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The maple frappes at Sandy’s Drive In were whipped to marvelous oblivion and went down like glass, but my month-long stay in Vermont and New Hampshire revealed way more than maple. This is the house that local built – especially Vermont, a cantankerous state that upholds the goods of its homegrown purveyors with smug satisfaction. And, why shouldn’t they? There’s not a Wal-Mart or Chili’s in sight. From King Arthur Flour sticky buns (Norwich, Vermont) to the simply bagged cinnamon twists from a baker simply named “Doug” (Fairlee, Vermont), the place is crawling with slow foods. Even the Gruyere cheese I found to melt atop homemade French onion soup hailed from a small, nearby dairy farm.

Here’s a snapshot:

Farmers Diner (Quechee, Vermont)

The Rueben, made with locally-raised corned beef on locally-baked rye, was toothy and packed with flavor. And the yogurt parfait, featuring Butterworks Farms' plain yogurt and Nutty Steph’s granola, local honey and cranberry compote was a tangy, towering ode to micro-enterprises. In 1999, restaurateur Tod Murphy launched his venture, devoted to serving meats, dairy, produce and more from purveyors within 90 miles. He’s also committed to keeping prices affordable, believing everyone should have access to food that doesn’t have to travel thousands of miles and all the vendors he buys from feel the success of his restaurant. Great vibe.

Hemingway’s Restaurant (Killington, Vermont)

It’s been written about in top food magazines and was recently featured in Vermont Life’s summer 2007 issue. Our quiet meal at the upscale Hemingway’s was stellar. We chose the four-course tasting menu with wines by the glass, sampling stand-outs like cold cream of asparagus soup with a dollop of lemony lump crab meat and the risotto of lobster and fresh fava beans.

The Hanover Co-op (Hanover, New Hampshire)

It’s as vibrant and appealing as Whole Foods, but practically everything inside is close-to-the-source. The cheese counter is a great example. The artisanal fromage from New England might make you forget France and the row of local, fresh breads with impossibly perfect crusts feature endless opportunities. The freezer holds sorbet and ice cream from Blue Moon and Strafford Organic Creamery just down the road. This is stuff you can’t find online.

Sandy’s Drive In (Sharon, Vermont)

In the summer, this outdoor-dining-only spot is rife with locals from adjacent small towns, many of them back from tubing down the nearby White River. Sandy’s features 24 flavors of soft-serve ice cream (Vermont’s version of sno-balls), juicy burgers in two sizes, sweet potato and regular fries, and scads of other divey delights. "Please be patient!" screams a sign. "This is not fast food. Everything is cooked to order." It’s napkin-worthy fare, for sure, but for some strange reason, Sandy’s is notorious for bogarting napkins, passing out only one or two with each order. What’s a dive anyway, without a few quirks?