A Teen's Burger Counter on West Market Street, Next to a Fairgrounds That Stays Booked Into December

Driftwood's signature burger, the Driftwood Stack, is two smash patties, four slices of American cheese, two slices of bacon, three onion rings, pickles, lettuce and tomato, finished with a secret sauce. Gage Klein and his father, Kris, came up with it together. It's sold from a small storefront at 1277 W. Market St. in West York that used to be a Steak Out. On the afternoon Keystone Newsroom visited, the 16-year-old owner was taking orders, cooking and running the register himself.

The restaurant opened as Driftwood at the Fairgrounds. That name points to the York Expo Center and York Fairgrounds, which do not go quiet in the fall. From Halloween weekend through the first Saturday in December, the halls there have events booked on almost every weekend, so a burger counter named for the fairgrounds sits next to a venue that stays busy long after fair season.

A Second Location, Chosen Over Hanover and East Berlin

West York is Driftwood's second location. Klein opened Driftwood at the Lake in Adams County's Lake Meade community more than a year before this one, and both belong to a restaurant group the family built. Keystone Newsroom reported that Gage and Kris wanted to expand beyond Lake Meade to reach more customers. They looked at Hanover and East Berlin before settling on the small former Steak Out space in West York.

The menu is short: burgers, cheesesteaks, subs and hand-cut fries. Local 21 reported in August 2026 that burgers and fries were among the most popular items and that customers especially praised the fries. Kris Klein told Keystone Newsroom that his son wanted to price the menu so a family could get a better-quality meal at a reasonable cost. He also said some customers drive up from southern York County to eat there.

Keystone Newsroom reported that most orders come in through DoorDash, though several customers walked in to order during its visit. The opening also got TV coverage, including a FOX43 segment titled "16-year-old opens second York County restaurant in less than a year."

"He's definitely a one of a kind kid."

Kris Klein said that to Keystone Newsroom. He also said his son plans to keep opening more places.

The restaurant's online ordering page on Toast now lists the storefront as "Driftwood On W. Market" at the same 1277 W. Market St. address. In mid-October, the page showed an 11 a.m. opening. Hours seem to have shifted since the summer coverage, so check the ordering page before you go.

The Neighbor Behind the Name

The York Expo Center at 334 Carlisle Ave. is a group of separate halls: Memorial Hall East and West, Horticultural Hall, Old Main, UPMC Arena and others. That layout lets it host several unrelated events on the same day. West York Borough already makes use of it. The borough sponsored its seventh annual Halloween Walk & Festival on the grounds on Oct. 23 and 24, with pumpkin carving, a Hocus Pocus screening and a jack-o'-lantern walk, all free.

Here's what the York State Fair events calendar lists for the coming weeks:

That's twelve events across five weekends and one Thursday. The busiest stretch is Nov. 14 and 15, when a craft show, a vintage market and two cheer competitions fill Memorial Hall East, Old Main and UPMC Arena over two days.

Where the Calendar Meets the Neighborhood

Some of these dates line up with neighborhood plans. Halloween falls on a Saturday this year, so Reptiles at the Expo, the poultry show, the card convention and the gun and knife show all run on the same day as West York's trick-or-treat night. Trick-or-treat is 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 31, according to the York Daily Record's county trick-or-treat guide. If you're running errands on Carlisle Avenue that afternoon, expect show traffic before the evening rounds start.

The 717 Vintage Fest is the easiest event on the list to just walk into. Its listing describes a free public vintage market in Old Main. The two craft shows bookend the holiday season. The Country and Christmas Craft Show is Nov. 14 in Memorial Hall East, and the York Christmas Gift and Craft Show is Dec. 5, with more than 160 vendor booths listed.

Bright Nights presented by Glo Fiber, the holiday light show running Nov. 20 through Dec. 27, is at WellSpan Park, not the fairgrounds. For lights, head downtown. For postcards, cheer meets and craft vendors, stay on Carlisle Avenue.

Two Other Kitchens on the Same Road

Driftwood isn't the only independent kitchen on West Market Street. A short way west at 1413 W. Market St., Rapadou Caribbean Restaurant serves curry chicken, griot, lambi, and ragou pig feet with boiled plantains. Its online ordering page lists its open times, so check there before heading over.

Farther out at 2530 W. Market St., Genova's runs what it calls its West York location: casual Italian food with a full-service bar, live entertainment and an on-site brewery. The York Daily Record covered the brewery's opening in January 2021. Genova's website lists dine-in and takeout hours of 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday with the kitchen open until 10, and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday. It's closed Mondays.

From the Driftwood storefront out to Genova's, this stretch of West Market Street has a teenager's smash burgers, griot and lambi and a brewpub, all a few minutes from twelve fairgrounds events on the calendar before December.

A small storefront that turns over from one food business to another, like the former Steak Out at 1277 W. Market St., shows how much a corridor's next tenant depends on what's nearby. If you own a building on West Market Street or another York County corridor and want an honest read on what it could become, Frank and Francesca at Messina Group have repositioned vacant restaurant sites before and are glad to talk it through. Let's Connect.