Performers hit the stage at the newly opened Nashua Center for the Arts
After two years of building, 10 years of planning and more than 20 years of dreaming, the Nashua Center for the Arts has finally opened its doors.
“This is going to make a huge difference for our community, for Nashua, for many, many years to come,” said Mayor Jim Donchess at the ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday, April 1. “Over the decades, people will become very appreciative of everything that was done by all the people here that made this project possible.”
Donors, board members, patrons of the arts, politicians and their families and friends attended the ribbon cutting ceremony. The front rows of the theater held people who had helped organize and plan the theater over the decades, all of whom got recognition from either Richard Lannan, the president of Nashua Community Arts, Mayor Donchess, Sarah Stewart, the commissioner for the department of natural and cultural resources, or Pete Lally, the president of Spectacle Live, the venue management company for the center.
Donchess read letters written by Sens. Maggie Hassan and Jeanne Shaheen and Rep. Annie Kuster. Stewart applauded the ability to have a place like the center built, and described how it would change the scene of arts in the Gate City and the state as a whole.
“I love that you’re so excited about the impact this place will make in Nashua, but I’m here to tell you you’re impacting the entire state,” Stewart said. She said that the center will be held in the same regard as the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen, the New Hampshire Poetry Out Loud competition, and the New Hampshire Film Festival in Portsmouth, which was recently named an Academy Award qualifying event. “What you’re doing here is going to be amazing for the state of art in New Hampshire and beyond. You’re going to be the shining star of what the future looks like for arts in Nashua.”
Mayor Jim Donchess cuts the ceremonial ribbon, officially opening Nashua Center for the Arts for performances. Photo by Katelyn Sahagian.
The private ribbon cutting ceremony was followed by a sold-out show featuring a variety of local talent. New Hampshire performers from the ActorSingers, Safe Haven Ballet, Akwabba Ensemble, Peacock Players, Symphony NH and more graced the stage for the first time, but not the last.
“One of the things we’re trying to establish early on is that this isn’t a venue where you just expect one type of genre or show,” Lally said. “Lots of places get pigeonholed with the type of shows they do. We worked very hard to make sure we’re doing a little bit of everything.”
In addition to national touring acts, like Boz Scaggs, Steve Hofstetter and Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken, Spectacle has put an emphasis on making sure that the theater is going to be home to local performers. Safe Haven Ballet’s “Beauty and the Beast” is performing one of its three shows at the theater, and Symphony NH will have its 100-year anniversary show there.
“[Nashua Center for the Arts] isn’t replacing anything in Nashua; it’s adding to it,” Lally said. “It’s also adding to an arts infrastructure and scene downtown.”
Decades in the making
While the steering committee first started holding meetings, public hearings and workshops for this project in 2016, the idea for a citywide theater had already been around for years. The initial proposal for a performing arts center was in the 2000 city’s master plan.
More proposals followed in 2003, 2010 and 2014 before the committee brought in Webb Management Services to see how viable a theater would be for the downtown area and if it would be well-received by other local business owners.
Typically, Webb will determine that cities contacting them don’t have the demand needed to support a theater. Lannan and the rest of the steering committee had hoped the organization would find them in the small percentage of cities in which a theater would thrive.
“The original study from Webb design, I asked the same question, ‘What … percentage of the studies you do actually end up happening?’” Lannan said. “They said that the vast majority of theaters don’t happen. When ours came back, they told us, ‘You’re not going to do a Verizon center or SNHU Arena, but Nashua is clamoring for this.’”
The study suggested a 750-seat theater would be optimal for the area. Instead of settling for just a traditional theater, the steering committee decided to make the orchestra seats fully removable. After folding down the chairs, an operator can push a button and create an empty area in a matter of minutes.
The theater also has two sets of stairs and an elevator, multiple bathrooms on all four stories, and two lobbies that double as concession stands. There is a set-up and prep area for caterers, an outdoor balcony overlooking Main Street, and an art gallery.
Lannan said the board wanted to do something special, something that would be completely unique to the center. Having the ability to turn a theater into a standing-room-only venue or into a 50-table banquet hall would bring variety for theater-goers and performers.
Judith Carlson, a key member of the Nashua Arts Commission and Nashua Community Arts and a member of the center’s steering committee, said that for every meeting, Spectacle Live sent either a representative or its president, Pete Lally, to attend.
“One of the most beautiful things about this, Pete Lally or one of his staff were at every one of the planning committee meetings, not only selecting architect and construction,” Carlson said. “We had goals from Day 1 to make this a place … where both audiences and performers would want to come back to again and again.”
The Bank of America Theater at the Nashua Center for the Arts filled up with patrons for the first sold-out show on April 1. Photo by Katelyn Sahagian.
Lannan and Carlson both said that having Lally or one of his people present was a game-changer when it came to planning out the design of the theater. Lannan said that having a person who knows the performance industry helped them come up with having all the amenities performers were looking for. Carlson said that it showed, to her, the devotion Spectacle Live put into the project.
Lally said he had been involved with planning the theater for approximately five or six years, and that it was exciting to work from the ground up. His company runs the Colonial Theatre in Laconia and The Flying Monkey Movie House & Performance Center in Plymouth, both of which opened early in the 20th century.
“The Colonial Theatre … opened in 1914, other buildings [we operate] have long history and chapters, but to be at the design phase has been unique,” Lally said. “From meeting the architects and engineers and designers, it’s been nice to be able to talk to those who were designing [the center]. It resulted in a unique building, one that the area will be happy with.”
More than theater
While the theater’s main draw will be live performances, there will be much more for people to enjoy when it comes to the arts.
“Nashua wanted to serve all kinds of art needs, including performance, and the gallery is part of that,” said Carol Robey, the chairwoman of the gallery. “To have community gallery space … people can see what kind of work artists are doing and give [the artists] an opportunity to sell.”
One major part of the new center will be the Sandy Cleary Gallery, a space for up to a dozen two-dimensional art pieces. The art shows will be staged in three-month rotations after an annual call for art.
April through June will usually be a slot for the students of Nashua’s public schools. This year the schools will begin their shows in May. The April show will be honoring the life of Meri Goyette, a longtime patron of Nashua’s, and New Hampshire’s, art scene.
“She was the queen of arts,” said Carlson. She said that, in addition to organizing art events and supporting local artists, Goyette was a founder of the International Sculpture Symposium, and on the board of directors for the Hunt Memorial Building. “For more than 50 years, she was the inspiration and facilitator for arts in Nashua.”
Carlson said it only felt right to have someone like Goyette, who advocated for years for an artistic home base in Nashua, be the subject of the first arts show in the gallery.
Because of Goyette’s friendship with artists, many painted or photographed her portrait. Robey said those paintings were in storage until now. She added that the portraits were less traditional pieces, some having bright colors and unique compositions that made them more exciting. Goyette’s vibrant personality is skillfully captured in the portraits and photographs hanging on the burnt orange walls. Glimpses of the joyful woman can be seen in the photograph of her dressed as Mrs. Claus. The side of her that was an avid art lover is shown in abstract artworks, including an impressionist-style portrait and a mirrored portrait in a graphic pointillism style.
All of the artwork is facing a window overlooking West Pearl Street, a strategic design to show the artwork more than just during operational hours, Robey said. In addition to having artist plaques with information inside the center, on the window outside the gallery there will be a QR code for passersby so they can read the information during off hours.
The gallery isn’t the only space where visual art will be appreciated, Robey said. She and other members of the art selection committee hope to have artists teach classes in part of the older building.
Carlson said that, with the gallery added in, the Nashua Center for the Arts isn’t just a destination for live music and performances; it’s a place where all art can find a home within the city.
While the center took years to be completed, Lally said it will be a part of Nashua for years to come. He said that having a space like the Center for the Arts will bring new opportunities for artists and arts lovers in Nashua.
“So many cities and towns we’re in touch with have the dream of a space like this; 99 percent never get there,” Lally said. “For Nashua to have pulled this off, it’s a real testament to all the work that’s made it happen, and it’s just about time to open the doors.”
Nashua Center for the Arts Where: 201 Main St. in Nashua Contact: 800-657-8874, nashuacenterforthearts.com Parking: See the website for a map and listing of area parking lots. There are also two-hour-limit and no-time-limit street parking spaces within walking distance of the center.
First on stage
Q&A with Ruben Studdard and Clay Aiken
The two American Idol alums are touring the country together in honor of the 20th anniversary of their appearances on the show. Studdard was declared the winner during Season 2 of the singing competition in 2003, with Aiken coming in second place by just 134,000 votes out of more than 24 million cast, the closest winning vote margin in American Idol history. Their second stop on their tour, Ruben and Clay: Twenty Years, One Night, is the Nashua Center for the Arts on Thursday, April 13. When they talked to The Hippo, neither had realized that their show was the first non-ceremonial performance scheduled to take place at the new venue.
You guys are the first touring act performing at the Nashua Center of the Arts.
CA (Clay Aiken): That’s cool. Wow. We are going to inaugurate that hell out of that thing.
So now that you guys know that, how does that feel knowing that you’re going to be the first people to really christen that stage?
RS (Ruben Studdard): After such a long, illustrious career, [he laughs] I have inaugurated several theaters.
CA: Have you?
RS: No. [still laughing]
CA: Well, I was about to say, I don’t think I’ve ever done that. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a theater for the first time. Well, you know what, if you’re going to do it, you do it right, Nashua, and you’ve done it right.
What’s it like going on tour together again 20 years after American Idol?
RS: It’s great. I mean, I’m excited to just spend time with my friend. I had such a great time when we were together planning and putting together the show. It’s so funny to see people’s reaction when they see us together, like at a restaurant. ’Cause of course, I mean like, what’s the odds of you walking into your local Italian restaurant and Clay and Ruben are just sitting there chumming it up?
CA: It’s kinda like Ben Affleck and Matt Damon hanging out together, right?
RS: Absolutely. That’s what it’s like.
Going off that, how did you become friends on [Idol] in the middle of a competition like that?
CA: It was a competition, but I think there were plenty of times throughout the show when I forgot it was a competition. Idol is not like Survivor, where you have to get someone else kicked off in order to be successful. I wanted to make sure I made it till Week 6 when my mom told me she was coming. I certainly never saw myself as being competitive. We both were on the same number of episodes; we both made it all the way to the end and I just never felt competitive against Ruben.
What can attendees expect for the performance at the Nashua Center for the Arts?
RS: To have a good time. You know, at the end of the day, everybody knows we can sing. The question is, can we entertain people for an hour and a half, two hours? And I think the thing that we’re putting together, the stories that we have, the music that we’re going to share, is going to be fun.
CA: It’s going to be an incredible opportunity to reminisce. You know, just the way we’re talking about the show ourselves, Idol was to our great fortune…. Nostalgia is big right now or has been big for a minute or two. People love the Roseanne reboot and the Will & Grace reboot and the Night Court reboot. I think we as a country are looking for things that are safe and fun that we know make us happy, and Idol made a lot of people happy in 2003.
For the performers
The creators of the center wanted to make the venue as luxurious for performers as it’s set to be for patrons.
“We’re really good about taking feedback,” said Jake Crumb, the facilities manager set up by Spectacle Live to run Nashua Center for the Arts. “When [performers and crew] arrive…they’re looking for a place that is somewhat comfortable and gives them amenities. We’ve taken [that] to heart and given them all the amenities they’d expect to have.”
The center worked with ICON Architecture and OTJ Architects for theater design, Fisher Dachs Associates for theater planning and equipment, Acentech for audiovisual and acoustic design, and Rist Frost Shumway for mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, civil engineering and lighting design.
The state-of-the-art light system has LED theatrical lighting and 28 linesight rigging systems. The sound system is by Meyer Sound Laboratories and will have headset and handheld microphones. The center also houses audiovisual equipment for movies, film festivals and presentations, and a Yamaha C6X grand piano for performances.
The stage is approximately 30 feet deep from downstage to upstage and is 60 feet across from wing to wing.
There are many perks for performers and their crews off the stage, as well. The loading dock leads directly to the main stage area for easy access for setting up and taking down shows. There are two dressing rooms designed for stars, community dressing rooms, a lounge room, and a separate room for the crew. There are showers, a kitchenette with a refrigerator and microwave, and a washer and dryer.
See a show
Here are some of the shows on the schedule for the Nashua Center for the Arts. Buy tickets and get updates at nashuacenterforthearts.com.
• Ruben and Clay: Twenty Years, One Night (Thursday, April 13, 8 p.m.; Ticket price range: $49 to $89)
• Suzanne Vega – An Intimate Evening of Songs and Stories (Saturday, April 15, 8 p.m.; $49 to $195)
• Dopapod (Thursday, April 20, 8 p.m.; $24)
• Girl Named Tom (Friday, April 21, 8 p.m.; $29 to $69)
• Safe Haven Ballet Presents: Beauty and the Beast (Saturday, April 22, 4:30 p.m.; $40 to $45)
• Symphony NH: Momentum! 100 Year Anniversary Concert (Saturday, April 29, 4 p.m.; $12 to $52)
• Champions of Magic (Thursday, May 4, 7:30 p.m.; $39 to $69)
• Gimme Gimme Disco (Friday, May 5, 8:30 p.m.; $19 to $24)
• Broadway Rave (Saturday, May 6, 8:30 p.m.; $19 to $24)
• Boz Scaggs (Thursday, May 11, 8 p.m.; $79 to $279)
• BoDeans (Friday, May 12, 8 p.m.; $29 to $49)
• Recycled Percussion (Saturday, May 13, 3 and 7 p.m.; $39.50 to $49.50)
• Emo Night Brooklyn (Saturday, May 20, 8:30 p.m.; $19 to $24)
• Celebrating Billy Joel: America’s Piano Man (Thursday, June 8, 8 p.m.; $29 to $59)
• Pat Metheny Side-Eye (Friday, June 9, 8 p.m.; $59 to $99)
• Menopause the Musical (Saturday, June 10; 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; $31.30 to $69)
• Grace Kelly (Saturday, June 17, 8 p.m.; $25 to $60)
• Toad the Wet Sprocket (Sunday, June 18, 7 p.m.; $49 to $179)
• Kashmir (Led Zeppelin tribute) (Friday, June 23, 8 p.m.; $29 to $59)
• Tab Benoit (Thursday, July 13, 8 p.m.; $29 to $69)
• An Evening with Tom Rush accompanied by Matt Nakoa (Friday, July 14, 8 p.m.; $29 to $69)
• Jake Shimabukuro (Saturday, July 15, 8 p.m.; $29 to $69)
• The High Kings (Sunday, July 30, 7 p.m.; $39 to $69)
• Jesse Cook (Saturday, Aug. 5, 8 p.m.; $39 to $69)
• Mary Chapin Carpenter (Sunday, Aug. 20, 7:30 p.m.; $49 to $89)
• Ace Frehley (Saturday, Aug. 26, 8 p.m.; $49 to $79)
• Tusk (Fleetwood Mac tribute) (Friday, Oct. 6, 8 p.m.; $29 to $49)
• Steve Hofstetter (Saturday, Oct. 7, 8 p.m.; $29 to $104)
• The Sixties Show (Sunday, Oct. 15, 7 p.m.; $29 to $59)
Sure, governmental elections involve, like, the future of your town and its schools and stuff, but this vote had pizza. And doughnuts. And beer.
In the Best of 2023 Readers’ Poll, you not only voted for your favorite pizza place, you weighed in on the correct way to eat pizza (not with a fork and knife, seems to be the general consensus). Readers also voted for their favorite spots to lace up and go for a long run, where to order lunch from when the boss is paying, where to go for a good margarita, who has the prettiest cupcakes and which fitness instructors keep you in top cocktail-drinking, cupcake-eating form.
Here we present you with, generally, the top five winners in each category — though sometimes we have supersized it and let a few more reader faves join the winners court. And we’ve sprinkled some specific reader responses throughout, because they’re fun.
Looking for a place where they make your coffee perfect every time or a restaurant that will make you love vegetables? Here are Hippo readers’ favorites…
This survey is for entertainment purposes only and all results are final.
The results of Hippo’s readers’ poll are based on readers’ answers to a poll conducted online in February. Readers typed in the names of people and locations they voted for. In situations where the vote is tied or otherwise unclear, Hippo editorial staff makes an effort to determine the will of the greatest number of voters. Hippo reserves the right to disqualify individual votes, ballots and/or entries when they are incomplete or unclear, do not meet the letter or the spirit of the question asked or otherwise do not meet the requirements to make them a usable vote.
Hippo’s editorial staff makes the ultimate determination of the winners in the categories. Hippo’s advertisers play no role in the determination of the winners. All results are final.
The Best of 2023 is a celebration of all things local and is meant to serve as a snapshot of the people and places in southern New Hampshire. Large national and international chains are, for the most part, not included in the count. Information presented here is gathered from sources including the location’s website and social media pages. Double check with the spots before heading out to make sure times, locations and menu items haven’t changed.
Questions, comments, concerns? Did we get an address or phone number wrong? Do you have an idea for a new category? Let us know. Contact editor Amy Diaz at adiaz@hippopress. com. Corrections will appear on the first page of the news section in future issues. Is your favorite category missing? Categories change regularly, with some categories taking a sabbatical and new categories introduced, so please send your suggestions for a category for next year. And, again, all results are seriously final. Hey, there’s always next year.
Arts
Best Performing Arts Venue
Best of the best: Palace Theatre, 80 Hanover St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org
Tupelo Music Hall, 10 A St., Derry, 437-5100, tupelohall.com
Capitol Center for the Arts, 44 S. Main St., Concord, 225-1111, ccanh.com
Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion, 72 Meadowbrook Lane, Gilford, 293-4700,
banknhpavilion.com
Rex Theatre, 23 Amherst St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org/venues/rex-theatre
Best Theatrical Production
Best of the best: Ballet Misha’s production of The Nutcracker, performed by professional dancers and students of Dimensions in Dance, at the Dana Center for the Humanities (St. Anselm College, 100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester) on Saturday, Dec. 17, and Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022.
A Christmas Carol, mainstage production of the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org), ran Nov. 25 through Dec. 23, 2022.
Grease, mainstage production of the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org), ran Oct. 21 through Nov. 12, 2022.
Legally Blonde, mainstage production of the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org), ran June 3 through June 26, 2022.
The All New Piano Men, mainstage production of the Palace Theatre (80 Hanover St., Manchester, 668-5588, palacetheatre.org), ran Jan. 20 through Feb. 5, 2023.
Best Local Place to Buy Art
Best of the best: Craftsmen’s Fair, nhcrafts.org/annual-craftsmens-fair. The annual nine-day craft fair hosted by the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen is held outdoors at Mount Sunapee Resort starting the first week of August. It features hundreds of craftspeople with vendor booths, plus special craft exhibitions, demonstrations, hands-on workshops and more.
League of New Hampshire Craftsmen Concord Fine Craft Gallery, 36 N. Main St., Concord, 228-8171, concord.nhcrafts.org. The craft organization’s flagship retail shop and gallery features a variety of traditional and contemporary crafts created by juried New Hampshire craftspeople.
Mosaic Art Collective, 66 Hanover St., Suite 201, Manchester, 512-6209, mosaicartcollective.com. The art cooperative features a gallery with rotating exhibitions and hosts community events and educational programming.
Manchester Craft Market, Mall of New Hampshire, 1500 S. Willow St., Manchester, manchestercraftmarket.com. This year-round gift shop features handmade items by more than 125 local artisans.
The Museum Shop at the Currier, Currier Museum of Art, 150 Ash St., Manchester, 669-6144, currier.org. The gift shop offers art supplies and gifts for artists and art-lovers, including novelty items inspired by the museum’s special exhibitions.
Best Publicly Viewable Sculpture or Statue
Best of the best: Abraham Lincoln statue at Central High School, 535 Beech St., Manchester. The original model of this statue depicting our nation’s 16th president was presented to the city of Manchester by sculptor John Rogers in 1895.
General John Stark statue at Stark Park, 550 River Road, Manchester, starkpark.com. Born in Londonderry in 1728, General John Stark was a Revolutionary War hero and the author of New Hampshire’s motto, “Live Free or Die.”
Millie the Mill Girl statue in downtown Manchester’s Millyard, manchesternh.gov. This 10-foot bronze statue commemorates the female employees of the Amoskeag Manufacturing Co., who represented one third of Manchester’s population in 1880. The Mill Girl Stairs Rehabilitation project began this past summer and is ongoing — the result will prominently feature the Mill Girl statue and improve public access from Commercial to Bedford streets.
Daniel Webster statue at New Hampshire Statehouse, 107 N. Main St., Concord, nh.gov. According to information from the New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources, this bronze statue of Portsmouth lawyer and Dartmouth College graduate Daniel Webster was designed in 1853, one year after his death.
Ralph Baer statue at Arms Park (between the Merrimack River and Commercial Street), Manchester, manchesternh.gov. Arms Park is home to “Baer Square,” featuring a memorial statue and bench of Ralph Baer, a longtime Manchester native widely considered to be “the father of video games.”
Best of the best: Chuckster’s Family Fun Park, 9 Bailey Road, Chichester, 798-3555, chuckstersnh.com. The park is currently closed for the season, but its miniature golf, batting cages and go-karts are scheduled to open on April 14.
Mel’s Funway Park, 454 Charles Bancroft Hwy., Litchfield, 424-2292, melsfunwaypark.com. Opening date for the 2023 season TBA. The park offers a wide variety of attractions, including miniature golf, go-kart racing, batting cages, arcade games and more.
Chuckster’s Family Fun Park, 53 Hackett Hill Road, Hooksett, 210-1415, chuckstersnh.com, This Chuckster’s location is also opening on April 14, and the miniature golf course boasts 36 different holes to test your skills on.
The Links at LaBelle Winery, 14 Route 111, Derry, 672-9898, labellewinery.com. The winery’s onsite 18-hole miniature course is currently closed but is scheduled to reopen in April.
Hilltop Fun Center, 165 Route 108, Somersworth, 742-8068, hilltopfuncenter.com. Miniature golf at Hilltop Fun Center is scheduled to open for the season on April 1.
Best Place to Learn to Make Something Cool
Best of the best: Studio 550 Arts Center, 550 Elm St., Manchester, 232-5597, 550arts.com. Pottery is the name of the game at this art center. Right now Studio 550 is offering a spring cleaning sale on classes through April 1.
Tuscan Market, 9 Via Toscana, Salem, 952-4875, tuscanbrands.com. Tuscan Market maintains a monthly schedule of cooking classes, with signups available for all skill levels.
603 Charcuterie, 603charcuterie.com. The charcuterie businesses, which regularly holds charcuterie board building classes at area breweries and wineries, has recently come under new ownership. Leah and Tom Bellemore, who own Vine 32 Wine + Graze Bar in Bedford, have taken over the reins of the store, as announced by 603 Charcuterie in a March 22 Facebook post.
Muse Paintbar, 42 Hanover St., Manchester, 607-6873, musepaintbar.com. Paint-and-sip classes are available to all skill levels.
Best Place to Totally Geek Out
Best of the best: Boards & Brews, 941 Elm St., Manchester, 232-5184, boardsandbrewsnh.com
Game Knight, 545 Hooksett Road, Unit 18, Manchester, 606-2299, gameknightnh.com
Aviation Museum of New Hampshire, 27 Navigator Road, Londonderry, 669-4820, nhahs.org. New Hampshire’s only working museum devoted to aviation history in the Granite State features a variety of exhibits covering important people, places, events and artifacts, and features year-round programming geared toward families.
Double Midnight Comics, 252 Willow St., Manchester, 669-9636, dmcomics.com. In addition to selling comic books, the shop holds game events as well as a day of celebration on Free Comic Book Day (Saturday, May 6, this year).
McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center, 2 Institute Drive, Concord, 271-7827, starhop.com. This hands-on learning center highlighting astronomy, space and aviation also features a planetarium. During the school year the center is open Wednesdays through Sundays from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission costs $12 ($9 for children ages 3 to 12, $11 for 62+ and ages 13 to college, free for children 2 and under); planetarium shows cost $6 for ages 3 and up.
Granite State Comic-Con, held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Manchester Downtown, 700 Elm St., Manchester, 669.9636, granitecon.com. Granite State Comic-Con is scheduled to return from Friday, Sept. 15, through Sunday, Sept. 17.
Midgard Hobbies and Games, 55 Crystal Ave., No. 21, Derry, 260-6180, midgardhobbiesandgames.com. In addition to having board games and tabletop role playing games for sale, Midgard has open gaming spaces, a private game room and a regular tournament gaming schedule.
Best Place to Make New Friends
Best of the best: The Collective Studios, 4 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, 216-2345, thecollective-studios.com. The Collective Studios boasts a regular schedule of yoga, meditation and fitness classes. See their website for details on how to join a class.
The Nest Family Cafe, 25 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, 404-2139, thenestfamilycafe.com. This Londonderry cafe, which opened in June 2022, was specially designed to cater to families with young children, with a variety of built-in amenities like a Montessori-style play area, a “treehouse” reading nook, a chalk wall, changing tables and a bottle-warming station, all in addition to a menu of coffees, teas, smoothies, baked goods, kid-friendly snack dispensers, bento boxes and more. The roughly 1,500-square-foot space includes traditional cafe seating that’s adjacent to the gated play area, designed to look like a bird’s nest.
The Dam Brewhouse, 1323 Route 175, Campton, 726-4500, dambrewhouse.com. The Dam Brewhouse hosts music bingo on Fridays from 5:30 to 7:45 p.m. and maintains a regular schedule of other events, like Paint and Pint on the third Sunday of every month.
Strive Indoor Cycling, 10 Hills Ave., Concord, 513-9464, striveindoorcycling.com. This indoor cycling center maintains a regular schedule of classes. See their website for the full calendar.
Feathered Friend Brewing Co., 231 S. Main St., Concord, 715-2347, find them on Facebook @featheredfriendbrewing. Feathered Friend Brewing Co., which opened in March 2022, is a popular spot for its pop-ups with local restaurants, as well as its live music and video game nights. See their Facebook page for details on upcoming events and happenings.
Best of the best: Trivia Heather, with Heather Abernathy, find her on Facebook @triviaheather. Held various weeknights, most often at Chunky’s Cinema Pub (707 Huse Road, Manchester) and The Farm Bar & Grille (1181 Elm St., Manchester).
Open Mic Nights with Paul Costley and Nate Comp. Held Tuesday nights, from 8 to 10 p.m., at KC’s Rib Shack, 837 Second St., Manchester, 627-7427, ribshack.net.
Trivia Nights with Bill Seney, see “Trivia Night with Bill Seney” on Facebook.
Held Thursday nights, at 8:30 p.m., at The Hop Knot, 1000 Elm St., Manchester, 232-3731, hopknotnh.com
Trivia Nights at Area 23, 254 N. State St., Concord, 552-0137, thearea23.com. Held Tuesday nights, at 7 p.m., with prizes awarded. See the Facebook page for an updated list of trivia categories each week.
Ruby Room Comedy, rubyroomcomedy.com. Held Wednesday nights, at 9 p.m., at The Shaskeen Pub and Restaurant, 909 Elm St., Manchester, 625-0246, shaskeenirishpub.com, and featuring a rotating lineup of up-and-coming comics from across the country.
Best Spot for Some Friendly Competition
Best of the best: Axel’s Throw House, 4 Bud Way, Unit 2, Nashua, 318-9987, axelsthrowhouse.com
The Rugged Axe, 377 S. Willow St., Manchester, 232-7846, theruggedaxe.com
Game Changer Sports Bar & Grill, 4 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, 216-1396, gamechangersportsbar.com. Named after one of the popular brand names of cornhole bean bags, Game Changer Sports Bar & Grill opened in May 2020 and features its own indoor cornhole lanes, with tournaments available for the chance to win prizes.
Par 28, 23 S. Broadway, Salem, 458-7078, par28.com. Par 28 opened in November 2022. The full-service restaurant and bar also features virtual indoor golf and ax throwing with projected targets, and is also home to Rae’s Coal Fired, featuring pizza and appetizers cooked out of a custom-built coal-fired oven.
Best Spot for a Cheap Date
Best of the best: The Farm Bar & Grille, 1181 Elm St., Manchester, 641-3276, farmbargrille.com
Best of the best: Axel’s Throw House, 4 Bud Way, Unit 2, Nashua, 318-9987, axelsthrowhouse.com
Boards & Brews, 941 Elm St., Manchester, 232-5184, boardsandbrewsnh.com
Canobie Lake Park, 85 N. Policy St., Salem, 893-3506, canobie.com. Featuring more than 100 rides, games, live shows and attractions, Canobie Lake Park is expected to reopen later this spring.
Best of the best: Copper Door Restaurant, 15 Leavy Drive, Bedford, 488-2677, copperdoor.com
The Puritan Backroom Restaurant, 245 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 669-6890, puritanbackroom.com
Revival Kitchen & Bar, 11 Depot St., Concord, 715-5723, revivalkitchennh.com
Buckley’s Great Steaks, 438 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack, 424-0995, buckleysgreatsteaks.com
The Farm Bar & Grille, 1181 Elm St., Manchester, 641-3276, farmbargrille.com
Best New Eatery
Best of the best: Rambling House Food & Gathering, 57 Factory St., Suite A, Nashua, 318-3220, ramblingtale.com. Featuring seasonally inspired menus — with a diverse offering of meat, seafood and vegetarian options — and an outside dining area with unparalleled rooftop views of the Nashua River, Rambling House Food Gathering opened its doors in early March 2022. It’s co-owned and co-founded by members of the Gleeson family, who have also run 2nd Nature Academy (formerly known as The Nature of Things) since 1997. On the first floor below Rambling House you’ll find its sister company, the TaleSpinner Brewery, which can be accessed at the opposite end of the building on Water Street.
The Nest Family Cafe, 25 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, 404-2139, thenestfamilycafe.com. This Londonderry cafe, which opened in June 2022, was specially designed to cater to families with young children, with a variety of built-in amenities like a Montessori-style play area, a “treehouse” reading nook, a chalk wall, changing tables and a bottle-warming station, all in addition to a menu of coffees, teas, smoothies, baked goods, kid-friendly snack dispensers, bento boxes and more. Owners Jamie and Ryan Getchell, themselves the parents of three kids, said the idea for the business came to them following their own experiences visiting cafes and coffee shops with their kids in tow. The roughly 1,500-square-foot space includes traditional cafe seating that’s adjacent to the gated play area, designed to look like a bird’s nest.
Pressed Cafe, 216 S. River Road, Bedford, 606-2746, pressedcafe.com. Pressed Cafe, a local chain known for its scratch-made menu of paninis, sandwiches, smoothies and bowls, opened its fourth New Hampshire location inside the former Canoe Restaurant & Bar space in Bedford in March 2022. It’s open for breakfast all day and features a double drive-thru and a full bar.
Ansanm, 20 South St., Milford, 554-1248, ansanmnh.com. Chris Viaud, owner of Greenleaf in Milford and a Season 18 contestant on Bravo’s Top Chef, opened this Haitian restaurant with his family in October 2022 in the former Wicked Pissah Chowdah storefront on South Street, just a stone’s throw away from the Milford Oval. Ansanm, which gets its name from the word meaning “together” in Haitian Creole, continues the success of the family’s restaurant concept following nearly a year and a half of hosting monthly pop-up dinners. Ansanm’s menu continues to include items that were main staples at the pop-ups — the griot, or a marinated twice-cooked pork, and the poule nan sós, or braised chicken in Creole sauce, to name a couple — as well as all kinds of authentic dishes totally new to the space, and a few new spins on classic flavors.
Los Reyes Street Tacos & More, 127 Rockingham Road, Derry, 845-8327, losreyesstreettacos.com. Manchester couple Jose and Isabel Reyes opened this Mexican restaurant inside Derry’s Hillside Plaza in April 2022. They’re perhaps best known for their birria — Jose Reyes comes from multiple generations of street food vending in Mexico, serving authentic birria, most commonly served on a plate in the form of goat meat. You won’t find goat on their menu, but you can try quesabirras, inspired by the traditional stew and featuring beef, onion, cilantro and a side of consommé, or the stewed broth. Los Reyes is also known for its street tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos and chimichangas.
Best Fine Dining
Best of the best: Hanover Street Chophouse, 149 Hanover St., Manchester, 644-2467, hanoverstreetchophouse.com
Buckley’s Great Steaks, 438 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack, 424-0995, buckleysgreatsteaks.com
Bedford Village Inn, 2 Olde Bedford Way, Bedford, 472-2001, bedfordvillageinn.com
Copper Door Restaurant, 15 Leavy Drive, Bedford, 488-2677, copperdoor.com
Revival Kitchen & Bar, 11 Depot St., Concord, 715-5723, revivalkitchennh.com
Best Restaurant from which to Get Takeout
Best of the best: The Puritan Backroom Restaurant, 245 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 669-6890, puritanbackroom.com
Buckley’s Great Steaks, 438 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack, 424-0995, buckleysgreatsteaks.com
Restaurant where the Meal Always Lifts your Mood
Best of the best: Troy’s Fresh Kitchen & Juice Bar, 4 Orchard View Drive, No. 6, Londonderry, 965-3411, troysfreshkitchen.com
The Puritan Backroom Restaurant, 245 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 669-6890, puritanbackroom.com
Copper Door Restaurant, 15 Leavy Drive, Bedford, 488-2677, copperdoor.com
KC’s Rib Shack, 837 Second St., Manchester, 627-7427, ribshack.net
Surf Restaurant, 207 Main St., Nashua, 595-9293, surfseafood.com
Best Food Truck
Best of the best: Messy Mike’s Barbecue & Catering Co., messymikesbbq.com. Messy Mike’s reopened for the season on March 16 — find them in the parking lot of Rockingham Acres Greenhouse (161 Rockingham Road, Derry).
B’s Tacos & More, nhtacotruck.com. Find them outside the BP gas station (2 Mohawk Drive, Londonderry) from May through October. B’s Tacos, meanwhile, has a brick-and-mortar location on Manchester’s West Side, at 372 Kelley Street.
Up In Your Grill, upinyourgrill.com. When he’s not catering for an event, Up In Your Grill owner and pitmaster Dan DeCourcey of Merrimack can often be found in the parking lot of Vault Motor Storage (526 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack) — the dates and times vary but are regularly updated on Facebook.
The Sleazy Vegan, thesleazyvegan.com. Find this plant-based food truck at pop-ups across southern New Hampshire — the dates and locations vary but are regularly updated on the website and on Facebook. The truck also offers delivery and catering services.
One Happy Clam Seafood & More, find them on Facebook @onehappyclam. Operated by longtime former Clam Haven owner Rick Metts, One Happy Clam has multiple public events on the schedule this spring and summer across southern New Hampshire.
Buxton’s Pizza, find them on Facebook @buxtonspizza. Find this Derry-based brick oven pizza truck at several pop-up locations mostly throughout the spring and summer months.
Restaurant With the Best Outdoor Seating
Best of the best: Downtown Cheers Grille & Bar, 17 Depot St., Concord, 228-0180, cheersnh.com
KC’s Rib Shack, 837 Second St., Manchester, 627-7427, ribshack.net
The Crown Tavern, 99 Hanover St., Manchester, 218-3132, thecrownonhanover.com
Klemm’s Bakery, 29 Indian Rock Road, Windham, 437-8810, klemmsbakery.com
Best Barbecue
Best of the best: KC’s Rib Shack, 837 Second St., Manchester, 627-7427, ribshack.net
Smokeshow Barbeque, 231 S. Main St., Concord, 227-6399, smokeshowbarbeque.com. In March 2022, Smokeshow Barbeque relocated into a new space in Concord’s South End, nearly tripling its seating capacity and sharing a building with Feathered Friend Brewing Co.
Messy Mike’s Barbecue & Catering Co., messymikesbbq.com. Messy Mike’s reopened for the season on March 16 — find them in the parking lot of Rockingham Acres Greenhouse (161 Rockingham Road, Derry).
Best of the best: Steak Bomb at USA Subs, 66 Crystal Ave., Derry, 437-1550, usasubs.com. Available in three sizes, this tried and true classic features tender shaved steak that’s grilled with peppers, onions, mushrooms, cooked salami and your choice of American or provolone cheese.
The Cardiac Sam at KC’s Rib Shack, 837 Second St., Manchester, 627-7427, ribshack.net. This sandwich is stacked with pulled chicken, pulled pork, bacon, cheese, roasted red peppers, lettuce and a garlic and herb mayonnaise.
Roast beef sub at Bentley’s Roast Beef, 134 Route 101A, Amherst, 883-2020, bentleysroastbeef.com. Bentley’s uses eight ounces of freshly thin-sliced USDA choice Midwestern beef for its subs, which are served on a toasted 12-inch Piantedosi sub roll.
Messy 3-Way at Messy Mike’s Barbecue & Catering Co., messymikesbbq.com. “If it ain’t messy, it ain’t barbecue” — that’s the motto of Messy Mike’s. The Messy 3-Way features melt-in-your-mouth pulled pork, served on a bun with mayonnaise, American cheese and James River barbecue sauce. Messy Mike’s reopened for the season on March 16 — find them in the parking lot of Rockingham Acres Greenhouse (161 Rockingham Road, Derry).
Fried chicken sandwich at Ansanm, 20 South St., Milford, 554-1248, ansanmnh.com. Putting a new spin on traditional Haitian flavors, this sandwich features chicken thigh marinated in epis (a blend of peppers, garlic and herbs) and topped with a house epis aioli, crispy plantain and pikliz (a spicy slaw) on a house-made adobo brioche roll.
Best Subs
Best of the best: Nadeau’s Subs, 776 Mast Road, Manchester, 623-9315; 110 Cahill Ave., Manchester, 669-7827; 673 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 644-8888; 1095 Hanover St., Manchester (inside the Kwik Stop Mobil), 606-4411; nadeaussubs.com
USA Subs, 66 Crystal Ave., Derry, 437-1550, usasubs.com
Bill Cahill’s Super Subs, 8 Kimball Hill Road, Hudson, 882-7710, find them on Facebook @billcahills
Great American Subs, 44 Nashua Road, Unit 3, Londonderry, 434-9900, greatamericansubsnh.com
Los Reyes Street Tacos & More, 127 Rockingham Road, Derry, 845-8327, losreyesstreettacos.com
Restaurant that Can Make You Love Vegetables
Best of the best: Troy’s Fresh Kitchen & Juice Bar, 4 Orchard View Drive, No. 6, Londonderry, 965-3411, troysfreshkitchen.com
The Sleazy Vegan, thesleazyvegan.com. Find this plant-based food truck at multiple pop-ups across southern New Hampshire — the dates and locations vary but are regularly updated on the website and on Facebook. The truck also offers delivery and catering services.
Pats Peak Ski Area, 686 Flanders Road, Henniker, 428-3245, patspeak.com
Prettiest Cupcakes
Best of the best: Queen City Cupcakes, 816 Elm St., Manchester, 624-4999, qccupcakes.com. In January, Queen City Cupcakes moved all its operations a few doors down, joining forces with its sister gift shop, Pop of Color, at 816 Elm St.
Bearded Baking Co., 819 Union St., Manchester, 647-7150, beardedbaking.com
Carina’s Cakes, 14B E. Broadway, Derry, 425-9620, find them on Facebook @carinas.cakes
Cupcakes 101, 132 Bedford Center Road, Bedford, 488-5962, cupcakes101.net
Wild Orchid Bakery, 836 Elm St., Manchester, 935-7338, wildorchidbakery.com
New Hampshire Doughnut Co., 410 S. River Road, Bedford, 782-8968, nhdoughnutco.com. The company’s newest shop, which opened on South River Road in Bedford in September 2022, expanded the menu offerings to include yeast ring and filled doughnuts for the first time, in addition to fritters and French crullers.
Best Ice Cream
Best of the best: The Puritan Backroom Restaurant, 245 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 669-6890, puritanbackroom.com
Moo’s Place Homemade Ice Cream, 27 Crystal Ave., Derry, 425-0100, moosplace.com. Moo’s opens for the season on April 1.
Ilsley’s Ice Cream, 33 S. Sugar Hill Road, Weare, 529-6455, find them on Facebook @ilsleysicecream. Opening date for the 2023 season TBA.
Spyglass Brewing Co., 306 Innovative Way, Nashua, 546-2965, spyglassbrewing.com. In late January, Spyglass Brewing Co. moved all of its operations across Nashua to its current location at 306 Innovative Way, where a full kitchen is now available featuring smash burgers, sandwiches, tacos, salads, appetizers and more.
Zorvino Vineyards, 226 Main St., Sandown, 887-8463, zorvino.com
Flag Hill Distillery & Winery, 297 N. River Road, Lee, 659-2949, flaghill.com
Fulchino Vineyard, 187 Pine Hill Road, Hollis, 438-5984, fulchinovineyard.com
Appolo Vineyards, 49 Lawrence Road, Derry, 421-4675, appolovineyards.com
Best Cocktail
Best of the best: Cosmo at Copper Door Restaurant, 41 S. Broadway, Salem, 458-2033, copperdoor.com. The Copper Door’s signature Cosmo features Tito’s Handmade Vodka, Gran Gala orange liqueur, freshly squeezed lemons, pomegranate juice and a sugar rim.
Frozen mudslides at The Puritan Backroom Restaurant, 245 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 669-6890, puritanbackroom.com. The Puritan’s original mudslide features Bailey’s Irish Cream, Kahlua coffee liqueur and vodka, while other variations include an Almond Joy Slide, a Milky Way slide, a Snickers slide and a Peanut Butter Cup slide.
C.R.E.A.M. at Industry East Bar, 28 Hanover St., Manchester, 232-6940, industryeastbar.com. Standing for “Cucumber Rules Everything Around Me,” the C.R.E.A.M. cocktail at Industry East is one of the bar’s signature offerings, featuring Mi Campo tequila, ancho verde liqueur, Dolin Blanc, a cucumber shrub, lemon juice and jalapeno tincture. It’s then garnished with a cucumber ribbon, salt and pepper.
Squam Shrub at New Hampshire Pizza Co., 76 N. Main St., Concord, 333-2125, newhampshirepizzaco.com. Changing its flavors with the seasons, from cranberry in the fall or blueberry in the summer to other combinations like apricot rosemary, this craft cocktail features Ice Pik vodka, a simple syrup and soda water.
Painkiller at KC’s Rib Shack, 837 Second St., Manchester, 627-7427, ribshack.net. Known for being the KC’s Rib Shack’s best-selling specialty drink, the Painkiller features a blend of Cruzan aged Virgin Island rum, coconut cream, pineapple and orange juices, topped with freshly grated nutmeg.
Best Margaritas
Best of the best: Hermanos Cocina Mexicana, 11 Hills Ave., Concord, 224-5669, hermanosmexican.com
La Carreta Mexican Restaurant, 545 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 628-6899; 1875 S. Willow St., Manchester, 623-7705; lacarretamex.com
El Rincon Zacatecano Taqueria, 10 Lake Ave., Manchester, 232-4530, elrinconnh.com
Puerto Vallarta Mexican Grill, 865 Second St., Manchester, 935-9182, vallartamexicannh.com
Nuevo Vallarta Mexican Restaurant, 791 Second St., Manchester, 782-8762, vallartamexicannh.com
Restaurant with the Most Innovative Cocktails
Best of the best: Tandy’s Pub & Grille, 1 Eagle Square, Concord, 856-7614, tandyspub.com
The Farm Bar & Grille, 1181 Elm St., Manchester, 641-3276, farmbargrille.com
The Hop Knot, 1000 Elm St., Manchester, 232-3731, hopknotnh.com
Industry East Bar, 28 Hanover St., Manchester, 232-6940, industryeastbar.com
T-Bones Great American Eatery, 404 S. Main St., Concord, 715-1999, t-bones.com
Where They Make your Coffee Perfect Every Time
Best of the best: Revelstoke Coffee, 100 N. Main St., Concord, revelstokecoffee.com
Best of the best: Sunnycrest Farm, 59 High Range Road, Londonderry, 432-7753, sunnycrestfarmnh.com. Pick-your-own opportunities, depending on the season and on availability, include apples, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, peaches, grapes, cherries and flowers.
Mack’s Apples, 230 Mammoth Road, Londonderry, 434-7619, macksapples.com. Pick-your-own opportunities, depending on the season and on availability, include apples, pumpkins, peaches and pears.
depending on the season and on availability, include strawberries and apples. The farm has additional locations in Milford and Nashua.
Apple Hill Farm, 580 Mountain Road, Concord, 224-8862, applehillfarmnh.com. Pick-your-own opportunities include several varieties of apples.
Carter Hill Orchard, 73 Carter Hill Road, Concord, 225-2625, carterhillapples.com. Pick-your-own opportunities, depending on the season and on availability, include blueberries, apples and peaches.
Best City Park
Best of the best: White Park, 1 White St., Concord, 225-8690, concordnh.gov. Amenities include a basketball court, a seasonal pool, walking trails and an ice skating rink.
Livingston Park, 156 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 624-6444, manchesternh.gov. This park includes a walking trail that circles Dorrs Pond.
Benson Park, 19 Kimball Road, Hudson, 886-6000, hudsonnh.gov. Benson Park is a 166-acre public park that opened in 2010. The former property of Benson’s Wild Animal Farm, a private zoo and amusement park open for much of the early half of the 20th century, the park is now a popular area for hiking, dog walking, fishing and picnicking.
Greeley Park, 100 Concord St., Nashua, nashuanh.gov. A public city park spanning 125 acres, Greeley Park features a stage, playgrounds, picnic areas and more, and is a popular spot for outdoor festivals.
Mine Falls Park, Whipple Street, Nashua, 589-3370, nashuanh.gov. This park has around 8 miles of trails across 325 acres of forest, open fields and wetlands, bordering the Nashua River, Millpond and a canal system on the north side.
Best State Park
Best of the best: Bear Brook State Park, 61 Deerfield Road, Allenstown, 485-9874, nhstateparks.org. At more than 10,000 acres, this is the largest developed state park in New Hampshire. There are around 40 miles of trails that run through this heavily forested park, offering a variety of options for hikers and dog walkers. Leashed pets are permitted in the campground and on the trails only — not in the beach area.
Pawtuckaway State Park, 128 Mountain Road, Nottingham, 895-3031, nhstateparks.org. The park offers campers a family beach on the lake and hiking trails across a diverse landscape, where they can see wildlife and natural points of interest.
Franconia Notch State Park, 260 Tramway Drive, Franconia/Lincoln, 823-8800, nhstateparks.org. Franconia Notch State Park is located in the White Mountain National Forest and is home to the Franconia Notch, a mountain pass crossed by a parkway extending from Echo Lake to the Flume Gorge. Visitors can enjoy hiking, swimming, fishing, biking, horseback riding, camping and more.
Wellington State Park, 614 W. Shore Road, Bristol, 744-2197, nhstateparks.org. Wellington State Park offers hiking trails, picnic areas and volleyball and horseshoe courts, and is known for having the largest freshwater swimming beach in the New Hampshire state park system.
Ellacoya State Park, 266 Scenic Road, Gilford, 293-7821, nhstateparks.org. Ellacoya State Park is located on the southwest shore of New Hampshire’s largest lake, Lake Winnipesaukee. It features a 600-foot-long sandy beach area open for swimming, fishing, canoeing and kayaking, with views of the Sandwich and Ossipee mountains across the lake, as well as picnic areas, a playground and an RV campground.
Wallis Sands State Beach, 1050 Ocean Blvd., Rye, 227-8722, nhstateparks.org. Wallis Sands State Beach is a sandy beach with ocean swimming and views of the Isles of Shoals. Amenities include a store with food and drinks, a bathhouse with hot and cold showers, walking trails and a grassy area with picnic tables.
Best Hike in Southern New Hampshire
Best of the best: Mount Monadnock, 169 Poole Road, Jaffrey, 532-8862, nhstateparks.org. The 3,165-foot mountain features more than 35 hiking trails of various levels of difficulty leading to the summit.
Mount Major, Alton, forestsociety.org/mtmajor. The mountain’s 1.5-mile Mount Major Trail and 1.6-mile Boulder Loop Trail form a loop at its 1,785-foot summit, which offers a panoramic view of Lake Winnipesaukee to the north.
Mine Falls Park, Whipple Street, Nashua, 589-3370, nashuanh.gov. This park has around 8 miles of trails across 325 acres of forest, open fields and wetlands, bordering the Nashua River, Millpond and a canal system on the north side.
Mt. Uncanoonuc Trails, Mountain Road, Goffstown. The North Uncanoonuc Trail, about a 0.6-mile hike, is steep in some spots and is known for its wilderness and panoramic views of Goffstown. At about 0.8 miles, the South Uncanoonuc Trail is slightly longer, also serving as a snowmobiling and ATVing trail that features views of Mount Monadnock from a distance.
Pulpit Rock Conservation Area, New Boston Road, Bedford, plcnh.org/pulpit-rock-trails. The 338-acre conservation land features 10 marked trails totalling 3 miles, including a connector trail from the gorge and ledge called Pulpit Rock, through Amherst to Bedford’s Joppa Hill Conservation Land.
Best Bike Trail
Best of the best: Granite State Rail Trail, from Londonderry through Salem, gsrtnh.org. The southern portion of the trail network connects the Londonderry Rail Trail, Derry Rail Trail, Windham Rail Trail and Salem Bike-Ped Corridor, ending in Salem at the Massachusetts border.
Nashua River Rail Trail, Nashua. This paved trail is 12.5 miles and runs along the Nashua River, connecting Nashua to Ayer, Mass.
Northern Rail Trail, fnrt.org. The 59-mile trail runs from Boscawen to Lebanon, crossing nearly a dozen towns across two counties.
Mine Falls Park, Whipple Street, Nashua, 589-3370, nashuanh.gov. This park has around 8 miles of trails across 325 acres of forest, open fields and wetlands, bordering the Nashua River, Millpond and a canal system on the north side.
Goffstown Rail Trail, Goffstown, goffstownrailtrail.org. The 5.5-mile trail runs between Goffstown and Manchester, connecting Pinardville, Grasmere and Goffstown Village.
Best Spot for a Long Run
Best of the best: Mine Falls Park, Whipple Street, Nashua, 589-3370, nashuanh.gov. This park has around 8 miles of trails across 325 acres of forest, open fields and wetlands, bordering the Nashua River, Millpond and a canal system on the north side.
Manchester rail trails, manchesternh.gov/departments/parks-and-recreation/parks-trails-and-facilities/recreational-trails. The City of Manchester is working to develop a rail trail network, with four rail trails in various stages of planning and development. Rockingham Rail Trail is 3.1 miles and runs from Tarrytown Road to Lake Massabesic; South Manchester Rail Trail runs 2.4 miles parallel to South Willow Street; Heritage Trail runs for 6.1 miles along the Merrimack River and includes the Riverwalk in the Millyard; and Piscataquog Trail runs for 2.4 miles through the West Side of Manchester and connects to the Goffstown Rail Trail.
Goffstown Rail Trail, Goffstown, goffstownrailtrail.org. The 5.5-mile trail runs between Goffstown and Manchester, connecting Pinardville, Grasmere and Goffstown Village.
Londonderry Rail Trail, londonderrytrails.org. The 4.5-mile trail runs through North Londonderry, ending at Harvey Road in Manchester near the Manchester-Boston Regional Airport.
Nashua River Rail Trail, Nashua. This paved trail is 12.5 miles and runs along the Nashua River, connecting Nashua to Ayer, Mass.
Best Ski Hill
Best of the best: Pats Peak Ski Area, 686 Flanders Road, Henniker, 428-3245, patspeak.com
Best of the best: Lake Massabesic, off the Londonderry Turnpike, Manchester, 642-6482, manchesternh.gov. Spanning 2,500 acres in Manchester and Auburn, the lake is the centerpoint for a network of dozens of trails, including a loop to the Massabesic Audubon Center, a wildlife sanctuary situated on a historic farm site in Auburn. The trails range in length from half a mile to more than 3 miles.
Newfound Lake, Wellington State Park, 614 W. Shore Road, Bristol, 744-2197, nhstateparks.org. A boat launch is located just outside the park, providing free 24/7 access to the 4,106-acre lake.
Pawtuckaway Lake, Pawtuckaway State Park, 7 Pawtuckaway Road, Nottingham, 895-3031, nhstateparks.org. The park offers canoe and kayak rentals at its camp store as well as a public boat launch for the 784-acre lake.
Squam Lake, Grafton, Carroll and Belknap counties, lakesregion.org/squam-lake. Big and Little Squam lakes are naturally spring-fed and connected by a channel in Holderness. Big Squam is the second-largest lake located entirely in New Hampshire, at 6,791 acres long with 61 miles of shoreline. The lakes are also host to 67 islands.
Canobie Lake, Salem and Windham, canobielake.org. The 375-acre lake is known for its peaceful waters and resident loons. Canoes and kayaks can be carried into the water from the North Policy Street parking lot.
Lake Winnisquam, Water Street, Laconia, winnisquamwatershed.org/public-access. With 4,264 acres, the lake, fed by Lake Winnipesaukee, is the state’s fourth largest, spanning across the towns of Laconia, Tilton, Sanbornton, Belmont and Meredith. There are two public boat ramps and a floating dock in Laconia.
Best of the best: Hampton Beach Seafood Festival, Route 1A, Hampton, seafoodfestivalnh.com. The festival will be back Friday, Sept. 8, through Sunday, Sept. 10, with shopping, live music, entertainment and, of course, lots of seafood.
Taco Tour in Manchester. According to tacotourmanchester.com, the self-proclaimed “World’s Largest Taco Tour,” organized by the Greater Manchester Chamber, will be coming back on Thursday, May 4, from 4 to 8 p.m. in downtown Manchester and will include more than 60 restaurants selling tacos for $3 each.
Glendi, St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 650 Hanover St, Manchester, 622-9113, stgeorgenh.org. This festival will take place Friday, Sept. 15, through Sunday, Sept. 17, and will feature a wide selection of Greek food, including lamb, gyro, pastries and more.
Great American Ribfest at the Anheuser-Busch Brewery, 221 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack, 595-1202, greatamericanribfest.com. The food truck festival that features barbecue, live music, kids attractions and more is back Friday, July 21, through Sunday, July 23.
Concord Multicultural Festival, Keach Park, Concord Heights, 2 Newton Ave., Concord, 568-5740, concordnhmulticulturalfestival.org. Scheduled this year for Sunday, Sept. 24, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Concord Multicultural Festival features food, music and live entertainment, artists and makers and more — all with the goal of showcasing the many cultures of the community, according to the website.
Best Farmers Market
Best of the best: Concord Farmers Market, which runs Saturday mornings from 8:30 a.m. to noon on Capitol Street between North Main Street and State Street (next to the lawn in front of the Statehouse). The farmers market opens for the season on May 6 and will run through Oct. 28, according to concordfarmersmarket.com.
Contoocook Farmers Market, which runs Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon. The winter market takes place November through April at Maple Street School (194 Maple St.); the summer mark et runs from May through October at the Contoocook gazebo, according to the market’s Facebook page.
Salem Farmers Market, which takes place year-round on Sundays starting at 10 a.m., according to salemnhfarmersmarket.org. The market’s Easter Market will be held Sunday, April 2; the market will be closed on Sunday, April 9, the website said. The winter market, which runs November through April, is at LaBelle Winery (14 Route 111, Derry, 833-2311) and goes until 1 p.m.; the summer market will open May 7 at the Mall at Rockingham Park (77 Rockingham Park Blvd. in Salem).
Bedford Farmers Market, which takes place at Murphy’s Taproom (393 Route 101 in Bedford) on Tuesdays from 3 to 6 p.m. The market will open for the season on June 13 and will run through Oct. 17, according to bedfordnhfarmersmarket.org.
Derry Homegrown Farm and Artisan Market, which runs Wednesdays from 3 to 7 p.m. at 1 West Broadway in Derry. The season will open on June 7, according to derryhomegrown.org.
Event That Puts the Fun in Fundraiser
Best of the best: Penguin Plunge for Special Olympics. This year’s Penguin Plunge took place in February at Hampton Beach, where 720 participants jumped into the cold ocean to raise funds to support Special Olympics New Hampshire, according to sonh.org/events/penguin-plunge.
Rock ‘N Race. This race, which features 5K walk, 5K run and 1-mile run options, takes place in downtown Concord and supports Concord Hospital Payson Center for Cancer Care. The race will kick off at 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 18 (with a pre-race program at the Statehouse Plaza at 5:45 p.m.), according to giveto.concordhospital.org.
Glendi, St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 650 Hanover St, Manchester, 622-9113, stgeorgenh.org. This festival will take place Friday, Sept. 15, through Sunday, Sept. 17, and will feature a wide selection of Greek food, including lamb, gyro, pastries and more.
Abby Lange’s Walk for the Animals, which raises funds for Pope Memorial SPCA (94 Silk Farm Rd, Concord, 856-8756, popememorialspca.org). It’s slated for Sunday, Oct. 1, and will start at Northeast Delta Dental in Concord; details are to come.
Wags to Whiskers Festival, a day of dog demonstrations, kid activities, pet vendors and more to support The Humane Society of Greater Nashua (24 Ferry Road, Nashua, 889-2275). This year’s event is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 16, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Anheuser-Busch in Merrimack.
Best Community Event
Best of the best: Concord Market Days Festival. Concord’s downtown celebration with music, food, live entertainment, family activities, vendors and more will take place Thursday, June 22, through Saturday, June 24. See marketdaysfestival.com.
Glendi, St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral, 650 Hanover St, Manchester, 622-9113, stgeorgenh.org. This festival will take place Friday, Sept. 15, through Sunday, Sept. 17, and will feature a wide selection of Greek food, including lamb, gyro, pastries and more.
Milford Pumpkin Festival. This celebration of pumpkins and Halloween in downtown Milford will run Friday, Oct. 6, through Sunday, Oct. 8, and historically features live music, a haunted trail, a pumpkin weigh-in, pumpkin carving, scarecrow making, a rubber duck race, live entertainment, a pumpkin catapult, vendors, kids’ activities, food and more, according to milfordpumpkinfestival.org.
Giant Pumpkin Weigh Off and Regatta. Run by Goffstown Main Street, the Regatta has in the past taken place over two days in October and has featured as its highlight a race of carved pumpkin boats in the river. See goffstownmainstreet.org.
Derry After Dark, a celebration of breweries and restaurants that in the past has been scheduled to coincide with Derryfest in September. For information, contact Cask and Vine (1 East Broadway in Derry; 965-3454, caskandvine.com).
Winter Holiday Stroll. This downtown Nashua celebration takes place the Saturday after Thanksgiving (this year, that’s Saturday, Nov. 25). Taking place in the evening (in 2022 it ran from 5 to 10 p.m.), the Stroll in the past has featured the lighting of the holiday tree, a Santa’s Village, live entertainment, vendors and more. See downtownnashua.org.
Best Event Celebrating a Holiday
Best of the best: Winter Holiday Stroll. This downtown Nashua celebration takes place the Saturday after Thanksgiving (this year, that’s Saturday, Nov. 25). Taking place in the evening (in 2022 it ran from 5 to 10 p.m.), the Stroll in the past has featured the lighting of the holiday tree, a Santa’s Village, live entertainment, vendors and more. See downtownnashua.org.
Midnight Merriment. Organized by Intown Concord (intownconcord.org), the Capital City’s holiday event is usually the first Friday in December and has in the past run from 5 p.m. to midnight. The evening features music, kids’ activities, Santa Claus, shopping and more, according to the website.
Halloween Howl. In 2022, this Halloween event from Intown Concord (intownconcord.org) took place the Friday before Halloween and featured trick-or-treating on Main Street in the downtown, family activities and a trunk-or-treat, according to the website.
LaBelle Lights at LaBelle Winery (14 Route 111 in Derry, 672-9898, labellewinery.com). In 2022 this lights display was twice the size as in the first year’s, with artistic sculptures that the winery commissioned exclusively for the event, which ran through the holiday season and into January.
Milford Pumpkin Festival. This celebration of pumpkins and Halloween in downtown Milford will run Friday, Oct. 6, through Sunday, Oct. 8, and historically features live music, a haunted trail, a pumpkin weigh-in, pumpkin carving, scarecrow making, a rubber duck race, live entertainment, a pumpkin catapult, vendors, kids’ activities, food and more, according tomilfordpumpkinfestival.org
Manchester St. Patrick’s Parade. The parade traditionally takes place a week or so after St. Patrick’s Day (this year it was Sunday, March 26) and steps off at noon, running down Elm Street through the city’s downtown. See saintpatsnh.com for the countdown clock to next year’s parade.
Best of the best: New Inkland Tattoo Co., 1358 Elm St., Suite C, Manchester, 518-7493, new-inkland-tattoo-co.business.site
Tattoo Angus, 179 Elm St., Unit C, Manchester, 935.9398, tattooangus.com, This shop is owned by Jon Thomas, the founder of the Live Free or Die Tattoo Expo, who also owns Spider-Bite Body Piercing in the same location.
Capital City Tattoo, 8 N. Main St., Concord, 224-2600, capcitytat.com
Blood Oath Tattoo, 15 Pleasant St., Concord, 227-6912, find them on Facebook @bloodoathtattoo
Underworld Tattoo Co., 282 Main St., Salem, 458-7739, find them on Facebook @underworldtattoocompany
Buzz Ink Shop, 85 Manchester St., Concord, 715-1808, buzzinkshopnh.com
Best Workout Space
Best of the best: Get Fit NH, 41 Terrill Park Drive, Suite A, Concord, 848-6138, getfitnh.com
The Collective Studios, 4 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, 216-2345, thecollective-studios.com
SPENGA, 493 Amherst St., Nashua, 324-0355, nashuanh.spenga.com. A combination of spin, strength and yoga, SPENGA focuses on three 20-minute sessions of each activity.
Executive Health & Sports Center, 1 Highlander Way, Manchester, 668-4753, ehsc.com
Best of the best: Aviation Museum of New Hampshire, 27 Navigator Road, Londonderry, 669-4820, nhahs.org. New Hampshire’s only working museum devoted to aviation history in the Granite State features a variety of exhibits covering important people, places, events and artifacts, and has year-round programming geared toward families.
The Nest Family Cafe, 25 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, 404-2139, thenestfamilycafe.com. This Londonderry cafe, which opened in June 2022, is specially designed to cater to families with young children, with a variety of built-in amenities like a Montessori-style play area, a “treehouse” reading nook, a chalk wall, changing tables and a bottle-warming station, all in addition to a menu of coffees, teas, smoothies, baked goods, kid-friendly snack dispensers, bento boxes and more. Owners Jamie and Ryan Getchell, themselves the parents of three kids, said the idea for the business came to them following their own experiences visiting cafes and coffee shops with their kids in tow. The roughly 1,500-square-foot space includes traditional cafe seating that’s adjacent to the gated play area, designed to look like a bird’s nest.
Cowabunga’s Indoor Kids Play & Party Center, 725 Huse Road, Manchester, 935-9659, cowabungas.com
Fun City Trampoline Park, 553 Mast Road, Goffstown, 606-8807, funcitygoffstown.com
Krazy Kids Indoor Play and Party Center, 60 Sheep Davis Road, Pembroke, 228-7529, krazykids.com
Best Outdoor Spot to Let Kids Get Out Their Energy
Best of the best: Benson Park, 19 Kimball Hill Road, Hudson, hudsonnh.gov/bensonpark. Benson Park is a 166-acre public park that opened in 2010. The former property of Benson’s Wild Animal Farm, a private zoo and amusement park open for much of the early half of the 20th century, the park is now a popular area for hiking, dog walking, fishing and picnicking.
White Park, 1 White St., Concord, 225-8690, concordnh.gov. Amenities include a basketball court, a seasonal pool, walking trails and an ice skating rink.
Livingston Park, 156 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 624-6444, manchesternh.gov. This park includes a walking trail that circles Dorrs Pond.
Griffin Park, 101 Range Road, Windham, 434-7016, windhamnh.gov. Amenities include a playground and basketball and tennis courts.
Mel’s Funway Park, 454 Charles Bancroft Hwy., Litchfield, 424-2292, melsfunwaypark.com. Opening date for the 2023 season TBA. The park offers a wide variety of attractions, including miniature golf, go-kart racing, batting cages, arcade games and more.
Best Spot for All-Ages Family Fun
Best of the best: The Nest Family Cafe, 25 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, 404-2139, thenestfamilycafe.com. This Londonderry cafe, which opened in June 2022, is designed to cater to families with young children, with a variety of built-in amenities like a Montessori-style play area, a “treehouse” reading nook, a chalk wall, changing tables and a bottle-warming station, all in addition to a menu of coffees, teas, smoothies, baked goods, kid-friendly snack dispensers, bento boxes and more. Owners Jamie and Ryan Getchell, themselves the parents of three kids, said the idea for the business came to them following their own experiences visiting cafes and coffee shops with their kids in tow. The roughly 1,500-square-foot space includes traditional cafe seating that’s adjacent to the gated play area, designed to look like a bird’s nest.
Canobie Lake Park, 85 N. Policy St., Salem, 893-3506, canobie.com. Featuring more than 100 rides, games, live shows and attractions, Canobie Lake Park is expected to reopen later this spring.
Mel’s Funway Park, 454 Charles Bancroft Hwy., Litchfield, 424-2292, melsfunwaypark.com. Opening date for the 2023 season TBA. The park offers a wide variety of attractions, including miniature golf, go-kart racing, batting cages, arcade games and more.
Funspot, 579 Endicott St. N, Laconia, 366-4377, funspotnh.com. With more than 600 games including classic arcade cabinets, 10-pin and candlepin bowling and indoor minigolf, Funspot is the largest arcade in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.
Aviation Museum of New Hampshire, 27 Navigator Road, Londonderry, 669-4820, nhahs.org. New Hampshire’s only working museum devoted to aviation history in the Granite State features a variety of exhibits covering important people, places, events and artifacts, and features all kinds of specialty year-round programming geared toward families.
Best Restaurant for the Whole Family
Best of the best: The Puritan Backroom Restaurant, 245 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 669-6890, puritanbackroom.com
Best of the best: Woofmeow, 19 Manchester Road, Suite A, Derry, 965-3218, woofmeownh.com
Sandy’s Pet Food Center, 141 Old Turnpike Road, Concord, 225-1177, sandyspetfood.com
Pets Choice, 454 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack, 424-7297, petschoicenh.com
The Wholistic Pet, 341 Route 101, Bedford, 472-2273, thewholisticpet.com
State Line Pet Supply, 137 Plaistow Road (Route 125), Plaistow, 382-6873, statelinepetsupply.com
Best Place to Let Your Dog Off Leash
Best of the best: Hooksett Dog Park, 101 Merrimack St., Hooksett, 485-8471, hooksett.org. This park is open daily from 6 a.m. to dusk.
Hudson Dog Park, located inside Benson Park, 19 Kimball Hill Road, Hudson, 886-6000, hudsonnh.gov. This dog park is securely fenced in and located just inside Benson Park as you enter. It features two separate areas, large and small, for dogs to play leash-free.
Derry Dog Park, Fordway and Transfer Lane, Derry, 432-6136, derrynh.org. Open daily from sunrise to sunset, this dog park also contains a designated area for smaller dogs.
The Dam Brewhouse, 1323 Route 175, Campton, 726-4500, dambrewhouse.com. Well-behaved dogs are welcome off leash outdoors.
Dog Park at Terrill Park, Old Turnpike Road, Concord, 225-8690, concordnh.gov. This fenced in dog park is maintained by the Pope Memorial SPCA and open daily from dawn to dusk.
Best On-leash Dog Outing
Best of the best: Benson Park, 19 Kimball Hill Road, Hudson, hudsonnh.gov/bensonpark. Benson Park is a 166-acre public park that opened in 2010. The former property of Benson’s Wild Animal Farm, a private zoo and amusement park open for much of the early half of the 20th century, the park is now a popular area for hiking, dog walking, fishing and picnicking.
Mine Falls Park, Whipple Street, Nashua, 589-3370, nashuanh.gov. This park has around 8 miles of trails across 325 acres of forest, open fields and wetlands, bordering the Nashua River, Millpond and canal system on the north side.
Livingston Park, 156 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 624-6444, manchesternh.gov. This park includes a walking trail that circles around Dorrs Pond.
Bear Brook State Park, 61 Deerfield Road, Allenstown, 485-9874, nhstateparks.org. At more than 10,000 acres, this is the largest developed state park in New Hampshire. There are around 40 miles of trails that run through this heavily forested park, offering a variety of options for hikers and dog walkers. Leashed pets are permitted in the campground and on the trails only — not in the beach area.
Head’s Pond Trail, off Post Road, Hooksett, 485-5322, hooksett.org. This roughly 1.5-mile trail runs adjacent to Head’s Pond in Hooksett and features mostly flat terrain.
Best of the best: Alec’s Shoes, 1617 Southwood Drive, Nashua, 882-6811, alecs-shoes.com
Gondwana & Divine Clothing Co., 13 N. Main St., Concord, 228-1101, gondwanaclothing.com
Joe King’s Shoe Shop, 45 N. Main St., Concord, 225-6012, joekings.com
Alapage Boutique, 25 S. River Road, Bedford, 622-0550, alapageboutique.com
George’s Apparel, 675 Elm St., Manchester, 622-5441, georgesapparel.com
Kelly’s Kloset, sales are coordinated through the Facebook group “Kelly’s Kloset LLC,” with pick-ups and drop-offs based in Hooksett
Best Secondhand Store
Best of the best: Corey’s Closet, 1329 Hooksett Road, Hooksett, 722-2712, coreyscloset.org
M&C Clothing and Gifts, 135 Route 101A, Amherst, 886-6727, mcclothingandgifts.com
Lilise Designer Resale, 7 N. Main St., Concord, 715-2009, liliseresale.com
Kelly’s Kloset, sales are coordinated through the Facebook group “Kelly’s Kloset LLC,” with pick-ups and drop-offs based in Hooksett
Chic Boutique Consignments, 126 S. River Road, Bedford, 935-7295, chicboutiqueconsignments.com
Best Shop for Browsing and then Spending More than You Planned
Best of the best: Manchester Craft Market, Mall of New Hampshire, 1500 S. Willow St., Manchester, manchestercraftmarket.com. This year-round gift shop features handmade items by more than 125 local artisans.
Junction 71, 707 Milford Road, Merrimack, 213-5201, junction71.wixsite.com/mysite. The shop sells an eclectic mix of home decor and gifts.
The Terracotta Room, 1361 Elm St., Suite 102, Manchester, 935-8738, theterracottaroom.com. This downtown sustainable lifestyle boutique features a wide selection of botanicals as well as sustainably sourced, ethically made clothing and accessories, jewelry, beauty and wellness products, home decor and gifts.
Viking House, 19 N. Main St., Concord, 228-1198, vikinghouse.com. This European imports shop carries food, clothing and gifts from more than 10 European countries.
Deja Vu Furniture & More, 113 Hillside Ave., Londonderry, 437-5571, dejavufurniture.net. This warehouse boutique sells high-end new and used furniture, lighting fixtures and architectural pieces in a variety of styles.
Go-to Store for Making Your Outdoor Space Awesome
Best of the best: Seasonal Specialty Stores, 120 Route 101A, Amherst, 880-8471, seasonalstores.com
House by the Side of the Road, 370 Gibbons Hwy., Wilton, 654-9888, housebythesideoftheroad.com
Manchester Craft Market, Mall of New Hampshire, 1500 S. Willow St., Manchester,manchestercraftmarket.com.This year-round gift shop features handmade items by more than 125 local artisans.
Bedford Fields Home & Garden Center, 331 Route 101, Bedford, 472-8880, bedfordfields.com
Cyr Lumber & Home Center, 39 Rockingham Road, Windham, 898-5000, cyrlumber.com
Demers Garden Center, 656 S. Mammoth Road, Manchester, 625-8298, demersgardencenter.com
Dr. Larry Puccini, Puccini & Roberge, 505 Riverway Place, Bedford, 622-3445, pucciniroberge.com
Ray Orzechowski, 280 Pleasant St., No. 4, Concord, 228-4456, orzechowskiarndt.com
Friendliest Mechanic
Best of the best: Tony Morin at Motor-Sport Tire & Auto Repair Center, 3 Tinkham Ave., Derry, 434-1561, motorsportsderry.com
Bill Morin, Morin’s Service Station, 1091 Valley St., Manchester, 624-4427, morinsservicestation.com
Dave Keith at Sunoco, 8 Nashua Road, Londonderry, 437-6530
Dan Weed at Weed Family Automotive, 124 Storrs St., Concord, 225-7988, weedfamilyautomotive.com
Will Chestnut at Will’s Auto Service of Manchester, 720 E. Industrial Park Drive, No. 10, 222-9296, wills-auto-service-of-manchester.business.site
Best Musical Act
Best of the best: Jennifer Mitchell, 236-1015, jennifermitchellmusic.com. Also known as “JMitch,” Mitchell is a singer and instrumentalist who has been winning awards since she was in high school. Mitchell specializes in classic rock, Southern rock, today’s hits and original music.
Justin Jordan, 721-9548, find him on Facebook @justinjordanmusic. Jordan, a Manchester-based singer, bassist and acoustic guitarist, is known for his country and rock stylings. He performs solo as Justin Jordan Music, in the duo 21st and 1st, and in his band Small Town Stranded.
Recycled Percussion, recycledpercussion.com. The Laconia-based band placed third on Season 4 of America’s Got Talent, the highest for a non-vocalist group.
Nicole Knox Murphy, 339-0732, nkmsings4u.com, The country singer-songwriter has three Nashville-recorded studio albums and has won several accolades from the New Hampshire Country Music Awards. Her song “My 603” was recognized in 2020 by the New Hampshire Senate.
Kevin Horan, kevinhoranmusic.com, In addition to being a solo artist performing everything from high-energy rock to stripped down acoustic, Horan gives in-person lessons on guitar and drums and runs summer rock camps for kids ages 8 to 10 and 11 to 14 through the Merrimack Parks and Recreation department.
Brad Myrick, bradmyrick.com, A composer, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, producer and educator, Myrick has released four albums of original music and has had multiple successful tours in the United States and Italy, as well as touring as a guitarist for singer Vinx.
Best Local Comedian
Best of the best: Juston McKinney, justonmckinney.com. With two Comedy Central specials, two Amazon Prime specials and multiple appearances on the Tonight show with both Jay Leno and Conan O’Brien, McKinney has been making audiences cry with laughter across the country since he retired from his sherriff job in the late 1990s.
Bob Marley, bmarley.com. Besides holding the Guinness World Record for the longest stand-up comedy show, Marley is known for being a fairly regular presence on Sirius XM radio.
Matt Barry, mattbarrycomedy.com. Since landing third place at “Last Comix Standing” in 2015, Barry has opened for national acts including Tom Green, Gilbert Gottfried and Harland Williams.
Jay Chanoine, find him on Facebook @jay.chanoine. The Manchester-born and -raised stand-up comedian has been performing since 2009. His most recent comedy album, The Texas Chanoinesaw Massacre, reached No. 1 on the Amazon comedy chart.
Jimmy Dunn, jimmydunn.com. The actor and comedian has performed at some of the biggest events in comedy, including Denis Leary’s Comics Come Home, Montreal’s International Just For Laughs Comedy Festival, and the Late Show with David Letterman. Most recently, Dunn co-starred on the CBS comedy The McCarthys, as Sean McCarthy.
Best of the best: Cat Alley, Dean Ave., Manchester, orbitgroup.com/cat-alley-revival. Located between the Bookery and Wild Orchid Bakery, just off Elm Street, Cat Alley features the unique works of more than a dozen local muralists.
Benson Park, 19 Kimball Hill Road, Hudson, hudsonnh.gov/bensonpark. Benson Park is a 166-acre public park that opened in 2010. The former property of Benson’s Wild Animal Farm, a private zoo and amusement park open for much of the early half of the 20th century, the park is now a popular area for hiking, dog walking, fishing and picnicking.
Flume Gorge, 852 Daniel Webster Hwy., Lincoln, nhstateparks.org/visit/state-parks/flume-gorge. This natural gorge extends 800 feet at the base of Mount Liberty. It’s located within Franconia Notch State Park, which was also the home of the famous Old Man of the Mountain.
Lake Massabesic, off the Londonderry Turnpike, Manchester, 642-6482, manchesternh.gov. Spanning 2,500 acres in Manchester and Auburn, the lake is the centerpoint for a network of dozens of trails, including a loop to the Massabesic Audubon Center, a wildlife sanctuary situated on a historic farm site in Auburn. The trails range in length from half a mile to more than 3 miles.
Greeley Park, 100 Concord St., Nashua, nashuanh.gov. A public city park spanning 125 acres, Greeley Park features a stage, playgrounds, picnic areas and more, and is also a popular spot for outdoor festivals.
Coolest Historical Site or Monument You Can Visit for Free
Best of the best: New Hampshire Statehouse, 107 N. Main St., Concord, nh.gov. Built between 1816 and 1819, the New Hampshire Statehouse is the oldest state capitol in which both houses of the legislature meet in their original chambers, according to a document from the New Hampshire Division of Historical Resources.
Robert Frost Farm Historic Site, 122 Rockingham Road, Derry, 432-3091, robertfrostfarm.org. This historic site was home to acclaimed New Hampshire poet Robert Frost from 1900 to 1911. Seasonal programs are available to the public from May to October. Admission is free for New Hampshire residents 65+ and under 17; admission costs $4 for residents ages 18 to 64.
9/11 memorial at Benson Park, 19 Kimball Hill Road, Hudson, hudsonnh.gov/bensonpark. This monument was unveiled in September 2011 during a memorial service for the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. One of the twin structures contains a steel beam from the elevator shaft of the North Tower of the World Trade Center. A grassy structure in the shape of a pentagon surrounds the two beams (representative of the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.), and the sidewalk that leads into the memorial was shaped to represent the path of United Airlines Flight 93 before it crashed near Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
Stark Park, 550 River Road, Manchester, starkpark.com. One of the first public parks to be incorporated in the Queen City, Stark Park occupies a 30-acre tract that was once the site of the Stark family farm in Manchester’s North End. The park is open daily from sunrise to sunset.
Strawbery Banke Museum, 14 Hancock St., Portsmouth, 433-1100, strawberybanke.org. Located in the heart of downtown Portsmouth, Strawbery Banke is an authentic nearly 10-acre outdoor museum featuring several historic buildings, preservation programs and more, with an overall collection of around 30,000 artifacts. According to its website, the historic houses will reopen for tours on May 1. Though there are admission fees for the historic houses ($19.50 for adults gets you admission for two days; admission for a family of two adults and children ages 5 to 17 costs $48), veterans and active military (including the families of activie military members up to five people) receive free admission. The Museum’s StoryWalk project is free and open to the public.
Attraction Worth Visiting Again and Again
Best of the best: Aviation Museum of New Hampshire, 27 Navigator Road, Londonderry, 669-4820, nhahs.org. New Hampshire’s only working museum devoted to aviation history in the Granite State features a variety of exhibits covering important people, places, events and artifacts, and features all kinds of specialty year-round programming geared toward families.
Mt. Washington Auto Road (Route 16, Gorham, mt-washington.com) and Cog Railway (thecog.com). You can get to the summit of Mt. Washington — the highest peak in the Northeast, at 6,288 feet — by driving up the Auto Road or by taking the Cog Railway. See each website for scheduling and ticket pricing details.
Flume Gorge, 852 Daniel Webster Hwy., Lincoln, nhstateparks.org/visit/state-parks/flume-gorge. This natural gorge extends 800 feet at the base of Mount Liberty. It’s located within Franconia Notch State Park, which was also the home of the famous Old Man of the Mountain.
Canobie Lake Park, 85 N. Policy St., Salem, 893-3506, canobie.com. Featuring more than 100 rides, games, live shows and attractions, Canobie Lake Park is expected to reopen later this spring.
Andres Institute of Art, 106 Route 13, Brookline, 673-7441, andresinstitute.org. Co-founded in 1998 by engineer Paul Andres and master sculptor John M. Weidman, the Andres Institute of Art spans more than 10 miles of trails over 140 acres and features more than 100 sculptures representing dozens of countries. Trails are open daily, from dawn to dusk.
Currier Museum of Art, 150 Ash St., Manchester, 669-6144, currier.org. Founded in 1929, the Currier is known for its exhibits featuring paintings, sculptures, photographs and other works from internationally renowned American and European artists.
NH Organization You’d Give $1 Million to if You Won the Lottery
New Hampshire SPCA, 104 Portsmouth Ave., Stratham, 772-2921, nhspca.org. The oldest and largest animal shelter in the area, the New Hampshire SPCA celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2022 and serves more than 120 communities across New Hampshire, southern Maine and northern Massachusetts.
Manchester Animal Shelter, 490 Dunbarton Road, Manchester, 628-3544, manchesteranimalshelter.org. For more than two decades the Manchester Animal Shelter has provided more than just homes for animals. The nonprofit has sheltered, provided medical care for and spayed or neutered more than 25,000 animals since its founding.
Families in Transition, 122 Market St., Manchester, 641-9441, fitnh.org. With headquarters in Manchester and additional locations in Concord, Dover and Wolfeboro, Families in Transition is dedicated to preventing and breaking the cycle of homelessness in New Hampshire. The organization has served thousands of individuals and families with everything from serving meals to providing emergency shelters, and holds a variety of fundraising events throughout the year, including the annual Walk Against Hunger, which returns for the 33rd year on May 21. Families in Transition also includes the Outfitters Thrift Store and Willows Treatment Center brands.
CASA of New Hampshire, 138 Coolidge Ave., Manchester, 626-4600, casanh.org. Founded in 1989, Court Appointed Special Advocates, or CASA, is a nonprofit that recruits, trains and supports community volunteers to serve as advocates for New Hampshire children who have experienced abuse or neglect. CASA volunteer advocates get to know a child and the important people in that child’s life to provide vital information to help a judge make decisions based on the child’s best interests.
Pope Memorial SPCA, 94 Silk Farm Road, Concord, 856-8756, popememorialspca.org. Pope Memorial SPCA is dedicated to protecting and advocating for abandoned and homeless pets and promoting the humane treatment of all animals. Qualified staff medically and behaviorally evaluate all animals that come through the shelter’s doors, provide necessary veterinary care and work closely with prospective adopters to create successful matches and place pets in loving homes that are committed to lifetime care.
Best Homemade Jams and Jellies: Laurel Hill Jams & Jellies, Bedford, laurelhilljams.com. Newly owned and operated by Bedford sisters Rachel Mack and Sara Steffensmeier, Laurel Hill features more than 50 flavors of gourmet jams and jellies, made from local fruits, wines and teas — see the website for a full list on where to find them locally.
Best Dance Studio: Dimensions in Dance, 84 Myrtle St., Manchester, 668-4196, dimensionsindance.com. Founded in 1995 by Michele Leslie, a professional dancer with Dance Theatre of Harlem, Dimensions in Dance was taken over in 2007 by current director Amy Fortier, who also founded the nonprofit dance company Ballet Misha that same year. The studio offers a wide range of dance programs and classes, including ballet, pointe, jazz, lyrical, acro, hip-hop, tap, partnering, contemporary and more.
Best Massage Therapist: Bethany J. Chabot. Chabot is a licensed massage therapist and the owner and founder of 444 Hands Innately Integrative Massage and Energy Therapy (36 Baboosic Lake Road, Merrimack, 834-2758, 444hands.com). She received her certificate for Massage Therapy and Bodywork from MacIntosh College in Dover in 2004 and her national and state license in 2005. See 444hands.com for a full list of her services; new clients are by referral only.
Best Florist: Flowers by Jennifer, Manchester, flowersbyjennifer.com. A freelance floral artist based out of Manchester, Flowers by Jennifer specializes in artistic floral arrangements for special occasions and events, as well as weekly subscriptions for local businesses.
Best Cigar Shop: Twins Smoke Shop, 80 Perkins Road, Londonderry, 421-0242, twinssmokeshop.com. Twins Smoke Shop’s Londonderry location houses more than 20,000 cigars and is also home to the 7-20-4 Lounge upstairs, offering a wide range of premium tequilas, bourbons, whiskeys and more.
An adventure with the classic combination of peanut butter and jelly
Typically I would try to start an article on peanut butter and jelly with some sort of hook, like a story about how a Japanese princess drove off 15 ninjas with a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, or how a 5-year-old boy foiled a mugging by dropping a jar of peanut butter on a thief in an alley from the 30th-floor window of his apartment. I could tell you a personal story about the philosophical breakthrough I made while eating a spoonful of peanut butter at dawn in an Indian ashram on my 40th birthday.
The thing about those stories, aside from the fact that none of them is remotely true, is that they are unnecessary.
It has to do with the time of year.
Go into any supermarket this week, past the displays of shamrocks and Easter candy, and what do you see? End-cap displays of chicken-noodle soup. Mint Milanos. Extra-large containers of taco chip party mix.
In other words, comfort food.
It is theoretically almost spring. But we all know that even when it comes it won’t be a real, tra-la-la, skipping through the meadow, strewing flower petals type of spring.
It will be mud. Followed by slush. Followed by more mud.
If you are a person who shaves or wears makeup, you’ve seen the haunted look in your eyes in the mirror lately. Do you know what you need?
That comfort food.
And, grilled cheese sandwiches aside, what is the quintessential comfort food?
Peanut butter and jelly.
So let’s peanut butter it up, Skippy.
PB&J Bundt cake
“Cake Gunk” – equal amounts of vegetable shortening, flour and vegetable oil
⅓ cup (75 grams) finely chopped dry-roasted peanuts
½ cup (114 grams) sour cream
1¼ cup (213 grams) brown sugar
½ cup (135 grams) peanut butter
1¾ cup (210 grams) all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon (3.3 grams) baking powder
½ teaspoon (3 grams) fine sea salt
¼ teaspoon (1.7 grams) baking soda
3 eggs
⅓ cup (76 grams) half-and-half
1 teaspoon vanilla – I’ll be honest here; I never measure vanilla. I add a big glug or a small glug. This recipe calls for a small glug.
¾ cup (255 grams) strawberry jam
17 or 18 (60 grams) maraschino cherries, stems removed
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
PB&J Bundt cake. Photo by John Fladd.
Prepare a Bundt pan – brush the inside surface thoroughly with Cake Gunk (see above), then dust with crushed peanuts. (“But what if I’m allergic to peanuts? Is there something else I can use?” Um, theoretically, graham cracker crumbs, but have you read the title of this article?)
Measure or weigh out the sour cream, brown sugar and peanut butter in the bowl of your stand mixer, or the bowl that you’re going to finish the cake batter in. Now leave it alone until you are ready for it.
Combine all your dry ingredients in a separate bowl. If you worry about such things, go ahead and sift them together; otherwise just stir them together with a spoon.
Beat the sour cream, sugar and peanut butter together into a fine goop. (This is a technical term. If you were using butter or shortening, this would fluff up impressively. But you are looking Betty Crocker in the eyes, knocking back a shot of whiskey and using sour cream. This Bundt cake is not for cowards. In the end you’ll be happy about using the sour cream, but for now you will have to accept that your sugar-fat mixture is not fluffy. It is goopy.)
When your goop is as light and fluffy as it is going to get, continue beating, adding the eggs, one at a time, followed by a small glug of vanilla.
At this point your mixture is pretty soupy. You’ll be happy to know that it’s time to add the dry ingredients, alternating with the half-and-half.
So what’s the big deal about alternating ingredients? It’s not like the cake is going to care, is it?
Actually, it will, but only if it’s got a dark sense of humor. If you dump too much of the flour mixture in all at once, you’ll get a face full of flour, which, theoretically, your cake batter will find hilarious. If you pour too much half-and-half in too quickly, some of it will splash out onto your counter and you will start worrying about whether you’ve thrown off the proportions of your recipe, and again the cake batter — understandably, given that you are about to bake and devour it — will feel smug about.
Scrape the sides of your bowl down to make sure that everything has gotten mixed together, then pour a little more than half of your batter into your Bundt pan.
Bonk the Bundt pan firmly on the counter twice. This is to make sure that there are no air pockets. If you want to, you could wait until you’ve added all the ingredients. In this particular recipe, it might also drive your jam and cherries downward, to what will be the top of the cake, and make visible jam inclusions. In any other cake this would be a bug. In this cake it would be a feature.
Gently spoon the jam in a ring around the Bundt pan, on top of the batter you just poured in. Place the cherries in a ring on top of the jam.
Pour the rest of the batter into your pan, making sure to cover the jam and cherries. Don’t worry about being particularly neat; the batter will level itself out.
Bake at 350 degrees for about half an hour. If you are worried about whether it is completely baked, stab it with a probe thermometer. If it reads over 200 degrees F, you’re fine. Don’t worry about it being overbaked; that’s what the sour cream is there for. It has your back.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 to 20 minutes, then invert it onto a plate. I find that I rise up onto my toes as I make the flip, then come down hard on my heels. I don’t know if that does anything productive, but I like to think that it lets the finished cake know that I mean business, and that I haven’t forgotten the whole flour-in-the-face thing.
This is a moist, not-too-sweet snack cake, ideal for sharing with a special friend over coffee. The peanut butter is there, in the background, but isn’t in your face. The jam brings even more moisture and the sweet fruitiness the body of the cake needs. The cherries provide a juicy pop, once per slice.
Could you serve this as an actual dessert?
Absolutely. It’d hit the plate with lightly sweetened sour cream in place of whipped cream.
Peanut butter soufflé
2 large eggs, separated
½ cup + 1 Tablespoon (120 grams) brown sugar
¼ cup minus 1 teaspoon (55 grams) peanut butter
Small glug of vanilla – about 1 teaspoon
Pinch of salt
A lot of people are intimidated by soufflés — making them, eating them, or even talking about them. They seem extra-fancy and a little fussy. And sometimes they are. There is a place for extra fancy and fussy. But do you know what is the least fussy, least fancy food in the world? Peanut butter. Let’s do this.
Peanut butter soufflé. Photo by John Fladd.
Preheat your oven to 350°.
Separate your eggs. Do this over the bowl to your stand mixer or the bowl you will be beating the egg whites in. Put the yolks in a separate bowl. Everyone has their own method for separating eggs. My preference is to break the shell on a flat surface, like a countertop. (This pretty much eliminates small pieces of shell in the bowl that I have to fish out.) I crack the egg open and pour it into my open hand. I keep my fingers just far apart enough that the egg white will eventually release its hold on the yolk and slip through them into the bowl. Remember to wash your hands before and after doing this.
Add the brown sugar and peanut butter to the egg yolks. Mix it well with a spoon. The mixture will be really stiff, so it will be more a matter of mashing than mixing.
Add the salt and vanilla to the egg whites, then whisk them to medium peaks. Have you ever seen a cooking show or competition where a baker beats their egg whites, then holds the bowl over their (or a competitor’s) head to show that they are stiff enough? This is what bakers call stiff peaks. That’s a little stiffer than we want for this recipe. We want them to be the consistency where the TV baker starts giggling and it is just enough to make the egg whites slowly glop onto somebody’s head.
With a silicone spatula, scoop out about a third of your egg whites and mix them into the peanut butter mixture. This is what professionals call loosening up a stiff base. Go ahead and mix everything together. As the mixture becomes more liquidy and stir-able, the doubt you’ve been feeling about your ability to pull this whole soufflé off will ease up by about 15 percent.
This next step is the closest thing to tricky. Use the spatula to scoop out about half the remaining egg whites and put them in the peanut butter bowl. Run the edge of the spatula through the middle of the mess, then sweep it around the edge of the bowl. A tiny bit of the whites will mix together with the base. This is called folding in the egg whites. Even though you can’t see it easily with the naked eye, beaten egg whites are made up of a gazillion tiny bubbles, held together by the sticky proteins in the egg white itself. Remember when your hands felt sticky and gross after separating the eggs? That stickiness is what’s holding those tiny bubbles together. Those bubbles are what’s going to lighten your soufflé and give it lift. By folding the egg whites into the mixture, instead of just stirring it, you are preserving as many of the bubbles as possible. Keep folding until the whites are mostly incorporated with the base.
At this point, your peanut butter mixture should be looking a lot lighter. Your soufflé stress will also lighten up — probably another 15 percent. Fold the rest of the egg whites into the mixture.
Gently spoon the mixture into two large ramekins and put them into your preheated oven.
Bake for approximately 30 minutes. Your oven and mine are probably different by a few degrees, so you might have to make this recipe a couple of times before you perfect the timing. The good news is that even sub-optimal soufflés are awfully good.
Pull the puffed-up soufflés from the oven and serve immediately. The now-baked bubble matrix is proud and puffy, but it will collapse within the next 10 minutes. Serve with a fruit compote; my suggestion is rhubarb (see below).
When most people think of soufflés, they tend to think of delicate, lighter-than-air dishes that require a lot of concentration to eat. These peanut butter soufflés have a little of that, especially when they first come out of the oven, but they also have a substantial, gooey quality that make them extremely comforting. A fruit compote will help give a contrast to the rich, peanut-butteriness of the soufflé itself.
Why are all the ingredients listed in cups and grams? Cups: Everyone has measuring cups. There will probably not be any math involved. You don’t sound like a nerd. Grams: You can measure more precisely. Flour, for instance, can take up many different volumes, depending on whether it is fluffed up, packed down, or if Mercury is in retrograde. After you add each ingredient to a bowl, you can use the tare button to zero your reading out and be ready for your next ingredient.
Fruit compote
This is the easiest thing you will cook this week. It has a “Toast” level of simplicity.
Combine equal amounts, by weight, of frozen fruit and sugar in a small saucepan. This works for almost any type of fruit, but for this particular application I like to use chopped rhubarb; it has a sour acidity to it that contrasts nicely with the gooey peanut butter.
The important thing here is to use frozen fruit. If you have fresh fruit that you want to use, chop it to a size you like, then freeze it. The freezing, while bad for the texture of whole fruit, is perfect for making jams, syrups and compotes. As the liquid inside the cells of the fruit freezes, it forms large sharp ice crystals that pierce cell walls and help the fruit give off more juice.
Cook the fruit-sugar mixture over medium heat. As the fruit thaws, the sugar will help draw out liquid. By the time it comes to a boil, the sugar has dissolved thoroughly. Stir occasionally as it cooks; you might want to help the process along with a potato masher. This is also a good way of separating out cherry pits, if that’s an issue.
When the mixture has come to a boil, remove it from the heat and let it cool. Taste it and maybe add a squeeze of lemon or lime juice to brighten it up, if it needs it. You can use this compote as is, or strain it to make syrup (see pancakes, below). The remaining pulp is excellent on English muffins, or a peanut butter soufflé, if you don’t want it so runny.
Keep in mind that raspberries and blackberries are very much more seedy than you think. You will almost certainly want to strain them and make syrup.
A peanut butter and jelly cocktail
You did a really good job with that soufflé. You deserve a reward.
2 ounces Skrewball Peanut Butter Whiskey
3 ounces Manischewitz Concord Grape Wine
1 ounce fresh-squeezed lemon juice
5 or 6 ice cubes
Peanut butter and jelly cocktail. Photo by John Fladd.
Combine all ingredients in a cocktail shaker and shake until thoroughly chilled.
Pour, unstrained into a rocks glass. Drink, with a child-like song in your heart.
If you had to guess beforehand, you’d probably think that the Manischewitz would be a little too sweet and that the whiskey would give this drink some backbone. In fact, though the wine is nice and grape-y, the sweetness comes from the Skrewball. In fact, it might even be a little cloying, if not for the lemon juice, which steps in at just the right moment and says, “I got this, Boss.”
This is shockingly good. One of these might turn your day around. Two of them might encourage you to try a new recipe — maybe pancakes (see below). Three of them might bring on some ill-advised, late-night texts. Or a nap.
Peanut butter pancakes with blackberry syrup
Peanut butter pancakes with blackberry syrup. Photo by John Fladd.
So, to make these pancakes the way I really want to, we’d have to run a brunch bar in Las Vegas.
That sounds good to me; it might be our ticket out of here. Tell me more.
Well, OK. It would be really nice to have sourdough pancakes.
Ooh, I’m in. Let’s do that.
Yeah, unfortunately, the batter needs to proof for 12 hours or so. That wouldn’t be a problem in our Vegas Brunch Bar — I’m thinking we should call it Midnight at Schmitty’s — but real people almost never realize they want pancakes until about five minutes before they eat them.
I see your point. Until we get the Vegas place going, I’m going to stick with a boxed mix I like. And who’s Schmitty?
I know a guy, who knows a guy.
And—
That’s Shmitty.
Oh, OK. What about the peanut butter?
Yeah, that’s another thing that will work better in Vegas. I spread some peanut butter on a silicone sheet and froze it, then chopped it up to sprinkle on the wet side of the pancake as it cooked in the pan.
That sounds like a really good idea.
Well, it does, but a home freezer doesn’t really get the peanut butter cold enough. It freezes solid, but because of the high oil content, it melts after the first pancake. We’d have to use liquid nitrogen. That would get it cold enough that a line cook wearing snowmobile gloves and a face shield could drop it on the counter and shatter it into peanut butter shards that she could put back into a bowl of liquid nitrogen until she’s ready for them. It would make a great show.
Aaaand, most of us don’t actually have access to liquid nitrogen, so—
Uh-huh. At home, we’re stuck with using tiny jam spoons to drop dollops of the peanut butter onto the wet side of the pancake.
Does it work?
Really, really well. And then there’s the syrup.
What about it?
We could make it for customers on demand. We could have a buffet of frozen fruit for them to choose from, and they could fill up a bowl with it and we’d make it right in front of them.
And if a customer wanted something special, what could we make?
Twenty-five dollars per pancake.
Peanut butter banana cocktails
The best bananas aren’t pretty.
It’s that simple; people want pretty, yellow bananas, maybe a little bit green at the tips. The ones that don’t have a huge amount of flavor and might even be acidic enough to hurt the roof of your mouth. Ones, in short, that don’t taste very much like bananas.
Photo by John Fladd.
This is what a delicious banana looks like.
No. Not the yellow ones on the bottom shelf.
No. Not the Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, though we will get to the peanut butter, soon enough.
The brown bananas with blotches of yellow, sitting in front of the cash register at a convenience store. The ones that look like they have seen too much and lost the will to live. They are the ones that will actually taste like bananas.
And what will you do with one?
Banana rum
1 very ripe convenience-store banana. You want the sketchiest-looking one in the gas station. Pick it up, cradle it in your hands, and murmur to it, “Shhhh. It’s OK. You’re safe now.” This is patently untrue, but lulling your banana into a false sense of security will make this whole process easier.
2 cups white rum
Peel the banana, then muddle it thoroughly in the bottom of a large, wide-mouthed jar.
Add the rum, seal the jar, then shake vigorously.
Put the jar somewhere cool and dark. (I like to put it in the laundry room.) Shake it twice a day for a week.
After a week, strain, filter and bottle it.
This will give you a lovely, slightly cloudy rum that tastes of bananas but is not terribly sweet.
Peanut butter rum
This will use a bartender’s trick called “fat washing.” This exploits a chemical loophole: Any flavor that bonds to an oil will also bond to alcohol. So if you expose something flavorful and fatty — bacon grease, browned butter or, in this case, peanut butter — to a high-proof alcohol, given enough time, the booze will strip away some of the flavor and give it a new home.
Empty a jar of peanut butter into a non-reactive container with a lot of surface area. A glass casserole dish would be ideal for this. Spread the peanut butter over the entire bottom surface of the container with a silicone spatula or the back of a spoon.
Fill the empty peanut butter jar with medium-quality white rum. You don’t want the very cheapest stuff, but the flavor of the peanut butter will cover up any delicate flavor notes, so probably not the most interesting stuff you have either. A bottle of Bacardi or Captain Morgan will do very nicely.
Put the cap back on the peanut butter jar, and shake it to wash out any peanut butter you might have missed, then pour it into your container, to completely cover the peanut butter.
Put some sort of cover over the container — parchment paper, followed by a layer of aluminum foil, perhaps. Put it somewhere out of the way, where nobody will bump into it for a few days.
After four days, carefully pour the rum off into a new container. Filter, and bottle it. It is now delicious.
Two delicious cocktails you can make with these rums
An Elvis martini
Combine 2 ounces each of banana and peanut butter rums in a mixing glass with ice.
Stir gently, then pour into a chilled martini glass.
Garnish with a strip of bacon.
Even better: a peanut butter banana daiquiri
Peanut butter banana daiquiri. Photo by John Fladd.
In a cocktail shaker with ice, add 1 ounce Banana Rum, 1 ounce Peanut Butter Rum, 1 ounce fresh squeezed lime juice, and ¾ ounce simple syrup.
Shake thoroughly, then strain into a coupé glass. Garnish with a slice of lime.
Just as with the banana you used to infuse your rum, you will want to use a lime that has seen a few too many things, one that, if it were starring in a fruit-based buddy cop movie, would say, “I’m getting too old for this.” It might be a little dried up. It might even have started to turn yellow. You want an experienced lime for this.
Your resulting cocktail will be stunningly delicious. You will be able to taste each element — the peanut butter, the banana, Grampa Lime, and the hint of sweetness that you’ve used to make everything mesh.
The world’s best breakfast sandwich
Thanks for meeting with us, Otto. We’re very excited about this project.
The world’s best breakfast sandwich. Photo by John Fladd.
“My pleasure. I’ve always wanted to direct an adaptation of a Shakespeare play. Romeo and Juliet will be a good challenge for me.”
Outstanding! We’re all on the same page. We’ve made a few notes for you on the casting.
“Oh, I’ve got a casting director in mind. I’ve always worked with her and she’s always done really solid work for me.”
Oh, no doubt. We love her. She’s like family.
“And yet, you still have some casting notes for me.”
Excellent! I’m glad we’re all in agreement here. The first part we’ve cast for you — we’re really excited about this — is a bit of a coup. We’ve gotten Helen Mirren to play Juliet.
“Dame Helen Mirren?”
Like I said, we’re really excited about this. Juliet is supposed to be beautiful and Helen Mirren is one of the most beautiful women in the world.
“Yes. Yes, she is. She is also 77 years old. Juliet is supposed to be 14.”
Mirren’s a pro; don’t worry about it. You’re really going to like this next one. We’ve found your Mercutio!
“And who do you see playing him?”
A CGI Scooby Doo!
“Because—”
He’s incredibly popular. This will bring in a whole new generation of Shakespeare fans! We can’t kill him off, of course, but he’ll totally refresh the whole duel scene!
“Ruh-roh, Romeo’?”
See? This practically writes itself!
Details matter, people.
Ingredients
Assemble in the following order:
1 slice of white toast. You’re going to be tempted to use better bread — something with seeds, or fiber, or flavor. Save them for a more conventional sandwich. This one calls for toasted white sandwich bread.
Natural peanut butter — the kind that separates if you don’t refrigerate it. Use the KISS principle here: Keep It Simple, Sandwich.
Pickled jalapeños. Not fresh chilies. Not hot sauce. Pickled. Jalapeños.
A scrambled egg. I make mine in the microwave. Beat an egg in a small bowl with a tablespoon or so of milk or cream, then cook it for 67 seconds. Will it be the fluffiest, most delicate scrambled egg you’ve ever had? Probably not, but it’s the right egg for this sandwich.
Fresh ground black pepper and coarse sea salt.
Believe it or not, this is an excellent sandwich. The spicy acidity of the pickled jalapeños cuts the richness of the peanut butter. The egg gives it dignity and gravitas. Delicious bread would be a distraction, but the crunch of the toast pulls everything together.
“OK, but I can put cheese on it, right?”
No.
“It doesn’t really need jalapeños, does it?”
Yes, it does.
“No offense, but I don’t think I’m going to make this; it sounds too weird.”
Don’t worry about it. This sandwich will be there when you need it. Someday, you will be clawing your way back from a broken romance, or a late night out, or three hours of your life in a meeting that you will never get back, and this sandwich will be there for you.
Peanut butter and jelly sorbet
In our increasingly strident and partisan world, it’s easy to feel alone and bitter. It sometimes feels like we have nothing in common. Black is white. Up is down. Tangerine is a color. Madness!
Is there a common thread to humanity where we can find common ground?
Ice cream.
If someone says that they don’t like ice cream, do not trust them. I’m not saying that they are absolutely, 100 percent, reptilian aliens in a skin suit, but you should really not take the chance.
This is technically a sorbet, meaning that it is made without dairy, so we can’t call it ice cream, but it’s frozen and smooth and peanut buttery. It is a riff on a recipe from David Lebovitz’s The Perfect Scoop.
Ingredients
¾ cup (180 grams) smooth peanut butter
¾ cup, heaping (180 grams) brown sugar
2⅔ cup (660 grams) unsweetened almond milk. I like the vanilla-flavored kind. (Dairy purists can use half-and-half.)
Pinch of salt
A small glug (see above) of vanilla
Jelly or jam for ribbon
Peanut butter and jelly sorbet. Photo by John Fladd.
Add peanut butter, brown sugar, almond milk, salt and vanilla to a blender. Blend everything until it is completely mixed and takes up slightly more room in the blender jar.
Chill the mixture for several hours.
Freeze and churn in your ice cream machine, according to the manufacturer’s instructions. (Or according to what the spirit of Mr. Peanut told you in the dream you had after eating all that questionable cheese from the back of the cheese drawer.)
As you spoon the sorbet into whatever dish you will be freezing it in, alternate between gobs of sorbet and spoonfuls of jelly. I have found that jellies with bright, acidic flavors work best; seedless raspberry is good. I haven’t tried lime marmalade yet, but I have high hopes for it.
Harden in your freezer for several hours.
This sorbet is exactly what it purports to be. It is cold and intensely flavored with peanut butter. The jelly ribbon gives contrast in taste and texture. It is refreshing, both physically and emotionally.
Compiled by Matt Ingersoll, Angie Sykeny and Amy Diaz [email protected]
Spring is awesome.
Sure, it can be blizzardy or flower-filled, muddy or suddenly strangely summer-like, but the stretch between mid-March and Memorial Day is packed with fun, from arts and music to the changing outdoor offerings and food events like NH Craft Beer Week in early April. Here are 63 reasons to get excited about spring.
• The 2023 New Hampshire Jewish Film Festival starts on Thursday, March 16, and runs through Sunday, March 26, with screenings at locations in Manchester, Bedford, Keene, Concord, Portsmouth and Hooksett — to be followed by bonus weeks, March 27 through April 16, when four of the feature films shown in theaters will be available for streaming at home. See nhjewishfilmfestival.com for film trailers, tickets (individual and multi-film packages) and all the details, and check out our story in this issue.
• The annual Black Ice Pond Hockey Tournament, originally scheduled for late January outdoors, has been postponed to Friday, March 17, through Sunday, March 19, and will take place inside the Douglas N. Everett Arena (15 Loudon Road, Concord). Go to blackicepondhockey.com to view the full schedule.
• When you need a break from emails and spreadsheets throughout your work day, head to the New Hampshire Audubon’s Manchester Peregrine Cam to check out the progress of the breeding season for the peregrine falcons living at 1750 Elm St. in Manchester. A visit to the cams (find the links at nhaudubon.org/education/birds-and-birding/peregrine-cam/) on March 9 showed a falcon surveying downtown from the perch. The local peregrine falcon pair in Manchester stays around all winter, according to Chris Martin, conservation biologist at New Hampshire Audubon. The breeding season “really heats up in March. Expect to see eggs appear beginning around the last week in March and hatching to start at the end of April. Early June is when the youngsters will start flying,” Martin said in an email. The Peregrine Cam at Brady Sullivan Tower is operated by Peregrine Networks, an internet services provider based in Dover, Martin said. During the 2022 season five peregrine falcons hatched and fledged from the nest (a photo on the Audubon’s website showed the five chicks newly banded on May 20), according to the Audubon.
• Have fun with versatile fashion pieces that can be modified for spring’s warmer and cooler days, like an oversized blazer. “An oversized blazer is the perfect option to put over thick sweaters now, that will also be perfect when worn as a spring coat over tanks and shorter sleeve options once the weather warms up,” Elyssa Alfieri, owner of Lilise Designer Resale in Concord. Another tip, which comes from Ashley Lyons, owner of Chic Boutique Consignments in Bedford, is to layer with spring and summer dresses until the weather is warm enough to wear them on their own. “With the help of a good tight, bootie or boot, and a leather moto jacket or cardigan, you can take full advantage of your warmer weather pieces even in cooler months,” she said.
• The New Hampshire Audubon’s McLane Center (84 Silk Farm Road, Concord) is open to visitors Tuesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., with live animals and exhibits, including a reptile room, nature store and raptor mews, which are home to a bald eagle, red-tailed hawk, barn owl and barred owls. The center also features 3 miles of mostly forested trails, pollinator gardens, grassland fields and access to the Great Turkey Pond shoreline, which are free and open to the public daily from dawn to dusk. Call 224-9909 or visit nhaudubon.org.
• You may still (maybe? possibly?) be able to go ice skating outdoors on some city and town ponds that offer it, depending on the current weather conditions. But regardless of what it’s doing outside, public ice skating indoors at the Douglas N. Everett Arena (15 Loudon Road, Concord) remains available through Thursday, March 16, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Admission is $6 per person (free for kids ages 3 and under) and skate rentals are available in the pro shop for $6. See concordnh.gov. Other local spots offering indoor skating include The Icenter (60 Lowell Road, Salem) — this month the arena will be open for about one hour and 20 minutes each time, on Saturday, March 18, at 4 p.m.; and Sunday, March 19, at 2:15 p.m.; as well as on Saturday, March 25, at 4 and 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, March 26, at 2:15 p.m. The cost is $8 per person (cash only), and free for kids ages 4 and under. Visit icentersalem.com.
• St. Patrick’s Day is Friday, March 17 — check out a rundown of food and drink specials at area bars and restaurants on page 25 in the March 9 issue of the Hippo. You’ll find details on where to go to get that ceremonious plate of corned beef and cabbage with a glass of green beer, as well as all kinds of St. Paddy’s Day-related festivities from live Celtic music to comedy shows. In this week’s issue Michael Witthaus takes a look at some pub-based celebrations; find that story on page 34.
Battle of the Badges Hockey Championship. Courtesy photo.
• Firefighters and police officers from across New Hampshire will renew their friendly rivalry for charity during the Battle of the Badges Hockey Championship, which returns for a 15th year to the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St., Manchester) on Saturday, March 18. The puck drops at 1 p.m., and proceeds from the game benefit the Children’s Hospital at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (CHaD). Tickets are $16 in advance online and $20 on game day for attendees ages 6 and up (kids ages 5 and under are free). See chadhockey.org.
• Springtime means, in many cases, the return of local seasonal eateries — ice cream stands like Sundae Drive (346 Route 13, Brookline) and The Big 1 (185 Concord St., Nashua), for instance, opened for the season in late February, while King Kone (336 Daniel Webster Hwy., Merrimack) and Memories Ice Cream (95 Exeter Road, Kingston) are each set to reopen on Saturday, March 18. Clam Haven (94 Rockingham Road, Derry), known for its fried seafood specials, was scheduled to open for the season on Wednesday, March 15, and Cremeland Drive In (250 Valley St., Manchester) is also set to begin its season soon.
• This coming weekend — Saturday, March 18, and Sunday, March 19 — is also New Hampshire Maple Weekend, when sugarhouses and farms across the Granite State welcome visitors for tours, demonstrations, tastings and other family-friendly activities, all revolving around local maple syrup production. Learn how sap is collected and trees are tapped, and enjoy samples of everything from maple syrup to fudge, roasted nuts, ice cream and more, depending on where you go. See the New Hampshire Maple Producers Association website at nhmapleproducers.com for a full list of participating sugarhouses. Find more coverage of Maple Weekend on page 26.
• Maple Weekend also means the return of the annual Kearsarge Maple Festival, a regional event featuring two days of local sap house tours, pancakes, a syrup tasting contest and more. A pancake breakfast and raffle will be held on Saturday, March 18, from 7:30 to 11 a.m. at the United Church of Warner (43 E. Main St.), with proceeds going toward the town’s 250th birthday celebration committee (Warner will turn 250 in 2024). The cost is $12 for adults, $5 for kids ages 7 to 12 and free for kids under 6, and the breakfast will feature plain and blueberry pancakes, waffles, home fries, baked beans and sausage. The maple syrup tasting contest happens on Sunday, March 19, from noon to 3 p.m. in front of Town Hall (5 E. Main St.). See warnerhistorical.org or kearsargechamber.org for more details on festival happenings.
• Charmingfare Farm (774 High St. in Candia; visitthefarm.com, 483-5623) is celebrating Maple Month with its Maple Express event featuring a ride to the sugar shack, where you can watch the syrup making process, get a look at tree tapping, meet farm animals and taste syrup on silver dollar pancakes, according to the website. Admission costs $22 per person. The Maple Express continues this weekend — Saturday, March 18, and Sunday, March 19 — and next (Saturday, March 25, and Sunday, March 26), with entry times starting at 10 a.m. On Saturday, March 18, the farm will hold Sugar Shack Live, with entry times from 5 to 6 p.m.; the evening will feature live music from Morgan-Nelson (Dan Morgan and Lynda Nelson), horse-drawn and tractor rides, a visit to the sugar shack and a campfire (BYO marshmallows for toasting or hot dogs for roasting), the website said. Tickets to this evening event cost $29 per person.
• It may not look like it outside at the moment, but the first day of spring is Monday, March 20. For many — er, or at least those of us who aren’t already year-round iced coffee drinkers — this means the kickoff to iced coffee season! Pinard Street Bakery (1 Pinard St., Manchester; inside Charlie’s) is one shop celebrating spring with several specialty coffee flavors all month long in March, including Scout’s Samoa (coconut with a caramel and mocha swirl) and In Bloom (blueberry, lavender, melted raw honey and white chocolate swirl). See pinardstreetbakery.business.site for their full list of spring-inspired coffee flavors.
• Catch some action on the ice when the NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey Regional Championship comes to the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St. in Manchester; snhuarena.com) Thursday, March 23, and Saturday, March 25. See the arena’s website for times (which are to be announced) and tickets.
• The Educational Farm at Joppa Hill (174 Joppa Hill Road, Bedford) will host a Cacao Ceremony with Empress Alchemy on Saturday, March 25, from 7 to 8 p.m. In this immersive and interactive experience, held outside around a firepit, participants will be served ceremonial grade cacao in the form of “hot chocolate” while being led through a series of guided meditation exercises. Dress warm and bring a blanket to sit on and a journal to write in. The event costs $35 and is open to participants ages 16 and up. Visit theeducationalfarm.org.
• Catch a show at the Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St., Derry), which has a full lineup of live acts scheduled throughout the season. They host Blues Brothers The Next Generation on Saturday, March 25, for instance, as well as their next Tupelo Nights of Comedy on Friday, March 24, and Friday, April 14. Visit tupelomusichall.com to view the full concert schedule and to buy tickets.
• The Manchester St. Patrick’s Parade returns on Sunday, March 26, kicking off at noon at the intersection of Salmon and Elm streets in the Queen City and continuing south on Elm. Admission is free, and shuttle services will run from 10 a.m. to noon from the corner of Central and Chestnut streets to the parade’s assembly area. See saintpatsnh.com. The parade immediately follows the Citizens Bank Shamrock Shuffle, a road race organized by Millennium Running starting and finishing in front of Veterans Memorial Park (723 Elm St.). Visit millenniumrunning.com.
• McIntyre Ski Area (50 Chalet Way in Manchester; mcintyreskiarea.com, 622-6159) plans to wrap up its season of skiing, snowboarding and tubing on Sunday, March 26 (see the website for hours), according to an email. On Saturday, March 18, the Pond Skim and Hawaiian Festival will run from 1 to 3 p.m., with competition starting at 1 p.m., according to the website. “End the season with a splash and join us at the pond. Wear your most festive attire as we celebrate the end of an amazing season! Prizes awarded for biggest splash, best costume and best skim!” the website said.
• You voted and we counted. In mere weeks, Hippo will present the Best of 2023 readers poll results. Find out who fellow readers picked as the best pizza purveyor, beer brewer or cupcake creator. Keep your eyes on Hippo newsstands for that issue.
• Get into birding by focusing on the Eastern Bluebird. The New Hampshire Audubon will hold “NestWatch Volunteer Training: Bluebird Monitoring” on Saturday, April 1, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at the Massabesic Audubon Center (26 Audubon Way in Auburn; 668-2045, nhaudubon.org) where there are “almost 100 monitored nest boxes,” according to the website. The workshop costs $5; register by March 30. Learn how to be a volunteer monitor (monitors usually spend about an hour or two weekly from April to August to record data in their sections, according to the website) or just learn more about the Eastern Bluebird. The workshop features inside and outside sessions.
• The Beaver Brook Association (117 Ridge Road, Hollis) will host a guided full moon hike on Saturday, April 1, at 7 p.m. During the hike, a naturalist will share moon facts and lore and talk about how animals are adapted for the night and how they prepare for seasonal changes. The cost is $22, and registration in advance is required. Visit beaverbrook.org.
• Join the Franco-American Centre for a traditional sugaring off celebration on Saturday, April 1, at the Oscar Barn Wedding Venue (191 W. River Road, Hooksett). The event will feature a maple syrup demonstration from Chisholm Farm from 5 to 6 p.m., followed by a traditional cabane à sucre (sugar shack) dinner served family-style from 6 to 7:30 p.m., and music and dancing from 7:30 to 10 p.m., featuring a live performance by the Reel McCoys. The cost is $25 for adults, $15 for kids ages 5 to 12 and free for kids under 5. Visit facnh.com to register.
• The craft fair scene ramps up again in the spring. On Saturday, April 1, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, April 2, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the Capital City Craft Festival will bring more than 125 artisans to the Douglas N. Everett Arena (15 Loudon Road in Concord), according to castleberryfairs.com, where you can purchase tickets ($8 for adults, under 14 get in free; one admission is good for both days). Tickets will also be sold at the door. The spread of arts and crafts includes folk art, candles, apparel, metal art, fiber arts, personal care items, jewelry, glass and more as well as specialty foods, the website said.
• Conversations with Concord Authors returns for the second year to the Bank of New Hampshire Stage (16 S. Main St., Concord) on Wednesday, April 5, at 7:30 p.m. Laura Knoy, formerly the host of New Hampshire Public Radio’s The Exchange, will host a discussion with local authors including Kathleen D. Bailey, Sarah McCraw Crow, Dan Lawton, Paul Brogan and Margaret Porter. Admission is free. Visit ccanh.com/show/conversations-with-concord-authors-2023.
• Enjoy a First Thursday Hike at The Fells (456 Route 103, Newbury) on Thursday, April 6, at 11 a.m., with landscape director Nick Scheu and education director Simon Parsons. No reservations are necessary, and non-members are welcome with the regular admission price ($10 for adults), $8 for seniors and students, $4 for kids and teens ages 6 to 17 and free for kids ages 5 and under, or $25 per family of two adults and 2 or more children under 6. Visit thefells.org.
Arts & Dance Company’s Hispanic Flamenco Ballet Ensemble. Courtesy photo.
• The nationally touring Arts & Dance Company’s Hispanic Flamenco Ballet Ensemble will perform a matinee show at the Concord City Auditorium (2 Prince St., Concord) on Thursday, April 6. The show celebrates the art and culture of Latin America and Spain, featuring flamenco dancing in an immersive experience. Visit theaudi.org/events/matinee-arts-dance-company-on-tour-presents-flamenco-ballet.
• Join Etz Hayim Synagogue (1 ½ Hood Road, Derry) for a Passover Second Seder on Thursday, April 6, at 6 p.m. The meal will be catered by Levine’s Kosher Market and will include roast chicken, kugel, carrot tzimmes, chicken soup with matzo balls and gefilte fish and costs $49 for adults and $29 for kids ages 10 and under. Reserve online at etzhayim.org by March 26.
• New Hampshire Craft Beer Week, an annual 10-day celebration of the Granite State’s craft brewing industry, returns from Thursday, April 6, through Saturday, April 15. The campaign is presented by the New Hampshire Brewers Association and is meant to coincide with National Beer Day (April 7). Check back at nhbrewers.org or follow Craft Beer Week’s Facebook page @nhcraftbeerweek for updates on ongoing events and happenings as they become available.
• The Derry Author Fest will bring a day of books, speakers and panels to the Derry Public Library (64 E Broadway in Derry; 432-6140) on Saturday, April 8, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Author Ann Dávila Cardinal kicks off the day with a keynote on “Writing from the In Between: Navigating Identity as a Writer Between Worlds,” according to a press release. Find the lineup of speakers and more at derryauthorfest.wordpress.com.
• The 14th annual Our Promise to Nicholas Indoor Maze to the Egg Hunt returns to New Hampshire Sportsplex (68 Technology Drive, Bedford) on Saturday, April 8, from 8:30 a.m. to noon. There will be 15,000 plastic colored eggs filled with candy and prizes on the indoor fields for children to collect. Other festivities will include face painting, photos with the Easter Bunny and other mascots, games, DJ music, balloon creations, a bake sale, raffle baskets and an auction. Tickets cost $8 per person, $28 for four to seven people or $56 for eight people if purchased online in advance, and $10 per person at the door. Visit ourpromisetonicholas.com.
• Next year — April 8, 2024 — parts of New Hampshire will be in the “path of totality for a total solar eclipse! This hasn’t happened since 1959 and won’t happen again until 2079!” according to the website for the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center (2 Institute Drive in Concord; starhop.com, 271-7827), which has started the countdown for the big event. On Saturday, April 8 (of this year), the Center will hold an “Eclipse Countdown Kick Off Event” from 1 to 4 p.m. with presentations, eclipse giveaways, solar telescope viewing with the New Hampshire Astronomical Society and pizza, according to the website. Admission prices are as usual: $12 for adults, $11 for seniors and students 13 through college, $9 for kids ages 3 to 12 and free for children ages 2 and under.
• Get your orders in for a special pastry tray sale being offered by St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church (1160 Bridge St., Manchester). The cost is $35 per tray, which includes six pieces of baklava, six kourambiethes (powdered sugar cookies) and koulourakia (butter cookies), and orders must be placed by April 5 for pickup on Friday, April 14 (Greek Easter is observed on Sunday, April 16, this year). Contact parishioner Barb George at [email protected] or at 925-330-9966 to place your order.
• And while you’re at it, join the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire (27 Navigator Road, Londonderry) in welcoming the Easter Bunny by air travel on Saturday, April 1 — he’ll arrive at the museum at 11 a.m. via the student-built RV-12iS aircraft after a planned low pass over Runaway 35. After landing, he’ll taxi under a water cannon arch courtesy of the Manchester Airport Fire Department, greeting families in front of the museum, posing for pictures and giving out candy (courtesy of Granite State Candy Shoppe). The event will take place rain or shine, and the museum will be open for visitors, with regular admission charges applying. See nhahs.org.
• Charmingfare Farm (774 High St. in Candia; visitthefarm.com, 483-5623) will hold its Egg-City Egg Hunt on the weekends of Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2, and Saturday, April 8, and Sunday, April 9. Pick a time between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. (morning only on Easter Sunday, April 9) and kids ages 2 to 12 can hunt for candy-filled eggs, meet the Easter Bunny, meet farm animals and new spring baby animals, take a horse-drawn or tractor train ride and more, according to the website. Tickets cost $22 per person and will only be available online.
• New Hampshire poets and poetry lovers will have all kinds of opportunities throughout April to celebrate National Poetry Month, with readings, workshops, contests and more, spearheaded by state Poet Laureate Alexandria Peary in partnership with NHPR, NH Humanities Council, Poetry Society of NH and others. Peary will present a program on mindful writing techniques at Goffstown Public Library (2 High St., Goffstown) on Tuesday, April 4, and as an online event on Friday, April 14; a poetry reading at NHTI (31 College Drive, Concord) on Wednesday, April 12; a celebration of life for the poet Charles Simic at UNH (105 Main St., Durham) on Wednesday, April 19; and a teen poetry contest with Under the Madness Magazine (underthemadnessmagazine.com). See Peary’s blog, newhampshirepoetlaureate.blogspot.com, for updates on Poetry Month happenings.
• It’s almost time for baseball! The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are due to hold their home opener of the 2023 season on Tuesday, April 11, at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium (1 Line Drive, Manchester) against the Portland Sea Dogs. First pitch is at 6:35 p.m., starting a six-game homestand that continues through Sunday, April 16. See nhfishercats.com for the full schedule of games, which runs through mid-September this year.
• Through the New Hampshire Astronomical Society’s Library Telescope Program, you can check out a telescope from your local library just as you would a book. April is full of astrological events, including the best day of the year to view Mercury on Tuesday, April 11, a hybrid solar eclipse the night of Wednesday, April 19, and a meteor shower expected to peak between Friday, April 21, and Sunday, April 23. Visit nhastro.com for a list of local libraries participating in the telescope program and to connect with a New Hampshire Astronomical Society member who can provide information about upcoming astrological events and tips on how to have your own skywatch.
• It’s Reba Live in Concert! Reba McEntire comes to the SNHU Arena (555 Elm St. in Manchester; snhuarena.com) on Thursday, April 13, at 6:30 p.m. with special guests Terri Clark and The Isaacs. Tickets start at $49.75.
• The Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St., Manchester) presents its annual gala celebration on Friday, April 14, from 6 to 10 p.m. The evening will include a curated fine art auction, a reception with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, a gourmet dinner and a fundraising program highlighting the museum’s Art & Wellness programs. Attire is formal. Tickets cost $350 per person, and tables can be purchased for eight people. Visit currier.org/event/gala-celebration or call 669-6144
• The annual Made in New Hampshire “Try It & Buy It” Expo, presented by Business NH Magazine and Events NH, returns for a 26th year to the DoubleTree by Hilton Manchester Downtown (700 Elm St.) from Friday, April 14, through Sunday, April 16. Show hours are from 1 to 7 p.m. on Friday, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, when attendees will have the opportunity to sample a wide variety of products and services made right here in the Granite State. Tickets are $10 for adults, $9 for seniors ages 65 and over and for military service members, $3 for kids ages 2 to 12 and free for kids under 2. Visit madeinnhexpo.com or follow the event page on Facebook @madeinnhexpo to see the full list of this year’s participating vendors.
• The New Hampshire Philharmonic Orchestra presents its annual “Drawn to the Music” concert on Saturday, April 15, and Sunday, April 16, at 2 p.m. at the Seifert Performing Arts Center at Salem High School (44 Geremonty Drive, Salem). The program will include music from Copland’s Appalachian Spring, as well as Rossini’s Overture “Barber of Seville,” Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Ginastera’s “Estancia.” The concert is a collaborative arts project for which elementary school students from across New Hampshire submitted their original artwork inspired by the featured music. Tickets cost $30 for adults, $25 for seniors, $8 for students and $5 for Salem School District students. Visit nhphil.org.
• After the Palace Theatre’s (80 Hanover St. in Manchester; palacetheatre.org, 668-5588) production of the musical Little Women wraps up this weekend (March 17 through March 19 with shows at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday) the next big show on the schedule is the musical Rent, which opens Friday, April 21, and runs through Sunday, May 14. As with Little Women, shows run Fridays at 7:30 p.m., Saturdays at 2 and 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. along with a show on Thursday, May 11, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets for adults cost $44 to $51, based on seating ($35 for 60+ and veterans; $30 for ages 6 to 12).
• The Anselmian Abbey Players of Saint Anselm College in Manchester will perform Disney’s The Little Mermaid at the college’s Dana Center for the Humanities (100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester) with showtimes on Friday, April 21, and Saturday, April 22, at 7:30 p.m., and Sunday, April 23, at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $20 for adults, $17 for seniors and $8 for youth and students. Visit anselm.edu/dana-center-humanities.
• Celebrate the joy of flipping through albums to find new-to-you tunes at Record Store Day on Saturday, April 22. Participating shops will have specialty releases (CDs, vinyl, cassettes, etc.) from a variety of artists. Find a complete list of the offerings this year at recordstoreday.com, where you can also find a list of area participating stores including Music Connection in Manchester; Metro City Records in Manchester; Pitchfork Records in Concord; Bull Moose in Salem, and Newbury Comics in Manchester and Nashua.
• Celebrate Earth Day — Saturday, April 22 — by getting out in the fresh air. Millennium Running’s Stonyfield Earth Day 5K & Fair starts at 9 a.m. and will feature a 3.1-mile course that starts and finishes in Londonderry’s West Soccer Complex (90 West Road), just steps away from the Stonyfield Earth Day Fair, which will include local vendors, live music, games and more. Visit millenniumrunning.com.
• The New Hampshire Audubon will celebrateEarth Day, Saturday, April 22, with a celebration at the Massabesic Center (26 Audubon Way in Auburn; 668-2045, nhaudubon.org) from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission costs $15 for a family of four and pre-registration is recommended, according to the website. The day will include guided walks, storytimes, live reptile meet-and-greets, live raptor presentations, crafts, a master gardener available for answering questions, food sales from the Walking Gourmet Food Truck and more.
• Head to Hampstead Congregational Church (61 Main St.) on Saturday, April 29, from noon to 5 p.m. for Hampstead Eats, the third annual food truck festival held outdoors on the church grounds. There will be a variety of options from local food trucks, along with live music, and a portion of the event proceeds goes toward the New Hampshire Food Bank. See “Hampstead Eats” on Facebook for updates as they become available.
• Among Symphony NH’s spring concert lineup is “Momentum! 100 Year Anniversary Concert” on Saturday, April 29, from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at the Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St. in Nashua; nashuacenterforthearts.com). According to symphonynh.org, the symphony “marks the anniversary of its very first concert to the day” with the celebration featuring cellist Amit Peled, and a movement from Schubert’s “unfinished” Symphony and Strauss’s “On the Beautiful Blue Danube,” two works played at the Symphony NH’s first concert in 1923. Tickets for the concert start at $39 for adults ($12 for ages 12 to 17 and free for children under 12 with an adult or senior ticket purchase). After the concert, Symphony NH will hold a gala from 6:30 to 9 p.m. at Courtyard by Marriott Nashua; tickets to this dinner (which must be purchased separately) cost $110 for a single ticket or $1,000 for a table.
• Saturday, April 29, is Independent Bookstore Day, a nationwide celebration of independent bookstores and the book-lovers who frequent them. Participating bookstores sell merchandise released exclusively for that day, which may include special-edition books, signed art prints and covers and literary-themed novelty items. Some bookstores may host additional festivities, such as author visits, readings and book signings, live music, food, activities for kids, contests and giveaways and more. Visit indiebookstoreday.com to see a list of this year’s featured merchandise and to find a bookstore near you that is participating.
New Hampshire Roller Derby. Courtesy photo.
• New Hampshire Roller Derby returns to JFK Memorial Coliseum (303 Beech St., Manchester) with a season-opening doubleheader on Saturday, April 29, at 5 p.m. More home bouts are scheduled for Saturdays, May 20, June 24 and Aug. 5. Tickets cost $12 at the door; admission is free for kids age 12 and under and veterans. Visit nhrollerderby.com.
• After a successful comeback year in 2022, Taco Tour Manchester will return in full force to downtown Elm Street on Thursday, May 4, from 4 to 8 p.m. Now presented by the Greater Manchester Chamber, more than 60 area restaurants, food trucks, bakeries and other establishments will be participating in this year’s event, selling their signature tacos for $3 apiece. Each has a shot at winning a custom “Golden Taco Trophy,” in addition to $1,000 to donate to a charity of their choice, as voted by taco tasters. New to this year’s Taco Tour will be a concert at Veterans Memorial Park (723 Elm St.), thanks to the support of 92.5 The River, with performing acts to be announced in the coming weeks. See tacotourmanchester.com for details.
• The Craftworkers’ Guild presents its Spring Craft Shop from Thursday, May 4, through Saturday, May 13, at the historic Kendall House (5 Meetinghouse Road, Bedford) from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. There will be handmade items by more than 50 juried artisans and craftspeople, including seasonal decor, photography, fine art and prints, cards, gourmet treats, woodworking, fiber and fabrics, sewn and knit specialties, stained and fused glass art, mixed media, jewelry, doll clothes and more. Visit thecraftworkersguild.org.
• Get a little magic when the Champions of Magic come to the Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St. in Nashua; nashuacenterforthearts.com, 800-657-8774) on Thursday, May 4, at 7:30 p.m. Tickets range from $39 to $69.
• The two-day New Hampshire Farm, Forest & Garden Expo returns for its 40th year on Friday, May 5, and Saturday, May 6, this time at the Deerfield Fairgrounds (34 Stage Road). Expo hours are from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, and from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, when there will be a wide array of local exhibitors, live animal visits, gardener showcases, workshops, demonstrations of farm machinery and other family-friendly activities. Tickets are $10 for adults and free for kids ages 12 and under. Visit nhfarmandforestexpo.org to view the full schedule of expo happenings.
• Perhaps May’s best holiday, Free Comic Book Day takes place Saturday, May 6, at your favorite participating comic book shop. Get totally free comics produced especially for the day; see previews of this year’s books at freecomicbookday.com. Notables on the list so far include a Dog Man comic from Dav Pilkey, a Baby-Sitters Little Sisters comic, a graphic novel biography of Stan Lee, an Investi-Gators comic, Smurfs, Last Kid on Earth, Garbage Pail Kids and several Marvel titles. Local participants include Merrymac Games and Comics(550 Daniel Webster Hwy. in Merrimack) and the Double Midnight Comics in Manchester (252 Willow St.) and Concord (341 Loudon Road). For this first Free Comic Book Day at its new Manchester location, Double Midnight is offering free comics in the store and running a free comic con in The Factory’s event space, with artists and vendors, food trucks, a video game truck, movie cars, lawn games, lightsaber training, a scavenger hunt, live music, kids’ activities, costume contests and more, according to an email from Double Midnight’s Chris Proulx. Up in Concord it’s a more laid back Free Comic Book Day and a good alternative for families with kids who have sensory issues, he said. See dmcomics.com.
• Also doing Free Comic Book Day up big is Jetpack Comics (37 N. Main St. in Rochester; jetpackcomics.com), which is the hub for a city-wide Rochester Free Comic Book Day Festival, which starts at 10 a.m. and runs until 4 p.m., according to the website. The day will include a free comic book scavenger hunt throughout the city, comic creators and special guests, vendors and others at the Event Hall at the Governor’s Inn, a food truck and beer garden, a costume contest at 4 p.m. and more. See the website for locations and other details.
• A few local farmers markets are due to start their seasons outdoors this spring. The Concord Farmers Market is one of the first — it’s due to return to Capitol Street in downtown Concord (adjacent to the Statehouse lawn) on Saturday, May 6, from 8:30 a.m. to noon, continuing every weekend through October, according to its website.
• The Senie Hunt Project performs at the Bank of New Hampshire Stage (16 S. Main St., Concord) on Friday, May 12, at 8 p.m. The blues rock band, fronted by guitarist and singer Senie Hunt, takes influence from classic blues rock and Southern rock and soul powerhouses such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix and The Allman Brothers. Tickets cost $21.75. Visit ccanh.com/show/the-senie-hunt-project.
• If your kids love comics, comic book or movie characters, books in general, Jedi training, puppets, princesses, magic or dressing up as their own adventure creations, check out Kids Con New England, a comic book and pop culture convention for kids and families, on Saturday, May 13, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Douglas N. Everett Arena (15 Loudon Road in Concord). Tickets cost $12 for adults and kids 5 and over (kids 4 and under get in free) and are available at kidsconne.com, where you can see the line-up of activities, participating authors and artists and more.
• Stock up on annuals, perennials, seedlings, veggie plants, herbs and more at a local garden club’s spring sale. The Amherst Garden Club’s annual sale takes place on Saturday, May 13, from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. outside on the grounds of Wilkins School (180 Boston Post Road, Amherst); Nashua Garden Club’s sale is on Saturday, May 20, from 8 a.m. to noon at the Nashua Historical Society (5 Abbott St., Nashua); and Bedford Garden Club’s sale is also on Saturday, May 20, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Bedford Village Common (15 Bell Hill Road, Bedford).
• Get big truck action when the Monster Jam comes to SNHU Arena (555 Elm St. in Manchester; snhuarena.com) on Saturday, May 13, at 1 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, May 14, at 1 p.m. Ticket prices are $18 to $73, according to the arena website. See monsterjam.com for details on likely featured competitors (Grave Digger, Megalodon, El Toro Loco, etc.) and for information on the Pit Party events scheduled for 10:30 a.m. each day, when you can meet drivers and see the trucks up close; tickets to the Pit Party cost $20, according to Ticketmaster.
• Sunday, May 14, is Mother’s Day — be sure to check back in early May for our annual listings detailing special Mother’s Day brunches at area eateries. The Bedford Village Inn (2 Olde Bedford Way), for instance, will serve a three-course prix fixe dinner that day, with reservations available from 2 to 7 p.m. The cost is $75 for adults and $39.98 for kids ages 10 and under. See bedfordvillageinn.com or call 472-2001 to make a reservation.
• Tickets are on sale now for the second annual New England Coffee Festival, returning to downtown Laconia on Friday, May 19, and Saturday, May 20. Organized by Wayfarer Coffee Roasters in Laconia, the inaugural event last year drew more than 5,000 attendees to the area. “We received so much amazing feedback and are excited to elevate the next festival,” Karen Bassett of Wayfarer Coffee Roasters told the Hippo via email, going on to note that this year’s event will feature even more hands-on workshops and outdoor vendors than before, plus a “latte art throwdown” on the Main Stage of the Colonial Theatre in front of a grand audience. See newenglandcoffeefestival.com for the full schedule of events, or follow the event page on Facebook @newenglandcoffeefestival for updates as they become available.
• Preparations are now underway for the annual Greek food festival to return to St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church (500 W. Hollis St., Nashua) on Friday, May 19, and Saturday, May 20. Following a series of pop-up and takeout events held the past few years, plans are in the works for this year’s event to return in person with a full menu. Visit stphilipnashua.com or follow the event page on Facebook @stphilipgreekfoodfestival.
• Explore all the natural beauty New Hampshire has to offer with a New Hampshire State Parks season pass. Passholders are guaranteed access to day-use parks with exemption from entrance fees. Passes, which are good for one year, cost $60 for individuals; $105 for New Hampshire resident families of up to two adults and up to four dependents; and $120 for non-resident families. Seacoast parking passes are also available for $175, granting one vehicle exemption from the $15 parking fees at Hampton Beach State Park and Wallis Sands State Park for one year. To purchase a pass, visit nhstateparks.org/planning/schedule-and-fees/passes-promotions.
Featured photo: Amherst Garden Club’s annual plant sale. Courtesy photo.
The basics on adding hens, chicks and roosters to your backyard farm
Perhaps the fluctuations in egg prices have you considering getting your own flock of egg-laying chickens. A New York Times story from Feb. 2 about the “inflation chicken” trend points out that there is a hefty upfront cost to raising chickens — the cost of the birds, the cost of the coops. But if you are thinking about adding chickens to your spring and summer gardening plans, here’s what you can expect in terms of chores, costs and eggs.
Barred rock chicken. Photo courtesy of UNH Cooperative Extension.
What are the regulations for raising backyard chickens in New Hampshire?
New Hampshire does not mandate statewide regulations for keeping chickens for personal use. Rather, regulations are set by municipalities and vary by town or city.
“Most towns and even cities are very chicken-friendly,” said Christine Templeton, who co-owns Templeton Family Organics farm in Goffstown with her husband, Brian Templeton.
Residents may be subject to zoning ordinances and land use laws that dictate zones in which backyard chickens are and are not permitted; the minimum acreage or lot size required; the distance maintained between chickens and neighboring residences and roads; the number of chickens allowed to be kept (which may be relative to the acreage or lot size); and rules regarding roosters.
“Some towns regulate roosters — limit the numbers or do not allow them — in residential areas,” said Mary Davis, UNH Cooperative Extension Field Specialist and New Hampshire State 4-H Animal Science program manager. “There are fewer regulations in more rural areas and areas zoned residential.”
“It is the responsibility of the chicken owner to check if roosters are allowed or not,” added Kendall Kunelius, UNH Cooperative Extension Field Specialist in Agricultural Business Management. “I always recommend checking with the town before considering purchases of any animal.”
What types of chickens do well in New Hampshire? How do I decide what type(s) of chickens to get?
There are many different breeds of chickens to consider; New Hampshire chicken experts mentioned Golden Comet, Barred Rock, Rhode Island Red, New Hampshire Red, Speckled Sussex, Australorps, Leghorn, Buff Orpington, Araucana, Easter Eggers and Wyandottes as some of the most commonly kept breeds in the Northeast.
Mixed breed chickens, often called a “barnyard mix.” Photo courtesy of UNH Cooperative Extension.
The best type of chicken for you depends on your goals.
“Why do you want chickens?” Davis said. “For the fresh eggs? For locally raised meat? Any breed of hen will lay eggs, but the popular egg-laying breeds have been selectively bred to produce more eggs per year, and ‘meat breeds’ are bred to have larger breast muscles, be bigger and yield more meat.”
New Hampshire Red, Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock and Golden Comet chickens are reliable egg-layers and tolerant to the cold, making them popular picks among New Hampshire chicken owners. Other breeds might be chosen for their more specialized egg-laying qualities.
“There’s a lot of variety among breeds bred for egg production,” said Carl Majewski, UNH Cooperative Extension Field Specialist in Dairy, Livestock, and Forage Crops, “from the modern Leghorn breeds used for commercial production, to older ‘heritage’ breeds dating back to the 1800s or so, to oddball breeds that lay different colors of eggs — anything from blue to green to chocolate brown — or have striking plumage.”
“People need to decide what is most important to them, such as high egg production, show quality or even egg color,” Templeton added. “It’s about what the person or family wants to get out of the experience.”
Backyard chicken seminar Nashua Farmers’ Exchange (38 1/2 Bridge St., Nashua) will host a poultry seminar on Saturday, March 11, at 10 a.m. The seminar will cover the basics of raising chickens, including how to get set up and how to care for chicks and full-grown chickens. It’s free and open to the public. Visit nashuafarmers.com/events/chicken-seminar-2023.
What’s the best way to start — from eggs, chicks or grown chickens?
There are advantages and disadvantages to each, but ultimately it’s a matter of personal preference, based on the kind of experience you want and the amount of time and money you’re willing to invest.
• Hatching from eggs can be a fun and educational project for families. However, Majewski warned, it can be hard to find fertilized eggs that have been properly screened to be disease-free. Hatching also requires an incubator and other expensive equipment, and the conditions in the incubator must be frequently monitored and maintained. Finally, even if you do everything right, there’s still no guarantee that the eggs will hatch.
• Starting with chicks also requires some extra equipment, including a heat source and special food and water dispenser, and some extra care for a few weeks while the chicks are at their most fragile, but chicks are less expensive — and less risky — than hatching from eggs.
“Many farm supply stores offer pre-orders for chicks, allowing customers to order exactly what they want,” Davis said, adding that in New Hampshire an order must include a minimum of six chicks. “For those wanting laying hens, the retailer can help you determine if a chick is female. In many breeds there is a color difference of the males, although this is not 100 percent.”
It takes four months or longer from the time a female chick is born until it starts laying eggs.
• If you want to skip the wait, you can purchase “pullets” — young hens that have not started laying eggs yet but are expected to start soon.
“They save you the time and bother of brooding and rearing chicks, and they’re ready to start laying within just a week or so of getting settled in at your home,” Majewski said, “but they are more expensive. They can go for around $20 apiece, versus $3 for a chick.”
Do I need a rooster?
“It is a common misconception that you need to have a rooster for hens to lay eggs,” Davis said. “This is not true. The hens will lay eggs without a rooster.”
There is an argument to be made that hens are happier and feel safer having a rooster around, but most chicken owners who aren’t interested in producing fertilized eggs opt not to have one.
“Mature roosters are undesirable for many people,” Davis said. “They are loud, crowing not just in the morning but throughout the day. They may be aggressive to other poultry and to human caregivers, and two or more roosters may often fight one another.”
“They’re kind of obnoxious,” Majewski added. “They really do crow at an ungodly hour of the morning, and their voices can carry for a half mile — not a great way to stay on your neighbors’ good side.”
Buff Orpington chicken (back), Barred Rock chicken (middle) and Rhode Island Red chicken (front). Photo courtesy of UNH Cooperative Extension.
What kind of housing and essential items are needed to raise chickens?
The proper dimensions for a coop, Majewski said, should include at least 3 square feet of floor space per chicken and an additional 10 square feet of fenced outdoor space per chicken.
“This doesn’t need to be elaborate,” he said. “If you don’t have great carpentry skills, it’s fine to requisition and/or modify a portion of a shed or even the garage.”
Next you’ll need feeders and waterers — enough to give each chicken at least 4 inches of space. Supplemental heat lamps aren’t necessary for adult chickens.
“Those feathers provide remarkable insulation,” Majewskis said. “I’ve seen our birds running around outside in January with the temperature in the teens.”
What supplies are needed for maintenance and care, and what is the average monthly cost?
Feed is the main expense. Majewski said a 50-pound bag of conventional feed, which lasts a small flock a little over a month, costs around $20 to $25. A non-GMO or organic feed will cost more. Bedding for the coop — usually wood shavings — may cost around $10 to $15 and should be refreshed at least monthly, after cleaning the coop.
What’s on the chore list for raising chickens? What’s the time commitment?
Most people find a small flock of six to 12 adult chickens is easy to manage, even if they work a regular job.
“It really takes no more than 20 minutes per day to collect eggs, refill water and feed and do general wellness checks,” Kunelius said.
The only chore that you may have to set aside some time for is cleaning the coop. Majewski said most coops should “ideally be cleaned weekly, but at a minimum once per month.”
Where to buy chicken supplies • Achille Agway, 351 Elm St., Milford, 673-1669; 65 Jaffrey Road, Peterborough, 924-6801, achilleagway.com • Cloverdale Feed & Farm Supply, 12 Roby Road, Webster, 746-3234, cloverdalefeed.com • Dodge Grain Co., 59 N. Broadway, Salem, 893-3739, dodgegrain.biz • Nashua Farmers’ Exchange, 38 1/2 Bridge St., Nashua, 883-9531, nashuafarmers.com • Osborne’s Farm & Garden Center, 16 Cinemagic Way, Hooksett, 627-6855; 258 Sheep Davis Road, Concord, 228-8561, osbornesfarm.com • Tractor Supply Co., locations throughout New Hampshire, including Hooksett, Derry, Merrimack, Chichester, Plaistow, Milford and Pelham, tractorsupply.com Where to buy live chickens • Cloverdale Feed & Farm Supply, 12 Roby Road, Webster, 746-3234, cloverdalefeed.com • Dodge Grain Co., 59 N. Broadway, Salem, 893-3739, dodgegrain.biz • Nashua Farmers’ Exchange, 38 1/2 Bridge St., Nashua, 883-9531, nashuafarmers.com. Deadline for chick orders is March 25. • Osborne’s Farm & Garden Center, 16 Cinemagic Way, Hooksett, 627-6855; 258 Sheep Davis Road, Concord, 228-8561, osbornesfarm.com • Templeton Family Organics, 176 Kennedy Hill Road, Goffstown, 781-316-5067, templetonfamilyorganics.com • Tractor Supply Co., locations throughout New Hampshire, including Hooksett, Derry, Merrimack, Chichester, Plaistow, Milford and Pelham, tractorsupply.com
Are there any safety concerns I should be aware of?
New Hampshire chicken experts mentioned three main dangers:
• Fires. Heat lamps are only needed for raising chicks; adult chickens do not need a heat lamp to stay warm during the colder months, but some chicken owners still choose to use one. In any case where a heat lamp is being used, exercise caution to prevent fires.
“Follow the safety guidelines included with your heat lamp to keep the heat source a safe distance from combustible items,” Davis said. “In the winter, water deicers can also be a fire concern. Always make sure all your equipment is in good condition and functioning properly.”
• Biohazards. “Salmonella or other bacteria can be present on birds, on eggs and in coop areas,” Kunelius said.
Wash your hands directly after handling poultry and related equipment.
In recent months, avian influenza has also been a concern with chickens and other birds nationwide.
“There is currently an avian influenza outbreak in migratory wild birds that can spread to domestic poultry and other animals. As of early 2023, there had been no human cases in the U.S. You can prevent exposure of your birds by limiting their exposure to wild birds, especially waterfowl such as ducks and geese,” Davis said. And the best way to limit that exposure is basically to have them penned up and not let them free range, she said.
• Wildlife. “Predators are a real issue,” Majewski said. “[Raising chickens] probably won’t significantly increase the number of encounters you have with wildlife, but it does affect the welfare of the birds themselves.”
Free-range chickens are at a greater risk.
“Keeping them fenced in — with adequate space, of course — is much better for all concerned,” Majewski said.
How many eggs can I expect to get, and how often?
“In peak production, a hen will lay an egg approximately every 26 hours, so you pretty much get an egg per day,” Majewski said. “A small flock of four to six hens kept in good condition will provide the average family plenty of eggs, with an extra dozen for friends and family on a regular basis.”
Older hens lay eggs at a lower rate — usually about every other day, but sometimes less.
How long do chickens live? Is it common to keep a chicken for its whole natural life?
Most chickens can live to between five and eight years. Chickens that are raised for meat are usually processed at a young age. Hens lay eggs at peak productivity for two to three years. When a hen’s laying starts slowing down, a chicken owner may make a decision about what comes next for the chicken.
“A pampered chicken can live for several years, and people have kept them for that long when they become sort-of pets,” Majewski said. “[An older hen] still lays occasional eggs, but they’re not really earning their keep. We keep ours at home for about two years, and then they make the transition from breakfast feature to, um, soup.”
Are there any benefits to raising chickens besides poultry products?
Davis said free-range chickens can help to control a variety of insects, and chickens’ manure and used bedding can be composted for later use in the garden.
“Chickens offer great tick control and fertilize your lawn,” Templeton added.
Raising chickens can be especially rewarding for families with children.
“It offers a way for families to do something together and reconnect,” Templeton said. “It is also a great way to teach children responsibility and in a world where people have become far from their food source it provides an opportunity to be close to it.”
Adopt a rooster
Frosty is a rooster available for adoption at the New Hampshire SPCA (104 Portsmouth Ave., Stratham). According to the NHSPCA website, Frosty was a stray found in Durham and is now looking for his perfect home. He gets along with other birds and would love to have a flock of his own.
Horhey is also a rooster available for adoption at the New Hampshire SPCA. According to the NHSPCA website, this handsome guy is very friendly and gets along with other roosters and hens. He is easygoing and would make a nice addition to any flock.
To learn more about chickens and other farm animals available for adoption at the NHSPCA, visit nhspca.org/adoptable-animals or email [email protected].
On the streets of Jalisco, Mexico, in the small town of Degollado, three generations of family members prepare large simmering pots of juicy, tender slow-stewed meat known as birria. The dish is cooked for several hours before generous heaping ladlefuls are served on plates to patrons, featuring a homemade mole sauce, salsa and a side of corn tortillas.
Crowds gather for a plate of birria — pronounced “beer-ryah,” and traditionally made with goat meat — from the family of Jose “El Chino” Reyes. Although Reyes continues to vend with his own father and son, one of his other children found restaurant job opportunities in the United States and eventually made his way to southern New Hampshire.
At Los Reyes Street Tacos & More, which opened inside Derry’s Hillside Plaza last April, Manchester couple Jose Reyes and his wife, Isabel, honor his family’s tradition with simple flavors of authentic Mexican street food. Birria is among their most popular items, and while you won’t find it with goat meat, you can try quesabirrias, or birria tacos inspired by the traditional stew and featuring beef, cheese, onion, cilantro and consommé, or the stewed broth, for dipping.
Los Reyes co-owner Jose Reyes’s family are birria street vendors in Degollado, Jalisco, Mexico. Courtesy photos.
It’s a dish that has steadily gained traction across Granite State restaurant menus just in the last couple of years. Isabel Reyes said she believes that’s in part due to the viral nature of social media — the striking golden-red color of the taco shell and the oozing melted cheese look delicious in the many attractive, shareable photos that we eat with our eyes.
Birria tacos start with a simmering pot of slow-stewed meat. After cooking for several hours, the meat (and sometimes also cheese) is stuffed into a corn tortilla, topped with cilantro and onions and thrown on the grill.
The golden-red color of these tacos comes from grilling the tortilla with a coating of consommé from the meat it was stewed in. Being able to dip them in a cup of that same consommé for extra flavor, Reyes said, also makes for a new and unique way to eat tacos for many.
“I feel like everybody at some point … definitely needs to try birria at least one time in their life. It will maybe make you feel like you literally went to eat in Mexico, because it’s a whole experience,” Reyes said. “We do notice a lot of people that come in love to take pictures of the birria and post them on social media. … People love to take pictures of their food, and it’s definitely helped us, because a lot people, if you post a picture of the birria, they’d be like, ‘Oh my God, those look delicious, where did you get them?’”
Amanda Portillo, who runs Rico’s Burritos food truck with her husband, Danilo, also surmised the popularity of birria tacos has largely spread due to social media and word of mouth. The truck, which can often be found at Griffin Park in Windham, introduced birria tacos on the menu as a special last fall to resounding success.
“At first it was once in a while, but [they’ve been] in such popular demand that we have to make them much more often than before,” Portillo said. “It’s a unique entree, and the texture with the broth is different from most Mexican food, so people are drawn to it.”
In Milford, Rosana Vargas of Taco Time decided she would try and make quesabirrias at the suggestion of a customer, who was visiting the state from California. Today they’re among the eatery’s top-selling menu items — taco lovers sometimes travel from miles away to try them.
“People try it for the first time and they just get hooked,” Rosana’s husband, Rey Vargas, said. “We have people that don’t even try anything else on the menu except that.”
With differing variations in their own right depending on where you go, here’s a closer look at one of New Hampshire’s hottest taco trends and where you can try an order of birria.
Simmered to perfection
Jalisco, Reyes said, is a Mexican state best known for three things: mariachi, tequila and birria.
“Birria would be the process of how it’s prepared, versus the meat,” she said. “Birria can be any meat, but goat and sheep were the first two that originated in Mexico. … It’s most commonly served for brunch … [and] was not served in a taco the way it is served now.”
Because it’s common for Mexican street vendors to serve corn tortillas with a plate of birria on the side, Reyes said, some people like to scoop the tortilla into the meat and juices like a spoon. Quesabirria tacos, as they’re known today, became widely associated with the cuisines of southern California, and Tijuana, a city in northwestern Mexico just south of San Diego.
Featured on the menu at the Reyes family’s Derry restaurant are Chino’s birria tacos. The slow-stewed beef uses a house recipe combining various methods and ingredients from Jose Reyes’s family with those of his own. He even has a special pot he bought from Mexico that is specifically used for stewing the birria.
The beef, typically mixed with several spices and dried chiles, is simmered for several hours until it’s very tender. The consommé provided with the tacos for dipping, meanwhile, is itself the same broth from that stew that is normally strained and set aside.
Quesabirria plate from Taco Time Cocina & Cantina Mexicana in Milford. Courtesy photo.
“It’s like a ritual. You literally have to put a lot of time into it,” Reyes said of cooking birria. “The stewing itself takes us about four hours, but the whole process altogether is about six hours, because you have to prepare it and marinate it beforehand.”
Birria tacos are always made with corn tortillas — that’s simply because they crisp up better on the grill when assembled compared to their flour counterparts. Like for most traditional Mexican street tacos, Reyes said theirs are then topped with onions and cilantro. Melted cheese is available as an added option.
“A lot of people think quesabirria … is a quesadilla with the birria, but it’s not. It’s still the tacos, but just with cheese,” she said. “That’s why I ended up changing the menu. I left them as Chino’s birria tacos, and I just say you can upgrade it as a quesabirria, with cheese. It was just sometimes confusing having to explain the difference. … It doesn’t [traditionally have cheese], but I feel like cheese just makes everything better.”
Trends and variations
Although just about every birria taco you’ll find in New Hampshire uses corn tortilla shells, there are still all kinds of subtle variations to discover in how they are prepared.
“[Birria] is not something that repeats. Usually the seasoning and the broth recipe changes from family to family and from restaurant to restaurant,” said Louie Rodriguez, whose wife, Karen Lopez, owns Iguana’s Restaurant & Bar in Manchester. “The consommé is very unique from restaurant to restaurant as well.”
Iguana’s is notable for combining Mexican cuisine with that of Lopez’s native country of Honduras. The eatery opened in the former Granite State Escape storefront on Maple Street in late 2021.
Not only does Iguana’s serve birria tacos with shredded beef, but additionally it offers birria taco options with chicken and lamb. Rodriguez noted that even the ingredients and the time necessary for cooking the meat will vary among those three. Lopez will simmer the chicken for one hour, while the beef is simmered for five hours and the lamb for seven hours.
“She recovers some of the fat, and she makes it part of the recipe for the broth that the tortillas are dipped in, in order to grill it,” Rodriguez said. “She uses the fat that [is released] from the meat itself … and that’s what helps make it crispy.”
Birria tacos with lamb, from Iguana’s Restaurant and Bar in Manchester. Photo by Matt Ingersoll.
Taco lovers often have their own preferences and ways of eating birria, especially when it comes to the provided cups of consommé, Rodriguez said.
“Some people dip the taco in it, and some people don’t, as a matter of fact,” he said. “Some people love it just crispy like that and they don’t want to touch the consommé at all. But then, you get others that ask for a bowl of it and they just dunk that thing in like they’re dunking a doughnut in milk.”
Over at Lounge 38 Bar & Grill in Nashua, owner Vince Villafan said his birria tacos feature yellow corn tortillas and a melted three-cheese mozzarella blend. Three tacos are served per order with a side of rice and some consommé.
“Many people get full with the birria taco plate, but we do also offer them individually,” he said.
Villafan added that he has noticed more and more of his customers trying birria tacos for the first time.
“I think people have seen pictures and they are really intrigued by it and want to try it,” he said, “but they’ll still ask, like, ‘Hey, what actually is this that I’m eating?’ So there is a lot of information that we give out to people when they are ordering.”
Birria: beyond the tacos
Birria doesn’t have to be just about tacos — some Granite State eateries will utilize the same stewed beef on other menu items as well. Derry’s Los Reyes Street Tacos & More, for example, offers birria burritos with Mexican rice and refried pinto beans, as well as loaded birria fries — those are topped with a cheese dip, an avocado salsa, sour cream and Southwest pico de gallo.
“The birria burrito is a huge hit,” co-owner Isabel Reyes said. “We grill it the same way as the tacos.”
Birria ramen from Lounge 38 Bar & Grill in Nashua. Courtesy photo.
In Litchfield, Day of the Dead Mexican Taqueria offers pizza birria that’s great for sharing. According to owner and founder Karina Flores, the pizza birria is very similar to the tacos but features two large flour tortillas that are stuffed with birria meat, cheese, cilantro and onions, all grilled and smothered with the birria broth. The tortillas are then cut into triangles.
Even birria ramen is a thing — you can get a bowl of that at Lounge 38 Bar & Grill in Nashua.
“We love ramen noodles ourselves here, and so we thought why not cook those same noodles in the birria broth,” Lounge 38 owner Vince Villafan said. “The beef is the same, but we’re just essentially cooking the noodles inside the broth after the meat has already been cooked … and then we just throw on the cheese, onions and cilantro.”
Where to get birria tacos
Birria tacos (also frequently known as quesabirria when you add cheese) have popped up on menus of many local restaurants and food trucks. Here’s a list of places where you can get them in southern New Hampshire — some offer them all the time, while others will serve them as specials on select days, or only on certain days of the week. Do you know of an eatery in the Concord, Manchester or Nashua areas offering birria tacos that we may have missed? Tell us about it at [email protected].
Baja Tacos and Burritos 494 Amherst St., Nashua, 417-5532, bajatacosburritos.com Birria tacos are regular menu staples of this Nashua eatery, featuring three per order on homemade corn tortillas, with consommé available for dipping.
Cinco’s Cantina 1 Brickyard Square, Suite 9, Epping, 734-2191, cincoscantina.com Cinco’s Cantina’s Epping restaurant is the second of two owned by brothers Crescencio and Miguel Alberto Tellez, who opened the first one in downtown Dover in late 2014. Birria tacos are served a la carte, featuring stewed beef topped with freshly sliced radishes, onions and cilantro, and served with lime wedges and salsa.
Day of the Dead Mexican Taqueria 454 Charles Bancroft Hwy., Litchfield, 377-7664, find them on Facebook @dayofthedeadtaqueria A stone’s throw from Mel’s Funway Park in Litchfield, Day of the Dead is owned and operated by Karina Flores and her family, who also run Monarquia Mexican Restaurant in Amherst’s Salzburg Square shopping center. Birria tacos are among the most popular dishes at Day of the Dead, which also offers pizza birria.
El Ranchito Bar & Grill 44 W. Hollis St., Nashua, 864-8157, elranchitobarandgrillnh.com Birria tacos are among the most popular menu staples at El Ranchito — they feature corn tortillas with slow-braised beef, and a side of consommé for dipping.
Iguana’s Restaurant and Bar 245 Maple St., Manchester, 935-8917, find them on Facebook @iguanasrestaurantandbar Iguana’s Restaurant & Bar opened in the former Granite State Escape space on Maple Street in Manchester in November 2021, its menu featuring a combination of authentic Mexican and Honduran dishes. In addition to quesabirria tacos with shredded beef, Iguana’s regularly offers chicken and lamb options — all come three per order with a side of consommé.
La Carreta Mexican Restaurant 545 Hooksett Road, Manchester, 628-6899; 1875 S. Willow St., Manchester, 623-7705; 44 Nashua Road, Londonderry, 965-3477; 35 Manchester Road, Derry, 421-0091; lacarretamex.com Both Manchester La Carreta Mexican Restaurants offer quesabirrias, featuring slow-stewed beef topped with cilantro and onion and served with a side of consommé. La Carreta’s Londonderry and Derry locations, meanwhile, offer them on Wednesdays only.
Los Primos Mexican Restaurant 3 Amherst Road, Merrimack, 420-8860, losprimosmexnh.com This Merrimack restaurant opened in late January 2020, in the former space of a D’Angelo sandwich shop. Birria tacos and quesadillas are available.
Los Reyes Street Tacos & More 127 Rockingham Road, Unit 15, Derry, 845-8327, losreyesstreettacos.com Los Reyes co-owner Jose Reyes of Manchester comes from multiple generations of street food vending in Mexico — his father, grandfather and brother all continue to serve traditional goat birria on the streets of his family’s home state of Jalisco. The Derry restaurant, which opened in April 2022, honors Reyes’s family’s traditions with Chino’s birria tacos (the name borrowed from his dad’s nickname), featuring slow-stewed beef in corn tortillas with cilantro, red onions and consommé on the side. You can also turn them into quesabirrias by adding cheese, or try other related items like the birria burrito or the loaded birria fries.
Lounge 38 Bar & Grill 38 E. Hollis St., Nashua, 459-8314, lounge38restaurant.com This Nashua restaurant, which opened in October 2020, blends traditional Mexican and Puerto Rican cuisines for many of its menu items. The birria taco plate features three fried tortillas filled with slow-stewed beef, cheese, onions and cilantro, served with Spanish rice and consommé on the side for dipping. Single birria tacos are also available a la carte, while other birria-inspired dishes include burritos, quesadillas and even birria ramen noodles.
Mi Jalisco Restaurante Mexicano 300 S. Willow St., Manchester, 606-2184, mijaliscomanchester.com Quesabirria tacos are among the many grilled taco options at this Manchester eatery, served with rice, beans and pico de gallo.
Nuevo Vallarta Mexican Restaurant 791 Second St., Manchester, 782-8762, vallartamexicannh.com Birria menu options at Nuevo Vallarta include three birria tacos per order — topped with cilantro and onions and served with rice, beans and consommé for dipping — along with birria burritos and quesadillas.
Puerto Vallarta Mexican Grill 865 Second St., Manchester, 935-9182, vallartamexicannh.com Like its sister establishment, Nuevo Vallarta, this Manchester eatery offers birria burritos and quesadillas, in addition to birria tacos topped with cilantro and onions, and served with rice, beans and consommé for dipping.
Rice & Beans 603 288 N. Broadway, Unit D, Salem, 890-1626, find them on Facebook @riceandbeans603 Longtime Manchester-area food trucker Tony Elias took over this Salem restaurant, his first brick-and-mortar location as owner, in mid-January. Birria tacos prepared with traditional Puerto Rican spices are among his regular menu items, in addition to empanadas and sandwiches.
Rico’s Burritos Food Truck 475-4898, ricosburritosfoodtruck.com Plaistow couple Danilo and Amanda Portillo launched this food truck last summer. Rico’s Burritos gets its name both in inspiration from their son, Ricardo, and for the Spanish word meaning “tasty” or “delicious.” The truck has a regular presence at venues across northern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire, perhaps most notably at Griffin Park (101 Range Road, Windham). Birria tacos are offered on the truck as a special, featuring three per order with a few freshly cut lime wedges and consommé for dipping.
Riviera Nayarit 116 W. Pearl St., Nashua, 521-8602, riverianh.com Named after the popular tourist destination off the Pacific coast of Mexico, Riviera Nayarit opened on West Pearl Street in Nashua in March 2021. Individual birria tacos featuring slow-stewed beef are available a la carte.
Taco Time Cocina & Cantina Mexicana 11 Wilton Road, Milford, 554-1424, tacotimenh.com Rosana Vargas and her husband, Reymundo “Rey,” are the owners of Taco Time, originally launched as a food trailer in 2018. Since then, Taco Time has expanded into a brick-and-mortar restaurant, which opened in January 2021 near the Milford and Wilton town line. Taco Time’s quesabirria plates are among their more popular menu items, featuring grilled corn tortillas of tender braised beef with cilantro and onions, and a side of consommé for dipping.
Taqueria Y Pastelitos To Go 917 Valley St., Manchester, 232-3348, taqueriaypastelitos.com Three birria tacos come per order from this Manchester restaurant, featuring marinated beef topped with cilantro and onions. They can also be ordered as meals with rice and beans.
Tim’s Drunken Sauces and Rubs 244 Elm St., Milford, 967-4242, find them on Facebook @timsdrunkensauces Parked outside of DHR Fabrications in Milford, this food trailer usually serves quesabirria tacos four days a week, from Thursday through Sunday.
