The biggest buffet in America does not disappoint! Shady Maple is a Lancaster county landmark! We had Salad, Steaks, shrimp, (and veggies) and finished with shoofly pie & chocolate cake! This is my husband's favorite buffet! What people don't usually know is they have a huge gift shop downstairs. It's as big as the entire restaurant which can actually seat thousands of people. If you're headed to Lancaster or in Lancaster County, you have to stop at Shady Maple! read more

i came to shady maple with my boyfriend on a monday for a late morning lunch. one of our favorite activities is seeing how much food we can hork down, so shady maple was certainly appealing at a glance. the space is massive and most of the food is self service, although the service we did receive was super friendly. they have specials every week or so, so we got to experience the sundae bar. when you come here, you really have to implement a strategy. ours was to try a wide variety of foods in smaller amounts than usual. the highlights for me was the fresh fruit and the yams, and the highlight for him was the brisket (i don't eat red meat). most of their stuff is decent! for the variety you get i would recommend it. don't come in expecting michelin-level food though; it's a buffet. my lowlight was probably the desserts. the pies all had kind of a gluey texture to them. my favorite desserts were probably the soft serve and the "dips". the soft serve definitely made the pies more edible. the shop downstairs is really cute and a good way to facilitate the digestion process. i'll probably be back to try the different meals. read more

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Im glad I had the opportunity to explore this establishment with my friend, however im one and done. Its a huge buffet with large dining area's. Picture a huge Golden Coral. My friend and I came during lunch The employees are very nice and they do a good job of ushering away our dirty dishes. They have a no tipping policy as the service fee goes toward the employees etc. Now the real honest truth. Majority of the food is from the can. I enjoyed the non fried fish however it was drenched in oil etc. The grill stations like salmon, NY strip Etc its ok but its not seasoned prior to hitting the grill. For some reason I thought this restaurant would be more Amish style and more homemade. The apple dumplings were the only thing I enjoyed. Dessert are ok. They have gluten free options. Plenty of parking. read more

Basic food but the price is right. Everything is self service - you get your food and drinks yourselves. It's a large restaurant with many places to be seated. We came on a Wednesday I believe which is seafood night. I liked the grills. There were people cooking salmon, steak, etc right there. read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

Had a fun time trying as much as possible at this big buffet. Price is reasonable and you get your bang for your buck here. Most of the buffet is self serve, but there are a couple of stations for food cooked on a grill or prepared to order. Lots of interesting soda flavors and different milks. Plates are removed promptly and the cooks are friendly. Loads of tables here so there was very little wait to be directed to the seating area. Decent quality food for a buffet overall. We also visited the store in the basement to walk off the food, which was quite expansive, and visited the grocery next door. Fun to see the Amish park their horses and buggies in designated parking spots. read more

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I was able to come to the shady Mabel booth at the Bird in Hand farmers market in Lancaster. There was a large variety of items, and this booth had a line compared to others! We could tell it was popular! I ended up trying a Whoopie pie, as I am from out of town, and have not tried them before. It was well-made, although I expected whipped cream instead of frosting as the filling, so that was a surprise! read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - Central Market Stand - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

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Smörgåsbord (noun) is a traditional Swedish buffet-style meal featuring a wide array offering a variety of foods and dishes as hors d'oeuvres, hot and cold meats, smoked and pickled fish, cheeses, and salads. This location is certainly gargantuan size for dinning hall, buffet counters and queuing for payment and waiting for table. The line moves moderately for payment and waiting for a table. There are some benches available for customers who are mobility impaired unable to stand for long times. Senior citizen and children discounts are available. My party experienced authentic Pennsylvania Dutch cooking. It was an experience with an open-mind without judgment. Dinner prices for one adult range $23.99 to $33.99 depending on the time of day, meal, and day of the week. Tax and a 12% service fee are additional, but beverages and desserts are included. Shady Maple Smorgasbord practice penny rounding when meal payment is cash since the initiated and followed by executive directive from No. 47 of the discontinuation for the U.S. penny (utterly despondent). I did obtain my sales receipt which indicate the penny rounding implemented. The sales receipt is attached to a blue slip which upon meal completion customers are to turn over signaling table clean-up. Shady Maple Smorgasbord offers a 20% discount coupon for their nearby gift shop during meal payment. This 20% discount coupon, my party gladly utilized which is a very good marketing promotion to lure customers. Restroom facilities are large with a restroom lounge. The facilities' sink is very modern as it is an "all-in-one" sink golden faucet mechanism: L (soap), middle (water), R (hand dryer). Ergo, no excess soap is dripped on the sink counter for clean-up and no water will be spilled or splattered on the floor. I have never seen this modern sink faucet. I think it is a modern convenience innovation for progress with technology always improving. Shady Maple Smorgasbord's air conditioning is rather weak during our pre-Independence Day 2026 visit as I felt warm during the Northeast heat wave oppressive humidity. The food quality is good and the selection is gargantuan. I wished there were more meat offerings as Ribeye which contains the most flavorful cut of beef. Hanger steak is my default favorite. I also wished for more seafood offerings as shrimp, salmon, Tilapia or striped bass fishes. The vegetables were a good selection. I like the baby carrots which were boiled cooked soft and fresh. The red onions were extremely strong. I wished for Caesar salad lettuce as my default vegetable, but iceberg lettuce was quietly yet noticeably substituted which did not agreed with my stomach. I despise iceberg lettuce. I did not see any chicken. There were abundant baked potato of red skin and home fries. I highly prefer potato au gratin, but to no avail. I have a predilection for chocolate lava cake and soufflé as desserts, but again, to no avail. I was hoping for ice cream as dessert, but to no avail either. Nota Bene: Shady Maple Smorgasbord is family oriented style, ergo do not expect any alcohol. Lemonade, root beer, cola, soda, ice tea, coffee, hot tea, cold water and hot water are abundantly available as beverages. Disappointedly there is no ginger ale soda available as a beverage option which would greatly reduce my anxiety and motion sickness of being in a car for four continuous hours on the road driving. Shady Maple Smorgasbord also has a gargantuan gift shop adjacent on the grounds. This gift shop is old school traditional where tourists and non-Pennsylvanians (like myself) can purchase key chains, post cards, magnets, and T-shirts. Parking is abundantly available and free. Upon promptly exiting our car the air had a high functioning stench of horse manure to high heaven! The noisome horse manure odor emanating from nearby unseen horse stables made it difficult for my party to enjoy the grounds, amid the dangerous excessive heat wave of Independence Day 2026 holiday weekend. We were among the Amish in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. read more

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I'm glad we finally had the opportunity to try this buffet, but I don't think we'll be returning. The highlights for me were the baked yams, cornbread, famous roast beef, fried chicken, and kielbasa. Those were definitely the standouts. On the downside, I was surprised by how small the self-service soft drink cups were--I felt like I needed a refill after just a few sips. I also found several dishes to be dry and bland, including the brisket, ham, and mixed vegetables. The restaurant itself is enormous, which allows for an incredible selection of food. However, because of its size and popularity, the atmosphere felt a bit cramped and chaotic at times. It reminded me of navigating a busy cruise ship buffet--lots of people, lots of movement, and not the most relaxing dining experience. Overall, it was a nice experience to have once, but it wasn't memorable enough to make me want to come back. After all, you go to a buffet for quantity, not quality. read more

Hey friends! My boyfriend wanted to spend his birthday at America's largest buffet. And let's just say we are already planning our return trip! With over 200 feet of food, Shady Maple is an unforgettable experience. From the sweet treats to made-to-order meat stations, this is now my favorite buffet. The made-to-order meat stations feature cheesesteaks, burgers, sausages and steaks! All cooked to your liking, right in front of you, how cool! The buffet bars are stacked with salad bars, seafood, soups, sides, fried food, baked food, you name it! I truly enjoyed the range of options here. There's plentyyyyy to drink. Slushie machines, coffee, soda stations, tea/lemonade, fresh milk from their farms and milkshakes machines! The sweet treats are endless; pies, cakes, build-your-ice cream bowls and more! Customer service: Okay, not super friendly Prices: $33/person on a weekday. Plus free birthday meals! Plenty free parking Atmosphere: family-oriented Make sure you also check their gift shop on the lower level. I hope you enjoy! read more

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I gotta give it a five. It's a well oiled machine from top to bottom. While the food is pretty much all comfort food, the buffet was colorful, well-stocked and clean. My only recommendation is to have someone filling your water cup so that you don't have to get up just to refill it. Bucket list item checked off. read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - View from table 36 - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

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We visited Shady Maple Smorgasbord tonight as a party of 6. It was a breeze getting through the line and after a short wait with the hostess, we were seated and ready to eat. The sheer size of this buffet can feel a little overwhelming at first, so I'd definitely recommend taking a quick lap to scan all the food and drink stations before diving in. There were a lot of highlights: lobster & shrimp bisque, endless salad bar (great variety), strip steaks with mushrooms & grilled onions and fried chicken were all absolutely delicious. We also loved the rice, French fries, baked and sweet potatoes. For dessert, the key lime pie, cheesecake, shoofly pie and ice cream were all hits and the local birch beer was a fun bonus. A couple of low points: the mixed vegetables were undercooked and unfortunately, no one in our group enjoyed the mac & cheese. Overall, a great experience with tons of options; we'd definitely come back. Thank you! read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - Shoofly pie!! - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

Yall- we came all the way from SC and it was so worth it! Highly suggest coming early for breakfast as lines do get long. There is something for everyone- my northern husband was happy with scrapple and creamed chip beef while this southern gal found biscuits and gravy and grits! But the highlight was the donuts! Best I've ever had! My kids loved that they had different kinds of milk and icees, and I loved all of the coffee options. There's a little store downstairs that opens later. So pleased with our experience. read more

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Quite the experience. We came down from Allentown, which was about an hour plus ride and the place was already fairly full at 8am. Nice huge variety of options. Food was average, but we definitely enjoyed ourselves. If in the area again, we would definitely consider returning. read more

This is a prime example as to why humans are the greatest species on earth. To come up with such a flawless idea as this one truly encapsulates the genius in Homo sapiens. The world's largest buffet truly lived up to expectations. I haw not felt this much joyful glee waiting in a line since I was at Disney world. Nay since I was a toddler. The food here made you crave that at home cooking while scratching every desire to fill your stomach as much as possible. If I didn't have things to do after this trip you would have had to roll me out of here with how much I wish I could eaten. Worth the visit. Worth every penny. read more

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I've been yearning for this place for the past 5 years, it's my birthday weekend and I was able to come out and let me tell you. From the service to the food it was top tier! The workers were nice from payment , seating , to handing out food. I haven't been to a buffet since pre covid and this made me feel like a kid again, and the quality of food is amazing because my stomach didn't upset and that's rare. I'll be back for breakfast but yes this is worth my 4 hour drive. Cherry on top is the different cultures there and they had a piano playing which is classy. read more

Food was good but nothing too spectacular as I thought it to be a really massive buffet. The buffet is split into 2 parts which have the same food as the other. There is a grill station that featured burgers (juicy), cheese steak which was disappointing and weird flavor, sausages, corn cakes and potato cakes. The fried chicken was good too. There are dessert options with pies and ice cream. There are lots of seating, staff are friendly, very old retro vibe. No need to tip. Bathrooms clean, and you pay first at the counter and leave once you are done. They have a huge store downstairs, a supermarket behind the restaurant, and a furniture store. read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - Buffet food. - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

All I have to say is RUN don't walk to this place. It is unbelievable. The amount of food options there are-- come with an empty stomach. The service is simple, you pay at the front and then you are seated depending on whether you want a booth or table. We arrived right at 4:00PM on a Friday, so we were able to have the full dinner experience with all the stations. It realllyyyyy fills up after 5, so get here right at 4. The set up is a typical buffet set up-- but the amount of food and stations. Words don't do it justice. I would love to come back for breakfast. Can't wait to eat here again!!!! read more

Everything was pretty good. Nothing too exciting, not really sure what the hype is all about. Most of the food has flavor but it's basic mass produced buffet food. Senior discount starting at 59 yrs old. Fast process to pay and get in. Pay then wait to get seated. Tons of food and dessert options. Monday is steak night. The three options of steak were good. The steak wasn't bad. Relatively tender but way over seasoned so it was hard to taste the actual flavor of the meat. read more

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Jean is THE BEST. She was very friendly and even came back to check on us to make sure we were having a great experience. There's nothing more I can say about how delicious the food is here. It's plentiful and very well prepared. They keep it clean and have a good turnover time. The brisket is rich and tender. Don't fret about how long the line looks. It goes quickly. Go JEAN read more

My wife and I tried this restaurant while passing through town and it was great. The restaurant is clean, all though it's a buffet personal ate at all stations cleaning continuously so everything is kept clean. They had 8 bars that I counted not including the steak and grill areas. They also have every drink available coffee, cappuccino, milk, juice, soda and so on . This is a top notch buffet. The service was excellent although all they do is keep your empty plates removed. I would definitely recommend trying this restaurant. read more

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People hate on smorgasbords for all sorts of reasons. Yes its not 5 star Michelin food (its not supposed to be). BUT it has a VARIETY of food and gives you a taste of Lancaster County. If its your birthday you get a free meal when you go with someone purchasing. To be honest, compared to other Lancaster County Buffets, their price is the most reasonable! I actually prefer their breakfast Buffet, but we recently went for dinner. Tons of seating, we went on a Friday Dinner Rush and it only took us about 10 minutes to get seated. Just some of my top picks and highlights: Steaks made to order Milkshake station The dessert bar Icee machine Potato pie Brown Butter noodles Fried chicken Corn casserole And don't forget the PIE! If you are visiting, just do it and get a taste of Lancaster County! Two huge aisles of food with different items going each direction, check both! Every night has a special, seafood night, steak night, etc...pick your favorite! read more

Horrible food, save your money and don't eat here!!! We were shocked at how consistently bad everything tasted and felt ripped off! Decor/Ambiance: Nursing home. Outdated and musty. Long lines to get in and get seated. Food: Barely any fresh food. We tried lots of food but 90% of it was awful and we couldn't even eat it. Best thing to eat here is the soft serve ice cream and soda... This is a tourist trap read more

The one star is only for the food as service and speed was very fast. The staff was the best part as they were very friendly and provided great direction as it was the first time (and last time) we visit. So the parking lot is massive so it was easy to park and we arrived around 1pm. Our wait was about 20ish minutes from when we hopped online to getting a seat. Very direct process just follow the signs and listen to staff. After we got seated we went up and our strategy was to grab a little of everything and split it so we could try as much as we could. That's when the severe disappoint hit - I'd say 95% of the food either tasted like it was straight out of a can (mostly their dessert pies) or just completely unflavored. My favorite items were the apple dumpling, fried chicken, and the soft serve ice cream. I'd skip all of the grill minus the brisket - steak was dry to a bone when I asked for medium rare, Cajun catfish was extremely off putting, burger was dry and the pizza was just unpleasant. Most of the sides were also just really plain - sweet potato dish was odd tasting, baked beans tasted off, rice pudding tasted like soap just to name a few issues While I know this is on many people's list of things to do, I would not spend the money and listen to the local's for their other recommendations. TLDR; wasn't expecting Michelin level food but also was expecting better than elderly home level. read more

My first time trying this because my wife and mother in law brought me here. We came for lunch and had a great time. First you will stand in line to pay for admission. The. You will either choose a booth or table and stand in line. To be honest this place is huge. You'll have to wait and I hope you don't get behind a tourist bus crowd. We were lucky and say relatively quickly. For beverages there is soda, water coffee, tea and slushies. The salad bar is big and there is a lot of things to choose from. I got a small salad and a shrimp soup that was very good. For a main course I chose the brisket which was kinda dry but still tasty and had a great flavor. My side was a crab potato au gratin which was imitation crab meat and didn't taste good. The other sides I got were great. I went back for some chicken wings, some buffalo and some chili flavored. They were basic and ok but not anything to write home about. For dessert I had chocolate cake with a whipped frosting that was insane. Just a friendly notice, this isn't fine dining. Other customers were just rude and will just reach around you to get things like we live in some third world country. All the people that work there are amazing and so nice. Funniest part was people who came and just got hot dogs and hamburgers and then left. I'd go back they next time we visit to buy meat but I wouldn't go out of my way to experience it. read more

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So my husband heard about this place from a coworker so we finally tried it with his family. This place is gigantic. There was so much seating & parking & the building was huge. We got there around breakfast so we got to try a little bit of breakfast before they transitioned to lunch. It wasn't super busy on a Thursday at 10am but as we stayed there, crowds started coming in at around 11:30am. There was a lot of sides and desserts but not many pescatarian or vegetarian options since the cuisine seems to be more meat heavy. As for the food, nothing was amazing but nothing was bad so it was average all around. But the staff was nice and the food was pretty consistent for having so many people each day. read more

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2 stars: I tried scrapple for the first time. Either it wasn't good for what it can be or I just don't like scrapple no matter where it's made. The baked hash brown casserole was very underwhelming. 3 stars: Bacon and sausage link was fine. I would expect both to be this good from any reputable buffet. 5 stars: I loved the omelette station (egg whites and all the veggies; no cheese). The hash brown wedges were pretty good, as was the French toast. And they had 100% pure Vermont maple syrup Overall, good value but overhyped. To get the best bang for your buck you gotta know what's good for your tastes and load up your plate on those items. So, pretty much like any buffet. read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - French toast, egg white omelette, fried hash brown wedge, baked has brown casserole, sausage link, bacon, scrapple. - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

The largest buffet in the country. I saw this place on YouTube and added it to my bucket list. I was in Allentown, PA and decided to drive an hour to experience this firsthand. Ambience - the place is HUGE. From the outside, it looked to be the size of a Costco warehouse. I'm told that the seating capacity is 2000 people. The decor is oddly similar to Old Country Buffet but 20 times larger. There were about 10 buffet stations and 4 grill stations. We came on a Saturday night and it was about a half hour wait to get seated. Food - it was a really large variety. The ribeye steak was surprisingly good for a buffet. I was partial to the pot roast and fried chicken. The desserts were a hit, especially the apple cobblers. TL/DR: it lives up to the hype in terms of size and variety. As long as you set your expectations accordingly (I.e. this is a buffet, not 5 star steakhouse) you can't go wrong for $30. Should definitely visit and experience it if you are ever in the area. read more

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This definitely blew every other buffet I've been to out of the park, due to size and variety but also quality. The place is huge and I don't think I got to try everything but I really enjoyed the steak off the grill and the local fountain soda flavors like white birch beer. It was my first time trying it. Came during dinner on a Saturday and there was a small wait, but definitely a lot of people. Definitely worth the try as a tourist. read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

We had a wonderful visit at the largest smorgasbord in the country. I watched several YouTube videos to understand how things worked. There is a chance you will wait in a long line just to pay for your meal. Everyone in your party must be present before you can be seated. We arrived early for lunch. I was able to pay for our party before we were seated. While we waited for one of our guests, we visited the gift shop and looked at all the displays in the front area. I signed up for the free shopper card which earns points for every dollar spent. An employee in the gift shop suggested to redeem the dollars earned in the stores. Since we will return, I'm going to keep collecting points. Use the card when you shop and eat. If you arrive between breakfast and dinner, you might get to sample the remaining breakfast items that haven't been swapped out yet. The lunch crowd gets full. There are approximately 2,000 seats in the dining areas. The servers are nice about explaining how things worked. Take want you want. Eat what you take. Use new plates every trip. We wanted to try as many Amish dishes as we could. The corn, stuffing and stewed tomatoes were wonderful. There are so many food stations. Meat and fish are cooked in front of you. The salad bar has many toppings. The vegetables take an entire section. The dessert area has ice cream, pie, cookies and cake. Make sure you check out each area. I was excited about my vanilla shake but then I discovered the pumpkin ice cream. It was delicious. There are multiple drink stations. The condiment areas have lots of items. Try the Amish butter. There are fun photo opps outside. We saw mums and pumpkins for sale. The front lobby has a small flower counter. Visiting early was convenient. We arrived before the lunch crowds. When our full party was together, we bypassed the front line and entered the seating line. Your receipt reserves your table. This was a wonderful experience. I look forward to a return visit. The gift shop is downstairs. read more

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This place is humungous.... Very country old fashion buffet experience. The variety of food is literally everything you can imagine from classic Turkey dinner style to pastas fried chicken/fish jerk chicken cheesesteaks pizzas salad bar dessert bar with all types of puddings and pies an ice cream station different grill stations.. make sure you go hungry and it seems to always be busy it's was around 2:30pm on a Friday and there was a line for a table but fast service. I can imagine it gets even busier definitely a good experience. There's a huge gift shop on the lower level. read more

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Stopped in with the family to have lunch. Let's just say you have to go here hungry! Cause it's a lot of food and the food is delicious. The kids had a great time here and of course eating all the ice cream they wanted and desserts. Service is ok it's big and can get crazy packed. So might be slow getting something at the table. The decor is old but that's the charm of the place. Also down stairs they have a huge shop. Go check this place out. read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

This place was better than I expected and worse than I expected. First, they do a great job at moving people. You enter the line to pay first and then enter another line to get seated. Their system works well in moving as many people as possible and as fast as possible. Quite efficient. If you see a huge line, it's not as bad as it looks. If you have 5 or more people, they put you in a different line to be seated. There's also two different lines to be seated. After paying, if you stand in the left line, it's for a booth only and the section isn't that large. The line to the right is booth and tables and that one moves faster. Second, they gave a level 2 charger in the parking lot that charges 10 cents per KWH for Teslas on a Saturday night. Convenient and we got 15-20 percent from parking to leaving. Okay, now the ups and downs. The variety of food is quite large, but it's not as large as you think if you compare it to Vegas. They do have repetitions from one end to the other end. So although it's a large place and it appears like they have a lot, it's smaller in variety than expected. The quality of food is better than expected. The NY strip was soft and tender. The salmon was well cooked and the sauce was good. The cat fish with Cajun rub was quite delicious and the smoked brisket is so soft and tender and delicious that we both agreed that it was better than ordering it at a BBQ specific chained place. I focused on the items on the grill and they were delicious and the people handling the grill were super nice. For the price, the items on the grill made it worth it. They are heavy foods and I filled up quite quickly. We left satisfied. read more

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Friends have told me for years to give this place a shot. I finally got around to it. The place is huge! Make sure you check out all the food before you decide to fill your plate. There are so many choices you could easily miss something by filling up early. There is a gift store downstairs that is also well worth the visit. read more

Good quality food with a lot of variety. This was our first visit to Shady Maple, even though I've lived in Central PA a good portion of my life. We went for breakfast and overall we were very impressed.  Service was prompt and friendly as the whole organization of the place operated like a well oiled machine. The first thing that stood out was the cleanliness of the place and serving areas.   They also provided plastic gloves to use while serving through the lines, if you wanted.  The food was good quality and was very tasty! Having lived in LasVegas for several years, we became accustomed to the mass produced buffets there. Fortunately, the quality of food being served at Shady Maple surpassed many of the Vegas buffets.  I would definitely recommend stopping by Shady Maple. read more

Drove here from NJ for Lancaster trip and was anticipating our lunch here, left underwhelmed. 3 Adults for Lunch on a Saturday -$97 , pretty costly for a buffet that served food equivalent to salty trash. They shuttle you in like the cattle in nearby fields, lines in the front followed by more lines to get seated, felt like I was going to be in escorted to the grill to be prepped for consumption. Everything was salty, tough to chew, canned style vegetables (more salt). I should have known better what to expect with a buffet style meal but had high hopes the quality of food would be better, reminds you of school lunch / cafeteria crap. Not worth the price. The gift shop was massive and had lots of "gifts" or items to buy for yourself. Don't waster your time coming here for lunch, go somewhere else that is local and better quality of food. Also the waitress was picking her teeth and digging in her mouth in between clearing off used plates/cups from tables. The soft serve icecream machine was the best part. read more

Shady Maple Smorgasbord - Front entrance - Do-It-Yourself Food Near Me - East Earl, Pennsylvania

This was pretty fun for dinner. More like an experience + dinner. It's a big buffet - the novelty itself is worth it. But I was driving through PA and had to check this out and it is a whole Mecca in the middle of cornfields. There are 2 separate buildings in the front for every consumer and grocery good you may need on your way out, but towards the back is the star of the show. Get ready to wait in line, but they have the logistics down pat. The line moves quickly, pay includes soft drinks and gratuity, then a second line to be seated, then you're off. Check out everything before grabbing a plate so you don't fill up and miss something. A lot of the food is regional, so pick something more unique if you want to try something new. There are also grill stations for steaks, fish, and hamburgers. Getting this cooked to order is a great place to start. This place was packed on a Saturday, but there are repeated stations so nothing was ever empty or had a line to get. I do have to give a nod to the coffee machines: they had an English coffee cappuccino I had to get 2 cups of even when I was getting full. There is also a local soda machine (Tractor), juices, milk, a milkshake machine in addition to regular sodas. The desserts feature all sorts of pies. The shoo fly pie is traditional for the region, but I actually thought the Boston cream pie was the best one. They also have a section of gluten-free desserts if needed. Downstairs is also a massive gift shop, so leave time just to roam through. I wanted a little souvenir that said Shady Maple on it, and a nice cashier pointed me to the right area, which was super helpful. There is a lot of cool items here that you could do all your holiday shopping in one place. There aren't a ton of high value items here, but the food was good, even though it was packed, things moved slowly, and it was fun navigating all the stations. The price was also only like $30 a person max on a Saturday night, but it's cheaper on other days. That's not bad for a meal and drinks at any other establishments. There is also horse parking outside if you need to hitch your wagon to a post. read more

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Incredible! Decided to stop by here at Shady Maple after going on a trip to Lancaster PA with my family and the food and drinks here were very good quality with many options to customize just about whatever you felt like having. The ambiance of the buffet was very inviting and helped create a nice sense of comfort. My family and I loved this place and the prices weren't bad either. I hope to definitely get the chance to return here at some point! read more

It's been on my bucket list because it's touted as America's largest buffet, boasting 200 feet of buffet offerings, with many Pennsylvania Dutch style dishes, and can simultaneously feed 2,000 people. Upon arriving at the place, I must admit it exceeded my expectation. This gigantic banquet facility is lavishly furnished and decorated. I was immediately drawn to the many 3-D carvings hung on the wall. Oh, and look for the impressive Giant Cuckoo Clock towards the banquet hall! The check-in/cashier area is larger than any Las Vegas buffets I've been to. Luckily we went for a Wednesday lunch, and we were spared of the full wrath of crowd and long lines. Lunch for adults are $19.99 each, or $23.59 with taxes and automatic 12% tips. Once you paid, the immediate seating line is for booth only, or you can go towards the right for table and booth seating. The former seat you closer to the buffet but you may have to wait longer; the latter is more popular so line is longer but you get seated faster. The amount of dishes is indeed impressive. Make sure you visit the 3 grills first which is located in the back by dining rows 1 & 2. There you'd find the "star" dishes for the day. There are 10 long freestanding stalls of buffet foods. The drinks and desserts surround the stalls at both sides and both ends. There are additional offerings that are detached from the main buffet area: Extra Thick Milkshakes, Slushies/ICEEs, and condiments stations. I counted and there were 26 condiments sat on the 20+ feet counter! Some of the more unique or surprising offerings during our visits are: Stuffed Pig Stomach, Crab Cakes, Fried Oyster, Ham Balls, and Chicken Croquettes. The choices for drinks are out of this world. Any kinds of fountain drinks and juices you can think of, they've got it, including White Birch Beer, Nitro/ Cold Brew Coffee, Kiwi Strawberry Juice, Sarsaparilla, etc. Soft serve ice cream with full topping bar where you can enter a contest for making impressive sundaes. I've never had Black Berry and Strawberry soft serves before today. Countless dessert choices, and I was told to and did ask for the Lemon Meringue Pie and they brought out from the back for me. And they are known for donuts as well - look for the Cookie & Cream Donuts! While the vast selection of foods was impressive, we felt the quality was unfortunately not equally as impressive. By and large, most of the dish were below my expectation in terms of taste. The Fried Shrimps and Ham Balls did raised my eye brows, but not much else did. That said, this place is absolutely worth a visit. Though in the middle of nowhere, it is an impressive operation on and of its own. You can spend an entire afternoon there - after your gluttonous deed and admire and decors of the banquet halls, you can visit the big gift shops downstairs, and the Farm Market on the backside of the parking lot. PS. And don't forget to say Hi to Ray at booth #49 who has been coming for 40 years. read more

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My brother's family took me and my son here because they said we must experience the experience. And so we did. Come wearing your stretchy pants & loose clothing. Don't dress up, you'll stand out. Be patient and ready to follow the rules of entry... line up like cattle. Start thinking about all the food you could ever want for brunch and make your strategy. It's a buffet. A huge buffet. The food is good and you have to have a moderate tolerance for other people also wanting food. Slow down, make sure you chew. Wash it down with water, coffee, chocolate milk or ice cream. Watch the people, because the people watching is good. I had fun but I'm fairly sure they lost money on me because despite all my strategizing, I only had 2 small plates of food. I guess I'll have to come back to try the rest! read more

Food is great and you can eat till you are full Not eating the day that you go here Is the way to make sure you get your moneys worth