Visiting a new place is always exciting. The sights, the sounds, the people – and of course, the food.
As you’ve seen over the years, we like our food, especially when the company decides to pick up the tab. And since you can’t really experience a new location without taste-testing some of the local fare, part of our trip to Penacook, Canterbury and Boscawen included a few stops to put some tasty meals in our stomachs.
The Newell Post
Since even we are still confused as to where Penacook begins (it’s somewhere along Fisherville Road), we asked around for a good spot in Penacook for breakfast. And since the Newell Post considers their establishment in Penacook – they even make reference to it being on the Concord/Penacook border on the back of the menu – we thought, “Why not?”
The hardest part was deciding what to have. We finally settled on the half farmers breakfast, which comes with two eggs (scrambled), home fries, a pancake, bacon and sausage. It was a good way to get a taste of a bunch of different offerings for one affordable price. And it did not disappoint. The eggs were fluffy and the home fries were cooked perfectly with a nice seasoning.
The bacon was on the thicker side and had a smoky flavor, and the sausage patty was seared to our liking. The pancake was denser than we’re used to, but it still got polished off. We also got a grilled blueberry muffin once we heard it was made there – as are all the breads. So don’t forget to check out the glass case of baked goods up front, trust us.
The Smoke Shack
As you probably saw in the Lake Sunapee Region Insider, we love our BBQ, so a trip to The Smoke Shack in Boscawen was a perfect fit.
Again, the only problem was figuring out what to order (that would stay within our budget).
You can’t beat a smoked pulled pork, which we opted for in a meal version with homemade mac and cheese, cajun fries and cornbread.
Instead of being doused in BBQ sauce, the tender pork came dry with just a great smoky flavor and it was up to us to decide what kind of sauce to put on it. The table had four options – Spicy BBQ (chipotle-based), Sweet BBQ (ketchup-based), Carolina BBQ (vinegar-based) and Tangy BBQ (mustard-based). You really can’t go wrong with any of them.
The mac and cheese was creamy with a nice crust, and the handcut cajun fries had a little heat, but tasted great; the cornbread was flavorful and moist.
Alan’s of Boscawen
For another lunch/dinner option, we had to go to Alan’s. We had heard so much about their prime rib and great menu, it made perfect sense.
Once again, we faced a tough decision after hearing about the haddock, roast beef sandwich and all-you-can-eat special. Luckily we were told by a regular about the burgers. So why not get the Alan’s Signature Burger – just with a slight twist. Instead of Swiss, we went for cheddar and opted against the mushrooms, but the crispy bacon paired with the onion strings and chipotle aioli made this half-pound burger one we could easily go back for again and again. It also left us quite curious about the rest of the menu And just so you know, the fries were good, too.
Other options
Since we can only eat so much in a day (or week), there are lots of great spots we just couldn’t make it to. But that doesn’t mean we can’t tell you about them.
If you’re looking for a pizza/sub spot, Penacook is home to Chief’s Place, Donatellos and Constantly. CC Tomatoes does brick-oven pizza, but has quite the full Italian menu as well.
And if you’re in Boscawen, Kapelli’s Pizzeria is an option.
Asian Taste and Szechuan Garden have your Chinese food cravings covered.
There shouldn’t be any reason to leave this area hungry.
