The Galley Waterfront Cafe: Great Sandwiches & Sea Breezes in Norwalk

Sandwiches with sea breezes, comin’ up….

Ok, not the cran-grapefruit-vodka-lime type of SeaBreeze, the actual sea breezes. I think we can all agree that everything tastes better eaten outside, or better yet, by the water. The warm sun on your face, a slight breath of air coming off the Sound and subtle scents of briny water wafting. You hear the clink-clank of ropes on masts, a boat horn here and there. Hello, seagull, nice to see you and no, I won’t give you a fry. These fries are too good to give to the gulls, that’s why. 

Fries and more, The Galley Waterfront Cafe is a place to head this summer. Motor up by boat and grab lunches to go or sit awhile at their outdoor seating and take in views of Norwalk Harbor while you hungrily gobble up bites of their fantastic sandwiches. 

The Galley smacks of all things summer; there’s a simple takeout window from whence a friendly face will peek out and gather your order, with little tables situated on the backside of the building, happily overlooking Norwalk harbor. A few stems of garden, summery flowers grace each table. The lines will be long on certain days or times, but stick with it, as the sandwiches are completely worth it. And yes, all they do is sandwiches.

The breakfast sammies are named after brands of boats and lunch sammies are named for various Norwalk islands, which makes perfect sense as The Galley is tucked somewhat quietly in the Norwalk marina, right by all those islands. You’ll drive right on by if you aren’t paying attention or know which building to stop at. Calf Pasture Beach is a smidge *that way* and the harbor is a smidge “this way*. Back to those sandwiches! For starters, these guys are generous with their portions. Your belly will be filled as you venture to spend the day at the beach or out on your boat. The creations are two-handers and some concentration is needed, because they are chock-full of fresh ingredients, stacked and smashed like a culinary jenga. Did I mention each one is completely made to order? The Hatteras, for example, starts with a perfectly toasted jumbo English Muffin (should they be anything but jumbo, honestly), stacked with bacon, scrambled eggs, cheddar cheese, potato hash…and a drizzle of Mike’s Hot Honey, which takes it from so good to so great. The Grady-White, a delicious creation for the vegetarians in your brunch bunch, is a whole wheat wrap filled with fluffy egg whites, crumbled feta cheese, vibrant roasted peppers and a heaping pile of sautéed spinach. Nothing flimsy about this veggie wrap.

For lunch, pivoting to those islands, a few standouts are The Ziegler, which is brimming with sautéed veggies (peppers, onions, broccoli, zucchini, Brussels sprouts), a teriyaki glaze, and shaved carrots on a crunchy, chewy baguette. This is not your usual let’s-use-the-leftover-veggies sandwich, these flavors are deliberate and well combined. The Little Tavern is a spin on the classic Caprese salad of mozzarella, tomato and fresh basil but with the addition of nut-free pesto and a slather of sweet sundried tomato spread and balsamic glaze. Is your mouth watering yet? The Grassy is for those wanting something green, green, green and it’s definitely greener over here with herbed goat cheese, cucumber, avocado, a heaping pile of fresh sprouts, Bibb lettuce, all on  multi-grain bread, which honestly was a bit architecturally compromised as these ingredients were so generously crowded together. That bread had to work to contain the goodness.

As with all the sandwiches, you can specify your preference of bread, most of which are sourced from Norwalk’s Wave Hill Breads: sourdough, multi-grain, panini rolls, gluten-free breads, wraps and more. There are sides to add on as well, such as the fries that I refused to give to any gull because they were perfectly crunchy and potato-y, flavorful homemade potato hash, which has well-seasoned flavors and a perfect ratio of potatoes to onions and peppers, zesty Jalepeno jam, tomato jam, sun-dried tomato spread and others to doll up your already delightful choices. 

One last item worth noting: on certain days there will be a Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake beckoning to you from that takeout window. As this is a Norwalk family-run business, this is their family fave coffee cake. One bite and you’ll be reminded of those Hostess Crumb cakes in the little cellophane wrappers, but this is the real McCoy. 

The Galley Waterfront Cafe, Norwalk
www.norwalkcove.com