Throwing Five Chipotle Guys at Fast Food

*I have always loved fast food. It was a part of my childhood, and still remains a means to a quick meal. What's not to like about it? The food is predictable, if uninspirational. You know what you are going to get, even if what you get is mediocre. After all, few fast food places actually aspire to anything more.

McDonald's is a classic. To this day, I can order the same thing I ordered as a child--Hamburger, small fries, perhaps a soft drink--and I know that the taste memory from my childhood will come rushing back to me. Heck, I'm over fifty years old, and the food hasn't changed much!

Of course, back then, you could "feed a family of four for under a buck" (or whatever that slogan was back in the sixties). Today, a simple hamburger, small fries, and small soft drink cost considerably more than a buck, and a meal that size would seem as though it were just an appetizer to people today.

I enjoyed watching the documentary "Super Size Me!" which followed filmmaker Morgan Spurlock through his attempt to eat at McDonald's three times a day for a single month, while his doctors and associates watch on in abject horror as he gains significant weight and his health starts to deteriorate. In fact, that one documentary reduced my appetite for fast food from something that happened at least once a week to something that happens much less frequently.

Not all fast food is the same, of course. McDonald's has its signature taste, and I do occasionally seem to crave a Big Mac now and then--their French fries, even more often! I worked for Burger King as a programmer for five or six years, and was able to get free food when I visited some of the company-owned stores up here in New England. Free food is good--although one can have it too often. I started to develop a dislike for Burger King soon after they switched to Pepsi, and while I still love their chicken sandwich (probably the best chicken sandwich in the Fast Food Nation), I don't go there very often nowadays. There are the places that look for a niche outside the burgers and fries as well... Kentucky Fried Chicken for chicken, Long John Silver's for fish filets and (surprisingly!) chicken, and Taco Bell for... well, whatever they call what they serve (it isn't truly Mexican, although their recent and time-limited "Cantina Tacos" are certainly a step in the right direction) are all run from the same company (Yum! Brands).

There have been attempts to dress up fast food into something more than simply fast food, but not quite full-service. Fuddrucker's still serves better-than-average burgers (and rib-eye steaks), and you can put on all the toppings you want for free. With beer available, it's quite a step up from your local McDonald's. You can order your burgers done the way you like (medium, well, etc.), and when your burger is ready, they'll call you.

I've visited a Chipotle Mexican Grill only once, but it seems to do for burritos what Fudrucker's has done for burgers. The one I visited in North Andover, MA didn't (yet!) have a license to sell beer, but the burrito I had was actually quite good; I'll be taking Sandra there some day.

After hearing rave reviews about a new place from Harmony, and seeing that Zagat rated them as "best burger" in their survey of fast food, I've finally tried out Five Guys Burgers and Fries--I had lunch at the FGB&F in Marlborough, MA today, in fact. I ordered ahead, using their convenient web form. Being unprepared at what they call their various sandwiches (Hamburger, Little Hamburger), I simply ordered two (regular) burgers. This turned out to be a gastric mistake on my part; a regular burger consists of two patties, each of which was at least a quarter pound or perhaps a third pound. Ordering two of them meant a whopping pound or more of meat!

Well, while Morgan Spurlock had me worried about my health with regard to fast food, I can tell you that McDonald's has done a lot to offset this since the movie was released. For instance, I believe that Super Size is now a thing of the past (although Burger King seems to continue to offer something insanely large every once in a while). They've offered salads on their menu board, although their dressings are still pretty high in fat. Their new Angus line seems to be getting a half-sized "Angus Wrap" in a tortilla. Who knows where the future lies as far as McDonald's is concerned?

I definitely recommend Five Guys or Chipotle for people that are near either of these. The food is fresh, and a major step up from your typical fast food.

The important thing to remember is not to overdo it. Know what you're purchasing, and how much you should be eating.

Bon Appetit!

* Note: Although I have both logos at the top of my post, they are used without permission and should not be taken to imply that the two companies are related in any way.

Harpoon Brewery, Windsor, VT

A couple of months ago, Sandra had to drive to Lebanon, NH (about an hour and a half away from where we live) to go to the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center for some Girl Scout meeting (she's a leader of the Girl Scouts in Salem, and the council encompasses both Vermont and New Hampshire, so Lebanon at the western border of New Hampshire probably seemed to be a good "central" place to meet. Anyway, I surprised Sandra by offering to go with her.

Actually, my offer was something to the effect of "I can find a few places to go in Lebanon. There's the Seven Barrel Brewery and a few shopping centers. Just call me when you're ready for me to pick you up."

My wife really appreciated my offer and we drove there early one Saturday morning in August. We got there about a half hour early and there was a Co-op grocery store across the street for us to while away the extra time.

After dropping Sandra off at the building she needed to be in, I drove into downtown Lebanon.

For the past twenty years, Lebanon has been a stop off point for Sandra and me on our travels to Canada. The eight-hour trip can be broken into legs of one and a half to two hours, and Lebanon is usually our first stop on our way up to Canada, usually for dinner, before we switch drivers for the Vermont leg of the trip. So... I knew that there were a few fast food places in Lebanon, as well as the Seven Barrel Brewery, a brew pub very conveniently located at the intersection of downtown Lebanon and I-89. The food is all right at the Seven Barrel, and the beers are even better. I figured that I would have lunch there and look around at the shops we've seen in the past but never had any opportunity to explore.

Since it was still early morning, my first stop was another grocery, but that got old quickly. I then drove to a little indoor shopping center and discovered a neat toy store.

Around 10:30 or so, I pulled out my iPhone and did a Yelp search for restaurants nearby. It listed quite a few; most I never heard of before, and I read the reviews. Perhaps I wouldn't be going to the Seven Barrel after all. For instance, there was this Indian restaurant that looked promising. Of all the restaurants, however, the Seven Barrel wasn't listed. I was surprised, but I figured that it was probably listed on Yelp under a different category.

Searching for Breweries didn't show up the Seven Barrel either. In fact, quite a few breweries were listed--one as far away as Burlington, VT (about a ninety minute drive; not really a contender!). To my surprise, however, was a brewery that I was familiar with, and it was only 10-15 minutes away.

The Harpoon Brewery has two locations. One somewhere in the Boston area, and one in Windsor, Vermont. The Windsor location was one exit down I-91 past White River Junction, the point at which I-89 and I-91 intersect just over the border adjacent to Lebanon once you cross the White River into Vermont.

I read the Yelp reviews, and found that the brewery had a lunch spot as well. All of a sudden, my plans changed.

One of the beers I have been favoring recently is Harpoon's IPA, a nice and hoppy India Pale Ale. I'm not sure why my taste changed from my old standby, Bass Ale, but for the past year, Harpoon IPA has been my beer of choice. If a place doesn't have it, I try to find an IPA or Pale Ale or something else with a nice hoppy aftertaste, but my favorite is definitely Harpoon.

Let me digress a bit here. I've been drinking Harpoon IPA since the 1980's when I first moved into New England. During the 1990s, my favorite IPA (and favorite beer) was an IPA from the now-defunct Luck Now brewery (I toured their brewery at the Castle in the Clouds in Moultonborough in New Hampshire's lakes region. However, once Luck Now closed, I went back to Bass Ale. I'm not sure exactly when I moved over to Harpoon, but it must have been in the past year or so. I guess I've always liked IPAs, and every once in a while, I like the wonderfully bitter aftertaste.

Back to my story, I found some amusing comments in the Yelp reviews regarding the Harpoon Brewery. One reviewer was overwhelmed by an IPA they served at the brewery; not the Harpoon IPA that I was used to, but another one called Imperial IPA, part of their "Leviathan" series that they introduced in 2008. The following were used to describe the Imperial IPA:

"Wow this is bitter! If you drink this before sampling the others- yuo wont [sic] be able to taste your beers."

"Beautifully crafted and completely redeeming."

Now, I know that IPAs are bitter. The bitterness comes from the hops and extra malts. The India in the name refers to the East India Company which shipped the highly hopped beer from Britain to India hundreds of years ago and, according to the Wikipedia, the beer "benefited exceptionally from conditions of the voyage and was apparently highly regarded among consumers in India." So, a reviewer complaining about the bitterness of an IPA is actually reporting on one of its defining characteristics. That, and the second review that said that Imperial IPA was beautifully crafted got my curiosity piqued.

I was going to Windsor for lunch!

The brewery is a short distance from the I-91 exit and shares a parking lot with a "Path of Life" sculpture garden (the sculpture garden requires an admission feed, there is no admission charge for the brewery and restaurant itself).

When you first enter the building, you find yourself in their souvenir shop (a lot of Harpoon labeled clothes and merchandise). To your right is a door that leads to an overlook of the actual brewery floor. You can self-guide yourself thanks to the placards that outline the brewing process and offer some trivia. To the left is the Riverbend Taps and Beer Garden, their restaurant.

I glanced at the merchandise as I walked toward the restaurant. I knew I wanted to try the Imperial IPA after those reviews, but they offered a sampler of five 5oz beers, which is what I ordered first.

The menu at the restaurant can be described as your usual pub grub. Wings, chowder, salads, burgers, and sandwiches. Nothing on the menu was over $9. I ordered a bacon cheeseburger with onion rings. I gave them my usual "medium well to well" but it came out very (VERY!) rare. The waitress recognized the mistake and sent it back. A little bit later I got a new burger done correctly (and an apology from both the waitress and later on, from the manager).


The Imperial Ale was part of the sampler, and it was as bitter as the one reviewer said. However, this was not a negative to me. Instead, it was wonderful! After I finished the sampler, I ordered a separate pint of the Imperial Ale, which was just as good as the sample.

Before I left, I looked at the merchandise store, and fell in love with a red vest with the white Harpoon logo in back. The inside is black fleece, and there are Harpoon logos on the front left (front right if you wear it with the black fleece facing out). I purchased the vest, and it's currently my outerwear during the autumn into the early winter.

For a brewery, the Windsor Harpoon brewery is small. It's nowhere near the size of the Anheuser Busch Brewery in Merrimack, NH (which is the smallest of all the Anheuser Busch breweries in America), or the Red Hook Brewery on the NH seacoast. However, it brews great beer.

When I got back home, I was pleasantly surprised to find the Leviathan Imperial IPA in a local store. It's sold as a four pack costing about $10 or so; very expensive for a beer, but it is a great tasting one. I figure I'll buy some for special events like Thanksgiving or Christmas.

Well, this coming weekend, Sandra has another Girl Scout meeting. This time it will be at the old Opera House in Claremont, NH. Claremont is another western border town, so when I found out about it, I whipped out my iPhone and located the place on Google Maps. Then I got directions from the Opera House to Windsor, VT. Guess what? It's 9.9 miles!

Guess where I'll be going this weekend?

Barguy's Focaccia

I've mentioned Chip Shots Grill and Sports Pub before, and today's blog entry is about one of my favorite sandwiches, which was "invented" at that pub.

I first had focaccia at a restaurant called Houlihan's, which I first visited when they had a restaurant in Quincy Market in Boston. That restaurant has closed and there is another in its place, but one of the sandwiches they had there was a "Brentwood Chicken Grill," which intrigued me because I grew up in Brentwood, NY, and also because the sandwich was served on "focaccia bread." (Note: the chain now has a "Brentwood Chicken Sandwich" which is now served on a whole wheat bun. Pity!)

Focaccia is a bread which is usually seasoned with olive oil, onions, herbs, cheese, etc. There are probably as many variations in how a focaccia is made as there are variations in how pizza is prepared. In Houlihan's case, the sandwich had some cheese, rosemary, and a nice texture. I had this sandwich numerous times, even after Houlihan's in Quincy Market closed--I found a location in Lake Grove, NY, across the street from the Smith Haven Mall on Middle Country Road.

Anyway, at Chip Shots, I saw a number of focaccia sandwiches in their specials list, but never bothered to order them. After all, the idea of teriyaki chicken on a focaccia roll didn't really appeal to me. However, one day, I saw a special focaccia sandwich with the simple name "Roast Beef, Swiss Cheese, and Mushrooms." I ordered the sandwich and was immediately hooked. THIS was a sandwich I really liked! I liked it so much that I came back the very next day to order it again!

When I came back the next week, the specials list changed. I mentioned to one of the owners (Shannon) that the focaccia sandwich I had the previous week was one of the first times I ever came back to Chip Shots solely for the food (I really like the atmosphere and the people there, which is my main reason for frequenting that place). Shannon assured me that I could order that sandwich off the menu, and there would never be a problem. I took her up on that, and it now is one of the only meals I eat there... when I like something, I like it!

Recently, that focaccia sandwich reappeared on the specials list at Chip Shots, only this time it was called "Barguy's Focaccia." The name "Barguy" is one that I used when logging into the NTN trivia games that were once at the pub, and is the wait staff's nickname for me. I was honored; this was the second time a special was named after me!

This past weekend, I happened to notice some focaccia rolls at Hannahford's when doing some grocery shopping. I immediately got the idea to share my favorite sandwich with Sandra. I looked at the price of roast beef, and found it prohibitive--more expensive than some steaks! So, instead of using roast beef, I used shaved steak, which was less than half the price of the roast beef. (Chip Shots once made it as a "steak sandwich" for me when they ran out of roast beef when I ordered it.)

I made the sandwich and omitted the mushrooms for Sandra's sandwich, since she doesn't like them. We sliced up some baby Vidalia onions as well. Sandra loved the sandwich as much as I did. The two of us have now agreed to make this an occasional lunch meal on weekends.

The recipe below is my own adaptation of the Chip Shots recipe. It is the version that I made this past weekend. My sandwich included the mushrooms; Sandra's didn't.

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Barguy's Focaccia (Roast Beef, Swiss, Mushrooms)

Source:	Chip Shots Grill and Sports Pub
Yield:	One sandwich
Catalogued:	03-Mar-2008

Ingredients

1 medium sized onion focaccia roll

2-4 slices aged Swiss cheese

1 Tbs butter

1 Tbs Olive oil

¼ small onion, sliced

1 oz sliced mushrooms (canned is fine)

½ lb roast beef (shaved steak will also do)

Preheat oven to 400°F. Slice the focaccia roll into two slices and toast so that the inside gets a bit of color. Keep oven on after you remove the bread, and immediately add the slices of Swiss cheese evenly onto the sandwich halves.

Meanwhile, melt butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add sliced onions and mushrooms to the butter/oil mixture, stirring occasionally until onions are translucent, about five minutes.

Cut roast beef slices in half or quarters, and add to the skillet and cook for another couple minutes until the redness in the beef starts to disappear. If using shaved steak, cook a bit longer until the meat is about medium done. Mix the meat with the onions, mushrooms, and then move to plate lined with absorbent paper.

Add the drained meat, onions, and mushrooms onto the sandwich halves on top of the cheese. Assemble the sandwich, adding toothpicks if necessary to keep the halves together.

Toast in the oven for 3-4 minutes until cheese melts.

Serve immediately.

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Bon Appetit!

Foodie Sites for NH

I am an avid blogger. While this may be the only blog that I write, I tend to read and keep up with many blogs that span the range of my interests, from computer and technical information to food and even local sports (Hooray, Red Sox!).

There are a few places that I frequent to keep tabs on the food scene, and a few of them specialize in the New Hampshire region where I live. I'd like to share some of these sites. Note that this isn't meant to be comprehensive; it's just a list of some places I like to visit.

Modesty, of course, precludes me from listing this site. Besides, if you're reading this, I don't really need to suggest it to you!

First and foremost, there is Chowhound's New England board which is a place where you can go for "tips on dining, eating, and food shopping in ME, NH, VT, RI, MA, and CT" (there is a Boston board as well, as well as for regions all around the country and elsewhere). This is a place where people can post questions, make reviews, get recommendations, and talk about food in the New England area. If you visit there regularly, you will probably find people who share interests with yourself. I, for one, have found a few people that share my love for Asian cuisine, and have come to trust their recommendations.

Next is Seacoast Online, which carries information on the New Hampshire Seacoast region, including parts of Maine and Massachusetts. You can find articles from Portsmouth Herald and some other locally-driven newspapers here. Since I love visiting Portsmouth and the seacoast region, I find this a great place for information. Their "Entertainment" site has a section on Food & Wine and a section on Dining (restaurant reviews). One thing to be aware about is that there is advertising from different restaurants on this site, so they may not print "bad" reviews about advertisers.

On television, the TV Diner (on New England Cable News) and Phantom Gourmet (on Boston's TV38) give reviews and recipes from restaurants in New England. These are pretty good sites for getting pointers to local restaurants. Billy Costa used to be the host of Phantom Gourmet, but now hosts TV Diner after the Phantom moved from NECN to TV38. Both sites are useful.

I have always been a fan of PortsmouthNH.com a site dedicated to... Portsmouth, NH. I already mentioned my love of Portsmouth, and this site is probably the most encyclopedic about the region. As far as foodies are concerned, it maintains a list of restaurants along with a short description of each.

If you ever travel to Manchester (and more recently, Nashua), you have probably seen a free newspaper called The Hippo, which is a weekly guide to the Merrimack Valley in NH. There are weekly articles on Local news, Pop culture, Living (including Food, Wine, Beer... and a "Grazing Guide"), Music and Arts. I would imagine that it's audience is people between 21 and 65, including tourists. The publishers also put out a daily paper, The Manchester Express, which is also available as a PDF online.

There are also actual blogs that I read daily, but none of them (that I am aware of) are from people in my area. However, they are interesting in their own right, since food is not always a regional topic. I'll save them for another blog entry.

Bon Appetit!

Indian Cuisine

Today's column will discuss Indian food.

Indian food was one of the first "exotic" cuisines that I ever tried. I was in Sydney, Australia on a business trip, and a friend asked me to try it out. I was immediately hooked!

While the cuisine has a reputation for being spicy, you can easily order anything you want and have it prepared mild at any restaurant.

Papadums are spicy lentil wafers (I've written about them before in this blog), and most Indian restaurants offer an appetizer sampler to allow you to sample different types of offerings. Pakoras are vegetables or bits of chicken dipped in a chick pea batter and deep fried and are very popular. There are also Samosas, which are pastries stuffed with cheese as well as peas or ground meat. Most appetizers come with various chutneys to enhance their taste. Onion chutney, mint chutney, and tamarind are quite popular.

Indian breads are, for the most part, flat breads. The standard naan is offered plain or with extras (garlic naan is popular, as is naan with bits of meat). If you are interested in something weirdly different, try a poori... this is a flat bread that is fried in such a way that it puffs up like a balloon!

Tandoori is Indian grilled food; the name comes from Tandoor, a clay pot which used for grilling at high temperatures. The Tandoori meats are marinated in yogurt and spices before they are grilled, and the result isn't as spicy is it is "spiced" (tasty, actually). I tend to recommend Tandoori to people that are a bit afraid of Indian food's spicy reputation, and most people tend to love it.

Biryani is a rice dish that incorporates various vegetables and/or meats to make a meal in itself. I find it to be a good quick lunch if I am in a hurry.

Most other Indian dishes come as stews.

Indian cuisine is well known for a large selection of vegetarian dishes, most made with beans (lentils are very popular), peas, eggplant, chick peas, and/or spinach. I've found that if I have a vegetarian friend, the variety of these dishes is very much preferred to that found in other restaurants that seem to think "vegetarian" means "person that eats salads." I'm not usually very fond of vegetarian foods myself, but I found a number of Indian foods that I really like, including Aloo Mattar (peas and potatoes in a nicely spiced red sauce) and Dal Makhani (lentil beans and spices in a cream sauce).

For the non-vegetarians, you can find lamb, chicken, and seafood dishes of various styles. Vindaloo is a very spicy (hot!) mixture of meat and potatoes. If you prefer something less hot, I would recommend Tikka Masala, which is seasoned meat simmered in a creamy tomato sauce. Jalfrezi is meat prepared with tomatoes, onions, and bell peppers in a fresh vegetable sauce.

Most Indian dishes come with basmati rice, which is usually cooked in water laced in fragrant spices (cloves, cinnamon, cardamom seeds). The rice itself, outside the spices, has a delicate flavor that goes very well with the spiciness of the rest of the menu.

A lot of Indian places offer a lunch buffet where you can try out various dishes in order to determine which ones appeal to you the most. You can usually find breads, appetizers, rice, tandoori (usually chicken), as well as salads and the various chutneys to enhance your food.

There are a few Indian restaurants near Salem, NH (with one actually in the town). Here is a capsule review of the ones that I've tried.

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Bollywood Grill (Rt. 114, Andover, MA)

Good food and a good selection. There's a section of the menu for Tikka Masala (Sandra and the girls' favorite Indian meal), but no Chicken Makhani (Butter chicken). Papadum is occasionally a bit soggy, but still quite tasty. Decor consists of Bollywood actors and actresses and scenes from Indian movies. This place advertises free WiFi...!

India Palace (South Willow Street, Manchester, NH)

Very good food and a great selection. This place has one of my favorite Indian lunch buffets around, which is stocked very nicely and contains many selections. Chicken Makhani is available, as is a very nice Tikka Masala. Free papadum when you first arrive, and you can easily order more (more! MORE!).

India Palace (Amherst Street, Nashua, NH)

Same owners as previous entry, and same menu. In this place's favor, I would have to point out that about a half block away across the street, there is a Cold Stone Creamery, which is probably the best place for dessert anywhere!

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Bon Appetit!

Foliage, New England Style

This weekend was another busy one for Sandra and me. My sister and her husband were celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary with a party and renewal of their vows in Ludlow, VT, which is where they have their winter home.

The drive to Vermont from our house normally takes around two hours, but this weekend we decided to go a longer way in order to visit our two daughters at the respective college dorms with some "care packages." We visited Harmony and delivered her vittles, and then she and her boyfriend, Jay, followed us to Keene where we visited Chardonnay. Keene on Saturday was a little bit busy—celebrating their annual Pumpkin Festival. This is a big event for Chardonnay's school, and she also had a friend visiting her at the dorm, so we just had lunch at the always-delightful La Carreta, and then bid her farewell as Harmony and Jay followed us northwest in search of Ludlow.

Despite a bit of a setback (tire blowout on Jay's Geo), we got to our motel with plenty of time to spare, all the time ooh-ing and aah-ing at the lovely autumn colors. It must be stated for the record that I believe that New Hampshire (and its sister state, Vermont) are the two loveliest places on earth to watch the trees turn during the fall, and the trees did not disappoint us this weekend. Once we were in Ludlow, we visited my sister for a bit and then we followed the family to Bear Creek Mountain Club (just north of Ludlow on VT Route 100) for the party.

At the mountain club, there was a cocktail reception with an open bar and some wonderful appetizers: Beef satay, Chicken satay, scallops wrapped in bacon, shrimp fried in wonton skins, and tomato and fresh mozzarella. After about an hour, everybody headed upstairs for the main ceremony, which was both romantic and quite funny (there were lots of stories about the oldlyweds), and one of their friends, who works with Condé Nast, gave them a poster showing the two of them on the cover of a fictional Bride magazine, with funny quotes and remarks about the two of them as the teaser "articles." The Red Sox game was on the television in the bar, and a few people kept in touch with the game as Schilling turned in a great performance backed up by the kicked up bats of the rest of the line-up.

Sandra and I spent the night in Ludlow at the Best Western, where we stayed at a reasonably priced spacious suite with a king bed in a stone cottage. On Sunday morning, Sandra and I had breakfast at The Hatchery, a breakfast and lunch place in downtown Ludlow, with family and friends.

At around 11 o'clock, Sandra and I started a leisurely drive home, stopping for lunch at a place that we visited a few times years back—The Flying Goose Brew Pub & Grill in New London, NH. I remember the place as having good food, very good beer, breathtaking views, and served at a leisurely pace that could be frustrating if you were simply looking for a quick meal en route to, say, a summer home seven hours away. Since we weren't in any sort of rush, we figured it would be the perfect place, if it was still in business. I remembered the location very well: New Hampshire state route 11, which was also exit 11 off Interstate 89 (about a half mile north of the interstate).

We were in luck—the place was still there. Mount Kearsarge was festooned in greens, yellows, oranges, and reds, and although all the seats next to the windows overlooking the mountain were taken, we still had a beautiful view from our table.

The menu at the Flying Goose is a bit eclectic, with seafood, pasta, and steaks, as well as burgers, sandwiches, and barbecue. I had the ribs and pulled pork BBQ combo, and Sandra had a "New Englander" which is a half-pound burger with smoked bacon, sautéed onions, and cheddar. We also had an appetizer of turkey-and-vegetable pot-stickers, which we ordered deep fried rather than the traditional steamed (served more like gyōzas than pot-stickers).

The Flying Goose, being a Brew Pub, has a huge selection of its own beers. I ordered one of their specials with the rather ugly name "GAK," which was described as being made from half-American, half-German ingredients. This beer was very malty with only a hint of hops, and it was served at a nice temperature of about 45°F.

The food was very good and plentiful, and the pace was as I remembered it as not too rushed. The service was cheerful and the portions were more than sufficient, and there it was a good value for the money. With the spectacular view of Mt. Kearsarge, the homey atmosphere, and the good food and brew, I can't help but recommend it heartily for anybody that is looking for a quiet, relaxing, and enjoyable meal in the area.

That's it for now!

Bon Appetit!

Pizza

I'm one of the few people I know that doesn't really like pizza. Well, I will eat it, but it is not something that I love to eat.

A common image of geeks like me is that we drink a lot of caffeine (I don't like coffee either, by the way...!) and we eat pizza at midnight while we are doing a coding all-nighter. Sorry if I disappoint.

I know where my dislike of pizza comes from. I had "stomach problems" all during my childhood, and as a result, I had this terrible aversion to cheese. Since pizza is covered in cheese, it made the entire issue a non-starter for me. Now, as I grew up, I slowly grew to tolerate cheese to the point where I don't mind the milder cheeses. Contrast that to my oldest daughter's one-time attempt at Limburger... [shudder!] Anyway, the fact that most pizza purchased at my house when I was younger was the plain kind (no meat), also turned me off. So, for me, there wasn't anything to like.

When I started dating Sandra (1975), I found that she absolutely loved pizza, and had a couple of favorite places. Since pizza was a cheap meal, I grit my teeth and we went on a few pizza dates. I decided that if they added enough meat (sausage, pepperoni), the pizza wasn't really THAT bad. I moved from toleration to mild acceptance. I started experimenting with differing styles of pizza—discovering a place in Hicksville, NY called "My π" (the second "word" is the greek letter "pi," the kind of pun a geek like me would like!). This was a different style of pizza, which I would later learn was "Chicago Style" deep dish.

After moving to Miami (1979 through 1982), I remember the common wisdom from everybody who came from New York was that the pizza there was truly hideous. My parents agreed, and I was no longer faced with having to find something else to eat when people were doing pizza. One day, I was reading the Miami Herald, and saw an article about the terrible pizza situation in Miami. The article also pointed out a few places where good pizza could be found. I kept the information on what the Herald considered the "best" in Miami (which they claimed was as good or even better than the best pizza in New York!), mainly because when Sandra came for a visit, we could do another "pizza date" as before.

The place was called "Little Caesar's Pizza Treat" (no affiliation with the chain that I believe came along later) and it was located on South Dixie Highway in Coral Gables, right across the street from the University of Miami. When Sandra visited, I took her to the place, and—surprise!—the pizza was actually quite good. Again, I insisted on adding meat to it, and after Sandra and I got married in 1981, it became a semi-regular stop for us for dinner. Interestingly enough, there was also a "My π" in the Miami area as well! (It used to be a small chain of restaurants, which lives on in in Illinois by the son of the original owner.)

One day when Sandra and I were walking around the neighborhood where we lived in Miami, we stopped at a new strip mall that recently opened. Sandra saw a pizza place and insisted that we go there. I tried to warn her about Florida pizza, but she insisted that she loved ALL pizza. In Sandra's defense, I must point out that her only Florida pizza experience up until that time was Little Caesar's near the University, so she thought my warnings were due to the fact that although I started to accept pizza, she knew that deep down, I could live without it. When she bought the slice, she had to grudgingly admit that I was correct. She hated the pizza!

After we moved to New England, we found a chain restaurant called Papa Gino's just across the street from our apartment at the Rockingham Mall in Salem (this place is still there). Sandra liked the pizza, although it wasn't as good as the best pizza in Long Island or Little Caesar's. I, for my part, liked the pasta. So once again, pizza dates started to become common—about once a week since the place was so close.

I remember a place just over the Massachusetts border in Ayer from Salem on Route 97 that had a very good pizza before the kids were born. For a mere pittance, the two of us would share a pizza (with sausage, pepperoni, and meat balls), and a sixty-four ounce pitcher of Stroh's beer. We made this a Wednesday habit, and we started to become regulars there—the owner would see us and start pouring us our pitcher while we decided which pizza we would order.

Sadly, that place in Ayer is no longer in business. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts, in its infinite wisdom, managed to let itself be convinced by some pious know-nothings that happy hours should be banned. "It makes sense," the promoters would say, "that if you discount alcohol, people will buy more of it." That seemed ludicrous to me; I never once saw a person go into a bar and ask for five dollars worth of drinks. Lowering the price at happy hour should only have the effect that it will lower the amount you will spend on your drinks. The proponents didn't point to any studies that proved their "common wisdom," but, alas, the Commonwealth passed its "happy hour" laws.

I remember the owner of the pizza place in Ayer sadly informing us that he couldn't sell us any pitchers—his sixty-four ounce pitchers were deemed "too large" by the new law. Sandra and I had to instead purchase the beer at full price by the glass (which made for a lot more expensive meal). Only a few weeks later, the place went out of business, and was replaced by a video store. Thank you, Commonwealth of Massachusetts...

Today, we have pizza, but no longer have the pizza dates we once did. I'm still mildly accepting of pizza, but most places that serve pizza also serve other things that I'd prefer to eat. With the kids enjoying pizza as much as their mother, I'm not really a stick-in-the-mud as far as that's concerned.

One place my family currently enjoys is Sal's "Just Pizza." They have a colossal three-pound pizza (one "slice" is a quarter of the pizza and enough for a meal). From its little place in Salem in 1990, Sal's has grown into a very popular chain here in New England. Its location in Salem moved down the road to a larger facility, and they now serve things other than pizza, incorporating Mary's Pasta and Sandwiches (making me much happier).

A Trip to the Seacoast

For the second time in two weeks, Sandra and I ventured to the NH seacoast on Saturday, despite that fact that the forecast was for rain all day. We took exit 1 off I-95 in New Hampshire, preferring to take the back roads. We drove through Hampton Beach (now in its official "post season" look and feel after last week's shindig). As expected, a lot of the places are now closed, and driving through the dreary drizzle going north on 1-A, we didn't see anything worth stopping for.

Interestingly enough, by the time we reached North Hampton about 1:30pm, the drizzle had more or less stopped. We saw a number of surfboards at North Hampton Beach State Park, so we pulled into a parking space and took a look at about a couple score people (guys and girls) in dark wet suits trying to catch a wave. The waves weren't very high; the storm wasn't really that intense, but you had to give them credit for trying!

Driving further north, we made it to Portsmouth. There were signs for Sunday's Portsmouth Criterium bicycle race, which seems to be an annual event on Market Square, and parking was difficult to find in the city... we had a few places that Sandra and I agreed would be nice for lunch--Muddy River Smokehouse, Molly Malone's, and Rusty Hammer. After a five minute trek to find a parking spot, we found one on Market Street right across from the Hammer, so that's where we had lunch.

The Rusty Hammer has a rather unassuming menu, focusing on sandwiches and burgers (named "Wimpy's," after the old Popeye character that would pay you on Tuesday for a burger today). I had a bacon-cheddar burger, and Sandra had a turkey club. The food was good, as usual. One minor flaw was that I've always remembered the Hammer as having Bass Ale on tap, but when I ordered it, I got a bottle instead--apparently, it's no longer on draft. The waitress apologized for not warning me about the change in advance; I think she thought that the two of us were regulars and knew about it already.

After a very nice meal, Sandra and I proceeded to Strawbery Banke, Portsmouth's outdoor historical museum dedicated to the renovation and restoration of the historic buildings from one of America's oldest colonial settlements. I became a member of Strawbery Banke about ten years ago, and my membership allows me to visit the museum for free.

This past weekend, Strawbery Bank was having its Garden Harvest Festival Weekend--I received a notice about it in the mail on Friday, and it was one of the reasons that Sandra and I decided on the Seacoast again this weekend. It was a nice, relaxing visit (as always!), and we watched a presentation by Kathleen Wall, Foodways Historian from Plimouth Plantation (sigh; do you know how difficult it is to get spelling checkers to ignore quaint colonial spelling?) in Plymouth, MA. Her presentation was in character (first person narrative) regarding Colonial Harvest, specifically what a person coming from England would need to know about planting a vegetable garden in this newfangled place called New England in the mid-1600's.

Sandra and I noticed that the sun had finally come out around 3pm, so we walked around the different places at Strawbery Banke. We visited the Cotton Tenant House Potters—a family favorite location—listening to the potter explain about the life of a teenager in the 1800s and early 1900s to a seventeen-year-old, who apparently got a slightly better appreciation of enduring school! After that, Sandra had a chocolate chip cookie from Pitt's Tavern.

There was a Harvest Supper planned for 6pm, but Sandra and I didn't really want to stay that long. Instead, the two of us got back in the car and continued north up US-1 into Maine until we got to Cape Neddick. From there, we took route 1-A to another family favorite restaurant, Cape Neddick Lobster Pound.

The Lobster Pound was now in Autumn schedule (closed Tuesdays), and they had lobster specials (pound and pound and a quarter lobsters, available singly or by twin). Sandra chose a single pound and a quarter lobster with a small cup of clam chowder. Since I don't care much for lobster, I opted for their Friday and Saturday special of prime rib, with Buffalo wings as my appetizer.

As usual, Sandra's chowder was excellent--thick and creamy. My wings were very tasty (albeit messy with a huge amount of Buffalo sauce) as well. Our main courses arrived and we truly enjoyed our meals. The service was excellent, and our table was at a window with a nice view of the inland marshes next to the Pound.

There was still some daylight left at 6pm, so we continued to head north to Ogunquit (also in Maine). I could tell from the glimpses of shoreline on the way that we were at or near low tide, which is the best way to experience the beach at Ogunquit at dusk... the amount of beach you can walk on goes from a tiny strip at high tide to a rather large expanse at low tide. Sandra and I walked along the beach for about a half hour, and then we ended up sitting at the bar at Splash, which is located right on the beach with wonderful views of the beach and the ocean. Sandra had a Diet Coke, and I had a Sebago Red beer as we watched the Boston Red Sox doing well against the Yankees. When Sandra and I left Splash, the Sox were ahead 10-1.

We drove straight home from Ogunquit, and we learned that the Sox indeed beat the Yankees that day, ending their five game losing streak to the Bronx Bombers.

All in all, it was an enjoyable way to spend a day. Although the weather didn't look promising at the start, it actually turned out to be a nice day. We really hadn't anticipated the bonus of a romantic walk on the beach... isn't it great how things just work out sometimes?