DUTCH HAVEN
by Brad Igou
Dutch Haven
Visitors have been
coming to Lancaster County by
traveling Route 30
for literally hundreds of years. But for over 60 years, a very
special building has signaled their arrival in
Amish Country. It’s been around long enough
that folks tell their grandchildren about it. It
has a claim on being the area’s oldest
visitor landmark. Most importantly,
it’s the “place that made shoo-fly pie
famous.” That building is the landmark Dutch Haven windmill, with its
revolving arms still beckoning travelers to stop and come inside.
With a history that goes back to the
very beginnings of tourism in the
county, the building is rich in memories
both for visitors and for local residents.
One local who has a warm place in her
heart for Dutch Haven is Lois Schrock,
who has worked at Dutch Haven for
many years. She talks about the place
as she would a relative of the family.
And she is glad that the structure has
been preserved, and that those famous
shoo-fly pies are still being made and
sold there.
Dutch Haven opened, without the
windmill, in the early 1920’s. At that
time, it was a small luncheonette, and
continued to operate as such when the
new owner, Roy Weaver, purchased it
in 1946, and Dutch Haven’s life as a
full service restaurant officially began.
The fame of the restaurant grew with
his wife’s delicious shoo-fly pies, an
unusual dessert that was new to most
people who stopped by to eat. Indeed,
shoo-fly pies were virtually unknown
until Dutch Haven opened and served
the pies warm, topped with whipped
cream. Meanwhile, Roy topped the building
itself with its famous landmark windmill.
Tourism first started to grow in Lancaster in
the 1940’s, and since many visitors came from
New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia, they
drove right by Dutch Haven, and stopped in
to have some of the legendary pie. And who
knows? Maybe Doris Day or Dinah Shore had
even stopped by prior to their recording of the
song “Shoo-Fly Pie and Apple Pan Dowdy,”
a song also recorded by Stan Kenton and Guy
Lombardo.
As tourism traffic increased, so did the
restaurant, with buses paying visits into the
1970’s. The restaurant menu featured such
items as the “Distleburger,” named after the
“distlefink,” the Pennsylvania Dutch bird
which is a symbol of good luck. Of course,
there was also chicken corn soup, sauerkraut,
“bot boi” (pot pie), pork BBQ, lettuce with
warm bacon dressing, and perhaps the favorite
dish on the menu --- Amish-style turkey
filling. The gooey shoo-fly pie was still “the
thing,” says Lois, and the dessert was even
Ahhhhh! Shoo-Fly Pie!
mentioned in a TIME magazine article. The
menu encouraged diners to “Take one for
yourself or send one to someone nice.”
But then business started to decline, and so
did the property. Saving it from an uncertain
future, it was purchased by the current
owner, Paul Stahl. By 1993, the interior had
become a craft cooperative. Even though the
restaurant no longer operated, the shoo-fly
pies that were the key to Dutch Haven’s fame
were still being made with the same famous
recipe. At that point, Lois came to work at
Dutch Haven. “My interest was to help to do
4 • Amish Country News • October 2008 • AmishNews.com
whatever needed to
be done to get it up
and going again.
I am grateful to
Paul for buying the
property because of
my interest in the history, the building, and
the place.”
Gradually, the store expanded to what it is
today, specializing in Amish furniture and
over 10,000 unique gift items and
collectibles. Fortunately, the walls on
the inside of the windmill still contain
many of the original decorations and
paintings from the “old days.” The
paintings were by an artist named
Vince DeHaven, his last name being
an odd coincidence to say the least!
Other reminders of Dutch Haven’s
past remain as well, including the old
mailbox painted with Pennsylvania
Dutch designs. You’ll also see the big
barrel, informing visitors that “genuine
Amish style root beer” is available.
Now filling what were once restaurant
dining areas, are rooms bursting with
over 10,000 items. You’ll find one of
the best selections of primitive Amish
pine furniture --- corner cupboards,
pie safes, chests, and shelves are all
available. Gift and decorating items
rang from Amish woodcrafts to jams
and jellies, potholders to copper crafts,
and T-shirts to stunning pottery.
I asked Lois about the famous pie,
which she passionately feels really
is the best shoo-fly. It is difficult to
argue with someone who has sampled
as many different shoo-fly pie recipes
as she obviously has. While the
ingredients to these pies are often
similar, Lois feels it is the unique
combination in the Dutch Haven recipe
that makes them so good. Try and find
out what the recipe is, and you won’t
get very far. She stresses that even people who
say they don’t like shoo-fly pie discover that
Dutch Haven’s pies are delicious. Apparently
so, since between 40,000 to 50,000 are baked
there annually.
Many people make Dutch Haven a stop on
their regular visits to Amish Country. One
man said he took his first shoo-fly pie home
and ate the entire pie in one sitting! Another
visitor tasted the sample and asked what it
was. Lois said simply that it was shoo-fly pie.
The visitor responded in shock, “Why it can’t
be. I don’t like shoo-fly pie!” Over the years,
a frequent visitor to the weekly Manheim
Auto Auction was also a frequent visitor
at Dutch Haven to pick up a pie. And
you can send a pie to yourself or a friend
virtually anywhere in the USA. They
hold up quite well, and taste like they’re
hot out of the oven after a little warming
in the microwave.
I decided to put the above comments to
the test. First, I took a pie to some friends
who are not fans of shoo-fly pies, but I
encouraged them to give it a try. All three
of them did, and told me in great surprise,
“This is the first shoo-fly pie I’ve eaten
that I really like.”
Next I wanted to send the pie to someone
We Always Welcome Visitors With a Free Sample
I knew liked shoo-fly pies, my uncle
of Shoo-Fly Pie.
and his wife in Florida. It was a simple
phone call to Dutch Haven and off went the
pie. They loved it, and told me that even the heat up the charcoal in the “pit” and get the
delivery man commented on the pie as he was wood smoking. Woods used may be maple,
dropping it off. It seemed he would have liked apple, or hickory. The meat gets rubbed and
to have been the recipient, or at least been smoked for as long as 12 hours. It is then
sliced and ready to pile onto the bun. The
invited in for a slice!
yummy sauce isn’t added until the time of
Just a couple years ago, food returned to the service, and the sauce I had was wonderful.
Dutch Haven menu. Just behind the windmill
is Jakey’s Amish Barbeque. Barbeque By the way, Jakey’s offers three different
meats and sandwiches are local favorites at sauces to choose from --- mild, spicy, and
markets and auctions. Amish picnics often Carolina vinegar --- all adapted especially
feature barbeque chicken. Local volunteer for the restaurant. Remember, you can also
fire companies host pork BBQ dinners to get turkey and chicken pit BBQ. If you can’t
raise money. But as a visitor, the likelihood of decide which BBQ to order, there is a sampler
your being able to eat at one of these events platter with a quarter pound each of
is limited. What to do? Why drive on over to three meats of your choosing.
Jakey’s any day of the week. (Yes, they’re Besides salads, burgers, Nathan’s hot
open Sunday. See back page for hours.)
dogs, Philly steak sandwiches, and
We’re talking real pit BBQ. The smell of the other items, the smoked beef pit chili
smoke hints at the taste to come. You may have sounded good to me. And the French
to wait a little for your sandwich --- it’s not a fries are not the frozen variety, but
fast food restaurant --- but you’ll be getting hand cut, crispy on the outside and
the “real deal.” I tried a generous sliced beef tender on the inside. As they like to
barbecue sandwich with a delicious sauce. say, “At Jakey’s, we make it from
And the ribs made my mouth water when scratch.”
they arrived. A couple from the Carolinas You’ll also find other Lancaster
also enjoyed a pork BBQ sandwich while I County favorites, such as corn fritters,
was there, and the gentleman said he ate it funnel cake, chow chow, chicken corn
“from the inside,” because he liked the meat soup, pot pie, pork and sauerkraut,
so much!
and root beer floats. I especially
liked the potato
They start with fresh meats, of course, using
salad that was
local suppliers whenever they
one of my sides.
can. They then
Naturally, Dutch
Haven’s
world
famous shoofly pie
is available by the
slice.
Jakey’s is not a fancy restaurant, but
an informal spot where the prices are
not “fancy” either. And if you prefer,
you can also order food “to go,” in
case you’d rather take it home or back
to your hotel.
So, whether you visit Dutch Haven
for some serious shopping, to sample
the pie, to try some great BBQ,
or just to see the historic building
itself, you’ll be discovering a part
of Lancaster County’s history. When
you walk in under welcoming arms
of the windmill, you be encouraged
to try a free sample of “America’s
best shoo-fly pie.” And like many
visitors before, you will probably
decide to “Take one for yourself or send
one to someone nice.” After all, it IS the
place that made shoo-fly pie famous!
At this time of year, Dutch Haven is open
7 days a week, 9 am to 7 pm Sunday
through Thursday, and until 9 pm Friday
and Saturday nights. Jakey’s BBQ is open
from 11 am. For more information, about
this Lancaster County landmark, call (717)
687-0111, or go shopping and send a pie
online at www.dutchhaven.com.
Shoo-Fly Heaven
America’s Best Shoo Fly Pie
A 1957 Advertisement For Dutch Haven
Don’t Miss
Jakey’s Great
Barbeque Right
Behind Dutch
Haven!
AmishNews.com • October 2008 • Amish Country News • 5