Keen on Keene

Keene is to New Hampshire, as Seattle is to Washington. A crunchy little town dedicated to local food. Okay Seattle is a lot bigger than this city that sprouts up in the shadow of Mt. Monadnock, but with its indie coffee shops, neighborhood bistros and street musicians, Keene has the same rush. After an afternoon biking through sleepy Fitzwilliams on Saturday, Keene was like hitting the big city. We saddled up to Prime Roast, where 25 beans are roasted on the premises. I ordered a pound of Papa New Guinea and an iced coffee and headed out into the lively streets rejuvenated. Next stop was Hannah Grimes Marketplace. This sprawling space looks like any other gift shop, but everything in it is made a town or two away. The N.H.-made food section in the back features goods from wineries, farms, creameries and cheese makers. The sweet cream ice cream from Walpole, Creamery left us swooning. And who knew N.H. had so many wineries? After finding a summery linen top and cute shoes at Saks Thrift Avenue ($30), we dragged our hungry selves into the refreshing balm of the Blue Trout Grill. www.bluetroutgrill.com. “How about a mojito? I just made a batch,” the chipper bartendress asked us. Could she see into our soul? Fortified w/ mussels, a lemon-butter trout w/ risotto, grilled salmon salad, more beers and creme brulee ($70) we sadly headed home.