Adamstown, located between Reading and Lancaster, seems like a sleepy town. The road that connects those two cities acts as the main street, which to the untrained eyes, look like the usual rusting old American cities with a dying population. This is the capital of antiques shops, where there are dozens of malls, each filled with hundreds of antique sellers. There might be a lot of treasures to be found, but Adamstown is severely lacking in dining options. We saw less than 5 restaurants in town. We decided on Boehringer’s Drive-In for lunch because of its unique name and is supposedly a drive-in. It isn’t a drive-in anymore.
There aren’t many options on the menu, with the usual hot dogs, hamburgers and ice cream. It retains the coziness of a simple restaurant from the 50s, with no service, or tables in the little hut. Orders are taken at the counter, and waitresses prepare the orders before collecting checks. There are a few picnic tables along the creek that runs by the restaurant, but the rain keeps everybody in their cars. The menu shows listings of the hamburger, cheeseburger and “California Cheeseburger”; we found later that the cheeseburger is literally a burger with cheese, while the Californian version has shredded lettuce and tomato. The names might been a thing from the 50s, just like their other weird habits of being cash only and open only during warmer months.
The prices are very cheap for meals that are made to order, but the food themselves aren’t delicious. The patties are not fresh but frozen, hotdogs have been sitting on the roller for god knows how long, and the French Fries taste exactly like McDonald’s. The only tasty item on the menu is the ice cream. Very smooth and delicious. The chocolate almond amaretto taste like almond, while the cookies and cream is lighter in flavor.
If you are hungry, spending a few dollars for frozen hamburgers might not the worst decision in the town that specialize in expensive antiques. I would suggest getting the California hamburger, as the cheeseburger just doesn’t cut it. Definitely get the ice cream, or make them a milkshake, or get a root beer float, made with Pennsylvania Dutch Root Beer. The photos did come out fantastic, which reminds me that nostalgia doesn’t always make things good. That could definitely be said about the whole town.
Visited: August 20, 2018 at 12pm for lunch.
Address: 3160 N Reading Rd, Adamstown, PA 19501
Recommendation: Get the ice cream. Skim everything else.