Filtering by Tag: Redding,Gastropub

Stamford's Hop & Vine Taproom Wrote Connecticut's Self-Pour Bill

Features Interview Restaurant Stamford beer Craft Beer Homepage self pour Interview Gastropub

Andrew Dominick

Sakarin Seedasome recalls a memory from 2017 when he was in San Diego. He walks in after work, wanting a beer, when he wondered, “Wait. What is this place?” “I love craft beer,” he says. “I think they had 20 or so taps, wine as well. I was confused at first, wondering if I had to buy a full 16 ounces of each one, but no, you pay per ounce. I was like, ‘Oh my god. I can try all of these.’ I stayed there all night.” Now one of the owners of Hop & Vine Taproom, which opened in Downtown Stamford in early January 2024, Seedasome and his partners Matthew Ventura and Connor Rasmussen, wanted to get it open much, much sooner. The problem? They couldn’t because it wasn’t legally possible.


Head to Milestone for Your Next Burger + Mystic Opening News!

Features Interview Restaurant Burgers Redding Homepage cocktails Interview Mystic

Andrew Dominick

When CTbites last covered Milestone for their 2019 opening, we gave you an introduction to the Redding restaurant’s owners, Peter and Andi Fine, plus a rundown of their wood-fired pizzas and their “comfort food with a twist” approach.

In the comments on that very article, “Jake” hit us with this statement:

“Don’t short change the burger!!! It’s the best!”


Little Barn To Open Second Location in Shelton

Features Shelton Openings American Gastropub Family Friendly

CTbites Team

Guess what! The uber family-friendly, American pub, Little Barn, is opening a second location in Shelton CT.

The first Little Barn opened in Westport 8 years ago serving us casual pub fare, with their new American menu. Given the success of the Westport location, the owners decided to expand. They chose Shelton for the second location as it is a town with dynamic growth and development and they wanted Little Barn to be a part of Shelton’s future.

Little Barn’s comfort food menu varies from burgers and tacos to healthy salads and Buddha bowls. They also feature many craft beers and signature cocktails, and bar is ALWAYS hopping. We have enjoyed Little Barn’s commitment to supporting local bands and have spent many a fun night listening to live music at the “barn.”

The Shelton location, which will have a large outdoor patio, will be open mid-summer 2021 and will have live music on the weekends.


Chef Emily Mingrone Opens Tavern on State in New Haven: A Delicious Take on Traditional Tavern Fare

Restaurant New Haven Gastropub Bar Cocktails Comfort Food Tavern Homepage

Jessica Ryan

Tavern on State, owned by Chef Emily Mingrone, is the latest to join the dozens of exceptional restaurants in the New Haven area. I was fortunate to check out the new digs, sit down with Emily, and sample some of the exciting items on the menu.

The restaurant boasts a tavern vibe, but perhaps more in appearance than what’s on the plate. Rich, warm woods welcome you inside a space that seats about 45 (with an additional 45 outdoors) but this is where your notion of tavern starts and ends.

Traditional tavern fare might include burgers and fries, nachos and the like, but a menu that features a blue cheese & truffle burger with thick bacon & red onion on English muffin, Spicy crispy chicken skins & chicharrones, Fried cheese curds with smoked tomato dip, or chilled oysters with yuzu kosho & cucumber, is anything but traditional. 

The menu here is as eclectic as it is sophisticated; it raises high the burger bar. It is tavern fare reimagined, and certainly for the more discerning palate that can see beyond a standard plate of fish and chips, jalapeño poppers, calamari, and pepperoni pizza. I have had plenty of tavern fare in my day, and tavern fare doesn’t look or taste like this.


Milestone Restaurant Opens in Georgetown with Menu That Covers All The Favorites

Restaurant Redding Georgetown Openings pizza Comfort Food Homepage Pizza

Jessica Ryan

Milestone Restaurant is redefining the idea of a neighborhood gathering spot offering made from scratch, simply prepared food with bold flavors and classic cocktails that are served up in a stylish yet understated setting. Drawing inspiration from the unique character of the area (the restaurant is on the site of a former lumber yard) owners Peter and Andi Fine aspire to do more than serve great food. The restaurant has been designed to be not only a welcoming gathering spot, but also to showcase fun and unique food events. (Stay tuned and we’ll keep you posted!)


Brick Walk Tavern Opens in Fairfield, from Char Restaurant's Chef Snyder

Restaurant Openings Fairfield American Gastropub Lunch Bar

CTbites Team

Friends since college and now partners, Chef David Snyder and former financial exec turned restaurateur Ted Vincent, introduce their first joint venture in the form of Brick Walk Tavern, a stylish and food-centric restaurant and gathering place located in the burgeoning Brick Walk neighborhood of Fairfield, Connecticut.

Menu highlights include; not your average house-made chips and onion dip; chili garlic crispy shrimp laced with radish, cilantro, and green onion; Tuscan kale and Brussels sprout salad tossed with polenta croutons, dried cranberries, and lemon truffle vinaigrette; the French onion burger topped with 4-hour braised onions, veal jus, and gruyere cheese on a house made bun; pan-roasted cod over white beans, chorizo, charred tomato, and a roasted poblano broth; classic jambalaya  of creole rice with tasso and andouille, jumbo shrimp and chicken; and steak frites, 10 oz hanger steak with a 72 hour red wine sauce, served with crispy truffle parmesan fries.


The Tavern at GrayBarns Opens in Norwalk- Silvermine Tavern Magically Reimagined

Restaurant New Canaan Norwalk American Lunch Farm to Table Gastropub Breakfast Brunch Homepage

Lou Gorfain

“It’s a 21st Century iteration of a 19th Century Inn,” Robert promised. So, before the six of us scattered to warmer climes for the winter, we chose the newly opened Tavern at GrayBarns for our farewell dinner. 

After a pre-prandial toast, our party was served an un-presupposing bread and butter plate. Standard fare? Hardly. Executive Chef Ben Freemole had us at first bite.

That homespun bread perfectly captures the ethos of Andy Glazer’s sweeping reconstruction and fortification of the legendary Silvermine Tavern and Inn, its footprint reduced by almost a third. In this new “Haven of Refuge,” both décor and dining dazzle, no detail taken for granted, not even a humble bread and butter starter.


Pub Fare Extraordinaire at Inishmor Pub in Colchester

Restaurant Colchester Pub Gastropub Lunch Bar Comfort Food Homepage Burgers

Hope Simmons

Meet Alex Levere—his roots may be French and German, but the luck of the Irish is clearly smiling upon him. He grew up in the restaurant industry on the shoreline, spent some time in Europe—specifically, you guessed it, in Ireland—in his early 20s, then Boston during his college years and beyond.

“Long story short, the economy crashed, I graduated, and there was nothing really going on, so I was bartending at a place, and they offered me an assistant management job. So, I took that, then I went to manager. Then I went to general manager and, right before the place was sinking, the head chef quit, so I took over the kitchen. I was like, I know I can do this, and I did it, but it was too little, too late. And that’s when we came across this place!” Now he’s turning out some truly inventive flavors at the Inishmor Pub in Colchester.


Great BBQ Restaurants In CT: A Summer Wish List

Restaurant BBQ Ridgefield Redding Hartford Windsor Bridgeport Branford Comfort Food Homepage

CTbites Team

The summertime heat makes me crave a meaty backyard barbecue with crunchy roasted corn on the side and finished off with a sweet slice of juicy watermelon. But where can you get a meal like this if you don’t feel like cooking at home? Mix summertime with the great eats in Connecticut, and you get a barbecue wish list extraordinaire with several spots ranking high on CTbites’ favorites list and others that we really need to try.


Viceroy Publik House Opening in Stamford: British & Indian Pub Fare + Live Music

Restaurant Stamford Indian Pub Bar Lunch Gastropub Openings

CTbites Team

Taking a page from history, from what is now referred to as the “British Raj”, the British rule over the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947, Viceroy Publik House pays homage to this now proud British and Indian cultural connect, offering a high energy English pub setting featuring London curry, pakoras and pints, and an edgy live music venue which is just as diverse as its menu. Located in Downtown Stamford, CT, Viceroy Publik House brings together these two cultures, rich in history and with a strong food and drink identity found in pubs throughout London. Viceroy will be opening in April of 2017. 


Rothbard Ale + Larder: Westport's European Gastropub

Restaurant Beer Gastropub German Westport Comfort Food

Jeff "jfood" Schlesinger

Rothbard Ale + Larder opened in Westport last November, the second restaurant by Chef Adam Roytman and his business partner, Joseph Farrell. The pair also own Walrus + Carpenter in Bridgeport. Roytman and Farrell’s original idea was to recreate a German beer hall, but as the concept of the restaurant progressed, the vision was slightly modified to design a restaurant that would offer comfort food based on the regional cuisines of central Europe including Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Alsace, Switzerland, with an occasional side trip to Italy.

Access to Rothbard is a throwback to a 1920's speakeasy, with its unassuming side entrance leading to the lower level. Once inside, you are surrounded by a central European ambience, with its reclaimed wood and brick walls and cement and metal beams protruding from the ceiling. To the left of the entrance is a bar with several high-tables plus nine stools in front of antler-topped beer taps, plus a refrigerator that houses up to 45 traditional and unique European beers including Einbecker, Tripel Karmeliet, Del Ducato, Christian Drouin and Abbaye. Wine, aperitifs, an array of Schnapps and Absinthe are also available. With low-lighting illuminating the entire space, the atmosphere is very European gastro-pubbish.

 


First Look: Rothbard Ale + Larder European Gastropub Opens in Westport

Restaurant Beer Gastropub German Westport Comfort Food

Stephanie Webster

Rothbard Ale + Larder European Gastropub quietly opened its doors last week in downtown Westport. The menu focuses on central European fare with dishes drawing inspiration from the cuisines of Alsace, Germany, Belgium and Switzerland. The beer and wine list mirror this sentiment, and a beautiful interior renovation transports diners to a cozy chalet in the depths of the Bavarian Alps. Chef Adam Roytman's commitment to both the cuisine and "larder" concept are tangible in every detail of this new speakeasy-esque venture with longtime partner Joseph Farrell (Walrus + Carpenter).  From the crispy schnitzel and rich hearty bratwurst (house-made) to the authentic absinthe fountain and German beer steins, Rothbard Ale + Larder is the real deal. 

Uncle Leo's Not Just Coffee & Donuts in Redding

Restaurant Doughnuts Redding Breakfast Kid Friendly Dessert

Amy Kundrat

A top secret doughnut recipe, a father and son business, and a dozen or so different types of doughnuts and New York-style bagels mean that mornings in Georgetown just got that much better, thanks to the arrival of Uncle Leo’s “Not Just” Coffee and Doughnuts.

Norwalk residents Leo Spinelli III (age 22) and his father Leo Spinelli, Jr., recently opened Uncle Leo's in the heart of Georgetown, at 19 Main Street, in the former Swirl Ice Cream location. The shop is a second coming for the father and son and the familiar Spinelli surname, who previously owned Spinelli’s Not Just Bagels in Norwalk that closed in 2009.


The NEW Redding Roadhouse in Redding: Where Wirt Cooks

Restaurant Chef Talk Redding Comfort Food Kid Friendly

Elizabeth Keyser

Wirt Cook isn’t interested in stardom.  Sure, he was Alex Guarnaschelli’s sous-chef on this season’s Iron Chef America, but he did that just to help his former boss. What Cook loves to do is cook in the kitchen at the Redding Roadhouse.

He and his wife Karen, sister Colleen and her husband Ted Stonebly had just bought the Roadhouse last July when Guarnaschelli reached the last round of the Next Iron Chef competition. She chose two sous chefs for the final battle.  Cook was joined by Ashley Merriman, who also had cheffed at Guarnaschelli’s restaurants Butter and The Darby in New York City.  

Cook says the team was shocked when they won.  In the stress of creating more than five courses, each using the secret ingredient, within the one-hour limit, they’d made mistakes. They thought they hadn’t had such a great day. But Guarnaschelli won. She was the Next Iron Chef.  And Cook suddenly had an extra job he didn’t have time for.


Redding Roadhouse: New Olde School

Restaurant Redding Beer Comfort Food

Lou Gorfain

Redding Roadhouse is hardly a trendy gastro pub. It’s literally Ye Olde School. 

For over three hundred years, there has been a Watering Hole serving up grub and grog to weary travelers at the junctures of Redding and Georgetown Roads in Northwest Fairfield County.   Mark Twain was a regular.  As were MidCentury Mad Men (Is that Dan Draper romancing a client by the fireplace?). 

Indeed, the Roadhouse still offers respite to travelers, though most aren’t just passing by.  Since co-owners Michael and Donna Roberts and Lou Macol gave the place a 21st Century culinary makeover, it’s become destination dining for thousands, from CEO’s to carpenters (Is that Mick Jagger chatting with a fireman at the bar?).  In fact 70 percent of RRH patrons hail from Fairfield’s Gold Coast, not to mention Boston and New York.


Kids Reviews: The Lumberyard

Kids Bites Restaurant Redding Lunch Kid Friendly

CTbites Team

Carly is a 10 year old from Redding, CT with a passion for eating & writing.  She has joined the team as our youngest reviewer and she hopes she will inspire kids to be a little more adventurous in their FC restaurant choices.  She has developed a restaurant rating scale of 1-5 pickles, 5 being the best. This is her first review. 

The Lumberyard

Are you craving some juicy meat and some fun?  Drive down to The Lumberyard in Georgetown, CT.  The huge menu sounded delicious. I had to look it over twice. The kid’s menu was the usual cheeseburger, grilled cheese, hot dogs and chicken tenders, so I decided to choose something off their regular menu. 


The Olive Market: Georgetown's Eclectic Treasure

Restaurant Italian Pizza Redding Specialty Market Breakfast Lunch Kid Friendly Latin American

CTbites Team

Upon entering The Olive Market in Redding, you can’t help but be surprised by the unique setting.  Envision Pottery Barn mixed in with a little Williams Sonoma, add a dash of Murray’s Cheese Shop…well, you get the picture.  The Olive Market's menu, under Chef Fernando, displays a similarly intriguing fusion of foods with influences from Uruguay, Portugal, Italy, and Spain. Here you will find everything from empanadas, tapas and fondue, to paninis and pizzas. They also sell cheeses and olives by the pound and have a very browse-worthy home goods store attached to the café. The store stays open until the restaurant closes so there’s plenty of time to check out the goods while waiting for your food to arrive.  

Dining tables are nestled amongst shelves lined with a beautiful array of gourmet food items like olive oils, flavored salts, fondue pots, and cooking tools. I even found O & Co. White Truffle Oil which I thought I could only purchase in Grand Central.  Terrazzo tiles, dark blue ceilings and vibrantly colored paintings add to the eclectic, warm atmosphere.