Start from 26 curated places around Lancaster, OH, then choose the recommendations that fit your guests.
Restaurants & cafés
Cherry Street Pub
The clear local favorite — a handsome 1800s bar room with an eclectic menu that swings from shrimp and grits to pecan chicken and waffles to a Bayou Burger, all made from scratch. The bar itself dates to the late 1800s and gives the room real character. Lines form on weekends and for good reason.
Ale House 1890
Scratch-made American pub food elevated well above its setting, with standout plates like Chilean blue mussels, pierogies with duck leg, and a wide lineup of craft ales. The building on West Main has the bones of a proper 19th-century saloon and the kitchen backs it up with locally sourced produce. A go-to for a proper dinner in the downtown core.
Trails & outdoors
Mount Pleasant Trail
A short but steep climb through Rising Park to the exposed Blackhand sandstone summit of Mount Pleasant, with sweeping panoramic views over Lancaster and the rolling Fairfield County countryside. The mixed dirt, rock, and staircase path keeps it interesting for the 25-minute ascent. The best quick hike in the city.
Old Man's Cave and Naturalist Cabin Loop
The signature trail of Hocking Hills State Park threads through the dramatic gorge past the upper falls, lower falls, Old Man's Cave recess, and the Devil's Bathtub — all within a single interconnected loop. The Blackhand sandstone formations, hemlock canopy, and seasonal waterfalls make it Ohio's most photogenic hike. Get here early to beat the crowds that begin around 10 am on weekends.
Things to do
Rockmill Brewery
A Belgian-inspired farmhouse brewery set on a 23-acre 19th-century horse farm with a stone and timber taproom, a lake, rolling fields, and live music on summer Sundays. The saisons, dubbels, and tripels are brewed on-site and served alongside a food menu in a setting that genuinely feels more like a Wallonia countryside stop than central Ohio. One of the region's most distinctive brewery experiences.
Double Edge Brewing Co.
The downtown craft brewery on West Chestnut pours a rotating lineup of lagers, IPAs, sours, and ales in a casual taproom with both indoor and outdoor seating. Rotating food trucks park outside on weekends. It fills a real gap in the downtown walkable scene and draws a younger local crowd.
Landmarks & sights
Ohio Glass Museum & Glassblowing Studio
Lancaster was once the glass-making capital of the world, and this compact museum tells that story with rare factory pieces, a continuously running short film, and live glassblowing demonstrations right inside the studio. The craftspeople are genuinely engaging, and the gift shop carries one-of-a-kind pieces made on site. A short visit that punches well above its weight.
Decorative Arts Center of Ohio
Rotating exhibitions of furniture, ceramics, textiles, metalwork, and contemporary craft fill a beautifully preserved 1850s mansion right on Square 13 — and admission is free. The building itself is worth a look: high ceilings, original woodwork, and manicured grounds with on-site parking. Programming is serious; past shows have drawn nationally. One of the most underrated free museums in Ohio.