I decided to take a short drive towards Bolton to see the fall colors and visit this farmstand…read morebefore they close for the season (reopening next summer). As they are famous for their peaches and apples at the local farmer's market, I really wanted to see the orchard itself as well as have an in-depth chat with one of the owners, Alan, who I got to know when purchasing their amazing produce. They have a really cute farm stand with lots of pumpkins and apples around this time of the year. You also have the option on going apple picking in the orchard and see how the different apples are grown. Alan, who usually doesn't take people on a tour around the orchard, showed me around and explained all their operations throughout the year. It was really eye opening to the farming industry around this region (compared to California where it never stops). Picked up some apples and cider, enjoyed the fall colors before driving through the back route where you can see the Boston skyline from quite a distance. Definitely recommend the non-touristy experience here.

If you are looking for a good old fashion Apple picking, this is your place! 3 different bag sizes…read moreand prices. They also have peach, plum and pear trees too! Staff is super friendly! There is no fancy donuts or anything like that here, just apple picking with some tables around the property to stop for a water break or maybe a snack.

Stopped in for a cider donut with friends while on a bike ride. Great selection of warm pastries…read more We had just beat the rush so the service was quick. I can imagine it was going to get a lot busy when we left as we saw a ton of cars pulling in.

This is a nice, low-key orchard that is family friendly and has all the standard apple picking…read moreamenities. It was $30 for a smaller bag and $40 for the larger bag of apples if you pick your own which was a little more expensive than I expected but they did have a free wagon ride to the orchard. I also got some donuts which were pretty cheap and very good and they had farm animals which were fun to see. I ended up getting the smaller bag which held enough apples for me to make an apple pie, apple crisp, and still have around 8 apples to eat!

The best spot for ice cream! We are always happy with our ice cream after a trip to Rota's. A…read morepersonal favorite is the graham central station -- It's a graham cracker based ice cream with chocolate crunch candy. It's so good! Service is usually teens and they are all so kind and hardworking. We have always had a pleasant experience.

Waited in one of two ridiculously long lines for 15 minutes. In that time we only saw ONE person…read morewho received ONE ice cream cone. After seeing the lines not move for 15 minutes, we bagged it and went to a homemade ice cream place (which was also very busy) that served at least a dozen people in less than five minutes. Rota Spring Farm operates at a ridiculously slow if not a dead stop pace. No thank you.

We supported a different farm for our bulk grass-fed beef for many years but decided to switch to…read moreKalon Farms last summer because they were closer to us and because the other farm, while having fantastic quality meat, weren't the best at butchering. We tried Kalon beef a number of times by buying from their storefront but finally decided to buy half a cow. It took a couple months to finish off the previous cow we'd purchased before getting to the Kalon cow but immediately knew something was wrong as soon as we tried our first steak. There was a subtle "off" taste to it. Over the next month or so, we tried multiple different cuts and all the ones with any fat or marbling had the same issue. The leaner cuts were mostly okay. I reached out to Kalon using the form on their website. No reply. I reached out again via email. No reply. I was very clear that I wasn't expecting a refund or reimbursement of any kind because I knew it had been a few months. I just wanted to inform them and ask if anybody else had reported the same issue. Still nothing back from them. Eventually, a few months later, I remembered that I still hadn't heard anything back so I called and asked to speak to someone in charge. They were super sarcastic on the phone. It started with "Are you sure you bought from us? I don't even recognize your name." It progressed to "Many people complain about the taste because they don't know what real grass-fed beef tastes like; it's not like store-bought meat." It ended with "We had another complaint a few months ago but our owner took the beef home and ate it all and it was fine." I went there three days ago to drop off the over 240lbs of what remained. Around 80lbs of assorted steaks and cuts. Around 20-30lbs of roasts. Around 100lbs of mince. Around 30-40lbs of bones, tallow, organs, etc. I was very polite to the person at the desk (it's not her fault, after all), we were respectful of the space and brought everything back in cooler boxes and placed them neatly inside. I handed them a letter (pic attached) and included my phone number in case the owner wanted to call me back. Still zero response. There are a few other reviews online complaining about the same "off" taste but there's seemingly always some sort of excuse as to why it's the customer's fault or that the customer just doesn't understand what good beef tastes like. I also saw some posts about their farming practices, stating that their animals were feeding on what used to be dump grounds. I didn't see that for myself so I can't comment but it was worth noting that it's being said by more than just a few people. Personally, I've accepted the loss of, literally, thousands of dollars of meat. It would've just been the professional thing to reach out to me at least once to discuss the matter. Instead, I get complete radio silence. I included a pic of the email I'd sent and the letter I left. I also included a comparison pic of Kalon's mince to the mince from my previous farm. Theirs looks extremely pale and anemic in comparison. It also doesn't match what they sell in their storefront. I suspect their storefront gets meat from their healthy cows but bulk orders are not from the same batch but, obviously, that's purely speculation so take it for what it's worth. I have no evidence one way or another but the discrepancy in quality between bulk and storefront is visible/tastable.

I have ordered twice from them. The first order was OK but the second had several thawed meats. I…read morehad to dispose of a couple and the others I cooked right away. When I called they denied this ever happening in the past. I followed up 3x no offer of refund or replacement. I asked for a manger or owner twice but only got a young woman who sounded overwhelmed and was useless. I will never order from them again.

This the apple picking site for Bolton Orchards…read more Basically, the farm is up the hill behind the store. 250 acres of orchards, and they grow some nice varieties of fruit. It's not anything but an apple picking site.

Great place to take little kids. The hayride is fun and very reasonably priced at $3. There is a…read morecorn maze for the kids and farm animals as well. I thought the best part was the man who gave some great info on the cows. Two of the cows followed him around and the kids loved that. Also, we went on a Saturday in early October and it was not crowed at all.

Always go here for the apple cider donuts in the fall. By far the best donut in the area. Plus the…read morebakery section has a nice selection. Fresh apple dumplings are always amazing

I thought I give the apple dumpling a try. It's like a small apple pie not too sweet and tarty…read more Nothing special so I would recommend skipping it and just have the apple cider.

Wow! What a fantastic day picking apples and working our way through the corn maze. Lions Club's…read moredoughnuts were delicious as well. Not over crowded, plenty of friendly faces. Strongly encourage everyone to give this local farm a go.

Really enjoyed our visit to Schartner Farms today. We didn't go for apples, since we knew they…read morewere out of them anyway due to a late spring frost and a recent storm. We came for the corn maze and pumpkins, and were not disappointed. Ambiance: Loved it. The scenery was beautiful and there weren't too many activities other than the corn maze, pumpkin patch, a corn-launcher, shetland pony, and some llamas & goats. The drive there was gorgeous, especially just down the road where you get a view all the way to Boston. I loved the winding, shaded country roads up to the farm. Corn Maze: The maze was great. Very challenging if you try to not use the map. Even a bit challenging with the map. Four acres, so it's big, but not too big. Pumpkins: The pumpkin patch was just on the other side of the corn maze, and there were plenty of pumpkins to choose from, both small and large. Unfortunately the wet weather was causing some to rot on the vine, but many were still in good shape. Service: Everyone was very friendly, and it wasn't very busy when we were there (3:45 pm to 5pm). The maze cost $10 for adults, and pumpkins were only $0.50/lb. Seriously, $8 for three pumpkins? Whooo! They also had a few food items, including hot dogs. I'd definitely recommend this place, even without the apples. Can't wait to go back next year when there are apples.

The product is overall great. The only problem I had was rotten raspberries with little white worms…read morea couple times. In all fairness, I never informed staff of that issue. The other produce has been beautiful and very reasonably priced. They take Snap and accept the HIP benefit, which is great. Most of the staff I've dealt with have mostly been cordial, pleasant and helpful however there is one person who is, well, by no means rude, but maybe curt is a good description? She certainly isn't warm, and every interaction I've had with her leaves me with not a very good feeling. It's hard to describe, but I'll give today's example, and you can judge the situation for yourself: I shopped around and brought my items to the counter, including produce and a cider. I asked the staff in question if she could add up the total so far. I told her I'm going to get more items. She must have recognized me, or at least the situation, as a Snap/HIP transaction, and told me the cider is not included in the 40$ HIP allowance. I thanked her and told her I know. I shopped around and brought more items to the front and asked her if I had grabbed a cider (because I forgot-and I actually meant the individual cider, because I wanted to get one if those too, so my bad I guess) and she said yes and again told me the same mini speech about how it's not included in HIP but Snap does cover it. Okay so I get I forgot I brought the cider/didn't get the little cider but she literally just told me it's not included in HIP. I did respond, yes I understand and I did hear you the first time. She told me a lot of people complain about that. I told her I'm not complaining, I understand. I mean it's not this like rude situation but it's just not a pleasure to deal with her. I'm not sure, but I think she's an owner. And now personal opinion based: I do feel it could be a situation where I'm being looked down for using Snap. I hope I'm wrong there. I personally feel that in my situation, Snap helps me a lot as someone on disability (I have cancer and kidney disease and would love to work, and am looking to start soon, but for the time being, this service truly helps) Again, I hope I'm wrong, but if anything is true in what I'm feeling here, not cool. You accept Snap and HIP, you're getting paid the same as anything else. Some more grace may be needed. There are a couple of lovely country stores down 117 in Bolton (Bolton Orchards and Deli and Bolton Spring Farm). They are so welcoming at both these places. Time slows down and it just makes me want to listen to Hank Williams and slow down a bit. I'm not sure if they take Snap or HIP, but it is a real pleasure to go to both those places. Go to Harper's to grab great produce, not for a gamble shot of good service.

Very nice farm stand that is well stocked with the freshest produce. It is my most favorite place…read moreto shop, plus they accept SNAP and can process my HIP benefit.

I've driven by this place a million times when on my way to my bestie's house in Lancaster & have…read morealways wondered "what's inside?" So about 2 yrs ago I had asked my bestie about this place & she took me there. I was visiting her on Monday for the night so on my way home to my Mom's house on Tuesday I stopped in here to pick up some apple cider for my Mom's boyfriend & to grab some apple cider donut's for them, me & another best friend. I do find this store to be expensive but they have lots of things in here. Frozen foods, drinks, apples, premade meals in their refrigerated area, candy, snacks, jelly's, dips, desserts, produce (etc.) & a counter where you can get something made there to go or you can eat it there in a small seating area. Their bathrooms are outside. Give yourself plenty of time if you're going to stop in here because there is soooo much to look at!

This is the place!…read more Cozy country stores down with all the fixin's! They have a deli and they make sandwiches to order. The store is filled with all kinds of goodies and variety you'd expect in a good country store. I made myself not look around too much because I would have bought a lot. There drinks selection is a dream. I picked a Dr. Pepper tall boy. I ordered my sandwich then went to the front to pay for it while it was being prepared. There was an older man with a lady checking out before me. The cashier was engaging in conversation with the gentleman for a bit, it was lovely. It was real , again lol, country stores down vibes. I didn't mind waiting at all and rather enjoyed it. They have an apple orchard and pumpkins and many varieties of apples, cider, deli items, boba kits, wachamacallit and other harder to find candy bars, gourmet popcorn. So much more. Highly recommend this place.