The Finger Lakes region is one of the most beautiful regions in the country, and people love to visit to try the food, wine, and even see the animals. There is one place to go where you can find all of these things; Interlaken, NY.

Photos: Lunch at Finger Lakes Cider House

Finger Lakes Cider House

Finger Lakes Cider House is located just off Route 89 on Hickock Road in Interlaken.

📍4017 Hickok Rd, Interlaken, NY, United States, New York

Things to do at Finger Lakes Cider House

The Finger Lakes Cider House isn't just a great place to get your cider, even though you can absolutely do that, but it's a great place to eat, visit a working farm filled with orchards, strawberries, and other homegrown foods, and even stay overnight!

Ciders available to purchase and try include:

• Honeoye, Sparkling Semi-Sweet Cider
• Northern Spy, Sparkling Semi-Dry Cider
• Baldwin, Sparkling Dry Cider
• Rose, Sparkling Semi-Sweet Cider
• Pioneer Pippin, Traditional Method, Semi-Dry Cider
• Porter’s, Traditional Method, Dry Cider
• Geneva Russet, Traditional Method, Off-Dry Cider
• Funkhouse, Traditional Method, Dry Cider
• King of the North Reserve, Traditional Method, Dry Cider
• Golden Russet Reserve, Traditional Method, Dry Cider
• Pomona Reserve, Traditional Method, Dry Cider
• Brut Reserve, Traditional Method, Dry Cider
• Greenman #1 , Petillant Naturel, Dry, Sparkling.
• Greenman #2, Petillant Naturel, Dry, Sparkling.
• Greenman #3, Petillant Naturel, Dry, Sparkling. 
• Greenman #4, Petillant Naturel, Dry, Sparkling. 
• Fruit of the Bloom, Apples, Pears, Ginger, Hibiscus
• Cidre Blanc, Cider fermented on Riesling skins.
• Sidra Natura, Sparkling Natural, Spanish Style.
• Cidre Rouge, Cider fermented on Cabernet Franc skins.
• Sparkling Riesling, Traditional Method, Dry Riesling.
• Wine that Rhymes with Orange, Wine, Col-fondo, Orange Riesling.
• Wine For My Friends, Wine Petillant-Naturale. 
• Wine with Tiny Baby Bubbles, Wine, Col-fondo Cayuga White. 
• Honeycrisp Ice, Dessert Cider, Single Variety Honeycrisp.
• Traditional Ice, Dessert Cider, Made with over 25 apple varieties.
• Royal Ice, Dessert Cider, American Barrel Aged, Fortified.
• Pommeau, Dessert Cider Apple Brandy.

Any ciders purchased online will have a portion of the proceeds go toward planting trees in the Finger Lakes region.

Where can you stay at the Finger Lakes Cider House?

There are two options for staying overnight on the farm: The Yurt and The Loft.

This means you'll not only get to enjoy the offerings available on The Good Life Farm, which is where Finger Lakes Cider House is located, but you can travel around to other wineries and businesses as well. You're even close to Cayuga Lake!

The Yurt is small but cozy, with a bridge leading up to it that crosses a small creek in the woods. Don't worry though, you're not deep in the woods and can still see the Cider House from The Yurt! The Yurt is great for someone looking to escape into nature and get lost in the simple things.

The Loft offers a little bit more for those who don't want to miss out on amenities. This option offers three bedrooms, one bathroom, and a full kitchen right overtop of the tasting room. From up there you can see the entire orchard and some of the lake. Firewood is provided to guests so they can enjoy the fire cauldrons out back.

Eat Farm-to-Table food

One of the things you'll find at the Finger Lakes Cider House is a menu that focuses on using foods from not only local farms but their own farm as well.

Lunch is available daily from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., with a Small Bites & Bar Service that ends 15 minutes before they close. Though they're open daily, their hours change throughout the season.

The following hours are for the 2023 season:

May 26 - September 4:
Sunday-Thursday 11-6 
Friday 11-9:30 
Saturday 11-7 

September 5 - October 9:
Sunday-Thursday 11-5 
Friday 11-9:30 
Saturday 11-7 

October 10 - November 25:
Sunday-Friday 11-5 
Saturday 11-6 

November 26 - April 5:
Everyday 11-5

Holidays they will be closed this year include Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Year's Day.

The regular menu is served daily until 4 p.m. and the Friday night menu is a special, once-per-week menu that sells Outdoor BBQ from 5 p.m. until 8:30 p.m., or it's sold out.

Tomatoes grown on the Good Life Farm to be used in their tasting room menu items (Left) Apple trees in one row of the orchard (right)

Go shopping as soon as you finish eating!

While food is served in the tasting room with plenty of tables to sit at, as soon as you finish eating you can exit by passing by the storefront right off the side of the tasting room.

The Finger Lakes Cider House offers a number of different items, but all are normally sourced locally. This includes different alcohols, foods like ice cream, cheese, or even meats, t-shirts and hats supporting Finger Lakes Cider House, beeswax candles, cards, books, and so much more.

Ciders and alcohol for sale

Various locally sourced items for sale

What else is there to do at the Finger Lakes Cider House?

The fun thing about the Finger Lakes Cider House is that the experience there is unique. This means you can get tours of the cidery and farm, so you can see exactly where some of your food comes from.

Another fun thing there is to do is pick your own organic fruit. Depending on the season, there are apples, peaches, and strawberries available for picking- but that's not all.

Finger Lakes Cider House also offers a U-Pick flower garden, which means you can pick any bouquet of flowers you want. Mason jars are available at an additional cost to help give your flowers that rustic feel, much like the farm they came from.

Lively Run Dairy

Lively Run Dairy Farm and Creamery is a great place for families and children.

Lively Run Dairy is family-owned and operated, with the Messmer family operating the farm since 1995. In addition to caring for their herd of goats, which are made up of both adult goats and babies, there is a cheese making facility on site. This is where their award-winning cheeses are all made.

From May 1st through Oct. 31st, you and your family can visit the farm and see the goats.

📍8978 County Road 142, Interlaken, NY, United States, New York

Baby goats inside the pen of the barn at Lively Run Dairy

Things to do at Lively Run Dairy

Goat Yoga

During the months of June and July, the farm opens up on Saturday and Sunday mornings to do Goat Yoga. Private groups can make reservations directly with the farm during yoga months. Chair Yoga is available for those who want a little more assistance while doing yoga. Be ready for the baby goats to climb all over and nibble you!

Bottle-feeding baby goats

Bottle-feeding tickets are available from May through July, Tuesday through Saturday at 11:15 a.m.

Large group tours

If you and your family are visiting and looking for something to do as a large group, tours of the farm are available. These are for groups of 15-50 people and include a cheese tasting of eight different cheeses, visiting the barn, and interacting with the goats. You must make a reservation ahead of time for a group of this size.

Adult goats inside the barn of Lively Run Dairy

All about the cheese

Lively Run Dairy is known well for their cheese. All of the cheese produced by the farm is made on-site. Not only do they specialize in goat cheese, but they've started producing cow cheeses as well. 

Some of their popular goat cheeses include Chèvre, Seneca Blue Moon, Cayuga Blue, Goat’s Milk Feta and Finger Lakes Gold cheese.

Popular cow cheeses include Blue Yonder, Lake Effect Cheddar and Gorge Trail Gouda cheese.

The cheese shop, right next to the gift shop, offers limited-release cheeses each month. Cheese tastings are available, with a Deluxe Board offering all cheeses, one charcuterie, three condiments, and crackers. You can also choose a half-flight if you're not in the mood for that much cheese.

If you have a group larger than six people, it's asked that you call ahead.

An example of the cheese board for cheese tastings
 

Gift shop welcome sign for Lively Run Dairy