St. Jacobs Ontario Visited (Video)

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St. Jacobs Ontario Visited

Gary

by Gary McWilliams (aka Festival Nomad)

Ontario’s Favourite Rural Destination

The following is an excerpt from the St. Jacobs website – “The Village and Market District are bustling with activity. Local Mennonite farmers are making fresh maple syrup products to sell at the Farmers Market. Village shops, exhibits, restaurants and Outlets are bursting with surprising new ideas and menus. Antique, craft and furniture shops are stocked up with exciting finds.”

“The following is a description based on our many visits to the Village of St. Jacobs.“

St. Jacobs is a quaint village located just north of Kitchener-Waterloo. It is a place that Judi and I love to visit whenever we are in the area. To me, the present day St. Jacobs, although very interesting and still quite quaint, does not have the same feel as the St. Jacobs I visited so many years ago.

The first time I visited St. Jacobs (about 1975), I was dazzled by the uniqueness of the village. St. Jacobs sits in a hollow, with both ends of the village slopping down towards the thriving village centre. Picturesque shops and restaurants line both sides of the main street.

I first discovered St. Jacobs when I was living in Waterloo. A number of the people I worked with liked to go to St. Jacobs for lunch at the Stone Crock Restaurant. Back then it was visibly run by the Mennonites and the food was always fresh and lots of it!

It wasn’t unusual to see Mennonite horse drawn carriages sauntering down the main street or tied up at one of the many hitching posts. The products, back then, seemed to be a little different in the types that they offered now. Most then, seemed to be hand made.

Over the years I have continued to visit St. Jacobs and have noted the subtle changes. The Stone Crock became more commercial and I believe it is now owned by a corporation.

The facility has been expanded and renovated, and the atmosphere and food remains warm and inviting. Judi particularly loves the restaurants fresh home made raspberry pie, thick veggie soup and newly made sandwiches.

St. Jacobs still is the home of picturesque older buildings. The Old Gristmill has had its silos converted into interesting shops offering a large variety of unique products .

We were fortunate, years ago to acquire hand made pottery coffee mugs. We still uses them today after all these years. Another addition to the village is the Benjamin Inn. Judi and I had the pleasure of staying there one weekend and enjoyed it immensely. South of the town, closer to Waterloo, is the fabulous St. Jacobs Farmers’ Market.

When I started visiting St. Jacobs, the Market was quite small and not that well attended. Now it has now grown and become one of the premiere attractions for the area. The Market grounds include not only the Farmers’ Market but Factory Outlet stores as well.

Close by a Best Western Hotel was built and now offers luxury accommodations for St. Jacob and Farmers’ Market visitors. Other new businesses have come to the community and it is always fun and interesting to discover them.