeling a little less excited. Then we start to walk toward the orchard. With a giant group of people. At a veeeerrrryyyy slow pace. And then we have to wait on a few stragglers. Seriously excruciating by this point. Finally, as we get to the orchard, the guide tells us to look for the trees with pink ties on them, an ONLY those trees. In fact, pay no mind to the beautiful red apples surrounding you on all other sides - they are not ready! No matter how they look, do NOT eat those apples! But then we are off and looking for the promised green apples....which I kid you not are almost completely picked over! My 6'5 husband could barely reach the apples, and definitely not me or my eight year old - we can only watch in horror as our husband/father scavenges the tops of the trees for "ugly but delicious green apples" on the trees to our right, while simultaneously trying to ignore the beautiful red apples on the trees to our left. I seriously felt like Eve in the garden of Eden..... And then, we noticed that everyone else in our group was feeling the same way. Then one daring person took a red apple off a tree and took a big, juicy bite from it. Gasp! I thought we'd all be wearing fig leaves and trying to hide from one another in the next instant. But lo and behold....no tummy ache. Just confirmation that the red apples were, in fact, ready to be picked (and further confirmed by the mounds of ripe, red apples also falling from those trees). The whole thing was ridiculous, and by the time we headed out of the orchard it was a big joke. Everyone was picking the red apples and putting them on the bottom of their baskets, and placing a few green apples over the red ones in hopes of looking less guilty. We all concluded that they just wanted to get the ugly but delicious green apples out of the orchard. On the way in/out of the orchard there is a cute little building that is a "cafe". We were excited to try the pulled pork with apple bbq sauce, and some fresh homemade cider! But yet again, when there was an opportunity for this place to shine, it was a huge let down. We ordered an apple cider and a green apple lemonade, which also sounded like it had the potential to be delicious because it MUST be made with ugly but delicious green apples from the orchard! Nope. It was Country Time at best, with a couple shots of Torani Green Apple syrup splashed in the bottom. The pulled pork was gross (though, granted, in this area we have high standards for pulled pork), and not cooked in the bbq sauce but rather placed on the bun and then a little sauce was ladled onto the meat, leaving the bun wet and soggy. The apple cider was apple juice, probably from Ingles. By this point, while we had planned to go purchase some goods inside, we were done. This business has SO MUCH POTENTIAL. The setting is bucolic, and the weather was perfect. I don't know who is running it, but since it's a nonprofit I took a look at their 990 and it seems like they are probably just too dependent on a volunteer board. I don't know, but I think this could be a true gem up in this area. Unfortunately, it just falls short. We'll see how my apple crisp turns out - I'll try to update my review when I find out.

Grab the friends and kids and hit the mountain farms! This one needs to be on your list. Live music…read moreand tasty pizza will be on the agenda for you, as well as a stroll through the flower garden or sunflower maze. Stunning views of the smoky mountains and ample seating for everyone. The produce selection is exactly what you would expect, what's in season and a few good jarred items.

Decided to take the family to pick some berries, and we made out like bandits! Easy parking, easy…read moreinstructions on how to go about everything, and yummy goodies inside. Will be back!

I went to pick blueberries this morning and was happy to have found Heritage Hillar Farmstead…read more I arrived about 9:30 and was greeted by the owner J.C. He explained where to pick and asked me to just look where I step as many branches were so heavy with berries they were in the ground. I took a bucket and went to pick. The bushes are full of many beautiful berries ripe and ready to be enjoyed. I spent about 45 minutes picking big berries and had no problem filling my bucket. J.C. Was very personable and even offered cold water if I got hot. We chatted for a bit and when I mentioned going home to bake and make jam he offered me his pound cake recipe using peaches with the blueberries! I gladly took his recipe & he was not wrong! It's delicious! I'd happily go back.

As a once great President said before taking on invading aliens, "We will not go quietly into the…read morenight." And in my understanding, I will not take any bullshit. Some might say to just let it go, but when silence is kept, and accountability is not called for, people will continue to be kinda horrible. Thus begins our blueberry picking story. In '22 we visited HHF with our homeschool group. Rows of blueberries, sheep, chickens and ducks and even a cute little swing to keep our gaggle of children entertained. It was a pleasant day and we decided to make it a yearly occurrence. July of '23 we picked blueberries, Old Farmer even helping out the parents as we picked. The kids had long since abandoned the boring task of picking in the hot sun and had retreated to the front yard full of shade trees, Redbuds to be exact. We filled our buckets and headed out. The next day I open Facebook and see pictures and complaints of damaging homeschoolers and their parents who were ignoring them chatting in the blueberry rows. Extremely confused, I see that one of the redbud limbs had a giant crack in it and there were leaves all over the ground. Obviously Old Farmer was upset so my fellow moms and I crafted an apology message. That was completely ignored and the response was basically the kids are destructive brats and he won't allow homeschool groups on his property any longer. 1. The kids were playing on a tree, for that limb to be able to crack so easily, it must be unhealthy. If the kids were as horrible as he portrays them they would have heard the crack and continued to try and break the very thick branch off fully. Instead, they left the tree alone because they realized the problem. 2. There is a confederate flag that greets you, waving proudly. Take that as you will. 3. He had already made up his mind that a group of kids are trouble. As they were watching the chickens one of them squawked loudly and instantly he scolded the kids. When in fact it was one of the ducks coming up that scared the chicken. 4. He complained about his kids and grandkids to us moms as we picked, that they didn't know the meaning of hard work and that they sold their share of the land and moved away. The problem here is that instead of coming to me directly (he had multiple ways to contact me) he decided to take his very passive aggressive complaints to his FB page and followers saying "I could say more." Very cowardly. What proceeded then was a pile on of how our generation lets our kids do whatever they want. Children are not allowed to climb trees or play with leaves. They need to be seen and not heard. No longer do children have safe spaces to explore, play and make mistakes. Instead they are seen as destructive little monsters. The "snowflake" generation is raising kids to be empathetic, kind, and recognize how to process their emotions. I will gladly take the title of snowflake if it means I am raising emotionally mature children, not ones who cowardly and cryptically vent to their friends. My reviews were in the open so that when this happens to another family they will know they are not to blame. I write this review to give some insight into the type of person Old Farmer is. There will be people with glowing reviews (ours was last year) and then there are reviews that show the true nature of an Old Farmer. If you wish to blueberry pick there is Cloud 9 Farm in Fletcher- Her blueberry rows are triple the size of HHF.

We had really good comfort food and our server was awesome! Highly recommend this restaurant!read more

Some attractions sell an experience…read more Some sell a product. The Apple Barn Cider Mill somehow manages to do both. What started as a simple stop turned into one of the more enjoyable experiences of our trip. The star of the visit was our guide, who took us on a cider journey through the various flavors and offerings. She was friendly, knowledgeable, patient, and genuinely seemed to enjoy what she was doing. She answered questions, explained the differences between the ciders, and made the tasting experience fun instead of feeling like a sales pitch. And since there's a chance she might somehow see this review: Happy 40th Birthday! Sorry I forgot your name, but your hospitality certainly wasn't forgettable. Now let's talk about the cider. Excellent. There was a large variety of flavors available to sample, making it easy to compare styles and find a favorite. Whether you're new to cider or consider yourself a seasoned enthusiast, there's enough variety here to keep things interesting. After sampling our way through the lineup, we wound up purchasing a glass of the original apple cider and enjoyed it outside. And honestly, that's where the experience really came together. Sitting outside with a fresh cider in hand, playing cornhole and Jenga, enjoying the atmosphere, and slowing down for a little while made for a genuinely relaxing afternoon. No rushing. No crowds pushing you along. Just good cider and good company. We also picked up a growler to bring back to the hotel because one thing became very clear during the tasting process: leaving empty-handed would have been a mistake. The Apple Barn Cider Mill does a great job creating an experience that's welcoming, fun, and memorable without feeling overly commercialized. Great cider. Great staff. Great atmosphere. Five stars. And judging by the growler currently waiting back at the hotel, I'm already looking forward to my next visit.

Great meats, love visiting the farm store for many reasons. Fun atmosphere, nice staff, great…read moreselections. My only complaint is the customer service for pre-orders and CSA. Not the best, but if you are persistent it's worth it. Hard to get a hold of people and orders are often not at the market when they're supposed to be, or there's miscommunication. Some staff seemed confused on the CSA pick up protocols, but overall a great place.

I loved this place! A beautiful & friendly area, I stopped here for a fundraiser event benefitting…read morefarms & conservancy. Shopping in HNG for pumpkins, jam, drinks, and artisanol ice cream from Marion NC was a real treat. The bags to select a variety of apples and the seriously varied meat selection look amazing, unfortunately as I am traveling thru I could not purchase these. The private event area -- open barn style -- is one of the best I've seen. A huge area with stage & light strings, it has a big dance floor and a great kids play area full of tricycles. Outside there is a giant rope web and large "sliding ducts" for more play space. Get a pumpkin and book an event!!

I'm not sure why other people were having issues with service because when we went, we were treated…read morewell. The employees are probably tired and even on a weekday it was pretty busy. I imagine they are probably fed up dealing with crotchety self righteous old people (who seem like the largest population of patrons). They had some really awesome bakery items and we got a half gallon of cider for a really great price. The donuts are absolutely delicious and I highly recommend getting some - I enjoyed the fritter as well, but preferred the donuts. My boyfriend also tried the chocolate chip, peanut butter, and macadamia cookies and thought all of them were great, but especially loved the peanut butter one. Honestly, they have some great prices for it being all homemade, made from scratch. Lots of pie options and even jarred jams and butters as well- easy parking and accessible Like a mini farmers market in one spot. I recommend a visit and get some apple cider!!

The products are great but the staff are not very nice most of the time…read more It's fall and stopped by to get some apple donuts and apple fritters which are consistently good. Also decided to get a apple cider slush. So yum! Will still return even though the staff would be a reason not to.

Went in for a preview and came out with some great fresh kale and lettuce. Guy admitted it was…read moreCalifornia grown but its dead winter here and there were tons of local products...even milk and chicken. I'll be back. Prices not bad!!!

I found this place through the ASAP Connections Local Food Map. They're open all year, with lots…read moreof basics like meat, veggies, eggs, and fruit. During growing season I'm told they stock a good deal of the fresh produce from their own farm. I found some varieties of beans I'd never heard of before, like cranberry beans and yellow-eyed peas. They've got some other things like you'd find in a standard grocery store, like PET milk and a few varieties of juice. The space isn't too fussy - concrete floor inside, a dirt and gravel parking lot. It's clean though, and they've got shopping baskets and plastic bags for carrying fruits and veggies. The prices are at least comparable to a chain grocery, if not better on some items. For example, their eggs are between $2 and $3 per dozen. Feels like what a farm market should. I'll be going back regularly.