I have been running the Red Arrow Diner for 39 years. I have seen a lot of people come through those doors who love New Hampshire food the way I do. But I have to be honest -- I had no idea there was a guy out there who loved it so much he built a 200,000-person Facebook group just to prove the haters wrong… AND spred the word about our local food scene.

That is Phil Meyer. And getting to sit down with him at Cask and Vine in Derry for Episode 54 of Beyond the Plate was one of those conversations I am still thinking about.

Phil did not set out to become the leader of NH's biggest food community. It started during COVID lockdowns when he found himself stuck at home, going online, and finding people talking badly about New Hampshire food. His response? Prove them wrong. He started engaging with a small group called Southern New Hampshire Eats -- and then the original founder, Heather Robinson, approached him right here at Cask and Vine and asked if he would take it over. There were about 4,000 members at the time.

Today there are 200,000. 

One thing Phil said that I keep coming back to: NH Eats is not there just for reviews. A lot of people use it that way -- but that is not the point. The point is to support the entire food and beverage industry of New Hampshire. That means lifting up the small places, creating real connections between restaurants and the community, and holding a space where positivity wins.

The no-negativity rule is not just a policy. It is a philosophy. And I have to say -- as someone who has been running a diner for almost four decades, I get it. Word of mouth can make or break a small restaurant. A bad review at the wrong time can hurt a place that is doing everything right. What Phil built is something that protects that.

What I love most about Phil's story is that it did not stop at a Facebook group. He co-founded Nourish New England, an all-volunteer nonprofit that is doing real work on food insecurity in this state. Their first NH World Christmas Market brought 12,000 people to Merrimack with 80 vendors -- all volunteers -- and raised real money for food pantries, families in need, and veterans.

"You get more with honey than you do with salt." That is Phil's whole thing. And you can feel it in everything he has built.

I have to be honest -- I love getting out of the studio for these. There is something about sitting in an actual restaurant, with actual drinks in front of us, having a real conversation about food and community and New Hampshire. Phil picked Cask and Vine because it is where all of this started for him. We sat right near the spot where Heather handed him the keys to NH Eats. How cool is that?

If you have not been to Cask and Vine yet -- go. Put it on your list right now.

Nourish New England: nourishne.org

NH Eats: search "New Hampshire Eats" on Facebook

And as always -- thank you so much for watching and listening to Beyond the Plate. Find us everywhere at linktr.ee/BeyondtheplateNH and come see us at the Red Arrow at redarrowdiner.com.

-- Carol ❤️

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ABOUT CAROL ERICKSON

Carol Erickson has owned Red Arrow Diner since 1987 -- four locations across New Hampshire, open 24/7. She started Beyond the Plate to tell the real stories behind the people who make New England's food and hospitality scene what it is. Not just what's on the menu. What's behind it.

Red Arrow Diner: redarrowdiner.com  | @redarrow24diner