September 21st 2019: Zoo in Forest Park, Springfield

I had to get museum passes for the Zoo in Forest Park this morning, so I went to the town of Monson, getting them from the Monson Free Library.

We decided to stop in town for lunch nearby at Beth's Family Dining. Nice old building on the outside,

diner on the inside.

For food, we got the Swiss Patty Melt (Swiss cheese, sauteed onions on grilled rye bread).

Did the job of filling our stomachs, but nothing special really.

We also got charged for the milk we ordered for the little one.

With that, it was on to Forest Park in Springfield,

where I had to pay 3 bucks to gain entry into the park in order to get to the zoo.

which had a Art and Soles statue inside.

A pretty small and disappointing zoo though. Not coming back again.

For dinner, we went to Sturbridge Porterhouse in Sturbridge.

As it was still during lunch hour, the STEAK FRITES (GRILLED BISTRO SIRLOIN, HAND CUT FRIES, CHIMICHURRI SAUCE)

we got was relatively cheap compared to their dinner prices, and really good too with the accompanying sauces. A great end to an otherwise long drive to a mediocre zoo.

April 21st 2019: A Quick Bite in Brooklyn NY on the Way Home

 On the way home from a wedding in Philadephia, we decided to stop by NYC, passing through Manhattan NY

George Washington Bridge

United Palace Theater

Highbridge Park

Harlem River Lift Bridge

St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church

to get to Brooklyn NY,

Old Williamsburgh Savings Bank

Most Holy Trinity-St. Mary Roman Catholic Church

Russian Orthodox Church of the Transfiguration

We had lunch in town at Okonomi, a small Japanese restaurant serving Japanese breakfast,

We then got dessert from Patisserie Tomoko at 568 Union Avenue,

getting the Espresso,

the Sakura Flan with Sesame Red Beans Sauce,

the Cream Puff,

the Mont Blanc (chestnut mousse, pistachio ganache with yuzu ice cream).

and the Petit Fours.

Closer to home, we stopped by the the Comfort Inn and Suites in Sturbridge for a break. Not bad looking outside and in.

Recommended Places to Visit: Sturbridge

Recreation

Beaches

Streeter Point Recreation Area
End of Old Streeter Road

Cedar Pond Recreation Area
2 Cedar Pond Road

Parks
Westville Lake Recreation Area
Breakneck Road near Shepard Road

Water Bodies

Big Alum Lake
End of Clark Road

Pistol Pond
310 Charlton Road

Long Pond
37 Champeaux Road

Leadmine Pond

500 Leadmine Road

Museums
Old Sturbridge Village
1 Old Sturbridge Village Road


Breweries
Hyland Orchard and Brewery
199 Arnold Road

Pioneer Brewing Company
195 Arnold Road


Hiking
Recommended:
Wells State Park
End of Wells State Park Road

Leadmine Mountain Conservation Area
10 Shattuck Road

Heins Farm Conservation Land
289 Leadmine Road

Tried:
Opacum Woods
End of Old Brook Circle

Tantiusques
493 Leadmine Road

Hobbs Brook Conservation Area
End of Charlton Street

Wolf Swamp Wildlife Management Area
Glendale Road and Paradise Lane

Hamant Brook Reservoir
95 Breakneck Road

Architecture

Schools

Tantasqua Regional High School
319 Brookfield Road

Town Facilities
Joshua Hyde Public Library
306 Main Street

Town Hall
308 Main Street


Places of Worship
Federated Church of Sturbridge
8 Maple Street

St. Anne's and St. Patrick's Church
16 Church Street


Dams
East Brimfield Lake Dam
24 Riverview Avenue


Commercial Buildings

Comfort Inn and Suites

83 Hall Road

Historical Buildings
Blackington Building
572 Main Street

Restaurants

Highly Recommended:
Seafood
Sturbridge Seafood
376 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Paella
Raspberry Point Oysters
Shrimp Cocktail


Italian
Rovezzi's Ristorante

2 School Street

Recommended Dishes:

Carpaccio

Mushroom Bisque

Gamberi con Linguini Fresca

Avellino
502 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Risotto con Funghi


Western
Publick House Historic Inn
277 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Vegetable Rice Soup
New England Baked Scrod
Indian Pudding

Sturbridge Porterhouse
407 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Steak Frites

Veritas
420 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Escargot
Sauerbraten
Cream Suchard

The Duck
502 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Duck Quesadilla

Cedar Street Grille
12 Cedar Street
Recommended Dishes:
Crazy Dates
Pork Belly
Pumpkin and Sausage Mac and Cheese
Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Tart

Japanese

Kaizen Sushi Bar and Grill
479 Main Street

Tried:
Breakfast
Annie's Country Kitchen
140 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Cranberry Orange Muffin
8 oz New York Sirloin
Corned Beef Hash
Hot Chocolate

Sunburst Restaurant
484 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Sunburst Quiche with Fruit

Deli
Soup to Nuts
559 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Seafood Chowder
Spinach and Tomato Quiche
Garden Salad

Desserts
Sturbridge Coffee House
453 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Blueberry Muffintop
Orange Blossom Muffintop
Tiramisu Cupcake
Chocolate Mint Cupcake


Western

Village Hotdog
376 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Junkyard Dog

Oliver Wight Tavern
~1 Old Sturbridge Village Road at Old Sturbridge Village

BT's Smokehouse
392 Main Street

Recommended Dishes:

The Platter

OxHead Tavern
366 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Peach Melba
Chicken Pot Pie
French Onion Soup

July 17th 2018: Hiking Southwest After Work

I started out this morning at Wicked Bagel, a small but modern looking cafe in Lexington,

 getting a Multigrain and Salt Bagel with Maple Butter.

Pretty good start to the morning, and definitely one of the better bagel places I have been to.

For lunch, I went to Maddi's Cookery and Tap House, a new bar restaurant in Worcester.

Pretty interesting menu, of which I got the Kimchi Burger (hoisin glazed burger, house made kimchi, fresh veggies, fried udon noodles, chilli garlic aioli, buttered bun).

Extremely scrumptious, the crispy noodles really adding to the texture of the burger. Definitely coming back again to try their other stuff.

After work, it was pouring, but I decided to press ahead with my sightseeing for the day, starting with a hike at the Wolf Swamp Wildlife Management Area, where the path I took to get to the water body here is shown below in pink.

I got my socks wet, but somehow I managed to get to the water body.

Probably not worth the long hike though.

My next hike in town was to find Hamant Brook Reservoir, the path I took from 96 Breakneck Road being shown below in pink.

Really overgrown, and no views to be had for all my troubles.

My next hike was in Union CT,

Kinney Pond, Kinney Hollow Road

Pinney's Pond, 558 Buckley Highway

at Myers Pond, where the path I took from 275 Bigelow Hollow Road is shown below in pink.

Pretty nice views of the pond

from the bridge.

As I was leaving town, I noticed that the Union Historical Society was open, so I decided to go check it out.

Instead of hiking up Snow Hill in Ashford CT, I was able to drive to the end of Snow Hill Road, where there were no views to be had.

My final town of the day was Stafford CT,

First United Methodist Church

St. Edward's Church

Holy Trinity Lutheran Church

checking out Hyde Park

before calling it a day for sightseeing in the rain, heading to Basil's Restaurant in town for an Italian dinner.

I got the Tortellini Rose  (Cheese tortellini sautéed with sausage, mushrooms, and spinach, finished in a light tomato cream sauce),

which came with a Chicken Pasta Soup.

The soup was nothing special, but the tortellini was actually pretty tasty, and I could not even finish it.

Can see why it is the top restaurant in a small town.