Good news, fellow foodies: Nashua’s got a few new restaurants we can try. First up: Meena’s Kitchen, at 113 West Pearl Street, which serves vegetarian-friendly Indian cuisine, and even offers a lunch buffet. Steamed dosas, chapati, and masala chai…oh my! Next door to Meena’s will be Pearl Street Pizza which is slated to open in the very near future, with plans to feature live entertainment with their pizzas, sandwiches and calzones.

Finally, the infamous, after-bar meat cart has a new retail location right on Main Street, too. The Sausage King of Nashua, Ed Canto, left his street cart behind for a permanent downtown spot, and will be open until 3 a.m. on select nights.

Anybody tried Meena’s Kitchen yet?

If you’re a hippie and/or like disco music, get ready to celebrate: The City Room Cafe on W. Pearl Street will be holding a “Seventies Saturday” party tomorrow from 6:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. The cafe will be featuring a 70’s style menu with some old favorites from the flower power decade. Come dressed in your best retro gear, too, because the customer with the best outfit wins a $50 gift certificate toward a future visit to The City Room. Customers can even participate in 70’s trivia while enjoying music from the decade. If the rain decides not to show up tomorrow, some customers will even be showing off their classic 70’s cars. Want to show yours too? Bring it, and receive 15% off The City Room Cafe’s menu. While you’re gettin’ your groove on, don’t forget about their food: try one of their omelettes, crepes or deli sandwiches.

Last night, I was invited to the N.H. Grower’s Dinner at the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord by Edible White Mountains Magazine. The dinner, which started with a cash bar and appetizers at 6 p.m., was a four course dinner of seasonally and locally produced foods prepared and served by the students of N.H. Food Bank’s Recipe for Success Culinary Program. Each ticket was $50, and went straight to benefiting the N.H. Food Bank. The sit-down dinner, which was also part of N.H. Eat Local Month, started promptly at 7, with a few speeches by prominent folks at the Food Bank, as well as Governor John Lynch and his wife, Susan Lynch. The dinner itself was a masterpiece, with ingredients for the four courses provided by local farms such as Apple Hill Farm in Concord and Sherman Farm in Conway. The soup, which started the four course meal, was a puree of beets with a swirl of spicy horseradish cream, followed by a salad of spring greens, summer squash, zucchini and caramelized onions. For the entree, the culinary students served the moistest braised pork shoulder I’ve ever had in my life, that came with a hint of coffee and spiced rum flavor. On the side was a spicy corn salad with peppers, as well as mashed potato marbled with pureed winter squash. For dessert, we had a homemade blueberry cornbread with lemon custard and whipped cream. Despite the fact that some of my table mates’ blueberry cornbread muffins were missing their tops, the taste was spot on, and the dish acted as the perfect ending to a seasonal, fresh-picked meal.

Just spent the last few days in Portsmouth for my older sister’s wedding, and boy, do I have some reports on the restaurants I ate at! First things first: the cheapest meal I’ve ever had was at The Page (formerly The Sports Page) at 172 Hanover Street. We went there Thursday night for my sister and her fiancee’s “Jack & Jill” bachelorette party, and I split the Creamy Spinach & Artichoke Dip with my brother, which came with plenty of tortilla chips and cheesy, greasy dip. Washed down with one too many $2 drafts of ANY draft beer of my choosing, we also decided to split a personal Cheese Pizza, made with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes and basil for a mere $4, thanks to the Thursday night special. The pizza was crispy and full of fresh, Italian flavor, although the thin crust could have used less flour.

On a more expensive note, Saturday night, for the fancy wedding party meal, we ate at The Oar House right on the water at 55 Ceres Street. Mind you, we were a party of 20, so we had one waitress for each side of the table which made the experience organized and as relaxing as possible, even with two 2-year-olds in attendance. The prices were sky high, so I split the Baked Brie with peach and melon conserve and toast points ($14) with my boyfriend, and we each got a salad as our meals. I opted for the Mixed Field Greens salad ($8), which was topped with red onion, dried cherries, crumbled blue cheese and balsamic vinaigrette, while my boyfriend ordered the Beet Salad ($10), which came with only four beets, giant artichokes, chick peas, red onion, and parmesan peppercorn dressing over peppery arugula. Delicious meals, despite the price tags, and enjoyed with great company. My only heads up: I took my 2-year-old nephew to the ladies’ room for a necessary diaper change, and the bathroom lacked an also necessary changing table.

Finally, after the reception Saturday night, we all stopped at Gilley’s for a cheeseburger with pickles, mustard, chopped white onions, and ketchup. These burgs are served out of a trailer, basically, that was chocked full at midnight with bar hoppers and meat lovers alike. Well worth the 30 minute wait, as well as being able to witness the several liquor-fueled arguments that ensued in the long line.

If you still haven’t tried the grub at La Carreta, stop reading and go there. Seriously. No local Mexican restaurant’s food is this good. With locations in Nashua and Manchester, I brought my out-of-town cousin to the Nashua location the other night, and although the bartender pretended we didn’t exist while we waited for a table, we were fortunate enough to be seated within 10 minutes. Our smile-less waiter was at least attentive, and the food was flawless. The complimentary tortilla chips were perfectly warm and salty, and the salsa had just the right amount of spice. Of course, we got some guacamole as an appetizer because you cannot visit La Carreta and not have their guacamole. Made with big, fresh cilantro leaves and the freshest, creamiest avocados on the East Coast (I’ll bet on it), the guac was an ideal accompaniment to my original margarita on the rocks. For dinner, I ordered the veggie fajitas, which came with two warm tortillas, an army’s worth of perfectly cooked veggies, refried beans, sour cream, and more guac. I also got a side of rice, which was cooked to the ideal “fluffiness” that even the most experienced chefs try to achieve. Overall, it was a great meal, despite the OK service. Which local Mexican spot is your favorite, and why?

Peach bellinis, filet benedict, and griddle cakes served with Vermont maple syrup and locally-grown seasonal fruit. Salivating yet? Good - because this meal’s worth the drive to North Andover, Mass. Burton’s Grill, with additional locations in Boston and Hingham, is offering brunch every Sunday from 11:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The biggest reason to make the drive? Burton’s has partnered with Smolak Farms , also in N. Andover, in a “Farm to Table” program to treat their guests to locally-grown produce. The program, which started with the Sunday Brunch menu, features seasonal fruits such as peaches, raspberries and blueberries. In lieu of their new partnership with Smolak, Burton’s Culinary Director, Denise Baron, will also be presenting her peach dessert of stewed peaches over coconut gelato and shortbread cookies at Smolak Farms Peach Festival this Saturday. Smolak Farms offers their fresh seasonal fruit featuring 40 different varieties such as: yellow peaches, white peaches and nectarines. If my sister wasn’t getting married on Saturday, I’d be there - mainly because nothing tastes more like summer than biting into a juicy, fresh peach. Can’t make it Saturday, but want to hit up Burton’s for Sunday brunch? Call ahead, as reservations are recommended.

25 years is a long time, so why not celebrate such an achievement for an entire 12 months? Well, T-Bones and Cactus Jack’s have done just that. The local chain continues to celebrate its quarter century anniversary by allowing all kids under the age of 12 to eat free at their restaurants the last week of summer. Starting August 23rd and ending August 30th, participating locations include T-Bones in Bedford, Derry, Salem, Laconia and Hudson, as well as Cactus Jack’s in Manchester and Laconia. Items on the kid’s menu include the standard grilled cheese, hot dogs and the kid’s cheeseburger, as well as a roast turkey dinner for those with bigger appetities.

Gettin’ hitched? We all know there is nothing more important to having a successful wedding but lots of delicious food. Oh, and love. But fortunately for Frederick’s Pastries in Amherst and Bedford, local lovebirds are lovin’ their creations. The editors at New Hampshire Magazine Bride voted Frederick’s “Best of Bride 2009″ for Best Edible Art. With cake flavors like dark chocolate with mocha buttercream frosting, or the seasonal pumpkin cake with regular buttercream, and filling flavors like mudslide, blackberry and peanut butter, it’s no surprise that Frederick’s took the cake on this one (no pun). Cake flavor combinations aside, Frederick’s is also well known for their exquisite cake decorating skills. Scroll through the gallery on their website, or visit either location to see for yourself. Their wedding cake displays are truly edible art.

I am still reeling from my dinner this evening at You You Japanese Bistro on Broad Street (right across from Kohl’s). This place has the best Japanese food and sushi this side of Boston, in my opinion. I’ve been dreaming about going back to You You since the last time I was there, which was months ago. Tonight, I had the vegetarian dumplings as an appetizer, which had a crunchy, egg roll-like filling wrapped in an almost overly greasy dough. Washed down with a strong and delicious glass of plum wine, I was ready for my main course: tuna and scallion maki. The sushi was fresh and full of flavor, and the wasabi was so spicy, my head was tingling - and I normally have a very high tolerance for spice. I then split a large order of warm sake with my fellow diners, while picking at the vegetarian’s vegetable tempura, and while watching my Japanese-food-skeptic friend across the table devour his steak and fried rice with chopsticks. A successful meal nonetheless, that left me full and satisfied - and dreaming of my next visit once again.