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Orange Events Calendar

Amherst Area

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North Quabbin

At the Orange Library

FOOD NEWS - 

Olive Branch - Good Morning Athol, across from the Athol Daily News,  is now the Olive Branch operated by Tammy Drouin who's husband Ed runs New England Seafood in uptown Athol.

The Brunch Box in Athol has become the Retro Cafe.

The Country Store - in Petersham has been leased by Rick Wilkins of Phillipston. He promised a return to an inventory of practical items, penny candy and to hours designed to meet the needs of people returning home from work in the evenings. The store has expanded its hours and added six dinners to its menu. a different entree each day of the week except Sundays.

Country Style Pizza at 11 Tunnel Street Athol has closed.

1880 House Closed - The 1880 House in Orange, a great stop along the way for a sandwich and coffee, closed. The restaurant offered an interesting menu of salads, wraps, grilled wraps and 11 different toasted paninni. 

Copper Angel For Sale - The owners are concentrating on their bakery in Warwick for now. Stay tuned for updates. The property is now listed as being for sale.

 Tea Garden Asian Grill, the former Chef Wok near Athol Town Hall and Starrett's Quick service, food served hot and reasonable lunch prices.

BROTHERS BISTRO GETS A REVIEW

Hi there,

~Just wanted to give a brief, but positive review…the tuna salad sandwich I had was great! It was fresh and tasty. I really like the bread they use. My daughter got the turkey dinner. She said it was excellent. The staff was very friendly. 

I’ll definitely go there again soon. -- NW -- 12/08

RENAMED - Good Morning Athol has changed its name and is expanding is menu under new ownership.

Best Meal Deal - Lunch

Anne's Dairy Drive-in, on 2A -

Serendipty - on 2A across from Anne's - good seafood platter. Ice cream, etc. 

Villa Pizza, formerly Dona's II is open on Route 2A. Pizza, etc. in a large dining room or takeout.  

ASIAN CHOICES are to be found in the region and China Gourmet, just east of the Route 2 Rotary on Route 2A in Greenfield need apologize to no one. It is the best of the regional bunch. A robust banquet of traditional Asian offerings has been augmented by fresh sushi dishes. Just a good place for those who aspire to eat with chopsticks.

Looking for Lunch in Gardner? Stop in for the buffet at Yen Yen near Ocean State Job Lot and Aubuchon Hardware. Fresh Bok Choy and gingery sauces on offer along with a bottomless bowl of tasty hot and sour soup. Under $10.

Shelburne Coffee Roasters on Route 2. Pastries and  locally roasted fresh coffee. A good quick stop when out on the road.

The Black Crow Tavern  -- closed

Roadside Reviewed (SEASONAL) : We tried the  burger and ribs at Carter & Stevens last evening.  Great, really great... everything was done to near perfection.  Best burger I think I've ever had (from their own, grass-fed herd) and ribs, crispy on the outside, moist and tender inside, made even more delicious with some of their homemade sauce. Friendly, attentive grillmaster and other folk working there. Don't ignore the ice cream for afters. I also give it (have only tried the coffee flavor, so far) rave reviews.  Made from the milk of their own cows, and wonderful.  The last evenings for the barbeque this season are soon upcoming (8/31 and 9/1/07)...so don't miss it. MM FLYNN

Tea House Restaurant, 326 East Main, Orange. A completely renovated building and a friendly staff  along with a broad selection of typical Asian food dishes will likely make The Tea House a permanent and much welcomed addition to the area's list of restaurants. Entree ingredients are fresh and the "hot" dishes can be tuned to your palate. Owner Kan So of Manchester, N.H. has added a much-needed  and much appreciated stopping place to the North Quabbin's list of places to eat out.

The Big Fish - Inland Waterway - Miami, FL. If you get to Miami, definitely go to this place. Sit outside on the stone quay by the canal and watch the manatee chase the minnows. The tug boats and cargo ships alone are the best show in town. Even if the Italian seafood was not excellent, this would be worth it.

Yummy Garden - South Barre - Uninspiring but capable presentation of Sichuan and Cantonese dishes. Capable service and fresh ingredients. The hot and sour soup is pretty good and lunch from the special menu is under seven bucks.

Country Mischief - Templeton Common. We had a good potato and leek soup the other day. If you have to shop for kitschy Americana, then stop for lunch at the same time.

McCusker's Market - Miller's Falls, a grocery with a deli full of tasty sandwiches and dishes. McCusker's is busy on spring and autumn weekends, packed full of good energy. A great place to stop for a sandwich and some soup with coffee. The deli has a broad selection of tasty cheeses.

Anne's Dairy Drive-In - (SEASONAL) with a full menu of  the usual in ice cream, fried clams and haddock and burgers, pastrami and hot dogs. Park and eat in your car or at an outside picnic table. Best on sunny days. New Athol Road in Orange.

Orange House of Pizza - Day in and day out, standard vriety of pizzas and sub sandwiches.

202 Restaurant and Driving Range - Herrick's Tavern. On the Daniel Shays Highway near Route 2. Enthusiastic young staff delivers reasonably priced entrees for lunch, at the outdoor window and in the Tavern. They also have batting cages and live music.

REVIEW
March 09 - "Lunch at Kristina's...a group of eight went for lunch and were all very pleased. The prices were reasonable and the service was good. Three of us chose Mama's Lasagna and were glad we did. The portions were beyond huge, easily able to feed two. It was the best lasagna I have ever had. There was a choice of meat or meatless sauce. The meat sauce tasted so homemade that I think Mama was in the kitchen. The cheese and sauce were plentiful. It came with salad and some of the best warm rolls I've ever eaten. All this for $10.95!! Others had the two slice pizza lunch special...two huge pieces with anything they wanted on the slices. Those plus a soda for $5.95. Some had grinders and wraps. Don't forget the canolis! They were crisp and freshly filled with a delectable filling and chocolate chips at either end. It's a definite return for us.

If you are heading west, Kristina's is in Erving on the Mohawk Trail in the building formerly occupied by the Smokin' Hippo

Burgers and Beer - Now at the Corner Pub in Athol. Dishing lunch up from a new kitchen. Weekend entertainment.

Dona's Pizza II - serves up a traditional Italian Pizza menu in Athol's upper common. Limited seating but a busy take out and all-day delivery business.

Closed in Orange - The new Chicken Coop Restaurant on East River Street which opened in early February 09 to serve family-style food, no alcohol at the former Mike's Place closed in December. Re-opened as Mike's Place.

Closed in Orange - Lion Den Pub.

Barre's newest pizza shop, Northeast Pizza in the Quabbin shopping plaza on Route 122 offers no surprises, no excitement, just a dependable standard offering of pizza, salads, subs and Calzones. $1.99 small sub monthly special. The foot is hot and good - if a bit heavy on the salt - and served quickly with a smile. Prices are average.

McKusker's Market, Shelburne Falls, produces fresh and healthy sandwich choices for residents and travelers. Dean's Beans supplies the coffee and the cookies are to die for.

Eddie's - 460 South Street in Athol, REVISITED  A first visit to Eddie's more than a year ago was a disappointment. We finally went back this week and found this bastion of the "American" menu working better this time. The wait staff was friendly and attentive, the Fisherman's platter was ample and nicely cooked in fresh oil; a pasta dish came with ravioli, meatball and sausage. But the requested extra tartar sauce never materialized, a cup of tea was served with neither lemon nor milk. The waitress forgot to ask about a choice of soup or salad. Overall, the devil is in the details. There is plenty of room for improvement, especially with prices rising toward $20 entrees.

Lazy Mary's Pizzeria & Bakery opened in Hardwick August 17. On a recent Thursday night, we found a busy pizza shop offering thin crust Italian brick oven Pizza, fast and friendly service and fresh ingredients at prices in-line with other pizza makers around the region. Small pizza starts at $7.99, large plain at $11.99. Wendy Westman said she and her husband Bill, hired in Santo Bruno, captain of the U.S. Pizza Team (who even knew we had one?) to help with training. Take out, eat in or sit outside on a spacious porch. Delivery to Petersham, at least, is in the works. Wendy said the shop makes the dough fresh every day and uses fresh tomatoes in the home-made sauce. The menu begins with 11 pizza choices. Or you can pick your own toppings. Start or finish with three salad choices, garlic knots or Sausage Rolls.

The Ale House - downtown Gardner - is a comfortable space that has operated in the past as Papillon and as Il Forno.  In this incarnation, the same brick walls are the main decoration. A retort for micro-brewing has been added at the rear. We stopped for lunch the other day and tried a rack of ribs, a pastrami reuben and a burger. Beverages included two cups of coffee and a lemonade. The ribs were the best of the three offerings with a thick sauce. The service was excellent and the ribs were good. The burger was pedestrian and the pastrami decidedly middle of the road. For $57 (including tip) we  expected better.

Oriental House Route 2A west of Orange center has been many things over the years, including, on occasion, a good place to eat. We stopped in for lunch the other day on advice of a friend and were pleasantly surprised by tasty, well-presented Asian food. Service was fast - the meal was tasty and moderately priced. A good place to eat again.

Pete n Henry's - We took a ride by Pete and Henry's in Royalston the other day and wondered how we had strayed so far and so long from a regional classic. If you hanker for heaps of fries and clams with bellies - beef or a personal pizza - go there. Its still a traditional New England roadside seafood and other stuff kind of place even though the original owners have long since passed  it on to new owners willing to keep on doing what works. Head north on 202 and turn left just under Route 2. It's out there in South Royalston.

Equus - formerly Bill's Place - Formerly known as The Norway on the way to Orange on Route 2A East Main Street. - The food is plain country roadside fare at moderate prices.

Picasso, a Mediterranean Grill, The Common, Barre in the space formerly known as Ricco's.  -  Ari Pugliesi, former manager of  The Country Store, has opened his own restaurant. It's a family affair - Chris is the fry cook - featuring a fresh and interesting menu with a Mediterranean touch. Entrees are $12.95 to $15.95. Picasso now has a liquor license .

Johnson's Sugarhouse Restaurant and Gift Shop. Wheeler Ave., Orange. Roadside, Done Right! The Johnson family has grown from a farm to a sugar house to a restaurant and gift house. We stopped on a Friday to sample the spare ribs. A slightly sweet, with a maple-flavored sauce just slid off the bone. A true delight. Home-made doughnuts, biscuits and a fair weather side porch for ice cream makes this drive into the country truly worth traveling - and sometimes waiting - for. Johnson's is no secret, so arrive early or plan to wait.. 

Patriots Roast Beef and Grill, East Templeton. Settled into an extended doublewide trailer on the edge of an auto repair shop parking lot, the owners have been serving up great pastrami, ribs and roast beef and have recently added pizza. Modest prices and quick service combine to make this a real surprise. Across the street from the Cumberland Farms on Patriots Road.

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Seven Dragons or is it eight? - Victory Plaza, Athol. Don't go there.

Cinnamon's, Main Street in Downtown Athol, features moderately priced meals, a huge overflow dining room and the occasional inspired deviation from standard fare - the Quesadilla was a tasty menu addition the other day.

McDonalds - Route 2A and Daniel Shays Highway. What can we say? Eat in or take out. Need a burger for a buck? Or a chicken sandwich for the same price? Go here. Cheapest eat in the region short of the Orange Food Pantry - where  food is free.

New England Sea Food Restaurant - Near the State Police Barracks Upper Common, Athol. The only seafood restaurant that features theme weeks  like "Mexican" and "Southwest" cuisine. Eat here if you like fish or fried and your friend wants something else.

Miss Saigon - Main Street, Amherst. Excellent for those who appreciate Vietnamese food.

 Pizza Factory - Center of Orange - Another as expected menu with quick service on subs and pizza. Takeout and delivery available.

Athol House of Pizza - aka AHOP -A veteran with the expected toppings and reasonable prices for sandwiches and pizza. A wide selection of dinner items. Moderately priced. Open 7 days. Delivers in Athol.

Latchis Grille, 6 Flat St., Brattleboro VT. New American cuisine, elegant, relaxed. On-site brewery.

Del Raye Bar & Grille, 1 Bridge St., Noho. Swanky like in New York. French-American menu.