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What We Ate On ... Friday
 Clockwise from top: a salmon slider with lettuce and tomato; pesto sandwich with sweet potato nuggets; the fast disappearing bruschetta. The other guy had a burger, like he always does. Said it was good. |
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Before we went to see just how Buffy our 16th president could be, we stopped for dinner at The Hub on Main Street in North Adams.
It was hot, and we were about to spend two hours in a seated position, so I opted for something light and fast.
My new favorite at the Hub is the salmon sliders on the specials menu — not too little, not too big, not too pricey. And they're always cooked just right.
Two sliders for $4.50 plus bruschetta with mozzarella, tomato and garlic. Seriously, you can live on their appetizers and soups. The only thing missing was a pomtini, sigh.
Berkshire Food Festival Planned Sunday
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Attendees can also enjoy an eclectic mix of live music from local bands Tom Corrigan and the Reformers and Jungle Work.
The north side of Main Street will be closed to motor vehicle traffic and large festival tents will be erected to shade vendors and patrons. The fare will range from traditional to the adventurous. Thirteen local restaurants and food vendors will line the streets with everything from sushi and Indian cuisine to pizza and ice cream.
Returnees include favorites Wild Oats Market and Spice Root of Williamstown, and Lickety-Split at Mass MoCA and some newbies - Public Eat and Drink and SoCo Creamery.
The offerings have to be purchased by ticket, which can be bought that day at booths on the street. The tickets are valued at $1 each and can be redeemed for food, beer or wine items priced in the $1-$5 range.
This year's festival includes a focus on microbrew beer and locally made wine. Eight breweries, wineries and distributors will set up with staff on hand to educate the public about their specific brands. Beer will be provided compliments of Berkshire Brewing Co. of South Deerfield, Madison Brewery of Bennington, Vt., Wandering Star Brewery of Pittsfield and Paper City Brewing Co. of Holyoke. Mead, also known as honey wine, will be provided by Green River Ambrosia of Greenfield and Maine Mead Works of Portland; Headwater Cider Co. of Hawley will bring samples of organic, hard cider made from locally harvested apples. Additionally, Kelly's Package Store of Dalton will be serving an assortment of imported and domestic fine wines and craft ales.
Berkshire Food Festival is sponsored by Greylock Federal Credit Union and Northern Berkshire Health Systems. Additional sponsors include Berkshire Menus, Aladco Linen Services and Allied Waste.
Wing Fling Draws Hundreds, Tingles Taste Buds
 Winner, winner, chicken dinner. More photos can be found here. |
The people's choice for both the tradition and hot wings as well as the ribs all went to the Olde Forge while Ozzie's Steak and Eggs reeled in the people's choice for best original wings.
In the judge's picks, Zucchinis won the traditional category, with Olde Forge in second and Spice in third; Mission Bar and Tapas won the original, with Betty's Pizza Shack in second and Zucchinis in third; and Halpin's Grub and Grog won the hot category, followed by Olde Forge and Flavours.
The judges also picked the Olde Forge for the best ribs.
For the second year in a row, iBerkshires has sacrificed our taste buds to help out judging at the annual contest. We, again, voted in the hot category and we're starting to get pretty good at judging these things.
Last year, I found that many of the entrees in the hot category focused on bringing the heat and that may have hurt their overall flavor. This year, the heat was tamed a bit and it resulted in great tasting wings.
I like hot wings, so I am looking for the restaurant that handles both taste and heat — I want to both sweat when I eat and for the wings to taste good.
I was torn on my top picks this year; as a judge you cannot tell which restaurant is which, so I can only deduce which ones I voted for. My choice came down to two and it was not easy.
I think that my No. 1 choice was Halpin's because I remembered the sauce was the talk of the competition last year. The chefs at Halpin's certainly don't want me to taste any other wing after theirs with the use of what I suspect is ghost chili. The atomic red color obviously stood out and I held those wings off until last.
While last year, I ranked them lower because of the intense heat, this year they had a much fuller flavor. The heat was mostly a back heat and came after eating the wing and then lingered for next half hour or so. But before that intense heat, the sauce tingled the taste buds with various flavors. They mixed the heat and flavor perfectly this year.
 Fire Chief Robert Czerwinski was one of the members of the judging panel, which included some of the county's political and social leaders. |
I moved further down my list and looked over my notes and then I didn't know what to do with the hottest ones. I couldn't take away points because of the heat this time because it did not overshadow the flavor.
I went and ate each wing again. The second wing from each changed my rankings. Those atomic hot wings really did it right — it hurt to eat but was well worth the pain and for that, they earned my vote.
I have no idea who my third place vote went to but I know they had a very sweet but hot sauce.
I am not a food expert but I am getting better at these judging food competitions. In the last year I've judged pizza, chili and wings. It is never an easy task because the chefs take tremendous pride in the food they make and when it comes to a competition, they make even more of an effort.
These competitions really highlight the quality of food being cooked in these restaurants. While the Wing Fling is another source of pride for the restaurants, that isn't the best part about the event. The Wing Fling is one of the largest fundraisers for the Pittsfield Family YMCA.
The competition supports youth programming and 21 restaurants volunteered to enter the competition — many of them have never taken home one of the coveted awards. While they do get free advertisement and some get plaques to hang on their walls, they are the force behind the fundraising efforts for the YMCA that attracts thousands of people every year.
The Wing Fling is a great example of the businesses and the community supporting each other and for that, every restaurant should be commended.
Annual Strawberry Festival Returns To Stephentown
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This fundraiser for the Stephentown Historical Society runs from 11 to 4 or until supplies run out. Locally grown, freshly picked strawberries will be served on biscuits or sponge cake with whipped cream, or with ice cream for sundaes. Strawberry-rhubarb pie a la mode and whole strawberry-rhubarb pies will also be sold. The Berry Patch offers jams, jellies, strawberries and a wide array of marvelous fruits and vegetables to take home.
The Stephentown Strawberry Festival began in 1982 when the historical society was in its infancy and was preparing for the town’s 1984 bicentennial celebration. In the course of 30 years, volunteers from the society have picked and prepared about two tons of strawberries and dished up over 6000 servings of this delectable local product.
The Berry Patch is 1.7 miles south of the Stephentown traffic light. For additional information, call 518-733-0010, 518-733-1234, or go to www.theberrypatch.net.
Mount Lebanon Fest Promises Herbal Delights
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The two-day festival starts on Saturday, June 9, with downtown events sponsored by local businesses around herbs. Restaurants and stores marked by green balloons will provide samples and promotions on meals, products and services. Guided walks and talks will take place in several local venues. Local lodging establishments are offering special rates to festival attendees.
On Sunday, June 10, the HerbFest moves to the historic Shaker grounds of Mount Lebanon on the Darrow School campus. Thirty workshops, walks and seminars include hands-on sessions that utilize herbs for a variety of products and cooks will demonstrate techniques with herbs and garden experts will speak to growing them.
Admission to the June 10 activities is $10 per person or $20 per family. Registration is suggested at www.mountlebanonherbfest.com. The HerbFest is held rain or shine.
The HerbFest is a project of the Lebanon Valley Business Association. For information or vendor application contact Linda Hursa at 518-794-8800 or angelstrumpetflowers@yahoo.com.
Stephanie Farrington of