Longacre’s Modern Dairy Bar

Dairy farms abound in this part of Pennsylvania, and Longacre’s has been milking cows since 1920. Adjacent to the dairy is a modest-size dairy bar where you can sit down in a booth or at one of four counter stools and enjoy your choice from a repertoire of homemade ice cream dishes including floats, sodas, banana boats, cake rolls, and sundaes. Milk shakes are superb, available in any flavor on the ice cream board, and the supreme creation is known as a Garbage Sundae: ten ice cream scoops, ten toppings, whipped cream, and a cherry in a 32-ounce goblet. Our personal favorite sundae here is a Dusty Road: chocolate syrup and malt powder over ice cream.

Longacre’s little eating area – a short counter and a handful of booths – opens early enough for regulars to come for coffee and an egg sandwich. (Sandwiches of all kinds are available at lunch time.) The waitress assured us that it is not uncommon for the doors to open at dawn for customers who grab a booth or a stool at the counter and order up a cookie dough sundae or a CMP (chocolate marshmallow peanut sundae) for breakfast. Humankind’s fundamental need for excellent ice cream is a craving that cannot be controlled by the hands of a clock.