O M G. I have to tell you -- I was not fully prepared for this one.

I'd already been to The Alibi Aftermath before we recorded this episode. I went with Darryl. I went back with my mom. I went back again. Three times now. And every single time, something on that menu surprises me. The bartender Austin was SO good that I literally followed him to another restaurant he works at because that's just what you do when you find someone who gets hospitality. But that's a whole other story.

The point is -- I knew Mike Ivas was doing something special on Wilson Street. I just didn't know the FULL story until we sat down together at the studio. And now I need you to hear it.

"When someone walks in, it's an honor. You have so many choices for where to spend your hard-earned money."

That's Mike. And the thing is -- he really means it. You can feel it the second you walk in.

Mike grew up in Salem, New Hampshire, and the food thing started with his grandfather. He described it like this -- his grandfather would pull him into the kitchen, guide his hand around a big chef's knife, and get him involved in every step of the meal. Mike said he must have been so young he wasn't even in first grade yet. He called it "like holding a sword."

That's where it started. The work ethic, the attention to detail, the idea that you always sample it before you serve it -- all of it came from those weekends at his grandparents' house. He went on to do a culinary program in high school, got his first real job at Canoby Lake Park, and eventually made his way to San Diego where he spent seven years in the kitchen at the Cheesecake Factory.

Seven years. And what he absorbed there about flavor profiles, consistency, and running high-volume with precision -- that's exactly what you taste when you eat at The Alibi Aftermath today.

About twelve years ago, Mike got homesick and drove back to New Hampshire with his dad. They went through Yellowstone, caught a Red Sox game in Minneapolis, and eventually made it home. He connected with Chef Dan at Bravo, worked as a banquet chef at Manchester Country Club for a while, and started thinking about what his own place might look like someday.

He'd been going to The Alibi Aftermath as a regular -- back when Mark and Lisa owned it. He liked what they'd built. When they mentioned they were thinking about Florida, Mike put his name in. Two and a half weeks later, his phone rang. He said it came up a lot faster than he expected.

He pulled the trigger anyway.

Here is what I want people to understand about The Alibi Aftermath right now -- Mike is doing this SOLO. He gets there around 4pm, turns on the pizza oven (it takes a solid hour to come up to temp -- he calls it a dinosaur), goes shopping for his own ingredients because he doesn't take deliveries yet, does his prep work, and runs the kitchen all night by himself.

He dredges onion rings one by one and individually freezes them on sheet pans. He smokes chicken thighs out back for the chili. He caramelizes onions low and slow for the French onion pizza. He cuts his fries thick and by hand and leaves them in the fryer for an extra minute because -- and I quote -- they need that extra minute.

I said "stupid good" when he described the French onion pizza on air and I meant it. Detroit-style crust cooked in a Lloyd's pan, cheese melted along the edges creating that crispy crunch, Alfredo sauce base, Swiss, caramelized onions with beef stock, finished under the salamander just like an actual French onion soup. It is a flavor bomb. His words. Also completely accurate.

And the potato skins? Every review that says "best potato skins you'll ever have in your life" -- they're right. Everything is fresh. Everything is made. Nothing comes out of a bag.

At one point during our conversation, Mike told me about a regular who came in during music bingo and said he was in the mood for a burrito. Not on the menu. Mike said -- I have wraps, I have chicken, I have some leftover taco Tuesday ingredients. And then he made the burrito.

That is IT. That is the whole story. And that tells you everything about how he runs this place.

Mike said it himself -- and he's talking about the building AND the neighborhood. Wilson Street has a reputation in Manchester. Mike knows it. When he took over, he went out there before opening and shoveled and weeded and cleaned up the sidewalk. He picks up trash off the street before he even walks in to start his shift. He said maybe in some small way it'll inspire someone else to pick something up.

Inside it's cozy and clean. There's a 90-inch TV for Patri^ots games and Mike puts out an all-you-can-eat buffet so he can watch the game too. There's karaoke on Fridays, music bingo during the week, pool, a jukebox. You can bring your kids. You can rent the whole bar for a birthday party -- someone already did. And the food is not what you're expecting.

The Alibi Aftermath is at 137 Wilson Street, corner of Wilson and Somerville in Manchester. They open at 5pm most nights. Find them on Facebook and Instagram -- just search The Alibi Aftermath.

And if the French onion pizza is sold out -- I'm sorry. Subscribe to this newsletter and I'll try to warn you next time. 😂

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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.

This article is brought to you by Red Arrow Diner -- 4 locations across New Hampshire, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Manchester, Concord, Londonderry, and Nashua. Come find us anytime hunger hits.
Red Arrow Diner -- 4 NH locations, open 24/7 | redarrowdiner.com
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