Tag: 260730

Cannoli, bubble tea and beef jerky

Southern NH Food Truck Festival offers culinary variety

The first weekend of August has become the traditional date for the Southern New Hampshire Food Truck Festival at the Hampshire Dome in Milford. Jody Donohue’s company, Great New England Events, organizes the Festival.

“We’re excited to have some new additions this year,” Donohue said. “There will be a couple of new food trucks joining us. We always mix it up. We never want to hold the exact same event twice. We have an ABCbowls truck that uses a variety of fresh ingredients and makes different types of bowls. We have an Asian truck joining us this year. We have a new truck for us, an Indian truck. And we also have lots of sweets. We have A Slice of Heaven Cheesecake joining us from New York this year. They make fresh cheesecake; you can buy a whole cheesecake or you can just have a slice. We have our Uncle Joey’s Cannoli truck back again this year. And we’ll also have bubble tea, of course, that’s always popular with people, as well as fresh squeezed lemonade. We have baked goods, and beef jerky, jams and jellies for some specialty foods that will be part of our lineup. We have 15 food trucks this year.”

And there will be 40 vendors inside the Dome, Donohue said, “offering handmade products. leggings, apparel, jewelry, pottery, ceramics, hunting items and seaglass.”

There has been a special effort to make this year’s Festival family-focused.

“We’ve added some extra fun and magic tricks,” she said. “We have a clown all weekend, a very friendly clown, who’s very friendly looking, and he will be walking around and doing magic tricks and making balloon animals for the kids. In addition to that, this year, there is a bead bar that will be set up in the kids’ area with face painting, and henna art.”

“This year we have added some characters that a lot of the children will like. … They will walk around both days, doing photo opportunities and signing autographs. We will have a little children’s coloring area set up so kids can go there and color. We also have two beautiful princesses coming each day,” she said.

Donohue said the Festival has been organized to be budget-friendly as well.

“We have two bounce houses,” she said, “ and we staff it, but the bounce houses are free. Kids can come for free. We have some bubble fun that they can use, and chalk play. They’re quite some little artists that come. And they make beautiful things. arrows on the pavement for us. So all of that’s included, ages 14 and under are free. Admission is $7 a person, but that admission is valid for two days. So if you attend on Saturday, if you ask for a bracelet, you can return on Sunday for free. You can come back and eat from the trucks or enjoy some of the vendors you might not have had a chance to see on Saturday. We have plenty of seating, lots of tables and chairs, hundreds of chairs, and also inside of the dome, there’s plenty of seating in there to eat. But some people bring a blanket and they sit down on the turf inside the dome and make a picnic out of it.”

10th Annual Southern NH Food Truck Festival
When: Saturday, Aug. 1, and Sunday, Aug. 2,
Where: The Hampshire Dome, 34 Emerson Road, Millford.
More: Entry is $7 for two days. Children 14 and under are free. Visit gnefoodtruckfest.com.

Featured photo: ABCbowls Truck. Courtesy photo.

Cocktail forward

Lovejoy in Milford offers something for everyone

Matt Berry has been part of many restaurants over the years.

“My background has been primarily in fine dining,” he said. “I’ve been all over southern New Hampshire, up into the Lakes and Exeter, but my heart, food-wise, has always been here in the Milford area.” Berry was a chef at Unwined and at Greenleaf, both high-end Milford restaurants. Earlier this year, however, Berry and his bar manager Gill Burnet decided to focus on a different type of dining experience in their new restaurant Lovejoy.

“We wanted to bring more of a focus on a casual cocktail bar setting. So we came up with the idea for Lovejoy,” Berry said.

Because Lovejoy is just off the Oval in downtown Milford, Berry wanted to acknowledge the town’s history when he named it.

“I did some digging into Milford history. The Lovejoy brothers, who opened up the Lovejoy Quarries, which are better known as the Twin Quarries, were responsible for the big monoliths at the National Treasury in D.C. and really expanding the Milford granite industry nationwide. I thought it was very fitting for us and what we like to bring to the table and the atmosphere that we wanted to create here, but also … [we] wanted to pay homage to Milford history.”

Berry described the menu at Lovejoy as “cocktail-forward, with elevated cocktail bar food.”

“New England as a whole kind of hit that craft beer stride probably in 2012 or 2013,” Berry said, “and it really stuck for a while. I think cocktails themselves got kind of back-burnered a little bit. But there’s been a re-emergence of cocktails. That also includes navigating this whole sober culture. Just so there’s like something for everyone — not everyone drinks. Fifteen years ago, like everyone drank. We wanted to be able to serve sophisticated adult drinks that aren’t alcohol and that aren’t like Shirley Temples. Though I have absolutely no beef with Shirley Temples; I love them. We wanted a very intentional focus on non-alcoholic drinks as well as our standard cocktails. We really just wanted to bring an interesting craft cocktail experience into a more casual, more approachable setting.”

The menu at Lovejoy could probably be described best as focused.

“I like to keep my menus nice and tight,” Berry said. “I’d rather do a couple things really, really well than have a very big, extensive menu. I’m really big on utilizing local produce, local farms, purveyors whenever I can, so I wanted to take that, which I really enjoy doing, and kind of mold it into a much more casual setting. I really wanted to take that kind of ‘elevated’ style of cooking, for lack of a better term, but push that into like fun, nostalgic junk food, if you will.”

There are a number of sharable tapas-style appetizers on the Lovejoy menu but only four or five main dishes, some of which are either meat-free or gluten-free, or both — a Shiitake Bhan Mi sandwich, for instance, and a Maitake [mushroom] Parmesan.

“I love cooking vegetarian and vegan food,” Berry said. “I like doing that without making a big stink about it. That’s kind of the philosophy when I ran my menu. And everything on my menu is gluten-free with the exception of the bread and the buns, and we have gluten-free alternatives available for those.”

Berry wants a place where customers can order something comfortable and familiar, but where other customers can be more adventurous.

“If someone wants to come in and have a beer and a burger,” Berry said, “we have that. If someone wants to come in and try these crazy cocktails that Gill’s coming up with and try some new food that I’m playing around with, we have that too.”

Lovejoy Restaurant
40 Nashua St., Milford, 554-8430, lovejoynh.com
Open Tuesday through Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 4 to 10 p.m.

Featured photo: Lovejoy Restaurant.

The Weekly Dish 26/7/30

• Crafts, beer, and sharks: To Share Brewing (720 Union St., Manchester, 836-6947, tosharebrewing.com) will celebrate Shark Week through Saturday, Aug. 1, with special shark-themed activities and shark-themed beer flights. Each Saturday through the end of August will be “Summer Camp” with free activities, $5 crafts for kids, and Camp Lunch Specials served on a lunch tray, including Uncrustables sandwiches, vegetables, fruit, and cherry Jello. There will also be a Jello beer option for adults.

• A mermaid tea party: The Manchester City Library (405 Pine St, Manchester, 624-6550, manchesterlibrary.org) will host a Mermaid Tea Party for children between the ages of 1 and 7, Monday, Aug. 3, from 10 to 11 a.m. Registration is required; call 624-6550, ext. 7628.

• Rich and chocolatey: Van Otis Chocolates (341 Elm St., Manchester, 627-1611, vanotis.com) will host an “All You Need is Truffles” class Thursday, July 30, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. A Van Otis chocolatier will demonstrate how to make a chocolate ganache. Participants will then be given a portion of fresh ganache to roll into their own truffles, and dip them into a variety of toppings. They will take home 24 hand-made truffles. The cost is $55.20.

• Cabernet and Captain America: Wine on Main (9 N. Main St., Concord, 897-5828, wineonmainnh.com) will host an evening of Marvel trivia with treats by Savvy Sweets and Treats, Wednesday, Aug. 5, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Test your knowledge of all things Marvel to win prizes. Everyone will get a personal box with four Marvel-themed cupcakes. You’ll also enjoy a wine tasting throughout the evening. The cost is $44.52 through the Wine on Main website.

• S’mores two ways: The martini and cupcake pairing for August at the Copper Door Restaurants (15 Leavy Drive, Bedford, 488-2677, and 41 S. Broadway, Salem, 458-2033, copperdoor.com) is s’mores themed. The S’mores Martini is made with whipped cream vodka, chocolate vodka, a splash of Kalhua, and cream, with a graham cracker rim and a toasted marshmallow for $14.75. A S’mores Cupcake is a graham cupcake with marshmallow filling, buttercream frosting, toasted marshmallow and a chocolate bar garnish and chocolate drizzle for $12.

Kiddie Pool 26/07/30

Family fun for whenever

Kids racing for kids

Friends of Aine will hold its annual Kids Try-athlon on Sunday, Aug. 2, starting at 8 a.m. at Bedford High School and the Bedford Town Pool. The event is a swim, bike, run race for kids grouped by age — 4- to 10-year-olds and 11- to 15-year-olds, according to friendsofaine.com. The event is open to kids regardless of athletic ability and features a post-race festival, according to the website, where you can register to participate.

National Night Out

Tuesday, Aug. 4, is the National Night Out, “an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie,” according to the national National Night Out website, natw.org. Here is what some area cities and towns are planning for Aug. 4.

• The Amherst Police Department will hold an event at Souhegan High School in Amherst with a touch-a-truck and K-9 meet with Amherst’s dog Niko at 5 p.m. followed by a family-friendly movie screening starting at 5:30 p.m., according to a post on the department’s Facebook page.

• Bedford Police faces Bedford Fire in the departments’ annual National Night Out softball game at 6 p.m. at Selvoski Field on County Road in Bedford, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• The Concord Police Department will hold its event in Rollins Park from 5 to 8 p.m. featuring food, bike safety, police vehicles and demonstrations, booths from local organizations and nonprofits, touch a truck with police and fire and general services, music with DJ Nazzy, kids’ activities, a NH National Guard Blackhawk helicopter and more, according to the department’s Facebook page, where you can find information about parking.

• The Deerfield Police Department will hold its event from 5 to 7 p.m. at the gazebo at 10 Church St. in Deerfield, featuring food and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• The Epping Police Department will hold its event from 4 to 7 p.m. at the Epping High School featuring a touch-a-truck of first responder vehicles, K-9 demonstration, a drone demonstration, public safety agencies, a barbecue, family activities and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• The Hollis Police and Fire departments as well as other organizations will partner on an event at Nichols Field according to a post on the department’s Facebook page, where you can check back for updates.

• Hooksett Police Department will hold its event in Arthur Donati Memorial Field starting at 5 p.m., according to a post on its Facebook page, where you can check for updates.

• Hudson Police Department will hold its event at Rodgers Memorial Library, 194 Derry Road in Hudson, from 4:30 to 8 p.m. featuring games, food, prizes and more according to the department’s Facebook page.

• Litchfield Police Department will hold its event at Mel’s Funway Park in Litchfield from 5 to 8 p.m. featuring race a cop in a go-kart, laser tag with SWAT operators and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• Loudon Police Department will hold its event from 5 to 8 p.m. in Loudon Recreational Field, with a Police versus Fire tug of war slated for 7 p.m., according to the department’s Facebook page. The event will feature food vendors, K-9 demonstrations, games and giveaways, the post said.

• The Manchester Police Department will hold its event from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Hartnett Lot & Victory Park with more than 40 community-based services, K-9 and robotics demonstrations, the police horses, the police comfort dog and more, according to a video on the department’s Facebook page.

• The Merrimack Police Department will hold its event from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Merrimack High School parking lot with free ice cream and entertainment, the department’s comfort dog Mack, a fire engine pull between the police and fire departments and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• The Milford Police Department will hold its event from 6 to 8 p.m. at Emerson Park with free food, K-9 and drone demos, touch a truck and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• The Nashua Police Department will hold its event from 5 to 8 p.m. in Greeley Park, 100 Concord St. in Nashua, featuring free food and ice cream, K-9 and drone demonstrations, touch a truck, games with police officers and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• Pelham Police Department will hold its event from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Village Green featuring music, games, classic cars, food trucks, local vendors and organizations, demonstrations and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• Plaistow Police Department will hold its event at PARC, 51 Old County Road in Plaistow, from 5:30 to 8 p.m. featuring first responders, touch a truck, music, games, food and more, according to the department’s Facebook page.

• Raymond Police Department will hold its event from 5 to 7 p.m. at Lamprey River Elementary School featuring food, games and activities, police and public safety demonstrations and more, according to a post on the department’s Facebook page.

• Salem Police Department will hold its event from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Salem High School with demonstrations, music, food, games and more, according to a post on the department’s Facebook page, where you can find a schedule for demonstrations such as taser and vehicle extraction (by Salem Fire).

Treasure Hunt 26/07/30

Dear Donna,

I’m trying to figure out what this brush was for. It’s 5 inches long and looks like it has a feather for a handle. The brush is soft for stenciling, so I’m curious if you can help.

Jen

Dear Jen,

OK I learned something again myself. What you have is called a quill mop artist brush. Could be made of a couple kinds of animal fur. Like squirrel or other soft-hair animals. I think yours is more of a duster brush. I found some with thick brush ends but not as thick as yours. Those for use with a watercolor paint could taper down to making a thin line. Older ones like yours are hard to find and just one can be in the $30 range. So not only do I think we figured it out, but it’s a tiny treasure as well.

Lots of hot air

Suncook Balloon Rally

“If you’ve never been to a balloon rally before, it’s quite an experience,” Fallon Reed said.

Reed is the Balloon Rally Chair for the Suncook Valley Rotary Club, which is hosting this weekend’s Hot Air Balloon Rally in Pittsfield.

“I was hooked at a very young age,” she said. “One flew over our property. My parents were cheering, and then I kind of got hooked, and I’ve been hooked ever since then.”

Reed said that the Rally is much like other summer events, but centered around hot air balloons. “It’s a festival kind of thing,” she said. “We have vendors and all kinds of things, but the hot air balloons kind of anchor the event. This is our 44th annual event. We have 15 hot air balloons that are joining us and they come from all over New England and the Northeast and a couple of folks from the Midwest.”

In spite of the balloons’ central role in the Rally, she said it’s important to keep in mind how much time a hot air balloon can actually stay aloft.

“The balloons won’t be up all weekend. They go up at certain times, because it’s very weather-dependent. So Friday evening, Saturday morning, Saturday evening, and then Sunday morning, right around the 5:30 mark — that’s usually the best weather times and gives [the balloonists the best conditions] to work with. So some people will show up at 2 o ‘clock in the afternoon on Saturday, expecting to see hot air balloons, but they’re just not up because usually it’s too hot for that.”

“But,” Reed continued, “we have events all throughout the weekend. “There’s a craft fair on Saturday. We have a cornhole tournament. There’s a 5K [road race] Sunday morning, and lots of great food. The Rotary Club does breakfast and burgers and dogs, but there’s plenty of other vendors so you can get your fair food fix. We have live music Saturday night with an open mic Friday night. Friday and Saturday night we do a night glow event where the balloons inflate on the field and stay on the field and they basically look like giant fireflies. It’s pretty cool. And then Saturday night we have fireworks, helicopter rides, amusements, all that good stuff”

For enthusiastic hot air balloon fans, Reed said, the best times to see them in action will be early in the morning.

“Usually in the mornings, around sunrise, we tend to have the best success for launches. The evenings can be a little tricker. At the beginning of August you never know how windy it’ll be or if there’s a storm. And you can imagine the balloons can’t control where they’re going. So if there’s a storm within 75 miles or so they won’t go up … they’re at the mercy of the winds. … One of the unique things about our rally is when the pilots like to do what they call a splash and dash, where they’ll launch from the soccer field and go over the trees, and then we’ll come down into the river next door and basically splash the bottom of their basket in the river. So if you’re in the basket your feet will get wet, but it makes for some really awesome photos and an experience.”

Suncook Valley Rotary’s 44th Annual Hot Air Balloon Rally
When: Friday, July 31, Saturday, Aug. 1, and Sunday, Aug. 2. From 3 p.m. Friday until mid-morning Sunday.
Where: Drakes Field on Barnstead Road in Pittsfield from 3 p.m.
More: Admission is free; see nhballoonrally.org.

Featured photo: Suncook Valley Rotary’s Hot Air Balloon Rally. Courtesy photo.

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