Vermont Kitchen Supply, Manchester

A few miles down the road at Vermont Kitchen Supply in Manchester, you’ll see melamine plates—looking like place settings at an outdoor banquet in St. Tropez. But again, lightweight and perfect for outdoor living.

Vermont Kitchen Supply owner Kerry Mackinnon rattles off other summer entertaining suggestions. How about polycarbonate glassware made by Strahl? It is “super attractive…you can basically run it over with your car,” she says. She is not recommending this. (Although if you get tired of horseshoes and cornhole, maybe a wacky new activity for the ’20s?)

Strahl glasses aren’t, well, glass—but from a foot away, they look like glass. True, they’re lighter than glass, but wine swirls nicely in Strahl, adding an elegance not found in a red Solo cup. A throwback item, again with a modern twist, is oilcloth. Vermont Kitchen Supply sells finished oilcloth tablecloths, but you can also buy the fabric by the foot. That 1950s aquamarine color has morphed into attractive patterns and hues, perfect for outdoor dining or as a protective surface for indoor crafts on a rainy day. Kerry says this classic is a perennial favorite.

A modern gadget that you didn’t know you needed—until now—is a Meater, the would-be child of a Thermapen and iPhone. (And yes, that’s the AI future: devices happily mating and creating.) Easy to set up, Meater signals your phone or other device when your grilling meat reaches its desired doneness—rare to crispy. Meater even can give you a graphic profile that shows just how your steak cooked, temperature increment by increment. In short, you can geek out—or just stop your burger from becoming a hockey puck.

Looking for something handcrafted, functional, and zero tech? Try the versatile Vermont Cook Stick.

Kerry learned about the Meater from a customer, but she had a hand in creating another product she features, the Vermont Cook Stick. She saw her friend Dale using a broken wooden spoon in her pot, happy with its ability to get in tight spots. Dale’s woodworker husband, Richard Farley, made Kerry her own Vermont Cook Stick. Yes, it looks like an elegant hockey stick for a toddler, but it’s perfect for getting in hard-to-reach spots. It’s not exactly an outdoor cooking item, but what the heck, it’s this quirkiness that makes Vermont Kitchen Supply fun.

Oh, and Kerry, who has been in business for almost a quarter century, adds, “Our superpower? It’s my team—the best in Vermont.”

So, there’s a challenge: stop in, put Vermont Kitchen Supply staff to the test, and come out prepared to grill and feast, outdoors or in.

• vermontkitchensupply.com