Harvest at The Hotel Hershey

I attended a three-day conference at The Hotel Hershey in Hershey, PA last winter. Part of our package was dinners at the restaurants on site. We chose Harvest the first night because their menu seemed most vegetarian friendly. We went back the second night because they were fantastic and reliable.

Harvest serves mostly traditional American Fare. It is a farm to fork restaurant, so as many as possible of the ingredients are locally sourced and their menu changes seasonally. There are several vegetarian items, and they are noted on the regular menu.

Both nights, our server was friendly and attentive. They asked if we had questions before I could even begin to address my concerns. When I told them I was a vegetarian with peanut and tree nut allergies, they brought me a special allergy menu that listed which common allergens were in every dish and had options broken out by allergy. The first night's server even stayed with us a few moments to help me cross reference my allergies with the meatless entrees to find my options.

Both servers checked with the kitchen to make sure the bread brought to our table had not been cross contaminated, and although I chose safe entrees, they made the kitchen aware of my allergies.

The nights I ate at Harvest, there were two options that fulfilled my restrictions without modification! (In many restaurants, I am lucky to find one.)

The first night, I had cheesy grits over a portobello mushroom cap. It was warm, filling, and delicious. The second night, I got the vegan burger. It was also very good.

Both nights I finished with a raspberry sorbet. It was simple and good. Best of all, I got to order dessert in a restaurant! It is rare that there is a completely trustworthy dessert item when eating out. And the servers admitted that they couldn't guarantee the safety of the "classic Hershey cakes and pies." But the fact that there was something for me was outstanding.

When we got our check the first night, we were amazed again. They had noted my allergies on the receipt, which means it went into their system and the kitchen couldn't forget which table or meal it was. Also, both servers proactively checked the package that the after dinner mints came from to make sure they were safe for me.

Next time we're in the area, we'll be back!