Author: Matt Ingersoll

News from the local food scene

• Riverside brews: There’s still time to get your ticket to the Manchester Brewfest, happening on Sunday, Oct. 31, at Arms Park (10 Arms St., Manchester), with general admittance from 1 to 4 p.m. and VIP admittance beginning at noon. The seventh annual festival will feature more than 100 craft beer options to sample from, in addition to some ciders and hard seltzers. Several local restaurants are expected to attend, and other activities will include live music, face painting and a petting zoo from Candia’s Charmingfare Farm. Tickets are $40 general admission, $50 VIP admission and $15 for designated drivers (prices do not include food). Proceeds benefit Value of Sport, a new nonprofit dedicated to giving Manchester students in fourth grade and up equal access to programs in sports, art and music. Visit manchesterbrewfest.com or, for more details on the event, check out our story on page 26 of the Hippo’s Oct. 14 issue.

• Tucker’s coming to Bedford: Local diner chain Tucker’s will open its new location in Bedford on Oct. 25, in the former Outback Steakhouse at 95 S. River Road, according to its website and social media channels. This will be the sixth Tucker’s restaurant and also its largest — the other five locations are in Hooksett, Dover, New London, Concord and Merrimack. Tucker’s features a menu of breakfast items like omelets and scramblers, and lunch items like sandwiches and bowls, plus a rotating selection of specials. Meghann Clifford, executive vice president of business development and marketing for Tucker’s, told the Hippo earlier this year that the Bedford location will also introduce new menu concepts for the brand, like fresh juices, smoothie bowls and brunch-based cocktails. Visit tuckersnh.com.

• Lakes Region Uncorked postponed: For the second consecutive year, Lakes Region Uncorked will not be taking place during its normal early November time frame. “In 2020 it was a foregone conclusion to cancel,” a message from Lakes Region Community Services, the event’s organizers, read in part. “This year looks to be just as frustrating and results in once again announcing the postponement.” In a statement, LRCS President and CEO Rebecca Bryant said that she is cautiously optimistic about finally bringing the signature event back in 2022. “As Lakes Region Uncorked was to near its 10th anniversary soon, even before the pandemic hit, we had turned to question how we could possibly make this terrific event even better,” she said. “With indoor tightly spaced evenings feeling like a thing of the past, we are excitedly looking into bringing Uncorked outside and into the spring.” Visit lakesregionuncorked.com.

• Farewell to Mile Away: Mile Away Restaurant (52 Federal Hill Road, Milford) will be permanently closing its kitchen space on Jan. 1, 2022, according to a recent announcement on its website. “The owner … has decided to close the restaurant and become an event center,” it reads in part. “We will host indoor and outdoor events, weddings, functions and other gatherings year-round.” The message goes on to request that all gift certificates and gift cards to the restaurant be used by the end of the year. Mile Away is in a historic spot in town, the site of one of the earliest settlements in the 18th century. Visit mileawayrestaurantnh.com.

Simit Cafe opens in Nashua

Remzi Kahya grew up working at his father’s shop, the Bagel Cafe on Hanover Street in Manchester. He learned how to make New York-style bagels from scratch and, as an adult, eventually expanded the family business to a second Bagel Cafe in Bedford.

Now Kahya is building on his success even further — Simit Cafe, which opened on Sept. 21, brings his handcrafted bagels to Nashua while adding espresso drinks, tea shakers, cold-pressed juices, smoothies and all kinds of pastries and baked goods to the menu.

At around 3,000 square feet, the space is the largest of the three storefronts, inspiring Kahya to introduce a full-service cafe concept. Like at its predecessors, bagels here are prepared in multiple batches throughout the day to ensure their freshness.

“Simit is a Turkish name for a bagel,” said Kahya, who came to the United States with his family from Turkey when he was 7. “We like to steam our bagels. … I think that’s better for making a sandwich. You still get that crust that you want, but it’s not too hard, either.”

Simit Cafe features all the traditional bagel flavors from plain and everything to sesame and onion, plus a few more decadent options like French toast and jalapeno cheddar. They can be ordered with cream cheese; with a spread like butter, Nutella or jelly; or as a breakfast or lunch sandwich, all of which are available all day. If you want to order bagels to go, you can mix and match up to a half-dozen of any flavor per package.

“I try to get premium ingredients for everything … rather than going for the cheapest option,” Kahya said. “So, like when you order a bacon, egg and cheese [sandwich], you’re getting free-range eggs on a real grill, not microwaved or anything. … We make our own cream cheese in five different flavors, and you can taste the difference.”

Bagel sandwiches encompass a variety of palates, from a BLT and a turkey club to a grilled pastrami sandwich with Swiss cheese and deli mustard. A new option exclusive to the space, Kahya said, is a chipotle chicken sandwich with a spicy mayonnaise, avocado, tomato and onion.

While both Bagel Cafe shops offer drip coffee, Simit Cafe takes the options a step further with a full line of hot and iced espresso drinks, featuring Peet’s Coffee brewed on site with a La Marzocco Italian espresso machine. Through Peet’s Coffee’s sister company, Mighty Leaf Tea, there are also multiple flavors of iced tea shakers, made with real fruit purees, some freeze-dried fruits and Kahya’s own freshly squeezed lemonade.

“The strawberry hibiscus [tea shaker] has been a really big hit,” he said.

The cafe is currently open until 3 p.m. seven days a week, but Kahya said those hours will likely be extended in the future, as he continues to add more menu items and works out the kinks of his new online ordering system. An outdoor patio is planned for next summer.

Simit Cafe

Where: 262 Amherst St., Suite A, Nashua
Hours: Daily, 6 a.m. to 3 p.m.; expanded hours likely coming soon
More info: Visit simitcafe.com, find them on Facebook and Instagram @simitnashua or call 204-5141

Featured photo: Courtesy of Simit Cafe.

News from the local food scene

• Bookstore cafe reopens: Gibson’s Bookstore (45 S. Main St., Concord) has refitted and reopened the adjoining cafe space under its own management on Oct. 4, more than a year and a half after True Brew Cafe’s closure in March 2020, owner Michael Herrmann confirmed. Now known as Gibson’s Cafe, it features a full line of espresso drinks in addition to coffees, teas and multiple flavors of smoothies. Food options include breakfast sandwiches and pastries, daily soup specials, avocado toasts, lunch paninis, and build-your-own acai bowls with a variety of ingredients to choose from. Gibson’s Cafe is open Monday through Saturday, from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visit gibsonsbookstore.com/cafe or call 715-5833.

• Piccola turns 20: Join Piccola Italia Ristorante (815 Elm St., Manchester) for a 20th anniversary celebration honoring chef-owner Johnny “Eastie” Paolini on Saturday, Oct. 16, at 2 p.m., which will feature specials, giveaways, raffles and more. Born and raised in an Italian-American family, Paolini got his start in the industry working for an Italian restaurant near his childhood home in the North End of Boston. Since opening Piccola on Elm Street in downtown Manchester in October 2001, he has become a pillar of the community, participating in annual fundraisers and donating to several local charities over the years. According to Lisbett De Leon, one of a few Piccola’s staff members organizing the anniversary celebration, proceeds will be donated to a charity of Paolini’s choice. Visit piccolaitalianh.com.

• Beer at the winery: Learn to cook with beer at an interactive class hosted by LaBelle Winery, at its Amherst location (345 Route 101) on Wednesday, Oct. 20, and at its Derry location (14 Route 11) on Wednesday, Oct. 27, at 6 p.m. each evening. Attendees will taste samples and receive recipes of several items, including beer-battered fish tacos with cilantro crema, bratwurst cooked in beer with sauerkraut, and chocolate stout cheesecake. Admission is $32.70 per person, including taxes, and pre-registration is required. Visit labellewinery.com.

• Final outdoor markets: Several Granite State farmers markets are due to wrap up their outdoor seasons this week. The final date of the Nashua Farmers Market will be Sunday, Oct. 17, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. outside City Hall Plaza (229 Main St.; visit downtownnashua.org/local), while the Candia Farmers Market, held on the third Saturday of each month at the Smyth Public Library (55 High St., Candia; visit candianh.org), concludes on Saturday, Oct. 16, from 9 a.m. to noon. The Milford Farmers Market will also be holding its last date of the season outside on Saturday, Oct. 16, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 300 Elm St. in Milford, but is due to return indoors three weeks later. Beginning Saturday, Nov. 6, the market will be held bi-weekly inside the Milford Town Auditorium. Visit milfordnhfarmersmarket.com.