Shrimp Cocktail

Cobblestones of Lowell Restaurant & Bar 91 Dutton St., Lowell 978-970-2282 www.cobblestonesoflowell.com Hours: Monday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. Handicapped accessible Credit cards accepted Raised expectations - often enhanced by hype and hoopla - can turn an otherwise reasonably entertaining film or pleasant restaurant into a disappointment if experience falls short of anticipation. Conversely, low expectations that rise as reality unfolds can turn an average movie or meal into a memorable occasion.

CHARLESTOWN, R.I. - Once a part of Westerly, this little coastal town bustles in summer. But there's lots to like in Charlestown off-season, especially for outdoors lovers, with many places to watch birds, to fish and to hike - including the many tourist-free beaches. Gift seekers and the hungry will have their pick of shops and restaurants, and there is no shortage of places to stay. STAY This time of year lodging bargains abound. Close to hiking hot spots such as Burlingame State Park is the Windswept Inn (10 Prosser Trail, 401-364-3421,...

Serves 4 With its tangy dressing, shrimp cocktail is an appetizer that pleases just about everyone. Add a little stack of corn cakes, and the dish becomes a light summer supper. These savory cakes are made with yellow cornmeal and kernels of corn. As good as pancakes are for breakfast, pancakes at the end of the day have a comforting, homey appeal. Shrimp are delicate and need to be pampered, so don’t step away from the stove until the crustaceans are safely cooling. SHRIMP 3 tablespoons lemon juice 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard ...

Serves 4 With its tangy dressing, shrimp cocktail is an appetizer that pleases just about everyone. Add a little stack of corn cakes, and the dish becomes a light summer supper. These savory cakes are made with yellow cornmeal and kernels of corn. As good as pancakes are for breakfast, pancakes at the end of the day have a comforting, homey appeal. Shrimp are delicate and need to be pampered, so don’t step away from the stove until the crustaceans are safely cooling. SHRIMP 3 tablespoons lemon juice 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard ...

CHARLESTOWN, R.I. - Once a part of Westerly, this little coastal town bustles in summer. But there's lots to like in Charlestown off-season, especially for outdoors lovers, with many places to watch birds, to fish and to hike - including the many tourist-free beaches. Gift seekers and the hungry will have their pick of shops and restaurants, and there is no shortage of places to stay. STAY This time of year lodging bargains abound. Close to hiking hot spots such as Burlingame State Park is the Windswept Inn (10 Prosser Trail, 401-364-3421,...

Quarterdeck 177 Main St., Maynard 978-897-9165 Lunch, Monday through Friday from 11:30 to 2:30; dinner, Monday through Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m. and on Friday and Saturday until 10 p.m. Reservations for eight or more Accessible to the handicapped Visa or MasterCard only accepted You can't ask much more from a restaurant than great food that is reasonably priced, a friendly wait staff, and an inviting atmosphere....

The Common Man prepares and presents comfort food in a setting that is as comfortable as it is historic. Its 1794 building in Merrimack was once the home of Colonial patriot Matthew Thornton and his wife, Hannah Jack Thornton, who are buried in a graveyard across the street. Hannah Jack’s Tavern operated at the site for decades before the Common Man chain took it over five years ago. The building retains its historic character with broad plank floors and hand-hewn beams that still show the marks of an ax. Wall sconces with “electric candles’’ cast soft light suitable for the period.

You get the feeling when you walk into Greg’s Restaurant that you’ve passed through the doors of a private club, populated by people who come here every week. An older crowd packs the bar on a Thursday night, and the dining room is nearly full, though things empty out a bit after the early-bird special expires. Diners sitting at different tables greet each other, and there’s a small reunion playing out in the tiny lounge. A priest wearing his collar and two older men fold themselves into a booth near us. A table on our other side is occupied by a woman and her mother.

Monponsett Inn 550 Monponsett St., Halifax 781-293-2116; www.monponsettinn.com Open Sunday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11:30 to 10 p.m. Major credit cards accepted Accessible to the handicapped There are to be found (with the wondrous help of a GPS) some lovely middle-of-nowhere spots within an hour of Boston, and we discovered a sweet one last week in Halifax. The Monponsett Inn — no longer an inn, but a restaurant for more than 100 years — sits on a narrow strip of land between East and West Monponsett...

For 19 ½ majestic minutes they turned their gaze skyward, heads tilted back, mouths agape, admiring the 15,000 choreographed fireworks punctuating Boston’s Fourth of July celebration. Many of them had arrived hours or even a full day in advance, to spread blankets or set up beach chairs among the hundreds of thousands who would eventually pack the Esplanade and fan out on both sides of the Charles River - waiting throughout a muggy, 90-degree Independence Day for a technicolor display that would make it all worth it. “Just unbelievable,’’ said Rick...

For 19 ½ majestic minutes they turned their gaze skyward, heads tilted back, mouths agape, admiring the 15,000 choreographed fireworks punctuating Boston’s Fourth of July celebration. Many of them had arrived hours or even a full day in advance, to spread blankets or set up beach chairs among the hundreds of thousands who would eventually pack the Esplanade and fan out on both sides of the Charles River - waiting throughout a muggy, 90-degree Independence Day for a technicolor display that would make it all worth it. “Just unbelievable,’’ said Rick Keith, 59, a tourist from Winter...

The Common Man prepares and presents comfort food in a setting that is as comfortable as it is historic. Its 1794 building in Merrimack was once the home of Colonial patriot Matthew Thornton and his wife, Hannah Jack Thornton, who are buried in a graveyard across the street. Hannah Jack’s Tavern operated at the site for decades before the Common Man chain took it over five years ago. The building retains its historic character with broad plank floors and hand-hewn beams that still show the marks of an ax. Wall sconces with “electric candles’’ cast soft...

Monponsett Inn 550 Monponsett St., Halifax 781-293-2116; www.monponsettinn.com Open Sunday through Thursday, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11:30 to 10 p.m. Major credit cards accepted Accessible to the handicapped There are to be found (with the wondrous help of a GPS) some lovely middle-of-nowhere spots within an hour of Boston, and we discovered a sweet one last week in Halifax. The Monponsett Inn — no longer an inn, but a restaurant for more than 100 years — sits on a narrow strip of land between East and West Monponsett lakes, which together...

You get the feeling when you walk into Greg’s Restaurant that you’ve passed through the doors of a private club, populated by people who come here every week. An older crowd packs the bar on a Thursday night, and the dining room is nearly full, though things empty out a bit after the early-bird special expires. Diners sitting at different tables greet each other, and there’s a small reunion playing out in the tiny lounge. A priest wearing his collar and two older men fold themselves into a booth near us. A table on our other side is occupied by a woman and her mother.

Cobblestones of Lowell Restaurant & Bar 91 Dutton St., Lowell 978-970-2282 www.cobblestonesoflowell.com Hours: Monday-Saturday, 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 a.m. Handicapped accessible Credit cards accepted Raised expectations - often enhanced by hype and hoopla - can turn an otherwise reasonably entertaining film or pleasant restaurant into a disappointment if experience falls short of anticipation. Conversely, low expectations that rise as reality unfolds can turn an average movie or meal into a memorable occasion.

Quarterdeck 177 Main St., Maynard 978-897-9165 Lunch, Monday through Friday from 11:30 to 2:30; dinner, Monday through Thursday from 5 to 9 p.m. and on Friday and Saturday until 10 p.m. Reservations for eight or more Accessible to the handicapped Visa or MasterCard only accepted You can't ask much more from a restaurant than great food that is reasonably priced, a friendly wait staff, and an inviting atmosphere....

ABIGAIL"S ** 291 3d St., Cambridge. 617-945-9086. www.abigails restaurant.net. All major credit cards accepted. Wheelchair accessible. Prices Appetizers $4-$13. Entrees $8-$26. Desserts $7. Hours Dinner Sun-Wed 5-10 p.m., Thu-Sat 5-11 p.m. (bar open daily until 1 a.m., serving late-night snacks). Lunch Mon-Fri 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Brunch Sun 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Noise level Conversation easy. May we suggest Pickled shrimp, gouda fries, BBQ"d chicken livers, oven-roasted chicken, Arctic char (or scallops, as the case may be)