Monday, September 11, 2023

T Stands for the End of Summer

 Hi everyone. 

Last week we had some hot summery weather in New Hampshire. It didn't feel like early September, more like July.  It made me forget it was back to school time so I was even surprised when I had to deal with school buses while out for my morning allergy shots. 

I was also preoccupied with Miss Maddie's health issues, and for those of you who don't stop by regularly, she is now home. I'm very happy she's back because for a while I worried she might not have made it through. ❤ Now the problem is keeping her relaxed so she can finish healing, but that is a WAY BETTER problem than having her at the doggie hospital. 

I live in a tourist area. With the heat and with school back in session, many places have started to close or only open on weekends. One of those places is Pop's, the hole in the wall seafood shack I tend to write about often. They close (as we regulars know) at 4 PM on Labor Day, which this year was Monday September 4.

Since they won't open again until May of 2024, the hubby and I went for dinner on the Thursday night before the long Labor Day weekend. 


By the time my husband was home from work and we drove there, it was around 6:30 (PM). We still had a 40 minute wait to order and get our food. I think a lot of people were having their last Pop's hurrah for 2023.  Since it was a Thursday night, the little park across the street was not crowded. We opted to carry our food over there and eat at a picnic table next to the lake.

We left the dogs at home because we figured that way we wouldn't have to deal with their mooching, but as soon as we sat down we had some different species of moochers waddle over.


No lobster roll this time as it was a chilly night (yes August was chilly and September became hot-crazy weather). Instead I went for fried whole clams. We also split some onion rings and cole slaw. and my husband had chicken fingers.

You can also see our drinks which we brought with us. Those are my ticket for T this week at Bleubeard's and Elizabeth's blog.


I hadn't had fried clams all summer, and they were yummy. 


The mooch patrol waddled around the table for most of our dinner and finally headed off to wherever they would spend the night.

When the sun sets, it doesn't take long for it to get dark at this time of year. We were still finishing our dinner when dusk arrived.  By the time we returned home it was already dark and not even much past 8 PM.

That's all for me for T this week. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you have not only a happy T day but week ahead also.





16 comments:

hels said...

When the mooching birds waddled over, what were they after? Not fried clams and onion rings, surely.

Kate Yetter said...

Loved seeing your last hurrah at Pop's. The food looks tasty, and you can't beat that beautiful view. Looks like a lovely Thursday evening. Glad to hear your doggie is recovering.
Happy Tea Day,
Kate

Tom said...

..Pop's looks like my kind of palce!

Mae Travels said...

Sad that such a favorite closes up for a long winter break! I’d love any of the meals you describe from there. Believe me, there’s nothing similar in Michigan! I wonder if anyone actually shares with the ducks. I suspect they would eat whatever came their way, whether it would be healthy for them or not.
best, mae at maefood.blogspot.com

Angie's Recipes said...

So yummy and the view is gorgeous! We probably have a couple of more days of summery temperature, but I can tell from the falling leaves that autumn is right at the corner.

Iris Flavia said...

Allergy shots? My toes are numb, looks like I need a visit to some doc, too.
Yay for Maddie being home!
Argh for Pop´s! Time just flew by!!!
Just why do they close??? Like "my" Taco Guys. There is money to be made after all?

Chicken fingers? ???? No? What is that?

Yes. The days are getting shorter. Dark when I get up at 05:00 am, too.

Happy T-Day and hugs!

Valerie-Jael said...

Hi Erica, so glad you were able to visit Pop's again for another nice meal before they close, it looks great, and you chose a beautiful place to eat.And glad you had company, ducks & co can be very insistent when they want your food! Hope Maddie continues to heal. It's getting dark much earlier here, too, and I am looking forward to Autumn. Happy T Day, hugs, Valerie

Empire of the Cat said...

Did the ducks get any clams? It looks like a popular place but somewhere where I would struggle to find anything to eat lol. A little sad that they close at the end of the summer season, but I imagine the anticipation of them reopening is high in the spring. Happy T Day! Elle xx

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

I was surprised you didn't get the lobster roll, but it sounds like you really enjoyed your fried clams. You certainly had the perfect evening for sitting outside and enjoying the beauty of the lake. Here your napkins would be in the next county unless they were weighted down!

Think of the ducks serenading you instead of mooching (grin). They certainly added to the atmosphere. Thanks for sharing your last meal of the year at Pops, along with your soft drinks with us for T this Tuesday, dear Erika. Hope your week is going better than mine, dear friend.

CJ Kennedy said...

Most of the Summer was just too hot for fried clams. The evening was a perfect time. When you said moochers I thought seagulls! Some Summer, I'm going to convince Teague to take a ride to Pop's for lunch. Happy T Day Stay dry! I hope your area didn't get the flooding rains like Leominster had 😱

DVArtist said...

That's interesting that your touristy area closes for winter. Here on the Oregon coast everything stays open year round even if things slow down. I wish we had a place like POPs the food is so aweful here. Have a nice day today.

Jeanie said...

When you have a local favorite like Pops, I can see why there is a crowd near closing time -- and I would have been in that line with you! Tradition! (And good food!)

jinxxxygirl said...

Oh i'm so glad you managed to get a final meal at Pop's! I've had fried clams but i don't really care for them. Although yours looks fried to perfection. I prefer steamed clams. I can eat ALOT of them but i don't often find them on the menu anywhere.. I often have to settle for mussels and they are pretty good too... just a different texture.. What cute little moochers...lol Stay cool .. We finally had a cold front with RAIN come through last night..AAaahh so nice... Happy t day! hugs! deb

Aimeslee Winans said...

Oh boy, now that was a treat! I love fried clams, we have them down here one month longer, fried and stuffed clams are always a welcome addition to our restaurant seafood platters locally. I usually get the fried clams and stuffed crab with fried shrimp, because oysters have become a little iffy to eat. I used to eat them on the half shell raw, but no more. People have died here. I forgot you love the clams. Honey bought some about a month ago and fried them in his air fryer. They were delish! We had cole slaw too and fries but I would have preferred onion rings, lol. Have a good week, hope y'all don't get too much rain. XOX

Neet said...

That food looks amazing and the scenery where you chose to eat is fabulous. I can well imagine that was a very pleasant trip out. Thank goodness the hubby was home in time.
So glad `Miss Maddie is home, a very trying time for you whilst she was away. I hope she heals pretty quickly but keeping her reasonably still will, I imagine, be difficult. Good luck with her, give her a gentle tickle from me.
Hugs, Neet xx

nwilliams6 said...

Beautiful setting and pictures, Erika. Glad you made it before they closed for the season and the food looks wonderful. I haven't had clams in a long time.

Glad your baby is home too. Sending positive thoughts for her continued healing.

Happy T-day a bit late. Hugz