Destination: Martha's Vineyard, MA

Best of Show: oysters and stout over politics with the locals at Offshore Brewing Company

Destination: The July Brimfield Antiques Fair

Best of Show: memories of 25-cent cider donuts

With hospitality and authentic Greek New England pizza from Costa at the Brimfield House of Pizza.

Destination: Boothbay Harbor, but weather aborted that mission so we went inland

Best of Show: A Sazerac and creative cuisine at the Pepperland Cafe in South Berwick, ME, across from Sarah Orne Jewett's house.

With honorable mention to Becky's Diner (nothin' finer!) in Portland

Destination: Provincetown, MA

Best of Show: the mussels at Bubala's in P-Town

Study choreography here.

Billy and Sonya the bartenders know their stuff, too.

Destination: The Champlain Valley

Best of Show: Dinner at the Black Sheep Bistro, Vergennes, VT

Martini & Rossi Dry Vermouth

Destination: Farmington, Ct

Best of Show: Hard Cider at a farmstand in Litchfield, a Greylock Martini at Sullivan Station in Lee, MA

We went to Hillstead House in Farmington, CT.

When you are planning a fancy dinner for friends or family, there's nothing like a visit to one of the many preserved mansions around New England to inspire you to reach for something special. I look at the grand dining room, the dishes, the kitchen, and I think "What could I do with this kitchen and a handful of servants? What would I set on that table?"

After leaving the house/museum, we headed west and made an adventure of it, including finding farm-fresh strawberries that ended up in a Frozen Strawberry Cream Torte for Richmond's birthday!

Destination: Trenton NJ Amtrak Station

Best of Show: Cherry Grove Farm bacon and cheeses

Lorna's roadtrip done, I retrieved her at the Trenton Amtrak station and took a long, leisurely drive to New Hope, PA, up the Delaware Water Gap, across NY and CT (with dinner at Elizabeth's in Tarriffville, CT) then RI and finally home to Plymouth!

Destination: Worcester, MA
Best of Show: Armsby Abbey

I had just set Lorna and Melissa off on a roadtrip to Florida (Lorna can tell you about those adventures) and I was at loose ends in Worcester. Of course, there's no shortage of fine foodie adventuring to be had in Worcester, but loading up the car had been thirsty work so I met my old pal Bill at Armsby Abbey.

Destination: Mid-Coast Maine

Best of Show: Boynton-McKay Coffeehouse, Camden, ME

retro look, great local coffee, people-watching in a great location

Destination: The lower Maine coast, southwest of Portland.

Best of Show: Gypsy Sweethearts restaurant, Ogunquit, ME

Lobster Taco, for starters... people watching, too.