No Cliché Here: Why Mom's Home Cookin' Rocks

Before I go misleading the masses I'm not talking about my Mom.

First off, I can say masses now because I added the Google Analytics code to my pages and am obsessively tracking and analyzing my traffic... "masses" might be a tad aggressive, but I have a few followers. Google is so amazing. I don't even need to go into this because I can't say anything people don't already know but the fact that I can sit here in my house, create this blog, apply analytics, tweak pages or link to them from other sites and instantly see the results for free is a thing of beauty. As an out of work marketer, the ability to leverage these tools, and stay fresh in my given profession is pretty cool. I heart Google. It's also so unbelievably user friendly a child could use it. As evidenced by the fact that I have figured this all out with zero help.

Midge Chillin By the Wood Stove

Anyway, about Mom. She is my Mom now but this is Dana's mother we're talking about... and while we're at it, his Dad also rocks because this cooking thing is a collaborative effort, among many other reasons. It's not that my Mom is a bad cook, she just doesn't cook a ton. Although strangely, it seems like she has started cooking more since my Dad retired. One would think she would have made more meals while the poor guy was working everyday but he was always the primary sustenance creator when he was doing the daily grind. However, none of that is really the point.

Dana's parents typically make a point of celebrating all of our birthdays with a special home cooked meal. It usually includes one of our favorite dishes or a dessert we particularly enjoy. They are great cooks and they have a few things they make regularly that are crowd pleasers - Swedish meatballs, homemade baked beans, pizza, these awesome hot dogs in BBQ sauce - yes, sounds simple but it's soooo good.

They also do a turkey dinner for both Thanksgiving and Christmas, which is beyond awesome. Didn't get enough in November? Fear not - there is another one coming in a month! When they toy with replacing the Christmas feast with something else, say a roast beef, it sends panic throughout the family. For Easter, it's an awesome ham with a variety of amazing side dishes... and there in lies why Mom's home cookin rocks.

Erik Being a Sport on His Birthday

Dana's parents have always taken a smorgasbord approach to family dinners and it's pretty much the best thing ever. At just about every meal there is a meat dish or two. In the summer they might grill chicken and steak or swordfish (Dad is possibly the best griller on the planet), but then there will be 4-5 awesome sides all made from scratch. Potato or pasta salad, green bean casserole, antipasto or fresh veggies from the garden. On our most recent trip down to the homestead, it was Erik's birthday and the amazing meal consisted of:

Meatballs & Pasta


Hot Dogs & Brats in BBQ Sauce


Moussaka (my recipe!) & Eggplant Parm


A Very Pretty Antipasto


Amazing Carrot Cake (Erik's Fav)


Apple Crisp

I mean honestly, can you think of anything more amazing? What a delicious and wide spectrum of hunger abating options. The other thing that's so special about meals at home is that they have a garden that's bigger than most people's backyards. They live on several hundred (?) secluded acres in the northwest corner of R.I. where you can't even see their closest neighbor from their yard. I might be exaggerating how much land they have but it's a whole lot. They regularly have families of deer prancing around back there (extreme measures are taken to keep them from munching said vegetable garden) and Mom said there was a little fox back there a few weeks ago.

Their garden is huge and requires a ton of energy and effort but yields fresh vegetables at every stage of the season. Asparagus and rhubarb in the earlier months, green beans, zucchini and tomatoes in mid summer, eggplants, fresh herbs and to top it off - fresh corn as the summer months start to wane! What's great is that they freeze and jar this stuff so they have fresh frozen produce all year. Love strawberry rhubarb pie (it's my favorite) - you can have a fresh from the garden (almost) one on your birthday - and Mom's pie crust is pretty much the best I have ever tasted. Super light and flaky and delicious.

They make a whole variety of jams, sauces, the best tomato soup ever, pickles and they freeze enough veggies that you’re eating corn that tastes like they just shucked it in February. These people are industrious and probably put you to shame. Don't feel bad. They are also the nicest, kindest, most thoughtful people I know. We are very lucky to have them. I'm sure they are blushing. Good, they should blush. They’re awesome.

My Typical & Bountiful Plate

My birthday happens to fall on Easter this year and it’s always so close to Easter that we typical do a two-fer which I don’t mind cause I love the whole ham and potato salad deal and usually there is a strawberry rhubarb pie to be had. We also have the annual Easter egg hunt in which Mom hides plastic eggs for each of us that contain riddles and you have to solve the riddle hidden inside your egg to get to the next one. At the end there is a basket filled with fun stuff. This never gets old and I think we’re all afraid that one day she will think we’re too old for it and stop doing it. Plus… coming up with all those riddles every year has to be difficult.

Anyway, I had to give a shout out to the elder Woulfes because they're awesome people who make great meals that make our tummies happy. Dana and I can only aspire to be like them one day... and for that to happen, he needs to be more helpful in the kitchen and handier around the house. He will kill me for saying that. He thinks he's very handy. He's getting there.

A Contradiction in Names: Good Times at the Anything BUT Enormous Room & Reflections on the Best Weekend of My Life

Kenji looking fabulous as usual. Everyone we know assembled for a common goal and a really rockin sound track. Could anything be better? Only more room for dancing! Our favorite DJs made magic Friday night at the Enormous Room in Cambridge and the only thing that could have made it more fun is if they got rid of all those lethal glass tables scattered around the place for no other purpose but to take up perfectly good gettin down space!

It's still a little unclear to me what the theme was for the night. It was Mel and Greg's collective birthday's - theme 1. But the night was billed as Wedding Crack by our friend's Soul Clap and DJ Vuitton - theme 2. However, it seemed like an excuse for a bunch of people who hadn't seen each other in a while to get together, fight massive crowds, drink expensive cocktails and generally have a good time while crammed into a very small space - theme 3. Either way, a good time was had by all.

Me & Beth Muggin - I Swear My Eyeshadow Looked Normal When I left the House

Dana may have had too good a time and wasn't happy when he had to board a cross Atlantic flight on Saturday evening for a 3 week trip to Amsterdam. I know... poor Dana. He's actually working out of Nike's EMEA HQ in Hilversum with some market travel sprinkled in, but hopping on a plane was not topping his list of desired activities after Friday night's festivities.

Anyway, the guys from Soul Clap DJ'ed our wedding along with our friend Oliver and I believe it was the first time they had ever paired up for a tag team effort. We feel really lucky cause these guys are no slouches. They're super, fantastic, amazing DJs and the fact that they hauled it up to Maine on a holiday weekend to spin at our wedding was pretty decent. They put together a spectacular mash up that would please the fairly diverse crowd we had assembled. You're dancing to Madonna when all of a sudden it segues into Otis Redding... Parliament... Biggie... Bel Biv DeVoe. What crowd wouldn't be pleased? We couldn't drag some of our older guests off the dance floor and they easily spun for a full 6 hours.

That's the best part of getting married in a non-traditional location. We rented the entire summer camp so we could essentially go as late as we wanted and when everyone was danced out we moved the party down to the camp fire. I'm pretty sure the motivation for Friday night at Enormous Room was to recreate the magic that was the wedding tag team mash up and they were pretty successful. They ought to get a monthly residency or something because it was a lot of fun.

I Promise I'm Having More Fun Than I Appear to Be

It's a Nightclub, Right?

So I get that on other nights, Enormous Room is a chill little lounge-y place and the whole couches and dangerous glass coffee table aesthetic makes more sense when all those MIT kids are waxing poetic about solar cell efficiency, but on a Friday night when it's guaranteed to be a mob scene and you have super popular DJs spinning, can't you stash those tables somewhere? I get there would be nowhere for people to put their drinks but perhaps someone needs to rethink this layout. I mean, I feel for the cocktail waitresses in this place. There is one bar at the end of this bowling alley of a corridor so why muck up the lanes with all these sharp edged tables? Why not just sprinkle a few little wooden cubes around or something? I dunno.

Dana Terrorizing Tim; Tim Looking Dapper

I've been there to rock out to other great DJs like Certified Bananas but the sound kinda sucks (which is another issue entirely) and it's just not very conducive to dancing which seems a little ironic. At the end of the day, it really doesn't matter because if you get all your people out and everyone is in the proper mindset, the utter lack of enormity doesn't really matter.

This Double Cheeseburger is Not for Sissy's

Before we went to the not so Enormous Room, we enjoyed a lovely meal at the Green Street Grill. Once again, the place was mobbed in typical 'Cambridge on a Friday night' fashion and I wonder how the wait staff doesn't go totally crazy and start flinging food at people as they fight their way past the throngs that stand 4 and 5 deep at the bar - the only thruway to the dining room. These poor people have hot plates stacked on their arms and have to balance trays of drinks as they navigate this minefield of dimwits, many of whom seem completely unaware that there are servers struggling to get through with some one's dinner. I couldn't do that job. I'm just not a nice enough person.

Wedding Rewind

The best thing about this weekend is that we had our entire wedding party in town with the exception of Scoobs. Steve couldn't make it for undisclosed reasons but I think it has something to do with not being able to handle my awesomeness. That or his big show coming up on March 5th which I will sadly miss. My sadness will be quickly abated by the joy I will feel when I land in one of my favorite European cities. Sorry Steve. I know your show will be awesome though.

Christie was here from Aspen, my sister drove up from NYC and well... everyone else lives here but they all came out which was pretty awesome. Just to remember what we're talking about, our wedding was a magical weekend over Labor Day at a kids summer camp in Fryeburg, Maine. All our friends came and spent the weekend, sleeping in cabins and living like campers.

Simple Life at Camp

The Scene on Saturday Night at the Wedding

The Start of Something Brilliant!

We had a big ole BBQ on Saturday with a great bluegrass band, a collaborative painting (thanks Josh), campfire, s'mores, sing-a-longs, etc. We had use of all the camp facilities so during the day, we were swimming in the Saco River, playing all kinds of group sports - basketball, tennis, Frisbee, whathaveyou.

The Southern Maine Pickin' Society

Good Form Oondah!

Mel Gets Nice on the Court

Dana and his cohorts tried to coordinate a decathlon which I don't think was wildly successful. But mainly people just spent a lot of time outdoors, spraying themselves down with bug spray and acting like kids. It was such an awesome time and I think people were excited to see each other this weekend and recreate some of the camaraderie that comes with sleeping in a cabins together and sharing meals at camp.

Ample Bug Spray Application (Even in Your Wedding Dress) Is Critical

I literally saw about 20 people I hadn't seen since the wedding so I was really happy, regardless of the intended theme and the relative smallness of the room. I know I was going to talk about a cheeseburger and I will, but posting photos from the wedding is fun so I will just add a few more. P.S. These are not my photos so I have to give credit to our photographer Leesha Boylan, as well as Josh, Mel, Sheryl, and whoever else might have snapped these. I'll admit it... I am a photo appropriate-er but at least I give proper credit.

Very Serious Sporting Endeavors: Fish, Sheryl & Fumika Create a New Olympic Challenge

Mel Channels Nicole Richie

Olivia's Signature Outfit

More Extreme Sports

The McAllister Clan & Cutest Baby EVER

The Campfire Scene at Night

It's Weird They're Both Making That Face


A Little Taste of the Gettin Down: Erik, Kristen & Alyssa Cut a Rug With Mom


A Lil Rope Jumpin?


Greg Does Some Russian Dancin


These Two Are Just So Pretty I Had To Post This


I Really Have No Idea What Is Happening Here



Oh Right, And the Actual Wedding Part!


Christie Reading Dante

Pretty Ladies


My College Crew (Steve Who Could Finish the Burger Far Left - No One Is Judging)


Scuba Steve and Marion


We Did Get a Serious Photo; This Isn't It

So, getting all the people together this weekend that made our wedding so beyond awesome was a treat. It was like people heard the words "Elle & Dana's Wedding" and they were canceling their plans to come out. That's how you know your wedding was pretty rockin. When people wanna have a reunion.

These Are The Awesome DJs (Minus Charlie - No Dis; Just Couldn't Find a Good Shot and This One is Priceless - Copyright Josh Falk)

Our DJs were so totally amazing that weekend that people couldn't stop themselves from having fun if they tried and the same thing was happening on Friday. People were dancing even if they usually don't . I love seeing that. Dancing is so healthy. It makes you smile on the inside. Regardless of what the whole point of this Enormous Room thing was - it got all our friends out on a Friday night and for that, I'm super thankful to Eli, Charlie and Oliver. It was a cool little wedding reunion for us.

Back to That Burger

Bet ya didn't think I'd start talking about food again! So at Green Street they do a lot of nice, sophisticated meals with things like pork belly and truffles. Things that have been reduced and emulsified. On this particular night however, our entire party was famished. I'm talking... nothing more than a handful of grapes and a little piece of cheese to eat in the past 8 hours hungry. Therefore, not so shockingly, we all ordered the bacon double cheeseburger. This isn't your average double stack. The thing is huge and quite delicious. I am forever forgetting to photograph my meals so I had to take a picture of Steve's cause he was the only one who couldn't handle it and left enough for me to get a decent depiction.

Fuzzy Photo of The Burger Steve Couldn't Finish

The do some really nice starters at Green Street and we had a few orders of the short rib which is served bone-in with a green papaya salad and the lobster fritters which are essentially like little lobster filled dough balls fried to a nice golden brown. I grew up in R.I. so I always think a fritter is going to be like a clam cake which is very doughy and chewy but this was nice and light. We also had an order of mussels which come in a coconut-red curry-lobster broth with cherry tomatoes & basil. They were good but not as good as the ones we had at the Portsmouth Brewery. Those were the best mussels in a curry broth I have EVER had. Yum. The food there is quite good.

Vodka Gimlet - Fresh Lime Juice

Green Street will also mix you a proper cocktail and they have a lovely selection of beer and wine. Had we not been in such a rush to squeeze ourselves into the tiny room, I might have explored more. The bartender made a point of letting me know he would be using fresh lime juice for my gimlet which I prefer as it has a tart but not tangy taste and is more refreshing and less cloyingly sweet. It was quite good. I had another at the Enormous Room which paled in comparison.

So, that's all I got. This was a rambler. Sorry about that. Big burgers, fabulous weddings, nightclubs that are too small, totally awesome DJs that rock my world. It's all places I have been and things I have eaten, and at the end of the day, idle hands are the devil's playthings and we don't want the devil toying with my hands.

Dim Sum Roundup! Eastie's Other Pizza Sensation & a Lovely Meal I Never Would Have Thought to Make

So before I start rambling about a bunch of stuff I have shoved in my mouth lately, let me first begin by saying how much I enjoy shredding. Not in the cool "I love shredding gnar" kind of way, although I like that too, but in the actual act of putting little pieces of paper through a shredder. Nothing gives me more pleasure. Okay, that might be a slight overstatement. I don't know what it is but there's something very cathartic about taking bills, and other potential targets for identity thieves and methodically feeding them through the groaning teeth of the shredder.

We used to have a lame-o shredder that you could only put one piece of paper through at a time, although I think Dana went a bit overboard shoving fully stuffed envelopes in there which caused it to malfunction until it finally died with a sad little wheeze. When it was time to invest in a new one, I went no holds bared (what does that even mean???) and bought a semi-industrial strength variety that kicks ass and can shred several pieces of paper at once. It claims it will shred a credit card but I don't want a repeat performance of the last Titanic so I haven't tried that. I can handle cutting them up into tiny pieces with scissors. I sort of enjoy that too.

Anyway... I save up a bunch of "to be shredded" items which doesn't take very long considering I have all our mail, plus Gram's (I handle the finances of my elderly grandmother and get all her mail) and once a week or so, I sit down to get my shred on. I systematically feed all the credit card offers, paid bills and old bank statements into the shredder with unfiltered abandon. After a few pieces, I find myself turning into a drooling zombie. It's very strange. The thing puts me into a total trance and when I realize I'm finished, I go through a mini-withdrawal. Thank goodness there will be more shreddin to be done next week!

Marge Looks Smug. She Didn't Get Any Pizza.

So now that that's outta the way, I will explain the concept for the Dim Sum Roundup. I'm not sure I'm sold on the title yet. I need something catchy. I had thought about a rotating theme like mixed nuts, trail mix, party mix, etc. but Dana said it should be the same every time so people know what to expect. Yes, all my legions of fans will be so confused when I change up the title of my mixed bag post each week! But that's the idea. I go so many places and eat so many things I can't possibly keep up with it and as you may have noticed, I can be a bit loquacious so in an effort to shorten some of them up, I will mash a few into one and brand it something brilliant. Mashed thoughts? So much for making this a short one. Oondah thinks I need to work on my "readability"... I think he needs to work on his ability to read.


On with the show. Let's see. Everything is a retrospective these days. I'm going back two weeks to that sad night the Lakers beat the Celtics (again) by one point. Ugh. Stupid Kobe. That would have been Thursday, February 5th. I'm cooking a lot these days which means we don't order out much. I have been experimenting with the slow cooker because I have the luxury of throwing something in at noon and being home when it's finished. Anyway, with all this culinary genius going on, we miss some of our favorite local take out options. When I tell people I live in East Boston, even if they have lived in the greater Boston area their entire lives, they often have no idea where (exactly) my neighborhood is. However, with a little prodding they typically come up with that one constant, recognizable Eastie landmark. Santarpio's.

Sometimes There's DOUGH!

Sure, Santarpio's is great. I'm a huge fan. I find myself standing in their kitchen to pick up a pie inside a plain paper bag on many an evening. I love the semi-spicy sauce and the cornmeal crunch of the crust, but most people don't realize that this long beloved tradition isn't the only game in town. Enter Dough. Man do I love this place. It's right around the corner from our house but we typically have it delivered. They do thin crust pies and make all their dough from scratch. Ironically, if you call too late, they are sometimes out of dough which prompted our friend Beth to suggest they change their name. Maybe, Not so Much Dough... or Outta Dough. I thought a good one would be Yes! We Have No Dough. Anyway, they do pretty creative stuff with a pizza and here are our favorites in no particular order:

The Hawaiian - a white pizza topped with prosciutto, pineapple and dried coconut.

The Backyard BBQ - a light layer of BBQ sauce topped with grilled chicken & yellow corn; finished with cheese & fresh red onion.

The Z-berg -A red based pizza with prosciutto & caramelized onion.

On this particular night we had the Z-berg, the Hawaiian and the Hi I'm Lyla which I really liked and everyone else tolerated. It's a white pizza with pesto, artichoke hearts, goat cheese, roasted red peppers and Kalamata olives. We had our good friends and neighbors A+B over for the game that night and I think I was the only one eating the Lyla.

A few notes on these tasty creations. The Hawaiian is something special. Notice that it doesn't have any sauce??? Crazy, I know. It's totally amazing though. A thing of beauty. Very light and sweet and tasty. The BBQ is a bit tangy but Dana loves it. The first time we got it I was turned off by the corn. That's something the British do... put wacky things on pizza that don't belong there. When I used to go over to the U.K. for my old job, I wanted to ask them "why do you feel the need to muck up a perfectly good pizza with corn and chickpeas and spinach?" but then I remembered where I was and that ruining perfectly good food was something of an art form. The Z-berg is addictive. It's got that blend of sweet and savory that will make you eat well beyond your capacity.

Beyond the Za

Anyway, Dough is pretty awesome even if they do run out of dough sometimes. When that happens, I'm perfectly happy to order one of their bomb sandwiches which are also made with meticulous attention to detail and lots of fresh, creative ingredients. You can't go wrong with the Vermonter (maple turkey, smoked Gouda, bacon, sliced green apple and red onion w/ sun dried tomato mayo served on thick multi grain and baked), or the Turkey Gobbler (you can figure it out). Dana loves the Border Street Special (chicken cutlet topped with thinly sliced prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella, roma tomato and fresh basil, drizzled with balsamic vinaigrette and served on a braided roll) and as I sit here, I'm dying to try Randy's Roast Beef (tender roast beef, caramelized onions, roasted red peppers, topped with cheddar and a creamy horseradish sauce, served on a braided roll).

I can usually get away with eating half a sandwich and saving the other half for lunch the next day. Dana houses the whole thing. They also make an awesome Cuban and have some really great boneless wings. I can't say enough great things about this place. It's run by two very nice young men (I sound like my grandma) and they really do put a lot of care into the food they make. Wow... I'm hungry now.

Meat!

It's funny how you can live so close to people and talk to them so frequently but then go long stretches of time without seeing them. We try to schedule outings with friends and family members so it's not months in between visits (Oondah and Kenji are the only people we see nowadays with excruciating regularity) and lately these seem to center around our favorite TV programming. What have we become? It had been a while since we had seen my brother-in-law Erik and his girlfriend Alyssa so they had us over for dinner and Lost last week.

Anyway, they made an awesome meal that consisted of deliciously marinated steak tips that were broiled in the oven and a fairly decadent butternut squash risotto. It was a great concoction. I love me some meaty mcmeat. They had marinated the steak tips overnight so they were particularly tender and Erik manned the oven like a... well, like a man. The meat was cooked perfectly. It tasted like the tips we sometimes get from Butcher Boy in North Andover which marinate in a little packet for an eternity.

What's funny is that this is the kind of meal I would never think to make. For some reason when we are having dinner guests, I think Greek feast or Indian buffet. It's like I need to experiment with other people's digestive systems whenever given the opportunity. I'm not sure why that is. I guess I see dinner guests like blank canvases. Dana is too easy. He'll eat anything and he likes everything. With guests, perhaps I hope I will pick up on their distaste for a dish by the look on their face or maybe I want unsolicited praise from someone other than the person I cook for everyday.

What struck me however, was how easy the meal seemed to come together and how untaxed the two were while we stood around the kitchen, having a drink before dinner. Had that been one of my meals, I would be tearing around the place, straining homemade cheese and toasting coconut for fresh naan. For what? So I can sit down to a meal and be a hot, sweaty mess who isn't even interested in eating what I just made?

Good looking out guys... from now on, I'm making pork chops when you come for dinner!

Economic Stimulation at Stowe's New Alpine Wonderland

So, I just got back from a three day weekend at Stowe. I still maintain that this is pretty much the best place to ski in the Northeast, but holy cow, you better save your pennies if you wanna enjoy a few days on these pristine, snow covered peaks. Stowe has always been a special place for us. Dana and I started skiing there a lot back when we first met with our old pal Sam. Back in those days it was sleeping on the floor and skiing the Big Spruce Double in arctic conditions with nary another brave soul in sight.

With the new Spruce Base Camp expansion - that old double chair has been replaced by the Sensation High Speed Quad and to our pleasant surprise - the crowds on this side of the mountain haven't increased too much - probably because of the limited amount of terrain. This is also the beginner side of the mountain with the ski school located at the base of Big Spruce. However, the Sensation Quad doesn't service any beginner terrain so most people wanting to ski the big stuff take the fancy new cross mountain gondola if they find themselves on this side and ski the front of Mansfield. We did that too but figured we could tire ourselves out by taking some power runs on the Spruce side with zero lift lines and some nice glades off Sterling.

Pointless Video

Part of Stowe's allure is that quintessential New England thing that can be found in the sleepy, snow encrusted village and driving the windy, sun kissed mountain road nestled between Mount Mansfield and Smuggs. Needless to say, Stowe is not the campy, old ski mountain it used to be. Forever, it was one of the few top notch ski resorts in the Northeast that didn't have much in the way of slopeside accommodations... until now.

The new hotel and resort pretty much blow away most base lodges in New England with the exception of maybe Tremblant but that's Canada. We all know I aspire to be Canadian so I get a little confused sometimes. The hotel and condo complex is a sprawling but tastefully designed village that meshes seamlessly with the Mount Mansfield ecosystem and resembles a picturesque ewok village. It's cute, it's chic and boy-oh-boy is it pricey!

It rivals the Stratton village but seeing as how I'm not a huge fan of Stratton, I'd say it's better. It doesn't have a bunch of shops or restaurants or anything. It's all pretty much self contained within one large system of buildings, but within that complex, there is a beautiful new high end restaurant, an awesome new base lodge with a ski repair shop and gear store, free lockers which I will talk more about in a moment, several places to get tickets, a cool new bar with a fire place and a concept cafeteria.

Fancy Islands With Lemon Water, Pepper Mills, Cream & Sugar

We didn't stay at the hotel although I am pushing for a spring ski trip for my birthday but the rooms appear to be nothing short of fabulous with all the high end amenities you could wish for and spa services on site. There is also this cool little building called the Winter Cottage which just sounds cozy and looks like a happy little hideaway just off to the edge of the property that serves lunch and dinner in a blissful wood fire warmed environ.

This Was a $13 Sandwhich... Served on a Real Plate!

I know Stowe is a little late to the game but honestly, I think their timing is just right. Many of the resorts that expanded several years ago have seen a lot of wear and tear on their slopeside accommodations. Some of the hotel rooms are a bit beat up and the amenities you shell out so much cash for leave a lot to be desired.

We love the Loaf for example. It's one of our favorite places to ski, but staying at the hotel seems pricey for what you get. The rooms aren't great and if you want a massage you have to truck it down to the gym. The Inn isn't much better as it feels like a dorm and still runs you a few hundred a night. That's sort of bogus. The hotels at Sunday River and Mt Snow are in better shape but some of the budget accommodations leave a LOT to be desired and it's not like their super affordable. Anyway, I'd rather feel like I got a great room and really enjoyed my stay if I'm going to empty my wallet anyway.

The Fancy New Spruce Base Camp & Hotel

We got engaged at Stowe last season, knee deep in snow in the Rimrock glade, but due to my employment status, a trip to China in December and a long bout of bronchitis, this was our first trip back this year. No matter how much they charge me for a lift ticket, I will always love Stowe. But I have to admit that when the cost for two 3-day lift tickets came to nearly $500, I almost asked if I would get a free lobster with that. However, we were pretty excited when we found out that all the lockers in the Spruce lodge are free!!! At least I get a place to put my gear for the bargain price of $90 a day! On Friday the mountain was empty (this was before the big holiday rush started) so there were rows and rows of empty lockers ours for the taking and the mountain was largely unpopulated. Regardless of what they get you for a lift ticket, the skiing is superb, especially if you know where to look.

Free Lockers!!!

Most of the Mansfield side is the same old Stowe. Slightly outdated, rustic, campy. You can still get a slice of pizza for $3.50 from under a heat lamp at the Midway Lodge or a hot dog in a warm silver sleeve. There is still a much too meager supply of coin operated lockers in the Mansfield base lodge and some rows of cubbies upstairs. And if you're feeling crazy, you can still stop at the Cantina (weekends only now) and have the same bartender or waitress from the past 10 years serve you a quesadilla and a beer and participate in some ridiculous apres ski contest so that you might be the lucky winner of a Corona t-shirt!

However, at the Spruce Base Camp it's all white chef hats and carving stations. The concept cafeteria includes several food stations where the culinary elite (or at least people dressed like they might be culinary elite) custom make your dish for you. These aren't hamburgers wrapped in some foily substance endorsed by NASA. These are hand shaped, hand flipped burgers made with care for each customer. I love this concept but it takes forever and it certainly isn't cheap. At a mid-day break, we split a panini for the bargain price of $13! It was good but it didn't come with a gold bar or anything.

Anyway, over the years we have stayed at a number of places in and around Stowe. We have rented the same house a number of times and have sometimes stayed at nice places, and other times opted for lower end accommodations. This trip found us at the Innsbruck Inn. This was on the lower end of the price spectrum and was really a great deal despite the photos on the website which look like they were taken before I was born. It included a pretty awesome breakfast each day which easily saved us $25 and was the closest to the mountain we have ever stayed. We did spend the first two nights without heat but not because they refused to fix it or anything... just because we didn't realize it was broken. We kinda just thought it was cold in our room.

The Scene at The Shed

One thing that never changes in Stowe is the Shed. I'm really thankful for this because I don't know if I could handle it. We look forward to this constant, reliable and welcoming beacon of hope like we look forward to spring after six months of deep freeze. They have some of the best wings on my list of places with great wings. Spicy enough to leave me with chapped lips for at least a day and their shepherds pie is something I look forward to from the moment I set my skis on the snow in the morning. But let's not forget about the Mountain Ale. We brought home three growlers because leaving it behind makes us sad. It's a strong ale but it's delicious and tastes like winter. Or like our friend Schimmy said the other day... like it was made with Christmas morning. Yummm.


It being that Hallmark of holidays this weekend, we did treat ourselves to one "special" meal at the Stowehof. I picked this place because we thought pretty seriously about getting married here. We had contemplated a winter wedding and this place was at the top of the list. Of course this was before I found my dream wedding location and realized I could pull off my Parent Trap meets Meatballs vision.

Anyway, I knew a lot about their menu, wine list, etc. and wanted to go have a meal there and I'm glad we did. It's a cute little place. Very European in a "Dana will probably whack his head on one of these low ceiling beams" kind of way. It reminded me of skiing in Switzerland a few years ago.

The food was quite good although you could tell we were screwing them up a little with our 9:00 reservation. I think we were the last people (in all of Vermont) to be seated that late. We had some oysters (unremarkable) a lovely baked brie with a super tart balsamic reduction and then Dana had a pork loin and I had a salmon with crab meat stuffing. What I was most excited about however was the thrilling cross bred cauliflower-broccoli hybrid my dish came with. This exciting little vegetable commonly known as romanesco (even the name is fun!) is particularly cool because every little spire is a miniature of the larger spindle.


We also enjoyed a nice bottle of white burgundy. It was actually a Chablis which I prefer because it's fermented in stainless steel tanks, rather than oak and I really like the tart, crisp, apple-y flavor it produces. Plus... it's a bargain! I love these wines and when I can get them out, I always do.

Anyway, it was a nice meal. Not an A+ by any means but it was quite good and not insanely expensive. We had a chocolate fondue for dessert that left a lot to be desired but again, we were by that time, the last people there. I did a good job of hiding the remaining food on my plate. Dana thinks I should start a blog all about hiding food. I could write pages about that! I just feel bad leaving food on my plate. I don't know why.

Do I think the chef will see it and be insulted? Do I wonder if my waiter is snickering as he takes my plate to the kitchen... "hahaha, that silly woman just paid for this food and didn't finish it" - as if any of them care. Yet still, I take the garnish, the scraps of leaf and shavings of parsley and as if an art form, attempt to erase all evidence of that meal I just shelled out $30 for and barely moved around the plate.

Oh well. Someone needs to be out there stimulating the economy, right?