Next Saturday, Nashua’s 16th Annual Winter Holiday Stroll will be taking over Main Street from 5 to 10 p.m. Organized by the Great American Downtown, this event serves as a fundraiser for the non-profit organization, and is the biggest dining and shopping event of the year for downtown businesses. As always, there will be a raffle, where people can win tickets to Chunky’s, gift certificates to downtown restaurants and shops, and skiing/snowboarding packages, to name a few. New this year, however, is that the beer garden will be located on High St., and all ages are welcome (although 21-year-olds will be given wristbands). In regards to the food, “regular” food vendors will be next to Sovereign Bank or next to Saffron Bistro - however, 12 downtown restaurants have also signed on to serve their fare right outside their own eateries. Attendees can taste creations from the likes of Fody’s Tavern, Unum’s, Stella Blu, and San Francisco Kitchen, to name a few. For a full list of participating restaurants and Winter Stroll activities, click here. GAD picked the right year/economic climate to get local restaurants involved. Who plans to attend this year’s Stroll, and which restaurant’s food are you most excited to try?

‘Tis the season to eat pumpkin, but is anybody else getting sick of pumpkin muffins, pumpkin pie, and pumpkin coffee? Don’t get me wrong, I love the fall fruit flavor, but I’ve been waiting for some innovative pumpkin-licious treats for the last 12 months now. The only seasonal juice I’m not sick of yet is pumpkin beer, but that’s a given. Amidst all of my complaining, I received an email from Parker’s Maple Barn recently, boasting their special of the month: french toast stuffed with spiced pumpkin and cream cheese. Now, I’m not sure exactly how this will be - french toast filled with pumpkin-cream-cheese-pie filling, or just toast made with pumpkin spice and stuffed with cream cheese? The mystery is half the salivating. Either way, I’m in for trying this seasonal dish.

What’s your favorite pumpkin-inspired treat?

There are quite a few changes going on at Manchester’s smoothie shop, All Juiced Up. Owner Melissa is teaming up with her mother, owner of Heavenly Fodder, to provide juice guzzlers with more natural meal options (Heavenly Fodder’s products are free of gluten and artificial additives). Frequent buyer cards will soon be available for use at both eateries, as well as gluten-free muffins (like the low sugar cinnamon orange), and bacon, egg and cheese sandwiches made with all natural meat and cheese. Additionally, All Juiced Up has added soup to their menu to get us through this chilly weather - I suggest getting half a sandwich with a cup of soup, like AJU’s Quinoa Chickpea Panini on grilled sourdough and topped with alfalfa sprouts, tomato, red onion, and ginger lime dressing. Perfect cure for the common cold weather.

I had the opportunity to try Burton Grill’s brunch in North Andover this past Sunday, and man, am I glad I did. From white chocolate cranberry scones to blueberry brownies to eggs and bacon, this was one brunch worth writing about. The brunch items are ordered from the non-extensive menu, but there is enough variety to please just about everyone’s breakfast needs. I decided on the chef’s frittata, filled with locally grown zucchini and chocked full of a beautiful blend of spices - and covered in a heavenly layer of melted cheddar cheese. On the side, I had fresh, well seasoned home fries with homemade ketchup and thick cut wheat berry toast. My friend ordered the Crab Cakes Benedict, which was a layered masterpiece of two still-crunchy English muffins, topped with lump, full-of-crab crabcakes, and poached eggs smothered in creamy lemon hollandaise sauce. Each dish even came with a small bowl of fresh fruit. Holy breakfast! The only downside? The Bloody Marias we tried to drink our meals down with. The $9 beverage is supposed to include worcester seasoning, tabasco sauce, horseradish, red and yellow peppers, jalapenos, and manchego cheese-stuffed olives (to name a few), but unfortunately, the drinks we got tasted like nothing more than tomato juice and tequila - and the olive wasn’t stuffed. If you’re going to make the drive, go for the food - but I recommend ordering coffee or OJ.

I may be behind the foodie times - is it possible? - but I just got wind that Sopranos Pizzeria on Main Street (owned by the same masterminds behind The Pizza Man in Merrimack) has a few new specialty pizzas on their menu. Now again, this might not be breaking news for everybody, but it is for me, and trust me when I say I’m excited. The three new entries on the popular pizza joint’s menu are: chicken bacon ranch, chicken broccoli alfredo, and potato bacon. In other words, heart attacks on crust, but it’s pizza - why try and make it healthy when, sometimes, it should just be bad for you? The chicken bacon ranch, for instance, substitutes sauce for ranch dressing, and is then topped with crispy chicken cutlets, bacon, and mountains of cheese. You can even order the pie buffalo or barbeque style. The potato bacon ranch just sounds like carbohydrate heaven, and includes both sauce and ranch dressing. I might be getting heartburn just thinking about it, but these pies I’ve got to try.

Anyone tried a slice of one of Sopranos’ new creations yet?

Talk about cheap eats: The Pasta Loft in Milford might just have the best deal in town. The popular American-Italian eatery (which has an additional location in Hampstead), has recently introduced their Frugal Fare Menu where you get two entrees for the small price of $20. The items on this frugal menu aren’t low budget, though. The high quality offerings include Surf & Turf, Lobster Stuffed Shells, Citrus Scallop Salad, and Chicken Saltimbocca Florentine. There’s nothing for the vegetarians or vegans, but us omnivores can chow down, without having to sacrifice a week’s worth of pay.

Just when I thought The Black Forest Cafe’s food couldn’t taste any better, they go ahead and start serving certain sweets at a discounted price. Two mini white chocolate chip dried ranier cherry oatmeal cookies for $1 anyone? Every 14 days, the cafe will be offering a different kind of cookie with a smaller price tag than usual. According to chef Bruce Walters, starting these “Cookie Jar Specials” not only gives their customers a chance to save some cash, but also allows the cafe to try out new recipes. The white chocolate chip dried ranier cherry oatmeal cookies are the first batch, which was kicked off on September 21st. Did I mention you can get two of the cookies for free when you try their new fall espresso drink, Caramel Apple Latte, hot or iced? To keep up-to-date on the current cookie specials, become a fan of The Black Forest on Facebook.

If you’ve ever been to New York, or known anyone from New York, you’ve probably heard of the unappetizing-sounding dish called the ”garbage plate.” The garbage plate was created in 1918 by a genius (in my book) named Nick Tahou, who owned Nick Tahou Hots in Rochester, N.Y. Although no one will ever be able to recreate it completely, as Tahou was smart enough to trademark his signature dish, T-Bones has added a N.Y. “Garbage Plate” Burger to their menu; along with 19 other new dishes. The Garbage Plate Burger is made with two slices of pan-seared meatloaf topped with fried potato “wheels,” coleslaw, red onion, Buffalo sauce, and American cheese, sandwiched within a grilled roll.

The original garbage plate, however, is defined as a combination of a hamburger, red and white hots, Italian sausage, Haddock, chicken tenders, grilled cheese, ham OR eggs; and two sides of either baked beans, French fries, home fries, or macaroni salad. This mess of a plate is then topped with one or more of the following, depending on your preference: ketchup, mustard, onions, and/or hot sauce, and served with bread.

How do you think T-Bones’ “Garbage Plate” Burger measures up to the original classic?

Got vodka? Some competing downtown restaurants in Nashua do. In addition to their wine nights during the week, Black Orchid Grille and Unum’s are now devoting another day of the week to martinis for a more intense after work stress reliever. This Wednesday, Black Orchid is holding their first Martini Sampling Night where cocktail sippers pay a mere $2 for a 2 oz. tasting. Attendees can try just one tini, or all five that will be offered that night. This week’s menu includes: Dragon’s Kiss, made with Bacardi Dragon Berry Rum, lemonade, strawberry puree, and a splash of club soda, as well as La Pear Martini, with St. Germain Elderberry Liqueur, Grey Goose La Poire, pear puree and champagne. The tasting is from 6 to 8 p.m., and will be held the second Wednesday of every month from here on out.

Not too far down the road from Black Orchid’s, Unum’s will soon be holding “Tini” Thursdays, where the restaurant will be infusing vodka with various ingredients like fresh fruit and hot peppers, and will be selling the cocktails at a discounted price. Unums will even start showcasing fruit infused vodka martinis, and will select two cocktails each week where $1 of the proceeds will be contributed to Breast Cancer or Alzheimer’s research in honor of co-owner Karen Williams’ parents. Drinking vodka for a good cause? Count me in!

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.