On September 19th Bartenders from across the state of Connecticut are invited to show off their creativity, craft and passion by participating in SoNo 1420’s BLAZE BARTENDER COMPETITION.
“We are looking for our next Great BLAZE WHISKY cocktail and would love to see you showcase your skills with our Cinnamon Flavored Whisky that has won Double Gold and Best in Class Finalist 2022 at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.”
BARTENDERS: Register here at BLAZEWHISKY.COM/COMPETITON by 9/12 to receive a complimentary 200 ml flask of Blaze along with other BLAZE Swag.
GUESTS: Swing by any of the locations below and cheer your favorite bartender on, and sample some great new cocktails.
The competition will take place on September 19th from 6-9 pm at the following locations:
Chef Emily Mingrone of Tavern on State in New Haven will get involved in some competitive “Pork-y fun” on Food Network’s CHOPPED, May 26th, 9PM. The battle: High On The Hog.
Tune in to watch the competition. Chefs are elated to get a “nose to tail” pork theme for their battle, and the gorgeous cuts of premium meat in the first basket don't disappoint. A Bloody Mary with a special surprise adds to the porky fun in the second round. Then something fizzy and something "offal-ly" difficult to incorporate in a dessert are part of the final challenge.
Want a front seat at the most fun Taco Tuesday competition event in CT? Taco Daddy is giving away $5k to the prize time winner of 3 elimination rounds in their Royal Rumble competition, the first of which is going down on February 11th. Oh, guess what….I’m going to be judging, so bring your A game people.
This Taco Tuesday event series will feature some talented chefs (we’ll let you know who later), and home cooks. There are two ways to get involved in this event.
1. Watch & Eat. Tickets are $100 per person, can be purchased here. Guests will be served food and unlimited drinks with their purchase of a ticket!
2. Compete! Do you think you have what it takes to be a part of this competition? The Taco Daddy team is looking for foodies, home cooks, and even professional chefs from all walks of life to compete for a grand prize of $5,000! To nominate yourself or someone you know, click here –@TacoDaddyStamford – comment on the post and include why you think the nominee would do well. More info here.
In partnership with Eli's Restaurant Group, CT’s Chef Plum will host and produce a new show. "Elite Chef" will launch in early 2020 as a seven-episode web series, featuring innovative and up-and-coming epicurean talent in Connecticut (with yours truly on the judging team).
“I am a huge advocate of CT chefs, and I'm thrilled to be a part of this amazing project,” says Chef Plum. “Having a platform for our local talent to shine has been a massive goal of mine for many years. Huge shout out to the amazing people at Eli's for making this happen! I cannot wait for everyone to see what we can do.”
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 )
