Here’s our wonderful grower, Barb George, getting up close and personal with some freshly grown peas! You may remember that this past winter we built a greenhouse. Well, as you can see, it’s up and running – and offering up lots of fresh greens for use both in Dining at The Doctor’s House and the Shag It. Cate and Chris, our Executive Chefs, are happy – and we’re even more so, because we get to enjoy the results.
Miss the Spring Hare?
If you’re like Jerry, maybe you had to miss this year’s Spring Hare. This fun cultural weekend celebrates all that’s local and fabulous – and very artistic! – about the Wonderful World of Whiteway. If you’d like to see how it went, please read this great recap in the Evening Telegram by our friend Shirley George, one of the organizers. A lot of work went into the weekend, as you can see, and it was certainly worth it, like always.
Green House Coming Soon
This project is near and dear to our hearts. Along with our many other projects at The Doctor’s House (like building The Big Barn for the upcoming wedding season), we’re also building a green house. We’re going to use it to grow produce for our Dining Room (talk about local!) – everything from herbs, of course, to elery, cucumber, pumpkin, ground cherries, tomatoes, and more. Our salads will be garden fresh, and we’re going to have a lot of fun doing it! We’ll also be growing cut flowers for the rooms. We’ll keep you posted as we populate these homes with plants!
Whiteway Spring Hare Less Than a Week Away!
As you can tell from these in-process masterpieces from Whiteway artists Clifford George and Lisa Day, the Whiteway Spring Hare will soon be upon us! This Friday’s Dinner Theatre is already sold out, but 32 artists are lined up to display their work on Sunday’s afternoon of storytelling and poetry-reading. To learn more, see here, or, if you’d like to volunteer Sunday, send us an email and we’ll put you in touch with the organizers.
Thanks to Lisa for the great shots. Stay tuned as we’ll have more to share – so much to do out here on the Baccalieu!
Eat the Hill Day 3 – The Best for Last
Our last day at the annual Eat the Hill – an extravaganza in Clarenville showcasing local chefs, ingredients and cooking – was the best of the weekend. We got to meet all the chefs one-on-one, which was a treat. But of course not as big a treat as the food they prepared, all which was like nothing I’ve ever tasted. Cod tacos, braised beef on mashed potatoes, special sliders, Newfoundland-style gnocchi, apple pork pie and deserts – it was all truly unbelievable, an original food mosaic that was so unique and so ‘Newfoundland’ and so delicious. We’ll definitely be back next year and encourage you to keep this great event on your radar.
We also enjoyed a performance from Clarenville band, Disisit. They were stunning, one of the best local band I’ve heard. Great times, great people, great venue – Eat the Hill was probably the best time we’ve had in at least a year.
The Berry and I were at Eat the Hill on behalf of the wonderful LCENDMO, the Legendary Coasts of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador Destination Management Organization, of which I’m currently the vice-chair. We’ve gotten so much out of membership from LCENDMO, sing its praises whenever we can, and encourage others in our region to sign up. You won’t regret it.
If you’d like to see more photos of our weekend, please see our album on our Facebook page. It’s back to the usual grind for us now (we’re currently renovating at The Doctor’s House and promoting our new winter package at the cottages, Stay in and Stay Warm), but we’ll treasure the memory of this wonderful weekend, and can’t wait for next year.
The Building Continues
Our work never ends, and we’re grateful for all of it. We love The Doctor’s House as is, but we see so much potential, which we’re working to draw out. Here’s two new greenhouses that have just been completed for spring. Next season, to accompany our gourmet meals each weekend, we’ll also have fresh veggies and herbs!
Cod Tongues and All
With thanks to EDMO (Eastern Destination Management Organization), we had a film crew at the cottages from Travel Guy TV (TGTV) from Toronto . It was Frank Greco and his team, who are filming a new show to add to their series called ‘The Travel Guy.” This series is currently being broadcast on Discovery World HD.
They were here over 4 hours. Clifford was our ambassador. He cooked cod tongues and talked about Heart’s Content, Heart’s Delight, Heart’s Desire, Dildo, and other unique community names along the Baccalieu. It was an exciting day, we were excited and grateful for the opportunity to share our story. Stay tuned – we’ll let you know when it airs!
Riddle Rod Fence
Here is an old Newfoundland fence like I had never seen before. Made with riddle rods (sometimes called wriggle rods), they were quite common around the bay a few generations ago. There are small sticks weaved in and out over three horizontal sticks (called longers or lungers). They require no nails and are extremely sturdy and designed to withstand high winds.
This is an amazing privacy fence we have under construction – we’re planning to build more!
Day Trips: Grow Dat Farms
I took this picture on a recent day trip to Grow Dat Farms. I’m always talking up the great day trips you can take on the Baccalieu Trail, so this summer, in our very limited free time, The Berry and I are trying to practice what we preach. Grow Dat Farms in nearby Heart’s Delight was a great place to start. They’ve got fruit, flowers, vegetables, and herbs, all organic and fresh. And of course, chickens! We love their hen house – makes me wonder if it’s something I could replicate at The Doctor’s House. Regardless, it’s a fun place to visit, and just a reminder to guests – we love giving recommendations if you’re looking for fun things to do in the area, and we have a list of local activities here.
Shag It from Beyond the Shore
Murphy, gentledog that he is, happily gave up his Tuesday blogging post so that I could share some happy news that has been a long time coming – we have opened the Shag It Cafe and Gift Shop! Yesterday was quite busy and a bit of a blur, but I’ll upload some pictures soon (and stay tuned for upcoming events and specials!). We’re really thrilled to be able to offer fresh, healthy and local food and beautiful gift and art items, not only to our guests at the cottages, but to our community and passing visitors as well.
When we say we have an amazing view because we are right on the water, we mean, we have an amazing view because we are RIGHT on the water! Here’s the Shag It Cafe and Gift Shop as photographed from our boat, The Awake at Last. Now that we’re open, it’s going to be fun to see this patio filled with (hopefully happy!) customers!