CTbites Podcast Launch Party @ The Spread: First 40 Guests Taste Test New Spring Happy Hour Menu!! Features Events Podcast Stephanie Webster May 01, 2018 Join the party Thursday, May 17th, when CTbites celebrates the launch of our new Food & Drink PODCAST hosted by Ken Tuccio. Come on down and meet the CTbites team, as we open up the patio season at The Spread in South Norwalk. Pssst....first 40 guests to arrive once we open the doors at 5:00PM get to sample some of Chef Carlos Baez' NEW HAPPY HOUR MENU (Free!!)..We will also be celebrating the winner of our Cocktail Naming Contest, as we toast to new beginnings with The Spread's new signature cocktail, (to be named by a CTbites reader...enter here).This event is open to the public, and does not require prepaid tickets for entry. The first 40 guests will be able to taste test the new menu free of charge. The rest of the evening is a la carte.Special guest, Lock City Brewing, will also be on hand, giving out samples of a few of their tasty beers. Read More
21st Annual Food & Wine Celebration at the Stamford Museum & Nature Center Features Fundraiser Events Stephanie Webster May 01, 2018 Doing Good While Eating Well at the 21st Annual Food & Wine Celebration benefitting the Stamford Museum & Nature CenterWith so many world-class chefs in Fairfield County, even the most-dedicated gastronome would find it impossible to sample the ever-changing culinary bounty in our midst. And while many an oenophile would be up to the challenge, pairing this delectable fare with the perfect wine would be equally challenging. Fortunately, the 21st annual Food & Wine Celebration at the Stamford Museum & Nature Center presents the opportunity to do just that – sample a dizzying array of the most-distinctive local cuisine accompanied by spectacularly-curated wines – while benefitting one of Stamford’s most-beloved local institutions. Read More
50+ Restaurants for Mother’s Day in CT: 2018 Edition Restaurant Features Holiday Brunch Events Homepage Emma Jane-Doody Stetson April 29, 2018 Mother’s day is right around the corner! Treat the special lady in your life with prix fixe dinners, delicious brunches, special holiday dishes, cocktail specials, and more. These 50 Connecticut restaurants will help you show Mom just how loved she is!Rosie, New Canaan: Rosie in New Canaan invites you to Mothers Day Brunch from 9am-4pm. Treat her to favorites like Huevos Rancheros, the gigantic Lobster Club, and Brioche French Toast.Roia, New Haven: At Roia in New Haven, Chef/owner Avi Szaprio has created a two-course prix fixe menu. A kids a la carte menu will also be available.Essex Steam Train, Essex: All aboard! The Essex Steam Train & Riverboat has a range of Mother's Day packages available. Take a scenic ride or enjoy dinner on the train.Griswold Inn, Essex: The Griswold Inn in Essex will treat Mom with a "dinner" buffet and featured "pink drinks." The Mothers Day meal will be served from 11am-7:30pm and costs $45 for adults and $19.95 for children under 12.Washington Prime, Norwalk: Washington Prime's Mother's Day Brunch Buffet will feature a carving station, raw bar, sushi, ham, and so much more. $49.95 for adults includes a drink while children are $24.95. Choose from 3 seatings: 11am, 12:30pm, and 2pmBar Sugo, Norwalk: Bar Sugo's Mother's Day brunch will include ½ price wines, $17 unlimited bloody marys and mimosas, and the regular brunch menu Read More
Cocktail Naming Contest: WIN FREE Dinner at The Spread & Launch CTbites' NEW Podcast! Features Cocktails Podcast Giveaway Bar Stephanie Webster April 28, 2018 Game on! We're back with another cocktail naming contest. WIN a FREE Dinner for 2 @ The Spread. Here's How...CTbites and Ken Tuccio are launching a brand new PODCAST on May 17th, and The Spread is launching patio season. In honor of this big night, The Spread has asked CTbites readers to come up with a name for their new summer sipper to be served at this event. The cocktails ingredients are below. If your Cocktail name is selected, it will be featured at our Podcast Launch party May 17th & you will receive a FREE DINNER FOR TWO @ The Spread. Here are the ingredients:Post your submission below (include email). May the best namer win!! Good luck. Read More
New York's Artichoke Basille’s Pizza Opening in New Haven & Hartford Restaurant New Haven Hartford Hartford County pizza Openings Take Out To-Go Homepage CTbites Team April 27, 2018 Artichoke Basille’s Pizza, the nation’s largest and fastest growing New York pizza concept, has signed a multi-unit franchise deal to bring its larger than life slices and whole pies to the greater Hartford and New Haven, Connecticut areas. Franchisee Matthew Rusconi is looking to open the first location by year’s end and is actively scouting real estate opportunities in Hartford County, New Haven, Middletown, and Cromwell.Artichoke Basille’s Pizza, founded in 2008 by cousins and best friends Francis Garcia and Sal Basille, specializes in serving authentic New York slices in a fast casual setting, but without the conveyor belt oven. The concept’s massive slices and whole pies, which have been named the ‘Best Pizza’ by The NY Post and one of the ‘Top 5 Slices in the Boroughs’ by CBS New York, range from the traditionally-topped to the more eccentric. Read More
Friday Froth: 12 Connecticut IPAs And A Sweep At The 2018 Blind Beer Awards Features Ingredients Friday Froth Beer CT Beer Events James Gribbon April 27, 2018 Being a beer writer, as you'd expect, has its perks. For a few years one of these was being chosen to serve on a panel of expert judges at the Connecticut Blind Beer Awards, a competition between a dozen local beers which takes the popularity contest aspect out of the equation by serving each from unlabeled, color-coded taps. The event is held each year at the Blind Rhino in South Norwalk, and while brewery representatives are on hand in case their brewery wins one of the awards, they are sequestered away from public view in the bar's basement to bottle share, play beer pong, and perform impromptu interior decorating with some cans of spray paint they found, until the Experts Choice and People's Choice are handed out. I had no formal connection with the awards this year, attending instead as a civilian, and drank all twelve of the CT beers on tap. Here is how that went. Read More
Caputo Trattoria Opens at Foxwoods Resort Casino May 5 Restaurant Openings Italian Foxwoods CTbites Team April 26, 2018 And now a word from the folks at Foxwoods...On Saturday, May 5, Craveable Hospitality Group (CHG) opens Caputo Trattoria at Foxwoods Resort Casino, bringing a convivial Italian restaurant to the resort. Caputo Trattoria is a collaborative culinary effort from Culinary Director Matt O’Neill and Executive Chef Gary LaMothe. Read More
Barcelona Wine Bar & Restaurant Offers Guests Garden-to-Table Dining Features Fairfield farm fresh Farm to Table Ingredients CTbites Team April 26, 2018 Robert Atkinson is impatient with Mother Nature. The 12 vegetable beds beneath the patio of the Barcelona Wine Bar & Restaurant in Fairfield are awaiting the seeds for their sixth year of providing homegrown ingredients to the Fairfield restaurant’s kitchen, but the New England weather has not been cooperating.This will be the sixth year of Barcelona’s vegetable garden, which offers patrons the opportunity to select ingredients for preparation by the restaurant’s kitchen staff. “I always like to tell people it’s better than farm-to-table,” continued Atkinson. “It is garden-to-table, and there is no transportation because the farmers aren’t even driving it over.” Read More
Chef Luke Venner of Elm Cooks The James Beard House May 14 Features Events Stephanie Webster April 25, 2018 Chef Luke Venner of Elm restaurant will be cooking a very special meal at the prestigious James Beard Foundation to bring a taste of "Connecticut Spring" to the Beard House on Monday, May 14th. Designed to celebrate, nurture and honor chefs who make America's food culture more delicious and sustainable, the Beard House Dinners are prepared by culinary masters from all regions of the US and around the world.Chef Luke will prepare an elegant menu of seasonal selections inspired by his reverence for local purveyors and producers paired with his choice of wines. Beard House Dinners are open to the public; for more information: https://www.jamesbeard.org/events/connecticut-elegance. View the complete menu below: Read More
Nibble: CT Food Events For April 29- May 6 Features Events Beer Dinner Pop-Up Dinner Emma Jane-Doody Stetson April 25, 2018 The 5th Annual Ridgefield Gone Country BBQ Festival in Ridgefield starts Saturday May 5 at 11am and runs through Sunday 5pm. The Event will be held at the Historic Lounsbury House at 316 Main Street. Tickets: $10 for adults and $5 for students. Children under 12 are FREE. Sunday, April 29th, Half Full Brewery is hosting a pig roast with Hoodoo Brown BBQ. Doors open at 12:00 for beers, starting at 1:00 Hoodoo will be serving up BBQ Wings (tossed in Red Bee Honey Sauce), and a Pig Roast that will feature a whole hog, apple-vinegar slaw, slider buns, cornbread, and mac and cheese. Reserve tickets here.Tickets for The Schoolhouse at Cannondale’s Farm to Fork series go on sale May 1. Each evening includes a cocktail hour, a farm tour, and four locally sourced courses under the stars by Chef Tim LaBant. It takes place at Millstone Farm in Wilton, CT. On Monday April 30, head over to Terrain Garden Café in Westport for “Dishing Local.” CTbites and the Westport Farmers Market welcome foodies to a food-focused evening and open forum in the terrain Garden Cafe. They’ll gather with some of the local food community's leading talents to discuss the latest trends, everyday eating, and tips and secrets from farmers and restaurateurs. This event is free and open to the public. Food and beverage available for purchase. On Tuesday May 2, Fairfield Cheese Company presents “Cheese 102: Beyond the Basics with Arethusa Farm.” The class will expand on the basics and delve into cheese making, history, science, and more. Plus, taste plenty of cheeses and complementary wines. Tickets are $50 and the class runs from 7-9pm.CLASP Homes 14th TASTE OF WESTPORT will take place on Thursday May 3 from 6-9pm at the Westport Inn. Enjoy samplings of specialty dishes from Amis, Harvest Wine Bar, Hummock Island Oysters, Pearl at Longshore, Saltwater, Bobby Q’s Cue & Co., Tablao, and more. There will be plenty to drink as well! Tickets are $75 prepaid, $85 at the door. Read More
It's A Woman's World: Sarah Bouissou of Bernard's & Sarah's Wine Bar Interview Features Interview Jeanne Muchnick April 24, 2018 Fairfield County is full of trailblazing women, particularly in the culinary world. Which is why, with 2018 being proclaimed the Year of the Woman, we felt compelled to honor the pioneers among us. Our new series, “It’s A Woman’s World’ is devoted to Fairfield County female influencers who’ve forged their own paths, often in food-related fields long dominated by men.Whether farming the land, bringing healthy food to the masses, feeding an entrepreneurial spirit or injecting feminism with food, these groundbreaking ladies have set a new definition of women’s work, creating new paths and setting examples for those who follow. How'd they do it? Read on. This week, our focus turns to Sarah Bouissou, Owner/Events Coordinator, Bernard's/Sarah's Wine Bar/Sarah Bouissou Catering. Have a suggestion on someone you’d like to see featured? Email steph@ctbites.com. Read More
New Ramen in Norwalk! Good Hope Dumpling & Ramen House Now Open Restaurant Norwalk Ramen Japanese Vietnamese Noodles Asian Delicious Dives Homepage Andrew Dominick April 22, 2018 It wasn’t that long ago that I went to Valencia Luncheria for dinner. I parked where I usually do, on that side of the street, almost directly across from the laundromat. When I came out of Valencia, I noticed a sign with a blushing anime character on it that read “Good Hope Dumpling & Ramen House.” I vaguely remembered that a couple friends mentioned it. After I walked by, Good Hope was fully on my radar. I just hoped Good Hope would be good. There were positive signs besides a few of my pals who said they liked it, and the fact that their online reviews are solid. When I walked by the just over 20-seat restaurant (it’s the old Valencia location) at an obscure Sunday dinnertime, the place was packed, and I’ve noticed they gather a decent lunch crowd, even on weekdays. I had to check it out. What’s more is it’s just the kind of neighborhood haunt I like to highlight. Read More
25+ Restaurants & Bars for Cinco de Mayo in CT: 2018 Edition Restaurant Holiday Events Cinco de Mayo Bar Emma Jane-Doody Stetson April 21, 2018 Geronimo Tequila Bar & Southwest Grill, Fairfield and New Haven: Geronimo Tequila Bar and Southwest Grill will be offering “Five Days of Cinco” at its New Haven and Fairfield locations.Mezon, Danbury: Mezon in Danbury will host its annual Cinco de Mayo block party with $7 plates and drinks, a live DJ, a cocktail competition and more. Doors open at 7pm.Dos Amigos, Torrington: Karaoke meets Cinco de Mayo at Dos Amigos in Torrington.CINCO Norwalk Block Party, Norwalk: CTBites, Ken Tuccio, and Don Carmelo's Mexican Grill & Tequila Bar in Norwalk are teaming up for CINCO, a massive Cinco De Mayo Block Party event. The event kicks off at 12pm and it is an all day party four live bands, two culinary competitions and the debut of Evenflow Mexican Lager from No Worries. Bartaco, Stamford, Westport, West Hartford: Bartaco Westport is kicking off the summer with their Cinco de Mayo fiesta! Visit them for live music, a summer bucket list contest, and surprise giveaways.Cinco Five Festival, Stamford: The first annual CINCO FIVE FESTIVAL will take place in Stamford on Saturday, May 5 from 3-9pm at Stamford's Mill River Park! There will be food trucks, DJs, and plenty of beer and sangria. 21+. Read More
Guide To Cooking Classes in Connecticut: 18 Spots To Get Schooled Features Cooking Classes kids cooking party Education Entertaining Catering Homepage April Guilbault April 20, 2018 It’s not warm enough to totally be outdoors and you’ve got a wicked case of cabin fever after this roller coaster of a winter. What’s a food loving, experience-hungry, knowledge-loving person to do? Take a class! Specifically, a *food* class! From breads to butchery, cheeses to fondant, we’ve assembled a class list that will have you hungry to learn, so to speak. Using the skills offered in these classes, you (and your friends, if a group activity if something you are looking for) can learn a wide variety of culinary skills that will allow you to have fun in the moment but then take that fun back to your own kitchen and share it. Learn to cook for a crowd, perfect skills you’ve been thinking you need a smidge of help with, or just do something different for an evening. Break out of that bread box! Strike a new (knife) pose! Any way you slice it (see what I did there?), you are going to have a grand time…learning! Who knew? Read More
Shake Shack Opening In West Hartford April 27 Restaurant West Hartford Hartford Hartford County Burgers Comfort Food Kid Friendly Hot Dogs ice cream Stephanie Webster April 19, 2018 Shack®is thrilled to announce it will open its doors on Friday, April 27that 11AM. The West Hartford Shack will be located at Corbin's Corner, 1445 New Britain Avenue, West Hartford, CT. This marks Shake Shack’s fourth Connecticut Shack, with existing locations in Darien, New Haven and Westport.In addition to the Shack classics, the West Hartford Shack will be spinning up a selection of custom frozen custard concretes: Shack Attack (chocolate custard, fudge sauce, chocolate truffle cookie dough, Mast Brothers Shake Shack dark chocolate chunks, topped with chocolate sprinkles), Cookie Butter Blender (vanilla custard, cookie butter, chocolate toffee and chocolate sprinkles)and Pie Oh My (vanilla custard and slice of Four & Twenty Blackbirds seasonal pie). Read More
CT Guide To Raw Milk: Why Raw and Where To Buy in CT? Features Ingredients Ingredients Farm to Table CT Farms Local Farm Luke Shanahan April 19, 2018 I submit that raw milk might just be the most real of all foods. Start with the fact that milk is the only food created specifically to feed something. (Honey doesn’t count, as the pollen honey is made from has its own agenda.) Synonymous with nourishment, raw milk is the first food most human beings—all mammals—ingest. And raw milk, for it to be free of any off flavors and to be safe to drink, requires painstaking care to produce. Every little step in the process matters.The subtle and intricate flavors in raw milk, the very opposite of the one-note flavor of pasteurized milk or, worse, the waxy cardboard taste vacuum of skim, come from the undenatured biocomplexity in unpasteurized milk. When I read chemists-for-hire claiming, on behalf of big commercial dairy, that there isn't that much nutritional difference between pasteurized and raw, I choose to trust my palate. Well, my palate and the biochemists who say that the difference is real and considerable. Read More
Nibble: CT Food Events for April 22-29 Features Events Emma Jane-Doody Stetson April 18, 2018 Stratford Restaurant Week will take place from April 22-28. Participating restaurants include neighborhood favorites like Riverview Bistro, The Beach House Grill, Outriggers, Joey C’s, Paradise Pizza, The Lazy Dog Tavern, Kama Sushi, and more. Food Rescue US, the direct-transfer food rescue organization dedicated to ending food insecurity in America, is thrilled to present their signature fundraising event, Food for All on Wednesday April 25.Visit Ambler Farm on Saturday April 28 for a Spring Pancake Breakfast from 11am-12:30pm. Plus, catch up with the farm animals, do a fun spring-themed craft, and watch the sheep have their wool shorn in preparation for warmer weather. It is $15 per adult and $5 per child. On Monday April 23, L’escale will host a wine dinner featuring Pago de Carraovejas. The meal will include dishes like Grilled Lamb Chop, Heritage Pork Loin, Octopus “Escabeche,” and more. It costs $85 per person.Join Matt Storch at Match Restaurant in South Norwalk and tune in LIVE to watch Matt battle it out on The Food Network's Chopped. It all goes down April 24th with a full evening's line up events. Read More
Dom's Coffee: Get Your Espresso On At The "Most Beautiful Cafe in Connecticut" Restaurant Coffee Tea And Coffee Cheese Breakfast Brunch Dessert Bakery April Guilbault April 17, 2018 Farmington, Connecticut; the land of colonial homes and rolling hills, horse farms, schools once attended by former First Ladies and now, home of Dom's Coffee, rated by Architectural Digest as The Most Beautiful Cafe in Connecticut.Remember when the word coffeehouse conjured visions of overstuffed, cast-off furniture populated by long-lounging “alternative” coffee-sippers? All that was missing was your local version of Phoebe Buffay crooning about her Smelly Cat. Gone are those days. A new, craft-caffeinated, curated, uplifting day has dawned in the land of this coffeehouse and many others. Read More
First Taste: OKO Opens In Westport w/ Chef Brian Lewis Restaurant Japanese Westport Asian Openings Cocktails Bar Noodles Sushi Homepage Andrew Dominick April 15, 2018 If you’ve got your finger on the pulse of the Fairfield County food scene, there’s a good chance you’re jonesing to eat at OKO, set to open on April 19 in Downtown Westport. OKO is brought to you by Chef Brian Lewis—fresh off a James Beard semifinalist nomination—a name Westporters are familiar with from his over two-year-old flagship restaurant, and critically acclaimed, The Cottage. At OKO, Lewis is changing things up, as he plans to showcase his passion for Japanese ingredients and cooking techniques. Read More
Watch Chef Matt Storch Live on Food Network's Chopped April 24th Features Events Stephanie Webster April 13, 2018 Join Matt Storch at Match Restaurant in South Norwalk and tune in LIVE to watch Matt battle it out on The Food Network's Chopped. It all goes down April 24th with a full evening's line up events. CTbites and Ken Tuccio will be in the house at 9:15 with a live podcast. At 9:00pm Match will host their late night happy hour including a Broken Shed Vodka Chopped Competition where YOU get to be the JUDGE. At 10pm they will fire up the huge screen and projector to view the premiere of the episode. Make your reservations now! Read More
