This was not my tailgate, but I was surrounded by such high-spirited works of art last weekend at the Daffodil Festival on Nantucket Island. Looking to get away and step into spring, Gourmet Guy and I spent a great weekend on the island of the beautiful people. Yes whale pants and lobster belts are still fashion mainstays on this Cape Cod shoal. This festival is a real community event based on the celebration of spring and partying w/ food and booze outside. Aren't tailgates great? Who needs a ballgame?
We feasted our eyes on gourmet spreads like this one splayed out on the side of a tree-lined street. There was roast beef, asparagus, flatbread pizza, champagne, men drinking bloody marys out of mason jars, trays and baskets of deviled eggs and cupcakes everywhere. I felt like we stepped into a Ralph Lauren catalogue and a Gourmet Magazine all at once. We also sampled a new non-alcoholic beer brought over from our friends from Germany along w/ a complimentary bratwurst and sauerkraut spread. An ompha band and Morris Dancers rounded out the fun. Did I mention antique cars? That was the parade that lead to the tailgate. In my opinion there are too few events based on eating and imbibing al fresco. Lowell def. needs a tailgate party. Good locations would be Heritage State or Francis Gate parks.

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.

You might be dining out tonight. You might be saving your hard-earned gourmet gilder for next week's Portsmouth Restaurant Week. A few of you have mentioned great eats in Lowell's sister city by the sea, and next Sunday, March 2- March 9th is prob. the best time to take a tasting trip. The prix fixe fiesta features $26.95 three-course meals at Black Trumpet Bistro, Dolphin Striker, The Page, Pesce Blue, The Portsmouth Gas Light, Radicci, Rudi’s and Sheraton Harborside. Full disclosure: gourmet gal has not stuck a fork into any of these fine establishments, but wood-fired za heaven Gas Light came reccomended by a GG reader recently as something Lowell sorely needs. When I drop anchor in the Port City, I usually end up at the Stockpot or the Press Room (great cozy bar), but I know these places are top-knotch — Dolphin Striker also has a lively music scene. I might go under the guise of a scouting trip for Lowell Restaurant Week, which btw I have not heard a peep about. Frugal foodies should go early, lunch that week is $16.95.
drinkwaterproductions

We found ourselves in Lowell's scrappy sister city yest. and leave it to GG to sniff out a winner. Two winners actually. First stop, the Rose & Dove Gourmet, roseanddove.com Hidden in the KGR bldg. on canal street, is a fun, if frilly wine/gift shop. Lots of lace and finery, but still a nice, focused selection of wine and an owner willing to uncork a bottle just for us to taste. That's the kind of service you won't get at Conlons. It was a Washington white which didn't leave me swooning, so we went w/ a South African chard. On the owner's recommendation we walked to Salvatore's around the corner. Around the corner in this behemoth industrial zone is like a block in Berlin — large, gaping, and on a night like this, frostily wind-swept. When we finally landed inside Salvatore's along w/ half of Lawrence, we were more-than-ready to partake. We sat at the bar and dined on clams casino. I remember my fathering ordering this meal and this was nothing like the grilled, slightly breaded clams he savored. But it was hot, we were cold and a jazz trio was setting up behind us. There were no complaints. (except, what happened to the rest of the order? there where only three clams.)
Next came fried calamari served w/ zesty tom. sauce on an ample bed o'greens, these rings were right on. They are known for their riceballs, pic above, which sounded tempting, but I've been doing the carbo load lately. The cab. by the glass was so tasty, I inquired about the label. Jekyll 2005. voluptuous. Stay away from the high-priced, insipid chianti by the glass. $9 for that? pu-lese. Ambiance is a 9 here. Soft, low lights, candles and high/low ceiling divide make for pleasing acoustics. With three TV-s in exactly the right spots there is a reason this is the king daddy of the Sal's pizza chain.
salvatoreslawrence.com