It’s been a year since Max Hospitality officially took over the bar at Hartford’s Goodwin Hotel, but after a two-month renovation period in the fall, Bar Max now boasts a fresh look with a brand-new menu.
The Hartford-based restaurant group, with multiple eateries throughout Hartford County and western Massachusetts, expanded its territory in the capital city by partnering with the Goodwin Hotel in early 2024. Restaurateur Tyler Anderson, who had previously operated Terreno Restaurant and Bar Piña in the space, closed his concepts there as he moved on to new projects, including a culinary director role at Ore Hill & Swyft in Kent.
It was a natural fit, as the boutique hotel is right next door to its flagship Max Downtown, said Steven Abrams, Max Hospitality’s vice president, who is a partner in Max Downtown and the group’s other city restaurant, Max’s Trumbull Kitchen. But the owners decided not to launch another restaurant out of the Terreno space.
The former ON20 Restaurant, known for its soaring views of the Connecticut River and other area landmarks, has been fully renovated and reimagined, with even more stunning panoramic vistas of the capital city. The industrial-chic interior has an expansive bar, an open kitchen with gleaming stainless-steel appliances, private dining spaces and jaw-dropping glimpses of the sky from nearly every vantage point.
ON20, a celebrated white tablecloth establishment for many years, closed during the uncertainty of the pandemic in 2020, but two years ago, Hartford Steam Boiler’s leadership began reaching out to key people to start conversations about reopening the restaurant.
Fire by Forge is a Pan-American inspired restaurant that opened in spring of 2023 and has been receiving accolades ever since. Flavors, ingredients, cooking techniques, and even the wines and spirits are drawn from across the Americas, with a strong lean toward what is local, sustainable, and fresh.
Forge City Works serves the community but also provides hands-on job training in customer service, hospitality, and culinary arts for people who have barriers to employment.
Get those stretchy pants out of the deep, dark depths of your closet…don’t worry, we all have a pair! Once a year, these pants are necessary, as holiday excitement overtakes the part of the brain that tells us we’re full. We fight that voice that tells us to stop, that third and even fourth helpings of mashed potatoes and red wine aren’t going to help us cope with that obnoxious uncle your mom sat you next to out of spite. You know what will help? Pie and pie only. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, as you can eat as much as you want without being judged, though they’ll still try. But keep your head held high, as this year you can brag about the wonderful pies you’ve spent hours upon hours picking out. You even preheated the oven and scooped out perfect balls of vanilla ice cream. So don’t let anyone tell you that you did nothing, because ice cream is not easy to scoop.
All throughout Connecticut you can find plenty of delicious pie options, whether you want your pies fruity, custardy, creamy, or gluten free. As they say, Thanksgiving is a time to be thankful, and while we celebrate our family, friends, furbabies, and crazy uncles we’ve never met, it is important to recognize the true Thanksgiving savior: pie. Lucky for you, this guide is organized by county, so scroll down to find yours! Gobble, gobble.
Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and restaurants across Connecticut are preparing countless turkeys and pumpkin pies to serve you and your family. Whether you’re preparing a meal at home or you’ve decided to visit your favorite local restaurant, there are tons of businesses that are hard at work to make sure your Thanksgiving is the most memorable one yet.
From roasting a whole turkey yourself to heat-and-serve meals to a fully-plated multi-course meal served at the table, you can find your level of Thanksgiving exertion among the restaurants in this roundup. Time is running out, so don’t delay – order your Thanksgiving dinner or book your reservations today!
For your convenience, the guide is organized by county – simply find yours to see what local options are available! We have also made note of which locations are providing Vegan options this year. And, finally, if you want to pick up a fresh turkey to cook at home, there is a section devoted entirely to Connecticut farms at the bottom of the guide.
In various rankings online, stuffing generally comes in first place on the Top 10 list of Thanksgiving foods. I personally cannot argue with that for one hot second. Desserts such as pumpkin or chocolate pie have hovered around 5th or 6th place, respectively, wistfully lagging behind mac and cheese and mashed potatoes but ahead of the love-it-or-hate it green bean casserole.
There is no better time to aim high for superior freshness and quality in our food than when we’re playing hostess to friends and family at Thanksgiving. All eyes are sure to be on the turkey so now is the perfect time to check that most important food purchase off our to do list & SHOP LOCAL!!
We don’t have to explain how big of a deal Thanksgiving dinner is. Arguably, it is one of the most highly anticipated meals of the year – not just for the turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and pie, but for the time spent with loved ones.
Some years, you want to go all out and embrace your inner Martha Stewart. There are businesses in Connecticut ready to supply you with the highest quality fresh turkey. Other years, you want to kick back and let someone else do the cooking. There are countless restaurants and catering companies across the state ready to take your order for a fully prepared meal. Or, maybe, you want to switch things up and take the family gathering on the road – as you might imagine, there are tons of excellent Connecticut restaurants open on Thanksgiving with special menus just for the holiday.
For your convenience, the guide is organized by county – simply find yours to see what local options are available! We have also made note of which locations are providing Vegan options this year. And, finally, if you want to pick up a fresh turkey to cook at home, there is a section devoted entirely to Connecticut farms at the bottom of the guide. The time is now to make your Thanksgiving dinner plans, and either place your orders for a catered meal or book those reservations at your favorite restaurant!
Parkville Market, a hub of international cuisine, has graced Hartford with four new vendors. Taiwan Night Market, the Taste of Portugal and KOJI2GO have opened, and we hear that Flor do Mar has launched since we visited with a completely gluten free menu, each adding new, exciting, flavorful dishes to an already highly tasty market.
Parkville opened during the height of the pandemic in May of 2020, starting with only five vendors, all take-out. Now, three years later, the market is vibrant.
“Now being at 21 vendors we’ve really rounded out the different, uniqueness to the food that we offer,” Matt Sousa, Vice President of Operations at Parkville said. “If we’re lacking something then we go out and try to find whatever it is.”
The Hartford Yard Goats baseball season begins Thursday, April 6, 2023, with the first pitch against the Bowie Baysox scheduled for 7:10 p.m., but all who partake in the experience at Dunkin’ Park – as the stadium has been recently renamed – know that watching the game is just one element of the overall experience.
For West Hartford residents and others from throughout the area who enjoy the Yard Goats, a night at the Dunk includes a chance to sample some unique and perhaps not-all-that-healthy food items. And while this year’s menu of offerings is a bit less “extreme” than it has been in other years, there are many delicious must-try items.
“It’s definitely one of the more exciting years for food here at Dunkin’ Park,”
said Yard Goats President Tim Restall, who has a food and beverage background and looks forward to the annual reveal of the menu created by chef Joe Bartlett and his team.
“We’ve kind of drawn away from the crazy, crazy foods,” Bartlett said a sneak peek showcase event for reporters Monday. “We wanted to draw back to the ‘classic ballpark.'”
Chef Tyler Anderson and Hands On Hartford have launched a remarkable new restaurant concept just in time to dine out and give back this holiday season. Gather55 restaurant opened this Fall in Hartford with a monthly rotation of guest chefs who will serve up a “by-reservation-only” $42 prix fixe menu. Chef Tyler Anderson, who is handling the Chef programming kicked things off, followed by Chef Billy Grant of Restaurant Bricco in December, and then Emily Mingrone of Tavern on State in January. Each evening, approximately 20% of the tables are reserved for diners who can’t pay the full price. The goal is to create a place where everyone can celebrate and enjoy a delicious meal in a comfortable and caring environment.
If you can cut through the increasing daily frenzy, it really is a glorious time of the year, isn’t it? And we should all make the effort to not get swept up in the busyness, because what is at our doorstep is a season of gathering with family and friends, enjoying meals and celebratory occasions together. We’ve come a long way, baby, and it’s time to celebrate everything that we hold dear, rejoice in it, savor it. And us-being-us (CTbites), we are offering suggestions now to help put your happy over the top. Sharing a meal is, indeed, a special thing with the people you love most and we want you to love this part something fierce. Forks up and Happiest Thanksgiving wishes!
It might be hard to believe with such an unseasonably warm start to November, but Thanksgiving is right around the corner! And that can only mean one thing: it’s pie time. Once again this year, there are dozens of restaurants, markets, farms, and other businesses across the state offering a variety of pies to preorder and have ready to add to your holiday table. Whether you are keeping things simple with a traditional pumpkin or apple pie to compliment your turkey dinner, or you want to mix things up with unique flavors and ingredients, there are desserts on this list for just about every palate. Happy Thanksgiving!
Currently celebrating its 10th anniversary, Cora Cora Peruvian Restaurant and the Ludena family that own it, are finally getting the recognition they deserve. All of their hard work and dedication to serving traditional, authentic Peruvian food handed down through family recipes has helped not only them, but Connecticut also, gain recognition on the national food scene with not one, but two nominations by the James Beard Foundation. First for Outstanding Restaurant, and second for Best Chef: Northeast.
What’s for day-after-Thanksgiving breakfast? Chef Matt Storch of Match Restaurant & Match Burger Lobster has a great idea for all those leftovers. Bust out the waffle maker, that last slice of pecan pie people were simply too full to consume last night, and some tasty turkey bits for breakie.
Enjoy Chef Storch’s Day After Thanksgiving Turkey & Waffles. You’re welcome.
Shaken and Stirred Catered Events is turning up the heat this holiday season. From Thanksgiving meals and holiday parties to wedding receptions and corporate events, the team at Shaken and Stirred will deliver nothing but class, expertise, and delicious food to you and your guests.
Being a chef-led service, Shaken and Stirred can provide handcrafted, custom menus for every event. As the holiday season approaches, it’s time to begin planning dinners and parties for your family, friends, and coworkers...
There are cake people and there are pie people, but when it comes to holidays, Thanksgiving is all about the pie. Fruity, custardy, creamy, double-crust, single crust, crumb and lattice topped, chocolatey, piled high with swoops of light-as-air meringue, fluff-filled chiffon, even savory; there is a pie for every palate around your holiday table. A slice of this, a slice of that, they are hard to resist. We won’t even go into the fact that pie for breakfast the day after a holiday quite possibly takes, well, the cake. Whether you are a traditionalist or a try-new-things-ist at your holiday table, we have the pie for you. Or at least, these delightful vendors do. Happy Thanksgiving and forks up, people!
Bring on the good food, the gratitude, and the tablecloth you use once a year-Thanksgiving is here! This holiday, thankfully, will be more about in-person celebrating than seeing how many Zoom family chats we can schedule between the appetizer course and the dessert course. Man, doesn’t it feel good to greet a holiday with thoughts of “looking forward to this!” rather than “how the heck are we going to do this?”. To that end, one of your biggest challenges this month will be which of these wonderful establishments to order your food from and you will win no matter who you choose. From turkeys and pies you can bake yourself so they are bubbly warm when you serve them, to vegan and gluten-free options and dine-in options across the state, bellies will be full and happy. You can even send a meal to a loved one or donate one to spread the love. Oh, and make sure to scroll all the way to the bottom of the list, where you will find places to order fresh turkeys. Eat up, celebrate well. Psst-We’d be remiss if we didn’t tell you that we are grateful for our fabulous readers. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
You might hear the name The Rockin Chicken (TRC) and think it’s yet another really good chicken-themed joint, like West Hartford’s Chicken Citizen & Donuts, Wethersfield’s El Pollo Guapo, Newington’s Rooster Co. or the Elm City’s Hot Haven Chicken. But you’ll see it’s actually so much more. Since TRC opened in June, 2016 on Franklin Avenue in Hartford, it has been my go-to for Peruvian food, long one of my favorite cuisines.
TRC is owned by Dr. Miguel A. Colán and his wife, Kate. The genial couple doesn’t just own the business but the building as well. For Miguel, a Hartford chiropractor, it was an almost-weekly family tradition growing up in Lima to visit pollerias a la brasa, popular local restaurants specializing in charcoal rotisserie chicken. TRC grew out of his desire to recreate that dining experience for Hartford-area restaurant-goers.
Many of us have sharpened our kitchen chops this last nutty year as we’ve spent more time at the stove than ever before. But it is time to give yourself a break while supporting local restaurants. It’s a tasty win win. Here are some Connecticut places that will dazzle you with a tremendous Thanksgiving spread either for takeout of eat in. So families, put the knives down, let yourselves be served, but sharpen those debate skills. Afterall, the Thanksgiving table tends to be a place where families air it all out or bring deep seated secrets to life? Okay, okay, or just go around the table and say what they are thankful for. Right, let’s go with that one.
Here are 50+ CT Spots for Thanksgiving Dining To Go!
