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Tuesday, May 20, 2014
Beer / Cider / Locavore Movement Carpe Buzz: Fresh Brews to Sip This Season
Posted
By Hannah Palmer Egan
on Tue, May 20, 2014 at 5:49 PM
Vermonters are observing their rites of spring – warm days blossom with floral dresses and rosy, bare chests, and by evening, sunburns for paler, more foolhardy revelers.
For casual tipplers and craftbrew dilettantes alike, spring also means bright, sunny beers best sipped fresh in the open air, whether the venue is your back porch, on the lake or in the garden, or at your favorite watering hole.
Over the last few weeks, Vermont’s brewmasters have been rolling out the season’s new releases. It's a fruity, citrusy batch that predictably forges new trails into IPA territory, with stops along the way for ciders, sours and saisons. Just in time for Memorial Day and the official (unofficial) start of summer.
Read on for a smattering of noteworthy new brews, listed by release date.
Alice Eats Alice Eats: The Open Arms Food & Juice Shop
Posted
By Alice Levitt
on Tue, May 20, 2014 at 12:31 PM
52 Harbor Road, Shelburne, 985-4224
When Chef Courtney Contos declares a new favorite, I listen. She's been extolling the virtues of the Open Arms Food & Juice Shop since Acoy Cofino reopened the spot last month. On Saturday afternoon I brought take-out to Contos' store for a healthy ladies' lunch to finally give it a try.
Cofino prefers that customers call ahead for take-out to allow him and his tiny staff to craft their meals or drinks without a wait. Since I didn't do so, I ended up in line for a while. But once Cofino was able to take my order, he told me lunch would be ready in 10 to 15 minutes. It was less than 10 minutes before I had food ready to go.
When Chef Courtney Contos declares a new favorite, I listen. She's been extolling the virtues of the Open Arms Food & Juice Shop since Acoy Cofino reopened the spot last month. On Saturday afternoon I brought take-out to Contos' store for a healthy ladies' lunch to finally give it a try.
Cofino prefers that customers call ahead for take-out to allow him and his tiny staff to craft their meals or drinks without a wait. Since I didn't do so, I ended up in line for a while. But once Cofino was able to take my order, he told me lunch would be ready in 10 to 15 minutes. It was less than 10 minutes before I had food ready to go.
Monday, May 19, 2014
Farmers Market Kitchen Farmers Market Kitchen: Blistered Roots With Dill From Jericho Settlers Farm
Posted
By Hannah Palmer Egan
on Mon, May 19, 2014 at 9:05 AM
On May 10, the Burlington Farmers Market moved back outside for the summer. I stopped by on Saturday to survey the first of the spring harvest.
It's early yet, and many growers are selling more potted plants than produce, but a few industrious farmers are already coaxing gorgeous vegetables from the ground.
Jericho Settlers Farm (find its meats and produce at Farmhouse, Hen of the Wood and Healthy Living, among others) had one of the better spreads: crisp, bright-red radishes, petite white salad turnips, and broccoli rabe just beginning to bloom. JSF also had heaps of tender young herbs including dill and parsley, perfect for a simple, springy sauté.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Burlington Alice's Latest Obsession: Mint Chip Smoothie at Eco Bean & Juice
Posted
By Alice Levitt
on Thu, May 15, 2014 at 3:23 PM
I'm an obsessive person. When I was a kid, I flitted every few years from one life's purpose to another: the works of Stephen Sondheim, Victor Hugo, the Burke and Hare murders. I was nothing if not eclectic. As a grown-up food writer, I'm slightly better adjusted, but when I taste something truly special, it happens all over again.
Such was the case a few months ago when I had my first Mint Chip smoothie at Eco Bean & Juice in Burlington. In the depths of winter, I needed somewhere to stop after a spinning class at REV. I'd never thought of myself as a "smoothie person," but my mind was open — I'd never considered myself a spinning person, either.
As a lifelong devotee of mint chocolate chip ice cream (I still swear by the ones at Baskin Robbins and La Crémaillère in Bedford, N.Y., my lowbrow and highbrow childhood favorites), the choice was a no-brainer. Raspberry-chia-peach and Nuts About Acai — made with acai, berries, peanut butter and protein powder — sounded attractive. But any foodstuff with fresh mint high on the ingredient list is my first choice.
A Tour of the South Burlington Trader Joe's
Posted
By Alice Levitt
on Thu, May 15, 2014 at 12:01 AM
On Friday, the tiki gods will finally smile on Vermont with the opening of the state's first Trader Joe's. At 8 a.m., expect to see a Dawn of the Dead-style crush at 200 Dorset Street in South Burlington as bargain hunters compete to be among the first to shop at the 12,800-square-foot store.
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Alice Eats Alice Eats: Warner's Snack Bar
Posted
By Alice Levitt
on Tue, May 13, 2014 at 1:18 PM
499 Route 7, St. Albans, 527-2377
I've spent my share of time in St. Albans, but somehow, I never went north of the highway exit on Route 7. If I had, I wouldn't have missed 48-year-old Warner's Snack Bar for so long. But to celebrate the arrival of warm weather, I decided to pay a visit to the new-to-me snack bar.
Warner's isn't your typical shack with a kitchen in it. With an indoor dining room as well as outdoor seating, the snack bar is open from April through December. The eatery's size also enables it to offer a bill of fare significantly larger than most snack bars'.
There's a separate gluten-free menu, too, which includes specially coated chicken tenders and burgers and dogs on buns from West Meadow Farm Bakery in Essex Junction. There are coffee drinks courtesy of Green Mountain Coffee and a wide range of hot and iced teas. There's even a salad bar for those not willing to embrace the whole fried-food thing.
I've spent my share of time in St. Albans, but somehow, I never went north of the highway exit on Route 7. If I had, I wouldn't have missed 48-year-old Warner's Snack Bar for so long. But to celebrate the arrival of warm weather, I decided to pay a visit to the new-to-me snack bar.
Warner's isn't your typical shack with a kitchen in it. With an indoor dining room as well as outdoor seating, the snack bar is open from April through December. The eatery's size also enables it to offer a bill of fare significantly larger than most snack bars'.
There's a separate gluten-free menu, too, which includes specially coated chicken tenders and burgers and dogs on buns from West Meadow Farm Bakery in Essex Junction. There are coffee drinks courtesy of Green Mountain Coffee and a wide range of hot and iced teas. There's even a salad bar for those not willing to embrace the whole fried-food thing.
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Vermont Restaurant Week Restaurant Week Diaries: Kismet
Posted
By Alice Levitt
on Tue, May 6, 2014 at 1:16 PM
The fifth Vermont Restaurant Week is now past tense, but I want to share the details of the best meal I ate in that 10 days.
It was an excellent weekend of eating overall. The $15 menu at the Spot in Burlington featured three well-made courses including a pair of excellent salads. Essex Junction's Café Mediterano knocked it out of the park with a whole-lamb dinner that was truly special. But the standout was a Friday-night meal at Kismet in Montpelier.
I'm a little embarrassed to say that I had never dined at Kismet before that night. But the inspired $35 menu made it almost impossible not to. It was at Kismet that I tasted what I'll remember as the dish of Restaurant Week 2014 — bao gnocchi.
Chef-owner Crystal Maderia told me that the appetizer was inspired by her grandmother, who grew up in Hong Kong. Maderia deconstructed dim-sum-style pork buns by serving petite, gnocchi-sized pieces of dough with a pile of pulled cha siu pork tangled with sesame-flavored spinach. It was a moment of genius that I hope Kismet will serve again in another of the restaurant's frequent menu rotations.
It was an excellent weekend of eating overall. The $15 menu at the Spot in Burlington featured three well-made courses including a pair of excellent salads. Essex Junction's Café Mediterano knocked it out of the park with a whole-lamb dinner that was truly special. But the standout was a Friday-night meal at Kismet in Montpelier.
I'm a little embarrassed to say that I had never dined at Kismet before that night. But the inspired $35 menu made it almost impossible not to. It was at Kismet that I tasted what I'll remember as the dish of Restaurant Week 2014 — bao gnocchi.
Chef-owner Crystal Maderia told me that the appetizer was inspired by her grandmother, who grew up in Hong Kong. Maderia deconstructed dim-sum-style pork buns by serving petite, gnocchi-sized pieces of dough with a pile of pulled cha siu pork tangled with sesame-flavored spinach. It was a moment of genius that I hope Kismet will serve again in another of the restaurant's frequent menu rotations.
Friday, May 2, 2014
Cooking / Farms and Agriculture An April Foodie Scrapbook
Posted
By Alice Levitt
on Fri, May 2, 2014 at 7:20 AM
With the arrival of May, I'm expecting to see a fresh start here at the Seven Days food desk. Between planning Vermont Restaurant Week, putting out the annual 7 Nights magazine and losing my longtime partner in crime, Corin Hirsch, I have never been busier than I was in April.
In fact, I was so busy that I didn't find the time to blog about two major events that catalyzed Vermont foodies last month. On April 3 and 4, Chez Panisse owner and Slow Food pioneer Alice Waters visited Vermont from California. Two weeks later, a pair of "Chopped" champions showed off their Food Network-tested skills in a culinary battle in Montpelier.
As we venture into May and look forward to summer, I want to share some spring memories.
As exciting as it was to meet Waters, lunch at Burlington's Intervale Center was also an enjoyable state of the union for local foodies to meet, greet and realize how far we've come.
In fact, I was so busy that I didn't find the time to blog about two major events that catalyzed Vermont foodies last month. On April 3 and 4, Chez Panisse owner and Slow Food pioneer Alice Waters visited Vermont from California. Two weeks later, a pair of "Chopped" champions showed off their Food Network-tested skills in a culinary battle in Montpelier.
As we venture into May and look forward to summer, I want to share some spring memories.
As exciting as it was to meet Waters, lunch at Burlington's Intervale Center was also an enjoyable state of the union for local foodies to meet, greet and realize how far we've come.
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