I can only review the soup and salad bar. Â The rest of the menu may be great, but I wouldn't know. Â Coming into the restaurant which has a great atmosphere younthink you are going to get some great home cooking. Â You would be wrong. Â
As for the soups, the chili tasted like it was out of a can. The chicken noodle was very gamey, and the vegetable was so,so. Â All were luke warm. Â
The salad bar was very blah, nothing special. Â The croutons were stale. Â The fruits were from a can also. Â And like another reviewer said, nothing was labeled, not even the dressings except for low-cal on one. Â Same for the soups. Â Annoying.
The honey butter "spread" was the best thing on the salad bar as it saved the tast of the so- so bread. Â But even it wasn't real butter.
There were tons of waitresses standing around but we finally had to put our plates on the table next  to us in order to get rid of some items. Â
So, all in all...salad bar worth about half the 9.50 price and service was nothing to rave about. Â We won't return.
The setting for The Barn is pretty slick; an old school barn with a scenic view of a big pond is really tranquil. The decor and how the servers and hostess were all dressed in period milkmaid-type dresses was interesting too (though I'm sure they probably hate it).
The menu consisted of plenty of appealing options, but not many of the healthier variety. I could have gone with the grilled fish (pretty sure it was tilapia, but can't remember), but instead I opted for the soul and salad bar. The $2 discount on it for the winter months helped along my decision.
The lettuce was crisp and fresh, and there were the standard things you expect to see at a typical salad bar, but nothing that really grabbed me. Also, nothing was labeled!
For soups, they had five different types ou, but I can only guess what they actually were because again: NO LABELS! My best guess: beef & vegetable, chicken noodle, ham & bean, chili, and cheesy broccoli. I tried the beef & veggie first, and it was easily the best (also, the only one I had seconds of). The rest were rather non-descript. Cheesy broccoli never found its way into one of my bowls though, too cheesy for my latest attempt at eating healthy.
Plus side: bathrooms were spotlessly clean. Overall it was a decent meal, but nothing I would make a special trip for. I would love to give a 2.5 star review, but since that's not possible I'll go 3, based on the good service I received.
My daughter, my boyfriend and his daughter and I went to The Barn for lunch today. Â The girls and I opted for the salad bar but my boyfriend, since he ate earlier, ordered a piece of pie with ice cream. Â The pie was served to him cold. Â He asked if it could be heated up and the waitress took it back saying, "I thought I heated it up." Â Now I have been a server before and you should never argue with a customer, just make them happy. Â The pie was given to him cold again but this time the ice cream was melted because she kept the ice cream on the plate when she warmed up the pie in the microwave the second time. Â My boyfriend went to the manager and complained. Â I will say that the manager apologized, heated up the pie himself and gave it to my boyfriend for free.
The waitress also half-heartedly apologized and never took any of our dirty dishes off the table. Â Her service was very poor. Â She did not have to do anything except serve of drinks, serve a piece of pie and clear dishes...and she couldn't even to do that. Â I will not go back.
The Barn  is one of my all time favorite restaurants.  We love the Buffet downstairs.  It is not as visually pleasing as the upstairs dining area, but the food makes up for it.  I love their swiss steak with gravy over mashed potatoes.  The salad bar huge and is well stocked.  The bread and deserts are homemade.  Oh i'm getting hungry just typing this.
It is very kid friendly and wheel chair accessible. Â
We love the country store. Â They have all type of candy, dry goods, and misc. kitchen things. Â The toy store has many unique toys that make for great gifts.
Traveling for work, my co-worker insisted we were going to The Barn. I was told by numerous folks that there would be options there for a vegan, although I was a little concerned given the meat-and-potatoes-heavy theme. I needn't have been.
Out in the middle of nowhere, this renovated barn contains an upstairs and downstairs dining room, in addition to a few gift shops (closed when I arrived). On certain days, the downstairs area has an all you can eat buffet, which I've heard is family-style: share a table with other folks, while waitstaff brings food to your table until everyone's stuffed. Visit the web-site for details.
I was upstairs.
When you first walk in, it smells just like a barn. Â Not outside, not as much inside the restaurant proper itself, but the entryway itself - barn. I guess you'd expect an ex-working barn to smell a little like a barn, so I wasn't that surprised.
My nostrils: validated.
My eyes were given the ocular treat of barn tools secured randomly all over the thick wood walls and support beams. If you've never seen three types of hand saws, you can see them here - installed high enough that little kids can't touch them, which is a smart touch. I was mentally prepared for waitstaff wearing stereotypical milkmaid outfits, and was not disappointed. Themed restaurants provide the lead-up (barn) and the punch-line (consistency across the brand), which is great for kids, and a little silly for most adults. It's like going to Disney: you just have to play along.
As a vegan, I was worried I wouldn't be able to eat much, but there was plenty for me to eat. Â Yes, this place has plenty of meat and dairy options, which appeared to be relatively standard quality (steak, chicken, shrimp) and my table-mates seemed to enjoy their meals.
I want to mention that I had to ask a ton of questions:
* One or more of the breads are vegan, but I ended up not trying any.
* Veggie preparation - corn and green beans can be prepared in water only.
* Fries - everything is fried in the same fryer, so I'd avoid all fried items as a vegan.
The fry situation was a little sad, because they looked so good (both the french fries and the thicker "barn" fries), but I'm just glad they were super honest about each and every thing I asked about. This allowed me to make informed choices. Ideally, they would have a separate fryer for the fries and veggie-only items. Then again, this is a barn.
Ideally, I wouldn't be addicted to fries.
So what did I eat? First, the salad bar is awesome! A double-sided, chilled bar containing 30 or more separate containers. Â Two types of salad greens on the end: standard bite-sized iceberg lettuce on one side, and fancy greens on the other. Â I chose the fancy greens, and the diversity was nice. Â I loaded my salad up with cherry tomatoes, baby carrots, beets and many other things. Â The cheese containers were below the veggie containers in each case, so cheese didn't often "fall" into the container below. Â Not sure if this is by design, or accidental, but it was welcome, and consistent between sides.
I also ordered corn and green beans, cooked in water. Â What arrived at the table was a huge mound of corn and green beans, which my body thanked me for later.
Finally, I asked for a dry baked potato, which they were able to accommodate. Â If you can't find something awesome at The Barn to put on your baked potato, the problem is with you. Â As a non-vegan, you have access to everything you'd expect: chili, soup, bacon bits, sour cream, you name it. Â I ended up putting A1 steak sauce on mine, as I've done that with my baked potatoes and fries since I was a kid.
As mentioned, there's not just a soup/chili bar, but there's also four types of bread, tortilla chips for the chili, and crackers for those needing saltines with their soup. Â Honey butter by the bread, and I'm sure there was other butter floating around.
The only thing they weren't able to provide was balsamic vinegar - although they did have apple cider vinegar and oil at the salad bar. Â I'm avoiding oil, so I need a vinegar with additional flavor. Â But, again, this is a place called The Barn, so I wasn't disappointed with what they had. Â I'm just glad the salad bar was awesome.
There's a cute little pond outside, with what looks like a stream trickling down from under barn to the pond. I counted over forty ducks around the pond, and if this had not been a work trip, I might have had to have The Talk, rather than just asking the silly question: "Is that duck on the bottom dead...? Oh, no...it isn't." Â I guess I failed basic biology. Duck feeding is encouraged with a standard coin-op feed dispenser. Fun place to bring the kids before and after the meal.
Overall, this experience is exactly what I had expected: good food, nice relaxing atmosphere, and consistent branding across the offering.
A good friend of mine gave us a gift certificate to this restaurant and we took advantage of her generosity to spend a Sunday afternoon here. There is a nice pond with a small fountain next to the restaurant and the view was pretty.
We were given a choice of eating on the 1st floor off the menu or go down to the basement for their buffet; we opted for the buffet.
We were seated near the buffet line but unfortunately the atmosphere in this room was dark and unappealing. While our server was friendly, I am afraid she was far too busy to be attentive to our table. Â She was assigned to other larger tables near us.
The food was unappetizing to look it and tasted like it looked. The vegetables tasted like it came from cans, and the meats were presliced, soaking in liquid (ham, turkey, sausage). I tried their chicken noodle soup and found it to be too starchy, and under-seasoned.
My dining partner and I were very disappointed with the food at this restaurant. I cannot recommend eating there.
I grew up in a Mennonite and Amish community and was a little excited about being able to partake in some old food comforts.
This was not it.
Nothing tasted homemade at the Barn. The mashed potatoes tasted like they were out of a box, the gravy out of a can, and the mac and cheese out of the freezer. Even the desserts tasted pre-prepared. I hope I am wrong about this, but in the end it doesn't really matter as it was not edible. I have been twice (out-of-town visitor's request) and had similar experiences.
A reviewer below described the look and smell of the buffet dining area as that of an old church basement. This is a perfect description of the atmosphere.
I want to provide a positive note: there were some authentic "salads" on the salad bar. If you do go, look for the "salad" made with frozen whipped topping, marshmallows, and canned fruit. That is about as authentic as it gets.
Keep in mind that the "salad" was the highlight.
If you want Mennonite/Amish cooking, then drive yourself 4.5 hours away to the Essenhaus in Middlebury, IN. It is worth a 9 hour drive to avoid eating at The Barn.
We went to The Barn for dinner and must say that we were pleasantly surprised. While I may agree with the first review of the look of the cattle call in the basement where the buffet is, the upstairs was nice, clean, and the wait staff was extremely pleasant. The food was just fine as well as the salad bar/wagon. We were pleasantly surprised and would recommend.
Review Source:What kind of a city slicker expects to go to "THE BARN" to find health food?
Let's just say if The Barn charged customers based on his/her weight, the average price for regulars would easily pay for his/her gastric bypasses.
It's a renovated barn turned into a restaurant. Â Loaded with Amish, Apostolics, and a sea of bloated white faces wearing oversized t-shirts and elastic waist jeans, it's a wonderful taste of midwestern life and a magnificent way to boost your self-esteem.
If you come to the dank, dimly lit basement buffet at the right time, you can wedge your way between a greasy, portly couple to sample a bit of roast beef, fried chicken, meatloaf, pizza, macaroni & cheese, mashed potatoes and so on. Â All this costs slightly less than $13.
The best time to visit the buffet is when it's crowded to watch the heifers hastily shovel food onto their plates at the hayrack... the food is also fresher as the regulars consume twice their weight in one sitting.
If the thought of this disgusts you and you'd like to see sunlight, you may always eat upstairs for under $10 a plate of food. Â For you health-conscious folk, there's a salad bar upstairs. Â The Glenn Beck groupies like to believe they're eating healthy by loading up tons of iceberg lettuce onto a plate and slathering it with high-fructose corn syrup.
Upstairs, you get a lovely view of the pond and white children wearing Hollister offering ducks empty carb bread.
After you're done stuffing 4k calories into your face in one sitting, you may visit the toy, wood-working, or knick-knack gift shop where housewives load up on pointless crap to stuff into cheap, cookie-cutter home on 3 acres of land.
After this, you can make your way past the parking lot loaded with Christian-based bumper stickers to the pond and watch the ducks from either the gazebo or swings.
Overall, The Barn is cheap with decent "comfort foods".
What kind of a city slicker expects to go to "THE BARN" to find health food?
Let's just say if The Barn charged customers based on his/her weight, the average price for regulars would easily pay for his/her gastric bypasses.
It's a renovated barn turned into a restaurant. Â Loaded with Amish, Apostolics, and a sea of bloated white faces wearing oversized t-shirts and elastic waist jeans, it's a wonderful taste of midwestern life and a magnificent way to boost your self-esteem.
If you come to the dank, dimly lit basement buffet at the right time, you can wedge your way between a greasy, portly couple to sample a bit of roast beef, fried chicken, meatloaf, pizza, macaroni & cheese, mashed potatoes and so on. Â All this costs slightly less than $13.
The best time to visit the buffet is when it's crowded to watch the heifers hastily shovel food onto their plates at the hayrack... the food is also fresher as the regulars consume twice their weight in one sitting.
If the thought of this disgusts you and you'd like to see sunlight, you may always eat upstairs for under $10 a plate of food. Â For you health-conscious folk, there's a salad bar upstairs. Â The Glenn Beck groupies like to believe they're eating healthy by cramming tons of iceberg lettuce and slathering high-fructose corn syrup onto a plate.
Upstairs, you get a lovely view of the pond and white children wearing Hollister offering ducks empty carb bread.
After you're done stuffing 4k calories into your face in one sitting, you may visit the toy, wood-working, or knick-knack gift shop where housewives load up on pointless crap to stuff into cheap, cookie-cutter home on 3 acres of land.
After this, you can make your way past the parking lot loaded with Christian-based bumper stickers to the pond and watch the ducks from either the gazebo or swings.
Overall, The Barn is cheap with decent "comfort foods".
I was disappointed at my first visit to the Barn Restaurant.  I was with a group.  If you like comfort food you will like this place but it did not appeal to me at all since I am trying to eat healthy.  The salad bar not not even look good to me.  I did not like the atmosphere  or the seating arrangements.  Would not go back.
Review Source:I was late for the rehearsal dinner here (driving in from Chicago took a bit longer than anticipated) but they held a tray of food. It was served family style, which meant a heaping plate each of fried chicken, corn, mashed potatoes with gravy, some sort of pulled meat....and cream pies. The fried chicken was DELICIOUS. Plus there was a large salad bar, bread bar with reportedly to die for honey butter and some hearty soups.
Not sure how authenticly Amish it all is, as I have no experience with that. But it was damn good hearty 100% American food.
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