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My Favorite Dish: Kawa Ni’s Chicken Katsu Parm w/Kimchi Vodka Sauce

Ingredients Interview Restaurant My Favorite Dish Chicken Parm Westport Kawa Ni Ingredients Italian Asian Fusion Homepage

Andrew Dominick

When Kawa Ni messes around with fusion, they don’t miss. Over three years ago, at one of the friends and family previews of Kawa Ni’s expansion into the space next door, I remember asking chef-owner Bill Taibe which newish dishes I should try in addition to my usual pork + garlic ramen, karaage don, spicy lamb dan dan, and pork Szechuan dumplings. His reply: “I gotta tell ya, one of my favorites, and a sleeper on this menu, is the kimchi carbonara.” In the present, Kawa Ni’s carbonara is no longer a sleeper. Also in the present, and another foray into Italian–Asian mashups, is their chicken katsu parmigiana.


Chef Ian Vest Opens Modern Italian Restaurant, Talia, in Port Chester

Features Ingredients Interview Restaurant Modern Italian Ian Vest Port Chester Opening Homepage Interview Pasta Pizza Greenwich

Andrew Dominick

One could argue, that before Greenwich Avenue’s current restaurant boom, one of the hottest spots on the block from 2015 until it closed in 2020 was Back 40 Kitchen. Now, just a touch over the Byram neighborhood’s border in Port Chester, frequenters of Back 40 will see a familiar face in Ian Vest at his newly opened Talia. Vest, originally a St. Louis native, who got his start in the industry at 13 years old and never left it, has seen his fair share of stints working at delis, burrito places, and “everywhere you can imagine.” But hard work pays off, as it landed him an executive chef position at The Crossing, a French-Italian fine dining restaurant in Clayton, Missouri, then, to The Culinary Institute of America.


Smash Bay Burgers: A CT "Must Eat" Burger

Features Ingredients Interview Smash Burgers Burgers Homepage Interview Food Truck

Andrew Dominick

Bussing tables, washing dishes, prep work, and something like flipping burgers are most people’s foot-in-the-door in the hospitality industry. Austen Bass isn’t most people. In fact, he did it backwards. After a long career in the technology field, and with no restaurant experience, you’ll now find him smashing, flipping, and assembling burgers inside of his Smash Bay food trailer, typically parked at a Connecticut brewery near you.


Pat's Apizza Opens in a Gas Station in North Haven

Features Ingredients Interview Restaurant Pizza North Haven Pat's Apizza Homepage Interview Ingredients

Andrew Dominick

You’re driving on Washington Avenue in North Haven, your car is thirsty, and you pull into Forbes Premium Fuel. Wait a second. What’s that sign say at the gas station? Pat’s Apizza? That’s your sign to swing open the gas station’s convenience store’s door. Look to the left and there’s a full-on pizzeria in there. Be honest…you thought this was gas station pizza, didn’t you? Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but there’s a (desperate) time and a place for Stewart’s Shops, Love’s, Speedway, and Wawa. Let’s scrap that whole deal. Pat’s is a pizzeria that just so happens to be inside of a gas station and they’ve been getting a lot of love on social media since they opened on September 4 of this year.


Dos Hermanos Guatemalan Bakery & Cafe Opens in Bridgeport

Features Ingredients Interview Restaurant Guatemalan Bakery Latin American Black Rock Bridgeport Opening Homepage Interview

Andrew Dominick

If you notice a bunch of people in Bridgeport’s Black Rock neighborhood entering a tiny storefront on Brewster Street, follow them, and the smell of fresh baked bread, inside. Welcome to Dos Hermanos Bakery & Cafe, owned by two brothers (hence the name), Giovanni and Nelson Castellon, who had a goal of opening a place of their own for a while to show the community an accurate representation of Guatemalan food.


Connecticut Chefs Open Up About Wellness, Bad Habits, Mental Health, Addiction, and the 86 Challenge

Features Interview Homepage Interview Health & Wellness Mental Health Addiction Chefs Beto Ortiz Damon Sawyer Carlos Perez Dante Cistulli

Andrew Dominick

To “86” or to “eighty-six” something is a term commonly used in the hospitality industry. It’s defined, maybe best so, in the Urban Dictionary, where it’s summarized as “getting rid of something, removing it, or refusing service.” If a dish is popular for the evening, and thus, sold out, you might hear a chef say something like, “86 pasta special.” But to “reject, discard, or cancel” or to 86, has a different meaning to Beto Ortiz in the present day. Ortiz, the founder of Humans of the Kitchen (think Humans of New York for the service industry), a chef in his own right, and someone who’s open about his own struggles with mental health, substance abuse, and an overall rebellious nature, started the 86 Challenge, a wellness program for chefs and restaurant professionals.


Delamar Hotels Opens American-Mediterranean Restaurant, Dandelion, in Westport

Features Ingredients Interview Restaurant Mediterranean Opening Interview Westport Dandelion Westport Delamar Hotels Homepage

Andrew Dominick

Just a mere mile and change from the Delamar Southport and Artisan, founder Charles Mallory’s Greenwich Hospitality Group has opened a new luxury hotel with a restaurant, Dandelion, that’s been booked solid for weeks right out of the gate. “We took ownership of it 2-3 years ago,” says Delamar’s corporate director of restaurants, Hicham Amaaou. “I’ve been working with Frederic Keifer (Delamar’s corporate chef/partner) since Artisan Southport in 2012, then West Hartford, and we created La Plage together from scratch. But this is two separate entities and the food is very opposite.”


Cosetta Pizzeria and Paninoteca Opens in Fairfield from Bailey's Backyard Team

Features Ingredients Interview Restaurant Pizza Pizzeria Sandwiches Breakfast Coffee Fairfield Opening Homepage Interview Ingredients

Andrew Dominick

In 2024, when I interviewed Sal Bagliavio, the co-owner of Bailey’s Backyard, about his second spot, Taco Dia in Newtown, he very cryptically mentioned that he and chef/co-owner Forrest Pasternack were actively looking to open something else, somewhere else to follow up their taqueria.

Cosetta Pizzeria and Paninoteca on the Post Road in Fairfield is that something else—and what it is, simply put, is a more gourmet version of the neighborhood slice shop, plus sandwiches (including breakfast), house-made pastry, and coffee.


Massimo Tullio Opens Neapolitan Inspired Massi Co. in Westport

Features Interview Ingredients Restaurant Neapolitan pizza Neapolitan Italian Interview Homepage Westport Opening

Andrew Dominick

The space at 90 Post Road E in Westport has played host to three different restaurant concepts over the past eight years; Jesup Hall (farm-to-table American), then Don Memo (Mexican), and now, Massi Co., a Napolitano style restaurant. At the helm is a familiar face, co-owner of those previous two restaurants, and The Whelk, Massimo Tullio. The switch to Italian came about earlier in the year when Tullio, and his then partner, Bill Taibe, announced they would be going their separate ways with Taibe taking over both Kawa Ni locations in Westport and in Denver, while Tullio would continue operating The Whelk and Don Memo.


Tacos 203 by Taco Guy Opens at South Norwalk Train Station

Features Interview Restaurant Tacos Norwalk Tacos 203 Cocktails Grab-n-Go Mexican Homepage Fast Casual Opening

Andrew Dominick

As summer dwindles down in Connecticut, lobster rolls are out, tacos are in. At least that’s the case at the South Norwalk’s Metro-North station’s eastbound side. When the vacant space where LobsterCraft once slung rolls, lobster mac, and bisque, is now home to Tacos 203, a spinoff of Taco Guy. Owner Adrian Hurtado, who started his Taco Guy brand, first as a successful food truck, then a brick-and-mortar in Norwalk’s Wall Street area in 2023, snagged the train station spot by putting in an application bid for it with the Norwalk Parking Authority, not knowing whether he’d get it or not.


Bartender Sam Reyes + Mariposa Taqueria Launch Cocktail Pop Up El Jardín

Events Ingredients Interview Restaurant Cocktail Pop Up Danbury cocktails Bartender Pop-Up Homepage

Andrew Dominick

Audrey Hepburn once had a quote about gardens, where she stated: “To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” Sam Reyes is thinking about and believing in cocktail culture for tomorrow and a lot of tomorrows that will follow. Ever since Reyes (Mariposa Taqueria’s co-owner/bartender) captured a statewide award in 2023, specifically, a Connecticut Restaurant Association CRAZIES win for Bartender of the Year, he’s taken that W and he’s run with it.  


Redding Residents Open Georgetown Owl Market & Saloon: Upscale Gastropub + Craft Cocktails

Features Interview Restaurant New American Gastropub Redding Cocktails Market Interview Homepage

Andrew Dominick

Owls are, for the most part, a nocturnal species. For the owls that are, they’re probably not used to it being dark on a summer afternoon at 5 p.m. In this case, the “owl” is an owl in namesake, Georgetown Owl Market & Saloon, which experienced a power outage courtesy of a freakishly fast moving, powerful rainstorm on a hot, muggy July day. While brief, strong winds and some fallen branches resulted in a flickering of lights, “Oohhs and aahhs” in the dining room and at the bar, and ultimately, a more dimly lit restaurant than usual. For owners Kate Perry and Gerry Valenti, who opened Georgetown Owl in March of 2025, they rolled with nature’s punch smoothly, moving customers (and deadlifting tables and chairs) into the half of their space that still had electricity, and assuring confused walk-ins that they were still very much welcome.


Renowned and Michelin Recommended Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao Opens in Stamford

Features Ingredients Interview Restaurant Nan Xiang Nan Xiang soup dumplings Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao Stamford Chinese Homepage soup dumplings Dim Sum Interview Opening

Andrew Dominick

From Flushing, New York, Michelin Guide recommended soup dumplings have made their way to the cluster of restaurants outside of the Stamford Town Center. Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao, a growing Shanghainese micro chain, held its soft opening and introduction to Connecticut at the beginning of June as part of its expansion that includes locations in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, Georgia, Chicago, and soon, again, in our general area when they open in White Plains.


Ridgefield Couple Opens Flobee's Featuring Southern Roadside Eats

Features Ingredients Ice Cream Interview Restaurant Roadside Eats Southern Food Fast Casual Ice Cream Ridgefield Homepage Interview Burgers

Andrew Dominick

Nadia Blair has fond memories of being a passenger in her parent’s car driving from Katonah through the charming town of Ridgefield to go visit her grandparents in New Haven. She’d constantly bother her mom with “Why can’t we live there?” questions to be told that the reason is because it’s “too far away from the highway.” Spring ahead decades later and Nadia, along with her chef husband Aaron, don’t only live in Ridgefield, but they’ve opened a restaurant where southern eats meet roadside New England charm, named after Aaron’s mother, Florence.


Prasad Chirnomula Opens Chef Driven Meal Delivery Service, Gourmet United

Interview Restaurant Features Indian Mexican Fast Casual Takeout Delivery Interview Easton Homepage

Andrew Dominick

The former Easton Village Store on Sport Hill Road has a new tenant and it’s a chef you know. Award winning chef, Prasad Chirnomula, and his business partner, Ron Berry, have transformed the space into Gourmet United, a takeout and delivery-based concept that, with Chirnomula involved, definitely features his lauded Indian cuisine alongside Mexican food under one roof.


Elm in New Canaan: Phase 2.0 Features Renovations and Remixed Menu

Features Interview Restaurant Elm New Canaan New Canaan Luke Venner Homepage Interview Menu Update

Andrew Dominick

Chefs that have a bustling restaurant never take a full month off. For Luke Venner, “vacation” wasn’t pina coladas in the Caribbean, nor was it one of his fishing or hunting excursions. Instead, he was mostly in New Canaan, at Elm, remixing popular dishes, creating new ones, and reimagining and renovating the entire dining room. Don’t freak out. Your beloved Double-Double was unharmed in the process. But the dining room? Transformed. And it’s something that Venner—who’s in his 10th season as Elm’s executive chef and co-owner—has been meaning to tackle for quite a while. Talk to him about it and you can tell he’s feeling refreshed about all of it.


Seleste Tan of Lady Wong Patisserie & Chef Mogan Anthony Open La Bistro in Greenwich

Features Interview Restaurant French Pastry Pastry Chef Greenwich Homepage Interview Opening

Andrew Dominick

Have a conversation with Seleste Tan for just a few minutes and the word that comes to mind is “humble.” Tan’s bakery, Lady Wong Patisserie, with two locations in New York City, speaks about it like she never expected it to be the megahit that it is. “I did it for a hobby during the pandemic and I never thought it would be big,” she says shyly. Her confections, inspired by flavors from her home country of Singapore, and travels throughout Southeast Asia, are her muse. And that hobby? It turned into national coverage in all the big food publications and then some.


Preview: Taco Guy Opening Tacos 203 at the South Norwalk Train Station

Features Interview Restaurant Opening Norwalk Preview Tacos Mexican Homepage Interview

Andrew Dominick

Everything you’ve heard about Adrian Hurtado and his Taco Guy brand opening a new taqueria in Norwalk are true, even if some of the details weren’t originally clear or correct.

Numero tres for Hurtado, if we’re counting the taco truck first, then his Wall Street spot second, is Tacos 203, not Carnitas Michoacán, regardless of what you may have heard. Tacos 203 will be inside of Metro-North’s South Norwalk Station and the concept won’t resemble the fare that Hurtado’s fans have experienced from the truck or his restaurant.


Lao Cocina Opens in Bridgeport: Laotian X Puerto Rican Fusion Cuisine

Features Interview Restaurant Interview Bridgeport Puerto Rican Laotian Latin Fusion Homepage Opening

Andrew Dominick

When the popular Venezuelan-meets-Mexican mashup, Mil Sabores, vacated their original brick-and-mortar at 2043 Fairfield Avenue and went onto opening a bigger restaurant further down the street, they left their digs to another tenant, even if it is for a limited run. Lao Cocina, a Laotian and Puerto Rican fusion spot, that’s mostly takeout, is filling out the rest of that lease. Created by the husband-and-wife team of April Khanthaphixay, her husband, Daniel Colon, and Daniel’s uncle Sergio, they’re mixing their respective cultures for a new kind of concept.


Two Roads Brewing Company Launches Dinner Pairing Series- A New Brewery Experience

Events Features Brewery Ingredients Interview Tasting Menu Brewery Two Roads Brewing Company Craft Beer Spirits Distillery Interview Homepage Stratford Beer

Andrew Dominick

If you’ve followed the evolution of Two Roads Brewing Company, it’s quite something. Since the main brewery opened in 2012, one thing they kept doing is continuing to evolve. Not including a laundry list of beer releases, Two Roads went onto open a second facility next to their Hop Yard six years ago that you now know as Area Two Experimental Brewing. Following Area Two and all their fun, funky small batch drops, and in no particular order, Two Roads got into making canned cocktails, non-alcoholic beer, distilling (we’ll have a few teasers on that), and they even purchased the former PizzaCo across the street and turned it into Two Roads Food Hall & Bar and next door, Two Roads Tee Box, a golf simulator, making it a full-blown “campus.”