Texas BBQ franchise opens in Bridgeport via ctpost.com

This just in from ctpost.com.

The biggest barbecue fast food chain in the country is coming to Connecticut in the North End of Bridgeport. Dickey's Barbecue Pit will have its soft opening Sunday and its grand opening Dec. 8.

Cohen is a Dallas native, and often ate at Dickey's growing up. The first Dickey's Barbecue opened in Texas in 1941. The original location is still open for business, and Dickey's Barbecue is still owned and operated by the Dickey Family, according to the company website. The company began franchising in 1994.

Customers can expect to get their food in three minutes or less, Cohen said, but the meat is smoked for hours. The brisket, for example, is smoked for 14 hours before it hits a plate. "We have fall-off-the-bone ribs," Cohen said. "Most restaurants use a thermometer to test if the ribs are done. We test our ribs by picking them up and if they don't break in the middle, we know they're not ready to serve."

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"What's Cooking in Bridgeport" Dining Deals

Bridgeport is proud to announce the second annual "What's Cooking in Bridgeport" week from Monday, May 16 to Sunday, May 22, 2011. What's Cooking in Bridgeport is a week long event showcasing the unique range of dining and entertainment options across the Park City.   Throughout the week, over 40 restaurants are offering special promotions, providing a great opportunity for people across the region to enjoy food and fun in Connecticut’s largest city.  From 2-for-1 prices to free appetizer, drink and dessert specials, What’s Cooking in Bridgeport has something for everyone.

Participating restaurants include

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Bereket Turkish Restaurant "2" Opens in Bridgeport

CLICK ON ABOVE IMAGE TO LAUNCH PHOTO GALLERY

Last spring we told you about Bereket, an tiny authentic Turkish eatery tucked behind a gas station in Bridgeport.  This fortuitous find primarily offered takeout, but if you were lucky enough to get one of the 3 small tables, you were served food worthy of an Ottoman emperor. While we loved hiding out behind the Citgo station, we were pleased to hear that owner Selahattin Cinar had moved his very reasonably priced menu and talented cooks to a much larger space in Blackrock (the old Helados Vazquez). With an upgraded interior worthy of the excellent fare, Selahattin can now focus on the customer experience...and a more gracious host you've never seen. Get a glimpse of Bereket's menu in our photo gallery (and possibly warm up your car for a quick departure to Bridgeport). 

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Gordon Ramsay Screams into Bridgeport This Week

If you hear screaming from the general vicinity of Bridgeport this week, chances are it's Gordon Ramsay inside the kitchen of Blackrock's Cafe Tavolini where he will be camping out filming Fox's Kitchen Nightmares.

Thanks to the local Bridgeport blog, Only in Bridgeport for the hot tip.

Feeding 1000's @ The Bridgeport Rescue Mission

Restaurant Chefs are a self reliant bunch. Chef Paul Byron reminded me of that fact when I met him in the dining area of the Bridgeport Rescue Mission. Chefs are by nature, creative, resourceful, organized planners. They manage ingredient lists, weekly menus and schedules of all kinds. These details and more, factor into the efficiency of a restaurant kitchen and ultimately into the presentation of tempting plates to restaurant patrons.

Now, imagine for a moment, the opposite.   Imagine a chef that prepares three meals a day including five seatings for dinner.  He rarely orders or chooses his ingredients,  rather he cooks with what is available to him.

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Omanel: Authentic Home-Style Portuguese

Leticia Schwartz is the author of The Brazilian Kitchen. She knows a thing or two about Portuguese cooking. This is her first review for CTbites. 

If I could transport a restaurant to different country, I would. Growing up in Rio de Janeiro, a city that lives and breaths Portuguese culture, I savored the Iberian fare. There, I could literally dine on a different salt cod dish every day of the year. These days, however, for reasons that bear no explanation, Portuguese food in Brazil has become synonymous with "expensive food." Fortunately, I have found a way to satisfy my Iberian cravings locally. Located in Bridgeport CT, just off route 8, Omanel offers all the dishes I grew up with – traditional Portuguese cooking -- with zero fuss.  The menu here is identical to the "expensive" menus in Rio, but the prices couldn't be more different. Rio deserves a restaurant such as this. In fact, the venerable Mark Bittman once said "The food can blow you away." 

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Taqueria La Michoacana: Bridgeport's Top Taco?

Cinco de Mayo found my girls and I hankering for some Mexicano authenico.  While we couldn’t afford a flight south for the day, Taqueria La Michoacana was absolutamente the next best thing to being there.

Tucked away between a package store and a used car lot on Main Street in Bridgeport, Taqueria La Michoacana touts itself as “The Only 100% Mexican Taqueria.”  We walk into the spotless, 30-seat storefront and are immediately greeted by the sweet smell of garlic and the owner, Sergio.  While he refers to his wife, Rosa, in the kitchen, we don’t get to meet her until we insist on complimenting the chef on our way out.  Roles are clearly defined here, Sergio is front of the house, Rosa is the chef.

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Taberna Food & Wine Bar: A Bridgeport Surprise

A pleasant surprise is always welcome – especially on the third rainy day in a row at the end of April.

That is why Taberna Food & Wine Bar, tucked away in a residential neighborhood on the Fairfield Bridgeport line, was such a good find.  For a recent lunch date we entered through the upscale bar area into a bright, tasteful white-tablecloth dining room and immediately noticed we were the only diners.  Never a good sign, my companion and I wondered out loud how they could possibly serve a decent lunch when only two diners make up the lunch rush.  As the meal progressed two more tables filled, both business lunch types, but by then our initial reservations had abated, as we were deep into a delightful and delicious meal.

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Bereket Turkish Restaurant: Istanbul in Bridgeport

It's been 24 hours since I left Bereket, a tiny hole in the wall Turkish restaurant located behind a Citgo station on Bridgeport's Main Street. As I write this I wonder, is it too soon to go back? 

Bereket has been dubbed by people in the know as Fairfield County's best kept secret, and I finally understand what all the fuss is about. Mind you, this place is not fussy. Hidden beside of the gas station's mini mart, Bereket's small dining space has only 3 tables and boxes of Turkish beverages and pantry staples lining the walls. But what this single room Turkish delight lacks in ambiance, it makes up for in the quality, freshness, and flavor of the food. 

Owner Selahattin Cinar has been in business for 6 years, and chats with customers while holding court in the kitchen preparing a steady stream of take-out orders. He greeted us warmly as we walked in, and we were relieved to find that he spoke enough English to answer questions and help us navigate their extensive menu. When we asked what was good, we were led to a display case filled with cold mezes (appetizers) and kebabs awaiting the heat, and simply told, it's all good. And it was.

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Green Gourmet To Go in Bridgeport

Originally written for the Fairfield Green Food Guide.

It’s way too soon to change the name to Green Rock, but Black Rock is getting greener. Green Gourmet To Go, offering local, organic vegetarian and vegan meals, will open on Fairfield Avenue in April (yes I know the photo says March, but dates slip). The attractive little storefront, with its soothing celedon walls and coppery silk curtains will offer healthy and environmentally conscious hot and cold lunches and dinners.

Chef-Owner Linda Soper-Kolton was a lifelong food lover and dedicated home cook before she decided to attend the Natural Gourmet Institute in New York City. The recent NGI graduate is inspired. She wants makes to make eating healthy meals easy and approachable. 

“I’ll serve burritos, but healthy burritos,” she said in a recent interview. Think burritos filled with sweet potatoes, kale, black beans and grains.  Her Dixie burger is made from black-eyed peas and sweet potatoes and served with chipotle sauce. Her hummus and avocado wrap gets punch and crunch from shiitake “bacon” crisps.

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Creole Pizza & Cabaret @ Two Boots in Bridgeport

Walking into this funky spot in Bridgeport immediately makes me yearn for my Brooklyn hipster days.  I spent the early 90’s in Brooklyn with my future husband and Two Boots was a place we frequented.  This CT outpost really brings me back.  Stepping in underneath the retro neon martini sign outside, a very mod theme continues.  The walls are adorned with mardis gras beads and concert flyers and the long counter and tables shine in a combination of lipstick red and shiny chrome.

And then there’s the smell…garlicky, spicy and yeasty.  Two Boots may have built its reputation on Creole pizza, but my nose knows there more going on here.

After quickly being seated for lunch I am handed a kitschy menu, which immediately draws me in. Blackened catfish, jambalaya and po’boys.  I’m nearly drooling, but wait there’s a long list of specials too.  Today the chef must have found some great portabello mushrooms because there’s a run on them.  They’re tossed in the salad special; they’re featured in a pasta special and on a po’boy too.  Lucky for me, I love portabellos.

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CLOSED! Helados Vazques Gelato: Fall in Love in Bridgeport

Remember falling in love?  Pulsing with excitement at the prospect of your lips meeting for the first time?  Well it was years ago for me but I’ve found that feeling again and I just can’t get enough of...gelato?  Okay, not just gelato, but gelato so good it has worked its way into my dreams.

Helados Vazquez has stolen my heart.  Don’t let the Spanish name fool you; this gelato is straight off of Rome’s via de Condotti.  I first wandered into this tiny shop in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport after seeing a movie at the Showcase movie theaters, it’s right down the street.  As I opened the door, subtly Spanish décor and the feel of a European coffee shop greeted me.  Was I really in Bridgeport?

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Pho Saigon: Real Pho...Really off the Beaten Path

In Fairfield County, Vietnamese cuisine is not as plentiful as other asian cuisines, so you really have to dig deep, and go where the Pho is...wherever it is. I recently received a tip from a CT Bites reader that good Pho was to be had in Bridgeport at a small mom & pop restaurant called Pho Saigon. We rallied our enthusiastic tasters and headed out to Iranistan Street in Bridgeport, an area that is definitely "off the beaten path", but you do what you've gotta do for good food. You won't find this place in Zagats.

We entered what seemed to be the living room of a small corner house, furnished with gum-ball machines, plastic floral table cloths, and big pots of luke warm tea on the tables. Clearly, dining here was about the food, not the decor. We were greeted warmly, although not in English (which is generally a good sign that the food will be authentic), and escorted to a clean table piled high with squeeze bottles of fiery sauces and jars of fish paste. Lucky for us, the menu had translations, so we ordered half of the 21 item menu (as most dishes were under $7) and waited for the food to arrive.

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Timothy's: Ice Cream the Old Fashion Way

Yes, I know we have been featuring a great many frozen desserts these days but tis the season, so here is one more not to be missed frosty snack. Grab your kids, and run...don't walk to Timothy's in Bridgeport. This old school ice cream parlor may no longer use the salt-and-ice churners that stand in the front window, but their ice cream is every bit as classic and delicious as it gets. It’s cranked out by hand in their back room, made with sweet cream, that is not too sweet (as we have found in Cold Stone Creamery's product), and comes in several dozen inventive flavors. It is truly one of Fairfield County’s best-kept secrets.

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Brunch Pick: Bloodroot Restaurant, Bridgeport

I first caught wind of the somewhat elusive Bloodroot Restaurant on Fat Cat Pie Co’s menu. In the midst of the pizzas and salads (more on that later), you will find “Bloodroot Oatmeal Sunflower Seed Bread," a thick slice of homemade, cake-like bread that tastes both healthy and decadently delicious at the same time. With its crunchy crust and spongy interior, the Bloodroot bread became a personal obsession. To my surprise, I found that Bloodroot is more than just heavenly bread. It is a full-blown “feminist restaurant & bookstore” in the midst of a residential neighborhood in Bridgeport, serving organic, seasonal, local vegetarian food. If the bread was this good, I could only imagine what the rest of the menu had to offer.

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