News – Page 79 – Salem Main Streets

Jazzing Up Salem

Jul 122014

Jazz is in the air today and being that the weather is expected to be mostly sunny and pleasant, with temperatures in the low 80s, we invite you to feel the beat in person courtesy of the cool folks at The Salem Jazz and Soul Festival organization.

The SJSF is a nonprofit, volunteer-run organization that produces free concerts and raises money for music education causes on the North Shore; since 2007, it has raised $45,000 for such music-education causes.

First up, MusicKidz, 10am today at the Salem Public Library. An hour of musical learning and fun for kids in grades 1-5 (and parents too!). Today the program that SJSF will present is all about Native American music! There is no charge for admission

Then the Frotations, a band made up of students from the Berklee College of Music, will play the third SJSF/Berklee Summer Series concert of 2014 in Derby Square, 5-7 p.m. Creative Salem and Social Palates will sponsor the free performance.

Forged in 2011 by singer-songwriter Chris Kazarian and bass player Pedro Ribiero (Pedro Zappa), the Frotations were originally called K.A.Z. — A musical experiment centered around the up-and-coming singer songwriter aimed at bringing all of the world’s people together under one sound. Today the Frotations are a concrete blend of Neo-Soul and Rock ’n’ Roll with a little drop of Hip-Hop.

SJSF’s season lasts May through August – putting on monthly, free concerts in partnership with Berklee College of Music – and culminating in a two-day festival at the Salem Willows in mid-August, featuring local, regional and national bands.

For more information, please visit salemjazzsoul.com or call 978-744-8258.

As a side note, we’d like to mention that the Salem Jazz and Soul Festival needs energetic and ambitious volunteers each year to help with the SJSF/Berklee Summer Series. Set up gear, hand out flyers, sell merchandise, and generally promote the festival They might still be able to use you today. If not today, there is always the Aug. 9th event. Interested? E-mail volunteers@salemjazzsoul.com for more information.

Playing With Your Food 2014 – Week 4

Salem Farmers Market 1 Response »

Jul 102014

Lots of pink and green going on after Week 3 of the market!

“Playing With Your Food” is a weekly post highlighting a few of the many great options for the range of produce and artisan food at the Salem Farmers’ Market. While we can never predict exactly what our farms will be able to bring each week, we will do our best to reflect some of the fun items we’ve found recently and what’s likely to be available for the upcoming week. Hopefully this will give you a few new ideas to play with, and inspire you to try some new things at the market.

This is a big transitional time of year at the market. It’s time to say goodbye to many of our early summer favorites – strawberries and rhubarb are either gone or starting to slow down, snag them immediately if you find them! – but raspberries and other summer berries are showing up and we’re starting to hear rumors of sweet corn. That said, many of our market staples are in full swing! Greens of all sorts, radishes, peas, beets, and herbs are busting out all over the place. Here are a few things we’ve been playing with:

Garlic scapes, herbs, and more at Maitland Mountain Farm – Week 3

Garlic Scapes

When I was first introduced to garlic scapes a few years back, I could swear that I’d never seen or heard of them before. Now they seem to be everywhere! Milder than garlic but with a satisfying crunch, these fun, curly, green shoots can be used in plenty of recipes to substitute garlic. They’re fantastic in stirfry, pesto, sauteed with pasta, you name it. We’re particularly interested to try these Garlic Scape Pancakes – if you’ve made them, let us know what you think!

Radishes

Radishes will be with us for a long time throughout the market, but the lighter, delicate radishes seem to make their appearance earlier in the season (like the “french breakfast” radishes that we snagged from Grant Family Farm this week). We’ll have lots more to say about radishes as the summer progresses, but right now we’re happy to simply sautee them with butter, salt, and pepper.

Shelling peas and basil at Long Hill Orchard Farm – Week 3.

Shelling Peas

Last time we talked about pea tendrils, but now we’ve gotten to the part we were really waiting for – the peas themselves. For me, there’s nothing as sweet or satisfying as those big, fat peas eaten raw right out of the shells, but there’s so many different things you can do with them – from pea puree (to complement your fresh fish from Rowand’s) to a pea-ricotta torte for brunch (especially if you’ve grabbed some fresh ricotta from Wolf Meadow Farm)!

Herbs

Whether from the greenhouse or outdoors, or your own herb garden if you have one, we’re seeing lettuce-size bunches of herbs all around and can’t seem to go through them fast enough. We’ve been drying them, throwing them in any pasta or sauce-based dish we can, adding them to marinades, making simple syrups, and there still seems to be more! What’s your favorite way to use up an abundance of herbs?

Last week at home, we had grand schemes for each of these ingredients – and then decided we’d really rather combine them all together sauteed in butter, salt, and pepper for a fantastic early summer side dish. Happy market hunting!

Sautee radishes, garlic scapes, and peas in butter, then toss with fresh mint for a beautiful side dish!

10 Minute Turnaround on Plays at STC

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Jul 092014

Ten minutes to see a play. No, not 10 minutes to get there. We are talking about a play from start to finish, enter stage right to exit stage left. And not just one play, the Salem Theatre Company is producing seven such plays with its popular Moments of Play (MoP) festival of original ten-minute plays, Wednesday, July 9 through Sunday, July 13.

What makes these productions even more admirable is that the words come from New England playwrights. Over 200 plays are submitted each year. The festival also features directorial and STC acting debuts alongside STC “regulars.”

The seven 10-Minute Plays to be performed this year are:

Zeno’s Arrow by David Susman of Saco, ME,
The Accidents of Bread by William Orem of Newton, MA,
Baby, It’s Cold Outside! by Jeana Hackman Grady of Rockport, MA,
Crooked Fork by Jonathan Yukich of Hamden, CT,
Just Your Imagination by Lesley Anne Moreau of Allston, MA,
Triumphs of the Heart (Sphere) by Cassie Seinuk of Somerville, MA,
Video Death Chat by Libby Schap of Chelsea, MA

But that’s not the entire package of the Festival. On Saturday, July 12 at 7:30 p.m., three nationally recognized playwrights will gather on the STC stage to discuss and review the seven plays presented this year. The public is invited to this free event featuring Richard Dresser, Ronan Noone and Kate Snodgrass.

The seven selected plays for the Eighth Annual Play Festival will be presented Wednesday through Friday at 7:30 p.m., and Saturday & Sunday at 5:00 p.m. Tickets are $15 and are available online at www.salemtheatre.com. The STC Theater is located 90 Lafayette Street in downtown Salem.

Local Merchants Score On Best of the North Shore

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Jul 082014

Where is one of the great places on the North Shore to get a quick or extended bite to eat (Salem, MA) ? Opinions differ as much as tastes do, (Salem, MA) but according to North Shore Magazine’s readers, many of their favorites (Salem, MA) in the recent Best of North Shore survey are in…. you guessed it, Salem, MA.

And it’s not just food that we scored high in the hearts and minds of BONS responders. Salem establishments in other categories also ranked quite high.

DINE

A&J King – Best Bakery (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

Scratch Kitchen – Best BBQ

The Ugly Mug – Best Breakfast

Red’s – Best Breakfast (Readers’ Choice)

A&B Burgers – Best Burger (Tied? Runner-up? – with Lexie’s on State)

Passage To India – Best Indian (Readers’ Choice)

62 Restaurant – Best Italian

Brodie’s – Best Lobster Roll (Taster’s Choice)

Longboards – Best Lobster Roll (Taster’s Choice)

Grapevine – Best Mediterranean

King’s Roast Beef – Best Roast Beef

Turner’s Seafood – Best Seafood, Prepared

Opus – Best Sushi

Life Alive – Vegetarian (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

DRINK

Tavern in the Square – Best Sports Bar (Readers’ Choice)

INDULGE

A&J King – Bake Shop, Pastry (Readers’ Choice)

Ye Olde Pepper Companie – Best Confectionery

Harbor Sweets – Best Confectionery (Readers’ Choice)

The Cookie Monstah (featured at Salem Farmers’ Market) – Best Cookies

62 Restaurant – Best Dessert

Coffee Time Bake Shop – Best Dessert (Readers’ Choice)

RENEW

Paxton – Best Barber Shop, New School

North Shore Boot Camp Company – Best Boot Camp (and great pic of Brandi Dion!)

Hawthorne Hotel – Best Hotel (Readers’ Choice)

Rouge Cosmetics – Best Makeup Application (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

Yoga Sakti – Best Yoga Studio (Readers’ Choice)

PLAY

Witch City 5K – Best Community Walk/Run (Readers’ Choice)

Kernwood Country Club – Best Country Club (Honorable Mention)

Salem Willows Park – Best Family Hangout, Indoor (Readers’ Choice)

Haunted Happenings – Best Festival, Fall (Readers’ Choice)

Salem Film Fest – Best Festival, Spring

Salem’s So Sweet – Best Festival, Winter (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

CinemaSalem – Best Movie Theater (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

Peabody Essex Museum – Best Museum (BONS & Readers’ Choice), Best Tourist Attraction (Readers’ Choice)

SHOP

Petite Etoile – Best Baby Clothing

Modern Millie – Best Consignment (Readers’ Choice)

Roost – Best Gifts

Rouge – Best Makeup Selection

Mighty Aphrodite – Best Maternity Clothing (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

The Barking Cat – Best Pet Boutique (Readers’ Choice)

Mud Puddle Toys – Best Toy Shop (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

NEST

Tri-City Sales – Best Kitchen Appliances (Readers’ Choice)

Landry & Arcari – Best Rugs (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

LIVE

Admiral Concierge – Best Concierge (Readers’ Choice)

Green Clean – Best Cleaning Service (BONS & Readers’ Choice)

So when you think about going somewhere for food and more, no need to give a second thought. Salem has it all in a convenient package. Don’t take our word for it. Take the word of lots of people on the North Shore.

Independence Day celebrations in Salem, Ma postponed to July 6!

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Jul 032014

Due to the inclement weather forecast for July 4th, Salem will hold its Independence Day celebrations on Sunday, July 6. All planned festivities originally scheduled for July 4th at Derby Wharf will still take place, but on Sunday July 6 instead. These include the Hillyer Festival Orchestra pops concert and fireworks display, among other activities. The reading of the Declaration of Independence on the Salem Common will still take place at 9am on July 4th, but has been relocated to inside the Hawthorne Hotel. Please note that the United States Air Force Heritage Band, the Blue Aces, will still be performing their free concert at noon on Saturday July 5th at the Salem Willows.

We still invite you to celebrate America’s Independence Day all weekend in historic Salem with the July 4th reading of the Declaration of Independence, followed by the Blue Aces concert on Saturday, and ending Sunday with the fireworks display and pops concert on Derby Wharf.

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