As in, rotund?  

Literal?

Illustrative?

Abstract...

And of course, as food:

fin.

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Here goes:

Nice Melons, Wilbraham, Mass.

The Man ,The Eclair - The Big E, West Springfield, Mass.

Stunned, Cork, Ireland

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Today, I interviewed the affable Amanda at Chandler's Restaurant, for an article that will be in the Wedding Day Sourcebook.

The historic-style restaurant specializes in American fare, but is also uniquely romantic due to its candle-lit ambiance. Amanda told me more than 250 wicks are lighted for a normal dinner service, and double that for a special occasion.

The candles on the tables are, smartly, made of beeswax, so no scent will affect the meal, and protected by hurricane glass. I'm looking forward to diving into the feel of Chandler's for the article I'm writing - the vibe was natural, easy, and peaceful.

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The dishes are all contemporary takes on Shaker meals, which use fresh and local ingredients whenever possible, a surprising amount of herbs and spices, and slow-cooking techniques to coax out flavors. HSV devised the menu along with new executive chef Michael Roller, who worked to create an updated lunch, dinner, and banquet experience for patrons. 

When I walked in, I was expecting homey, heavy, and traditional - but the tasting proved that Shaker cooking is surprisingly modern under Roller's direction - even trendy. Here's a glimpse: 

Tomato bisque

Argentinian, Chilean, and South African wines

Parsnip cakes, ahi tuna rolls, potato pancakes with ginger, cheese fritters, tomato bread pudding, and bisque.

Simple centerpieces - greens in soil from the village gardens

The pitch: The Village Harvest Café is open daily from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm during Main Season at Hancock Shaker Village, and serves continental breakfast, hearty Shaker-inspired lunches and take-out picnics. Enjoy quiches, soups, overstuffed sandwiches, and cookies and brownies. Family-friendly fare is also available.

 Click here to see the full menu. It's huge.

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When I walked around the corner into a semi-private seating area and saw a long table with rows of wine glasses and stacks of plates, I thought, aw, yeah. This is gonna be good.

Indeed, one of the highlights of the Glacier Country Press Trip to Montana was the six-course wine and food tasting dinner at the chef's table of the Blue Canyon restaurant. For me, anyway, the consummate food-geek.

Blue Canyon has locations in Montana, Ohio, and Texas, and their menu is crafted by Executive Chef Brandt Evans, who hosted our dinner. Chef Brandt is a pretty cool dude - he travels the world mixing his own table wines for Blue Canyon, is a great speaker, and is currently in the process of auditioning for Top Chef, which of course is my favorite show of all time, and makes the signed menu I received from Chef Brandt all the more squeal-worthy. This, btw, is Chef Brandt and Chef Lawrence Coffner of the Montana Blue Canyon:

Here's the run-down:

Yellow Fin Tuna Crudo with olive, fennel, lemon zest, and EVO; WhiteHaven Sauvignon Blanc, NZ 06

Toasted Coriander Sea Scallops with thai chili sweet soy pickled ginger emulsion; Blue Canyon Reisling, Mosel, GR 07 (this wine was my favorite, and as a Cape Cod girl in Montana, I was amazed by how good these scallops were. They were cooked perfectly, but the sauce was also responsible for a lot.)

Roasted Duck Breast and Smoked Tomato Corn Spoon Bread; La Posta, Malbec, ARG 05 (This was another favorite. The duck was tender and the spoon bread was a new taste for me; I was intrigued after one bite, sold after two, and in love after three. What an adventure - ya, I know. Food geek.)

Bison Strip Loin with Brussels Sprouts leaves, coconut curry, red onion marmalade; CG Di Arie, Zinfandel, CA 07 (The bison was surprisingly tender and the curry was a really cool touch. The wine was a red, and my favorite red of the night. Cool factor - it was developed by winemaker Chaim Gur-Arieh, who also invented Cap'n Crunch, Jello Puddin Pops, and a slew of other products as a food engineer.)

Three Acts of Chocolate: White Chocolate Bavarois, Mik Chocolate Pot de Creme, Dark Chocolate rench Macaroons; Blue Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa, CA 04 (This was one of the best desserts I've ever had. the bavarois had an orange zest, and the macaroons were just as good as those I had in Lyon, made by Seve.)

In addition to developing some of the wines that were served along with the dishes (which were prepared by the restaurant's lead chef and pastry chef), Chef Brandt also developed a set of spices for rubs, marinades, and dips. We got to walk away with a set each plus recipe cards, very cool:

I'm looking forward to making the neighbors jealous.

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As such, the wheels also fell off this wagon for a few of us. But a good time was had by all. 

That said, I've made everyone wait long enough for the winners' list. Here goes: 

Best Name: MILK. We surmised that it had more to do with the additional text on this entry than just 'MILK,' or everyone just felt like being wise-asses. Either way, it was a pretty funny entry by Jon: 

Best Tasting: Sticky Bars-elona, by Gina and Toro. I don't have a photo because they were gone too soon. Here's Gina (and Teen) celebrating her win.

Most Creative: Tropic Thunder Island, by Teen

The Connelly (best supporting performance): Tropical Thunder Breeze, a cocktail by Nikki. 

This drink is largely to blame for many of us getting a case of the far-away eyes later in the evening. Proof: 

...what can I say. It tasted like punch. But it wasn't just punch. ooooh nooooo.

Here are some Honorable Mentions: 

Kung Fu Panda, by TooheyWorld and TooheyMomster :

The Frosty Nixon, by GrammarGirl

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button's Bruschetta, by Jenny

Lavatory Love Story, by Derick and Jen

...and 'Pulling Off a Great Oscar Win,' by the Hallett Sisters of Centerville

This year for prizes, I used popcorn boxes from iParty and little personal bottles of Asti. TooheyMomster's daughter, TooheyBug #1, created the art I put inside from vintage pin-up posters. 

...and here we all are. 

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4x4

Rules:

Choose the fourth folder of photo storage on your computer.

Choose the fourth photo in the folder.

Explain said photo, tag four people to do the same.

So, ok. I chose the fourth storage folder, which was labeled 'New Orleans.'  Cool, I thought. Another excuse to talk about my trip. Problem is, I apparently threw a bunch of other, unrelated stuff in the same folder, so what you get is this:

This is a pic of these insanely awesome shrimp-tartlet-things from Li's Brothers, a Chinese and Japanese place near my house. They have pecans and toasted sesame seeds and syrup... they're swimming in butter... they're just great. And unfortunately, there's not much more to say about them.

So, on to the tagging - I tag Teen, Beanie and Mr. T, Kat, and Max. Teen's been blogging more lately, B&M are new to the Blogosphere (welcome!), Kat is receptive to tagging - I see them on her blog from time to time - and Max? Max I know is going to post some crazy photo of a Colombian lizard or an Iranian camel.

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It's almost Oscar time already, and that means it's also almost time for our annual Oscar Party! Each year, we host a bash celebrating the nominated films of that year, and of Oscars-past. Guests bring an Academy-award-themed dish to nosh, and awards are given. The awards, usually little things like picture frames or big boxes of movie candy, are given for Best Tasting, Best Name, and Most Creative, and The Connelly - sort of the Best Supporting Act award - is given to the dish that has best showing in all three categories.

I have a flickr set of past Oscar parties and entries that might give you a better idea of what people create. My dream is that some day, someone will create Cher's Bob Mackie headress out of black licorice:

...but I realize this is a lofty goal. Still, some of the entries have been pretty damn good. Consider:

Eternal Sunshine of the Fruitless Rind

It's Hard out Here for a Shrimp

Lettuce of Iwo Jima

Lord of the Taco Rings

The Deviled Egg Wears Paprika

"You Like Meat, You Really, Really Like Meat!"

Lemony Snickettes

Felicity Stuffedman

Charlie and the Chocolate Martini

Wok the Line

Atonemint

Prawn, Baby, Prawn

Cake Blanchette

Black Forrest Whitaker Cheesecake

Edith Pilaf

No Country Fried Chicken for Old Men

Chronicles of a Quesadilla: The Chicken, the Cheese, and the Salsa

The 3:10 to Yummo

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I posted a photo montage of our trip a few days ago, but since a lot of people probably don't have the time to watch a six-minute movie (nor the inclination!), here's a little run-down of some high points:

 We arrived on Wednesday evening and took a shuttle bus from the airport to our hotel, the Grand Boutique on St. Charles Street in the Garden District. We wove through the French Quarter first, giving me my first glance - I loved the gas street lamps mixed in with neon signs. The balconies are as majestic and cool as I'd imagined, too.

Our hotel had a very cool, Art Deco vibe, and we liked our room - we checked into Room #1, the first time that's ever happened to me. I didn't even know they existed.

We walked down St. Charles street after getting settled, and noticed that the stretch is teeming with restaurants ranging from little pubs to Emeril's Delmonico (his national headquarters are a bit down the road, too:).

We noticed one that had a sign reading "bar, grill, gameroom, and laundromat." If that isn't convenient, I don't know what is.

We walked a long way down St. Charles, past gallery row, and into the Quarter, where we settled on a German brewpub for dinner. I had the burger with Marzen-flavored sauce (a dark beer) and one of the beers itself. I wasn't really listening when the waiter asked me if I wanted a half-liter or a liter; or maybe I wasn't absorbing how much a liter actually is. Either way, this was the result:

The next day, we walked to a luncheonette on St. Charles, the Trolley Stop Cafe, for what we figured would be a pretty standard breakfast. I wanted grits, so I went with the Trolley Stop Special, and ended up with the best. Pancakes. Ever.

These things were so sweet, so delish, so crispy-on-the-outside and soft-in-the-middle, they didn't even need butter or syrup. ArcherVision theorized that part of the secret was vanilla extract.

The giant plates of goodness were enough to keep us fueled as we walked back to the Quarter to scope out Bourbon Street and the surrounding area. We got caught in a downpour and got totally soaked - but we still got to see a lot of the area and take some photos. I bought my one and only souvenir, a t-shirt, when we spotted this place. It didn't seem right to leave the area without something:

That night, we attended a family celebration for my cousins, Jen and John, whose wedding we were in New Orleans to attend. We joined up with my aunt and uncle, two more sets of cousins, and a couple of members of the wedding party, and went to the hotel's restaurant, Copeland's, which had a snow bar - real ice and snowflakes on the bar and the taps - and an ice wall with bottles of liquor mounted in the floes.

That night went late, and much imbibing did occur. But we were well enough to get out the door the next morning for a second visit to the Trolley Stop and a little photo safari around the Garden District. Here are a couple of my faves:

...and one for the many cupcake-lovahs in my blogosphere:

Then, it was on to the wedding (video here)- and what a gorgeous, Victorian affair it was. The ceremony and reception were held at the House of Broel on St. Charles, a private estate the owner, Bonnie Broel, rents out for wedding services for which she serves as officiant.

The ceremony was in a garden with white lights scattered in the greens and a koi pond stretching into the middle of the seating area - and dancing took place in a parlor with a hardwood floor and a full mirror-wall on one side, facing an array of tapestries. The whole house has a Versailles kind of motif going on -- easily one of the cooler venues I've ever been in and ideal for a gorgeous wedding.

The only part of the trip that wasn't fabulous was the plane ride back - ArcherVision already wrote a pretty comprehensive post about it, so I'll let you take a gander over there. We'll definitely be going back, though - we have yet to take a cemetery tour and get our voodoo on. That's the rule - always leave something for next time. Thank you, New Orleans!

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The highlight of the weekend was dinner at Spoletos, though - a Sunday al fresco experience with four-courses and the subsequent pant-splitting feeling.

Spoletos is a contemporary Italian/Mediterranean place around the corner from my house that has great decor, a patio, creative food, and an awesome wine list. They also do this four-course prix fixe menu that saves cash while at the same time putting a ridiculous amount of food in front of you.

Starting with cocktails...

a bruschetta duo that was sort of a greek/italian combo...

stuffed garlic bread, a personal fave...

grilled chicken chevre with garlic, prosciutto, sundried tomatoes, and mashed potatoes...

pork chops and carmelized apples with yams

dessert was rum raisin pudding and chocolate mousse. I'll be eating tap water and air for the next three days to offset the caloric intake.

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Lyon is known for its Beaujolais wine, but it's also famous for candies and desserts, and an interesting entree called quenelles -- a mixture of dough and meat (seafood, chicken, truffles, you name it) served often with a creamy sauce.

I'm going to search for a recipe and post it here soon.

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So, we did what any normal people would do, and decided to have a turkey-burger-cook-off.

We pulled every sauce, spread, and marinade we had out of the fridge and laid them out on the counter, along with the two lettuce leaves, half of a yellow pepper, wilty scallions, and precariously soft tomato we found in the crisper, and a few bread choices. Then, jockeying for position over the stove, we each cooked our patties and set to work creating Culinary Feats of Wonder. The rules weren't laid out terribly clearly - there was some debate over whether or not two, individual burgers on one plate could count as one entry, for instance. But with only two people to enter, judge, and witness the whole spectacle, splitting hairs seemed like a waste of valuable garnish-preparation time.

Mise en Place:

Plating:

ArcherVision uses the 'crab technique' to garnish the plate

Presentation:

'The ArcherVision Two-patty, Multi-cheese Extravaganza Burger Plate': Two turkey burgers with cheddar or mozzarella, red peppers, lettuce and tomato

'The Refresher' : turkey burger with sour cream, whole wheat wraps, tomato, scallions, and shredded cheese

My completely inobjective assessment of the competition is this: ArcherVision gets points for forming the cous cous with a measuring cup. I get props for taking the healthy route, as well as the more realistic one.

From there, everyone else can really only vote by appearance ... but go ahead, have at it!

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(click on my bro to view the tiniest video ever!) 

shot some photos of creepy staircases:

...and trekked up to Provincetown for a day of sight-seeing, shopping, and noshing. The highlight of the trip was lunch at the Landmark Cafe, where we met the inventor of the Landmark Chicken Sandwich, Dante (who also had his own pens with his name on them. Why don't I think of these things?).

Dante had already won me over before we learned that he had patents pending on a chicken sandwich - when I asked about the restroom, he replied "We don't have one, but I'd be glad to bring you a cup." Everyone loves a wise-ass. 

The sandwich was a grilled chicken breast with roasted red peppers and sauteed onions. I opted for the whole belly clams, but it looked like a well-put-together sandwich from across the table, and the Landmark's cole slaw made with vinaigrette instead of mayo, which accompanies every dish, was really tasty. I failed to ask Dante if he invented the slaw as well; he was in the back somewhere looking for a cup. 

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The festival is held in Greenfield, Mass.; it's the Commonwealth's newest city, and overall, a very progressive, growing place. I had a sneak peak into the planning of the event early last week, when I took a hot-air balloon ride as part of a media trip, but I didn't know what to expect other than the musical line-up and that blankets and outside food were allowed.

I bought tickets initially because Lucinda Williams was on the bill, and also because I love music fests in general and the tickets were ridiculously cheap ($40). ArcherVision and I arrived at about 3 p.m. on Saturday, and the field was already filled with a rainbow of people, tents, and beach umbrellas:

We'd brought a sad little array of supplies compared to most people - just a blanket, a picnic bag with drinks, cheese and crackers, and Snickers bars, a bag with emergency jeans and raincoats, and a little peace flag I usually attach to the back of my kayak. Other concert-goers had full camping tents, coolers full of drinks and food, tables and chairs, and kites flying above their sites - next year, I'm going full bore.

There were two stages - the main stage and a dance tent, which was packed as full as the main draw most of the day. The perimeter of the festival was lined with vendors and food booths that were not offering the normal concert fare - we saw summer rolls, pad thai, fried bananas, fried oysters, greek salads, kettle corn, gourmet ice cream ... the festival could have survived on the food component alone. I settled on fried clams, ArcherVision had a pulled pork bbq sandwich with pickled onions and orzo salad. I didn't get a picture of the latter until it was nearly gone, speaking to its awesomeness:

As for the music, this was one of the best mixes of performers I've seen in a long time, and I was exposed to some new sounds I plan on following, such as the alternative bluegrass band Crooked Still:

and the inexplicably INSANELY FANTASTIC Los Straitjackets. Now, the photo below will tell you a lot about them...

... but not the whole story. Yes, they have matching suits and guitars, wear full face masks, and choreograph their movements to the music. But Los Straitjackets also play Dicky-Dale-on-crack surf rock with incredible skill, and speak to the audience only in Spanish, even though their accents suggest they're from, like, Minnesota or somewhere. Another act, a singer named Big Sandy, joined them on stage for a few songs, also sung in Spanish.

There were a few local favorites playing in the dance tent, too, such as The Primate Fiasco and The Gokh-bi System.

This guy enjoyed both:

As night fell, Mavis Staples took the main stage. Staples was a 'freedom singer' during the Civil Rights Movment, often performing with or for Dr. Martin Luther King. In addition to a great set, she told stories about King, her father Pops Staples, and experiences with segregation in her childhood. The audience hung on her every word.

At the end of the night, Lucinda Williams came on stage as the headliner, and gave us a great set that was, however, very sparse on her hits. She avoided Car Wheels on a Gravel Road, Essence, and Righteously, but did kickin' versions of Joy and Come On. My photos are crap because it was dark, here's the best one:

There were other things that made the Green River Festival a good time, too. First, it was family friendly but not overrun with hot, cranky kids. It was also very well-organized, parking was close to the venue, and overall I thought the crowd ranked very low on the concert-asshole scale. There was a lot of camaraderie, not a lot of pushing, and a chill feeling even at the hottest point of the day. I'm already planning my campsite for next year - maybe something with a roasting spit ...

See the whole day on flickr here

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Sure, it's an adage that doesn't roll of the tongue that easily, but it's true nevertheless. I've attended many a benefit dinner with a deliberately over-sized purse. It's not just economics that make me take notice of the spread, though -- I'm a complete foodie, and thankfully, my job is one that allows for some liberal face-stuffing.

I have a flickr set called The Foodie Files where I post some of my plated adventures, like this sirloin and gnocchi parfait:

and this action shot of Shootflying Hill Dessert Sauce being made before I was able to taste-test it:

and these quenelles with Giraudet sauce, served at a Rhone-Alpes tasting dinner in Lyon, France:

But I'm always looking for something new and epicurious, whether I'm writing about it or not, and lately I've been taking notice of many of the fantastic foodie blogs out there, in an effort to further stretch my culinary muscle.

Here are a few of my favorites:

Bakerella

superfood

My Burning Kitchen

Dozen Flours

Steakhead's Atlanta Eats

Any other suggestions?

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Everyone up 'n left immediately after the last tape in the batch ended, with Leatherface waving his chainsaw in the air at the permanently damaged heroine escaping in the back of a pick-up truck.

I love horror movies. But I was shelled. And when I suddenly found myself completely alone in a big house in the woods of Cape Cod, the terror of that sick flick only grew. It still freaks me out - even the bad remakes and sequels and prequels are disturbing.

However, it's the dawn of a kindler, gentler new day for Texas, Chainsaws, and Massacres. This weekend, back at the Cape to do some event planning, I had one of the best sandwiches I've ever had by the same name, at the Box Office Cafe in Chatham, where all of the sandwiches, drinks, and pizzas are named after movies (I blogged about the place once before here).

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre isn't messy nor does it contain people, so I'm not sure where it got its name, but here's the lineup: cracked pepper turkey, roast beef, pesto, mayo, tomato, and mozzarella cheese on a toasted ciabatta. Killer.

Some of the other offerings include The Poseidon (tuna), The Rocky (Italian), The Animal House (meatball sub), and The Caddy Shack (a club sub). As for pizza, there's the Good Night and Good Luck, for one -- described as topped with garlic, garlic, tomatoes, and more garlic -- and for breakfast, there's a selection of sandwiches all named after directors. Where else are you going to walk in and say "Uh, yeah, hi. I'll have a medium coffee and an Erich Von Stroheim. Thanks."

Plus, the Box Office has a cute mini-store with mugs, totes, and t-shirts like these:

After lunch, there were other interesting things happening on the Cape of Cod this weekend: we spotted a cruise night sponsored by the Cape Cod Classic Car Club in Dennis, for instance:

And on Saturday night, we caught Earth Junior at Arturo's. EJ is my brother's band - a surf rock trio that's been playing on the cape for more than a decade. They treated the crowd to Sweet Caroline during the seventh inning of the Red Sox game:

My brother told me he hated the rendition, but I had to share it with Red Sox Nation. And besides, it's not like they massacred it or anything.

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"Wacky Mac" multi-colored veggie rotini, ranch dressing, lemon juice, parm. cheese, salt and pepper, balsamic vinegar, yellow pepper, tomato, scallions, and broccoli. The bowl is from Homegoods.

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The weekend started in a bit of a whirlwind for me - straight from work to a Friday-night event,  leaving little more than a pile of dresses in my wake.

My office offers a nice perk that we weasled out of our publisher a few years ago -- 4:30 Fridays. Because I write for a business magazine, the idea is that we need to be accessible to the general business population during peak hours, so we have a nine-hour work day starting at 8:30 and clunking to a stop at 5:30 or thereabouts. There's a lunch provision in there somewhere that I rarely get to pay much attention to -- but at any rate, when 4:30 Fridays went into effect, you would have thought we'd been given Super Calzone Tuesday and Wear-your-pajamas-to-work Thursday as well, we were so damn appreciative.

Usually, 430F gives me a chance to go home early and watch more than the last 10-minutes of Oprah. Last week, though, it gave me only the chance to race home and change for an event hosted by one of my publicity clients, Robert Charles Photography.

I was supposed to have company, but at 5 pm when I heard the front door open and a pallid, sniffling ArcherVision came through, I knew I was on my own. He had no sooner dropped his keys on the table than he'd crashed on the couch with a blanket and the remote - victim of the dreaded season-changing cold.

On to the Log Cabin I went, and although solo, the event was very nice and I quickly forgot about feeling awkwardly alone. It was a combination retirement party for RCP's founder, Robert Charles Zemba, and fundraiser for the Children's Miracle Network, and stations of food had been set out around the room signifying different aspects of Zemba's life. An avid fisherman, a seafood station offered salmon steaks. A lover of the Caribbean, a tropical salad table was devised. And to honor his career as a wedding photographer, there was a carving station adorned with a giant wedding cake and flowers.

The best part of the evening had to be this, though:

The gnocchi - sirloin parfaits finally served carbs and beef the way I think they should be - dessert-style. The gnocchi was covered in creamy cheese, spooned into the cups, and then topped off with a layer or sirloin strips straight from a steaming wok.

I think I inhaled some of it through my nose.

Some emotional speeches from the Zemba family and dancing to the Dyn-O-mite Disco Review (Beep Beep!! Whooooaaa... Cheep Cheep!!) followed - I snuck out around 10 to see how Kleenex Boy was doing.

Saturday offered one of the first nice days of the year here in New England, so I did a little yard work and later had dinner with Justine at the newly renovated Cafe Manhattan. It's long been a favorite place of mine, but Teeny had never been, and I wanted to see how different it looked after eight months of being closed for construction.

Here's the weird thing though ... nothing looked different. I didn't mind much, as I never had an issue with it before it closed, but still, it was distracting to keep searching for a change. Thankfully, the food was as good as ever. I had the Capellini Aglio Olio, Teen had the Penne Gorgonzola.

On Sunday, ArcherVision was still recovering, but enjoying some of the 4/20 programming on Comedy Central. I puttered and cleaned and gardened until about 5, when it was time to set out again, this time for the Stevie Nicks concert at Mohegan Sun.

I've always liked Stevie, but never sought out tickets to a show before - these landed in my lap through work, somewhat unexpectedly. So, my faithful partner in crime Justine joined me again, and we made the surprisingly easy trek to Connecticut to see the Crystal Vision herself.

Can I say, I am SO glad we went. Stevie Nicks is awesome! She sounds great, she looks great ( she's almost 60, hello) and our seats were fantastic. The whole show had a theatrical aspect to it that we don't often see from newer performers -  not over the top, just added a nice wrinkle. Stevie changed outfits five or six times, had the trademark scarves and boots, and yes, she twirled. She also told stories about many of her songs, apologizing for not being 'very showbiz like, but what do I care?' Turns out Dreams was written in Sly and the Family Stone's studio and when Sorceror was penned, she was living with Lindsey and cleaning houses.

She did the standards - Gold Dust Woman, Landslide, Rhiannon, Stand Back - but also covered 'Crash' by DMB, to my glee, and encored with Led Zeppelin's Rock n Roll and her tune, Beauty and the Beast, for which she wore a long velvet gown and had scenes from the 1930s version of Beauty and the Beast playing behind her. Edge of Seventeen was about 11 minutes long with a percussion intro ... we could have OO!! OO!! OOOed!! for another 20 easily, though.

I was home before 11 on a 'school night,' just enough time to upload my blurry cameraphone Stevie pics:

Admin notes:
- I've cancelled my travel blog TravelJax, so all of my travel posts will now be here on this blog.

- 167 members and climbing at TSB!

 

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The answer is very. Very much would I love to own a cafe with a hip, bohemian feel, great colors on the walls, plenty of local art, and great snacks like JoMama's in Orleans, Mass.

The only addition I would make would be books for sale or just for reading -- JoMama's already offers my other requirement of an acoustic music component in the evenings and weekends. Zen. 

I don't want to completely copy Christy and Rick Bourgea, the owners of JoMama's, of course, but they do have the model down. We stopped in one weekend for bagels and bevies - I had a chai ( a real chai, not the sugary, fake kind that gives you cavities)  and ArcherVision had some sort of caramel-mocha-latte-cino, with whipped cream, as you can see in the flattering photo below.

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