Once the Fourth of July fireworks fade away, summer has a habit of rocketing by. Before we know it, September will be upon us. There are events every weekend not to be missed. Among the signature summer doings around here are some hallmark food events to put on your calendar.
Always the first weekend of August is the Charlestown Seafood Festival. Held at Ninigret Park, it is one of the largest food gatherings in the country and the first of its kind. It is an old-school fair vibe with rows of seafood vendor booths lining the tarmac of the old airstrip. This year marks the 40th anniversary of the festival, which will feature a midway, rides, concerts, fireworks and classic cars, but the star is the seafood.
Mainstays such as Kenyon’s Grist Mill, of South Kingstown, have been serving up clam cakes and chowder since the beginning. Matunuck Oyster Bar, also of South Kingstown, has been at the event for many years and undoubtedly will be a fan favorite this year. There will also be multiple places offering lobsters cooked any way that is desired, alongside restaurant and clam shack setups and mobile vendors serving up oysters, chowder, shrimp, crab, lobster rolls and littlenecks. There will also be “fair food,” ice cream, and beer and wine selections.
The famous Cousins Maine Lobster food truck will also be at this year’s festival. Known nationwide as a leading provider of Maine lobster rolls through a fleet of nearly 50 food trucks, Cousins’ local truck will be on the midway at Charlestown with a menu of Maine and Connecticut lobster rolls and specialties like lobster tacos. The festival dates are Aug. 1-3.
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FRESH POUR: A sommelier pours a glass for a guest at the 2024 Summer Soiree food and wine tasting event at the Little Sisters of the Poor residence in Pawtucket. This year’s Soiree is set for Aug. 13.
COURTESY 9TEN PHOTOGRAPHY/LAURA KILGUS[/caption]
On Aug. 13, the third annual Summer Soiree, supporting the mission of the Little Sisters of the Poor, will be held at the Jeanne Jugan Residence on Main Street in Pawtucket. The organization is an international congregation of Roman Catholic women founded in France in 1839 to care for the elderly poor.
Close to 300 guests are expected to attend to sample fine wine courtesy of Town Wine and Spirits of East Providence and craft beer from The Guild of Pawtucket and Canned Heat Craft Beer Co. of Fall River, as well as signature bites from over a dozen local restaurants. The Soiree will be held in a traditional outdoor reception setting in the gardens on the grounds of the residence. Guests are advised to RSVP by July 30, as tickets are expected to sell out.
“We’re grateful for the opportunity to bring our community together for this annual summer gathering,” said Lisa Dandeneau, chair of the residence’s advisory council. “This event has not only become an eagerly anticipated evening for our friends and benefactors but also an important source of support for the Little Sisters as they continue their mission here in Pawtucket.”
To put the cap on the summer of 2025, the food and wine world will head to Newport for the 20th Annual Newport Mansions Wine & Food Festival from Sept. 19-21. The festival has gone through a slight refocusing in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic. During its first decade-plus, it centered around a one- or two-day “grand tasting” with numerous wines, chef stations and live demonstrations. The past few years, it has expanded to three days of fun and educational seminars, tastings, dinners and the fan-favorite Sunday Brunch at the Rosecliff mansion.
The Newport Mansions event has attracted more than its share of culinary luminaries and this year will be no different. Expect a major announcement when tickets go on sale for Newport Mansions Preservation Society members July 28. Ticket sales will be available to the public July 31.
“Dining Out With Bruce Newbury,” syndicated weekly on radio, is heard in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Vermont and Indiana. Contact Bruce at bruce@brucenewbury.com.
