Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Apple Picking And Pulled Pork -- It Would Be Tradition If It Weren't All New This Time

Apple picking at Larriland Farm
I have been to Larriland Farm in many roles, and you should really check it out this week as some gorgeous weather offers you apples, pumpkins and carnival fun.

Larriland -- in Woodbine -- a true Howard County gem.  Pick-your-own fruits and vegetables all summer, then a fall festival with apple fritters, hay rides, barbecue and more through this season.

Hayrides
We picked apples Saturday with a family who first met me at Larriland.  That was years ago when I went as "guy who Ms. HowChow is dating."  I have gone as a couple.  I have gone in groups.  I have gone as "guy who has bought a diamond ring."   I went Saturday as Dad.

Every trip was wonderful, and I can't suggest it enough. Sun-warmed peaches are so delicious that you should put them now on your calendar for next summer. But the pumpkin-apple season takes a splendid second place, and Larriland augments with all kinds of kid-friendly activities like animals to check out and a hay bale maze to run through. On weekends, they have hay rides and food like apple fritters and hamburgers.

Lil' Chow just wanted an apple. I have been serving him diced apple since he came home. A few times, I went wild by making two-bite apple sticks.  So this rookie Dad had to laugh when Lil' Chow took a small apple from a tree and proceeded to chomp off bites. Apparently not the choking hazard that I had expected -- although he did feed me the skin.  I think it is too tough for his teeth.

Sweet potato fries and pork at Town Grill
One lesson for 2014:  Larriland's pumpkins are growing on another farm that they manage.  It's on the right side of the road before the main Larriland complex.  So drive a little slow and turn right into that farm when you see a field of pumpkins.

After our apple picking, we squeezed into a table at Town Grill in Lisbon for a lunch.  The pulled pork sandwich continues to be one of my favorites, and Mrs. HowChow pulled off a new hit by ordering sweet potato fries.

Town Grill is just off the traffic circle between I-70 and Larriland.  It's a barbecue joint inside a gas station, and it's really worth checking out -- as I have written many times in the past.

One more lesson from our folly:  You don't need to squeeze into an indoor table like we did.  Town Grille has enclosed their patio with screens and a plastic that should keep it comfortable even with a slight chill in the air.  They have several tables out there, and we could have spread out.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Off topic but does anyone know about Glory Days and Sonic in Ellicott City?



kam said...

Sonic posts are here.

Junior Barnes said...

The Glory Days website is here: http://www.glorydaysgrill.com/ That indicates that it will open in Ellicott City in the spring. It looks like TGIF/Applebees type of chain.

Junior Barnes said...

After further research, Glory Days is yet another sports bar ...

Chris said...

The barbecue sundae at larriland is AMAZINNG! I thought your post was going to be about that! Moist cornbread, pulled pork or chicken, crunchy coleslaw and a fried pickle on top. Insanely delicious.

kam said...

Chris:

The BBQ sundae is also HowChow approved. :)

Also, if I'm being overly presumptuous by providing links to older posts, please let me know. I am not trying to be all "can't you go read archives, people?" but I figure if I can help cross-reference posts, it could be useful.

~kam

HowChow said...

kam and Junior -- Thanks for adding the links. I love for folks to see older posts. Many still hold up. And I appreciate the help since I can't get to the blog as often as before. Thanks!