Malby, a new bakery in New Haven is churning out superlative sourdough alongside croissants, cookies, and Latin American baked goods.
Owned by married couple Malby Rojas and Karla Tejada Arias, Malby opened in late May and is steadily expanding its offerings. “Every day, we add a little more bread, a little more pastry,” Rojas says. The neighborhood is already well-acquainted with Rojas’ bread, as she has been baking and delivering loaves from the basement of their home. Now, at her brick-and-mortar location, Rojas sells pastries, breads, and beverages inspired by the couple’s Latin heritage.
Bar is located at 254 Crown Street in New Haven, CT, in an industrial building that proudly boasts its historical heritage with exposed brick, garage-style doors that open in warm weather, and vintage prints. As you walk through the different rooms and look at the food-beer offerings, you wonder whether Bar is a pizzeria that serves great pizza with a side of beer, or a microbrewery that drafts in-house microbrews with a side of New Haven pizza. For us, we were there for the pizza, and our single question was how it would compare to the other legendary New Haven pizzas.
There’s a new hot spot in New Haven, but you might drive past it without blinking.
This small, waterside gem is located within the Pequonnock Yacht Club in the tranquil City Point neighborhood of New Haven. It’s housed in the building that was formerly City Point Kitchen, just in front of Shell & Bones, and is the pride and joy of restaurateur couple Larry Wang and Bilian “Nia” Chen.
Despite having what may be the most progressive omakase menu in the state, Little Lotus is deeply rooted in history. So, if you enjoy things delicacies like sea urchin, O-toro, A5 Japanese wagyu beef, foie gras…and blow torches… keep on reading.
Over the past months, I’ve been on a quest to find the best pizza in the Valley, exploring Waterbury and its neighboring towns. Now, it feels like the right time to turn my attention to what many consider the epicenter of Connecticut pizza: New Haven, where you're met with no shortage of options to explore. When a couple of buddies and I were scheduling a pizza lunch, we decided to sidestep the potential chaos of Wooster Street and headed over a few blocks to Modern Apizza on State Street. Once you manage to find parking, be prepared to wait, and count yourself lucky if you have that lucky timing of an immediate opening. We arrived just after noon and, to our good fortune, a booth was open in the back room. We took it as a sign of good things to come. As soon as our server arrived, we ordered a couple of bottles of Foxon Park, Kola and Root Beer, then got down to topping talk. We kept it semi-classic: one pie fully loaded with pepperoni and the other topped with sausage and onion.
Introducing the New Haven Pizza Club Pizza Bagel Tour, a delicious fundraiser with 100% of all proceeds going direct to Feeding Families- including all costs that are also donated.
The Pizza Bagel Tour is a pop-up pizza bagel collab with Olmo Bagels X New Haven Pizza Club X a rotating New Haven pizzeria. Each pop up will be at a different Pizzeria and their 2nd stop is the iconic Modern Apizza on OCTOBER 6th, 6-9PM at Modern Apizza at 874 State Street in New Haven.
What began as a dream to unite people through a universal symbol—pizza—has evolved into a movement rooted in storytelling, collaboration, design, and immersive experiences. The Pizza Bagel Tour brings together legacy New Haven businesses and iconic culinary voices to create one-of-a-kind moments that transcend art and food. But at its core, the project has always pointed in one direction: toward the mission.
From cookie butter to mango chai, Elena’s has tried it all when it comes to soft serve. Sitting on the corner of Orange and Canner, Elena’s on Orange has been serving the New Haven community since November of 2022. Although, many may argue it feels like it's been around for much longer, because of how seamlessly it blends into its surrounding neighborhood.
They’re recognized for their innovative test kitchen that locals flock to every Wednesday evening where they come out with a new weekly flavor. Their test kitchen is run by Geena Fram who is responsible for creating weekly flavors and sourcing fresh ingredients. The idea for the test kitchen comes from Elena’s having an extra machine available and Geena desiring more freedom to think up her own ice cream creations. “Sometimes there are flavors that are a little too labor intensive or too special to do for the whole week right off the bat” says Fram.
It may not be soup season at the moment, with summer temperatures soaring into the 90s, but this new New Haven Korean restaurant is ready for the winter with its comforting, savory soup specialties.
Owner Kenny Kim, who ran Ramen Kuro Shiro at 128 Crown Street, recently revamped the restaurant’s menu and concept to reflect his Korean heritage. In a July Instagram post introducing Mr. Cookbop, Kim and his team said they took time to “refresh, reflect and reimagine what we wanted to bring to the table.”
Kim said he’s been in the restaurant industry for more than a decade, with experience in his native Korea as well as in New York and Connecticut. “I saw a real opportunity in New Haven, with its vibrant food scene and diverse community,” he said in a statement. “(It) felt like the perfect place to introduce the Mr. Cookbop concept – something both comforting and culturally rich.”
I guess after making pizza for over fifty years, it comes as no surprise that one of the best pizzas in the greater New Haven area, as well as one of the best pizzas in CT, is made by Pasqual (Pat) DeRiso at Ernie’s Pizza. Pat is the second-generation owner of Ernie’s, which was started by his father and mother, Ernesto (Ernie) and Jennie De Riso, in 1971. Pat purchased the business in 1989 and now continues the family tradition, personally crafting every single pizza that comes out of the oven.
My CT Pizza journey continued in the East Rock section of New Haven with a visit to One6Three – The Pizza Joint, as it approaches its 10th anniversary. One6Three is located on the corner of Foster and Willow, and I have been hearing a lot of positive feedback from my pizza buddies, so I wandered over to check it out. As I drove through the East Rock section it was a déjà vu experience for me, the area was reminiscent of my neighborhood growing up, lots of two-family homes lined the street and you could feel the sense of community. It was that environment that first molded my love of Italian food and great NJ pizza
Connecticut may not be home to an official Michelin Guide, but this new Chinese restaurant in New Haven has Bib Gourmand-approved hand-pulled noodles, soup dumplings and much more.
Kung Fu Kitchen recently celebrated its soft opening on Orange Street in the city’s Ninth Square neighborhood, marking the first Connecticut location of chef/owner Peter Song’s concept. Song opened the first Kung Fu in Manhattan to great fanfare a dozen years ago, adding additional city restaurants and outposts in Orlando and Boston.
New Haven’s Graduate by Hilton Hotel is about a mile’s walk from Wooster Street, and in fact has a “pizza pay phone” in its lobby, with a direct line to Sally’s Apizza. But downstairs at its bar, a Connecticut dad has turned his own passion for pizza into a weekend pop-up with a loyal following.
Joe Pangia’s Three Sons Pizza got its start at Old Heidelberg last May, offering fresh-baked 16-inch pies and slices out of its bar kitchen on weekends. Pangia, who lives in Middletown, is an insurance professional and avid home cook who began to perfect his pizza recipes during the pandemic, working on the dough, sauce and toppings and asking for feedback from friends and family.
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.”
Once again, Strega owner Danilo Mongillo is celebrating a prestigious honor for his authentic Italian fare – but this one means more, he says.
Gambero Rosso, an Italian authority on food, wine and travel, awarded Mongillo’s New Haven restaurant a “due forchette,” or ‘two forks” designation in a recent ceremony in New York City. Restaurants are honored with a rating of one to three forks, similar to Michelin star ratings.
When brothers Sam and Javier Reyes took over the reigns of Mezon Tapas Bar from their older brothers Richard and Juan, and flipped the concept over to Mariposa Taqueria in 2020, focusing on tacos and Latin American street food, they had big plans on the horizon. Sam, who’s coming off a 2023 Bartender of the Year win at the Connecticut Restaurant Association’s CRAZIES Awards, took that award and the recognition it brought to launch a series of cocktail competitions to highlight area bartenders so they can show off their full display of skills to local cocktail lovers.
Gioia, Italian restaurant, market, gelateria and rooftop space located at 150 Wooster Street, New Haven, has just launched “The Red Sauce Joint by Gioia” in its rooftop dining and bar space. Running from January 31 – April 27, the fully-enclosed and heated space will be transformed into an inviting, nostalgic space inspired by classic and beloved Italian American eateries. The seasonal activation will blend this timeless culture and treasured environment – including red and white checkered tables, warm string lights, classic Italian greenery, Chianti bottles and cured Italian food products - with Gioia’s signature charm, warmth and fun, and a menu featuring classic and familiar Italian American cuisine and beverages.
The special pop-up food and beverage menu will include Eggplant Parm, Beef Carpaccio, Spaghetti sandwich, Fried Mutz with marinara, Clam Casino style Arancini and classic pastas preparations including Alfredo, a la Vodka and Lasagna Bolognese. Dessert options such as fun interpretations on a classic Cannoli featuring a Tiramisu filling and Olive Oil Cake with a Limoncello Zabaglione will be featured. The beverage program will include Italian wines by the jelly jar glass, a Winter Spritz, a coffee-steeped “Corsica Negroni” with Gin and a fun and playful twist on the “Godfather Cocktail.” Shared dish options will encourage communal dining, and classic and interactive dining elements will surprise guests.
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.
“Yale asked me if I was interested in the space, and I took it as a challenge. A small space, few tables, no pizza – I was able to focus on fine dining.” I’m in New Haven, talking with chef Danilo Mongillo about Strega, his second restaurant of the same name, but with a very different concept.
“You have excellent food here – French, Spanish, American – and I took bringing this level of Italian to downtown, not in competition, but just to bring more good food here. That was the challenge.”
The first time I ate at Strega was the location in Milford (both restaurants are just off the corners of their respective city greens) and I’d returned many times for his creations which were just a little different – the way a sentence is altered when the pen is in a different hand – and made with exceptional ingredients. I ask if the new Strega is based on anything regionally Italian, and he shakes the question off, moving in another direction.
“Fine dining is about the technique. It’s about the balance of the flavors – something sweet, something sour – and the balance with the wine. The balance of the bite.”
Almost a year ago, I covered Crust Issues, brought to you by longtime restaurant guy, John Nealon. I’ve since gotten addicted to several of his pizzeria’s signature grub, namely the outside the box, but creative rectangular, crispy, cheesy, garlic buttery pizzas and the pounded out crunchy coated cutlets—especially the spicy chicken scarp.
It doesn’t help (or maybe it does) that it’s a flat one-mile drive away to get my fix.
Nealon has some cool ideas for the evolution of Crust Issues, one that I’ve consistently bothered and pressured him about (I’ll keep it a secret unless it actually happens), and he’s recently mentioned installing a bar for future cocktail program.
But there’s a weekly tasting he’s been doing every Saturday from 7:30 – 9 p.m. that’s a super casual, fun, tasty, incredibly reasonably priced (it’s $40 per person including beer, wine, soda, or water), and you’ll leave happy, fat, and ready for bed.
The uber-talented team that brought us Hachiroku Shokudo & Sake Bar, Hachiroku Handroll Bar, and most recently The Loop by Hachiroku, (Japanese marketplace), has done it again. The Wine Bar at The Loop opened a few weeks ago, and it is already drawing wine enthusiasts from all over the state of CT, seeking both their unique wine portfolio and outstanding Izakaya Japanese cuisine.
The Wine Bar at The Loop is a collaboration between Hachiroku’s Yuta Kamori and Ungrafted Selections’ Jason Black and Adam Bitker, purveyors of conscientiously farmed, handcrafted wines from small, independent growers. The partnership is magical with each brand delivering a “best in class” offering backed with deep knowledge and a desire for excellence, but with none of the fussiness that sometimes happens in the wine world. The Wine Bar is laid back, smart, sublime with that slight edginess we’ve come to expect from Hachiroku. It’s a vibe and we are here for it.
