Category: Food

News from the local food scene

• Milford extends outdoor farmers market: The Milford Farmers Market has extended its outdoor season through Nov. 21, market manager Adrienne Colsia confirmed. The outdoor version of the market was originally scheduled to end Oct. 10, with the indoor market kicking off a few weeks later, but Colsia said the decision was made to extend the outdoor market to promote social distancing among vendors and shoppers. Whether there will be an indoor market in Milford this winter “is up in the air at the moment,” according to Colsia; if there is not, she said, then the outdoor market will likely open earlier in the season than normal next year. The outdoor market is held every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 300 Elm St. in Milford (across the street from the New Hampshire Antique Co-op). Visit milfordnhfarmersmarket.com.

• The Packie reopens: After several months of being open for pickup and delivery only, local craft beer shop The Packie (581 Second St., Manchester) reopened to in-store shoppers on Sept. 11. In June, The Packie relocated from South Willow Street to a new larger space in the Second Street Shoppes plaza, allowing for more added space for inventory, owner Jon Pinches said. Masks and six-foot social distancing are required when in the shop, which is now open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Curbside pickup also continues to be available. Visit thepackienh.com.

• Soup’s on: The Collins Brothers Chowder Co. (59 Temple St., Nashua), which offers homemade hot soups and chowders in addition to prepared meals, will reopen for the season on Sept. 23. The takeout-only eatery usually features several soups and chowders that are available daily, in addition to different specials that will run depending on the day. Homemade comfort meals to go like shepherd’s pie, chicken pot pie and American chop suey, in addition to sweet treats like brownies and cookies, have also been available. The restaurant will be open Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., through about the end of May. Find them on Facebook @collinsbrotherschowder or call 883-2347.

Seasons on Elm opens in Manchester

Season Brouillet never thought she’d open her own downtown cocktail bar. But when her cousins took over ownership of the Element Lounge in Manchester and later expressed interest in selling it, the central Massachusetts native, who had experience waitressing and running a cafe in Rhode Island, saw an opportunity to bring new life to the space.

That was back in January, she said. After several months of renovations, Seasons on Elm arrived in the Queen City on Aug. 19, featuring craft cocktails and food options like paninis, fried appetizers and salads.

“It’s definitely more of a bar setting, with light, easy comfort food,” Brouillet said of the new business. “I wanted it to be much more comfortable and welcoming.”

To create the cocktail menu, Brouillet recruited bar manager Sara Stapleford, who had experience at Fody’s Tavern in Nashua and Derry and at the Cork N Keg Grill in Raymond, while Jason Swiston, who most recently worked at Noodz, was brought in to oversee the kitchen.

Appetizers on the food menu include wings and tenders (served with your choice of barbecue sauce, Buffalo sauce, blue cheese dressing, ranch dressing or honey mustard), plus rosemary Parmesan fries, mozzarella sticks with marinara, fried pickles, bruschetta or tater tots. Salads are made fresh in house and include southwestern, caesar, chef and kale.

Among the most popular food options, Brouillet said, have been the paninis, which you can order on sourdough or wheat bread and choose french fries, coleslaw, tater tots or a salad for a side. The barbecue chicken panini has fried chicken, barbecue sauce, cheddar cheese, onions and coleslaw, while a vegetarian option features zucchini, bell peppers, vegan mozzarella, onions and pesto. Other choices include turkey, apple, bacon and cheddar, a BLT panini, a three-cheese panini with American, cheddar and provolone cheeses, and an Italian panini with ham, salami, pepperoni, mozzarella, pepperoncinis and Italian dressing.

Just about every cocktail on the drink menu has been a hit during Seasons on Elm’s first few weeks, according to Brouillet, especially the Spiked Campfire iced coffee (with Kahlua liqueur, Godiva milk and white chocolate and Stoli vanilla vodka); the Dirty & Hot martini (with house jalapeno and pepperoncini-infused vodka, Tabasco sauce and olive juice); and the Cucumber Rose (with house cucumber-infused gin, elderflower liqueur, lime juice, simple syrup and soda water). Last week, the bar introduced several fall-inspired cocktail specials, like a pumpkin pie martini made with pumpkin puree and maple syrup; a maple apple cider smash; and a cider sangria with cinnamon, caramel and Smirnoff apple vodka.

So far, Seasons on Elm has been a hotspot with the late-night crowd, Brouillet said, but she’d like to expand the food menu soon and introduce more specials for earlier in the evening. A brunch menu on Sundays of breakfast-inspired paninis and cocktails like specialty bloody marys is also in the works down the line.

“Eventually I want to have a game area in the back room, and I also want to do live music out in front of the window,” Brouillet said. “I feel like there are a lot of possibilities for this space.”

Seasons on Elm
Where: 1055 Elm St., Manchester
Current hours: Wednesday through Sunday, 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. (may be subject to change)
More info: Visit seasonsonelm.com, find them on Facebook and Instagram @seasonsonelm or call 606-1351

• Recipes from the heart: Join the Bookery (844 Elm St., Manchester) for a socially distanced book signing on Saturday, Sept. 12, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., with Dawn Hunt of Cucina Aurora in Salem. Hunt will be presenting her new cookbook, A Kitchen Witch’s Guide to Recipes for Love & Romance, which was released on Aug. 25. The book explores food’s roles in self-love and relationships with personal anecdotes, spiritual techniques and more than 50 original recipes and illustrations. Featured foods include cinnamon crumb pound cake, avocado chocolate mousse, pomegranate mimosas, pork loin roast with cherries and red wine and more. Admission is free; masks are required. Copies of the book will be available for sale. Visit cucinaaurora.com.

• Grapes galore: The Hollis Grape Festival returns for its fourth year on Sunday, Sept. 13, from 5 to 7 p.m. on the Hollis Town Common (Monument Square, Hollis). The event features a variety of Italian desserts and grape-themed goodies, in addition to photo opportunities in a grape-stomping barrel and a live performance from Joey Canzano. Admission is free, but signups online in advance are requested, by visiting fulchino-vineyard-inc.square.site. Donations will also be accepted for the Hollis-Brookline Agricultural Scholarship Fund, the Hollis Police Benevolent Association and the Hollis Fire Department’s Explorers program.

• A trip to Greece: Online ordering is available now for the next Greek food pop-up drive-through event at St. Philip Greek Orthodox Church (500 W. Hollis St., Nashua), happening on Friday, Oct. 2, and Saturday, Oct. 3, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day. A follow-up to a similar event the church held in June, this next pop-up will include slow-fired spit-roasted lamb, pastichio (Greek lasagna), Greek meatballs, stuffed grape leaves with egg-lemon sauce, spanakopita and baklava, plus additional treats like galaktoboureko, a Greek custard baked in phyllo dough, and koulourakia (Greek butter cookies). Call-in orders are also accepted on either day of the event. Visit nashuagreekfestival.com or call 889-4000.

• New orchard directory: In line with the start of the apple picking season in the Granite State, the New Hampshire Fruit Growers Association has reimagined its member farm and orchard website directory for visitors to find where to pick their own apples, according to a press release. You can visit nhfruitgrowers.org and click on the “find an orchard” tab, where you’ll be directed to a map of the state with icons for farm stands or stores, pick-your-own orchards and more. More than 50 varieties of apples are grown in New Hampshire, according to the release, including McIntosh, Cortland, Empire, Macoun, Gala, Mutsu and Honeycrisp.

• Intown Farmstand extended: Intown Manchester’s Farmstand, which began on June 25 and was expected to run through the end of August, has now been extended through Sept. 24. The stand is held every Thursday from 3 to 6 p.m. at Victory Park (Concord and Chestnut streets, Manchester), featuring farmers with Fresh Start Farms, a program of the Manchester-based Organization for Refugee and Immigrant Success. Each week the stand has featured a variety of summer vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, peppers and okra, as well as ethnic crops like amaranth greens and African eggplant and selections from local businesses like Dandido Sauce and DJ’s Pure Natural Honey. Find them on Facebook @manchesterfood or visit intownmanchester.com.

• School Street Cafe opens in Dunbarton: A new cafe offering homemade sandwiches, baked goods and locally roasted coffees opened Aug. 15 at 1007 School St. in Dunbarton Center. The School Street Cafe is located where MG’s Farmhouse Cafe closed earlier this year, co-owners Lindsey Andrews and Carrie Hobi said. The menu features fresh sandwiches, like an avocado chicken panini, a chicken salad sandwich, a turkey club and a veggie wrap, plus pastries like cookies and cinnamon rolls, and yogurt parfaits with vanilla Greek yogurt, fresh berries and homemade gluten-free granola. Coffees are roasted at the Manchester-based Hometown Coffee Roasters and include a house blend and some rotating specialty blends. About a dozen flavors of Blake’s Ice Cream are available too. According to Andrews, soups will likely be introduced to the menu in the coming weeks. The School Street Cafe is open Wednesday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., with extended hours for ice cream on Friday and Saturday, from 6 to 8 p.m., now through September. Visit schoolstreetcafe.com or call 774-CAFE (2233).

• Virtual food festival a success: Organizers of this year’s New Hampshire Jewish Food Festival, which had transitioned into a takeout event only, reported “an unexpected but triumphant success,” according to an Aug. 28 press release. In lieu of a traditional food festival at Temple B’Nai Israel in Laconia, a drive-thru system was implemented for customers to pick up their items after placing their orders online. The takeout menu featured many of the popular items that had been featured at past festivals, all of which were prepared in advance and sold frozen. “Once the … website opened on July 27 [for online ordering], there was an overwhelming response from the community, near and far, which led to many items beginning to sell out,” the release read. “One of the biggest surprises was the demand for matzo ball soup. Historically, 20 to 25 quarts were sold annually. This year, customers bought 107 quarts.” According to the release, 150 customers picked up their orders over a five-day period, in 175 time slot options total. The temple hopes to resume normal festival operations in 2021.