Author: Matt Ingersoll

News from the local food scene

• Indian inspired: Chef Keith Sarasin of The Farmer’s Dinner, a series of farm-to-table dinners at New Hampshire farms, will host a live cooking class via Zoom on Sunday, Oct. 4, from 5 to 6 p.m. Participants will also learn the basics of Indian food during the class, as Sarasin, who learned to cook under an Indian chef for three years, walks through an easy recipe and talks about his own experiences. The cost is $29.99 per person and all virtual attendees will be emailed an ingredient list and video link in advance of the class. Visit thefarmersdinner.com.

• Smoked to perfection: On Sept. 11, Michael “Messy Mike” Massiglia of the Derry-based Messy Mike’s Barbecue & Catering Co. launched a new 30-foot mobile food trailer that you can now find every Friday through Sunday in the parking lot of Rockingham Acres Greenhouse (161 Rockingham Road, Derry), from noon until he sells out. The menu includes various meats sold by the pound, sandwiches, sides and other specialty barbecue favorites. Massiglia has been barbecuing full-time since 2014, catering all kinds of events across New England like birthday parties, cookouts, weddings and corporate gatherings, always offering a menu heavy on smoked meats and fresh sides. He also makes his own bottled hot and regular barbecue sauces, which are available for sale online and on some local store shelves. Visit messymikesbarbecue.com or follow him on Facebook @messymikesbbq.

• Cookie tour canceled: The Country Inns in the White Mountains has cancelled its 24th annual Inn to Inn Cookie and Candy Tour, which had been scheduled for Dec. 12 and Dec. 13, according to a press release. “Out of an abundance of caution for the safety of guests and the association’s innkeepers and staff, it became clear that the event might attract a crowd that would exceed safety limits determined by the state,” the release read. The tour, which originated as a holiday luncheon, has grown into one of the region’s largest holiday events and raised thousands of dollars for local nonprofits over the years. Dates for the event to return next year have already been set, for Dec. 11 and Dec. 12, 2021, according to the release. Visit countryinnsinthewhitemountains.com.

• Granite State Distilling introduced: Sazerac of New Hampshire, a Londonderry bottling facility of distilled spirits, has changed its name to Granite State Distilling, according to a recent press release. The name change also comes with a new logo that was recently unveiled, featuring a sketch of an Appalachian mountaintop inside the shape of a circle, with two outlines of the state of New Hampshire on either side. The new sign was installed on the premises over the summer, according to the release, and all bottled products are expected to reflect the name change in the near future. One of the oldest family-owned private distillers, Sazerac has operations in nearly a dozen states, as well as global operations. Visit sazerac.com.

BiTsize Coffee Bar opens in Hooksett

A new shop has just arrived in Hooksett’s Granite Hill Shoppes plaza, but its concept has been in the making for more than a year. BiTsize Coffee Bar (pronounced “bite-size”), which opened Sept. 8, offers single-origin Costa Rican coffees, Italian blend espresso drinks and several types of teas and smoothies, plus a food menu of fresh baked goods, paninis and desserts.

The shop is a partnership between Granite Hill Shoppes property owner George Kassas and Rabih Bou Chaaya, who has owned Maya Gourmet in Methuen, Mass., since 2014. After operating as a successful wholesale baking business for several years — you can find its baklava at several Market Basket and Whole Foods stores across southern New Hampshire — Maya Gourmet opened a retail coffee shop and storefront in June 2019. Kassas, who had envisioned the then-vacant space on the lower level of his Hooksett plaza for more than a year, said he was immediately taken with Maya Gourmet’s concept during a visit one day as a customer.

“The minute I walked into Rabih’s place, I said ‘this is it,’” Kassas said. “I wanted a top-notch quality coffee bar … and so I said to him that I’d like him to come and see the location that I had here. He and his wife came up and looked at it and they kind of fell in love with it too.”

According to Bou Chaaya, the new coffee bar’s concept is similar to that of Maya Gourmet’s. All of its baked goods, which include French-style butter croissants, Danishes and more than a half dozen types of cookies and muffins, are prepared fresh at the Methuen location the night before. Maya Gourmet’s baklava is also available for sale, both the Greek and the Lebanese style, as well as several treats out of a bakery display that include French macarons and cake slices in several flavors, like red velvet, chocolate and limoncello.

The daily drip coffee, Bou Chaaya said, is a single-origin bean from Costa Rica that’s roasted at Maya Gourmet, available in pour-over or siphon brewing methods. Espresso drinks, which include lattes, cappuccinos and macchiatos, come from a bean imported from Italy.

The shop also offers seven different types of hot and iced teas, sourced from Mighty Leaf Tea, that are all brewed to order, plus multiple flavors of smoothies, like strawberry banana, raspberry, mango, pineapple coconut and blueberry pomegranate.

“We use a real fruit puree,” Bou Chaaya said of the smoothies, “and then you have the option to add whipped cream or boba, which are juice balls.”

Paninis are made to order too, on your choice of either a ciabatta bread or a French baguette. Flavors include a tuna melt, a ham and cheese, a caprese, and the Ultimate, which has turkey, salami, pastrami, cheese, mayonnaise, mustard, roasted peppers and fresh mixed greens.

Other food offerings are crepes with strawberry and banana flavors and a Nutella spread, and an oatmeal bowl with milk, walnuts, honey and fruits. Bou Chaaya said breakfast sandwiches on croissants and bagels will likely be added to the food menu soon.

BiTsize Coffee Bar
Where: 1461 Hooksett Road, Unit A-1, Hooksett
Hours: Monday through Saturday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (may be subject to change)
More info: Find them on Facebook and Instagram @bitsize_coffee_bar or call 210-2089

Featured photo: BiTsize Coffee Bar. Photo by Matt Ingersoll.

Black Bear Vineyard to host Harvest Weekends

It’s peak grape picking season in New Hampshire, and a local vineyard is celebrating by inviting you to come out and enjoy freshly crushed juice, live music, food trucks, games and more.

Black Bear Vineyard in Salisbury offers wine tastings and tours throughout the year. But during its two Harvest Weekends, on Saturdays, Sept. 26 and Oct. 3, and Sundays, Sept. 27 and Oct. 4, you’ll be able to watch the fruit getting destemmed and crushed before you taste samples of the juice.

“It’s the only time visitors can try the juice that makes all the wines that we offer,” Black Bear Vineyard chief marketing officer Nick Jarvis said. “These weekends will be prime time for picking the grapes, because they will be at the optimal sugar levels.”

Between noon and 6 p.m. on any of the four days, people can come to the vineyards, watch the grape-harvesting process and try the juice — no reservations are necessary, but masks are encouraged when out on the vineyard and required when entering the indoor facility.

With five grape varieties grown on site and about 18 acres of rolling hills, Black Bear is one of the state’s largest vineyards, with lots of room to socially distance outdoors, Jarvis said.

“We’ve had a lot of great responses over the years, but this is the first year we’ve taken the extra step to really try to grow the event,” he said. “We’re ready for more people to come, especially in these times, when we’re looking for anything that will get us outside.”

A few local food trucks are expected to set up at the vineyard during the Harvest Weekends, beginning at noon. Mama’s on the Run, brought to you by the owners of Mama McDonough’s Irish Pub in Hillsborough, will be there on Sept. 26 and on Oct. 3 and Oct. 4, according to Jarvis. The truck features a menu of American-style foods — some options even have their own Irish twist, like the Reuben burgers and the corned beef poutine. The Rochester-based Sausage Express food truck, with gourmet hot dog, sausage and sub options, will also be at the vineyard on Oct. 3.

Each live music act will perform at the vineyard from 2 to 5 p.m., Jarvis said, while games of cornhole will also be available. Singer-songwriter April Cushman will be there on Sept. 26, followed by Rory Scott on Sept. 27, Gabby Martin on Oct. 3 and Austin McCarthy on Oct. 4.

Jarvis said wine tasting tickets will also be available for sale at the vineyard for $12 per person, which usually include four to six different wines to sample, in addition to a tasting glass.

Harvest Weekends
When: Saturdays and Sundays, Sept. 26 and 27, and Oct. 3 and 4, noon to 6 p.m.
Where: Black Bear Vineyard, 289 New Road, Salisbury
Cost: Free admission and parking
Visit: blackbearvineyard.com
No reservations are required. Masks or face-coverings are required when in the indoor facility.

Drive-thru Greek fests
There won’t be a Glendi Greek food festival in the traditional sense this year, but St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral (650 Hanover St., Manchester) is returning to bring you two drive-through events; the first, a Gyro Day, is happening on Saturday, Sept. 26, from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Attendees can drive up for their gyro bag with chips and water for $10 (cash only). Then on Saturday, Oct. 17, from 4 to 7 p.m., you can drive up for a lamb shank dinner for $20, which will include rice and green beans. Orders for that dinner must be placed by Oct. 11. Visit stgeorgeglendi.com.

More harvest happenings
For more grape harvesting fun, you can head to Fulchino Vineyard (187 Pine Hill Road, Hollis) for its fourth annual New Hampshire Grape Festival on Saturday, Oct. 3, beginning at 11 a.m.

The event will feature wine tastings at the vineyard and photo opportunities in a grape stomping barrel before concluding with a live performance from comedian Paul D’Angelo at 7 p.m.
Fulchino Vineyard owner and winemaker Al Fulchino said the event is in line with the conclusion of the harvesting season for its more than 20 varieties of grapes.
A similar event, the Hollis Grape Festival, was held earlier this month on the town common.
The vineyard will also soon be overseeing the make-up dates of its commemoration of National Drink Wine Weekend during the weekend of Oct. 24 and Oct. 25, after the event was rescheduled from earlier this year.
“We have five wineries participating and for a $20 ticket, people can go around and taste four wines at each location throughout the weekend,” said Fulchino, whose vineyard is one of the participants, in addition to Averill House Vineyard in Brookline, Moonlight Meadery in Londonderry, Apollo Vineyards in Derry and Winnipesaukee Winery in Wolfeboro.

Visits will be open to ticket holders from 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. each day. Tickets are available for purchase at fulchino-vineyard-inc.square.site and also include a commemorative tasting glass.

Featured Photo: Photo courtesy of Black Bear Vineyard.

News from the local food scene

• Oktoberfest celebrations: To Share Brewing Co. (720 Union St., Manchester) will host its Oktoberfeston Saturday, Sept. 26, from noon to 9 p.m., featuring a triple beer release in drafts and cans (of an altbier, a double IPA and a blueberry and raspberry sour), raffle tickets and T-shirts for sale, and food specials like pretzels, bratwursts with sauerkraut and German-style potato skins. Reservations and masks are required — for the duration of the event, there are 90-minute reservation blocks with 15 minutes between them dedicated to cleaning and sanitizing. Email [email protected] to make a reservation. And The Hills Restaurant at Hampshire Hills Athletic Club (50 Emerson Road, Milford) will offer an Oktoberfest specials menu from Thursday, Oct. 1, through Saturday, Oct. 3, featuring appetizers, like obatzda (seasoned beer and cheese spread with pretzel and radishes) and apfelmostsuppe (creamy apple cider soup); entrees, like wienerschnitzel (pan seared breaded veal), brathendl (half roasted chicken), schweinhaxen (crispy slow-cooked pork shank) and sauerbraten (wine and vinegar braised beef); and desserts, like apfelkuchle (apple ring fritters and vanilla ice cream), as well as a selection of Oktoberfest beers and specialty cocktails. Visit hampshirehills.com.

• Canterbury farmers market to conclude: The final date of the Canterbury Community Farmers Market’s summer season is set for Wednesday, Sept. 30, from 4 to 6:30 p.m. in the parking lot of the Elkins Public Library (9 Center Road, Canterbury). Since early June the market has featured around 20 local vendors on average, selling fresh fruits and vegetables, baked goods, artisan cheeses, meats, personal care products and more. The indoor winter markets this year have been canceled, so the final market on Sept. 30 will also feature several specialty vendors to help you get ready for the holidays, like note and holiday cards, mittens from repurposed wool sweaters and fresh wreaths for preorder, plus soups from the Friends of the Elkins Library. Visit canterburyfarmersmarket.com.

• Cafe One East now open in Warner: A new cafe offering specialty coffees, baked goods and other items is now open in Warner. Cafe One East opened Sept. 5 at 1 E. Main St., the former space of Schoodacs, which had closed its doors earlier this year. Although the shop is now under new ownership with a new name, Cafe One East features a menu similar to that of its predecessor, with brewed coffees and espresso drinks, fresh smoothies, doughnuts, breakfast sandwiches, and several rotating hot dishes for lunch, like soups, chilis and macaroni and cheese. Find them on Facebook @cafeoneeast.