Ambler Farms is hosting a 2-part Cooking Series with Chef Brian Lewis, Wednesday, July 20th and August 17th.
Ambler Farm's popular 2011-12 cooking series resumes in July with Chef Brian Lewis making his debut in the Carriage Barn kitchen. Chef Lewis' kitchen credentials include Lutece, Oceana and The Sign of the Dove. His most recent venture was at The Bedford Post Inn which he co-created with Richard Gere. His new restaurant is due to open on Elm Street in New Canaan. Chef Lewis will work with Farmer Ben Saunders at the time of the dinners to select and harvest seasonal ingredients to create his menu.
Attendees will receive recipes, hands-on instruction and a fully serviced four course menu. Prices: $100/course for Ambler Farm members and $115/course for non-members.
Some meals need no words. The recent "Family Meal" at leFarm was one such event. On the final Tuesday of each month, the restaurant opens up for a single seating and several courses based on the whim of Chef Bill Taibe and his team. This past month featured a down-home family meal based around LeFarm's playful interpretation of pub grub carefully paired with a selection of beers chosen by Saugatuck Grain & Grape. Warning ... the following photos may make you drool on your keyboard.
Enjoy a bit of the Berkshires in our own backyard at the "Sunset Picnic on the Hill" @ Ambler Farm. Spread out your picnic blanket on the hill a la Tanglewood or join your friends under the tent for farm-fresh fare and live music as the sun sets over Ambler Farm.
The evening will kick off with a champagne greeting complemented by local artisanal food prepared by A Delicious Affair and homemade desserts. Celebrate our local harvest with the tasty menu below.
Cookbooks used to be written for those who loved to cook or for those who needed to cook. Today’s food-centric culture has added breadth and depth to the genre. Food lovers and home cooks look to chefs not just for instruction, but for inspiration. “Harvest to Heat, Cooking with America’s Best Chefs, Farmers, and Artisans” by Darryl Estrine and Kelly Kochendorfer goes one step beyond, showcasing the local farmers, ranchers and artisans who serve as muse to those esteemed chefs. The result is a celebration of the symbiotic relationship between farmers and chefs and the masterpieces created by their combined efforts.
“Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity” - Voltaire
The latest edition of CTBites’ “Behind the Scenes” series is brought to you from Match Restaurant in South Norwalk, where Matt Storch, its owner-chef and Westport native, has been at the helm of the kitchen for over ten years overseeing this highly acclaimed restaurant that creatively promotes today’s Farm to Table philosophy.
For those who have never experienced the incredible activity prior to the day’s first customer entering the restaurant, it is a bustle of activity. Chef Matt led us past the floor to ceiling wood burning pizza oven in the back of the dining room and down a flight of stairs to the restaurant’s subterranean kitchen.
Why TEN? The new TEN China Bistro in Wilton had a lot to live up to, giving itself a number like that. We would be the ones to decide if TEN was indeed an appropriate rating. We were diners on a mission. Chef/Owner Eric Xie would have a lot of "splainin" to do if the food at TEN ended up as anything less. There was only one way to find out...EAT! So eat we did. There are many reasons to try this new Asian fusion restaurant, (in the same plaza as SOUP ALLEY). Would we give it a 10? Well, here's the verdict:
Looking for that perfect restaurant to woo your significant other this Valentine's Day? Try one of these great romantic spots in Fairfield County, CT.
Schoolhouse - WiltonThis quaint renovated schoolhouse is the quintessential special occasion spot (if you can get a reservation). Local ingredients and nuanced flavors highlight this menu.
Paci - Southport Nestled in the Southport train station, Paci's unique interior combines a renovated freight depot with urban modern chic. This Southport favorite has been serving some of the best Italian fare in FC since 1996.
The Schoolhouse at Cannondale was built just after the Civil War, in 1872 and has been owned and operated by Chef Tim LaBant, a native of Wilton, since 2006. The setting of this authentic one room schoolhouse along the banks of the rushing Norwalk River, makes for an unusual destination dining experience. The deep chocolate hue on the walls, the comfortably upholstered banquet seating that runs under the windows that frame the river just outside, the simple decor accented by 4-5 framed photos of classes of students and teachers from over 100 years ago, sets the tone. This quintessential New England scene is authentic, inviting and superb.
“Sustainability,” “Farm to Table,” “Locavore.” These all describe a culinary trend toward using locally raised ingredients. This philosophy has created a groundswell of top-tier restaurants in Fairfield County including Napa &Co., LeFarm, Harvest Supper, The Schoolhouse at Cannondale, Nicholas Roberts, and The Boathouse. But Brendan Walsh, owner-chef of Brendan’s at the Elms in Ridgefield, has been creating some of the best locally sourced “farm to table” food in Fairfield County for over ten years.
The lines between farm stand and restaurant are growing ever more blurry with the recent opening of Farmers Table on Forest Street in New Canaan, a hybrid farmers market, bakery and the latest restaurant to embrace the farm-to-table dining trend. Intimate in both name and practice, the tiny 6 top restaurant delivers farm fresh hospitality with a farm stand persona.
Eating at Farmers Table is like inviting yourself to dinner at a friend’s house
Last Sunday harkened the beginning of a fresh new culinary offering in Fairfield County…a dining experience without walls and without rules. It represents the next generation of the "family" table, bringing people together with just their love of food as the communal bond. Is your interest piqued? It should be. When you make THIS reservation, you won't have an address. You definitely won't know what's on the menu. But you will know one thing for sure…this surprise dinner party is going to be extraordinary because Bill Taibe of LeFarm gastronomic fame is the man behind "Souterrain." For those of you who need brushing up on your High School French, underground dining has finally made its way out of the urban centers and into Fairfield County.
If you have dined at The Schoolhouse at Cannondale in Wilton, you have experienced the consistently inspired dishes that emerge from Chef LaBant's kitchen. LeBant's ingredients are pristinely fresh, locally farmed, and always beautifully prepared. An evening in The Schoolhouse's intimate dining room is always a treat.
With a strong background in French cuisine, LaBant does jutice to the classic French treat, Apple Tart Tatin. This recipe will take you right back to the great bakeries of Paris. Plus, it's surprisingly simple. Enjoy.
For as long as I can remember, Roget Martinpresided over Voila! in Fairfield, a jam-packed French bistro housed in a homey, red shingled building across from the Town Green. Then, one day, Voila! had disappeared and, in it’s place stood the very fine Osianna, an upscale Mediterranean newcomer and a worthy replacement.
Still, I wondered what had happened to the affable and ruddy-cheeked Roget, who, as maître d’, had lovingly presided over Voila!, sharing jokes and stories and dispensing large pours of Beaujolais to throngs of happy repeat diners.
Imagine my surprise when a friend introduced me to Bon Appétit Café, a charming yet unassuming French café, tucked into the Stop and Shop plaza in the heart of Wilton. Though Roget was nowhere in sight when I entered, his fingerprints were all over the place. Though the décor and vibe were night and day from Voila! to Bon Appetit, the food and service were a dead giveaway.
Whereas Voila! was known for its rollicking Saturday night scene and standing-only room crowds, Bon Appetit is first and foremost a casual neighborhood lunch and dinner spot, popular for both dining in and takeout.
While busily building my stationery empire this summer, I noticed an exciting transformation happening downstairs from my office (Colonial Green in Westport). The Italian restaurant favored by the blue haired crowd had closed and serious construction was underway on a new place. Over the next several weeks, there was a buzzing of saws, table tops were painted, artwork lay arrayed on the sidewalk, and chicken wire went up in the window. I took note of the words “Le Farm” scribbled on the front window and thought to myself, this is promising. I couldn’t resist asking one of the men standing out front if he was le farmer (he wasn’t). Then I heard rumblings (and soon confirmation) that foodie darling and former chef at Stamford’s famed Napa and Co., Bill Taibe, was le man behind LeFarm. LeFarm was to be Westport’s newest outpost for farm-to-table cuisine. As a charter member of the farm-to-table club, I couldn’t have been more excited. I’d live on a farm if it wouldn’t derail my shoe collection.
I know what you’re thinking...why is CTBites reviewing The Dressing Room? Isn't it the most reviewed restaurant in Fairfield County? Haven't we heard it all before? Think again. The Dressing Room has long been the go-to spot for a glass of wine or pre-theater meal, but it seems that Chef/Owner Michel Nischan and Executive Chef John Holzwarth have recently made some changes to their "Homegrown" repertoire.
I re-visited The Dressing Room recently at a friend's suggestion to try their new “American Tapas” menu. Just back from vacation on Cape Cod, and feeling the after-effects of the every day, all-fried seafood diet (ok, fine... there was the daily ice cream cone too), I was in dire need of a healthy veggie fix. My friend assured me that with the newly invigorated menu, I would not be disappointed... and I was not. In fact, I was blown away.
