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Taste Pa. Dutch at a cozy family restaurant

Daily Record/Sunday News

Article Launched: 02/14/2008 09:52:15 AM EST

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Sheila Kells has been a waitress at Meadow Hill Family Res´taurant for 16 years. Owner Ari Mantzavas said many of his morning servers have been with him as long as he has been there 19 years.<br />· <a href="http://w2.ydr.com/forms/sendPhoto.php?photo=32339">E-mail photo</a><br />· <a href="http://ydr.mycapture.com/mycapture/lookup.asp?originalname=013108-BIL-MEADOW.jpg">Order photo reprint</a><br />

At bottom: · Meadow Hill Family Restaurant

Feb 14, 2008 — It's long been a mission of mine to order hog maw on the menu of a local restaurant, and it's never worked out.

Hog maw requires hand-stuffing a pig stomach with loose sausage, diced potatoes, cabbage and spices and slow cooking for three to four hours. Most restaurants have it as a special on the menu a few days a week and I've never caught it on the right day.

On a recent Sunday, I hit the pig-stomach potluck. Meadow Hill Family Restaurant in Springettsbury Township had the dish.

I sat myself in a booth near the window, which happened to be in the smoking section. The restaurant is decorated with soft colors - peaches and light greens - and unique silver lights with metal tassels. It was quiet, only a few couples occupied booths for early dinner.

Before I looked at the menu, I ordered a coffee ($1.20). I browsed the

menu that was full of Pennsylvania Dutch delights to please any hungry traveler and then I spotted it. Hog maw with two sides for $7.95.

Oh no. I already ordered a coffee and if I left at least a 15 percent tip, I was over my $10 budget. I panicked. I might have to settle for a burger and fries for $5.95. But my heart was set on hog maw, and I just had to have it. Then a thought occurred, rules are made to be broken, so I indulged.

I smiled wide when I ordered the hog maw with salad and pickled beets. I decided if I was doing it Dutch style, I should go all the way. When you eat out as much as I do, it's really hard to try new dishes or find something that jumps out. Meadow Hill Family Restaurant's hog maw made my life easy.

The meat came out spread across an oval plate, two large slices and one small slice that was the end piece. It didn't look at all like what I imagined, but it tasted awesome. I didn't think about what I was eating, just how long I had waited to try it. The loose sausage was tightly packed around cabbage and diced potatoes. The light spice and smooth texture made every bite enjoyable. It had a light, slow-cooked taste that was hard to resist. I ate the stomach. Some people do, some people don't. I thought it tasted really good.

Owner Ari Mantzavas has owned the restaurant for 19 years. He cooks, too. He said hog maw is on the special menu a few days a week and, if it isn't, he probably still has it. He prides himself on serving four or five homemade soups a day and always having daily specials that he makes from scratch - no canned foods.

“I don't advertise,” he said. “It's all by mouth.”

His banquet room is a daily meeting space for businesses, church groups, parties and anniversaries. People enjoy the food and service so much, they come back for a meal.

“Everybody knows me,” he said. “I like to treat the customers good.”

My final total with a $2 tip came in at $11.70. I know. I broke the rules, but it was soworth it. Mantzavas said lunches range in price from $3.95 to $6 and dinners start at $6.95, so it's definitely doable to eat for less than $10.

Reach Nicki Lefever at nlefever@ydr.com or 771-2101.