A few weeks ago it was our 34th Wedding Anniversary and decided to go out for an early dinner to a restaurant we have not been to but have been wanting to! Pepper’s landing in Rochester, N.H. At 135 Marketplace Blvd. They also have a location in Brunswick Maine.

Since it was early afternoon we were able to get a table right away, they have booths, tables and a bar area all very open and clean. To start we decided on the fried calamari with Marinara sauce. The calamari was tender and crispy just as expected, the marinara sauce although had good flavor we were surprised it was served cold. Although I was not disappointed I would have preferred the sauce to be warmed. We were off to a pretty good start!

For the entree Jim decided on the baked stuffed haddock with a lobster cream sauce. The stuffing is filled with a shrimp and scallops with a buttery cracker crumb topping served with asparagus and mashed potatoes.
Jim’s dish was delicious the haddock was buttery and flakey with the topping being crispy and filled with seafood flavor. Jim cleaned his plate!

I ordered the sweet and sour shrimp and haddock. It’s fried shrimp and haddock bites with broccoli, green, red and yellow peppers tossed in a sweet and spicy sauce served over basmati rice. Both of our dishes were one of the house specials and I can see why. I absolutely LOVED my dish, it’s a dish that will bring me back again and again. The shrimp and haddock bites were crispy, the sauce was not over powering but complimented the fried seafood. Sweet , sour, crispy and tender all in one bite. This was served over rice which I also enjoyed.

So for dessert we decided to do something a little different! The first year we were married Jim was in flight school and we had little to no money so date nights back then were on the cheap, that meant getting an ice cream sundae or banana split from Dairy Queen. So that’s what we decided to for our anniversary dessert. We went to Dairy Queen and enjoyed reminiscing about some of our early date nights! Pepper’s landing has some delicious looking and sounding desserts including peanut butter pie, blueberry pie, cheesecake and chocolate cake to name just a couple! Next time we are trying the peanut butter pie!

We had great service and food at Pepper’s Landing, we will be going back for sure. For more information including locations, hours, menu and prices they have a website and of course you can find them on Face Book as well.

Enjoy!

Last week I told you about our trip to the Natick Mall in Massachusetts. What I did not tell you is that my friend Judy and I went there for a large part to go to the Wegmans Grocery Store. If you have ever been to a Wegmans you understand what I’m saying. If you have not been to a Wegmans it’s worth grabbing a cooler and taking a little road trip.

Wegmans is a family-owned business that opened its headquarters in 1916 in Rochester N.Y. and to this date, they have 101 stores, most of them being in the North East area, although they do have one in North Carolina. I would love to see them in N.H. The first time I went to a Wegmans was about four years ago when we were visiting our daughter and her family in the finger lakes region of N.Y. I was like a ‘kid in a candy store” that day! So much so my family still makes fun of me for it! I have been to three different Wegmans and I can say they are just a little bit different. Some of them have a restaurant in them, some have more than one restaurant and some don’t have the restaurant but offer everything else the larger Wegmans have. Today I am going to tell you about the Wegmans store at the Natick Mall in Massachusetts.

Because we came into Wegmans on the second floor after enjoying our lunch, that’s where we started. The second floor fills all of your senses with all of the sights and incredible smells. They have a huge array of food bars that you can eat in or take out. These include fresh-made pizza, wing bar, salad bar, Asian stir fry to just name a few. Everything looked so fresh and smelled so good, but I have to say I was glad we just had lunch as I think I would have wanted to eat at each one of these food stations! But don’t worry they have much of what they offer in a meal to-go containers for you to have when you get home!

Once we made it past all of the food bars we made our way over to the cheese section. I can just say this is the largest cheese selection I have seen without going to a stand-alone cheese store. The cheese area has everything you would want on a cheese board including a vast array of charcuterie boards and cheese knives. They also have someone there to answer all of your questions and give you information about all of the cheeses. They also have some pre-packed items with cheese, nuts, and meats.

As we made our way around the corner there was a beautiful and very impressive flower area where you can pick out plants and flowers for your own arrangement or choose one already made.

Next to the flower area was a huge array of fresh fruit, they have a large selection of pre-cut fruits to make any meal fast and easy. The fruits and vegetable area were filled with everything you would expect with many exotic fruits as well. This is where I found these sugar cane sticks that can be used in drinks or used to skewer meats for the grill. I’m very excited to try these!

The bakery! Oh my! Some serious sweet goodness here! They had every sweet treat imaginable. Cakes, cupcakes, muffins, cookies, pastries of all kinds and let’s not forget sweet sticky buns. If you are gluten-free, no worries they have you covered! I brought Robby a few treats of his own!

The meat and seafood section is endless. Everything you would expect, but they also offer meat in bulk for larger families or gatherings. I always enjoy the various burgers they offer. The patties are already made up and some of them include cheese and bacon and a number of other options. The marinated meats are also very good and they do tell you if the product is gluten-free. That’s a huge bonus for me as much of the time I make my own marinade to be safe.
This picture below is just a small snapshot of some of the marinated and or take out seafood to go. Lots of breaded fish, lobster mac and cheese, marinated salmon, crab cakes and coconut shrimp. I took home some of the crab cakes and they were excellent. Judy took home some of the coconut shrimp and she too was very pleased.

Next, we had to make our way to the first floor and I have to tell you this is the first time I have been to a grocery store that has an escalator for not only people, but for your grocery carts! Yes! This was awesome!

The first floor is filled with all of your frozen foods, boxed items, canned goods, and even home goods. Lots of gluten-free options here as well. And if you are looking for some spirits as well no need to go to the liquor store as they have a massive array of craft beers, beers, and wine as well as hard liquor. This is an all in one-stop-shop.

There is so much happening at Wegmans I can’t possibly put it into one post. Be sure to check out their website and Facebook pages for more information and information on the closest store to you and what that particular store offers. I should mention that Wegmans works with over 400 farms to bring you fresh and local ingredients. If that is not enough Wegmans, also caters!