The Fort Restaurant and Bakery at Exit 18, Lebanon NH

"The Truck Stop".  That is the name I most commonly know The Fort Restaurant and Bakery at Exit 18 as.  "The Truck Stop" was an essential part of my childhood, a place where my grandfather took each of his grandkids for special trips to get breakfast, just 1:1 time with him.  It will forever be in my head *his* place.  I really don't recall anything about the food I got there, just about the magic and feeling of getting to go out to breakfast with him (and a vague memory of always thinking it require getting up early?).

The Truck Stop, (er, The Fort), really is just that - it is a greasy spoon diner that is part of a gas station and rest stop for truckers, complete with showers and whatnot.  While many of the patrons do carry CDLs (and I think even more did back in the day), it also has its regulars, and a very familiar, community feel.  They serve breakfast all day, lunch and dinner too, and are open 24/7.  Zero frills, just authentic short order diner lineup (pancakes, eggs, waffles, breakfast meats and potatoes for breakfast, burgers, sandwiches, some token salads and main dishes for lunch and dinner).  There is no local sourcing, no unexpected ingredients, no on-trend dishes.  Just the classics.  Even the weekly specials are pretty uninspired: there will be an omelet special that is just a few specifically picked ingredients that you could actually just select anytime anyway, a sandwich special like tuna salad or chicken salad, a burger with particular toppings.  Sometimes sloppy joes, shepherd's pie, or lasagna make an appearance.  It isn't trying to impress or draw any particular notice.  They don't have a website or online ordering.  It is there to feed you, no surprises, anytime.  The no frills has its charm.

The Fort has changed ownership several times since my early childhood (which I think is when it may have been renamed?), and one of the changes that was made was to bring in an actual baker.  But those changes were still like 20-30 years ago, and that baker moved on long ago - the current owners have only owned it since 2022.  I've still continued to hear good things about the bakery offerings though, and you know me, I love baked goods and desserts, so after a probably 30+ year hiatus, I made a return to The Truck Stop, er, The Fort.

I also got a few sides to go along with my pile of desserts, all of which I got for takeout, so I didn't experience the dine-in charm.  It took kinda a long time for my order to be ready, but I'll chalk that up to likely having a single cook in the kitchen, and a few tables that had ordered before me.

Sides

Since I didn't visit for a meal, or even at mealtime, as I was really there just to get desserts and baked goods, I wasn't intending to even get savory food.  But ... at last minute, I could resist getting a few sides to take home to enjoy with my lunch later. 

The Fort has a pretty big list of sides, both for breakfast or lunch/dinner, including all your breakfast meats (bacon, ham, sausage, corned beef hash), potatoes (home fries, tater tots, fries, sweet potato fries, mashed potatoes), other carbs (biscuits), proteins (single eggs cooked your way, cottage cheese), veggies (avocado, pickled beets, veggie of the day, slaw), and a slew of sauces you can order a la carte too (gravy, hollandaise, sausage gravy, real syrup, etc)

Coleslaw (Side). $2.95.

I was really craving good deli salads after a month in Lebanon, and the chain grocery store offerings really weren't cutting it.  The Fort had exactly one, just coleslaw, and I have no idea if they make it in house or not, but, I took a gamble.

It looked quite unassuming.  It was made of entirely white cabbage and a little carrot, all shredded fairly finely and the same.  Pretty pale, no red cabbage or onion to make it pop.  Lightly dressed, definitely not overdressed nor swimming in mayo.  It was fairly soft, and didn't seem particularly freshly made, but it wasn't mushy exactly.  It lacked seasoning.

If that sounds rather blah, it actually was enjoyable to eat.  It reminded me of the sort of slaw you get in a tiny little container alongside fish & chips or lobster rolls at a real seafood shack on the ocean, where the slaw seems like an afterthought, but you do actually always want it.  It had a simple, nostalgic taste, and I happily consumed it, although yes, in general, I prefer larger shards of cabbage, more crunch.  3.5/5.

The portion was quite reasonable for the price.

Enormous Hand Battered Onion Rings. $7.95.

If you read reviews for The Fort, there are a few things that jump out.  In the savory foods side of things, one that comes up frequently is the onion rings, dubbed "Enormous Hand Battered Onion Rings" on the menu.  So good, they show up in two places on the menu: as an appetizer (alongside chicken tenders, mozzarella sticks, and fried pickles), and as a side dish.  Same price, both sections of the menu, so I think just a duplicate?  The menu said they come with a side of ranch, but mine did not.

It took awhile for my rings to be ready, but once the hefty box was handed over, I made a beeline for the parking lot, and dug in, without abandon, in the front seat of the car.  There was no way I could wait to bust into them.

They really were noteworthy and a unique style.  It was quite clear that these are no frozen foodservice Sysco rings.  No, as the menu says, they really are hand battered.  You could tell real onions were indeed harmed in the making of these.  Big, thick, juicy slices of onion.  The batter was quite thick, and obviously didn't stick to the rings all that well, lots of it breaking off as they boxed them.

So did they look good?  Well, no, not a traditional way, but impressive nonetheless, and really quite a large portion size for the price.

They were good.  Clearly fresh, not too oily, nicely hot.  The onions were the right kind of slimy, and tasted, well, like onion.  The batter coating was sooo crispy, and I loved how thick it was, and all the little irregular crags.  It wasn't all that flavorful though, which was sad, because it looked so good and the texture was right, it just wasn't really seasoned.   I still loved the style, so 3.5/5, but they had potential with a little more seasoning to be a home run.

They were supposed to come with ranch (per the menu), but did not.  I asked about this, and was offered ketchup instead.  I suggested honey mustard, which was provided, but I didn't care for it, very sweet style, clearly mass produced brand.  I took the extra rings home, air fried them, and served with bbq sauce, which was a great pairing.

Dessert

If you visit The Fort just for breakfast, perhaps you overlook the dessert lineup, but, any good truck stop or diner has a great dessert lineup, and The Fort is no different.  All are homemade.  They also have shakes, if those count as dessert.

Pies, Puddings, Cake.

Right at the register, where you pay your bill (or order takeout) is the dessert display case.  It seems nearly impossible to not end up ordering something as you checkout.  The case was filled with pies and pudding cups, and one kind of cake (chocolate peanut butter) on the day we visited, along with cookies and bars on top.  Muffins and donuts are in another equal sized case when you enter.  People rave about these in particular, but we were there late in the day, and wanted proper desserts.  

I was fairly let down by what we got, however, I would actually gladly return to try the aforementioned muffins and crullers, and probably the cakes and cookies, as I think those baked goods are likely considerably better than what I selected (mostly pies).  

Pies

They day we visited they had at least 3 kinds of fruit pie (blueberry, cherry, apple) and at least 7 kinds of cream pie (coconut, banana, chocolate, butterscotch, Oreo, toffee, Reese's), and I say at least because there may have been others we couldn't identify (I think there may have been mixed berry and at least one other kind of decadent cream pie).  Picking just a few was very difficult, as I literally wanted any but the Oreo, so I decided to just get the three I thought my dad would most like as well, so I could share with him.

The pies are $5.25/slice each, for both the fruit and cream pies.

I'll come right out and say it: I was let down by the pies.  I do believe their kitchen assembles these, that they aren't frozen food service simply thawed pies, but ... the quality of the components was subpar, and I do not think the individual elements were homemade.  You could put together equal quality pies using premade elements from Walmart, and you can find something quite similar at any hospital cafeteria.  I have no interest in trying more of the pies.

Blueberry.

I wanted to get one fruit pie, so blueberry it was, although I was tempted by the cherry as well.  All the fruit pies were double crust, none lattice.

The crust looked a bit anemic, a very pale, washed out color.  It had large crystals of pearl sugar on it, but they too looked slightly sickly.  From the display case, I could see the crust had what looked like hand fluted edges, so it wasn't a generic premade shell, but it certainly lacked any visual appeal and didn't look inviting.

The flavor of the crust basically matched the look.  It wasn't a flaky, decent, buttery crust.  It was pretty tough, as if overworked.  At least it wasn't stale?  But it had no real flavor at all.

The filling was pretty standard "pie filling in a can" style.  Thick, gloopy, fairly sweet.  Not fresh nor wholesome tasting.  Not too cloying, but zero complexity to the flavor.  It was better warm and a la mode, but even then I struggled to find it redeeming.

My impression of this is that it was the quality level of taking a frozen crust from Walmart and a can of premade pie filling, and baking it off a few days prior, without doing an egg wash to make it golden.  Not what you'd expect from a restaurant, not what you'd expect from even a decent home baker, let alone a bakery.  I still ate a few bites, but handed the rest to my dad pretty quickly.  2/5.

The slice was a respectable size, decent value for $5.25.

Butterscotch.

For my next slice, I wanted a non-caffeinated cream pie.  I was torn between banana (always a classic!), coconut (one I love, but can be fickle on), and butterscotch. The later won, because I knew my dad would appreciate it the most.  The server did warn me it wouldn't be pretty when she served it, but lol, yes, it came out like slop.

I didn't really mind the presentation, although it really was an amusing jumble of pudding, fluffy topping, and bits of crust.  I have a label dedicated to just pudding on my blog, so, again, I was not unhappy to basically get a container of pudding.

One look at the pudding itself and I could tell this was not the style of butterscotch I was hoping for, the kind cooked on a stove, rich natural butterscotch flavor from brown sugar and butter slowly cooked own.  Nope, this was pudding mix, the sweet, artificial, kinda cloying kind.  It tasted no different from a Snack Pack pudding cup or Jello mix.  It was just a one-note sweet.

The whipped topping did nothing to offset the sweetness, as it too was extremely sweetened.  It was not fresh whipped cream as I had hoped, but rather, that kind of very stable, very sweet, premade whipped topping that comes in big pails or piping bags from foodservice distributors.  It added to the overall sweetness level that was already too high, and didn't taste actually fresh.

And finally, the crust.  A crumbly style that was all broken up in the jumble handed over.  I actually liked the grit it added for some texture, but otherwise, it was not noteworthy.

So put it all together and this was a pretty big disappointment, barely a step above a Snack Pack with some Cool Whip and a premade Keebler crust, again something that someone with no cooking skill (save the decent piping job) could through together from Walmart ingredients, or you'd find in a hospital cafeteria.  But again, was it bad?  Well, no.  I still ate it.  But wow, it was sweet, and wow it wasn't what I was looking for in a bakery pie.  2.5/5, maybe low 3.   

Chocolate Cream.

For the last slice, I knew that I wanted one pie with chocolate elements, which could have meant the toffee or Reece's or Oreo ones (I think those all had chocolate?), but I kept it simple, opting for just the regular basic chocolate cream pie.  It had the same crust and not-actually-whipped-cream topping as the butterscotch, but it held together better and came plated as a legit slice.

The topping was indeed the same as the previous, a bit too sweet, too plastic tasting for me that made the whole thing just feel cheap.  I yearned for some fresh whipped cream.

The chocolate filling fared better than the butterscotch not only in consistently obviously as it as more like a mousse than a runny pudding, but also in the taste, it was a nice level of sweetness.  Mild chocolate flavor.  Nothing earth shattering, but a pretty nice milk chocolate mousse.

The crust was again the same as the previous, a compressed gritty style, but this time it came intact.  I strangely really liked the crust, I think my favorite element, although it wasn't a traditional crust by any means.  

So again, no stellar components, but besides the whipped topping, it was pretty acceptable.  Again low 3/5; I preferred it to the other pies, but still not something I'd get again.

Pudding Cups

The pudding cups drew me in nearly as much as the pies did when I was looking at the display case.  Again, I do adore pudding.  They all had layers of pudding, whipped cream (er, sigh, that whipped topping), and cake, plus some had additional candy components.  We weren't sure what they all were, as none were labelled and the staff didn't know either, but there was clearly lemon, cherry, Oreo, and perhaps some kind of peanut butter something, plus one that looked like banana at first, but on closer inspection looked funfetti-like.  I randomly picked one.

Birthday Cake Cup.

I got this not really knowing what it would be.  My best guess was vanilla pudding, funfetti cake, and whipped cream, plus of course some sprinkles.  I picked it because the cherry and lemon ones looked like just generic canned pie filling (which, after having the pies, I'm sure was actually the case), I obviously didn't want the Oreo one, and I wasn't really sure what the final one was.

The pudding quality here was similar to the butterscotch in that it tasted fairly artificial, and was unnaturally yellow.  It did have a good consistency and wasn't runny like the butterscotch, so, an improvement.  It was almost more like a pastry cream or what you might find in a bavarian donut.  So again, kinda Snack Pack vibes, but I didn't mind it in this thicker form. 3/5 pudding.  

The cake was fine too.  It was moist, well baked, yellow cake.  Large hunks layered in with the pudding and cream.  It got very gooey from being mixed with everything else.  I can't say that I really generally want cake and pudding at the same time, but, the cake really was fine.  3/5 cake.  

And then of course the cream layers, which drew me in visually before I had tried any of the pies, but I knew what to expect when I got to eating this, as I had it after the pies.  Yup, again, not whipped cream, extremely sweet, sorta artificial vanilla flavor perhaps.  It did taste better here, the plastic and kinda stale nature from the pies was not as present.  I assume it was still the same product, but perhaps a bit fresher?  It certainly would let me down as a whipped cream substitute, but, with the cake in particular, it sorta worked like a fluffy sweet marshmallow frosting.  /5 cream.

So, put it all together, and it sorta worked?  I did add fresh fruit to my first serving, and then later decomposed it into a pudding/whip and a cake/whip portion, as all together was just a bit too much going on for me, but this was more successful than the pies, definitely.  I'd consider getting another cup.  It grew on me.  Higher 3/5.

Other

On top of the pies display case was some massive cookies and even more massive whoopie pies.  I nearly grabbed a chocolate dipped peanut butter cookie for myself as they just looked so good, but my dad has a fondness for whoopie pies, so we clearly had to get him one.  After sampling everything we got, I wish we had grabbed cookies, as this section of the bakery seems to be considerably better than the pie shop.

Whoopie Pie.

This actually looks kinda normal sized in this photo, but that is just the angle and lack of reference points.  This thing was massive.  My mom kept calling it a "whoopie cake", trying to describe it as being more cake size than cookie.

While this was intended for my dad, of course I did try it.  The cookie-cake layers were pretty classic chocolate whoopie pie style - soft, good cocoa flavor, tight crumb structure much like a packaged snack cake (e.g. a Devil Dog).  The filling was very sweet, akin to a marshmallowy filling, but with a bit of a Crisco taste on the finish.  Again, about as classic a whoopie pie filling as there is.  The ratio of cake to filling was just right.  They really did nail the classic, retro appeal of a whoopie pie.  If you are looking for a moist chocolate cake, buttercream filling, or anything slightly more upscale, this certainly isn't it, but if you just want a giant round bakery made Devil Dog this is it.

3/5 for my tastes, but really, 5/5 for nailing the classic.

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Martha Stewart Kitchens

Do you like Martha Stewart, but not have time to make her recipes?  Do not fear, you can now find her in the ... frozen food section of your local grocery store!

Yes, Martha Steward Kitchens, a frozen goods line, launched during "The Pandemic", and I, a captive audience, drawn in by the branding, decided to give it a try.

"Martha's personal mission has been to teach and inspire people of all ages to make their homes and live more beautiful, more functional, and more meaningful. The Martha Stewart Kitchen mission is to bring delicious, yet convenient, gourmet foods items from your local grocery store to your table for entertaining or everyday use."

For retail distrbution, Martha has made 7 different product lines, although only 3 are currently available in stores.  I was able to find the Desserts and Appetizers, all of which looked fairly amazing, but none of the Side Dishes.  Still to come are Sauces & Marinades, Quiches & Tarts, Cookie Dough, and Spice Blends.

Each category is filled with heavy hitters.  Martha clearly knows what people like, what will be crowd pleasers, and yet still be unique.  All are, at least in theory, based on her well known recipes.  Most are fairly simple to prepare, just heat and serve (or even easier, thaw and serve), although a few have slight assembly required.  All include bonus tips from Martha on how to amp up the presentation a touch more.

Unfortunately, right now, they are only sold through 4 supermarket chains: Hannaford, Meijer, Jewel Osco, and HyVee, none of which are located where I live.  However ... I took advantage of a visit to my parent's house, where they do have a Hannaford, to try an item.  I was impressed, and would gladly try more.

Appetizers

"Let Martha Stewart Kitchen take the guess work out of your next hors d’oeuvres selection. Prepared favorites such as our Leek & Cheese Bread Pudding Bites,  Goat Cheese Hors D’oeuvres or Mini Spinach Quiche, are sure to impress. These delicious, yet easy appetizers are perfect served up for a mid-day snack or pair them together for your next event."

Martha's appetizers are incredibly appealing, with a baked brie en croute with brown sugar, apples, & pecans that would be perfect for a holiday spread, mini, grab-able bites like goat cheese and herb phyllo dough pastrys, leek and cheese bread pudding bites, tomato tartlets with roasted tomatoes and fontina, mini quiches, and of course, pigs in a blanket and mac and cheese bites, just to really round it all out.

Most are ready-to-bake, although some, like pigs in a blanket, are DIY kits, with slight assembly required.

Side Dishes

"Martha Stewart Kitchen has brought you a selection of elevated, yet simple to prepare, side dishes. Our offerings include an indulgent Four Cheese Macaroni & Cheese, fluffy Mashed Potatoes with Cream Cheese, and delectable Brown Sugar Brussels with Uncured Bacon. Ready in under 30 minutes, Martha takes the prep work out of your next meal."

I was sooo sad my store did not carry any side dishes, as these sound amazing too.  Some are slightly more boring (green beans, although even those come tossed with pecans and with a maple glaze or mixed grain pilaf), others are pretty standard (mashed potatoes - but with cream cheese for extra indulgence, mac and cheese - four cheese, yes breadcrumbs, scalloped potatoes), and others really called out to me (brown sugar brussels sprouts with bacon, "duo potatoes" featuring both mashed potatoes and sweet potato puree and fried onion topping, and creamed spinach with a legit sounding béchamel.

Given the quality of other items I tried, I'm fairly confident that these could pass off as really well homemade, or restaurant quality, and easily round out your dinner party/holiday party feast.

Desserts

"Martha Stewart Kitchen brings dessert to your table in a fraction of the time. Our offerings include a warm Apple Crisp, fudgy Double Chocolate Brownies, and a classic Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting. Whether enjoying yourself or sharing with a friend these prepared desserts are sure to keep you coming back for seconds."

I'm a dessert girl to the core, and I was *thrilled* by the dessert line up.  All were designed to be crowd pleasers, obviously, but also all are things I really do like: fruit crisps (apple, mixed fruit - with apples/rhubarb/blackberries/raspberries), fruit hand pies (apple, mixed fruit - this time with apples/strawberry/rhubarb/cherries, or peach & apple), carrot cake (of course with cream cheese frosting), and, the only one I could care less about, double chocolate brownies.  The carrot cake I really wanted to try, as it is the kind that has everything I love - nuts for crunch (pecans!), and pineapple for a bonus moisture, sweetness, and flavor.

Some are just thaw and serve, others require baking.

Apple Hand Pie Packaging.

I selected the apple hand pies as my first item to try.  The packaging did have a slightly upscale look about it.  Each box contains 2 individually wrapped hand pies.

Each is a single serving, they weren't really large enough to share a single one, even if you were serving a la mode. 

They were 370 calories, 20g fat, 15g sugar each, not too bad.  But again, they were fairly small.

The box was quite attractive, and honestly, the product really did live up to the packaging photos.

Apple Hand Pie: Frozen.

The pie honestly looked pretty good even frozen.  I was eager to get it heated up to eat it.

Cooking instructions are simple.  Do not thaw.  Do not microwave or toaster oven.  Use real oven. Bake at 350* for 20-23 minutes.  "Cool completely before serving".

I ... mostly followed the instructions, but did use a toaster oven (I have a very, very legit Breville "countertop oven", definitely not really a "toaster oven").

I also failed to comply with the "cool completely before serving", because, um, I wanted hot apple pie?

For bonus points, for each product, Martha includes a "tip" on how to amp up the product even further.  For this, the tip was: 

"Wrap in parchment and tie with baker's twine for an extra special presentation."

Yes, I skipped that too.

Apple Hand Pie: Baked.

"A classic combination of apples and sweet brown sugar, tucked in an all-butter crust and topped with sparkling sugar."

It baked up beautifully.

First impression?  It looked like it came from a local bakery.  Or perhaps homemade, if I was far more talented than I really am.  Really lovely looking product, with fluted edges that looked handmade, a sheen/glaze to it, and chunks of pearl sugar.

It tasted like it came from a local bakery too.  It did not, in any way, seem like a frozen, packaged, mass produced product.

The crust baked up *really* nicely.  It wasn't necessarily the butteriest, the flakiest, etc that I ever had, but definitely far, far above average, better than anything from a grocery store bakery department or frozen section, better than most bakeries around town really.  It wasn't soggy on the bottom, it didn't get burnt along the edges, it wasn't too dry ... it just baked up, well, perfectly.

Apple Hand Pie: Inside.

The inside was also good.

Thin sliced apples, not too soft, not too firm, just right.  No extra goo, not to apple-sauce like, just, real apples.  Again, way better quality than other packaged products.  Lightly spiced but nothing too strong, sweet but not too sweet.  Just, good.

I served it warm, a la mode, but I'm sure it would be fine cooled, with whipped cream, or just on its own.  

Overall, a very solid hand pie, I was pleased with it, but apple pie isn't really my favorite thing, so I wouldn't get it again unless really craving apple pie.

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