Taste and tour Amish country, just an hour north

There’s a new food tour in town — well, actually just an hour outside of town — where foodies can learn about Amish life and cuisine. Simple Life Amish Tours in New Wilmington, Lawrence County offers “English,” or non- Amish people, opportunities to tour Amish haunts.

June’s inaugural “Taste and Tour Amish Country” tours sold out, so they’ve been added to the docket regularly. Susan Hougelman, former owner of The Tavern on the Square in New Wilmington, and her husband, Joseph, bought a 15- passenger sightseeing van. This spring, they began offering tours that stop at Amish homes and businesses.

The Taste and Tour Amish Country tour stops at an Amish grocery store, bakery, produce stand, quilt shop and farm/ greenhouse. Tours start at Ms. Hougelman’s former restaurant, where many tourists like to enjoy a meal before or after the tour. The tour winds its way through the back roads of Amish country between Volant and New Wilmington.

“People wouldn’t find these places on their own” because they’re hidden away along country roads and in unmarked buildings, Ms. Hougelman said. Many of the businesses are attached to Amish homes, and tourists have the opportunity to meet Amish families and learn about their way of life. The businesses are typically lit with oil lamps and are not “touristy,” so people get to see what life is really like for the people who run the businesses, Ms. Hougelman said. At each stop, Amish families prepare and distribute treats for their visitors, such as homemade noodles, whoopie pies and doughnuts.

In fact, doughnuts were the catalyst for this particular tour, “So many people love Amish doughnuts,” Ms. Hougelman said, noting their popularity gave her the idea for a tour focusing on Amish food. “People will stand in line for an hour to get them. On this tour, they don’t have to stand in line, and they can see right where they’re made.”

The tours are small and intimate, capped at 13 people, plus Ms. Hougelman. Taste and Tour Amish Country is offered three times on each of the Saturdays it’s held.

The next tours will be at 10 a. m., 12: 30 p. m. and 3: 30 p. m. on Saturday, Aug. 3, and then again at the same times on Aug. 17. Groups of 10 or more can also arrange tours at other times. The tour costs $ 39 per person and lasts about 2 ½ hours. Tickets are available on eventbrite. com ( search for “Taste and Tour Amish Country”). More information is available at simplelifetours. com/ tour- amishcountry or by calling 724- 9239730.