Saturday, September 24, 2016
Luitel is among a group of about 30 people, most of them from the Bhutanese community, who have been picking grapes at the vineyard since the harvest season started earlier this month. A smaller number of Congolese are also pitching in at the vineyard on Route 7.
For the past three years, co-owner Kenneth Albert has depended on his personal connection with a Bhutanese individual to recruit grape pickers from that community. "They are more reliable," he said. "Local residents [are] doing it as more of a recreation."
Tags: Shelburne Vineyard , Bhutanese , grape pickers , harvest , Image , Web Only
Tags: interactive , ethics , University of Vermont , Image , Web Only
Friday, September 23, 2016
Branches are flush with traditional picks like McIntosh, Red Delicious and Empire, along with heirlooms and lesser-known varieties such as Spitzenburg, Newtown Pippin, Winesap and Vermont Gold. A blend of varietals is pressed into Happy Valley’s fresh and unfiltered apple ciders — the sweet, dark juice tastes different on every visit.
At five bucks for half a peck of apples, it's the height of “dining on a dime” possibilities: homemade applesauce, apples baked with oatmeal and butter, slices dusted with cinnamon and eaten on the back porch while the weather is still not too cold.
But 'tis the season for cider donuts, and Happy Valley's are dense, delicately fried and deep with warm traces of cinnamon and allspice. When the orchard opens at 9 a.m. and those donuts are still hot, the smell alone could wake a bear from hibernation. At $4 for a half-dozen, it's a breakfast treat — both inexpensive and belly-warming — that doesn't stress my wallet.
It's breakfast today, tomorrow and, assuming I don't share my loot, the next day, too. Stale donuts can be toasted and dunked into coffee, or baked with an egg yolk and cream for a donut-bread pudding. (But who has stale donuts?)
Breakfast goes up a notch with a sip of that aforementioned apple cider, heady and refreshing whether ice cold or mulled with spices. Then again, I could take my paper bag of cider donuts back to Middlebury to revel in my coffee options. Otter Creek Bakery, Carol’s Hungry Mind Cafe and the Middlebury Natural Foods Co-op all brew from Addison County roasters such as Bud’s Beans and Vermont Coffee Company. I might head to Exchange Street to visit VCC’s café and roastery. I'll lighten my dark roast with Monument Farms Dairy (used at each of these coffee spots) and savor my still-warm cider donut, watching the town begin its day.
At most, my all-local breakfast is now $8. That's for six donuts, a large coffee and a tip for the cashier.
Vermont, I like you.
Dining on a Dime is a weekly series featuring well-made, filling bites (something substantial enough to qualify as a small meal or better) for $12 or less. Know of a tasty dish we should feature? Drop us a line: food@sevendaysvt.com.
Tags: Happy Valley Orchard , apples , cider donuts , apple cider , breakfast , cheap eats , fall , Image , Web Only
Thursday, September 22, 2016
It’s the time of year for a hot cup of tea. We’ve heard before that Vermont is quietly becoming a coffee superpower, from big hitter Keurig Green Mountain to small-scale artisan roasters like Brio Coffeeworks. I love a good cup of dark roast, but as we head toward chillier days, my Irish heritage creeps in and I find myself craving Barry’s Gold Blend and honey. Of course, most of my Irish relatives are devout Bostonians with a preference for Dunkin Donuts. The voices of my County Cork friends ring clearest on the matter.
Tuesday, September 20, 2016
Tags: Preserves , Wild Grapes , Jam , Recipes , Canning , Image , Web Only
Friday, September 16, 2016
Each week around 5:30 p.m., I climb a narrow set of stairs from Montpelier's Main Street to the entrance of La Puerta Negra, order some food at the bar, and head up another flight of stairs to sit in the lounge and lace up my dance shoes while I wait for my food to arrive.
Happily, the salsa lessons — taught by Sarah Snow and Jon Bacon of Dsantos VT — happen to coincide with $3 taco day. This means, depending on my hunger level, I could get one, two, three or even four tacos for just $12 — our "Dining on a Dime" limit.
Sometimes I mix and match: one haddock taco with slaw and smoked lemon aioli, and one stuffed with steak and topped with chimichurri. More typically, I get a pair of pork al pastor tacos, garnished with a scattering of pineapple and cilantro, and a dollop of guacamole, plus a side of refried beans (an additional $4). Even with tax, that's a mere $10.90 for a pretty substantial meal.
Don't do beans? A pair of tacos and a cup of chicken tortilla soup, or a side salad with pomegranate dressing, or some yucca fries, or an order of street corn, would all come in under the limit. If I'm feeling flush, I'll get a margarita, too, or sip one of LPN's nice tequilas.
Just as I finish up my meal, the teachers arrive, and the funky syncopated beat of salsa music begins to play over the speakers. I join the other dancers on the floor and we bounce to the beat, and then learn to move our feet to the rhythm. Soon, we're spinning.
It just so happens that a beginner salsa class is also $12. So, I guess I'm dancing on a dime, too.
Tags: tacos , budget , beans , Latin , salsa , Montpelier , La Puerta Negra , Image , Web Only
Thursday, September 15, 2016
What’s more, the Shy Guys behind the biz are Tim Elliot, cofounder of Burlington’s popular lunch spot, Zabby and Elf’s Stone Soup, and Paul Sansone, an Italian American Vermonter who gained his culinary training in Abruzzo, Italy. The prospects looked good.
I had gelato on my mind since 9 a.m. the previous day, but a cooking event on Friday had me heading to St. Paul Street precipitously close to 9 p.m. — closing time. But I was determined to make it.
Tags: Shy Guy Gelato , gelato , ice cream , small-batch , dessert , Italy , Burlington , Image , Web Only
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
As with most construction projects, things didn't go according to plan. But after nearly two years of building and preparation, the bierhall opens tomorrow with an all-star team.
Jack Pickett — whose Phoenix Table and Bar, Frida’s Taqueria and Blue Moon Café fed locals for years — is leading the kitchen. Former Gracie’s Restaurant owner Paul “Archie” Archdeacon will run the front of the house. “It’s been really neat bringing two really popular Stowe restaurateurs together,” Sam von Trapp said, speaking by phone on Tuesday.
Friday, September 9, 2016
Bradford, my sleepy hometown of 2,500 on the Connecticut River, is home to more than a handful of bars and restaurants. But everyone I know — and I feel like I know most everyone — goes to the Colatina Exit, which has been a Main Street mainstay for 45 years. Downstairs, it's a cozy, candle-lit Italian restaurant. Meaty red lasagna and hand-tossed pizzas are staples, but the menu rotates with the seasons, as the kitchen sources many ingredients from nearby farms on both sides of the river.
In the bar upstairs, the everyday crowd is strong — bartenders linger for decades; regulars claim barstools for generations. But it's also host to a Friday-night live music series, which features local rockers and balladeers, and it's a friendly stopover for a drink and a pizza.
Wherever you sit, the place is generally affordable. Basic pizzas run $8-$14, pastas fetch $10-$20. And on Thursdays, the bar offers 59-cent wings in several flavors — garlic-rubbed, Buffalo, teriyaki, depending on the week. Dollar-off drafts ($4-$6 for brews from Fiddlehead Brewing, Maine Beer Company, River Roost Brewery), knock down the bar tab, too.
I'll admit that it's not the world's cheapest wing deal — in New York, such specials were of the 10-cent variety. But for around $7, dipping a dozen meaty, sauce-slathered flappers in creamy garlic-dill dressing feels like winning. And with old friends slowly migrating back to town after years spent living afar, it's hard to imagine better company.
Dining on a Dime is a weekly series featuring well-made, filling bites (something substantial enough to qualify as a small meal or better) for $12 or less. Know of a tasty dish we should feature? Drop us a line: food@sevendaysvt.com.
Tags: Wings , Deals , Upper Valley , Restaurants , Cheap Eats , Colatina Exit , Image , Web Only
Thursday, September 8, 2016
Tempted as I am by the prospect of mulled cider and whole-roasted pumpkins and beers sipped al fresco as the leaves begin to turn, summer needs a last hurrah. Relish the creemees and the last of the summer farmers markets. Eat outside, even though it’s now dark at 7:30 p.m. And gorge on the late-summer tomatoes.
Tags: tomato , summer , fall , chef , restaurant , farmers , recipes , Shacksbury Cider , Mary's Restaurant , Misery Loves Company , Cai's Dim Sum Teahouse , Middlebury Natural Foods Co-op , Shakey Ground Farm , Shy Guy Gelato , Image , Image , Web Only