Author: Matt Ingersoll

Matt Ingersoll writes about all things food and drink, covering new restaurants and following the most delicious foodie trends in the state. Reach him at [email protected].

New Italian option

Bellissimo opens in former Fratello’s space in Nashua

Less than three weeks after Fratello’s Italian Grille closed its downtown Nashua restaurant, a new concept has already arrived in its place. Bellissimo Italian Steakhouse and Bar opens on March 31 and will feature a variety of steak, chicken and seafood entrees, pastas and wood-fired pizzas, plus rotating house cocktails and regular live entertainment.

Although some Fratello’s employees have remained on staff during the eatery’s transition, Bellissimo — named for the Italian word meaning “beautiful” — is under new management from its predecessor. It’s the latest venture of Jason Fiore Sr., David Raptis and Justin Hoang, co-owners and partners of a local restaurant group that also includes Luk’s Bar & Grill in Hudson and Joey’s Diner and The Black Forest Cafe & Bakery, both in Amherst.

With the exception of only a few options, Bellissimo’s dinner menu is almost entirely brand new for the space, said Hoang, a Nashua native who is the group’s executive chef.

Filet Oscar. Courtesy photo.

“I wanted to make it slightly more upscale than Luk’s [and] to get a little more creative,” Hoang said. “Luk’s is considered more of a tavern and bar, and it’s very broad as far as the menu goes, so here I really wanted to focus more on the pasta dishes, and the steaks and things like that.”

Plated entrees are indeed among Bellissimo’s many highlights, with a number of signature menu items that include filet oscar, saffron lobster risotto, chicken Francese, almond-crusted salmon, and steak tip Gorgonzola alfredo with penne pasta. You’ll find appetizers like meatballs, arancini, bruschetta and mussels fra diavolo, and premium sides like grilled prosciutto-wrapped asparagus and Parmesan risotto. As for the wood-fired pizzas, those options run the gamut from traditional flavors like cheese and pepperoni to meatball and ricotta and prosciutto and arugula.

“We’re using the same dough that we’ve been doing at Luk’s, but the whole dynamic of the pizzas has changed, because that wood-fired oven completely changes the texture,” Hoang said. “It gives the pizza this super-rustic look and taste, which is really awesome.”

For desserts, there’s tiramisu, a limoncello cake and a raspberry doughnut cheesecake. The drink menu features a lineup of Italian wines and specialty martinis.

While Bellissimo is starting out with just weekly dinner service, Hoang said he’d like to eventually begin offering lunch — he’s thinking perhaps sandwiches, paninis, salads and other similar items to serve the working demographic among the neighboring downtown businesses. Sunday brunch is also a possibility for the restaurant sometime in the future, Fiore said.

Bellissimo Italian Steakhouse and Bar
Opening Thursday, March 31
Where: 194 Main St., Nashua
Hours: Sunday through Thursday, 4 to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 4 to 10 p.m. The bar will remain open until 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.
More info: See “Bellissimo Italian Steakhouse & Bar” on Facebook, call 718-8378 or email co-owner Jason Fiore Sr. at [email protected] to make a reservation.

Featured photo: Wood fired oven pizza. Courtesy photo.

Ready, set, decorate

Franco-American Centre to host amateur cake competition

Eight amateur bakers will show off their cake decorating skills to attendees and a panel of judges during the Franco Foods Fleur Délices challenge, a new friendly baking competition and fundraising event happening on Saturday, April 9, at Anheuser-Busch’s Biergarten in Merrimack.

Countries and regions spanning multiple continents around the world will be represented, but all of them share one commonality, either their French-speaking language or French culture, said Nathalie Hirte, event organizer and office manager of the Franco-American Centre, based in Manchester. A native of Québec and an avid home cook, Hirte is also the host of Franco Foods, a how-to YouTube series on French-inspired recipes that her son Oskar directs and produces.

“We were looking to do a live event … and, pre-pandemic, we had planned a cupcake challenge that was going to be a professional competition,” Hirte said. “That obviously got shelved, and especially now that it’s all hands on deck for businesses post-pandemic, we decided to do an amateur baking competition instead. … I know too just from seeing [posts from] my friends on Facebook and whatnot that there are so many talented amateur bakers out there.”

Each of the eight entrants has chosen from a list of nearly 90 International Francophonie-recognized countries and regions, or nations where French is a primary or secondary language or has a historical connection to the culture. France, Canada and Haiti, in addition to Croatia, Belgium and even Egypt and Mexico, have all been selected, and contestants will be tasked with creating a cake that is decorated to reflect that country in some way.

“They will pre-make everything at home, and then they will be bringing that to the event and will be putting together the cake and decorating it there,” Hirte said. “There are certain rules, so for example every cake has to have a minimum of two tiers. One of the tiers must be a sponge, so a regular cake batter, and then every cake must have a buttercream element and a cookie element.”

Once at the venue, contestants will be timed — one hour for single decorators and 45 minutes for teams of two — to create their cakes, and attendees are free to watch. There will also be a cash bar and light finger food appetizers to be provided by Celebrations Catering.

The judge panel will include local chefs Alex Waddell and Matt Provencher, as well as Marie-Josée Duquette, a representative of the Québec Government Office in Boston. Waddell is the owner of Crémeux French Patisserie in Merrimack, and he also studied at Ferrandi, an internationally recognized culinary arts school in Paris. Provencher is an award-winning Manchester chef and a two-time champion of the New Hampshire PoutineFest, another Franco-American Centre event. Each will grade the cakes based on everything from taste and texture to overall appearance, creativity and representation of their country or region.

There will also be a people’s choice winner for the best appearances as voted by attendees. Prizes include an engraved cake platter and bamboo cutting board, and winners also receive bragging rights and the opportunity to be a featured guest on an upcoming Franco Foods episode.

“I think the fun part will really be getting to watch the bakers go at it,” Hirte said. “We also have two very nice baskets for door prizes. Everybody gets a raffle ticket, but if somebody really likes something and they want to win, we’ll have an opportunity to buy more tickets.”

Franco Foods Fleur Délices Challenge
When: Saturday, April 9, 6 to 9 p.m.
Where: The Biergarten at Anheuser-Busch Brewery, 221 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack
Cost: Admission is $27 per person or $50 per couple; all attendees receive a raffle ticket for a chance to win a door prize. Franco-American Centre members receive three tickets each.
Visit: facnh.com/fleur-delices-challenge
Reserve your admission spot to the event by Monday, April 4.

Featured photo: Scenes from Franco Foods, a YouTube series hosted by Franco-American Centre office manager Nathalie Hirte. Courtesy photos.

The Weekly Dish 22/03/31

News from the local food scene

• Keep on brewing on: New Hampshire Craft Beer Week, an annual 10-day celebration of the Granite State’s craft brewing industry, is returning for its eighth year. Starting Thursday, April 7, and continuing through Saturday, April 16, breweries all over New Hampshire are showcasing special beer releases, hosting events and participating in various collaborative social media efforts to keep the community connected and engaged. It’s overseen by the New Hampshire Brewers Association, which represents the more than 90 craft brewers statewide. Visit nhbrewers.org or follow the Facebook page @nhcraftbeerweek for the most up-to-date Craft Beer Week happenings. The Association is also planning to bring back its long-awaited Keep NH Brewing Festival this summer — that event is set for Saturday, July 9, at the Everett Arena Waterfront Park in Concord, and tickets are expected to be available soon.

• Ukrainian wines: Join WineNot Boutique in Nashua for a special virtual wine tasting on Friday, April 1, from 7 to 8 p.m., featuring selections from ArtWinery, a producer of sparkling wines based in Ukraine. Scheduled pours during the tasting include several of its white and rose sparkling wines, which are available for sale at WineNot, and admission is free via Zoom with a minimum purchase of two bottles. WineNot will be donating 10 percent of the proceeds to the Ukrainian Red Cross, and its importer, Saperavi USA, will be matching all donations as well. Visit winenotboutique.com or find the event page on Facebook @winenotboutique to register.

• Grilled cheese and ice cream: Manchester food truckers Alex and Marcie Pichardo of Prime Time Grilled Cheese have a new brick-and-mortar restaurant, which opened March 18 at 119 Hanover St. in the Queen City. The space operates in a fast casual atmosphere with both bar and table seating inside, offering a menu of all kinds of unique takes on the traditional grilled cheese sandwich, from Buffalo chicken and pulled pork grilled cheeses to a Philly cheese steak option, a jalapeno macaroni and cheese sandwich and more. Other menu items include a lineup of a few soups, sides and drinks, with a few domestic and local craft beers, craft cocktails, and a small space for regular live local music planned. The eatery also shares space with Sub Zero Nitrogen Ice Cream, which is the franchise’s first location in Manchester. Prime Time Grilled Cheese is open Monday through Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Visit primetimegrilledcheese.com.

• Seafood worker study: Seafood workers were twice as likely to contract Covid-19 as workers in other food industries during the height of the pandemic, according to a recently published University of New Hampshire study. Researchers looking at the effects of the pandemic on the country’s seafood industry found that a majority of Covid cases from the summer of 2020 through the beginning of 2021 involved workers in seafood processing who tend to work in close proximity to each other for long hours. “Even though … precautions were set in place reducing the number of workers on processing lines, it meant longer shifts and increased exposure overall,” UNH assistant professor of biological sciences Easton White said in a statement. “Fishing vessels had similar issues, where crews on crowded boats faced challenges wearing PPE, or masks, in wet and windy conditions.”

In the kitchen with Kaylon Sweet

Kaylon Sweet — known by many simply as “Sweets” — is the owner of Osteria Poggio (18 Main St., Center Harbor, 250-8007, osteriapoggio.com), a farm-to-table Italian eatery set inside the historic Coe House, which overlooks Lake Winnipesaukee. In late January, he also took over culinary operations of the Mak’n Ends Meat food truck (maknendsmeat.com, and on Facebook and Instagram @maknendsmeat) as part of a collaboration with its owners, the Osgood family of Birch Rise Farm in Sanbornton. Mak’n Ends Meat is unique for utilizing Birch Rise’s own farm-raised proteins on board the truck, giving Sweet the opportunity to dabble in all kinds of menu options, such as pork smash burgers, chicken tacos, ham and cheese “foldies,” and ramen burgers topped with a house Japanese-style barbecue sauce. One of Sweet’s first restaurant jobs was at Cookie’s Chuck Wagon in Hudson, a town where he lived for a few years as a teenager — since then, he has studied Italian cuisine abroad in Florence and, upon returning to the Granite State, has gone on to establish himself as a chef working closely with local farms in sourcing his ingredients. Locally, you can find Mak’n Ends Meat parked at Lithermans Limited Brewery (126B Hall St., Concord) on Friday, March 25, from 4 to 8 p.m. Sweet will then return to Lithermans for its six-year anniversary celebration on April 8 and April 9, and he’s also due to appear at Great North Aleworks (1050 Holt Ave., Manchester) on April 16.

What is your must-have kitchen item?

You’ve got to have a nice flat metal spatula and a towel. … I can make everything else work with those items.

What would you have for your last meal?

My mom makes these pork ribs with a barbecue sauce recipe that my grandmother gave her … [and] they always come out absolutely amazing. I’d want those one last time. She does a chocolate raspberry cheesecake too that I go nuts for. … Then I would also have our Caesar salad with our house hot sauce squirted into it, and some smoked Gouda mac and cheese with honey. It’s your last meal, so you’ve got to make it count, you know?

What is your favorite local restaurant?

The Thompson House Eatery up in Jackson is one. I have a buddy who owns it. He was just up for a [James] Beard [award] and he’s definitely earned it. … I’d also have to say The Wilder in Portsmouth. It’s always fantastic.

What celebrity would you like to see ordering from the truck?

[Chef] Mason Hereford from Turkey and the Wolf, which is a sandwich place in New Orleans. His claim to fame is a fried bologna sandwich. … He’s somebody that I follow religiously on all of the social media platforms. He’s very much a guy that is who he is … [and] I’d like to have him come through because I know I’d get an honest answer out of him.

What is your favorite thing on the truck’s menu?

I really like our pork smash burger. It’s a ground sausage-based burger that we just pound out and fry up. I like to do that with a fried egg, some bacon jam and chipotle aioli. … I’d have to say that the ham and cheese foldy is also something that I really like. It’s basically like a ham and cheese quesadilla, but the ham from Birch Rise Farm is what makes it. It’s an insanely good ham.

What is the biggest food trend in New Hampshire right now?

Tacos and Asian fusion, to be honest. … Every time I see some place trying to start their own thing, that’s where it seems to be that they are gravitating toward.

What is your favorite thing to cook at home?

Usually just a bagel, egg and cheese sandwich and then I’ll dip it in something. … I’ve also been playing around a lot lately with fried rice.

Ramen smash burgers
From the kitchen of Kaylon Sweet of Osteria Poggio and the Mak’n Ends Meat food truck (yields about three burgers)

3 Martin’s potato buns
¾ pound ground pork
1 teaspoon canola oil
2 Tablespoons water
1 bag instant ramen noodles
3 slices American cheese
Japanese barbecue sauce
Any additional toppings of choice (optional)

Heat up your ramen per instructions. Drain and set aside. Save the seasoning packet for the burgers. Heat up a nonstick pan and add canola oil. Divide ground pork into three equally sized balls and semi-flatten. Season with ramen seasoning packet and salt on one side. Place in the pan and leave to get a hard sear (according to Sweet, it should achieve a dark golden brown color, “like good maple syrup”). Season the uncooked side and flip. Smash burgers down and flatten. Add one slice of cheese to each patty. Cook through and set aside. Add ramen into the still hot pan. Add two tablespoons of water to release the sticky bits, then add the Japanese barbecue sauce. Once all of the noodles are coated, set aside and prepare to build. Put a patty on a bun, add ramen on top and place your top bun on. Add any other optional toppings — Sweet’s favorites to use are shredded lettuce, chipotle mayonnaise, pickled onions, pickled ginger and a fried egg.

For the Japanese barbecue sauce:
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup ketchup
3 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic
¼ cup pickled ginger
¼ cup chopped scallions
1 ripe pear, with cores chopped

Place all ingredients into a blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a saucepan and cook on a low temperature until the mixture has reduced by a third. Cook and store in an airtight container.

Featured photo: Kaylon Sweet. Courtesy photo.

Breaking bread

Woodman’s Artisan Bakery to open storefront in Nashua

Bill Woodman gained a following across the local farmers market scene for his European-style artisan breads, first selling in Salem in 2018 before branching out to six markets by the following summer. Nearly four years later, Woodman is expanding his startup bread business into a storefront, giving him his own permanent spot to bake as well as an opportunity to serve coffees, teas, sandwiches and grab-and-go pastries.

Woodman’s Artisan Bakery is due to open in the coming weeks on the corner of Amherst and Sunapee streets in North Nashua — it’s in the former spot of Great Harvest Bread Co., which has sat vacant since December 2019. Upon coming into the space, Woodman connected with former Great Harvest owner Jeremy St. Hilaire, who welcomed him to the neighborhood, shared his own experiences, and helped go over the basics of its unique multiton 48-pan oven.

Rows of salted pretzels from an artisan bakery
Photo courtesy of Woodman’s Artisan Bakery.

Woodman’s breads are 100 percent scratch-baked and range from various country ryes and sourdoughs to flavored options like a cranberry walnut and an Italian focaccia with Parmesan and rosemary. His product line also includes traditional French butter croissants and pain au chocolat pastries, as well as soft blueberry scones and lightly salted German-style pretzels.

A Manchester native, Woodman attended Springfield College in Massachusetts before transferring to Southern New Hampshire University to study culinary arts. From there, he would hold multiple kitchen jobs over the years, and it was while as a cook at the RiverMead, a retirement home in Peterborough, that he got the opportunity to attend bread baking intensive courses at King Arthur Flour in Vermont, thanks to an educational reimbursement program.

“I had always had an interest in breads, but no one ever knew much to teach me about them,” he said. “I did the program at King Arthur, came back to the retirement home and then was doing fresh bread for them every day. … People were going crazy about it to the point where we ended up setting up a sale with three or four different types of bread. So that went over very, very well.”

In May 2018, Woodman applied to become a vendor at the Salem Farmers Market. Dave Hippert, a longtime friend of his who owns Sal’s Pizza in Hooksett, agreed to let him use his oven after hours, where he currently bakes his breads and pastries.

“He closes down at the end of his day, so 9 or 10 o’clock at night, and then I go in, mix up my doughs and bake throughout the night into the mornings. Then from the morning to the afternoon I go out to the markets and sell my bread off,” he said. “So without him, none of this would’ve been possible, especially just with the volume that I’m able to pull out of there.”

As a result, nearly all of his items at the market have only just been out of the oven hours earlier.

“That’s one of those things that makes a big, big difference is that quality and freshness,” he said.

croissants laid out on a cooling rack
Photo courtesy of Woodman’s Artisan Bakery.

Once his Nashua storefront opens, Woodman will leave the kitchen at Sal’s, but he still plans to attend a few farmers markets per week. Currently he’s in Concord on Saturdays and Salem on Sundays, and he’ll pick up a third market in Bedford on Tuesdays when it resumes in June.

In addition to Great Harvest’s oven, Woodman has an electric Bongard deck oven from Germany he purchased a few years ago through a mutual connection with a Portsmouth chef.

“It’s kind of like your Lamborghini of ovens, so to speak,” he said. “Anything that’s got a real nice crust and a chewy crumb is going to come out of there, because you get that steam injection. … You get a little bit of water, which keeps the dough pliable enough so that it grows and expands properly, but then when it starts evaporating off, you start basically caramelizing the sugars on the surface of that dough, and it gives you that color and crispiness that you want.”

Woodman plans to get into baking ciabattas and baguettes, breads he said he hasn’t regularly done in a few years. He’ll also be able to produce all of his other artisan breads on an even larger scale than before, thanks to his newfound 24/7 access. One of his flagship products is called the “Yukon Dave” sourdough — it’s named after a farmers market customer who gifted him a sourdough starter that originated in Alaska sometime in the 1960s.

On the retail side, Woodman will have a display case featuring grab-and-go pastries as well as drip coffee sourced from A&E, a USDA-certified organic roaster. Eventually, he said, he’d like to add cappuccinos and lattes and plans to offer pizzas, sandwiches and other lunch items.

Woodman’s Artisan Bakery
An opening date is expected in the coming weeks for the bakery’s storefront. In the meantime, find owner and bread maker Bill Woodman at the Downtown Concord Winter Farmers Market (7 Eagle Square, Concord) on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon, and at the Salem Farmers Market (LaBelle Winery Derry, 14 Route 111, Derry) on Sundays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Where: 4 Sunapee St., Nashua
Hours: TBA
More info: Visit woodmansartisanbakery.com, or find them on Facebook @woodmansartisanbakery and Instagram @woodmans.artisan.bakery

Featured photo: Photos courtesy of Woodman’s Artisan Bakery.

The Weekly Dish 22/03/24

News from the local food scene

• Maple madness: There’s still time to go tour a local sugarhouse for New Hampshire Maple Month, which will hold its final weekend on Saturday, March 26, and Sunday, March 27. Visit the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association’s online directory at nhmapleproducers.com for a list of participating farms and sugarhouses. Even though Maple Weekend was last weekend, several maple producers across the state are continuing to welcome visitors for sugaring tours, samples and gift shop product sales. You can also check out our coverage of Maple Weekend in the Hippo’s March 17 issue, which begins on page 10 and includes recipes and details about this season’s syrup production. Visit issuu.com/hippopress to read the e-edition for free.

• Heirloom feasts: Join the Concord Garden Club in welcoming Ellen Ecker Ogden, author of The New Heirloom Garden, for a virtual event on Saturday, March 26, at 1 p.m., in partnership with Gibson’s Bookstore. Ogden will talk about her book and discuss the essentials of how to prepare, plant and maintain an heirloom food garden. Released in early 2021, The New Heirloom Garden is filled with tips on how to grow various heirloom vegetables, herbs and flowers, and includes 55 recipes for everything from entrees and sides to desserts, drinks and more. Registration is free but required to receive a link to the Zoom webinar. Donations are accepted through Eventbrite, with proceeds split between Gibson’s Bookstore and the Concord Garden Club, and copies of Ogden’s book are also available for sale. Visit gibsonsbookstore.com.

• PoutineFest is back: After a successful event in 2021, the New Hampshire PoutineFest is returning to Anheuser-Busch Tour Center & Biergarten (221 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack) on Saturday, Oct. 15, according to a recent announcement on its website and social media channels. Since 2016, the annual festival has brought together local and regional restaurants, food trucks and other vendors to compete for the best poutine dish as voted by attendees. It had traditionally been held in the summer, but the response to last year’s festival from both vendors and poutine lovers alike has prompted organizers with the Franco-American Centre to make a permanent shift to October. Details on ticket sales are expected soon. Visit nhpoutinefest.com.

• Mile Away to return: After previously announcing late last year that it would close its kitchen space in January, Milford’s Mile Away Restaurant will now be reopening on April 6, according to a message recently posted on its website. Reservations will be required going forward, due to limited staffing, the message reads in part. Additionally, public events with set menus are being planned for every Saturday and Sunday in April, during which Mile Away’s regular dinner menu will not be available. The eatery will also be open for Easter — reservations are being accepted now for special meals that will include an appetizer, a salad, an entree and a dessert. According to its website, Mile Away is in a historic spot in town — the site of one of the earliest settlements in New England in the 18th century. Visit mileawayrestaurantnh.com.

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