Shipshewana Trading Place Auction & Flea Market (Photo courtesy Shipshewana Trading Place Auction & Flea Market)
It was 25 minutes past noon when I scored the last serving of the Friday lunch special — scalloped potatoes and ham — at the Auction Restaurant in Shipshewana, Indiana. Just seconds after I ordered, a young man sat down and asked for the special too. “It’s all gone,” said the waitress, a pleasant, middle-aged woman wearing an apron, plain blue dress, and white bonnet. “Well, I was wanting it all morning,” he complained, then settled for a prime rib sandwich.
One bite of the special, and I understood his disappointment. Served on a divided plate with corn and applesauce, the mound of not-too-cheesy potatoes liberally laced with ham tasted like something Grandma used to make, and for $7.99, it was quite the wholesome, hearty bargain. So, when the waitress mentioned that the pie was homemade too, who could resist a slice of custardy peanut butter crowned with whipped cream and a dusting of crumbles?
The Auction Restaurant sits at the main entrance to the Shipshewana Trading Place Auction & Flea Market, the dual enterprises that turned a tiny Indiana village with deep Amish-Mennonite roots into an enormously popular destination. “It started in 1922 with a small livestock auction,” says Shipshewana Trading Place marketing director Lora Gates. “The flea market organically grew when auction-goers began selling things from the trunks of their cars.”
Today the auction sells antiques and livestock year-round, and the flea market is the Midwest’s largest, boasting 900 booths and bringing upwards of 350,000 people to Shipshewana (population 703) between May and September. As a result, the village is hardly isolated or humdrum. Surrounded by the nation’s third-largest Amish community, it’s a family-oriented place where “plain people” seamlessly coexist with their “English” neighbors; where buggies and bicycles are as common as pickup trucks and SUVs; where incredibly eclectic shopping options range from village specialty shops to “shingle shops” on Amish farms, to anything-and-everything at the Flea Market; and where 2018’s events include a Quilt Festival and the world’s largest Clydesdale sale and convention.
“Lots of things can surprise you here,” says Beth Thornburg of the Shipshewana/LaGrange County visitors’ bureau, “and the food is phenomenal. It’s like Thanksgiving every day.”
The following is a mere sample of the many attractions that lend Shipshewana its appealing flavor:
Menno-Hof
This museum and visitors’ center is ideal for acquainting yourself with the beliefs and culture of Shipshewana’s Amish-Mennonite residents. While its exterior channels a typical local farmstead, rooms filled with realistic vignettes — including a dungeon and a sailing ship — reveal their remarkable journey of faith across centuries and continents.
Blue Gate Theatre
Shipshewana’s most entertaining venue specializes in musicals, shows, and concerts by the likes of Ricky Skaggs, Amy Grant, and the Oak Ridge Boys. In a nod to Shipshewana’s favorite dessert, the theatre often gives away pie before performances.
Blue Gate Restaurant & Bakery
Its buffets and family-style dinners feature the Amish comfort food trifecta — chicken, noodles, and mashed potatoes — plus an extraordinary assortment of fruit and cream pies.
Davis Mercantile
Locals and tourists converge in Shipshewana’s version of a mall. Enjoy butter-dipped pretzels and flavored mustards at JoJo’s Pretzels; get designed-in-Shipshewana apparel at Shipshe Casuals; buy locally made Plyley’s Candies at Aunt Millie’s; and take a whirl on a carved horse, cow, chicken, or dog on the carousel.
E&S Sales
Shop alongside the Amish at this bulk food bonanza. Buy fresh cinnamon rolls (with caramel or buttercream frosting) at the bakery; grab a sandwich at the café; find seldom-seen items like hog casings and super-sized cheeses; and check out the buggy parking lot on the store’s north side.
Shipshewana Trading Place
The Auction, Flea Market, and Auction Restaurant are only three components of this multifaceted family business, which also includes an inn, an RV Park, and events such as an Antique Festival and Ship-Chic Craft & Vintage Shows.
Yoder’s Meat & Cheese Company
There’s a reason it’s always busy — a vast variety of choice, carefully sourced meats and cheeses as well as goodies like homemade ham salad, liver sausage, and head cheese (a pork terrine).
Yoder’s Department Store and Yoder’s Shipshewana Hardware
Two enterprises under one gigantic roof equals superstore-style shopping for everything from wood-burning cookstoves and microbrew soda pops to bib overalls and quilting supplies.
