With chemicals and plastics and oil spills… and though the waters off the coast of Maine are cleaner than most, I’m afraid even they’re showing signs of the pollution.
I live in Maine and have lobsterman friends. They often post pictures of the weird and wonderful blue and orange lobsters they haul up in their traps. The colors are rare but occur naturally as a mutation of genes.
But lately?
The pictures have taken a darker turn.
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Mutations are being found.
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And this doesn’t bode well for our oceans.
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This last one is not only disturbing , but downright creepy.
I often complain about things in the kitchen. The toaster that doesn’t toast evenly, the dirty spoons my husband leaves on the counter and more often than not … the fact that we pay more for food each day but seem to get less.
I understand prices rise, and though I never like it… I expect it. What I don’t expect is to start cooking, reach for the 16 ounce can (box or bag of whatever) only to find it’s shrunken to 14. Two ounces short of what I need forcing me to downsize my recipe or worse yet, buy another full can (box or bag of whatever) and waste most of it.
Grrr.
The insanity needs to stop… because today I discovered it’s gone one step too far.
My husband likes the old fashioned Shake and Bake barbecue chicken so every once in a while I throw him a bone and make it.
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There I was with my foil wrapped pan, my chicken leg quarters and and a box of seasoning packets. I was primed and ready to shake.
Problem was… there was no shaker bag in the box. You know the ones – they were flimsy, never closed properly and weren’t big enough for whatever you needed to shake?
Nada.
Zip.
Nothing.
Even though the side of the box clearly states you should use it.
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This is egregious marketing.
If you no longer include the shaking apparatus? You should no longer be able to call yourself Shake and Bake.
We visited a place I’ve driven by many times but never stopped the other day. The Newcastle Public House…
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Housed in a building dating back to 1845, you knew the minute you stepped inside it was a local spot despite its proximity to the tourist heavy Damarriscotta.
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Laid back and casual with distinctly potent portables.
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The bartender has a heavy hand so beware the Moscow Mules, they literally kick.
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Crab cake appetizer? So good I didn’t waste time taking a picture of the husband’s required French Onion soup. Which btw, he approved.
The menu was varied with a twist on New England favorites.
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While deciding … we met a colorful local resident, the kind that makes my husband beeline for the bar everywhere we go.
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He was a hoot and we enjoyed some interesting conversation before our meal.
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Which turned out to be fabulous. For me… barbecue shrimp and grits with roasted broccolini.
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For the spouse? Some very large and juicy General Tso wings.
No trip to the big city is complete without us trying a new libation destination. On this particular day it was Batson River Brewery and Distillery.
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I’d heard wonderful things about this place so it didn’t surprise me to see it was packed ten minutes after opening.
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They take their Christmas decorations seriously here and as I was looking around my husband grabbed the last two seats at the bar.
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Cocktails were holiday themed, so I started with the Where Are You Christmas.
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The only thing wrong with it?
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The small glass. I could happily have downed a pitcher’s worth.
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I read they consider the decor ‘upscale hunting lodge’ but to me it had a more upscale urban, industrial vibe with exposed pipes and metal vents.
The ceilings were high and the music loud. The menu? Brunch on Saturday… which we weren’t expecting and didn’t want.
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I opted for the Caesar salad, which was dry as a bone and utterly unremarkable, but I washed it down with a quite lovely Yule Tai that countered my disappointment.
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Husband had the smoked tomato soup which he said was tasty if not plentiful.
Their beer?
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Nice doggie glass withstanding, nothing to rave about.
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A very large Santa was on the second floor and we watched a few tipsy patrons climb up to have their picture taken with him.
Talking with our neighbor at the bar, we discovered there are actually four Batson Rivers scattered in southern Maine, each one with their own personality, menu and cocktails.
Intrigued, and with nothing planned for dinner… we decided to drive to Biddeford and check out another one.
It was barely 20 degrees and with the wind gusting it felt like 5… but we persevered.
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If the trolls could take it, so could we.
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It really was a beautiful way to spend an evening.
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So many places to explore, each one prettier than the last.
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If you’re wondering why I have so many pictures of the lighted sea and lighthouse, it’s because my husband found someone to talk to and I had to wait for his conversation to finish.
We opted for a peaceful holiday this year, no travel no party no family, just a quiet day at home with a slow roasted turkey dinner.
And that’s where it went horribly wrong.
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Because turkey’s not supposed to be green.
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But ours was when I pulled it out of the fridge to cook this morning.
It was a fresh bird I purchased on the 20th with a sell by date of the 26th… but clearly the big storm that knocked out power last week claimed this gobbler as victim.
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Good thing I made lasagna last night because it looks like it’s leftovers for us.
By the time we finished the craft show and museum at the college we were famished, not to mention thirsty, and headed for a restaurant I’d heard good things about in Bangor called Timber.
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Upon entry we saw snow globe dining had made a return. This started during Covid and people liked the private option so much some places have continued the trend.
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I don’t want to eat in a plastic bubble, but to each their own.
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Timber was named to reflect the logging heritage of Northern Maine…
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So rustic woods met casual elegance in the decor.
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Being with my husband, naturally we sat at the bar.
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Which is never my first choice, but it is closer to the cocktails so I don’t complain too loudly.
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Round one? A blood orange cranberry margarita.
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Timber’s cocktail menu is multi paged and varied and I happily sampled a few.
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Round two was a Stoli blueberry fog with a fantastic elderflower foam. The only thing wrong with it was the size of the glass. Bring me a pitcher!
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Yes, there was food. Perfectly prepared crab cakes with spicy corn relish for me.
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French onion soup for the husband. He was a bit disappointed in this as it wasn’t the traditional preparation… but I thought it was wonderful.
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Round 3 for me was a Hendricks cucumber cooler. Crisp, green and herbal. Perfect.
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Loggers on the way to the rest room.
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Brick oven forest mushroom pizza with arugula and fontina cheese for me. Hand tossed and so rich I barely got through half… but it was heavenly.
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Butternut squash ravioli with cranberries, feta cheese, tomatoes and spinach for my other half. Thankfully he loved this.
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When it came to dessert I drank mine off the special menu.
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A sugar cookie martini. I don’t usually like these over sweetened concoctions but in place of pie? It works.
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Husband opted for lemon meringue cheesecake and coffee.
Heck, someone had to drive…. and it certainly wasn’t going to be me.
River's world..... 