bennnie

We walked by Popovers 2 weekends ago and it did look very nice. Wished we had stopped in but the girls were looking for ice cream. We got some delicious gelato at a coffee shop nearby - wish I could remember the name of it.

We'll keep Popovers in mind for our next visit.

janie

I'm not a "trip report" type of girl but I wanted to thank everyone for their suggestions and mention a couple of things that did and didn't work so well for me.

St Johnsbury: Haven't been in a couple of years and was happy to see Railroad street looking a little more lively with fewer empty storefronts. Had a quick bite at Anthony's and browsed around Moose River Lodge store.

The drive on I93 was beautiful despite some bad weather patches. Stopped a couple of times just to take in the scenery.

Currier Museum (recently renovated)amd Zimmerman House in Manchester NH were well worth the time.

Special thanks for the recommendation for Puritan Back Room in North Manchester--exactly what I was looking for! Busiest parking lot I've ever seen. Went for the classics--chicken tenders (portion was big enough for 2-3 people), my friend had Greek pizza, and baklava ice cream (where has that been all my life???).

Biggest disappointments in Manchester were the Hilton Garden Inn hotel location, and that downtown Manchester was absolutely dead on a Saturday afternoon.

Hotel was OK, but a bit high priced for the location and quality. Arrived in the evening and the Millyard area looked unpleasantly empty. Maybe when people at work in the buildings on the river...? No baseball game that night, so the area was dead. Nothing in the immediate area except some car repair places.

Drove through downtown Manchester before and after the museum and saw very few people, and streets with interesting stores and cafes that were all closed. I didn't picture it as a Mon-Fri 9-5 town

Other hits:Hodgie's ice cream (so close to the highway)in Amesbury, MA, and another ice cream place I can't remember!
Kittery Trading Post in Kittery, Maine--great selections and prices on sporting goods, sports clothes etc.
Stonewall Kitchen in York Maine. Lots of tasting opportunites and the cafe is pretty good.

Thank you all again for the help.

dfnh

Thanks for reporting back. Glad you had a great time. We've only been to the Hilton for birthday parties scheduled during a ball game so it's very busy then. And guess I better go get some of that baklava ice cream!

alisteinbergs

I recommend a diner called Paddy Cakes & Candy. In addition to home-made desserts, they have hot food (hamburgers, turkey dinner, etc.) that is delicious, and very inexpensive. Great 1950's diner atmosphere & very friendly. Address is: 378 Railroad St., St. Johnsbury, Vermont (phone; 802-748-1777).

bennnie

janie - so glad you found Hodgies in Amesbury. They have very good ice cream and huge portions. I can never handle more than a 1/2 kiddie.