After falling in love with the Hudson Valley—CTbites writer/professor Kristin L. Wolfe wants to take what CTbites has done for the culinary world of CT and apply it to her new home. With countless farms, orchards, markets, restaurants, distilleries, breweries, bakeries, and confectioners Wolfe hopes HudVbites replicates the bold cheerleading support ctbites has had for its community. From areas like Beacon and New Paltz, to Kingston and Rhinebeck, to Hudson, Woodstock, and so many more, the Hudson Valley has no shortage of historic spots and brand new locations to explore. HudVbites hopes to bring readers and foodies the inside stories on chefs and their inspirations; details on craft and technique; info on grand openings and collaborations, and much much more. Like, Follow, and Please Stay Tuned.
They say life’s too short to settle for bad food — and for the past few years, Connecticut has been making a name for itself as one of the country’s most significant food hubs. With dozens of new restaurants opening every year, Connecticut is quickly becoming a destination for food lovers everywhere.
If you’re anything like us, you’re always looking for new and exciting things to eat. And while a diet of boxed mac and cheese and reheated pizza for dinners might satisfy your basic human needs, it doesn’t inspire the appetite. Fortunately, exploring new foods is one of the great joys of living in the 21st century.
Thanks to the internet and digital marketing, foodies worldwide can now explore local cuisines at the tip of their fingers — and CTBites is here to help you get started.
There are some ingredients in this world that, when you add them to anything, they pretty much make it spectacular. Bacon, for example. It would probably make a sneaker taste good. “Air” is another ingredient. Air-a bizarre ingredient on an episode of Chopped? No. Air, as in fresh air. Eating outside. Have you noticed that when you eat a lobster roll outside on a deck overlooking the ocean, it makes you happy? Or eat a grilled burger at a picnic table on a warm summer evening? Or sip a frothy cappuccino at a sidewalk cafe? What is the common ingredient here? Fresh air. Good food combined with a hefty dose of the outdoors.
And lucky for you, we’ve put together a long list of our favorite eateries (40+) that have lovely outdoor dining spaces.
If we missed an outdoor venue you frequent, please share your find below.
As food writers, photographers, and chefs, we have the pleasure of eating a lot of really great food. Fairfield County has experienced something of a restaurant explosion over the past year, as new chefs move in and move on, and menus expand. We've endeavored to expand our coverage beyond those borders, seeking to cover more of the state and sharing those experiences that are worth seeking out. Instead of coming up with a top ten list ourselves, we asked the CTbites extended family to share some of their most memorable meals and dining experiences this past year.
"My Signature Dish" is a new CTbites column featuring a rotating cast of chefs, and the dishes that define their cooking style, or simply make them happy to fire up the stove.
Jodi Bernhard hardly hesitated when choosing her signature dish at Fortina, Christian Petroni’s "casually hip" Italian restaurant in Armonk. Her eyes gleaming, she said, "It's our Pork Braciole." Braciole, hip?
If you grew up Italian, you probably hold memories of Braciole near and dear. This classic rolled, stuffed meat roast, usually serves as centerpiece for those sprawling homemade Italian dinners that lazily linger across Sunday afternoons into evening. Braciole invokes home. And family. Instant Nostalgia.
Ok, so how does a chef modernize a memory? Autograph a treasured family photo?
“That is the gist of our approach at Fortina,” Jodi explained. “ We try to not stray too far from ‘mom's’ version, but still make it a restaurant dish with our stamp on it. We are true to simplicity and flavor.”
The notion of putting “Mom’s dish” on Fortina’s playful, hip menu was Christian’s, one of the restaurant’s owners. (Patroni and and Jodi once cooked together at Barcelona in nearby Greenwich.) Though she and Christian work as collaborators, the task of “restaurantizing” this homey meal was largely up to Bernhard.
Cooking with wood fire has a preternatural, almost primal appeal. You could argue that as cavemen, it was our first foray into comfort food. The intense heat and smoke has the power to transform otherwise unassuming ingredients. The six-month old Fortina in Armonk, begins with this deceptively simple ethos–Italian food, cooked simply, in wood fired ovens–and elevates it with a thoughtful culinary execution and a familiar, if familial, disarming vibe.
“There is a complexity to the simplicity,” said Rob Krauss, one of Fortina’s three partners along with John Nealon and Christian Petroni, nailing what makes the restaurant’s cuisine tick. I’m fairly certain Krauss is also referring to the restaurant’s team, an extended family of sorts that works equally hard at the food as they do cultivating the culture at Fortina
More than the sum of its wood-fired parts, Fortina relies on the culinary prowess and Italian heritage of partner and Executive Chef Christian Petroni, formerly of Barcelona Greenwich, as both muse and ringleader. “My background is Italian, I grew up spending summers in Ponza. One of my favorite restaurants is Peasant. As a young cook, Frank de Carlo was an inspiration as a chef. I was intrigued by cooking in wood ovens. There is something about it that is so gratifying. It’s a beautiful thing.” Along with chef de cuisine Jodi Bernhard, formerly of Barcelona, the kitchen has the creative chops responsible for its daily printed menu.
Fairfield county residents will be soon crossing the border (passports not required)-- into Upper Westchester County's suburb of Armonk, after this week's opening of Fortina. Chef Christian Petroni, recently Executive Chef of Greenwich's Barcelona Restaurant, is joined by John Nealon, ex-GM of the same provenance and Nealon's childhood friend, Rob Krauss as business partners. Both Nealon and Krauss originally hail from Westport. Petroni, a local himself, is also co-owner of Cooked & Co., in Scarsdale.
Recalling the many memorable meals he had eaten during his time spent in Italy, Petroni's vision was to bring Italy's simple authentic flavors, cooking methods and presentation to the dishes he serves at Fortina. This vision is executed with the help of 2 wood burning ovens imported straight from Naples, Italy which serve as a focal point in the main dining room. In fact with the exception of just a few menu items, everything is cooked in these fiery hearths...even a pasta dish or two! (And you should hear Petroni when he speaks of his ovens...like a proud new Papa )
With the snow piled so high in front on the Post Road, it could have been easy to miss Tabouli Grill in Southport… but I was determined to join a spirited group for CTbites Invites Passover Cooking, so maneuvered my way around to the side parking lot and entrance.
Chef/owner Judith Roll greeted everyone with hot coffee and her spongy homemade lemon cake as we were handed recipes for the morning's “hands on” cooking class in the Tabouli kitchen. (See Chef Judy's recipe for Bubbe's Brisket below.)
Chef Judy, who has traveled the world bringing authentic Middle Eastern cuisine to her two restaurants, in Stamford and in Southport, is passionate about what she prepares and had created a wonderful Passover menu for our entertainment and dining pleasure ( Passover is March 25-April 2 ).