Where to sip, savor, and shop. Who to depend on for health, beauty, home, and even more new categories this year featured in our Best of Harrisburg 2019.
Best Asian Restaurant
Bangkok Wok
Best Barbecue
Mission BBQ
Best Bar Food
Arooga’s
Best Brunch
Café 1500
Best Burger
Jackson House
Best French Fries
Duke’s Riverside Bar & Grille
Best Business Lunch Spot
Café 1500
Best Candy Shop
Zimmerman’s Nuts and Candies
Best Caterer
The JDK Group
Best Cheesesteak
Philadelphia Steaks & Hoagies
Best Cupcake Shop
The Pennsylvania Bakery
Best Diner
Middlesex Diner
Best Doughnut
Duck Donuts
Best Farmers Market
West Shore Farmers Market
Best Fine Dining
Tavern on the Hill
Best Food Truck
717 Tacos
Best Grocery Store
Giant Food Stores
Best Ice Cream Shop
3B Ice Cream
Best Indian Restaurant
Passage to India
Best Italian Restaurant
Gabriella’s
Best Market Stand
Radish and Rye at Broad Street Market
Best Mexican Restaurant
El Sol
Best Outdoor Dining
Duke’s Riverside Bar & Grille
Best Pizza
Pizza Grille
Best Vegetarian Restaurant
Vrai
Offering unconventional foods in healthy ways, Vrai takes vegetarian and allergy-free food seriously. Although they do not label Vrai as a vegan restaurant, the owners pride themselves on using only fresh ingredients and offering customizable options to help any guest feel at home. For example, they offer soy-, gluten- and dairy-free cheese alternatives in many of their dishes. “We just want to make people happy no matter what their preferences are,” the owner of Vrai, Shelly Page, says about their selection.
Started in 1934, Kepler’s is a third-generation seafood business that offers high quality and local fresh fish. They moved to their current location at the West Shore Farmers Market in 1958 shortly after the market opened. Kepler’s has one of the largest selections, ranging from wild and organic farmed salmon and arctic char to calamari and wild caught gulf shrimp. Even with their selection, they take requests to bring in special orders on a weekly basis as availability allows.
Felicia Miller, Burick Center for Health and Wellness
Best Hospital
UPMC Pinnacle Harrisburg
Best Makeup Artist
Betzi Ortiz, Jenny’s Full Service Salon & Boutique
Best Massage
Hershey Spa
Best Maternity Practice
Partners in Women’s Health
Best Pediatric Practice
JDC Pediatrics
Best Salon
Jenny’s Full Service Salon & Boutique
Best Spa
Hershey Spa
Best Urgent Care Facility
All Better Care
Best Yoga Studio
Just Plain Yoga
Best Home Video/ Audio Automation
World Premiere Home Entertainment
Best Bath Designer
Bath Fitter
Best Carpet & Flooring Experts
Essis & Sons Carpet One
Best Furniture Store
Davids Furniture
Best Furniture Consignment Store
Red Door Consignment Gallery
Best Garden Center
Stauffers of Kissel Hill
Best Craft Beer
Ever Grain Brewing Company
Ever Grain offers delicious craft beers at their Camp Hill shop. They pride themselves on using only the freshest, highest-quality ingredients with a local twist and hope to give their customers new experiences in the beer world. They also offer delicious food, like the hot chicken sandwich, in their open and decorative restaurant. The light atmosphere is the perfect place to combine good food, friends, and beer together for a fun night.
BeBalanced founder, Dawn Cutillo, researched and realized “Key imbalances contribute not only to a person’s inability to lose stubborn weight but also how the same imbalances affect our mood, sleep, skin, and other female-related issues.” Be Balanced teaches a holistic way of managing stress and hormones to accomplish overall wellbeing. Voter Jill Westerfield says: “As a hormone specialist at the Camp Hill location, I have the distinct privilege to see the positive, life-changing transformations the program can make on a daily basis. It is exciting watching women ‘get their sparkle back!’”
This indie cinema shows primarily foreign and smaller-release films but with a premium and tight-knit feel. They offer snacks and coffee for concessions and have bring-your-own-chair outdoor movie nights where dogs are welcome. The theater is known for its beautiful and colorful mural on the side of the building, which was made by Sprocket Mural Works.
Established in 1930, Mumma’s has been family-owned and -operated for four generations. They offer competitive deals on products including stoves, dishwashers, and refrigerators with local appliance delivery, standard installation, and even free disposal of your old unit. Voter Pat Woods says: “Mumma's offers a wonderful variety of products and expert advice. They are willing to special order if you have a certain product in mind. Their service is outstanding. Way better than the big box stores.”
Established in 1994, Cornerstone prides itself as one of the oldest specialty coffee shops in Central PA. Offering fair trade and organic coffee blends and seasonal flavored coffees, they have started living by the motto “coffee before anything.” They have fresh-baked gluten-free, vegan, and dairy-free pastries, and a healthy and made-to-order breakfast and lunch menu. Cornerstone also host a variety of cooking classes in its private kitchen which are very popular in the community. Every month, they feature a local artist’s work in their shop and take no commissions from the sales, saying, “it is our mission to introduce local artists to the community.” Voter Julie Sherman says: “The class space is homey, the menus imaginative, and no one goes home hungry!”
This stylish clothing store leaves nothing out with its vast selection of tops, bottoms, sweaters, shoes, and accessories. Three Little Birds brands themselves as a quirky and fashionable place to shop, using high quality photos to share their story via social media. Their motto: “Where beauty is created through smiles, laughter, and confidence.”
6455 Carlisle Pike, Suite 2B, Mechanicsburg, PA 717-309-2348 tlbboutique.com
Best Tattoo Studio
717 Tattoo
With three locations and many satisfied customers, 717 Tattoo offers high quality tattoos and piercings in a professional environment. They display inspiration for designs all over their walls, but they also welcome reference designs to help the process go as smoothly as possible. They offer body piercings, tattoo removal, and permanent makeup, and they work on a client-artist basis to provide a personalized experience.
4901 Jonestown Road, Harrisburg, PA 717-652-7717 717tattoo.com