Photo: Ross' BreadRoss' Bread in Ridgefield, the popular bakery and café announced on March 31 that the business was changing hands from one Ridgefield family, Ross and Val Schneiderman, to another, Amy Freidenrich after six years in business.
The bakery follows the tradition of neighborhood European bakeries, with daily homemade breads (the Sweet Earth is a personal favorite), to cakes, pastries and soups using predominantly organic flour and ingredients. The location, tucked in the busy Marketplace at Copps Hill, has supported its mission and established the café as a popular meeting spot.
In an excerpt from a letter from the Schneiderman's, the business underscored the community support and its vision:
Tucked in the rear of a charming passageway on Elm Street in New Canaan is Baldanza Natural Market Cafe. With a large and diverse organic menu, and a blackboard filled with the names of local purveyors, this small restaurant is fast becoming a local favorite. Owners Sandy and Angela Baldanza opened the café last year serving lunches and an occasional ‘pop up dinner’. Baldanza recently expanded the hours to include regular dinner service and partnered with Chef Kender Urena, who many will remember as the Chef /Owner of Bistro Bonne Nuit. Urena was awarded a Grand Diploma in Culinary Art with outstanding honors from the French Culinary Institute in NYC and was one of Bon Appétit Magazine Top 100 Chefs in America in 2007.
The Garden of Ideas, the outdoor community center and garden sanctuary in Ridgefield, is hosting a series ofmonthly cooking demonstrations and workshops from May through November with Chef Susie Buckley.
Each class will focus on how to make the most of the seasonal produce, using the bounty of their CSA as a way to highlight the intersection of food, nature, art and science within each workshop. Classes welcome all ages (kids from 8 years and up, and adults) and will feature fresh farm produce, focusing on basic cooking techniques, "nibbles, tastes, and recipes, included." View the complete class schedule below:
Mark your calendars. On Wednesday, March 20th, the first day of spring, tickets will go on sale for the 2015 season of Outstanding In The Field.Buy tickets here and do it fast! These go quickly.
CT will host 3 events this year. The Hickories will host Chef Jennifer Balin of Sugar & Olives on Sept. 8th as well as Chefs Holly Michaud & Scott Ostrander of Mama’s Boy on Sept. 9th. Day 3 will be at Waldingfield Farm with Jason Sobocinski of Casseus Fromagerie & Bistro.
"Outstanding in the Field is a roving culinary adventure– literally a restaurant without walls." Their mission is to re-connect diners to the land and the origins of their food, and to honor the local farmers and food artisans who cultivate it. The other meaning of Outstanding in the Field is outstanding as in the best.
Cooking Class with Sarah and Bernard - $90 March 11, 2015
"Easy Entertaining – 5 ingredients or less Join Bernard & Sarah in their upstairs classroom – they will teach you how do pull together a fabulous buffet – 5 ingredients or less!"
Italy: The lesser know Grapes, Cheese and Wine with Artisan Wines - $65 March 14, 2015
"This is an in-depth discussion and tasting of some Italy’s lesser-known grape varietals like Vermentino, Aglianico, Bombino Bianco, Pelaverga, and Timorasso. Taste the wines and regional cheeses with rock star, Jim Morrison and take the journey. Fall in love with Italy all over again."
A Look into Burgundy with wines from Rosenthal Wines - $75 March 21, 2015
The next stop on my unending burger quest found me sitting at a high top table in the rear of Bailey’s Backyard in Ridgefield. This modest two room restaurant is known for its creative cuisine with an unwavering Farm to Table attitude instilled in the entire menu by Executive Chef, Forrest Pasternack.
Many told me about the Cheddar and Ale Burger, and it was time I tried it for myself. The Burger is served with caramelized onions, cheddar & ale sauce on a brioche, with a side of shoestring potatoes.
A Taste of Ridgefield will be held on Sunday, January 25, 2015 at Founders Hall, located in Ridgefield, CT. The 16th annual event will draw restaurants, caterers, and wine merchants from Ridgefield for two serving sessions 12:30 – 2:30 pm, and 4:00 – 6:00 pm. Tickets are $40 in advance and $45 at the door.
This event is hosted by The Rotary Club of Ridgefield and sponosred by Fairfield County Bank and Vazzana Management Consulting to benefit its schoarship fun and support a new fuel subsidy initiative to help needy families in Ridgefield.
Seven is Breno Donatti’s lucky number. His restaurant, “ Bistro 7” is located on Highway 7 in Wilton. “Seven is God's favorite number,” he told us, “And I also got the inspiration for Bistro 7 in the 7th district of Paris in a place called ‘Cafe Central.’”
Well, hopefully we won’t jinx anything by dubbing his re-programed farm–to-fork café in Wilton as “Bistro 7.1.”
With a new chef, sous chef, general manager, and a reimagined food and beverage menu, Donatti has updated his operating system, and from what we tasted at a recent Grand Reopening, the app is not just new, but vastly improved: less complicated and well-priced.
We began with a Roasted Root Veggie Bisque, blended with slow cooked carrots, butternut squash, parsnips, sweet potato, root spices, and garnished with a bacon chip. Breno claims it’s even better than his award winning Butternut Squash Bisque and we don’t disagree.
In a recent interview with Yale's Environment 360, Dan Barber dsicussed the failure of the farm-to-table movement to support sustainable agriculture on a large scale. He tasked "the table that must support the farm, not the other way around." For the full interview and to listen to the podcast, visit Environment 360.
But I went to Klaas’s farm [in upstate New York] to learn this recipe of wheat and I was standing in the middle of a field and all of a sudden discovered that he was growing very little wheat, and that instead he was growing a whole suite of lowly grains like millet and buckwheat and barley, and leguminous crops like Austrian winter peas and kidney beans. He was growing a lot of cover crops like vetch and clover.
Join The Stamford Museum and Chef Brian Lewis of elm restaurant in New Canaan for an exceptional dining experience amidst the permanent collections of the Bendel Mansion Museum Galleries. On Saturday, September 20th, Chef Lewis, a fierce advocate for eating local, will be cooking works his magic for four courses of delicious seasonal foods, paired with a selection of exquisite wines. Seating is limited. Purchase tickets here.
The evening will begin with farm-fresh hors d’ouvres and signature cocktails to be enjoyed with a special preview of the Stamford Museum’s new exhibition – The Smithsonian Institution’s The Way We Worked – with added selections from SM&NC’s historic Agricultural Tool Collection that served the farmers of North Stamford c. 1900.
Dining “al fresco” has always been one of joys of summers in Connecticut. From the National touring “Outstanding In The Field” which hosts two Sold Out dinners at The Hickories in September, to local restaurants and farms who partner for special “Farm to Table” dinners, choosing an outdoor dining experience this summer should be on everyone’s Summer dining “bucket list”.
Parallel Post in Trumbull, helmed by James Beard nominated Chef, Dean James Max, is proud to announce the third dinner of their 2nd annual, four-part culinary dining series, Farm-To-Trumbull, on Sunday, August 10 from 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Held at Gilbertie’s Herb Garden located in Easton, CT, this years dinner limited to just 30 attendees, will once again be inspired by the season, with locally sourced dishes created and led Chef Dean James Max; Executive Chef, Chris Molyneux; and Chef de Cuisine, Ali Goss.
Food Evolution, a gourmet plant-based café, has recently opened in Ridgefield's Marketplace located at Copps Hill Plaza, 109 Danbury Road, taking over the space formerly occupied by a vegan cafe.
The new owner of Food Evolution is Ridgefield resident Elizabeth Berney, a passionate vegan and elementary school teacher for the past 18 years. Berney and her omnivore husband purchased the restaurant from its original owner, a local real estate developer eager to sell the restaurant to owners dedicated to maintaining a plant-based menu.
Desperately seeking authentic Latin inspired cuisine with a strong Mexican flair and some cocktails that can render you “muy feliz?” TIERRA could be the place for you. Deep, down (way down, under SPRUCE on the Post Road) in the heart of Westport is the new TIERRA, love child of married chefs Sue Torres and Darren Carbone. Torres - previously chef in such notable jaunts as La Grenouille, The 21 Club and former owner of Suenos in lower Manhattan -and hubby Carbone (Rosa Mexicano and Alma De Cuba in PA) have created a cozy and inviting restaurant that has Westport diners in a chile infused tizzy. Complete with outside seating for 30 (perhaps not the greatest view but who cares, it’s summer!) and indoor seating for at least 45 - including a beautiful private dining room for 16 or so, TIERRA lures you in and treats you right.
Chef Carbone is always on duty and on our first visit, showed us around his well appointed kitchen and dining room. The cast iron, homemade tortilla press - a rarity - is in plain view and sous chef Mario was busy breaking down lobster and fresh Bronzini for the evening’s freshest picks.
This summer, Chef Brian Lewis brings the tables of elm restaurant to Millstone Farm to share the flavors of the season with a new series of farm dinners under the stars. Millstone’s beautiful landscape will set the stage for a 4-course feast of seasonally-driven cuisine. Each event will begin at 6 p.m. with small bites, lawn games, live music and farm tours for the entire family. See dates below:
Tickets are $35 per child and $135 per adult, BYOB, tax and gratuity included. Limited family-style seating. Reserve at info@elmrestaurant.com or call 203.920.4994. Reservations will be accepted one month prior to each event. For more information, please visit the event page at www.elmrestaurant.com.
Community Table, the Washington, CT restaurant that should be on every serious gourmand’s bucket list, debuted a stunning new dining room and bar this week, kicking off its high summer season with its signature rustic modern style.
The four-year old restaurant continues to set itself apart by a seasonally-driven New Nordic-inspired menu. Its talented team, led by James Beard-nominated Executive Chef Joel Viehland, has helped to establish Community Table as one of the region’s best restaurants.
The new dining room and bar, designed by architect Peter Talblot working closely with owner Peggy Anderson on the design vision,
Bailey’s Backyard opened in 1999, the brainchild of Chef Sal Bagliavio, who oversaw the kitchen for fourteen years. Wanting to spend more time with his family he hired Executive Chef Forrest Pasternack in early 2013 to develop a farm-to-table menu, focused on locally produced ingredients.
Born and raised in Western Connecticut, Chef Pasternack’s love of fresh ingredients developed at an early age. His childhood included picking vegetables, fishing the waters of Nantucket Sound, and digging clams in Chatham, Mass.: all to enjoy at family dinner. This passion was both enhanced and refined when he graduated with honors from the Culinary Institute of America. Post-graduation he sharpened his culinary skills at some of New York’s finest restaurants, including Zoe with Chef David Honeysett, the BLT Restaurant Group with Chef Laurent Tourendel, Eats on Lexington with Chef Jeremy Spector, Employee’s Only and The Brindle Room. His passion for the farm-to-table movement inspired his menus at The SOHO Grand Hotel in lower Manhattan and Terra Restaurant in Greenwich. Since joining Baily’s Backyard, he has dazzled guests with creative combinations and bold flavors.
Earlier this month, Chef Jeff Taibe led a one night kitchen takeover of the Ecco Rooftop in Bethel, located above La Zingara. The chef and his team prepared a five-course wood-fired feast in the intimate en plein air restaurant.
"We chose Ecco because I love the atmosphere. I love how casual it feels sitting on the patio. Another draw was working with the wood-fired oven," said Jeff Taibe. "Plus I wanted to bring some attention to upper Fairfield, there are a lot of hidden gems and great places to go and I feel Ecco is one of them."
About 25 people sat under the twinkling lights of the rooftop, enjoying Taibe's creations presented on vintage china from Borrowed, and paired with the evening's signature cocktail, the Paper Plane, a combination of bourbon, Aperol, Amaro Nonino, and lemon juice, concocted by mixologist Jeff Marron.
In our second week featuring recipes from Fairfield County Chef's Table, we looked no further than Ridgefield to feature 109 Cheese & Wine's excellent grilled cheese sandwich with wild mushrooms. In addition to trying your hand at the recipe below, the shop also makes made-to-order grilled cheese sandwiches in their shop. 109 Cheese & Wine will be hosting a free event with Bernard's Restaurant and Southwest Café at 11 am on May 31 in their upstairs classroom, complete with food from all three restaurants, bubbly and beverages, as well as copies of Fairfield County Chef's Table. Stop by for a snack, and have the chefs and author sign your book!
109 Cheese & Wine 109 Danbury Road, Ridgefield, CT 06877 | (203) 438-5757 | 109cheeseandwine.com Owners: Monica and Todd Brown
The Battle of the Chefs returns to Ridgefield's Founders Hall on Sunday, June 1, 4 – 7 pm and you have the chance to be the lucky recipient of two stadium seat tickets to taste and experience an epic throwdown between Forrest Pasternack of Bailey’s Backyard in Ridgefield, Matt Storch of Match in Norwalk, and Jeff Taibe of The Whelk and LeFarm.
Here's what you need to do:
Comment on this post with your dream Battle of the Chef match-up, either fictional, celebrity or local, and we'll randomly select a winner by May 23!
Alina Lawrence of Olivette and Joel Viehland of Community Table will present an 'Extra Virgin Tasting Menu,' a night of eating, drinking and learning about authentic extra virgin olive oil, how to properly taste it, and the myriad of ways to enjoy it with food. This tasting menu will take place June 3 inside Community Table in Washington, CT.
Alina Lawrence is an olive oil educator and owner of Olivette, a boutique olive oil tasting room in Darien, CT. Alina received her training and certification in olive oil sensory analysis from the National Organization of Olive Oil Tasters (ONAOO) in Imperia, Italy.
Chef Joel will work with Alina to share her extensive knowledge of olive oil. As Alina guides you through the complexities of each oil, Chef Joel will present a matching five-course tasting menu, accompanied by wine, that will make for a memorable evening.
Photo: Ross' BreadRoss' Bread in Ridgefield, the popular bakery and café announced on March 31 that the business was changing hands from one Ridgefield family, Ross and Val Schneiderman, to another, Amy Freidenrich after six years in business.
