Author: Pat D

Memorial Day is not only the traditional opening of the summer season, but is also the start of my Margarita Monday seasonal series. The idea is to highlight restaurants open on Mondays that have margaritas available. It’s a pretty simple concept but sometimes it’s a challenge to follow through until Labor Day. But this year, we start off at the wonderful Beauport Hotel bar. We stopped for lunch and our first margarita of the season. It’s a raspberry margarita! We enjoyed our lunch in a stylish setting though it was still a little too chilly for me to eat outside. The staff is attentive and the food appealing. Jim ordered the chicken sandwich and I had the fish sandwich. PS and BTW the fries are outstanding. I believe our bartender was a relatively new hire but he did very well. The other staff was helping him orient and serve which was very nice to observe. I often recommend the Beauport to Stage Fort Park Welcome Center visitors for lunch and will continue to do so. Enjoy your Memorial Day.

We noticed this sign at the former Vita Bella restaurant on Eastern Ave in Essex. Thanks Chris L for the heads-up.

Sharing exciting news from The Lobster of Gloucester on East Main St Facebook page:

There’s always something cool going on down at the Harbor Loop. It’s one of my most oft recommended activities for families.

Breaking news on the Elks Spring Craft Show Sunday May 24 from 10-3: Originally scheduled to be held in parking lot on Atlantic Road has been moved indoors at the Elks due to expected weather conditions. Pat D’s Photos, Ardizzoni Photography, and Joey will be on hand with many of your other local favorites.

Cape Ann Jewish Cultural Festival Returns to Stage Fort Park on June 14

The Cape Ann Jewish Cultural Festival is back for its second year on Sunday, June 14, from 1:00–3:00 PM at Stage Fort Park in Gloucester.

Hosted by the Chabad Jewish Center of Cape Ann, the festival is free and open to the entire community. The afternoon will feature live Jewish music, inflatables, games, crafts, local vendors, community organizations, and delicious kosher food available for purchase.

Set against the beautiful backdrop of Stage Fort Park, the festival is a celebration of Jewish culture, family, community, and the rich diversity of Cape Ann.

Admission is free, but advance tickets are requested so organizers can plan properly.

Free tickets and more information are available at CapeAnnJewishFestival.com.

We took our first schooner sail of the season this week to take advantage of the gorgeous weather we were experiencing. We went along with Captain Harold Burnham and Mary Kay for an afternoon on the water so we were blessed with knowledgeable and informed guides. A young family from Kentucky and a additional visitors joined us for this perfect day to be on the water. This is a great adventure to offer your visitors or for yourself. Tickets and information available at this link. We got out pretty often so maybe we’ll see you on board one day! Thomas E. Lannon, you’re next!

Holy Family’s Women’s Guild Spring Plant and Bake Sale Saturday May 23 at St. Ann’s:

The Gloucester Elks on Atlantic Road is hosting their Spring Craft Show Sunday May 24 outside (weather permitting). Your famvorite local vendors will be on hand and we encourage you to stop by.

Our backyard in Magnolia has sprung to life. We’ve been watching a pair or Baltimore Oriole males chase a female around; feasting cardinals and humming-birds (haha). Joey’s hummingbirds are welcome in Magnolia anytime. Ours are pretty happy right where they are.

I haven’t posted anything about our LobstaLand osprey pair Annie and Squam yet this season as I am a little bit behind on almost everything! We are pleased to see there are currently 3 eggs in the nest due to hatch at the end of the month. Watching the Essex Greenbelt osprey cam is a particularly fun way to spend time. I appreciate the efforts to keep us updated through blog posts by David Rimmer. Check it out at this link. Here are some screenshots showing Annie on the nest and also Squam sitting as relief. Squam apparently is doing some nest rearranging. I hope Annie approves!

The fun continues today at Masshole Biscuit Company on Main Street:

Looks like the Main Street businesses will have a new neighbor soon. Replay Consignment will open in the location of the former Dress Code. Here’s a link to check out: https://www.shopreplaynow.com/

Patrick and his crew have returned to 51 Rocky Neck on Rocky Neck Ave and it seems they haven’t missed a step. We met friends for dinner a couple of days ago to welcome back the Rocky Neck favorite. We ordered pan seared Hamachi, burrata salad and crispy ribs, lamp pops and the Martini Chicken. We each enjoyed our entrees and had a great dining experience once again. We retired to the bar for more friends to join us and have a drink including a Proper Irish Coffee (of course). We are glad to see the inside of 51 Rocky Neck again! Thank you firends (you know who you are) for a lovely evening out.

The Battle of Gloucester Committee is having a community information session this coming Tuesday, May 19th. To learn more about the Battle of Gloucester, the reenactment event happening on June 20 and 21 at Stage Fort Park, and ways that you can get involved, come to the Captain’s Courageous Room in Minglewood Harborside at 5:30 p.m. This session is open to the public. Help us commemorate this important local event and it’s impact on the American Revolution.”

The day is almost here: a full day of music at The Cut on Main St to benefit the Lily Jean families. The event will be held Sunday May 17 at The Cut from noon- 9 pm. There are a couple of ways you can help out. First, consider purchasing a ticket to attend. The event will run from noon-9 pm and is filled with live music, speakers, raffles and more. We expect it to sell out so don’t wait, Tickets may not be available at the door. Ticket link here: https://thecutlive.com/pages/events/lily-jean-benefit

Another way to help is to purchase a T Shirt! Orders will be taken at the event as well. Here’s a link for the T Shirts: https://lily-jean-benefit-fund-drop-shop.checkoutstores.com/campaigns/lily-jean-benefit-fund-drop-shop/categories/2026-benefit-concert

Hope to see you there Sunday May 17.

I hope you all will tolerate one more post from our recent whale watching trip with Cape Ann Whale Watch. If you are AT ALL interested, this is a very very good opportunity to go out on one of the whale watches for a spring outing. It’s well worth the time and expense. These photos were among the ones I was able to get using my telephoto lens. You see some feeding behavior here which is an exceptional photo opp all by itself. In this case, the whales were “kickfeeding” which means they were slapping the tail on the water to stun the fish and then (often) blowing bubbles to further confuse the fish into staying close together allowing the whale to maximize the big swallow gulp of fish. Feeding whales attracts sea birds as you see here. Again, we had a super memorable adventure just a few days ago and while you can never be sure what you might see, this is a great time to go out if you are able.

Once again, it seems the hummingbirds prefer Magnolia to East Gloucester as they have arrived at Pat and Jim’s before Joey’s. I’ve not gotten a great shot yet, but this is enough proof. Better images to come soon. The Baltimore Orioles have also returned much to our delight. There is at least one pair hanging around for now. I expect more to show up soon. It’s a wonderful start to spring! Welcome back Joey……

After we have been travelling, we often find ourselves at Minglewood on Rogers Street for a meal or a drink. It feels like coming home when we walk in and are greeted in a friendly manner and offered a seat. Most recently we stopped in for dinner which included mango salmon sushi for Jim and a quesadilla for me. We also had dessert from the specials menu: strawberry rhubarb shortcake (for the sake of this post, of course). We had built up a number of Serenitee points so we were able to take advantage of cash off our bill (win-win). We chatted with another nearby couple who were cashing in a birthday reward from Serenitee which is a REALLY great deal. Highly recommend the Serenitee reward program: Info at this link.

Here’s a tasty way to help raise some funds to support fireworks! Sharing from Gloucester Fireworks Facebook page: