Author: The Hippo Press

The Weekly Dish 24/02/08

News from the local food scene

Valentine’s Day is Wednesday, Feb. 14, and if you haven’t made those dinner reservations yet, now is definitely the time. A few of the dinner and take out offerings announced on area restaurants’ websites and social media pages include:

• Averill House Vineyard in Brookline (averillhousevineyard.com) has multiple Valentine’s Day themed events on its schedule including a Galentine’s Felting Workshop & Wine Tasting on Friday, Feb. 9, at 6 p.m.; Valentine’s Bottle Your Own Experience at various times Sundays, Feb. 11, and Feb. 18; Valentine’s Igloo Experience Dinner & Wine Pairing on Wednesday, Feb. 14, at 7 p.m., and a five-course dinner and wine pairing, also on Valentine’s Day at 7 p.m.

• The Bakeshop on Kelley Street in Manchester (thebakeshoponkelleystreet.com) has chocolate covered strawberries, among other sweet treats.

• Bedford Village Inn in Bedford (bedfordvillageinn.com) is offering a four-course meal for $125 per person with seating times between 5 to 9:30 p.m. See the website for the menu (which includes options for either desserts for sharing or a dessert of your own) and to reserve a table.

• Birch Wood Vineyards in Derry (birchwoodvineyards.com) has a four-course dinner planned (doors open at 6 p.m. for a cocktail hour before dinner) with a vegetarian option — $95 or $120 with wine pairing. Call to reserve by Sunday, Feb. 11.

• Bistro 603 in Nashua (bistro603nashua.com) will offer its Valentine’s Day specials Feb. 14 through Thursday, Feb. 22, ccording to a Facebook post.

Order chocolate-covered strawberries from Buckley’s in Merrimack or Hollis by Monday, Feb. 12, for a Valentine’s Day pickup. A half-pound is $18, a full pound is $36.

• The Farm Bar & Grille in Manchester (farmbargrille.com) will have a Valentine Trivia Night at 8 p.m. with food and drink specials to go with Heathers rom-com related trivia.

• Check out the menu of specials at Firefly in Manchester (fireflynh.com), which includes a red velvet cheesecake and the strawberry chocolate old-fashioned. The specials will be offered along with the regular menu.

• Frederick’s Bakery in both Amherst and Bedford (pastry.net) has offerings including single-serving desserts like cookies and cupcakes, full-size cakes, chocolates and chocolate-covered strawberries and a Valentine’s cookie decorating kit.

• Giorgio’s (giorgios.com) has a special on its website for Sunday, Feb. 11 (game day) — reasonable people can argue over which is the bigger holiday. On Feb. 14, Manchester and Milford Giorgio’s are open from 4 to 9 p.m. and Merrimack is open from noon to 8 p.m., according to the website, where you can make reservations.

• Granite State Candy Shoppe in Manchester and Concord (granitestatecandyshoppe.com) has a variety of Valentine’s offerings including chocolate-dipped strawberries; red foil wrapped heart-shaped and lip-shaped chocolates; heart boxes with chocolates, and more.

• The Grazing Room at Colby Hill Inn in Henniker (colbyhillinn.com) will have seatings 4 to 8 p.m.; see the evening’s menu on the website.

• The Hills Restaurant at Hampshire Hills Athletic Club in Milford (hampshirehills.com) will have its Valentine Specials menu available Tuesday, Feb. 13, through Saturday, Feb. 17.

• LaBelle Winery (labellewinery.com) has multiple Valentine’s- and chocolate-themed events at its Derry and Amherst locations. Events that, as of Feb. 5, had openings include a Valentine’s Day dinner with ballroom dancing in Derry on Saturday, Feb. 10; a Sinatra in Love dinner with performer Rich DiMare and the Iron Poster Trio in Amherst on Wednesday, Feb. 14, and Cooking with Wine & Chocolate classes in Amherst (Feb. 15) and Derry (Feb. 21).

• Murphy’s in Manchester posted a drinks menu that includes items such as Chocolate Craze (vanilla vodka, chocolate liqueur and Baileys with a chocolate drizzle) and Cotton Candy Kiss (Champagne with a cotton candy base). Murphy’s Taproom & Carriage House in Bedford has a Valentine’s Day prix fixe menu for $60 per person as well as a romantic dining package for $40 per couple; see murphystaproom.com/holiday.

• Pearls Candy and Nuts in Windham (pearlscandynh.com) has a variety of themed offerings including red foil wrapped chocolate hearts.

• Van Otis Chocolates in Manchester and Wolfeboro (vanotis.com) has a variety of Valentine’s treats including chocolate-dipped bottles, special boxed chocolates, gift boxes, chocolate-dipped strawberries and more.

• Maybe you can’t go to Europe for Valentine’s Day but you can get candies and chocolates that come from Europe at Viking House in Concord (vikinghouse.com), which is open from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Wednesdays.

• Vine Thirty Two in Bedford (vinethirtytwo.com) is offering a “Partners in Wine” special Wednesday, Feb. 14, through Friday, Feb. 16 — $100 includes two $25 wine cards, a five-item charcuterie board and a dessert to share.

On The Job – Alexiev Gavriluk

Beekeeper

Alexiev Gavriluk is a beekeeper and owner of Mad Russian Apothecary in Derry.

Explain your job and what it entails. 

I keep bees. I help the bees make honey, then I sell the honey. I also teach people about our best practices and how we co-exist … and how they can coexist with the bees.

How long have you had this job? 

My wife and I got the bees during the pandemic, so I’ve been keeping them for four years. I learn from the bees every day and every season, so I’m constantly growing as a beekeeper. 

What led you to this career field and your current job? 

I’m disabled, and I’ve always worked blue-collar jobs. … I needed to find something I could do comfortably on my own. We’d always loved the idea of keeping a few hives … as a hobby. As I grew more involved in the meditation aspect of it, matching the energy of the bees, I also grew more in tune with the hives, and beekeeping became more than just a hobby … Also, I’m just really good at it. I also love talking with our honey customers at fairs and markets about the benefits of pure local honey and how good bees are for the environment.

What kind of education or training did you need?

I attended an online bee school taught by a master beekeeper. Everything else was self-taught, hands-on learning.

What is your typical at-work uniform or attire? 

I wear long jeans, work boots, a beekeeping jacket, leather elbow gloves and a special veil attached to a hat. … When I’m working with the honey, I wear whatever I don’t mind getting sticky. When we’re working at a market or fair, my wife and I wear matching yellow plaid shirts.

What is the most challenging thing about your work, and how do you deal with it?

I work with hundreds of thousands of stinging insects buzzing around me — most people would find that a little challenging. But since I learned to operate on the bees’ frequency … the hardest part now is dealing with my disability. I had to adapt beekeeping to fit what I could do with my hands. I attached special handles to the boxes, additional bars to lift the frames and other little techniques to make the job more accessible.

What do you wish you’d known at the beginning of your career?

The bees know more than I do, and I’m better off assisting them than trying to control them.

What do you wish other people knew about your job? 

I’d want people to know the systemic harm … lawn pesticide or poison causes to our environment. The bees, the wildlife — everything suffers. … Also, I’d want people to know the value and importance of raw local honey, and why it’s often more expensive than … in supermarkets.

What was the first job you ever had?

Sweeping the parking lot and cleaning the dumpster area of a local convenience store when I was in fourth grade.

Five favorites
Favorite book: Necroscope by Brian Lumley
Favorite movie: Big Trouble in Little China
Favorite music: Punk rock and metal
Favorite food: I have two: shoo-fly pie, and obviously honey
Favorite thing about NH: We’re in the woods but still close to everything – city, mountains, ocean.

Featured photo: Alexiev Gavriluk. Courtesy photo.

Kiddie Pool 24/02/08

Family fun for whenever

Family shows

• Local family entertainer Mr. Aaron throws a Valentine’s Day Party Saturday, Feb. 10, at 11 a.m. at the Bank of NH Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com). Tickets cost $15.75. Give a listen to Mr. Aaron’s music at mraaronmusic.com.

• See Erth’s Dinosaur Zoo, an interactive show featuring live dinosaurs (operated by puppeteers) on stage, at the Capitol Center for the Arts’ Chubb Theatre (44 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com) on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $35.25 to $48.25 (for an additional $28.75, take part in a VIP meet and greet).

Free art

• Saturday, Feb. 10 features free admission for New Hampshire residents to the Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St. in Manchester; currier.org, 669-6144) from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., stop in at the Creative Studio for family art fun. Short family tours will be available in the galleries as well, according to the website.

Basketball weekend

• Catch the Saint Anselm Hawks this weekend when both the men’s (3:30 p.m.) and women’s (1:30 p.m) basketball teams take on the teams from Southern Connecticut State University at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium (73 College Road on Saint Anselm College campus in Manchester). Tickets to either game cost $10 (kids 5 and under get in free to regular season games) and are available for purchase starting one hour ahead of game time at the Gymnasium ticket booth. See saintanselmhawks.com. Both teams will also play the teams from the College of Saint Rose on Tuesday, Feb. 13; women’s game starts at 5:30 p.m. and men’s game starts at 7:30 p.m.

• At Southern New Hampshire University, the Penmen take on the Adelphi University Panthers with women’s (1:30 p.m.) and men’s (3:30 p.m.) basketball on Saturday, Feb. 10. The games take place at Stan Spiro Field House (at the Southern New Hampshire University campus, 2500 River Road in Manchester); regular season games are free to attend.

• Catch some mid-week basketball on Tuesday, Feb. 13, when the men’s ( 5 p.m.) and women’s (7 p.m.) Rivier Raiders teams play Mitchell College at Muldoon Fitness Center (440 Main St. in Nashua). See rivierathletics.com.

The Art Roundup 23/02/08

The latest from NH’s theater, arts and literary communities

• Own an original Tomie dePaola: The Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St. in Manchester; Currier.org, 669-6144) is selling 200 tickets at $50 each for a raffle of two original artworks by artist, author and illustrator Tomie dePaola. The sale runs through Feb. 29. See the website for a look at the pieces being raffled and to purchase tickets. The funds raised support the Tomie dePaola Art Education Fund, which was “created by the Currier in Tomie’s memory” and “awards scholarships to lower-income families and disadvantaged youth, allowing them to participate in our classes and camps throughout the year,” according to the website.

• Save the date for Chris Bohjalian: Author Chris Bohjalian will discuss his new novel The Princess of Las Vegas and more at the Bank of NH Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com) on Wednesday, March 27, at 7 p.m. The event is part of Authors on Main and is a collaboration between Gibson’s Bookstore, New Hampshire Public Radio and the Capitol Center for the Arts and will feature Bohjalian in conversation with NHPR’s Rick Ganley, according to a press release. Tickets cost $39 (one admission and one hardcover copy of The Princess of Las Vegas) and $49 (for two admissions and one book).

• More coming up at Gibson’s: Gibson’s Bookstore (45 S. Main St. in Concord; gibsonsbookstore.com, 224-0562) has several author events coming up. On Tuesday, Feb. 20, at 6:30 p.m. Margo Cooper will discuss her book of photographs and interviews Deep Inside the Blues with Holly Harris, host of WUMB’s Spinning the Blues. On Wednesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m. Leila Philip will discuss her book Beaverland: How One Weird Rodent Made America. On Tuesday, Feb. 27, at 6:30 p.m., Matthew J.C. Clark, a Maine carpenter, will discuss Bjarki, Not Bjarki: On Floorboards, Love, and Irreconcilable Differences. On Wednesday, Feb. 28, at 6:30 p.m., Pembroke-based author Avree Kelly Cark will discuss her book Malice Aforethought: A True Story of the Shocking Double Crime That Horrified Nineteenth-Century New England. On Tuesday, March 12, at 6:30 p.m. author and gardener Jane Hawley Stevens will discuss her new book The Celestial Garden: Growing Herbs, Vegetables and Flowers According to the Moon and Zodiac. On Thursday, March 14, at 6:30 p.m. Casey Sherman will discuss her book A Murder in Hollywood: The Untold Story of Tinseltown’s Most Shocking Crime.

• New exhibit: Mariposa Museum & World Culture Center (26 Main St. in Peterborough; 924-455, mariposamuseum.org) features an exhibit from New Hampshire photographer Becky Field called “Crying in the Wilderness” that illustrates “the physical and emotional toll of immigrant detention,” according to a press release. The exhibit features the story of an African man who sought asylum in the U.S. in 2018 and moved in 2020 to the Seacoast, where his movements were tracked via an ankle monitor, according to a press release. Admission to the museum costs $8 for adults, $6 for seniors. The exhibit will be on display through Sunday, April 14. The museum is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

• On display in Rochester: The Rochester Museum of Fine Arts (rochestermfa.org) exhibition “Neither Created Nor Destroyed” featuring works by Julie K. Gray is on display in the Bernier Room at the James W. Foley Memorial Community Center (150 Wakefield St. in Rochester) through Friday, March 1. The building is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

MARDI GRAS CELEBRATION
Celebrate Mardi Gras (Tuesday, Feb. 13) with a performance by the Soggy Po Boys at the Rex Theatre (23 Amherst St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org) on Saturday, Feb. 10, at 7:30 p.m. The show will feature New Orleans-style jazz, Caribbean music, funk, soul and brass band/street beat music, according to the website. Tickets cost $29.
CIRQUE US
Circus company Cirque Us, featuring “acrobats, aerials and quirky clowns,” will present One Man’s Trash on Thursday, Feb. 22, at 7 p.m. at Stockbridge Theatre (44 N. Main St. in Derry; stockbridgetheatre.showare.com, 437-5210), according to a press release. Tickets cost $22.


This Week 24/02/08

Thursday, Feb. 8

Dancing Queens, the Ultimate ABBA Disco Tribute, begins its final weekend run tonight, with a show at 7:30 p.m. at the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588). Other shows this weekend include Friday, Feb. 9, at 7:30 p.m.; Saturday, Feb. 10, at 2 and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, Feb. 11, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $28 to $49. Find Michael Witthaus’ story about the show in the Jan. 25 issue of the Hippo at hippopress.com.

Friday, Feb. 9

Lotus Land, the American Rush tribute band, plays two nights at Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St. in Derry; tupelomusichall.com) — tonight and tomorrow night, Saturday, Feb. 10, at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $39. Find more ticket concerts this weekend and beyond on page 42.

Saturday, Feb. 10

Looking for a new outdoor winter hobby? NH Audubon’s Massabesic Center’s (26 Audubon Way in Auburn; 668- 2045, nhaudubon.org) “Beginner Bird Outing” will be held today from 8:30 to 10 a.m. All ages and skill levels of birders are welcome, according to the website, where you can register for the class, which costs $10 per person.

Saturday, Feb. 10

Join your fellow Swifties at “Swift Me Away,” a dance party featuring the music (but not, it should be noted, the person) of Taylor Swift today at 8 p.m. at the Bank of New Hampshire Stage (16 S. Main St. in Concord; ccanh.com). Tickets cost $21.75 (plus $5 at the door).

Tuesday, Feb. 13

Learn about the plans of scientists and artists for the April 8 solar eclipse at “Science on Tap: Science in the Shadow of Eclipse 2024” today at 6 p.m. at Stark Brewing Co. (500 Commercial St. in Manchester), an adult program presented by SEE Science Center. The event is free but advance registration is appreciated; go to see-sciencecenter.org.

Wednesday, Feb. 14

Catch a screening of the silent film Speedy (1928), a romantic comedy starring Harold Lloyd and featuring Babe Ruth and presented with live musical accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis, today at 7 p.m. at the Rex Theatre (23 Amherst St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org). Tickets cost $10. Find more Valentine’s Day and Galentine’s Day special screenings in the film listings on page 35.

Save the Date! Saturday, April 6
Comedian Preacher Lawson comes to the Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St. in Nashua; nashuacenterforthearts.com) on Saturday, April 6, at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $29 to $49. Find videos of his comedy via preacherlawson.com.

Quality of Life 24/02/08

Child care aid

The New Hampshire Department of Health of Human Services (DHHS) has launched “Child Care Accelerate,” an 8-week business support initiative designed to aid child care providers in the state. According to a press release, the program, created in collaboration with Seed Collective, aims to help these providers improve their business operations and financial management to ensure their long-term viability and to enhance the availability of quality child care. Participants will have the chance to apply for the Opportunities to Succeed (OTS) grant, supported by $5 million from American Rescue Plan Act Discretionary funds, to fund projects like facility improvements. This initiative is a continuation of the state’s efforts to utilize $29.7 million in ARPA-D funds for critical needs within the child care sector, which includes various capacity-building and workforce expansion projects.

QOL score: +1

Comment: Since March 2020, more than $150 million in federal relief funds has been invested in the New Hampshire child care system.

UNH deadline extension

Students and their families will have more time to make decisions about their higher education, as the University of New Hampshire (UNH) has extended the application deadline for the 2024-25 academic year. This change comes in response to recent updates to the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), providing applicants with a buffer to understand their financial aid options fully.

QOL score: +1

Comment: Despite the challenges posed by the FAFSA changes, the university has noted an increase in applications.

Sewage in the river

The Merrimack River faced a significant environmental challenge last year, as around 2 billion gallons of raw sewage mixed with stormwater runoff entered the river, surpassing previous sewer overflow records, NHPR reported. This increase is attributed to factors such as climate change impacts, increased rainfall and ongoing riverfront development. Outdated combined sewer systems struggled to handle heavy rain, leading to untreated sewage entering the river. Sewer overflow advisories were in place for 39 days during June and July. Approximately 500,000 to 700,000 people rely on the Merrimack River for drinking water.

QOL score: -2

Comment: Manchester, one of the most affected areas, is working on a project aimed at reducing sewer overflows into the river, estimated to cost over $300 million and extend over two decades.

QOL score: 55

Net change: 0

QOL this week: 55

What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire? Let us know at [email protected].

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