Food for Thought Event in Danbury

Danbury's Food For Thought 2012 will be held on Wednesday, March 28th, 2012 from 5:30pm to 8:30pm at the showroom of Connecticut Kitchen & Bath,  87 Mill Plain Road, Danbury, CT. Tickets are $25 each and can be purchased by contacting Joann Cueva at 203-743-5565 or Joann@danburychamber.com.

In addition to highlighting the Danbury area's food scene, the event will host a lively discussion about the latest food, restaurant & cooking trends with a special guest food critic & News Times Managing Editor Jackie Smith as well as (yours truly) Amy Kundrat, Executive Editor of CTbites.

This networking and food-centric event hosted by the Women’s Business Council will showcase a variety of the Danbury area's food scene, including: Basilico, Brasilis BBQ,  Brio Tuscan Grill, Hanna’s Middle Eastern Restaurant, Jay’s at the new Crowne Plaza, Koo Neo-Japanese Cuisine, Matrix Banquet & Conference Center, Mezon Tapas Bar & Restaurant, Molly Darcy’s Irish Pub & Grill, Pito’s Q - Shortcut to Puerto Rico, Stew Leonard’s, Victoria’s Wood Fired Pizza, VIVO! Bar & Grill & others.

Food for Thought is a great way to support local business as well as get to know the Danbury area's food scene. Hope to see you there.

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Ad: Cheesecake Factory & Brio Open @ Danbury Fair Mall

Danbury Fair has made shopping more appetizing this winter with the addition of popular restaurants, The Cheesecake Factory® and BRIO Tuscan Grille. These great new dining options bring affordable upscale dining to Danbury Fair and will provide the perfect rest stop during the upcoming holiday shopping frenzy. The Cheesecake Factory®'s award winning family friendly menu with over 40 decadent desserts promises something tasty for everyone while BRIO brings authentic, Northern Italian cuisine to Danbury CT.  

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Pancho's Tacos Mexican Restaurant in Danbury

Four bloggers, several more friends and platefuls of Mexican food gathered on a recent evening at Pancho's Tacos in Danbury, CT to share tacos and swig margaritas at the area's best-known Mexican joint. From their homespun dishes, including solid tacos and a particularly memorable and devilishly spicy dish called the a la Diabla which has claimed many victimes, you may need to add this to your Danbury, CT agenda.

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10 Questions w/ Matt Stanczak of Stanziato's in Danbury

Matt Stanczak is chef and owner of Danbury's two-year-old Stanziato's Wood-fired pizza. Trained at the Culinary Institute of America, he has worked for the last decade as both a private chef and for restaurants in New York City and Westchester but now, and thankfully for us, he calls Danbury home.

Stanczak’s contemporary take on on the classic Neopolitan pizza is one of the most outstanding in the state. His puffy charred crusts, devotion to local ingredients and seasonality as well as his nightly specials with their intuitive pairings have made me literally pound the table in delight.

1. If you had unexpected guests arriving at your home for dinner in one hour, what would you whip up?

This time of year I'm definitely thinking a fresh Guacamole....Avacodos from my favorite Latino bodega, Lots of freshly squeezed Lime Juice, Onion, maybe a chopped up jalapeno, sea salt, and lots and lots of cilantro! Simple, Fresh, Delicious.

2. What is the last dish you cooked for yourself?

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Frank Pepe's Opens in Danbury

Frank Pepe's Pizzeria Napoletano opened in Danbury last week, bringing those inimitable New Haven pies just a little bit closer to our northern Fairfield County grasp. But do they reach their full Wooster Street potential? 

 "The white spinach, mushroom, and gorgonzola half was served with mozzarella and a heck of a lot of garlic, oil with a nice blast of salt. The edges of the pie were nicely charred. Ingredients, shape/appearance and execution? Looks like the Pepe's we know and love ..." 

Read the full take on this newest Pepe's outpost, and where things begin to unravel, over at Slice.

Marcus Dairy Closes This Sunday

It's the end of an era. 

The Marcus Dairy Bar in Danbury will close its doors after sixty years in business this Sunday, February 6. The iconic diner and popular meeting spot for hundreds of motorcycles will be razed to make way for a shopping mall. 

The experience of the decades-old orange vinyl seats and wood paneling paired well with what can only be deemed as standard diner fare with the exception of the stand-out "Roadfood" turkey sandwiches and milkshakes. Marcus Dairy drew a steady stream of regulars for their old-fashioned dairy bar, counter service and convenient location under I-84 adjacent to the Danbury Fair Mall and the Danbury Airport who will all certainly feel the loss of this irreplaceable Danbury landmark. 

Stanziato's Wood Fired Pizza

Danbury has finally scored a serious pizzeria and thy name is Stanziato’s Wood Fired Pizza. 

Influenced by the simple artisanal approach to pizza-making combined with a belief that “fine-dining is basically dead,” Chef Matt Stanczak decided model his own restaurant on Neapolitan-style pizzerias rooted in Italy and beloved in New York.  

What they each share is simple. It’s a devotion to quality ingredients and a passion for pizza-making.  “It’s a pizzeria. It’s all about the pizza and making fresh local salads. I want to do those things, and do them really well,” said Chef Stanczak.  This approach is pitch perfect for a city in desperate need of a good pizzeria

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