An Apple for the Traveler
Journey off the beaten path to Perry Lake and you will find Apple Valley Farm. Food, music and nightlife await you.
photos: Jeff Brandsted
By Melissa Frankel, Jayplay writer
In the little town of Ozawkie, just 30 minutes northwest of Lawrence, lies 62 acres of green farmland. But this is no ordinary farm. This is Apple Valley Farm, home of the Farmhouse Restaurant, the Dale Easton Barn Theatre, the Grainery Saloon and the Milkbarn craft shop. Open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, this rustic retreat near Perry Lake can make for a fun weekend adventure.
On May 9, Apple Valley Farm will open its third season with owners Jeff and Allison Blodig, and they are planning some changes. The newly renovated restaurant has a new chef, the theatre will feature live music instead of vaudeville plays. and the craft shop may be open on a weekly basis for the first time.
Apple Valley Farm dates back to the 1850s, when it served as a family honestead. The restaurant and live theatre started 32 years ago under the ownership of Joe Stroup. After 18 years, Stroup sold the business to Pegi and Terry Day. Jeff and Allison Blodic purchased the farm from them in 2002.
The Blodigs are Kansas natives who work as biologists in addition to running Apple Valley Farm. Jeff teaches at Johnson County Community College and Allison is a biologist at Bio-Microbics, Inc., 8450 Cole Pkwy., in Shawnee. But the Blodigs' real passion is running Apple Valley Farm. The Farm is open from May 9 to Aug.31, with the saloon staying open until Halloween. The Blodigs spend the off-season remodeling and planning and the summer running the restaurant, theatre, bar and craft shop. "You either
love this business or you hate it because it's a lot of work," Allison says. "But I love it."
This season is starting off with a Mother's Day homestead buffet and craft fair on May 9. The buffet will be the first meal chef John Jackson prepares for the farm. Jackson, who specializes in cheese carvings, plans to adorn the tables with one of his creations, the cheddar cheese castle. On previous occasions, Jackson has carved the castle out of a 60-pound block of cheese and surrounded it with an aqua gelatin moat.
Jackson has also livened up the Farmhouse Restaurant menu. Open from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, the restaurant offers a buffet for $11.95 and individual menu items
such as prime rib, fresh fish, artichoke chicken and a grilled apple and bourbon marinated pork chop topped with applesauce. On Sundays the restaurant serves brunch from 11 a.m.to 2 p.m. Jackson says his goal for the restaurant is to make it the premiere steak house in the Perry area. If business goes well, the restaurant will also open on Thursday evenings starting in mid-June.
leftovers he can gather. "The cinnamon rolls are to die for," Baker savs-
Greg Baker, Mission resident, says Apple Valley Farm has a tradition of serving good food. Baker, one of Jeff Blodig's friends from college, has spent every other weekend over the past two summers camping in the RV Park located on the farm's property. At the end of the weekend he heads over to the Farmhouse Restaurant to take home any
On Saturday evenings the Dale Easton Barn Theatre, which seats 235 people, presents live bluegrass music starting at 8 p.m. In previous years the theatre presented a play, but this summer the Blodigs had trouble finding a director so they decided to switch to live music. This season, Blaine Oswald, a junior at Atchison County Community High School in Effingham, is the feature performer. A magician will open for Oswald, entertaining the audience with illusions for half an hour. This season also includes special performances by Spontaneous Combustion, a Kansas City bluegrass band on July 24 and the Faris Family, a bluegrass band from Ozawkie on Aug. 14. Tickets for all performances cost $10. The restaurant and the theatre are run separately so you don't have to visit both in the same evening. The Milkbarn Craft Shop will also be open Saturdays from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Right across the way from the restaurant and theatre stands the Grainery Saloon. It's open from 5 p.m. to 12 a.m. on Friday and Saturday and offers alcoholic and other drinks, hamburgers, chicken sandwiches and appetizers. The saloon has a wooden dance floor, pool table and couches to lounge on.
With food, drink, music, crafts, and camping all available in the same place, Apple Valley Farm is a fun weekend destination. For directions go to www.applevalleyfarm.net.
— Melissa Frankel can be reached at mfrankel@kansan.com.
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