Recommended Places to Visit: Southbridge

Recreation

Water Bodies
Carpenter Pond
Snow Street and Martin Street


Hiking

Westville Dam
End of Marjorie Lane

Architecture

Monuments

War Memorial
~24 Elm Street beside Fire Department

Town Common
Crystal Street and Mechanic Street

Dresser Memorial Park
Main Street and Walnut Street

Felix Gatineau Statue
Main Street and South Street

Places of Worship

Central Baptist Church
256 Main Street

Elm Street Congregational Church
61 Elm Street

St. Nicholas Albanian Church
126 Morris Street

Sacred Heart Church
30 Charlton Street

St. Michael's Romanian Orthodox Church
16 Romanian Avenue

Southbridge Methodist Church
449 Main Street

Notre Dame of the Sacred Heart Parish
61 Marcy Street

St. George Greek Orthodox Church
55 North Street

Holy Trinity Episcopal Church
446 Hamilton Street

St. Mary's Church
263 Hamilton Street

St. Hedwig Church
29 Summer Street

New Vision Church
364 Main Street


Town Facilities

Jacob Edwards Library
236 Main Street

Fire Department
24 Elm Street

Town Hall
41 Elm Street

Southbridge Hotel and Conference Center
14 Mechanic Street

Police Department
1 Mechanic Street

Lasalle Conference Center
444 Main Street


Historical Buildings
Southbridge Savings Bank
253 Main Street

The Arc
100 Foster Street

Restaurants

Highly Recommended:
Austrian

Vienna Restaurant and Historic Inn
14 South Street
Recommended Dishes:
Tafelspitz

Tried:
Breakfast

Fedele's Coffee Shop and Restaurant
13 Central Street
Recommended Dishes:
Hot Chocolate
Steak and Eggs
Corned Beef Hash
Kielbasa

Recommended Places to Visit: Spencer

Recreation
Parks
O'Gara Park
95 Valley Street

Luther Hill Park
End of Park Street

Beaches
Brooks Pond
Brooks Pond Road between Washburn Drive and Oakham Road

Hiking

Spencer State Forest
Howe Pond Road near Lyford Road

Water Bodies
Cranberry Meadow Pond
Cranberry Meadow Road between Jolicoeur Avenue and Briarcliff Lane

Browning Pond
Browning Pond Road near Browning Pond Circle

Thompson Pond
Thompson Pond Road between Westland Drive and Oak Lane

Stiles Reservoir
Chickering Road between Styles Avenue and Wilson Avenue

Sugden Reservoir
~50 Lake View Drive

Muzzy Lake
Maple Street and Adams Street

Architecture

Monuments

Bemis Memorial Park
West Main Street near Podunk Pike

Soldier's Monument
~193 Main Street

Vietnam Memorial Park
80 South Spencer Road

Places of Worship

Mary Queen of the Rosary Parish
60 Maple Street

First Congregational Church
207 Main Street

St. Joseph's Abbey
167 North Spencer Road

Hillside Baptist Church
472 Main Street

First United Methodist Church
161 Main Street

Schools
Wire Village School
60 Paxton Road


Town Facilities

Town Hall
157 Main Street

Richard Sugden Library
8 Pleasant Street


Historical Buildings
Old Fire Station
~157 Main Street

Old Building
239 Main Street

Old Ragsdale Kia
324 Main Street

Restaurants

Highly Recommended:
Western
Black and White Grille
206 North Spencer Road
Recommended Dishes:
Ribeye Surf and Turf

Mexican
Mexicali Grill
117 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Mexicali Chimichanga

Recommended Places to Visit: Paxton

Recreation

Water Bodies
Kettle Brook Reservoir #4
Reservoir Drive near Pleasant Street

Illig's Pond
19 West Street

Hiking

Moore State Park
1 Sawmill Road

Architecture

Monuments

War Memorials
Richards Avenue and Pleasant Street

Places of Worship
First Congregational Church

1 Church Street

St. Columba Church
10 Richards Avenue

Public Facilities

Public Safety Complex
576 Pleasant Street

Richards Memorial Library
44 Richards Avenue

December 1st 2013: Sightseeing in the Fog

Today, despite the gloomy weather, I decided to head out to do some sightseeing. Not having any specific plans, I decided to head out west this time, visiting Paxton

Kettle Brook Reservoir #4,
Reservoir Drive near Pleasant Street

Illig's Pond, 19 West Street

and a few places in Spencer, including the Sugden Reservoir Dam, which I visited in the dark the last time I was here.

Sugden Reservoir

O'Gara Park, 95 Valley Street

Muzzy Lake,
Maple Street and Adams Street

Vietnam Memorial Park,
80 South Spencer Road

I also visited the Luther Hill Park, located at the end of Park Street, which has a pretty decent beach and a disc golf course. Unfortunately, it is only open to Spencer residents.

before deciding to hike a little at the Spencer State Forest. The paths I took to view the water bodies here is shown below in pink.

I tried to find the water body to the right at first, but ended up getting lost and heading back to my starting point. I gave up at this point, and decided to view a little more of Howe Pond. Here are some pictures I took while I was here.

From here, I headed into the town of Charlton to visit some water bodies.

Railroad Pond,
New Spencer Road and Old Spencer Road

Wee Laddie Pond, 65 Gould Road

Little Nugget Lake, 69 Nugget Drive

Hultered Pond, 57 Northside Road

Finally, I decided it was time for some brunch at Fedele's Coffee Shop and Restaurant, a small town breakfast place at 13 Central Street in the town of Southbridge.

After looking at the menu, I decided to get a cup of Hot Chocolate, the Steak and Eggs, and a side of Corned Beef Hash and Kielbasa.

Hot Chocolate

Steak and Eggs

Kielbasa and Corned Beef Hash

The food was actually really good, especially the meats, and I surprised myself by finishing everything I got. I surprised the restaurant owners as well.

After lunch, I visited a few places in Southbridge,

The Arc

Carpenter Pond,
Snow Street and Martin Street

then headed into Sturbridge for a bit

Cedar Pond Recreation Area

Pistol Pond, 310 Charlton Road

Long Pond, 37 Champeaux Road

before finally calling it a day for hiking. From here, I decided to try the Cedar Street Grille in town for dinner. This place actually looks pretty upscale, and the menu was pretty interesting as well.

For food, I decided to get mostly appetizers, namely the Pork Belly (crispy fried pork belly, apple & beet puree, maple drizzle), the Crazy Dates (stuffed dates, bacon, goat cheese) and the Pumpkin and Sausage Mac and Cheese.

Pork Belly

Crazy Dates

Pumpkin and Sausage Mac and Cheese

All the dishes were very well presented. Both the pork belly and dates were scrumptious, but the most amazing of all was actually the Mac and Cheese. I never knew pumpkin could go so well with it.

That was not the end of it though. For dessert, I decided to get the Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Tart (Coffee Bean Creme anglais, fresh whipped cream).

Its not like the overly sweet pecan pie I am so used to loving, but the tart was still good.

Overall, this is definitely the best restaurant I have been to in Sturbridge to date, hands down. A definite must try for anyone in town, especially if you are stopping by on the way back from a car ride to NYC. I should have come here yesterday.

November 30th 2013: Dinner at Avellino and The Duck, Sturbridge

After managing to make it back to Massachusetts from NYC, where I had a lot of fun, with my friends, I decided to stop by Sturbridge for dinner at the Whistling Swan, a historical place containing 2 restaurants, namely Avellino, a pretty upscale Italian restaurant, and The Duck, a bar restaurant. I was informed that by eating at the central bar, I would be able to try both places at the same time, so I decided to do just that. Not feeling too hungry, I decided to get the Risotto con Funghi (arborio rice with wild mushrooms, truffle cream, parmesan cheese) from the Avellino side, and the Duck Quesadilla (confit rohan duck, smoked gouda, pear salsa, aji sour cream) from the Duck side.

The place also comes with a jar of crackers for starters.

Starters

Risotto con Funghi

Duck Quesadilla

To my disappointment, the cheese in the risotto was a little too strong, while the quesadilla was a little plain as well. At the same time, I suddenly felt extremely exhausted.

Not a good dining experience overall, but I would still give this place the benefit of the doubt, given its popularity. I'm just glad I got home safely today.

Recommended Places to Visit: Milford

Recreation

Parks
Plains Park
~60 Cedar Street


Sewing
Maria Sews A Lot
262 Main Street

Hiking
Wildcat Pond

150 Cedar Street

Water Bodies

Louisa Lake
Dilla Street between Sumner Street and Quinshipaug Road



Architecture

Monuments

Draper Memorial Park
Congress Street and Main Street

Tall Mannequin
127 East Main Street

Calzone Park
Main Street and Beach Street

Irish Round Tower
~70 Cedar Street

Places of Worship

Saint Mary of the Assumption Church
19 Winter Street

Trinity Episcopal Church
17 Congress Street

First Unitarian Universalist Church
23 Pine Street

Sacred Heart of Jesus Church
5 East Main Street

First Congregational Church
4 Congress Street

First United Methodist Church
39 Exchange Street

Pine Street Baptist Church
41 Pine Street


Schools
Milford Middle School East
45 Main Street

Stacy Middle School
66 School Street


Town Facilities

Police Headquarters
250 Main Street

Town Hall
52 Main Street

Youth Center
24 Pearl Street


Historical Buildings
Memorial Hall
30 School Street

Old South Main Street Fire Station
~7 South Main Street

Old P Gillon Building
189 Main Street

Restaurants

Highly Recommended:
Western

Prezo Grille + Bar
229 1/2 East Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Pretzel Chicken Bites
Brady Maki
Salmon and Shrimp Wasabi
Thai Lettuce Wraps

Recommended Places to Visit: Hopkinton

Recreation

Water Bodies
Whitehall Reservoir
Highland Street and Exchange Street

Ice House Pond
~66 West Main Street

Duck Pond
90 Saddle Hill Road

Bloods Pond
32 South Mill Street

Beaches
Sandy Beach
End of Hayward Street

Parks

Hopkinton Town Common
Ash Street and Park Street

Zettek Overlook
54 Greenwood Road

Events
Boston Marathon Start Line
East Main Street near Ash Street

Architecture

Places of Worship

St. John the Evangelist Church
20 Church Street

Woodville Baptist Church
249 Wood Street

St. Paul's Episcopal Church
61 Wood Street

Community Covenant Church
2 West Elm Street

Korean Presbyterian Church in Greater Boston
2 Main Street

Schools
Hopkins School
104 Hayden Rowe Street


Hopkinton Center School
11 Ash Street

Town Facilities
Town Hall
18 Main Street

Fire Department
73 Main Street

Public Library
13 Main Street


Commercial Buildings
Hopkinton Square

22 South Street

Historical Buildings
Old Hopkinton High School
85 Main Street

Restaurants

Highly Recommended:

Western
The Marathon Restaurant at North Pond

25 Hayward Street
Recommended Dishes:
Steak and Mushroom Ravioli
Pan Roasted Salmon
Bread Pudding
Chicken Wings


Tried:

Italian
Mangia Neapolitan Pizza

31 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Bacon and Scallop Pizza
Inna's Favorite Pizza
House Fries