Henry's - West Jefferson, OH

Posted By Michael Stern on October 12, 2007 10:41 PM

Highway 40 was once The National Road, a way to cross the country east to west before the interstate highway system. It is now a side road parallel to I-70, so that millions of vehicles zoom past, utterly oblivious to the existence of Henry’s. Even if you are on the two-lane and you do see Henry’s on the south side of 40, chances are good you will drive on by. It looks defunct. It needs paint. The gas pumps that used to be outside are long gone and what remains of the refueling islands is rusty. But a sign in the window says OPEN. And for those who persevere, walking in the door of this place is walking in the gates of Roadfood heaven.

The meals are just fine, very good country-style fare: baked ham, hot roast pork sandwiches with mashed potatoes and gravy, creamed chipped beef on cornbread. But it’s not the hot meals that put this unlikely knotty-pine-paneled roadside café on the map. It is pie. Here are some of the best pies in Ohio, in the Midwest, anywhere. Every day, baker Shelley Kelley has a list of six or eight she has made: peach, banana, chocolate, peanut butter, cherry, coconut, etc. We tried three kinds our last visit. The butterscotch pie was thick and dense, full flavored the way only real (not from a mix) butterscotch can be; and it was topped with a creamy meringue. Custard pie was modestly thin, a sunny yellow wedge dusted with nutmeg. It was balmy, lightweight, melt-in-the-mouth tender. The flavor of the rhubarb pie was as brilliant as bright summer sun, intensely fruity, sweet but not cloying, and balanced by a crust that flaked into luscious shards.

On the way out, for the road, we took a small oval zucchini loaf Shelly Kelly had pulled from the oven just hours before. It was glorious. No doubt about it: she is a baker with a magic touch.

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Posted By Joyce Omer on June 15, 2009 3:07 PM

On a drive through Ohio headed to Indiana on Highway 70 we decided to give two restaurants a try: Clark's Dining Room in Jacksontown for lunch and then some of that famous pie at Henry's in West Jefferson. What a disappointment Clark's turned out to be. From the rancid lettuce in the salad to the almost inedible (deep, not skillet) fried chicken, the "from a box mix" mashed potatoes, the store-bought rolls, the gravy from a can... it was all bad. We left unhappy and still hungry.

Pulling up to Henry's we looked at each other and prayed that THIS time the reviews had it right. What a difference. The pickled beets had a hint of nutmeg that made them delicious, the ham and beans with corn bread was obviously made on site and the pies, my oh my the PIES!!! We just missed nabbing the last piece of rhubarb/strawberry but did get peach (heated, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream) and the rightly famous coconut cream.

The staff and kitchen care about the food that comes out and it shows. I am only sorry I don't live closer so that I could come visit more often. The prices are very reasonable and the quality of the food is great. Just a short hop off 70 but what a worthwhile detour.

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Posted By Pam Machemer on April 2, 2008 2:31 PM

Henry's is certainly worth the detour off the Interstate! As my husband said as we pulled into the parking lot, if we didn't know about this place we wouldn't have stopped. They were doing some renovating, so when we entered it looked like the place was abandoned. Then we saw the dining room through another door and were reassured.

The menu is short. The hamburger we had was nothing to write home about (although very inexpensive). The pancakes at a nearby table looked good. And then there are the pies! My husband ordered cherry. This is always a mistake for him because his mother made the definitive cherry pie (and since she's deceased his claim can't be disputed). He pronounced it quite good, but not what mother... (you know). I ordered the rhubarb, and it was like MY mother used to make (fantastic!), sweet yet tart, with a wonderful tender crust. I only got a few bites of it because my husband had finished his cherry pie and reached for my piece. Oh, well, he can better handle the calories. I thought we were done, but no. After finishing my rhubarb he then ordered another piece, this time blackberry. When he was finally finished, he pronounced them "brilliant".

And now we have a reason for taking this route back from the West Coast. Cost of a piece of pie, heated and a la mode, was $1.50. Believe it or not!

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Posted By Marta Howard on January 14, 2005 8:55 AM

Henry's was such a relief once we got in the door! It's really quite a tidy place, and a couple of days before Christmas, all dolled up for the season. There is a short but complete lunch menu, from which we selected hearty homemade vegetable beef soup, lovely roast chicken and pie, pie, pie. The lemon and merengue were going their separate ways, but the taste was ideally tangy. The strawberry-rhubarb and apple pies were tasty, too, with pie crust that is still swoon-worthy. The lone waitress rattled off the long list of available pie from memory to each group that came in, adjusting as necessary since EVERYONE ordered pie. If you're heading west on I-70, Henry's is a small detour for a big payoff.

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