Christopher Masiello

My wife and I went on a weekend trip to Manchester, Vermont.

Manchester is an amazing town. There is a mix of high-end outlet shopping, colonial architecture, and country charm. The Northshire Book Store is an impressive book store in the middle of town. Every time you think you reach the end, their is another nook filled with quirky books. There is also a cafe upstairs that has live music.

There are some beautiful old Inns and B&B’s that are close to town.
Hotel (or should I say Blowtel)

My wife ignored my recommendation and selected the Manchester Highlands Inn B&B for our lodgings. What a mistake. This place stunk to the high heavens, the pink shag carpet from the 70’s was worn and filthy, and there were multiple species of large bugs in the bed rooms. Nasty! Do not stay at this dump.

Read my entire review of Manchester and other places in southern Vermont on my site VitaminCM.com

They have one of Randy Rhodes’ guitars on the wall.

Nuff said!

What a great town!
A few of my friends moved here after college. I used to go visit them on weekends. This place has an awesome downtown that is full of restaraunts, shopping, bars, etc.

Just a really warm atmosphere (even when it’s freezing cold out.)

This place gives the most Family bang for the buck of any place that I’ve been.
Busch Gardens is awesome and like half the price of Disney. The beach is a half hour drive. Colonial Williamsburg is nice to walk around with the kids. Everything is much cheaper than other tourist traps.
Caveat: Not too many good restarunts. (At least that I found.)

I went there for a few days on business. I stayed at the Hyatt in the middle of town, which was great. There are a bunch of little shops, restaraunts, and bars.

It is a really charming town to walk around.

This place is a freakshow. You walk down the boardwalk and see the craziest street performers. There is also a bunch of “art” and stuff for sale.
Just Look at the pictures. There’s plenty more where that came from.

If you are in central New Jersey and want to find the best restaraunt town, bar none, it’s Red Bank, NJ. I lived in this 2 square mile town for years and there are more really good restaraunts per square foot than anywhere I have seen.
A few suggestions:
Cheap-
Front Street Trottoria (get the Cinnamon Ice Cream with fudge for dessert), Zebu (Great soup in bread bowls), Brothers Pizza (It’s like a step back in time), Eurasian Eatery (get the dumplings), No Joe’s (mostly coffee, but good lunch), Broadway Grille, Nikki’s Cafe (lunch and Friday Nights),
Mid to High-
Gaetano’s, Down To Earth (Vegitarian), Juanito’s (Awsome Mexican, Teak
Fancy-
Siam Gardens (Awsome Thai), The Bistro, The Molly Pitcher Inn (Jacket Required, but awsome),
BARS-
Dublin House, Branigans, Murphy’s, Walt Street Pub, The Globe
Crappy, Overpriced or Just Lame-
Red, Downtown Cafe, Echo, The Pastaria, Basil Tea’s (the owner is a jerk), The Melting Pot (Too slow, Too Much, and Too slow),