"I have people coming up to me every single day thinking Clam Haven is still open," Dante Marino told the Derry Planning Board this August. He was asking for permission to put his own sign on the building at 94 Rockingham Road. The confusion makes sense. Clam Haven had served seafood and ice cream there since 1954. For most of those years it worked like a lot of businesses on this part of Route 28. It opened with the warm weather and closed when the weather turned.
That seasonal pattern still holds along the road this month. The changes on Rockingham Road are going in the other direction. The two biggest food projects on the corridor belong to Derry natives, and both are built to stay open all year.
Every October, the Road Starts Closing
Early October brings the usual run of last days on Rockingham Road.
Robert Frost Farm Historic Site at 122 Rockingham Road ends its house tours on October 12. Tours run Thursday through Monday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and the last one starts at 3 p.m. That gives you this Monday, plus the long weekend before Columbus Day, to see the inside of the farmhouse before it closes until next season. The grounds and walking trails stay open year-round.
Farther south, Pete's Scoop at 187 Rockingham Road has already closed its ice cream stand. Its site says "See you in April 2027!" The driving range next to it stays open for the 2026 season until mid-October.
| Stop | Address | Status as of early October 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Robert Frost Farm house tours | 122 Rockingham Road | Final tour day October 12 |
| Frost Farm grounds and trails | 122 Rockingham Road | Open year-round |
| Pete's Scoop ice cream stand | 187 Rockingham Road | Closed until April 2027 |
| Pete's Scoop driving range | 187 Rockingham Road | Open until mid-October |
| DeadProof Pizza Co. | 94 Rockingham Road | Wednesday–Sunday, 11 a.m.–8 p.m. |
Only one stop in that table keeps the same hours whatever the season.
DeadProof Came Here Because of a Winter
DeadProof Pizza Co. didn't choose Clam Haven for its summer foot traffic. The brand started as a pop-up in 2022. In mid-2025 it ran briefly from a spot on Elm Street in Manchester and at a shared venue called Torched. Water damage forced it out of the Elm Street space, and Marino had to find somewhere to get through the winter.
Lisa DeSisto had run Clam Haven since 2020. Her building became the answer. Marino first parked his food trailer in the lot. Later he got approval to work inside so his staff could stay out of the cold. "People were lining up in minus-10-degree weather just to get our food," he told the Derry News. Until the pizza ovens were installed, the kitchen sold wings, sandwiches and fries topped with pizza ingredients.
"When I was first approached about working out of Clam Haven, it was to keep the team paid and give the business a fighting chance through the winter," Marino said. He grew up in Derry, and he calls the move a homecoming. "This town gave me everything. My first job, my friends, my roots," he said.
DeadProof's website lists pizza, wings, scratch-made chicken tenders, onion rings and fries among its signature foods. It's open Wednesday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and closed Monday and Tuesday. The brand also appeared in the first two episodes of season 19 of Food Network's "The Great Food Truck Race." It was eliminated after a whiskey redemption challenge.
What the Planning Board Approved, and What It Didn't
The August approval made the move official, but only part of Marino's plan has been approved so far. The board approved:
- New signs on the roof and on the existing pylon, backlit with LEDs at night
- A black exterior, which needed its own approval because the building is in Derry's West Running Brook District
Still waiting on future approvals:
- Exterior artwork featuring slices, pizza boxes and the brand's colors, which counts as a wall sign under town rules
- An outdoor bar attached to the side of the building, which would need further site plan approval
"We are a very art-driven brand. We love supporting community artists," Marino told the board. Earlier, he described plans for neon signs, street art, a community art board, live music, outdoor family space and a late-night "DeadProof After Dark" menu. If you drive past the building this fall, expect the black paint and the new sign. The mural and the bar are separate steps that haven't come before the board yet.
The Second Hometown Project Is Off Crystal Avenue
During his sign presentation, Marino pointed to another project nearby and said Derry is becoming a food destination. The project he meant is Grindhouse Meat Co.
Bobby Marcotte owns The Tuckaway Tavern and Butchery in Raymond. He has broken ground on Grindhouse, a combination steakhouse and butcher shop, on a vacant parcel off Crystal Avenue. Like Marino, he's building in his hometown. "Finally breaking ground right here in my hometown, Derry, New Hampshire," he said in a video posted on social media. "Six/seven years later we're finally breaking ground."
The project has taken a long time. The town first approved plans in October 2021 and granted several extensions. Then, in September 2025, the Planning Board approved a revised plan. That revision changed what the project will be:
| Original concept | Revised plan, approved September 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
| Brewery | Partnership with Backyard Brewery | Dropped |
| Food service | Shared casual food hall | 150-seat, 5,500-square-foot restaurant |
| Retail | Not part of the change described | 8,700-plus-square-foot butcher shop |
| Later phases | Not part of the change described | 5,000-square-foot office building, 3,000-square-foot retail building |
The butcher shop and the restaurant are both in phase one. A butcher counter is a business people use every week, whatever the season. Doug MacGuire, a vice president at the civil engineering firm The Dubay Group, told the board the development "is very much in line with other properties that are along this corridor."
Marcotte hasn't given an opening date. "When we are ready. I gave up on deadlines a long time ago," he said in August. Until he announces one, any date you hear is a guess.
The Frost Farm's Literary Events Moved Next Door
The same shift toward year-round use reaches the corridor's best-known historic site. For 16 years, the Hyla Brook Poets held their reading series in the Robert Frost Farm barn. This year, the 17th season moved to the Hyla Brook Estate at 140 Rockingham Road, a short walk up the road. Robert Crawford, a co-founder of the group and a Frost Farm trustee, said the group couldn't get a firm answer about whether the barn would be available. A spokesperson for the state parks division said the group had applied for a special use permit and later withdrew the application. Crawford said that application was for the group's annual conference, not the reading series.
The estate already had a connection to the group. Melissa Juchniewicz, who coordinates the series, had approached owner Kim Livesey the year before about a place for the group's monthly winter workshops, since the Frost Farm closes for the winter. The 2026 series ended September 10 with a reading by James Matthew Wilson. The readings are free and include an open mic.
The farm's trails are still a good fall walk. Hyla Brook, the small stream just south of the farm, usually dries up in summer.
An October Weekend Built Around the Corridor
- Before Monday, October 12: take a last Frost Farm house tour, starting by 3 p.m.
- Lunch, Wednesday through Sunday: DeadProof at 94 Rockingham Road, open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
- Before mid-October: hit a bucket of balls at Pete's Scoop while the range is still open.
- Saturday, October 17, at noon or 4 p.m.: the "Legends and Lore" tour of Forest Hill Cemetery, led by Erin Moulton Robinson of the Derry Public Library and TJ Cullinane of the Derry Heritage Commission. The organizers say this year's tour has new content. It's a one-hour walk over pavement and grass, so wear comfortable shoes. Meet at Taylor Library, 49 East Derry Road. The church next door is holding a thrift sale all day, so the organizers encourage carpooling.
- On the way back toward downtown: Maddie's Brookside at 4 South Main Street opened this summer. Owner Amanda Desmarais is part of the family behind Maddie's Restaurant, and the menu covers breakfast, sandwiches, salads and takeout.
After October, LaBelle Winery at 14 Route 111 picks up Derry's winter calendar. The LaBelle Lights season opens November 18. This year the winery has added a Winemaker's Kitchen food truck at the start of the light course. The Great New England Holiday Craft Market runs there November 27 and 28 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., with free admission and parking. On Rockingham Road, the ice cream window at Pete's Scoop reopens in April 2027, and Grindhouse will open when Marcotte decides it's ready.
Rebecca Curran spent 18 years in civil engineering and drafting before she went into real estate, so she reads site plans like the ones going through Derry's Planning Board right now and can explain what they mean for a property on Route 28. If you own on or near this corridor and want to know how changes like these affect your home's value, Rebecca Curran Realty can start with an instant home valuation.
