There is a new food truck on the block in Fairfield (well, not so much food truck as in food car – Smart Car to be exact). The Local Meatball is rolling into town and making its debut this Saturday, April 6th,dishing out meatballs on the Town Green in Fairfield, made with local, organic ingredients. Meatballs, a comfort food of many, no longer need to be served over spaghetti to complete a meal. The Local Meatball is proving these balls stand great on their own!
Wanting to share his passion for meatballs with the town, chef and Fairfield resident Michael DiStassio started The Local Meatball. “Meatballs are such a simple idea, but they resonate with so many people,” says DiStassio. The Local Meatball was revealed online on March 9th, National Meatball Day and “People have been so responsive to the idea,” added DiStassio.
Working from his grandmother’s recipe, DiStassio has tweaked it slightly to come up with a variety of 5 different kinds of balls that will rotate weekly.
...is something wonderful to be seen. In between daily meals one and two is something very delightful for you. How Dr. Suess-y, eh? Wedged in-the-between is the one and only: Brunch. With a capital B, thank you very much. Brunch is divine. You can roll out of bed late and into a perfectly wonderful, relaxed meal that begs to be savored. It lingers beyond the lunch hour and helps you cruise effortlessly into dinner.
“There is no sincerer love than the love of food” says a quote that I stumbled upon recently. I think that is pretty darned accurate, especially when it comes to this meal. Here, for you, is a collection of some lovely spots to help you turn this noun into a verb...so go forth and brunch!
Did we miss one of your favorite Brunch spots? Let us know...
When Harry’s Liquor Store and the Fairfield Cheese Shop decided to tear down the wall they shared between them, customers could wander back and forth, tasting wine and snacking on crackers and cheese. It was the perfect symbiosis of oenophiles and cheesemongers. It couldn’t get any better. But yeah. It could. And it did.
Brothers David and Andrew Tavolacci, who sold fresh pasta and sauces at their little and much- loved store in Georgetown, made a smart decision to move to Fairfield and share the parking lot with Harry’s. Now we can shop for the trifecta of food – wine, cheese, and pasta – without re-parking the car.
Tutto’s is where you go to purchase fresh pasta and home-made sauces, Wave Hill Bread, pesto, soups, and a variety of specialty foods.
Attention Pinkberry fans: This frozen yogurt mecca has a new location in Westport, and it is officially open for business. Head on over to 111 Post Road East in Downtown Westport for your next fro-yo fix.
Pasta Bolognese..a dish so embedded in the DNA of Italian culture that the Italian Academy of Cuisine registered a recipe for "classic Bolognese ragù" with the Bologna Chamber of Commerce. The recorded recipe calls for beef from the plate section, unsmoked pancetta, carrot, celery, onions, tomato purée, meat broth, dry wine, milk, salt and pepper, plus a small amount of cream as an option to finish the sauce. There are numerous variations and nuances in the design, flavor, ingredients and most importantly the partner on the plate, the pasta, traditionally a taggliatelle.
What started as a simple idea within CTbites to find and recommend a few good Pasta Bolognese dishes in Fairfield County took a life of its own as more suggestions led to more great sauces, which led to, well more great sauces. Over the last several weeks, the two of us have enjoyed some great Pasta Bolognese preparations (and several that were not so good) to give our readers a list of recommended restaurants that serve delicious versions of this traditional Italian fare. It is not all encompassing, is listed alphabetically and we look to our readers to offer other suggestions of restaurants that serve their favorite Pasta Bolognese to be included in next year's search.
And this is only part 1…there were too many for just one list of recommendations, so stay tuned for part 2 in the near future.
The first thing I noticed when I walked into Eren’s Grill was the neatness and precision of the refrigerator case. Platters of perfectly aligned kebabs await the grill. Bowls of bright-red-hued eggplant-tomato salad and pale, fluffy humus. Glistening rows of dark-green stuffed grape leaves. Then Eren, a young man wearing chef’s white’s embellished with the Turkish flag, stepped out from the open kitchen and proudly started telling me about his fresh and homemade food.
Fairfield’s new and only Turkish restaurant is a small joint in a strip mall. With just a few tables, it does a lot of take-out and catering. Whether eat-in or take-out, it’s a welcome addition to the Tunxis Hill section of Fairfield, a neighborhood that could use more good food. And the food here is good: fresh and full of flavor. Ottoman cuisine has a long and noble history, and Eren – who was head chef of the Athens’ Tike, an international group of Turkish restaurants in places like London, Cyprus and Kiev -- for 8 years -- is proud to put his signature on it. “I want to play a little,” he says.
"Good food. Good prices. People will come." That was the recipe for success my Russian Grandfather formulated when he opened his world-famous Indianapolis delicatessen a century ago.
Biagio “Gino” Riccio must have channeled Grandpa. His jam-packed Quattro Pazzi restaurants in Stamford and Fairfield are testimony to what happens when you serve delicious fare at fair prices. People flock … making QP one of the most popular Italian restaurants in Connecticut. (In fact, over 5000 CTBites readers voted Quattro Pazzi as the best Italian in Fairfield Country.)
Popular cookbook author and baking expert Abby Dodge will be at Fairfield University Book Store to sign copies of her latest cookbook, Mini Treats & Hand-held Sweets. The event will be held on November 11 from 12 noon to 2 pm and will be at the Fairfield University Bookstore located at 1499 Post Road in Fairfield, CT. [Google Map]
You won't believe what's in our PANTRY! Located at 1580 Post Road in Fairfield, Ct, The Pantry is much more than a food shop - it is Mecca for foodies as well as a one-stop-shop for busy consumers. Established in 2003 through the collaborative effort of chefs & food lovers, The Pantry has blossomed into a bustling marketplace stocked with an array of products and services for today's savvy clientele. What have they got? Top quality butchered meats & seafood (delivered daily from various New York markets), award winning desserts and pastries (the bakery has received "Best Desserts in Fairfield County" from Fairfield Weekly for 9 consecutive years), restaurant quality prepared foods & catering services, a full deli and salad bar, groceries, produce and floral & customized gift baskets. Whether you are looking for a freshly tossed salad, pan seared salmon with citrus, basil & olive oil or a chocolate chip cookie - The Pantry is the place to shop. This Pantry is stocked!!
Years ago, around the time The Brady Bunch was infiltrating almost every T.V. set in America, it was unlikely that your mom would have picked up dinner in lieu of cooking a homemade meal. While it’s true that familiar words in your household at the time may have included Wendy’s, Burger King and Arby’s, you weren’t pulling up to the drive-in window to order healthy, gourmet food. At home it may have been a casserole or a roast while mom always remained neatly coifed, and eating meals at the table as a family were normal.
Fast - forward 40 years and life is a lot different. In our fast paced world today we often find ourselves in a pinch, pressed for enough time to prepare a well-balanced meal for our disappearing family dinners due to time constraints. Enter Cinch, Fairfield’s newest “Gourmet Food Market.” A market where you shop for high quality meals that you just heat and serve in your own home. “Eat your heart out Carol Brady, let me tell you a little bit about the life of a 21st century family on the go.”
On October 14th-20th, Fairfield will launch its first ever town organized Fairfield Restaurant Week.
The Fairfield restaurant community is coming together to create during the week of October 14 with a new twist on restaurant week – not only do they have fantastic restaurants with excellent specials for this week, but local venues are also participating with activities and things to do all in Fairfield.
Over thirty restaurants from around Fairfield CT will participate in this week-long special event that will feature prix fixe lunch and dinner menu prices. Restaurants will feature $10 and $15 lunches and $20 and $30 dinners or other discounts on their already existing menus.
Passport Promotion:
As a special promotion, the Town has created a passport book that will be available at participating restaurants during Restaurant Week while supplies last.
Instantly familiar, yet completely new, Fairfield’s six-week-young The Chelsea has already settled quite nicely into the dining scene. With an Unquowa Place address, a steady lunch and a boisterous evening crowd–its practically a Fairfield County regular.
This is thanks in large part to a familiar and accomplished trio of owners responsible for creating many hot spots we know and love: Scott Beck, co-owner of Match and The Loft in South Norwalk; Matt Storch, Chef and co-owner of Match in South Norwalk; and Kevin McHugh, Co-Owner of Grey Goose in Southport and Spotted Horse in Westport.
Beyond the obvious street cred, the palpable success of the restaurant is found in the breeziness of its well-designed space (McHugh’s cozy palette of reclaimed rough sawn wood, white subway tiles and raw glass fixtures) paired with a globally-inspired menu long on classics. The Chelsea’s menu is a witty take on many dishes we all know and love, combined with a consistency of quality that comes from veteran owners and chefs who know the Fairfield County appetite very well.
The Chelsea, located in the heart of Fairfield on Unquowa Place, will open in a just under a month in mid-July. The new 80 seat restaurant includes 12 outdoor seats, a lively bar, a global gastropub menu and a hefty dose of whimsy. The trio responsible for creating what will likely be Fairfield County’s newest hot spot are: Scott Beck, co-owner of Match and The Loft in South Norwalk, and Tavern in Monroe; Matt Storch, Chef and co-owner of Match in South Norwalk; and Kevin McHugh, Co-Owner of Grey Goose in Southport and Spotted Horse in Wes
If you've ever missed a train or slogged through a daily commute, you know it often comes down to being at the right place at the right time. A few minutes late and you may find yourself recalculating your entire day's schedule. But if pizza is your business, and your ovens are quite literally at the tracks, you're always at the right place at the right time.
Situated on the northbound side of the Fairfield train station, Nauti Dolphin in Fairfield serves up New York-inspired slices and pies that not only serve clock-watching commuters, but loyal Fairfielders who find themselves visiting the station whether or not they have a train to catch. Paired with fairly inexpensive prices, over ten years, and a constant stream of commuting stomachs, Nauti Dolphin is one of the town's favored neighborhood pizza take-out and delivery joints.
School is back in session, and I don't mean the kind that requires boarding a yellow school bus. I'm talking about an education involving terms like bloomy, soft-ripened, blue-vein, washed-rind, and brined or full bodied, flowery or peppery. Ridgefield's 109 Cheese & Wine Shop's Spring/Summer class schedule is out with a full offering for any level of wine, craft beer & cheese appreciation. These classes expertly led by owner, Monica Brown, a wine and cheese connoisseur who, along with her experienced team, is dedicated to bringing a curated selection of the best products from around the corner to around the world to 109.
“It is the Americans who have managed to crown minced beef as hamburger, and to send it round the world so that even the fussy French have taken to le boeuf hache, le hambourgaire.” – Julia Child
Forget the fish, hold the pasta, toss the vegetables to the side…May is National Burger Month, thirty-one days dedicated to one of my favorite culinary creations …the hamburger. And in honor of this great event, CTbites is please to highlight both the places that were included in the two Recommended Hamburger Lists from 2011 plus additional establishments from my continuous search for scrumptious hamburgers.
Here (in alphabetical order) is a list of recommended hamburgers from Greenwich to Westport to enjoy during National Hamburger Month.
Cookies are, by definition, hard to resist. Fairfield resident Michelle Jaffee has made resistance even more difficult with her new line of cookies, Sweet & Simple, adorable in their individual cellophane wrappers, brown and white labels and retro daisy logo. What’s more, the label proclaims, they’re “baked with love.”
We at CTBites like to support the local, entrepreneurial spirit. (Plus – let’s face it -- we don’t hate eating cookies.) So we set out to sample the sweets.
It’s 8am on a Friday and we’re here to observe the inner workings at Isabelle et Vincent, aka The French Bakery in Fairfield. Eight a.m. is nowhere near the dark morning hours one would associate with a baker’s schedule, and yet there’s plenty going on even at this “late” hour. In one corner of the kitchen, a wide galley space behind the counter lined with ovens, a gigantic standing mixer, and speed racks of measured flour and finished pastries, strawberry tarts are being assembled. The scent of fresh berries, an enormous pile of ruby red, hit us before we even laid eyes on them. In fact, the entire space is a feast for the senses. Piles of baguettes, stacks of macarons in a rainbow of color, glistening apple tarts, fondant covered eclairs, and savory quiches...close your eyes and just imagine a symphony of freshly baked bread, butter, sugar, fruit, and chocolate. It’s incredible.
Bodega Taco Bar is celebrating its first anniversary with a Cinco de Mayo Fiesta. On Saturday, May 5th beginning at 12 noon Bodega will be serving up their popular "Hand Slapped Guacamole," Tasty Tacos and other signature dishes under the Bodega Big Top. Other highlights of the day will include a Pig Roast prepared in a custom built La Caja China Roasting Box and a “guacamole slapping” demo. Festivities lasting into the evening hours include tequila tastings, cocktail specials, live music and dancing.
Fairfield will be the destination for one of the liveliest new restaurants to open in Fairfield County this year. The original trio behind Match in SoNo, Scott Beck, Matt Storch and Kevin McHugh, are the brains, culinary brawn and co-owners who just inked a deal to build-out and run a soon-to-be-named restaurant slated to open early summer 2012. The new venue will reside in the heart of Fairfield in the former location of Greenhouse Grill on Unquowa Place.
The restaurant will feature a “global-classics" menu with several small plates to encourage sharing, a lively bar, sidewalk dining, an opening façade and ample free parking...not to mention one of Connecticut’s most talented chefs.
There is a new food truck on the block in Fairfield (well, not so much food truck as in food car – Smart Car to be exact). The Local Meatball is rolling into town and making its debut this Saturday, April 6th, dishing out meatballs on the Town Green in Fairfield, made with local, organic ingredients. Meatballs, a comfort food of many, no longer need to be served over spaghetti to complete a meal. The Local Meatball is proving these balls stand great on their own! 
