Adventure Buddy received a gift card to Thistle Finch for Christmas last year, and somehow we'd…read moremade it all the way to OCTOBER without using it. Apparently we hadn't spent nearly enough time adventuring in Lancaster this year! But when a beautiful mid-October Saturday evening found us wrapping up a full day of Lancaster adventures, we decided it was FINALLY time to put that gift card to work.
I'd checked out the menu beforehand and noticed it was fairly small, but there were several things I would've been happy to try. We found a parking lot directly across the street with plenty of available spaces, then walked over to the modestly marked building and entered through an open garage door.
Inside, a sign welcomed us and instructed guests to order food and drinks at the bar. There were about ten people at the bar and nobody at the handful of surrounding tables, so we claimed a high-top toward the back where we could take everything in.
Adventure Buddy ordered his usual Old Fashioned ($14), while I decided to step outside my comfort zone with a Grape Transfusion Vodka Seltzer ($7). I'm not usually a vodka seltzer girl, but CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. And I'm glad I did because it was REALLY good! Adventure Buddy was equally pleased with his Old Fashioned, especially because it was made with rye instead of bourbon. We were off to a fantastic start!
For dinner, we decided to split two dishes: Dutch Fritters ($14), made with hot sausage, ground beef, sauerkraut and onions, breaded and fried with mustard and tzatziki, and the Blackened Shrimp Salad ($18), featuring mixed greens, vegetables, goat cheese, blackened shrimp and house pineapple vinaigrette.
While we waited, I discovered one of my favorite things about Thistle Finch. THE OPEN KITCHEN. We could see the cook preparing our food from our table, and I was genuinely impressed by the attention and care he put into everything. Watching him carefully plate each dish with precision and pride was such a refreshing experience. It wasn't just food being thrown onto plates and sent out the door. He was clearly putting his heart into the presentation, and I loved getting to witness that. When our food arrived, it looked BEAUTIFUL!
The Dutch Fritters were larger than I expected and absolutely delicious. The hot sausage and sauerkraut were the stars of the show, and although the tzatziki was a little more cucumber-forward than I personally prefer, everything worked together nicely.
Then there was the Blackened Shrimp Salad. OH. LAWD! There were approximately six to eight LARGE blackened shrimp perched on top of a beautiful bed of greens. I meant to count them, but apparently my appetite had other priorities. And that house pineapple vinaigrette?! HELLO! It started with a wonderful burst of pineapple flavor before finishing with a surprisingly strong vinegar kick. Sweet up front, tangy in the back, and somehow exactly what the salad needed. I loved it!
Between the cocktails, fritters and salad, our total came to around $60. Thanks to Adventure Buddy's Christmas gift card, most of that was already covered, making our Saturday evening dinner an especially affordable little adventure.
What stood out to me most about Thistle Finch was the combination of a relaxed, unpretentious atmosphere, genuinely good food and the care that went into preparing it. The menu may not be enormous, but everything we ordered was thoughtfully prepared and beautifully presented.
PRO TIP: If you're visiting for the first time, remember that you order at the bar rather than waiting for someone to come to your table. And if the kitchen is open while you're there, grab a seat where you can watch the magic happen!
Would I return? Absolutely! If we find ourselves back in Lancaster looking for an easy, enjoyable dinner and a good cocktail, Thistle Finch will definitely be in the running. And apparently the secret to finally using a Christmas gift card is simply waiting until you've almost made it to NEXT Christmas. Better late than never!