Filtering by Tag: Breakfast,Juice Bar

The Corner Restaurant in Milford: A Delicious Breakfast Adventure

Restaurant American Delicious Dives Milford Breakfast Lunch Latin American

Lou Gorfain

Photo courtesy of CTWeekender.comAs the name implies, The Corner began as a small mom and pop breakfast place -- just around the corner in Milford.  Back then, nineteen years ago to be exact, Michelle and Amer Lebel mostly catered to the neighborhood, rarely filling their homey 50 seat café.

The eggs, potatoes and toast were damn good. But the star of the show arrived with the Stuffed French Toast: split French bread, filled with fresh, sugared fruit and berries, bathed in an egg batter laced with orange zest, nutmeg and cinnamon, then deep fried to a golden brown and served under a puddle of nutty maple syrup. The luscious confection scored an immediate hit, eventually inspiring a morning menu as adventuresome, imaginative, and playful as any in Connecticut, if not the country.

Today, Michelle and Amer’s creative breakfasts have been featured on network television and celebrated in all manner of social media.


Sarah’s on Main in Portland CT: the “Cheers” of Breakfast

Restaurant Brunch Delicious Dives Diner Portland Breakfast Lunch

Hope Simmons

On the corner Main and Commerce in Portland is a cozy place that’s the “Cheers” of breakfast, Sarah's On Main—“where everybody knows your name and you’re always glad you came.” If you’re from either side of the river, don’t be surprised if you bump into old friends—or make new ones. I do both each time I go. Whether you find a spot at the counter or grab a table, there’s fresh and local deliciousness with a spin of creativity, courtesy of Sarah Weeden.

What began as a quest for waffles grew into a steady habit of breakfast—and occasional lunch—at my newest home away from home.

Day one, I realized I’d stumbled into a little gem when I tried the BLT Bennie. Served on toasted brioche, it’s sheer perfection of a Benedict, drizzled with Hollandaise. The hash of the day was summer squash and zucchini, which I requested instead of home fries. Thumbs up all the way around.


Catch a Healthy Habit in Fairfield: New Summer Menu, Raw, Vegan, Gluten Free

Restaurant Juice Bar Smoothies Special Dietary Needs Vegetarian healthy vegan Raw

Jessica Ryan

Unassumingly tucked away amongst the store-fronts in downtown Fairfield is Catch a Healthy Habit. Maybe you’ve not been in a while…maybe you’ve never been at all, or you’ve been curious, but you’ve never been. The Cafe has been in Fairfield for over six years and in New Haven for two years prior to opening in Fairfield.

This casual, health-based, raw, gluten-free and vegan eatery focuses on clean eating. Their products are organic and non-GMO and the tastes and presentations are delicious and beautiful. They recently launched their new Spring/Summer menu and Stephanie Webster, armed with her camera, and I had the opportunity to stop in and sample some of the newest goodies to grace the menu. The food is gorgeously plated, visually stunning, allowing the naturally vibrant colors of spring to take center stage. As the weather heats up and we shed our outer layers we still need to satisfy our hunger without feeling weighted down.


Redneck Gourmet Donuts: A Sweet Spot in Higganum

Restaurant Doughnuts Higganum Breakfast Kid Friendly Dessert

Hope Simmons

Have you ever had a Boston creme donut, filled and glazed fresh to order, just for you? So the chocolate glaze is still beautifully wet and shiny, like an object of edible art when it’s passed your way?

Or perhaps you’d prefer a cannoli donut, filled to order, then dusted with powdered sugar and topped with a flourish of ricotta cream. This is just the place to get them. And, whoa, the aroma alone will draw you in, straight from the roadside trailer where they’re made fresh each day.

An air horn sounds as a truck rolls by on Route 81 in Higganum on a Tuesday morning. Owner Jeff Blaschke and I wave from the bright orange picnic tables. “That happens a million times a day,” he says with a smile. Open just five weeks, Redneck Gourmet Donuts is putting Higganum, Connecticut on the map. “We have approximately a thousand customers on a Saturday and Sunday, each day. Maybe a little bit more on Sunday.”


Best Doughnuts in CT 2016: Friday June 3 is National Doughnut Day!

Restaurant Bakery Doughnuts Breakfast Dessert

CTbites Team

Happy National Doughnut Day. Yes, it’s a recognized national holiday, and CT has great doughnuts for sweettooths ready to celebrate. Here are places serving delicious ones...if you have a suggestion for a shop we missed, please let us know below. 

Uncle Leo’s, Redding

Tony's Square Donuts, New Haven

Donut Crazy, Shelton, Stratford. Bridgeport (nom-eez)

Speedy Donuts, Norwalk

Whitney Donut & Sandwich Shop, Hamden

Lakeside Diner, Stamford

Beach Donuts, Old Lyme

Darien Doughnut, Darien


Judy's Bar + Kitchen Opens in Stamford with Low Country BBQ

Restaurant BBQ Stamford Breakfast Lunch Kid Friendly

Lou Gorfain

Judith Roll, creator of the popular Tabouli Mediterranean Grill in Stamford, felt that the dining neighborhood north of Bullshead was underserved.  “The area needed something a little hip,” she told CTBites recently.  “So I thought, take a chance, and try Barbecue.”

As if by wizardry, wisps of sweet hickory smoke were soon wafting over High Ridge Road, not far from the Merritt, as Judy’s  Bar + Kitchen opened its doors to a diverse (and hungry) local crowd.   

Even though she bills her dinner dishes as “Low Country,” Judith made no pilgrimage to Memphis and Carolina to study the nuances of time, temperature, cuts and woods.  Rather she stayed in the neighborhood and developed her menu out of a culinary sensibility honed at CIA and the kitchens of gifted chefs like Wolfgang Puck. 

“Simple and fresh are my style,” she says.  “Good meat, cooked low and slow, what more do you need to know?” 


The Pine Leaf Opens in New Milford with Chef Joel Viehland

Restaurant Milford Organic Outdoor Dining Breakfast Lunch

Amy Kundrat

 

The Pine Leaf opened this week in New Milford under the leadership of chef/owner and three-time James Beard nominee, Joel Viehland. Located along the Aspetuck River, The Pine Leaf will be serving what they describe as "simple, light breakfasts and fresh, seasonal lunch fare" with a focus on organic and local ingredients. 

For those of us who know and love Viehland's cooking from his time at nearby Community Table, (check out our 2013 restaurant review of CT), this is definitely an opening we have been eagerly anticipating. We look forward to exploring New Milford's newest breakfast and lunch hot spot. In the meantime, check it out and let us know what you ate and what you think!


The Tasty Yolk Food Truck Rolls Into Fairfield w/ Gourmet Breakfast Sandwicheses

Restaurant Fairfield Food Truck Breakfast Lunch

Emma Jane-Doody Stetson

Two chefs and a banker walk into a bar…

It sounds like the start of a joke, but it’s actually the start of a “yolk!”  Chefs Eric Felitto and Jason Cade of The Chelsea teamed up with their friend and banker, Michael Bertanza to create The Tasty Yolk food truck located at 4700 Park Avenue in Bridgeport.  Despite the rain, the truck made its debut on Thursday May 5 to lots of customers eager to try their gourmet twists on breakfast sandwiches.

“Every year, we try to figure out how we’re going to make our fortune,” jokes Felitto.  “We finally decided to use our skills and make a food truck.” The trio makes for the perfect team.  Felitto, Chef at The Chelsea, can coordinate with Sous Chef Cade so that someone can attend to the truck while continuing to work at the restaurant.  Meanwhile, Bertanza works just across the street at Fairfield Bank.  It’s easy for them to come together.


Donut Crazy Doughnuts Now Available in Bridgeport's Black Rock Neighborhood

Ingredients Restaurant Bridgeport Doughnuts Breakfast Take Out Kid Friendly Dessert

Jessica Ryan

I recently headed over to Donut Crazy’s newest location in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport with Jessica Grutkowski, owner of the Buzz Truck, who shared that she will be adding this local vendor to her offerings. While I fully admit I have never met a donut I didn’t like, these aren’t your typical donuts; they’re indulgent and decadent, and enormous!

As you step inside you’ll notice how physically different this donut joint is. Most don’t share a space with a Vietnamese restaurant, which in this case is the recently opened Nom Eez. So I asked Jason Wojnarowski, founder of Donut Crazy about this curious new home and this most unusual pairing, because as I saw it, Pho and donuts don’t necessarily go hand in hand. Wojnarowski, a builder by profession, was hired by Matt Storch (owner of Nom Eez) to renovate Match a couple of years ago. What resulted was not only a friendship but the current Pho-Donut partnership.


Nom-Eez Opens in Bridgeport: Vietnamese (With a Side of Donuts)

Restaurant Asian Black Rock Bridgeport Vietnamese Breakfast Lunch Take Out

Jeff "jfood" Schlesinger

The official opening of Nom-Eez, Chef Matt Storch’s new Vietnamese street food storefront, in the Blackrock section of Bridgeport occurs today. As reported by CTbites, joining Storch for this new project are his partners from Match, Jason Wojnarowski (owner of the epically delicious Donut Crazy), and Susan McConnell. CTbites was invited to a sneak peek preview to sample some of the menu and a few donuts.

The menu is divided into three sections, “snacks,” “noodles” and “a bit larger.” The space is small in size, with only eight brightly colored red stools, and the flavors are equally bold and bright and engulf you in the traditional cuisine of Vietnam.


15 Places to Eat Healthy in CT: Juice Bars, Restaurants, Organic Markets & Food Trucks (2016 Edition)

Ingredients Restaurant Juice Bar Juice Cleanse Organic healthy Best of CT

April Guilbault

No partridges and pear trees in our version, but there were....

12 Frosted Cookies...11 Drinks-a-Drunk...10 Dips-for-Dipping...9 Ice-Cold Cocktails...8 Trays of Hors d’oeuvres...7 Festive Brunches...6 Company Dinners...5 Cooooookie Traaaaays (everybody sing)!...4 Cheese Straws...3 Baked Hams...2 Yule Logs...and (finally)...1 Healthy Meal for MEEEEE!!

Time to get back on that wagon, everyone. And thankfully, you have us to help you do it! Happy 2016 to you and may it be filled with good eats and good health! And ok, a good organic wine or beer now and then.

Here are 15 Healthy Restaurants, Juice Bars, Organic Market & Food Trucks across the state of Connecticut.


Donut Crazy to Open in New Canaan via The New Canaanite

Restaurant Bakery Doughnuts New Canaan Breakfast Dessert

CTbites Team

As announced in The New Canaanite, New Canaan’s local news website, Donut Crazy has announced its third location and will open in New Canaan, hopefully by the end of the year.

With two location up the Merritt in Stratford and Shelton, the donut shop that features creatively conceived donut combinations named “Cherry Bomb,” “Cannoli,” “Maple Bacon,” the holiday "Noggin Donut" (Eggnog custard filled, rum flavored frosting, sugar, whipped cream topping, with a pinch of nutmeg) and the “Fat Elvis” (Bavarian cream center topped with peanut butter bacon banana chocolate honey), Donut Crazy will occupy the space that formerly housed the Sweet Shoppe and Merle Norman Cosmetics at 4 South Avenue.  

A gourmet doughnut shop with two locations in upper Fairfield County is preparing to serve its savory treats at the former Sweet Shoppe space on South Avenue, mostly recently Merle Norman Cosmetics.


The Stand Juice Company Opens 3rd Location in Westport

Restaurant Juice Bar Juice Cleanse Westport healthy

Jessica Ryan

Vegetarians and vegans and clean eaters rejoice, The Stand Juice Company has opened its 3rd location and is now open in Westport.

Carissa and Mike Hvizdo are passionate about what they do and passionate about the plant based juices, snacks, sandwiches and baked goods they serve at The Stand. Their commitment to “providing good food and a better earth using the land to do so,” has paved the way to their newest and 3rd location.

Mike and Carissa met at a farmer’s market. They will tell you that their connection was profound - brought together by her passion for living life off the land and Mike’s first-hand experience with conquering a rare blood disease through natural healing methods, which ultimately led to him earning his holistic educator certification and his work with the Hippocrates Health Institute in West Palm Beach, FL.


The Stand Juice Company Opens 3rd Location in Westport, CT

Features Restaurant Juice Bar Juice Cleanse Westport healthy

CTbites Team

The Stand Juice Company, whose mantra is, Life, Fueled by Plants, is about to open its third location in Westport, CT. 

Carissa and Mike Hvizdo, are the life force behind Fairfield County’s feel-good The Stand Juice Company. The Stand has been serving up plant based juices, snacks, sandwiches and baked goods since 2005. The business has flourished over the last 10 years and the duo’s standing within the local sustainable food community is palpable among industry jocks, farmers, and loyal consumers. 

The excitement surrounding The Stand Juice Company’s newest location at 1200 Post Road East in Westport only further celebrates the enjoyment and healthful benefits people have been experiencing since Carissa and Mike first made their mark in the organic juice world in 2005 with their original location on Wall Street in Norwalk.


Best Doughnuts in CT 2015 Edition: Friday June 5 is National Doughnut Day!

Restaurant Bakery Doughnuts Breakfast Best of CT Dessert

CTbites Team

Yes, it’s a recognized national holiday, and CT has great doughnuts for sweettooths ready to celebrate! Here are places serving delicious ones.  Thank you, readers, for your contributions!

Uncle Leo’s, Redding
Speedy Donuts, Norwalk
Whitney Donut & Sandwich Shop, Hamden
Lakeside Diner, Stamford
Beach Donuts, Old Lyme
Darien Doughnut, Darien
Orangeside, New Haven
Lorca, Stamford
Coffee An’ Donuts, Westport
Stew Leonard’s, Norwalk, Danbury, Newington, Yonkers 
SoNo Baking Company, Norwalk
Donut Crazy, Shelton, Stratford
Neil's Donuts, Wallingford
Faddy's Doughnuts & Ice Cream, Windsor


Brunch Menu Launches @ Barcelona Fairfield, Stamford & West Hartford

Restaurant Brunch Fairfield Spanish Stamford West Hartford Breakfast

Stephanie Webster

Who doesn’t love brunch? Sleepy weekend diners can conveniently avoid their own kitchens while enjoying an often decadent and relaxed morning meal. Plus, as a bonus, brunch is often accompanied by a well crafted cocktail. For this reason, we were pleased to hear that Barcelona Wine Bar has launched brunch service every Saturday and Sunday at several of their locations, including West Hartford, Stamford, and now Fairfield. As each Barcelona menu highlights the vision of their executive chef, brunch menus will vary slightly based on style, but bear a similar theme. To investigate this new kid on the brunch block, we decided to visit Chef Darren Carbone, who recently took over the Barcelona Fairfield kitchen, and who brings to the table, a little Latin flair. 

In looking at the new Brunch menu, it’s difficult not to get just a little bit excited. Entrées such as Duck Confit Hash, Chocolate and Dulce de Leche French Toast, and a Breakfast “Coca,” (grilled bread, mushrooms, egg and Sriracha), sound like solid reasons to get out of bed. 

 


Magee's Curbside: Must Try Breakfast & Lunch in Stamford!

Restaurant Delicious Dives Stamford Breakfast Lunch

Douglas P Clement

I get this tip that the new place to go for the best casual breakfast and lunch food in Stamford is a small spot at 72 Magee Ave., in the “no-man’s zone” south of I-95 and the Metro-North tracks. On the way to Greenwich one morning I decide to investigate Magee's Curbside.

Here’s the bottom line in an anecdote:

After I show up and rattle the staff by asking them to make a few dishes I can sample and photograph—and ask if the owners are around—I’m sitting at a table talking to co-owners Danny DeGruttola (owner of The Brickhouse Bar & Grill on Bedford Street) and Evan Philippopoulos. A woman comes in and declares that she’s back after Magee’s delighted her with the best turkey burger she’s ever had. (The house-recipe burger was a recent special.)

No, the woman wasn’t a ringer; no one knew I was coming and the owners of the small, bright and cheerful place weren’t even supposed to be there—the food just is that terrific.


Sweet and Savory Quick Bread Recipes via Marcia Selden

Features Recipe Breakfast Dessert

Marcia Selden Catering

We love a quick bread, they’re a breeze to throw together, freeze beautifully, and are a great activity if you are with your kids and looking for something to do.  

Enjoy a slice with a bowl of soup or a steaming cup of tea, and you have all the trappings of a sweet perfect day. The folks at Marcia Selden Catering have shared their favorite sweet and savory quick bread recipes. Enjoy our recipes for: Earl Grey Zucchini Quick Bread; Almond Butter, Honey, Banana Quick Bread; Sundried Tomato and  Pesto Quick Bread & Prosciutto & Gruyere Quick Bread. You’ll want to try them all!


Fairfield gets Freshii! Nutritious Healthy Food For People On The Go

Fairfield Juice Bar Special Dietary Needs Specialty Market Westport healthy Lunch

Jessica Ryan

Fairfield has worked its way up the food chain, offering all sorts of great dining opportunities for those with even the most discerning palates. With all the new restaurant openings, there was one thing that was lacking in the town’s culinary offerings; a really good health-food based option. Until now - enter Freshii. 

Sandwiched in between The Fairfield University Bookstore and Chef’s Table is Freshii, recently opened by owner Jonathan Blob who also owns the Westport location. Although word had not yet really gotten out, the restaurant was bustling the two times I went in, first to check it out, then when I returned to chat with Blob. 

The store, long and narrow, airy and bright, evokes a fresh, healthy attitude. Bright green, leaf-colored chairs are neatly lined up against the long counter space on one wall just below a large mirror reflecting the words...EAT. ENERGIZE. from the opposing wall. The light woods and grass-like covered wall lend themselves perfectly to an eatery of this type. A large menu board lists many and varied options. There are choices for breakfast, smoothies, juices, salads, wraps, bowls, soups and burritos.