Eat and Run: Riverview Farm, Home Hill Inn, and Creameries

The "Maroun" apple

We're heading to the Keene Pumpkin Festival tomorrow and we'll stop for lunch at L.A. Burdick's in Walpole along the way.

If this weekend turns out to as fun as the last, then I'll be happy.

I'm specifically referring to Sunday, when Maroun and I went apple picking at Riverview Farm, brunched at the Home Hill Inn, and then headed to Meriden for open houses at Taylor Brothers Sugarhouse and Creamery and Garfield's Smokehouse.

Sometimes I don't feel like I'm living in New England—sometimes the scenery is so cliched and classic I'm fairly certain I'm instead on a film set depicting a New England scene.

That's how I felt at River View Farm. I was so happy, I skipped through the orchards and the pumpkin patch. We had arrived just at 10:00 a.m. before the crowds appeared, and just in time to have the most delightful breakfast: a farmer's wife's donut dipped in fresh, hot apple cider.

I told the friendly farm manager I planned to make pies, and he said that if we had plans for baking, we could save money by picking up the fallen apples from the ground; they were only 50 cents a pound. Frugal Maroun's ears pricked up at this good news (the ground apples were also a little easier for him to reach :). When we were done, we plucked kiwi gold raspberries and selected a pretty assortment of squash before heading on our way.

As we pulled out of the drive, Maroun said, "The Bimer smells like apple."

It really did.