Ad: Play With Your Food - Spots Still Open in Fairfield!! Restaurant Events Advertisement Stephanie Webster January 05, 2011 Play with your food? Say no more. I'm in. Actually I am in and have been an active subscribers with Play With Your Food for years. For all you newbies in the midst, the concept is simple. During their 12noon -1:30 p.m. program, audiences are first treated to a pre-performance buffet lunch (catered by venues such as Nicholas Roberts, DaPietro's, and The Pantry), before enjoying 3 one-act plays and a follow-up discussion with the actors. It is a combined social and theatrical experience, diverse and compelling entertainment to be savored mid-day during the work week. It is also the perfect break from suburban life. CTbites readers, take note…The Greenwich and Westport 2011 season are sold out but there are still spots available in Fairfield. Read More
El Charrito Poised to Open in Greenwich Restaurant Food Truck Greenwich Lunch Kid Friendly Amy Kundrat January 05, 2011
Simple Beef & Kidney Bean Chili: The Parsley Thief Restaurant Recipe Comfort Food katie vitucci January 05, 2011 I have been searching for a really simple & delicious crockpot chili recipe for a long time now. Not something exotic, or gourmet. Just super basic. This is the recipe I was looking for. And, with Super Bowl Sunday around the corner, I figured now would be a good time to post it. You can play with the spices as much as you'd like. I kept them pretty low key, as I was serving this to the whole family & I wanted everyone to enjoy it. If you don't have a slow-cooker, you can cook the chili in a stockpot over low heat for 2 hours. It will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days {it tastes even better after sitting a day, or more}. It can also be frozen for up to a month. Read More
New Haven Legend Dies, Frank Pepe's Comes to Danbury News Amy Kundrat January 05, 2011 Reheated is a twice-weekly round-up of bite-sized food news in Connecticut and beyond. In Connecticut... Ken Lassen who ran Louis' Lunch, the "birthplace of the hamburger" for 65 years, and the grandson of the founder, has died. Via New Haven Register. Effective on January 1, 2011, the state of CT passes a new law for jellies, jams, preserves and salsa at Farmers' Markets. Via State of CT. Just over the border, Bartaco has opened in Port Chester and rumor has it they may also soon open an outpost in Stamford. After an all-too brief life in Newtown,Chao Chi Restaurant has closedmaking us all wonder if its co-owner Prasad Chirnomula of Thali, opens one of his signature restaurants in its wake. The Sun Winefest 2011 is swiftly approaching on January 29. Tickets and info via MohegunSun.com. Frank Pepe's Pizza will be opening an outpost in Danbury, CT on January 31 at 59 Federal Road. Via @PepesPizzeria Read More
Graze Home Delivery: Fresh Food is a Click Away Ingredients Features Delivery Service Local Artisan Local Farm Organic Stephanie Webster January 03, 2011 I’m not much for New Year's Resolutions, but I do know that by making small changes, we can impact our health, the planet and the way we raise our kids. Something as small as where you buy your food can be one of those changes, so I was eager to check out Graze, a local farm-to-fridge online grocery delivery service “on a mission to bring fresh, wholesome and sustainably produced foods directly from small local family farms in Vermont to your front door.” Graze sells pasture-raised beef, just-picked local organic produce in season, award-winning artisanal cheeses and even home-cooked meals. After a long weekend, capped off by a nasty blizzard, my supplies of fresh milk, eggs, fresh cider, meat and other staples have dwindled down to nil, and our fridge is pitifully bare. Normally, at this juncture, I’m faced with the quandary: Do I bundle up, shovel out and brave the unplowed back roads so that I can then fight the crowds at Whole Foods or Stew’s? Not anymore, thanks to Graze (grazedelivered.com). Read More
Southwest Cafe in Ridgefield: It's all About the Chilies Restaurant Ridgefield Mexican Lunch Kid Friendly Amy Kundrat January 02, 2011 Long before a group of gourmet purveyors began staking claim to what is now a blossoming culinary corner of Ridgefield known as the Marketplace at Copps Hill, Southwest Cafe has been roasting, grinding and blending red and green chilies into dishes that serve as the cornerstone of its New Mexican cuisine.Just over twenty years ago Barbara Nevins opened Southwest Cafe inspired by a life in New Mexico and a love for its cuisine largely defined by the chile. Toss any notion of that green grocery store bell pepper out of your mind. A chile in the New Mexican sense is a nuanced creature with multiple personalities that restaurants such as Southwest Cafe exploit to their fullest and many New Mexicans trade as currency Read More
Friday Froth: Barleys, Stouts, and Porters Ingredients Beer James Gribbon December 31, 2010 Here and now, in the some of the shortest days of the year, life could use a little brightening up. This is an instinctual thing with people. We light candle displays, light our homes, and celebrate the low tide of winter having passed, and the return of longer, better days ahead. But it’s still dark. So the brightness in our spirits gets helped along with stronger, winter brews. That’s our theme today. I always look forward to the old ales, barley wines and especially porters that come out in the late fall and winter. Otter Creek Stovepipe Porter from Vermont is one of my absolute favorites, but Southampton Imperial Porter is a new one (to me) to which I'm giving pretty high marks. Read More
Our Top 10 Eats of 2010 Restaurant Top 10 Eats Stephanie Webster & Amy Kundrat December 29, 2010 The Schoolhouse at Cannondale: Mushroom Truffle Soup Chef LaBant's Mushroom soup with truffle oil achieved maximum sounds of audible appreciation at a recent meal. His French culinary know how is evident in all of his sauces as well as this wonderfully decadent starter. The Boathouse: Lobster Salad I'm embarrassed to admit how many of Chef Holzwarth's Lobster Salads I have consumed in 2010. A composed salad with the absolute freshest market vegetables, avocado and heirloom shell beans pedestaled on large chunks of succulent lobster meat. It's good stuff. leFarm: Local Beets & Oregon Lentils, Pecans, Aged Ricotta with La Quercia Ham A celebration of fresh ingredients, tastes and textures, this dish sits in perfect harmony. Earthy, sweet, rich and savory, this is a dish often craved. Chao Chi: Foie Gras Beignet Now shuttered, this amuse bouche is stamped into my memory from a long meal enjoyed there. The buttery softness of the foie gras paired with a light and doughy shell was finished with a blackberry jam drizzle. Bravo Prasad. Bereket Turkish Restaurant: Manti This hole in the wall in Bridgeport (soon with a new larger location) serves a Turkish classic "Manti," tiny folded triangles of dough filled with ground meat and onion, floating atop a bed of yoghurt, meat drippings and spices. As close to Istanbul as it gets in FC. Read More
Ask Chef Nicole: Sweet & Spicy Nuts Features Ask Chef Nicole Entertaining Holiday Recipe Nicole Straight December 28, 2010 Nothing says "cocktail party" like Sweet & Spicy Nuts. Salty and satisfying for both the sweet tooth and those seeking a little heat, this appetizer is a must have in any entertaining repertoire. Cinnamon and smoky paprika give this dish great flavor. NOTE: Make sure nuts have cooled completely before even thinking about putting them in the fridge, or you'll have some seriously soggy nuts. In fact, avoid the fridge if at all possible. Also, watch nuts closely in oven as cook times vary. We nearly torched our test batch. Sweet and Spicy Nuts Read More
Food Writing & Blogging Class w/ Corinne Trang Ingredients Cookbooks Education Events Stephanie Webster December 27, 2010 Looking to learn how to write about food or start a blog? Why not learn from a master? Corinne Trang is an award-winning author of several books including Noodles Every Day (2009), Curry Cuisine (2007), The Asian Grill (2006), She was dubbed the “Julia Child of Asian Cuisine” by the Washington Post, and has written for numerous publications including Saveur, Food & Wine, Relish, Cooking Light, and Bon Appetit. Now is your chance to study with Corinne Trang in a very intimate setting. Here are the details: Read More
People's Choice in Norwalk: Soulful Jamaican Cuisine Restaurant Delicious Dives Jamaican Norwalk Lunch Kid Friendly Gayatri Batra December 26, 2010 People’s Choice on Wall Street in Norwalk is as nondescript as a restaurant gets, but if you happen to walk by, the aroma of jerk chicken and stewed meat makes your head turn even before you open the door. Step inside and you could be in the heart of Kingston, Jamaica – the savory spicy smells, the clanging of the pots and pans, people lining up to order directly from the kitchen, beverage coolers stacked with Jamaican drinks and sodas with names like Kola Champagne, Peanut Punch, and Irish Moss …. I must have driven past this restaurant countless times before I was introduced to this ‘find’ by my Jamaican Nanny – Corrine. During the snow laden Connecticut winters, homesick for ‘ackee and salt fish’ and ‘callalloo’ she wanted nothing more than her weekly visit to People’s Choice. Read More
Friday Froth: IPA's, Wheat Beer & A Lotta Hops Ingredients Beer James Gribbon December 23, 2010 Hello, and welcome to Friday Froth: the weekly beer column designed to tempt, inform, and share the joy I find in discovering great brews. A quick introduction: There are limitless possibilities to beer. By that, I mean not just different styles like lagers, ales, stouts and barley wines (very much a winter beer, btw), but all the variations possible within those styles. Budweiser's a lager, but comparing it to Brooklyn lager is like comparing me to Lebron James because we're both human males. This column is identical in theme to the rest of CTbites, i.e., "Here are some new flavors, aromas and sensations you may like to try." Read More
Tartines for the Holidays via Healthy Living Blog Features Cookbooks Entertaining Holiday Recipe CTbites Team December 22, 2010 I had the most fortunate experience of meeting Dorie Greenspan, a James Beard Award-winning author, several months ago at a BlogHer conference. Dorie was signing her new cookbook at the Darien library recently, Around My French Table: More than 300 recipes from my home to yours. After leaving Dorie’s book signing, I was so inspired that I went through her entire cookbook, page by page. The Dieter’s Tartine caught my eye as it is popular among ladies who lunch in Paris, who want something filling, but not fattening. A tray of assorted tartines would also be especially festive during the holidays (cut in half for appetizer size portions). I made Dorie's Dieter's Tartine, a tartine topped with artichoke tapenade, a sardine piquillo pepper tartine, a zucchini tartine, and a blueberry tartine. I have to say my son and I loved them all (his favorites were the artichoke tapenade, sardine piquillo pepper, and blueberry tartines). As you can see, the possibilities are endless. Report back on any new toppings and combinations you come up with for tartines. Read More
Reheated: Ridgefield's Elms Closes & Gift Ideas Amy Kundrat December 21, 2010 Reheated is a twice-weekly round-up of bite-sized food news in Connecticut and beyond. In Connecticut... Brendan's at The Elms, a Ridgefield institution for 15 years, has closed. Citing his battle with cancer for two years, Brendan Walsh has decided not to renew his lease. Walsh and his "Yankee cuisine" will be missed. Via TownVibe.com. Also, check out this recent CTBites post. CTnow's biggest restaurant news of 2010, a great round-up for those of us who skew toward that part of the state (Hartford). List via CTnow.com. Last minute gift ideas for the foodies in your life? Check out these Fairfield County cooking classes and a short list of our favorite cookbooks recommended by our readers and contributors. Looking to spend Christmas Day far, far from your kitchen? Check out Tabouli Grill in Stamford for a Middle Eastern feast (seatings at 2 & 4 pm). The Feast of the Seven Fishes is being celebrated throughout the county, including Stamford newcomer Tappo Restaurant. To book a table for this traditional italian meal, call Tappo at 203.588.9870. ...and beyond. Read More
Kids Review: Rye Ridge Deli in Stamford Kids Bites Deli Stamford Comfort Food Kid Friendly CTbites Team December 20, 2010 Carly Monson is our roving 10 yrs old food critic. She hopes to get Fairfield County kids excited about eating in new venues like this one... Are you starving for some classic deli food? Then get in the car and head on down to Rye Ridge Deli in Stamford, CT. As soon as I got there I knew exactly what I was going to order, Matzo Ball Soup and half a sandwich of corn beef and half a sandwich of pastrami on white bread. Before the waiter even came to take my order we got two bowls of pickles one bowl had half sour pickles the other had sour pickles. Read More
Coromandel, Authentic Indian, Opens in Southport CT Restaurant Southport Indian Lunch Sarah Green December 19, 2010 So many Coromandels, so little time. Gopinath Nair and the other 6 partners in this Indian dynasty have opened yet another authentic Indian restaurant, their 3rd of the same name, in Fairfield County. "Indian is a destination, not a 'drive by' and 'stop in' kind of cuisine," Nair says. That explains, perhaps, why the partners chose to open number 3 at the thus-far unsuccessful location off Southport's exit 19 where the old Kicking Horse Tavern used to be. People aren't driving down the Post Road and, on the spur of the moment, deciding to have some curry. The decision has most likely been made before prospective diners get in their cars. So 'location, location, location' may not be so important. 17 Pease Street, although perhaps not the most ideal locale, hidden behind an off-ramp as it over-looks (actually, under -looks!) southbound traffic on I-95, turns out to be a great spot for Indian for those of us in the Fairfield/Westport 'hood. The owners have redesigned the space and warmed it up. The floor is carpeted to absorb most outside noise and the walls are decorated with beautiful Ajanta Cave Drawings. The restaurant seats approx 55 people and there is a full bar with all the trimmings. And by the way, they just so happen to be serving top notch food. Read More
Buying Guide: Prosecco, Cava & Champagne for 2011 Ingredients Features Entertaining Holiday This Week In Wine Wine Chat Kathleen Hall December 17, 2010 Get your sparkle on! Now that the holiday season is in full swing, what better gift to bring to a party than a sparkling wine? Any occasion becomes a celebration when you open a bottle of bubbles! Not only that, sparkling wine is extremely food-versatile, pairing well with most hors d oeuvres, from foie gras to pigs in a blanket. And for those of us hoping not to overindulge this month, at only 95 calories per flute (compared to 250 calories in a Vodka Martini), sparkling wine allows you to have fun AND behave all at the same time! Here are three ideas I believe might ring your holiday bell: Read More
