Tucked along the green, pedestrian-friendly walks of Millersville University’s broad campus grounds, the George Street Café modestly churns out some of the finest café fare in Lancaster County. This 304 North George Street shop offers a cool, tasteful environment; a fresh, lively staff; and a refined-yet-affordable menu—well worth a short trip to this idyllic little college town.
Café food is always hit-or-miss. At its worst, you’ll often see a pre-packaged afterthought of a menu—really just an excuse to serve something other than coffee and tea. At its best, you’ll see a genuine effort to serve up colorful cuisine for a casual price—where the composition is simple, but the ingredients are far from run-of-the-mill. George Street is the living definition of that latter camp.
All of the shop’s specialty sandwiches are available on a wrap, ciabatta bread, or on their “bread of the day.” A wrap—whole wheat, spinach, or tomato—is highly recommended to showcase these sandwiches’ thoughtful flavor combinations.
The Turkey, Brie, and Cranberry wrap creates a profound blend, in which all of the namesake ingredients taste as though they had always been destined for one another. The turkey is moist and generously piled, joining with the brie in a deep base of flavor that is expanded by the high-hitting tang and sweetness of cranberry sauce. Lined with leaves of fresh baby spinach, the wrap offers a uniquely satisfying blend of both bright and savory tones.
A sandwich with chips and a pickle rings in at around $10 when you add a bowl of George Street’s soup of the day. The rich, warm spinach soup partnered well with the generally cold turkey wrap, and pushed the meal just past the finish line of this reporter’s appetite.
You never know what to expect from a coffee shop menu. This is dangerous territory, folks. But you can rest assured that George Street provides a delicious display of café food at its very finest, proving that thoughtful cuisine does not have to be expensive cuisine.
