The local's guide to dining

With the advent of the internet and long before "fast food", guide books referencing the dining "hot spots" were aplenty. AAA had their tour guide books, and of course, Fodor's has had their reference manuals to assist their readership with selecting fine dining establishments. These were particularly useful when traveling, at least until you had a chance to ask some of the locals for their opinion. However, today many of us just access the internet, and voila, the information is right there at your finger tips. Well, when we were younger, there was a cadre of options, but because of our large family, eating out or for that matter, getting take out, was a real treat indeed. However, over the years, even we had our favorites, and with a little arm twisting, my parents would treat us so Mom could have a much deserved reprieve from the kitchen.

My first recollection of the local fare was "Mona's" pizza. The pizza parlor was right next to her husband's barber shop where my brothers and I had our hair cut. If we wanted hamburgers and fries, it was either Skip's or Laubner's. Skip's was known for their curly Q fries, while Laubner's had lobster rolls too. After the Saturday football games, it was off to Reet's for a cheeseburger and fries, but they had good milk shakes too, and of course, the young ladies. Additionally, Martha's was on the beach road, and they had the best lobster rolls and onion rings. The Atomic pizza parlor was right next to the A&P, so it was handy for a quick snack while getting something at the store for Mom. Their pizza was the astronomical price of $0.99, a bargain at those prices for sure. There were other stop offs as well, Auntie Raines' Country Corner, Alecs' soda shop, just to name a few.

If my parents wanted a real sit down dinner with us, we had several haunts. The Howard Johnson's on 95 South had great booths, clam rolls, and of course, its the home of the 28 flavors of ice cream. The 110 house had a lovely lobster pie, but it had the ambiance of an authentic roadside inn, and the "ye Olde Cock and Kettle" should not be forgotten. They had these miniature loaves of bread that were served heated, right out of the oven, and I believe, in fact, that our childhood neighbor actually baked them for them. Certainly, there were more on the list, Yoken's, with their sign, "thar she blows" and good food, Brown's, with their classic lobster in the rough, The Clam Box, home of the perfected fried clam, and of course, The Hungry Traveler, where we gathered for Easter Sunday brunch for many years.

Yes, there were a large number of excellent eating establishments just a short drive from home, and this doesn't even include some of the Boston gems. However, no matter how we sliced it, the most popular 5 star restaurant always served its meals with style, at home and with the family, and when I last checked, they were still open for business!