There’s a lot going on at the Black Orchid Grille on Temple Street in Nashua, and part of the news includes a whole lot of bourbon. The modern-American restaurant has always been an upscale yet approachable gem in downtown, and their new extended hours makes them that much more casual. The restaurant will now be open for lunch starting at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday through Friday (served until 2:30 p.m.), and will open for dinner Tuesday through Sunday, which includes items off their regular dinner or bar menus. Also, on Sundays and Tuesdays through Thursdays, Black Orchid will serve dinner and their pub menu until 9:30; dinner until 10 on Fridays and Saturdays; and their pub grub until 11 Fridays and Saturdays. But enough about the new hours; let’s get to the bourbon. On July 15th, Black Orchid will hold a Bourbon Dinner, where the eatery will be serving a four course meal with five different bourbons for sampling. Each bourbon will be available to be sampled straight as well as a drink with each course, and whiskey professor Bernie Lubbers will be on hand to teach you about each bourbon. Cost for each person is $79 (excluding tax and tip), and you must reserve your spot by the 11th. As a sneak peek, one course includes Sazerac and fried catfish, and hush puppies with anise aioli. Dessert? Knob Creek bread pudding with cinnamon ice cream. You don’t even have to like bourbon to like that.

If you haven’t yet dined at Stella Blu, you are missing out on some of the tastiest food downtown Nashua has to offer; and that is an understatement. Luckily for Stella fans and wannabes, the tapas bar is extending their hours. Starting Saturday, July 11th, Stella Blu will be open on Saturdays for both lunch and dinner, and although they are now closed for dinner on Sundays for the summer, the restaurant is launching a tapas brunch to take place on Sundays, starting July 12th. The brunch menu is still TBA, but the restaurant promises to post it on their website before the launch date. This is a busy long weekend for the culinary gem, as they are holding an Artist in Show event on July 9th, featuring Laura Keith Woerner of Harrisville, N.H. Not many things in life taste better than a pitcher of sangria while enjoying some local art. Throwing some global tapas in there doesn’t hurt either.

Margarita’s may not serve true, authentic Mexican fare, but their food is nonetheless delicious. Lucky for Marg fans like myself, the local chain has a new Fiesta Zone Menu, served in the bar from 4-6 p.m. and then again after 9 p.m. for a limited time. The Market Burger smothered in chipotle mayo, lettuce and pickled jalapenos is just one item to grace the menu at the tiny price of $5.99, as well as the Island Baby Chimis for $4.99, which are packed with shrimp, pineapple salsa and cream cheese. Sounds like summer deep fried and coated in Mexican flavors - I like it. Oh, and who needs the drive-thru anymore when you can get their new Street Tacos for 99 cents each, with your choice of chicken, pork, ground beef or steak? Wash it all down with one of their new margarita flavors, like the Icy Spicy Margarita, made with habenero and chipotle flavors. Only catch: you have to be 21 or older (or accompanied by an adult) if you want to enjoy these specials, and you must dine-in.

Yet again, the recession works in us foodies’ favors. Saffron Bistro, another upscale spot in downtown Nashua, is now offering a less expensive bar menu from 4 p.m. to close. With items like the Black Angus Burger served with fries to the Lobster Mac & Cheese to the Baked Stuffed Top Neck Clams, prices range from a mere $5 to $16. The bar & lounge area is open Tuesday through Saturday, and this new, more approachable menu is a great way to enjoy one of the most under-mentioned (in my opinion) downtown restaurants. As for the how the bar food tastes…that’s up to your trusted taste buds. Has anyone given it a go yet?

Downtown Nashua’s most recent Mediterranean addition, Restaurant Adria, is celebrating their Best of NH nomination, given to them by NH Magazine, after less than a year of being in operation. To successfully recognize this nomination, Restaurant Adria’s outside patio is now open and the restaurant will also be having live entertainment tomorrow night from 8 p.m. to 11p.m. The special guest is Pedja, who has been playing for many years with his band, and also in solo performances, all around Boston. To accompany the live music, Restaurant Adria will be offering several specials, including a special martini menu that won’t snap your wallet in half. Vodka and live music: what better way to end a hot summer day?

This post is a few weeks past its prime, but still worth sharing. Several Saturdays ago, my siblings and I took our parents out for their 32nd wedding anniversary, and although my parents are known to eat at The Common Man in Merrimack ervery chance they get, we figured we’d take them to a new spot (for them): Martha’s Exchange. Excited to show our parents that other restaurants besides the C-Man exist (although we’re all big fans), we were happy that the food and beer was delicious (I had the Turkey Panini with avocado mayo, and a side of pasta salad), but disappointed that our waitress lacked personality and patience. She never cracked a smile, she constantly reached over people’s plates to put other plates down, and she seemed to have a hard time clearing empty plates and glasses. Half of the olive oil, meant for the bread to be dipped in, was also spilt on the floor, causing half of our fellow diners to walk around it as to not slip on the marble, and thus dangerous, tile floor. After the meal, my mother, who is known for her letter-writing-about-bad-customer-service, wrote an email to Martha’s manager, which was responded with a generous offer of a gift card and sincere apologies for the bad service. The gift card was denied and the apologies were appreciated, but the damage was done: my parents will be going back to The Common Man on their next anniversary.

More good news that our local economy may not be so bad after all: Chicken ‘n’ Chips on W. Hollis Street is re-opening (per the sign on their window, and a fellow “Tweeter“). Date still TBA, but looking forward to more of their famous Chix Stix and fries. Once open, take-out and free delivery will be available, according to their website, and the Chicken ‘n’ Chips car that delivers our food will be run on their own recycled vegetable oil. Sounds like the popular poultry pad is taking advantage of their new birth by goin’ green and thus keeping with the trends. Anyone know when it’s officially re-opening?

On Tuesday night, I helped organize a local food blogger and social media meet-up at San Francisco Kitchen, a trendy, Asian fusion eatery in downtown Nashua. Although the tables outside are unfortunately too small to fit a larger party like us, the meal I had inside quickly made me forget where I was sitting.  I started with the seaweed salad, which was surprisingly one of the most delicious dishes I’ve eaten in the past couple weeks. It was literally a small bowl filled with shredded seaweed and sesame seeds – but trust me when I say, it was really good. For an “entrée” (that was actually listed under “appetizers”), I had the hot & spicy lamb skewers, that were cooked to an ideal rare, although some pieces were too fatty for chewing. All-in-all, SF Kitchen turned out to be a prime meeting spot for such an event, and I am still dreaming about that seaweed salad. Next time I go, I plan to have a nice bowl of that…outside. On a side not, the SF Kitchen’s owners’ son sat with us for a bit, and spoke about how the restaurant is working on getting a face on the web (i.e. Twitter, etc.). So stay tuned.

Although Express Cafe at 182 Main Street has been open for a few months now, the light breakfast and lunch spot (next to Fresh) will be holding a grand opening ceremony and ribbon cutting on Wednesday at 10 a.m. The ceremony is put on by Great American Downtown, and Mayor Lozeau will make a welcoming address before the ribbon cutting at 10. The cafe will also be providing sample items for attendees to try - just looking over their menu, I’m hoping the Falafel Wrap, Turkey Bruschetta Panini and Mochaberry coffee are included in the tasting. Word on the street is Express Cafe even uses locally roasted coffee, gluten-free meats and the freshest produce they can find. Just by supporting local businesses, they can count on my attendance Wednesday morning.

Another reason to celebrate the recession: normally expensive downtown eateries are accommodating their menus to accommodate our wallets. Unum’s is one of the latest spots - the upscale eatery just introduced their new dinner menu yesterday, with diverse offerings for much smaller price tags. While before it was rather difficult to find a dinner at Unum’s for under $20, now many new items are in the $7-15 range, including appetizers. The Roasted Pork Medallion appetizer is a mere $9, served over a roasted corn tomato pesto hush puppy with raspberry syrup. I’d eat that for $90. Salads run $7-9, including the Roasted Vegetable Grecian Salata, and entrees are $14-32. One example of a $14 entree is the Chestnut Ravioli (which used to be $18), finished with spinach, sweet potato, sweet capicolla, bacon and nutmeg in mascarpone cream. Cream AND bacon? Count me in. The new menu’s not on their website yet, so don’t be fooled by the old menu’s prices and offerings.