Bar Ordinary Opens in New Haven

Restaurant Cocktails Bar New Haven

Amy Kundrat

Rarely is 400 years of history and presidential name-dropping relevant to a CTbites review, but allow me to digress.

Bar Ordinary, New Haven's newest incarnation of its oldest bar, sits on a storied site on the corner of Chapel and College Street. Nearly 400 years of New Haven history converge on this location, beginning with its role as the town’s first ordinary, or tavern, in 1659 where it hosted a few early visitors you may recognize, including the infamous Benedict Arnold as well as General George Washington as he made his way to command the Continental Army in 1775 (other presidential visitors may have included Lincoln in 1860 and Taft in 1914). In subsequent centuries it was known as The Beers Tavern (18th), the New Haven Hotel (mid-19th) and the Taft Hotel (beginning in 1910), serving as the locus for the city's social stratum for the greater part of the twentieth century.* By the 1980’s, The Taft Hotel's bar room became Richter’s, a popular spot owned by Yale grad and crew instructor Richter Elser who embraced its layers of historic patina, keeping much of the wood paneling and its original plaster ceiling until it closed in 2011.

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Invites: Happy Hour on The Patio @ Artisan Southport

CTbites Team

Kick off the season with CTbites and Artisan Southport as they re-open their fabulous patio bar and outdoor restaurant on Wednesday 5/15 5:30-7:30 with a Happy Hour featuring creative hors d'oeuvres by innovative Chef Frederic Kieffer and specialty cocktails from American Harvest "Organic artisanal spirits" for $39, tax and tip all included! 

Menu of passed hors d'oeuvres to include;
Chilled gazpacho shooter, crab meat, avocado, pepitas
Veal tongue crostini, pickled mustard seeds
Foie gras-chicken meat balls, concord grapes glaze
Roasted local oysters
Cod fish fritters, escabeche sauce
Artisan pigs in a blanket, whole grain mustard dressing
Saffron pickled mussels bruschetta, aioli, scallion
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Mama's Boy Southern Table & Refuge Opens in SONO

Restaurant Norwalk SONO Southern Comfort Food

Jeff "jfood" Schlesinger

With little fanfare, Mama’s Boy Southern Table and Refuge, the newest addition to the SONO food scene is slowly opening its doors. Based on traditional Southern hospitality and cuisine, the restaurant will deliver the comfort food of the south combined with a relaxed atmosphere.  As the website states, “Mama’s Boy is putting the “South” in South Norwalk.”

The interior has been completely redesigned. Using woods and material from an old water tower from Florence, South Carolina, owners Greer Fredericks and Ami Dorel created a warm environment from top to bottom. The lighting is soft and inviting, the music gives a perfect background through various genres and the service is straight from Charleston, friendly and incredibly helpful. Upon entering you can choose a seat at the long bar or one of the tables along the wall with a long comfortable banquette. In the rear is a second dining area that is guarded by two windows that were reclaimed from Al Capone’s summer residence. This dining area features a traditional “mirror wall,” you have to see it to completely understand and appreciate.

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The Beer Garden @ Harbor Point Stamford Opens Tonight

James Gribbon

Break out the sun dresses, deck shoes and whatever you consider to be your drinking pants, because we're about to do this al fresco, baby. The Beer Garden @ Harbor Point officially opens tonight in Stamford.

The brand new space sits beside a bubbling fountain in Stamford's rapidly gentrifying Harbor Point, and overlooks the canal. The open spaces of the surrounding boardwalk, aluminum facia, and large angular windows help to set it apart from the gleaming glass cubes of the surrounding commercial areas. The Beer Garden is designed to be as open as possible, with sectioned glass doors that fold away to let breezes blow through the large, indoor bar on the ground floor, and those large tilted windows - slightly reminiscent of a ship's bridge - let the beams of sunsets to come flood into the smaller, upstairs bar. But most people won't be coming here to hang out inside. 

Sleek light poles dot the area just outside the main bar and illuminate several picnic tables on a broad boardwalk which extends well over a hundred yards south toward the end of the point, providing views of the harbor entrance and The Crab Shell across the canal. I heard talk of a water taxi shuttling revelers between the two locations as the weather warms. The easiest way for most people to head to this spot on the point is to drive down Pacific, but those who prefer to motor their way up from the Sound can dock at one of an eventual 14 boat slips allocated for The Beer Garden's patrons. 
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Get a "Taste of the Marketplace" in Ridgefield this Weekend

CTbites Team

The Marketplace at Copps Hill Common is hosting the first ever "Taste of the Marketplace" this Saturday, May 11 from 11am to 2pm. Ridgefield's culinary gem of a neighborhood will showcase the restaurateurs, vendors and small shops that make this a destination for the area foodies. The Marketplace is located at Copps Hill Common on Danbury Road in Ridgefield, CT.

Featured restaurants include: 109 Cheese and Wine (also hosting classes in their NEW space this weekend), Ridgefield Organics, Ross' Bread, Ridgefield, Prime, Swoon Gluten Free Bakery, Southwest Café, The Cutting Board Café, Bartolo ...

Read the full story over at Hamlet Hub. 

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Community Plates Launches in New Haven: Sign Up to Rescue Food

Stephanie Webster

You’ve heard us talk about Community Plates before. In fact, CTbites readers make up almost 80% of Community Plates’ volunteer driven work force delivering rescued food to those in need in Fairfield County. Well now we need to reach out to our New Haven readership to do the same. Community Plates has recently announced their New Haven launch and they need your help. 

Community Plates is a non-profit organization that connects food to people in need of it, by rescuing good food that would otherwise be thrown away and delivering it to hunger relief agencies. Community Plates has lined up food donors in New Haven and is adding more every day, but they need your help to complete the direct transfer of the food to those who need it. They are hoping to sign up 100 food runners by the end of May 2013. Be a part of the solution and sign up here. 

To be involved with the Community Plates initiative, volunteers are asked to commit to just one food run or bin collection a month (15 – 20 minute effort). It’s simple. Just pick up a few bins at your local restaurant or grocery store and drive them to a receiving agency, such as a food pantry or soup kitchen. 

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Tips for Great Grilled Cheese from Chef Jason Sobocinski of Caseus

Features Chef Talk kids activity Lunch Kid Friendly

CTbites Team

King of the Grilled Cheese, Jason Sobocinski is the owner and founder of New Haven's innovative cheese-centric gastropub and cheese shop  Caseus Fromagerie Bistro. Here are his tips for the perfect Grilled Cheese sandwich. 

The crispy and the melty are no more typified than in America's greatest culinary accomplishment, the Grilled Cheese! Who thought up such a wonderful combination, to put bread to butter then heat with cheese till melted? Pure culinary Genius. 

The first signs of what we know as the Grilled Cheese sandwich surfaced around the 1940's. Sliced white bread was used often with cheese melted open faced called cheese toasties in England and was a popular dish to make in U.S. Naval galleys. These toasted melted precursors of what we now know where easy to make and super satisfying...did they come from the English Welsh Rarebit or the French Croque Madame? I'm not sure, but I do know that now more than ever this nostalgic sandwich has become increasingly popular and more and more refined. Is it because it's simplicity and comfort evoking qualities? Again, not sure but I know how to make a seriously great GC and here are some of my tips and stellar condiment suggestion to bolster your next crispy melty endeavor! 

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Top 10 Bar Burgers from Greenwich to New Haven 2013

Restaurant Burgers

Jeff "jfood" Schlesinger

Over a year ago CTbites decided to create as comprehensive a guide as possible for this year’s Best Burger review. During that time, I visited over sixty local chains, bars, fast food joints, and restaurants, grabbed a seat, looked at the menu and placed my order. Over sixty patties of ground meat were prepared on a griddle, grill, or flat-top, and thousands of French fries were plunged into oil. The meat was seasoned, the rolls were sliced, the toppings were placed on the patty and the fries seasoned.

When each arrived at the table, it was sliced to check for doneness, a piece of meat pulled and tasted and the competition officially added another competitor. Each of the toppings was individually tested and finally the burger, toppings and bun were viewed as a single entrant. Many did not make the grade on seasoning, some failed on doneness, others on taste and others due to toppings. A very simple process for a very simple product, but the sheer variability of my reaction to the end result ranged from a huge smile to a grimace. Some I craved for more, while others earned a few tentative tastes and I asked for the check.

This year we decided to present the burgers in two categories, “Bar Burgers” and “Restaurant Burgers,” believing it unfair to compare a $7-12 burger with a $20+ burger.

With only three repeat locations from the 2012 list, here are the… Top-10 “Bar Burgers” from Greenwich to New Haven. Happy National Burger month!

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Dinner Underground in Newtown CT with Chef Plum

Restaurant Events Newtown Underground Dinner

Nicole Straight

I wasn’t sure what to expect as we entered the butcher, but were warmly greeted with a glass of champagne by Chef (Chris) Plum himself and were shown to our table.  Butcher’s Best deli and butcher in Newtown, CT has been transformed twice in 2013 to offer 30 lucky diners one of Plum’s "Dinner Undergound" culinary evenings. I was lucky enough to enjoy night #2.  

Chef Plum is a graduate from The Culinary Institute of America with over 18 years of experience. He has worked all over the east coast in five-star hotels and resorts, as well as small neighborhood restaurants. Plum-Luv-Foods was born in 2006 and since then has brought whole farm foods to families, small parties, Broadway actors, executives, Food Network and network TV. 

Plum’s happy demeanor shines through his food.  His inventive style and clever riffs show both his appreciation for food and simple enjoyment of offering his guests thoughtfully created dishes.  As each course is served, Plum tells us about where the food is from, his inspiration and why he chose to marry the components. 

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Taste of the Nation in New Haven 2013

Restaurant Events New Haven

Amy Kundrat

Join famed Chef Jacques Pepin as the Taste of the Nation New Haven continues to set the bar on the culinary event scene by bringing over 40 of Greater New Haven's most notable chefs and bartenders together under one roof; providing an exclusive opportunity for attendees to mix and mingle with the area's top chefs while savoring their creative food and drink. The event raises important funds in the fight against childhood hunger.  

Taste of the Nation will be held at The Omni Hotel at Yale on May 22nd, 2013, in the heart of downtown New Haven. Tickets are $85 general admission and $150 VIP admission. VIP guests will enjoy private access to our VIP lounge with specialty cocktails and opulent bites provided by Winvian and sparkling wine by Mionetto.

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Wine Gal Abroad: Lebanese Winemakers

Emma Jane-Doody Stetson

I have an exciting announcement that I can’t wait any longer to tell you… or maybe I should say “KuWAIT any longer to tell you!”  I have left the United States for an indefinite period of time in order to pursue my culinary dreams in the Middle East!  I have accepted the position of Guest Relations Manager at Figs, a restaurant by Todd English, in Kuwait.  The restaurant originated in Massachusetts, but English is bringing branches to new locations.  This will be Kuwait’s second Figs and I have the exciting chance to be involved with it from its inception.

In one of my favorite movies of all times, Sleepless in Seattle, Tom Hank’s friend turns to him and asks, “What do you call it when everything just intersects?”  Tom Hanks shrugs and replies, “The Bermuda Triangle.”  This brief back-and-forth pretty much embodies the past month of my life when a series of improbable events seemed to come together to.  A chance meeting with Chef Todd English at the Mohegan Sun WineFest set the chain of events in motion.  By February I had submitted my resume and one short month later I was signing the contract.  My car is sold, my apartment is for rent, and my clothes are packed.

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Cooking is Believing. Start Your Kitchen Project at Clarke (sponsored post)

CTbites Team

When something seems too good to be true, it typically is too good to be true. However, there is one exception right here in Connecticut: a visit to Clarke, New England's official Sub-Zero showroom and test kitchen in South Norwalk, CT.

While many think a kitchen design is all about cabinetry, discerning home chefs know a new kitchen starts with appliance research. Is a gas cooktop really better than induction? Will refrigerator drawers work in your layout? Can a convection steam oven replace a microwave? Clarke can answer all of these questions and more. 

According to Marco Barallon, Clarke showroom manager in South Norwalk, spending one to two hours at Clarke can save you months of your own research. He should know; he provides many of the private showroom tours at Clarke to educate homeowners about what is possible in their space and how to best accomplish their cooking goals in a new kitchen design. Are you passionate about pastry baking? Do you expect your children to prepare food? Do you have more than one chef in your home? How many dishwashers do you need? Should you incorporate wine storage into your kitchen or pantry?  

Your lifestyle informs your kitchen design and Clarke is a wonderful place to begin the design process.

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Shake Shack "No Kid Hungry" Shake Sale: Donate $2...Get FREE Shake

CTbites Team

Shake it forward!  Starting today, Shake Shack® is hosting the 2nd Annual Great American Shake Sale benefiting Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry® campaign.

The Great American Shake Sale is a company-wide cause marketing initiative taking place May 1-31, 2013, at all Shake Shacks—excluding stadiums and international locations.  The goal is to help raise awareness and funds for Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign in its effort to end childhood hunger in America.

Throughout the month of May, Shake Shack guests who donate $2 or more to No Kid Hungry will receive a card for a complimentary hand-spun shake—valued at $5—redeemable on their next visit.  One hundred percent of donations will benefit No Kid Hungry. Swing by their locations in Westport or New Haven. 
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American Craft Beer Week in CT Starts May 11th

Ingredients Restaurant Beer Dinner Events Beer

James Gribbon

American Craft Beer Week was created in 2006 by the Brewers Association to promote American craft beers and protect the independent brewers who make them. The first Craft Beer Week had only 124 participating breweries, but by last year there were over 1,300 official events in all 50 states, with who knows how many local promotions on top of that. May is for drinkers, people.

Connecticut is home to some of the best beers in the country - a fact regularly ignored or glossed over in even regional beer reporting - but this year marks the first ever Connecticut Craft Beer Week, which runs May 11-18 to coincide with American Craft Beer Week, May 13-19. We have some highlights from around the state below, and we'll update this post as new info comes in over the transom. Feel free to tell us about events you've heard about or will be attending in the comments.

The first event of CT Beer Week opens the taps at the Rising Pint Brewfest, where over 230 craft beers from 70+ brewers will be on offer at Rentschler Field in West Hartford.

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Forever Sweet Bakery Opens in Norwalk

Bakery Norwalk Kid Friendly Dessert

CTbites Team

Forever Sweet Bakery opened last week in the small mini-mall across from the Subaru dealership on New Canaan Avenue in Norwalk and CTbites paid a visit.

We visited after lunch on opening day and the success of the store preceded our arrival since the remaining inventory consisted of a few “Red Velvet” and a single chocolate cupcake. We decided on the Red Velvet and it was quite tasty. The cake was moist and they kept the sugar in the cake to a minimum. The icing was sweet and delicious and added great flavor.

The size of the cupcakes at Forever Sweet is also manageable, not the mega-cupcakes that have become the standard. Priced at $2.75 each, these are the perfect size and price for a kid’s party.

The Cake Pops start with a sphere of cake that are dipped in a hard shell and topped with some sparkles, priced at $2.75 each or $24.00 for a dozen. The Cupcake in a Jar is an 8-ounce mason jar filled with various layers of cake and priced $5.95 each.

With a following from its recent appearances at the Stamford Mall and current sales at local fooderies, Forever Sweets is a place to purchase some very tasty and creative cupcake inspired desserts.

Forever Sweet Bakery - 4 New Canaan Ave, Norwalk, CT - 203.939.9600

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Greenwich Dishcrawl Returns by Popular Demand

CTbites Team

Dishcrawl, a national start-up founded on the premise that communities can be brought together through good food and good company, is returning to Greenwich again this June!  Dishcrawl takes food lovers on a gourmet Dishcrawl to four unique restaurants in one night. Similar to a pub-crawl—but more delicious! Local food enthusiasts in Fairfield County got wind of the inaugural Dishcrawls earlier this month and devoured the tickets – literally.

In the beginning of April tickets were released for the inaugural Downtown Greenwich Dishcrawls scheduled to take place on May 7th and May 8th; within five days both events had sold out. On June 11th at 7PM Greenwich Dishcrawl will return with the same mission of building community through a commonality of a passion for food, but in a new location. Old Greenwich will play host to Greenwich Dishcrawl round three, and foodies can expect a ton of surprises along the way. 

Reservations are $45 per person and can be purchased at http://www.dishcrawl.com/oldgreenwich

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Oak + Almond Opens in Norwalk Under Chef Jeff Taibe

Restaurant Farm to Table Norwalk

Sarah Green

There's no doubt in my mind, they should really change the name of Fairfield County to Taibe Town! We all know the reputation of big brother Bill's excellent work at LeFarm and The Whelk, but now there's a new Taibe in town. He goes by the name of Jeff, and is Executive Chef of the newly opened Oak + Almond in Norwalk. This is Chef Jeff's debut as exec but there is nothing green about him - aside from all the sustainable, farm-to-table and biodynamic offerings on the menu. Experienced as sous chef at LeFarm and also at Southwest Cafe in Ridgefield (as well as plenty of mileage cooking and designing menus at various resorts in Turks and Caicos), Jeff brings panache and style to his ever-changing menu. Along with co-owner Jon Paul Pirraglia, General Manager Seth Levin and an incredibly knowledgeable and courteous staff, Jeff and co. are onto something excellent...

Oak + Almond finds itself in a rather unlikely location, right next to the DMV in Norwalk. But once inside, you could be in Sonoma, San Francisco or Manhattan. With clean, white walls, a tin roof and dark wood tables, chairs and floors, the atmosphere is hip and inviting. The open kitchen, massive rotisserie and large, wood burning oven greet you at the top of the stairs and almost anywhere you sit, you can watch Taibe and crew hard at work creating their magic.

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Good vs. Evil: An Evening with Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert

CTbites Team

Two chefs. Two unlikely friends. Two very different careers and philosophies sharing one stage.

Good vs. Evil: An Evening with Anthony Bourdain and Eric Ripert, live at The Bushnell on Friday, May 3, 2013.  JoinAnthony Bourdain, chef, author of Medium Raw and host of No Reservations and Eric Ripert, renowned chef of Le Bernardin, author and regular guest on Bravo’s Top Chef as they share stories and muse on the place of food in our personal, community and global life. It's an evening of storytelling and observation providing frank and provocative insight into what really goes on behind the kitchen doors.

Tickets and information at Bushnell.org

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