Anyone who has driven around the agricultural towns of Pennsylvania can recall the slow, painful car drive behind a horse-and-buggy on a one-way road where you can’t pass. At that moment, the Amish families only fuel my rage. However, when I went to visit Sowers Harvest Café, the Amish families only fueled my body through their delicious breakfast meals and coffee.
As a café that is entirely run by the Amish, all food is purely home-grown and deliciously fresh. The coffee is a locally roasted blend from friends of the owners and does not only make your tastebuds dance, but also makes your heart warm at the knowledge that the coffee was ethically sourced. Sowers Harvest Café has an extensive menu, so it is difficult to explain exactly what food options are available other than that they offer breakfast and lunch that is full of nutrition and love.
When it comes to the drink options available at this café, the only word that comes to mind is, “overwhelming”. Not only do they serve delicious espresso-based drinks, lattes, and regular roasted black coffee, but they also offer an extensive list of cold drinks, such as iced coffee, and plenty of teas that one can have in diverse forms, such as lattes or frappuccino’s. Something that pulls Sowers apart from other coffee shops around is their offering of Saku drinks, which are superfood lattes with nutritional value.
Sowers offers many add-ins, such as locally-sourced milk, almond milk, macadamia milk and multiple flavoring syrups to choose from. All add-ins are at no-cost, except for the almond and macadamia milks, which is a mere $0.75 to add. In relation to this price, the price of one 12 oz regular black coffee from their locally sourced brew is only $2.00. Considering the sustainability factors of this coffee, the price is much more a bargain than most of the places I have critiqued so far. It is not expensive, in any sense, and is helping make Penn State a more ethical community.
Moving on to the ambience and location of Sowers, I absolutely adore the design of this café. It is similar to Elixr in its warmth, but simply feels more familial. It perfectly encapsulates the Amish style and its very obvious that it was designed with love and welcoming. There are stone walls that were perfectly paced in the design to add some flair, as well as dark maroon walls contrasted with light and dark wood furniture. Definitely a place that fits the ideal college coffee shop vibe. I am not sure how well studying or homework would go there, other than that it greatly depends on the day and time of the visit. When I went on a Saturday morning, the line was out the door and there were very few tables to choose from. However, I’m sure on more boring days of the week, such as a Monday or Tuesday, Sowers is not nearly as packed.
The location of the café is not necessarily perfect and is pretty far from the majority of residential areas. It is on the far East side of downtown and is pretty deep into the area, rather than right off campus. For those who live in West, North, or off-campus housing in the West side of downtown, it is quite the journey to get to Sowers, yet extremely worth it. While there is always the option to order pick-up from Sowers, another pro of the café, it i s certainly more of a sit-down restaurant where students can enjoy the atmosphere with family and friends, especially if you’re a student who has to make the long trek. 
Sowers Harvest Café is definitely a favorite visit of mine so far, and not only because their food and coffee were delicious. The workers and environment of the café were lovely and welcoming, and I simply felt at peace in the restaurant. If you have not taken the time to set up a visit to Sowers, I beg you to do so. Enjoy the healthy meals and locally-sourced blended coffee with friends and family, and indulge in the Amish culture for a few hours.