3 New England Areas Named Best Summer Food Destinations
When you make summer travel plans, are local food options high on your priority list? If the answer is yes, three New England areas have been highlighted as the best destinations for summer food.
Before we look at these three cheerful spots, let’s first dissect what, exactly, qualifies as “summer food.” In New England, there are certain regional cuisines that are often available year-round, tend to be the freshest (and most popular) in the summer months. Of course, seafood comes to mind immediately. Whether you are on the hunt for the best lobster or plate of fried clams, the northeast coast is known to have excellent seafood. They often accompany a beachside grill or raw bar. In other seasonal areas, you can find some of the best seafood (including oysters) at local clam and lobster shacks.
Furthermore, summer food is synonymous with ice cream. You can head to your local parlor after dinner or after the beach. In many Massachusetts areas, it is very common for ice cream trucks to jingle through your neighborhood during the summer. New England checks all of the boxes that were considered when evaluating the country’s best markets for summer food.
Cape Cod
This is an obvious choice for best summer food in New England, given the Cape has it all. In Reader’s Choice’s feature on best summer foodie road trips, they call Cape Cod, “Boston’s beach house.” The Cape is filled with summer seafood choices. You can pull up a chair to the seafood bar at the Beachcomber at Cahoon Hallow Beach in Wellfleet. And you will never leave a legendary ice cream shop like Sundae School of the Cape Cod Creamery disappointed.
Boston
Maybe not an obvious choice here, but Boston was on All Culinary Schools List of “Best Food Destinations For Summer” due to the cuisine options throughout the city. The features call out the influx of food trucks and iconic chefs and restauranteurs like Barbara Lynch who cook it up in the city. Lastly, they say, “There are a number of culinary schools, including Johnson and Wales University, in the area.”
Maine
Finally,Maine shines in the summer for many things, including food. In fact, it was the first destination listed in Reader’s Digest best summer road trips for a foodie. ” This may just be the world’s best location for whole steamed lobsters,” they say. Lobster dishes in Maine can be found all over the state as platters or rolls. To bring this full-circle, Cousins Maine Lobster now has food trucks that venture in all areas of New England.
Massachusetts Brewery Is Crushing It With Their Merchandise
“We have been given the name of Merch King Kong by our peers,” Dino Funari, founder of Vitamin Sea Brewing says. That is because this brewery has some of the most recognizable merchandise in Massachusetts.
Chances are you’ve seen (or have) a hat or t-shirt that sports the branding “VSB,” “South Shore,” “Sea,” an ocean/sunrise vector, or a duck on it. That’s all Vitamin Sea Brewing. In fact, some of their items are so popular they fly off the shelf as soon as they are stocked. Furthermore, you can’t buy them online. They are all purchased onsite.
Weymouth, MA
Vitamin Sea Brewing opened in February of 2019. Their taproom (and headquarters) in Weymouth features twelve taps covering a wide range of craft beer styles. IPAs and stouts are also available to purchase in cans. Some of the beers vary per season, while others are more standard. The Summer IPA, currently on tap, for example, is hopped with Citra, Cascade, and Columbus hops. In addition, on tap number 12, you will find Seas and Desist Blueberry Lemonade. This is Vitamin Sea’s take on hard seltzer.
Their location has a beer garden feel where outdoor seating is available, and they typically partner with food trucks onsite at least three days per week. If you go inside VSB’s Weymouth home base, you will find a colorful wall of t-shirts adjacent to the bar and rack of hats, jackets, sweatshirts and more along the right-side wall.
The Merch Line
“Our marketing strategy happened organically. Well before we opened, I was handing out hats, t-shirts, pins, and stickers to get the word out. And it paid off. We’re constantly asked to advertise monetarily, but we see more value in getting our merch out to people or groups (musicians, athletes, media personalities) with their own audiences and fan bases, which introduces them to our brand,” Funari explains, about VSB’s intent to create such merch.
They have one of New England’s more recognizable logos. Whether you are walking in downtown Portland, ME or attending the Levitate Music and Artist Festival in Marshfield, it is likely you will see the Vitamin Sea round logo or duck along the way. People are proud to represent the passion that Vitamin Sea pours into everything they do. Wearing their gear also shows pride in where you are from.
Here, Funari will take us inside the taproom to provide some insight into this killer Vitamin Sea Brewing merch.
Jeff Gorra is a Boston-based writer who has been with Beasley Media Group since the beginning of 2023. He writes about restaurants and food, as well as sports and rock music. His experience also includes show hosting and in-depth creative writing in rock and reggae dub music. Jeff’s an avid surfer, New York Giants, and Pearl Jam fan, however, if you make unforgettable pizza, he is sure to find you.