Tag: 201112

Mikey’s Roast Beef & Pizza opens in Hooksett

Nashua High School North and Southern New Hampshire University graduate Mikhail “Mikey” Bashagurov got his start in the restaurant industry at Giovanni’s at the age of 18, working many different roles over the course of several years. Nearly a decade later, after additional stints at Sal’s Pizza and the Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery, Bashagurov now has his own restaurant, offering fresh pizzas, calzones, subs, pastas and other items in a casual environment.
Mikey’s Roast Beef & Pizza, which opened on Nov. 6 in Hooksett, is in the former space of ABC Pizza on Londonderry Turnpike. Bashagurov found the vacant storefront earlier this summer with the help of Giovanni’s owner Jeannette Alexandrou, and has worked ever since toward reopening the eatery under his own name and brand. The menu is based on those of other similar casual Italian-American restaurants he’s worked in.
“A lot of the items are very similar, but they are my recipes, so they kind of have my own twists on them,” he said. “I will say that people would be familiar with the menu while still getting something different and new.”
Appetizers include french fries, onion rings, chicken fingers and wings, all available in multiple portion sizes, plus mozzarella sticks, garlic bread, meatballs, steak tips and grilled chicken tenders. There are also several salads, like garden, Greek, Caesar and antipasto with Italian meats, all with the additional option to add tuna, steak or chicken.
The roast beef sandwiches, which Bashagurov said feature meat sliced fresh every day, come in five different sizes ranging from three to six ounces. Other subs and sandwiches, divided on the menu between hot and cold, include BLTs and turkey clubs, chicken or meatball Parmesan subs, steak bombs — either as shaved steak or steak tips — and grilled chicken bombs with mushrooms, peppers, onions and cheese, smash burgers and fried chicken sandwiches.
Pizzas and calzones come in small or large sizes, with the option to choose a specialty topping (like the Mikey’s Special, with mushrooms, peppers, onions, pepperoni and sausage), or to create your own using around two dozen ingredient add-ons. A small selection of pastas using ziti and either garlic butter, alfredo or marinara sauce is also available, in addition to dinner plates with steak, chicken or roast beef and salads, fries or onion rings as sides.
Bashagurov’s wife Tiffani makes homemade chocolate chip cookies as a dessert option, which are thick and crunchy on the outside and feature a soft cake-like texture on the inside, he said.
The restaurant has a small dine-in space of about eight seats, but Bashagurov said that like its predecessor, Mikey’s will be largely focused on takeout, with delivery services also available within a five-mile radius.

Mikey’s Roast Beef & Pizza
Where: 21 Londonderry Turnpike, Hooksett
Hours: Sunday through Thursday, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
More info: Visit mikeysroastbeefandpizza.com, find them on Facebook and Instagram @mikeysroastbeefandpizza or call 623-0005

Featured photo: A table of booze from a past Distillers Showcase. Courtesy photo.

News from the local food scene

• Italian feast: Make your reservations now for a family-style Italian feast at The Hills Restaurant at Hampshire Hills Athletic Club (50 Emerson Road, Milford)on Wednesday, Nov. 25, from 4 to 8 p.m. The dinner will feature Italian options like chicken Parmesan, meatballs and Italian sausage, cavatappi pasta and cheese tortellini, as well as mixed greens, cheesy garlic bread and garlic Parmesan broccoli, and desserts like tiramisu, cannolis and fresh baked cookies. The cost is $22 for adults, $15 for teens ages 13 to 17, $12 for children ages 5 to 12 and free for children under 5. Visit hampshirehills.com or call 673-7123 to make a reservation.

• Sleigh-ing the competition: Pastry chef Jon Buatti of the Bearded Baking Co. in Manchester recently appeared as a contestant on the season premiere of Food Network’s Holiday Baking Championship cooking competition series, according to a press release. The two-hour episode, which aired on Nov. 2, featured Buatti competing against several other bakers from across the country to create the best holiday-themed desserts for judges Nancy Fuller, Duff Goldman and Carla Hall. He and the other bakers made wreaths out of quick breads during the first challenge and later decorated cakes in the shape of Christmas hats. Shooting for the episode took place in Los Angeles over the summer. “I had never been on national TV before, so I was definitely nervous,” said Buatti, who was one of 12 bakers selected from a pool of thousands of candidates to appear on the show. “The competition was super stiff, and that’s definitely in your mind when you’re out there.” The season will continue every Monday night until one of the 12 contestants wins a grand prize of $25,000 during the finale, which will air on Food Networkon Dec. 21.

• Day of the Dead opens in Litchfield: A new eatery offering authentic Mexican options recently opened in Litchfield. Day of the Dead Mexican Taqueria, named after the multi-day Mexican holiday “Día de los Muertos,” or “Day of the Dead,” opened last month in the former space of Applewood BBQ & Pizza, near Mel’s Funway Park. Menu items are prepared fresh daily, including tacos with several filling options, like carnitas, grilled chicken, steak, adobada (diced pork), lengua (beef tongue), and chorizo (pork sausage), as well as quesadillas, burritos, chimichangas and flautas, or deep-fried tortillas with either shredded chicken or shredded beef, and sides of guacamole, rice and beans. A small dessert menu includes items like churros and chocolate flan. Find the eatery on Facebook @dayofthedeadtaqueria or call 377-7664 to place a takeout order.