Pie & Hors D'oeuvre Class @ The Schoolhouse CTbites Team November 09, 2011 Right in time for the frenzy of holiday entertaining, The Schoolhouse at Cannondale will be offering their annual pie and hors d'oeuvre class Reserve your spot now for Tuesday November 22nd from 7:30 to 9:30 to sample some of our latests and greatest hors d'oeuvres and our sinfully delicious seasonal fruit and nut pies while sipping warm mulled cider and wine in our cozy restaurant. The cost is $65.00 per person (cash only) and you will have a chance to learn our secret tricks for creating show stopping and easy to do hors d'oeuvres and dessert pies complete with recipes and instruction for your holiday fêtes plus a pie of your choice* to take home and share. Read More
Win a $120 Gift Certificate to Bobby Flay's Bar Americain CTbites Team November 09, 2011 Subscribe to the CTbites Newsletter for a chance to Win a $120 Gift Certificate to Bobby Flay's Bar Americain. On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of Mohegun Sun, we're booking our road trips to that quiet corner of Connecticut and think you should too. For a little added incentive, our friends at Mohegun Sun are giving one lucky reader a $120 gift certificate to Bar Americain, Bobby Flay's Bar Americain. To enter, simply subscribe to receive our weekly CTbites newsletter. If you're already a loyal subscriber, simply comment below, sharing how you would you plan your day at Mohegun (in addition to bringing along yours truly), or why you pine for Flay, or why you prefer blackjack over craps (the odds, duh!). Good luck and see you on the Reservation. Read More
NY/CT Buick Culinary Event w Celebrity Chef Michael Psilakis CTbites Team November 08, 2011 Attention all foodies. The Buick Discovery Tour, featuring Celebrity Chef Michael Psilakis, is heading to Stamford, Connecticut this weekend, Nov. 12 and 13. Buick has partnered with FOOD & WINE magazine to host this exclusive culinary event. On Saturday, Nov. 12 and Sunday, Nov. 13 at The Sheraton Stamford, the Buick Discovery Program will offer invited guests the opportunity to view full cooking demonstrations, sample delicious cuisine (including dessert!) and test drive vehicles from Buick’s 2012 line-up. Celebrity Chef Michael Psilakis will be in attendance cooking up delicious Greek cuisine, along with FOOD & WINE Best New Chef 2007 Gavin Kaysen from New York City. Don’t want to miss out on all the excitement? Follow us @GMNortheast to find out how you can register for this delicious weekend or contact Eleni Simmoneau @esimmoneau@tierneyagency.com. Read More
2011 Guide to Buying Local and Heritage Turkeys Ingredients Events Holiday Local Farm Specialty Market CTbites Team November 08, 2011
Curds & Brew Class @ 109 Cheese & Wine in Ridgefield Ingredients Restaurant Cheese Specialty Market Amy Kundrat November 08, 2011 To mark the conclusion of American Cheese Month, 109 Cheese & Wine in Ridgefield is pairing great American brews with great American artisan and farmstead cheeses. Curds & Brew class will be held on Sunday, November 13 at 5:30 p.m. and will be $45 per person. The class and tasting will kick-off with a beer fondue, followed by a pairing of six beers and six cheeses (see list below Read More
Shiki Hana Japanese Bistro in Fairfield Restaurant Delicious Dives Fairfield Japanese Sushi Kid Friendly Melissa Roberts November 06, 2011 As a recent Westport transplant from New York City, one thing I find myself pining for from my former life is good sushi. A recent visit to Shiki Hana in Fairfield has changed all that. Located in a strip mall in Fairfield, Shiki Hana has the nondescript atmosphere of countless Japanese restaurants, but the surprise is in the food: some of the freshest, well prepared sushi I’ve had in a while. Read More
Saugatuck Craft Butchery Opens in Westport Ingredients Butcher Home Delivery Specialty Market Westport Lou Gorfain November 05, 2011 “Americans eat way too much meat," Ryan Fibiger says, and then grins, "I guess that sounds funny coming from a butcher." No kidding. But then Fibiger is a butcher truly on the “cutting edge” -- one of the very few whole animal cutters in America, sourcing his organic meat from local sustainable farms and utilizing every part of the animal, from nose to tail. Once a Wall Street investment banker, he’s turned from issuing stock to butchering them. For the past two years Fibiger trained with the “moo-rus”” at Fleisher's Meats, a whole animal butcher shop in Kingston, NY. With his knives honed as keen as his business skills, Ryan decided to open Saugatuck Craft Butchery and join in Westport’s red hot culinary renaissance. Read More
Visions of Gingerbread Opens Saturday, Nov 12 Kids Bites Events kids activity Kid Friendly Dessert Stephanie Webster November 04, 2011 A holiday tradition returns to the Stamford Museum & Nature Center on November 12th with Visions of Gingerbread III: The Sweetest Architects exhibition. Visions of Gingerbread is a tribute to architectural confections that truly make your jaw drop. Created by some of the area’s finest bakers, these edible wonders will display the chefs’ extraordinary creativity and gingerbread skills. It is the Museum’s desire to elevate these creative structures to the art form they so truly are, and put them on proper display. Last year, CTbites jumped on board and created an entry (much sleep was lost). This year, CTbites will help judge the winner. Read More
bartaco Launches "CTBites Invites" w/ Tequila & Tacos Restaurant CTbites Invites Cocktails Port Chester Mexican Sarah Green November 04, 2011 Last night, 35 or so lucky CTbites readers participated in the Inaugural "CTBites Invites" event at bartaco in Port Chester, NY. The "Invites," offer CTBites customers unique culinary experiences in the form of special restaurant "happenings" and special product purchasing opportunities. You sign up while the offer lasts, you pay on line and you're in. Simple as that. At last night's event, those who signed up were treated to a TACOS and TEQUILA and a whole lot more. Read More
Rubbing Elbows At Rory's in Darien Restaurant Darien Comfort Food Kid Friendly Burgers James Gribbon November 03, 2011 Rory's is a neighborhood bar in search of a neighborhood. Surrounded by the Orvis/Trader Joe's plaza, a nail salon, and an unfinished furniture/firearms emporium on the more commercial end of the Post Road in Darien close to the Norwalk border, Rory's somehow manages to have a "walk up and join the locals" feel. The tiny pub sits on a bit of raised land above Rt. 1 traffic like a little beach cottage above the tide line. Not too many people live within walking distance though, which is why you may find yourself parked next to a Rolls Royce or Ferrari. Maybe it's not your average local pub, after all. Read More
Farmageddon Screening: You Are What You Eat CTbites Team November 02, 2011 Westport Farmers Market rolls out the green carpet for its exclusive screening event - Farmageddon - on November 18 at 7.30pm in downtown Westport, at the new Christ & Holy Trinity church building. The Westport Farmers Market had the idea to bring the film Farmageddon to Fairfield County. Little did they know they would be able to assemble this all-star group to work together to share this documentary with the community. The goal is to create a fun and educational evening filled with local food, wine and friends. This is not a fundraiser for any organization just one way The Westport Farmers' Market is hoping to give back to the community. So please join them on November 18 at 7:30 for the Fairfield County premier of Farmageddon. Read More
Pinkberry Opens in Greenwich on November 17 Amy Kundrat November 01, 2011 Celebrate the opening of Pinkberry Greenwich with a "Friends & Family Event" featuring free Pinkberry on Novemeber 17 at 5 p.m. WHAT: To commemorate the opening of the Greenwich Pinkberry location in Connecticut, there will be a town-wide celebration and all guests will receive a FREE sample of one of five Pinkberry flavors. The The first 100 guests in line will receive a complimentary Pinkberry Tee-shirt. WHERE: Pinkberry, 369 Greenwich Avenue, Greenwich, CT WHEN: Thursday, November 17, from 5 to 9 pm (Grand Opening Event) Read More
Maple & Chile Roasted Acorn Squash Features Farmers Market healthy Recipe Melissa Roberts November 01, 2011 Quite honestly, I never met a roasted vegetable I didn’t like. I roast it all: carrots (the only way to eat them besides raw), onions, okra, even broccoli. So now we’ve come to squash. I don’t know why I’m initially reluctant to prepare it, especially this time of year when it’s everywhere and the varieties are endless. Squash is like a misunderstood pitbull, tough on the outside, but sweet and tender on the inside. It can be daunting to approach at first, but really it’s no big deal. I’ve been drawn to acorn squash this season. The flesh has a pleasant vegetal quality that’s a breeze to prepare and it’s equally delicious with fish, meat, and poultry. Sliced into crescent moons, tossed with butter, olive oil and chile flakes, it gets a drizzle of maple syrup towards the end which caramelizes the squash ever so slightly. A combo of sweet and sassy. The skin is tough and inedible (remember, it’s still part pitbull), but eaten with knife and fork, it’s Autumn on a Plate. Read More
Road Trip: Ballo Italian Restaurant & Club @ Mohegan Sun Road Trip Restaurant Italian Road Trip Andrew Dominick November 01, 2011 A month ago I contributed an article about John Tunney’s latest creation, Ballo Italian Restaurant & Social Club. Now, I am pleased to bring you a sneak peek at not just the décor, not just a menu preview, but of the reason we are all here, for the food. But first, let me take you on a brief tour of this restaurant/bar/dance club/lounge. Remember that preview article? All that construction and the pictures of what it will look like? Seeing those photos is one thing, seeing this place in person is another. The wraparound marble bar, the sphere-like hanging lamps, the giant lanterns, and the fireplaces, give Ballo a glow unlike any other restaurant in Mohegan Sun Casino. Read More
Caroline's Crêperie Opens in New Canaan Restaurant French New Canaan Breakfast Lunch Kid Friendly Dessert CTbites Team October 30, 2011 Walk under the blue awning and into the open doors of Caroline’s Crêperie and you’ll feel as if you’re walking into Caroline’s very own French home. With the warm, helpful service and Caroline herself standing at the helm making crêpes and welcoming clients into her buzzing restaurant, you can’t help but be charmed by this new restaurant on New Canaan's Elm Street. Read More
You're Invited: Exotic Taco & Tequila Tasting @ bartaco CTbites Team October 28, 2011 Exotic Taco Night November 2nd @ bartaco. BUY NOW for $50!!! CTbites is pleased to announce the launch of CTbites Invites, an innovative series of culinary events, offers and products created for and by Connecticut launching today. This food-obsessed series will pair local restaurants, products and special events with the CTbites’ community of readers, offering exclusive access to interesting culinary experiences throughout our region. CTbites Invites is a carefully curated series of food events and offers where we will seek-out to share unique happenings in the region, hard-to-find products for sale from local vendors, and offer special offers at your favorite dining destinations. We will be working with restaurants, chefs, farmers and foodies to test and introduce new menu items, exclusive wine and food pairings, tasting menus, cooking demonstrations and classes, unique product offers, mixology classes, and private kitchen tours, to name just a few opportunities. Read More
Bumper Crop: Tuscan Kale Salad Features Farmers Market healthy Recipe Farm Fresh Melissa Roberts October 28, 2011 A recent Westport transplant from NYC, Melissa Roberts was a food editor for Gourmet for almost 9 years, where she toiled happily in the test kitchen developing and writing recipes for the magazine. She was also a cook and stylist in the Food Network's kitchen. Last Thursday’s Imperial Avenue Greenmarket in Westport fell on one of those perfect crisp and clear Fall days. The Greenmarket’s atmosphere was buzzing, complete with live music commemorating its 6th birthday. I joined in the celebration by treating myself to a Breakfast Pizza (pecorino, local bacon, fried egg) from Skinny Pines Pizza with Raus’ cold Roman Coffee to wash it all down. But my mission was not only to treat my belly, but to find inspiration amidst the produce, and it was there in spades beginning with a pile of deep green lacinato kale from Riverbank Farms in Roxbury, CT. Often with the freshest veggies the best way to treat them is the simplest. In this recipe, kale is shredded then tossed with a straightforward dressing of lemon and olive oil which brightens its earthy, mineral-like flavor, and a generous shower of nutty Parmigiano Reggiano. Read More
