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15 CT Restaurants Open for Thanksgiving Dinner

Restaurant Holiday Thanksgiving

Emma Jane-Doody Stetson

Thanksgiving arrives Thursday November 26 and many Connecticut restaurants are inviting you to spend the holiday with them.  From buffets to prix fixe and traditional to creative, there are a number of styles so that you can pick the best for you and your loved ones.

NOTE: We came across a few more restaurants after the publish date of this article, so we've gone beyond 15. Enjoy!

  1. Millwright's, Simsbury
  2. Cafe on the Green, Danbury
  3. Artisan, Southport
  4. Bernard's, Ridgefield
  5. Elm Restaurant, New Canaan
  6. Mill on the River Restaurant, South Windsor
  7. Capital Grille, Stamford and Hartford
  8. Harbor Lights, Norwalk

2nd Annual Greenwich Restaurant Week November 12th - 18th

Restaurant Restaurant Week

CTbites Team

Coming off a successful inaugural year, The 2nd Annual Greenwich Restaurant Week starts On November 12th and runs until November 18th. Participating restaurants include L'escale, Polpo, Harvest, Terra, Mediterraneo, Le Peguin, Le Fat Poodle, Osteria Applausi, Lugano's, Gabriele's, Char, Famous Greek Kitchen, Firenze, Blackstones Steakhouse, Little Pub, Bella Noona, Caren's Cos Cobber, Bobby Q's Pitstop, Coast, The Drawing Room, Elm Street Oyster House, Jhouse, Morello, Tengda, Mt.Kisco smokehouse, Greenwich Cheese Company and Winfield's at the Hyatt. 

Norwalk's Open Door Shelter Celebrates "Chopped" Celebrity

Restaurant Fundraiser Norwalk

CTbites Team

Open Door Shelter of Norwalk is hosting a fundraiser event on November 18 from 6 to 9 pm to celebrate the recent appearance of their kitchen manager, Victor Squire, on the Food Network show Chopped.

The event will be held at Aitoro in Norwalk, and will feature a competitive cook off between Norwalk Community College culinary student chefs. Wine and appetizers will be served, and Chef Victor Squire, the Chopped competitor will be on hand throughout the event to meet guests. Tickets are $50 per person and can be purchased online. All proceeds from the event will benefit the mission and services of the Open Door Shelter in Norwalk.


Why LeFarm in Westport Closed Its Doors: Q & A with Chef Bill Taibe

Restaurant Chef Talk Westport

Stephanie Webster

Many CT diners were shocked when Bill Taibe announced that LeFarm in Westport was closing its doors after six years. LeFarm was without a doubt one of the most highly celebrated restaurants in Connecticut, a place where local chefs gathered on their nights off and regulars booked a table weekly. So, why did it close? We sat down with Chef Bill Taibe (owner of Kawa Ni and The Whelk) to find out why...

LeFarm was a very successful restaurant right up until the day you closed the doors. Why did you decide to sell LeFarm? It was the right time.  We had met our goals at LeFarm.  It is now time to set our sites on a more focused plan. We want to offer more services.  Create new experiences.  Push ourselves a bit harder.

 


Harlan Publick in South Norwalk: Innovative Cuisine with a Tropical Twist

Restaurant Caribbean Norwalk SONO Bar

Jeff "jfood" Schlesinger

Harlan Publick opened last year in the SoNo Ironworks and immediately became a destination for great food, a vast line-up of beers and an outdoor terrace like none other in Fairfield County. The relaxed interior features a large bar, a dining area with both dining tables and high tops and a room for a private event that features several personalized beer taps, and represents the second for Managing Partner Steve Lewandowski, who is also the Managing Partner at Stamford’s Harlan Social, which has won accolades as one of the best restaurants in CT.

Executive Chef Kamal Rose recently joined Harlan Publick, and his road to this position was less than traditional. Raised on St. Vincent and the Grenadines, he developed his passion for cooking from his grandmother. He moved to New York at the age of 15 and subsequently received an internship at TriBeca Grill. In 2009 he won a $20,000 scholarship in a national cooking competition and earned his diploma from the Institute of Culinary Education. He returned to TriBeca Grill under the tutelage of Drew Nieporent and Steve Lewandowski and last year, Lewandowski asked Rose to join him at Harlan Publick where his newly introduced cuisine exemplifies his Caribbean roots tempered by classical training. 


New Chef @ elm Restaurant in New Canaan: Enter Chef Luke Venner

Restaurant American Farm to Table New Canaan Lunch

Jeff "jfood" Schlesinger

Chef Luke Venner has been at the helm of elm Restaurant for several months and was invited to participate at the Greenwich Wine and Food Festival as one of the Innovative Chefs. The two small bites that he prepared at the festival were delicious. In hopes that these were reflective of his newly revised menu, CTbites returned to the restaurant to sample other dishes on his recently introduced Autumn menu. The appetizers and entrées that we enjoyed highlighted the inherent flavors of the ingredients utilizing Chef Luke’s balanced vision and delicate touch.

We shared three dishes from the “smaller” section of the menu. 


Junzi Kitchen Opens in New Haven

Features Restaurant Asian Chinese New Haven Lunch

Amy Kundrat

Photo: Reed Immer, Junzi Kitchen

A chun-bing (spring-pancake), is traditionally eaten to celebrate the arrival of spring in chinese culture. Its origins as a humble culinary tradition are tied to the Qin dynasty (265 - 240 ad), when chun-bing was prepared with fresh spring ingredients to signal the spring harvest and a return to the land. It’s become a year-round staple in northern China where you can find it in street carts, restaurants, and on sunday dinner tables. And now on 21 Broadway in New Haven at Junzi Kitchen which opened this week.

Junzi co-founders Ming Bai, Wanting Zhang, and Yong Zhao grew up in a transitional time in northeast China when the population was experiencing many modernizations. Instead of growing food on their own, supermarkets became a predominant food source for families out of convenience, but it was clear that something special was being lost in the process.

Nostalgia for the spring flavors of home led the fellow Yale grad students to launch Junzi Kitchen. "I wanted to show people that Chinese food can be simple, healthy, and satisfying, something you can eat every day," said co-founder Yong Zhao. The result is an experience that challenges the way you think about Chinese food.


Happy Hour at Elm City Social in New Haven

Features Restaurant Happy Hour Editor's Pick Bar New Haven

Amy Kundrat

Elm City Social has entered New Haven’s burgeoning craft cocktail scene with an exhaustive and inventive array of cocktails and a variety dining options from mid-day to late night. Venturing into the Elm City Social bar during Happy Hour, I had but a simple mission – to quickly refuel with a cocktail and a few snacks before an evening event. I knew I had come to the right place when I noticed the cocktail menu was equal to, if not greater than, the dining options.

So first, those cocktails. The Rubber Ducky is a shaken cocktail made from a combination of a citra hop-infused New Amsterdam Gin, basil, grapefruit, lemon, with sparkling water. First sip, my eyes quickly narrowing, I found myself put off (turned on?) by the hoppy notes. Second sip, a bit of offense but also wonderment, “how did an IPA get in my cocktail?” From that point until my last sip, I was impressed by the equal parts confusion and compulsion on my palate. Well done. Also, there is an actual rubber ducky floating in your drink. Bonus points for cheekiness.


The Stand Juice Company Opens 3rd Location in Westport

Restaurant Juice Bar Juice Cleanse Westport healthy

Jessica Ryan

Vegetarians and vegans and clean eaters rejoice, The Stand Juice Company has opened its 3rd location and is now open in Westport.

Carissa and Mike Hvizdo are passionate about what they do and passionate about the plant based juices, snacks, sandwiches and baked goods they serve at The Stand. Their commitment to “providing good food and a better earth using the land to do so,” has paved the way to their newest and 3rd location.

Mike and Carissa met at a farmer’s market. They will tell you that their connection was profound - brought together by her passion for living life off the land and Mike’s first-hand experience with conquering a rare blood disease through natural healing methods, which ultimately led to him earning his holistic educator certification and his work with the Hippocrates Health Institute in West Palm Beach, FL.


Breaking News: Fortina in Stamford Opening This Week

Restaurant Italian Pizza Stamford Lunch Opening

Lou Gorfain

Grazie a Dio. The long wait (and drive to Westchester) is over.  Fortina is ready to rock in Stamford’s  Harbor Point.   Luigi Bianco Pizza, welcome to Connecticut!

Expecting to begin serving any day (as soon as they get their Certificate of Occupancy),  partners John Nealon,  Christian Petroni, and Rob Krauss invited CTBites to stop by for a sneak peek before the official opening.  

Actually that debut won’t be so formal.  Nothing soft.   No Friends and Family.  Not even a ribbon cutting.  Just a sigh of relief.  “When we open the doors, we’re open,”  Nealon told us.  

That’s because everything is set, the menu (almost identical to Armonk), the staff (many from Rye Brook and Armonk),   the kitchen (the same wood fired ovens from Naples and charcoal grill from Spain) the playlist (specialized  for Stamford’s millennials and empty nesters),  and yes,  hundreds of those familiar San Marzano cans just waiting to boost their pizza trays with a luscious Luigi Bianco.   The whimsy is waiting. 


The Spread Team Opening El Segundo in South Norwalk Featuring Street Food From Around The Globe

Restaurant Asian Norwalk SONO Seafood Mexican Kid Friendly

Stephanie Webster

After 3 successful years in South Norwalk, the team from The Spread has just announced that they have signed a lease in the SoNo Ironworks complex. In early 2016 an exciting new restaurant concept will be coming to CT diners. The name is El Segundo and the idea is simple. Spread owners Christpher Hickey, Christopher Rasile, Andrey Cortes, and Shawn Longyear alongside Chef Carlos Baez have created a menu that features street food from around the globe that everyone loves to eat:  tacos, arepas, ceviche, Asian bao, light salads and a little comfort food thrown in for good measure. The setting is casual and fun, with a price point that will make diners in South Norwalk smile.  And the bar? Let’s just say these guys know a thing or two about bartending.  

Directly across from Harlan Publick, El Segundo is poised to deliver a uniquely fun dining experience to Fairfield County. The restaurant features an open kitchen with bar seating, allowing diners to watch Chef Carlos as he re-creates dishes from his childhood, including his father’s recipe for Tacos Al Pastor. Large windows make this space light and airy and garage doors will open up to the Ironworks courtyard in the warmer months. 


Mill Street Bar & Table Opens in Greenwich: Celebrating The American Bounty

Restaurant Byram Farm to Table Greenwich Local Farm

Lou Gorfain

The dream began in a sandbox…..where five year old Geoff Lazlo planted his first garden.

Since then, he has tended, harvested, and cooked with the likes of Alice Waters at Chez Panisse,  Michael Anthony at Gramercy Tavern, Dan Barber at Stone Barns, and Bill Taibe at The Whelk.    

 “What a pedigree!” we said to Lazlo, now the Managing Partner and Executive Chef of the newly opened Mill Street Table and Bar in Greenwich.  “Your takeaway?”  

"That a seasonal cook has to react like a top athlete," he told us.  “Fresh ingredients are in constant motion.  Early asparagus is very different than late asparagus, so you're always adjusting to a fast, ever changing game." 

Geoff's garden isn't Madison Square, but his own herb and vegetable plots at Greenwich Community Gardens, and, of course, Back 40 Farm.  That’s the family acreage in Washington Depot run by his partners at Mill Street, Bill and Leslie King, who head up the organic-centric Back 40 Group.  

What Lazlo doesn't pick from there, he sources locally: whether it be oysters farmed off the Greenwich shore, milk, cream and butter churned at Arethusa Dairy Farm in Litchfield, even Byram River Rum, distilled down the road in Post Chester.  Mill Street represents the fulfilment of Geoff’s dream to establish his own place, an “American Restaurant,” celebrating family, community and local bounty.  


Kawa Ni Announces New Happy Hour And Cocktail Menu

Restaurant Cocktails Happy Hour Japanese Westport Bar

James Gribbon

Kawa Ni, Westport's izakaya by the river, has been both a haven of Japanese-inspired food and a boisterous drinking scene since its opening just over a year ago. The party is about to start earlier, as Bill Taibe and co. have announced the debut of their new happy hour menu of food and drink at the Bridge Square, starting now.

Izakayas are small taverns which cater to the occasionally raucous after work set in Japan, so the new menu, with its focus on a limited number of small bar bites backed up by almost twice as many drinks, is right on theme. The prices of food and drink alike are sharply reduced for the happy hour, which runs Tuesday -Friday 4-6PM. 


City-Wide Open Studios (CWOS) Kitchens: The Intersection of Visual & Culinary Arts in New Haven

Restaurant Fundraiser New Haven

Amy Kundrat

Artspace in New Haven is launching City-Wide Open Studios (CWOS) Kitchens this November to celebrate the intersection of the visual and culinary arts. The CWOS theme this year is "Dwelling," and with kitchens is the core of this theme,  Artspace is organizing three special evenings of culinary experiences in their gallery surrounded by 360 small works of art during the CWOS October and November festivities.


Land, Farm, and Sea: A First Impression of Mill Street Bar & Table Now Open in Greenwich

Restaurant American Byram Greenwich Seafood

CTbites Team

Now open in the Byram neighborhood of Greenwich, Mill Street Bar & Table celebrates American seasonal fine dining in one of Connecticut’s most elegant tavern-inspired settings. Executive Chef and Managing Partner of Mill Street is Greenwich native Geoff Lazlo (whom we know and love from The Whelk and leFarm) along with partner Bill & Lesley King.

Under Geoff's leadership, the Mill Street menu is comprised of rustic yet sophisticated dishes (whole roasted proteins such as chicken and trout, a beautifully appointed oyster bar, homey pasta dishes, inventive flatbreads...) that embrace the bounty of land, farm, and sea, featuring among other purveyors, Mill Street’s own Back 40 Farm in Washington, CT.


Boothbay Lobster Company Truck Rolls into Stamford's Harbor Point

Restaurant Food Truck Lobster Seafood Stamford

Jeff "jfood" Schlesinger

Boothbay Lobster Company is opening its first bricks and mortar location at Harbor Point in Stamford in the upcoming months. To give the community a taste of what to expect from super-fresh Maine lobster, the company is periodically parking its Boothbay Lobster Company truck 100 yards down the street from the restaurant, serving two types of Lobster Rolls, a BLC sandwich, Lobster Mac & Cheese, plus a few non-lobster items. On a beautiful afternoon CTbites visited the truck to sample the newest addition to the Harbor Point neighborhood. As I approached the truck I noticed a sign stating that the lobster were caught the previous day…this was an ultra-fresh product.

25 Places for Great Coffee in Connecticut

Restaurant Coffee Tea And Coffee Best of CT

Emma Jane-Doody Stetson

Have you heard the “buzz”?  Tuesday September 29 is National Coffee Day, and CT is home to some great local coffee spots where you can celebrate.  There's a lot of coffee in this state so we've divided our list into Fairfield County & Beyond FC.  Here are 24 places that serve some of CT’s best java.  One might even say they’re more than just your average “joe….”

If we missed any of YOUR favorite spots, please let us know in the comments section below. 

Fairfeld County Coffee

  1. Buzz Truck, Fairfield County
  2. Espresso Neat, Darien and Westport
  3. Lorca, Stamford
  4. Redding Roasters, Bethel
  5. Zumbachs Coffee, New Canaan
  6. Coffee Barn, Wilton
  7. Tusk & Cup, Ridgefield

Saltaire Oyster Bar and Fish House Opens in Port Chester

Restaurant Fish Port Chester Seafood

Jessica Ryan

Last week I accepted an invitation to experience the newly opened Saltaire Oyster Bar and Fish House which recently opened in Port Chester just over the Greenwich border. Located in the beautifully restored Willet House Building which has been redesigned and transformed into a bright contemporary restaurant with a wealth of historic nautical charm. The bar area, vibrant, energetic and spacious has a modern yet traditional feel. An impressive raw bar sits at the center, welcoming patrons as they settle in ready to place their drink orders. Two televisions sit on the opposite side of the bar so that sports enthusiasts can cheer on their favorite teams. The dining room, despite its grand and impressive size, is warm and welcoming. The antique hay lifts and wood beams retain the space’s history. Handsome black and white photographs of fishermen at sea capture authentic coastal life. The elegant yet rustic lighting casts a warm glow off the brick. The restaurant isn’t quiet; a lively energy permeates the air. 

Meet Doom Noodle, New Haven's Ramen Pop-up Restaurant

Restaurant Asian Japanese Noodles New Haven Comfort Food

Amy Kundrat

Doom Noodle, a weekly ramen pop-up restaurant will launch this Sunday, September 27 at Firehouse 12 in New Haven.  

The pop-up's weekly core menu will offer two options for ramen, a weekly bao offering, and shrimp chips, available as eat-in or take-out. Drinks will be available separately from the Firehouse 12 cocktail menu. Dinner starts on Sundays at  6 pm until they sell out.

The duo behind Doom Noodle, Jordan Waters and Molly Kennedy, are recent New Haven transplants who enjoyed participating in a weekly supper club. Jordan, who assumes the cooking responsibilities, and Molly, the creative who will run the front of house, see Doom Noodle as an evolution of their club and a reflection of what they like to eat.