PA Dutch Farmer's Market of Wyomissing

The PA Dutch Farmer's Market of Wyomissing is an indoor market at 845B Woodland Road in Wyomissing, Berks County, Pennsylvania. It operates as a collection of independent, family-owned vendor stands housed under a single roof, with each stand specializing in a particular category of food: produce, meats, baked goods, deli items, chocolates, prepared meals and more. The format follows the long-standing Pennsylvania Dutch market tradition found throughout southeastern Pennsylvania, where growers, butchers, bakers and cooks rent stand space and sell directly to the public rather than operating as departments of a single grocery store.

The market's stated motto, "Where Friends Meet Friends," refers in part to its food court, an eat-in seating area where customers can order from multiple vendors and sit down with their purchases. The building is climate controlled, which allows the market to operate on a consistent schedule through Pennsylvania winters and humid summers without the weather limitations of an outdoor market.

Location and Getting There

The market sits in the Woodland Road retail corridor, a short distance from Olive Garden and positioned between Best Buy and The Shoppes at Wyomissing. It shares a building with The Restaurant Store, in the structure many longtime Berks County residents still know as the former Service Merchandise building. The location places it within easy reach of Reading, West Reading, Sinking Spring, Shillington and the surrounding townships, and it is accessible to shoppers already visiting the nearby retail centers.

Hours

• Thursday: 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
• Friday: 9:00 am to 6:00 pm
• Saturday: 8:00 am to 4:00 pm

Food service begins earlier than the general market opening. Doors open at 7:30 am for breakfast, when coffee, donuts and breakfast pretzel wraps are available. Breakfast, lunch and dinner items are served throughout the operating day. Hours occasionally shift during holiday weeks, including holidays observed in accordance with Amish tradition, so checking ahead before a holiday visit is advisable.

Vendors and What They Sell

Each stand is operated independently, and the range of offerings covers both grocery shopping and prepared food.

• Beaver Dam Produce: locally grown and organic produce, a salad and fruit bar, fresh cut fruit salad, watermelon bowls, fruit smoothies, fresh squeezed orange juice and lemonade.
• Becca's: roughly 30 gourmet Arabica coffee flavors along with espresso, iced coffee, frappes, lattes and loose leaf teas, paired with fresh donuts, fritters and New York style bagels.
• Clover Hill Meats: fresh cut meats and beef jerky made in house, with limited eat-in options at the stand.
• Fisher's BBQ: fried chicken by the piece, smoked ribs and rotisserie chicken platters served with two sides and a roll, plus hot and mild sauces, potato wedges, carrots and red potatoes.
• Lil's Bakery: shoofly pie, lemon sponge, coconut custard and seasonal pumpkin pie, along with sticky buns, sand tarts, whoopie pies, apple dumplings, pumpkin rolls, breads and cakes.
• Meme's: Asher's Chocolates, chocolate dipped strawberries and pretzels, candy and caramel apples, veggie and sesame sticks, chips and bulk snack foods.
• Salads and Desserts @ Smucker's: homemade chicken and beef pies, soups, red beet eggs, egg custard, yogurt parfaits, bread pudding, peanut butter torte, tapioca pudding and prepared salads including layer salad, coleslaw, pepper cabbage, potato, pasta, macaroni and cucumber.
• Soft Pretzel Corner: soft pretzels and pretzel wraps, including breakfast versions with bacon or sausage, egg and cheese, as well as pepperoni, ham and mozzarella, steak with cheese and chicken with bacon and ranch. The stand also serves hand dipped ice cream, milkshakes, root beer floats and fresh squeezed lemonade.
• Stoltzfus Luncheonette: PA Dutch style farm breakfasts served all day, including eggs, omelets, pancakes and hash browns, plus hoagies, pizza, bolis, cheese steaks, burgers, hot roast beef, chicken tenders, fries and onion rings.
• Smucker's Farm Fresh Poultry: white and brown eggs along with local pasture-raised options suited to baking, meal prep and weekend breakfasts.
• The Deli Station: 28 flavors of cream cheese spreads, 25 varieties of lunch meat, more than 50 kinds of cheese, beef snack sticks, hummus, beef and turkey jerky, Kreider Farms milk and Kauffman's apple cider.

The Food Court

The eat-in seating area allows customers to combine orders from different stands into a single meal, so a group can order barbecue from one vendor, a pretzel wrap from another and dessert from a third, then sit together. Customers who plan to stay should ask for "Eat In" when ordering; otherwise items are packaged for takeout. The combination of an early breakfast service and all-day grill items makes the market a practical stop for a morning coffee run, a midday meal or a dinner picked up on the way home.

Specials, Coupons and the VIP Text Club

The market publishes weekly specials that can be downloaded and printed. These are updated on Saturdays for the following week, and coupons rotate among the different vendors during non-holiday weeks.

A free VIP Text Club sends roughly one to two messages per week containing weekly specials, coupons, vendor unadvertised specials and alerts about weather closures or early closings. Many vendors extend a free item or a deeper discount to text club members. Customers join by texting the keywords SPECIALS, COUPONS or UNSTOP to (484) 339-3900.

Practical Information for Shoppers

• Ordering: the market maintains a phone directory of stand numbers and extensions so customers can call individual vendors directly during market hours. Orders are not accepted online or through Facebook, and the market generally does not deliver.
• Payment: an online payment portal is available for one-time credit card or PayPal payments and for creating or managing subscriptions. Individual stands handle their own transactions at the counter.
• Benefits programs: the market does not accept food stamps or WIC.
• General inquiries: +1 610-374-1916.

Why Shoppers Visit

The appeal of a Pennsylvania Dutch market of this kind lies in the directness of the transaction. Cheese is cut from the wheel, meat is cut to order, pies are baked by hand and the person behind the counter is often the person who made or grew what is being sold. The mix of stands also lets a single trip cover a week of groceries, produce, eggs, deli meat, bread and bulk pantry items, while still leaving room for a sit-down meal or a bag of donuts on the way out. Operating only three days a week concentrates that activity into Thursday, Friday and Saturday, which is worth keeping in mind when planning a visit.