May 16th 2026: Fairy and Magic Festival, Putnam CT

 Today, before heading into Putnam CT for the Fairy and Magic Festival in Putnam CT, we had breakfast at Panera Bread in Shrewsbury,

the time getting the Toasted Caprese Focaccia (Melty fresh mozzarella, vine-ripened tomatoes, fresh arugula, basil pesto spread, with salt and pepper, and balsamic glaze drizzle on our Black Pepper Focaccia.) and Mac and Cheese (Tender shell pasta in a blend of rich cheeses including our tangy aged white cheddar cheese sauce.)

the Green Goddess Chicken Cobb Salad (Mixed greens and crisp romaine topped with grilled chicken, grape tomatoes, pickled red onions, fresh avocado, applewood smoked bacon, and a hard-boiled egg with green goddess dressing.)

and the Strawberry Basil Lemonade Fresca (Our refreshing Agave Lemonade with strawberry puree fruit blend, infused with fresh strawberries and basil.)

Good that they keep updating the menu with new delicious items. 

From here, it was on to Putnam CT,

 

Old Putnam Train Station

where the festival was a little on the small side,

although some of the street drawings were pretty awesome.

While here, we got a White Chocolate Raspberry Tea

from Chubby Dog Coffee Company, a hippy cafe with free video games to play,

checked out the mini Gertrude Chandler Warner Boxcar Children Museum, located within a refurbished train car,

and finally getting some bites from Nikki's Dog House,

getting a Coffee Ice Cream,

a Mushroom Cheeseburger,

a Plain Dog and Dave's Coney (Famous Meat Sauce, Yellow Mustard, no onions)

Should have realized I was here before in the past, otherwise I wouldn't have come back, give the mediocreness of the food and the long wait. Unfortunately, this was the only place with ice cream for the little one. 

At least we got to check out the Boxcar museum today.