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.

Yaaaasssss. This is what an Apple Orchard is all about, the apple products. Their Cider donuts are…read morethe best I've had in my travels (two years in a row!) and I've eaten a lot because I've done cider donut tours. They have a really nice crisp on the outside and the taste is so fresh. If you can get a fresh batch, it's even better. They also do Apple Slushies and crisps, all the apple products are super tasty, but the donuts at $1/per are such a good deal. We went real basic and hit up the orchard as well. Really pretty and picturesque orchard, you'll have plenty of Instagram photo ops. Apples are really tasty as well, just made a pie with 4 cortland and 1 mutsu and it turned out perfect. As long as the donuts stay this tasty, will be back every year for them.

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.

Best ice cream in the region. Friendly staff, good value. Attached farm stand shop has some nice…read moreoptions. Goats to pet. Just a fun experience every time.

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.

Great prices and awesome quality food I love their meat bundles always just right. They also sell…read moreeggs and you can actually make your own peanut butter as well.

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.

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.

Great Location, delicious snacks, and beverages. The Halloween walk was a really nice addition…read more (Warning moderate incline but the payout well worth it) Great spot to pop off on a day trip.

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

Visiting Schartner Farms is our family tradition. We just enjoyed our fifth annual trip to the farm…read moreand brought neighbors with us this time. This is a lovely family-run farm. The corn maze is fantastic! Our whole family also enjoys the corn launcher, hay rides and feeding the animals. Schartner Farms is never crowded and the prices are reasonable. The apples this year are great. Oh...and the cider donuts are the best I've ever had!

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.

Great fresh food!!…read more Huge variety of lettuces and veggies. Red leaf is particularly delicious Super nice people working there.

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.

This was my first trip this year to get their delicious apple cider doughnuts. They make them…read morefresh daily in site. I was lucky to get the last pack today. These are typically my favorite cider doughnuts in the area and have been for years. I'm curious it they will continue to be my #1 cider doughnut location after I try other places this year. They have been my favorite for the last 5 years or so..... The ambiance is a cute rustic barn type country store. They have a variety of baked goods and foods as well.....

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!