One morning this summer I woke up to see a note I’d scrawled, apparently in my sleep: “The banh mi is the entire world in one sandwich.” As far as dream-thoughts go, this was in the top 1% of my most coherent, although it’s not, strictly speaking, true. The “entire world” encompasses places like Paraguay and Iceland, and I’ve thankfully yet to see anyone dare put the fermented shark Icelanders call harkarl on any sandwich. The bánh mì is a global sandwich, then, with the flavors and history of Europe, Asia, and America in every bite.
Below you’ll find 14 of our favorite spots for BANH MI in Connecticut.
(If we missed your favorite spot for Banh Mi, please let us know.)
The story of the bánh mì has roots in the longstanding colony of French Indochina, including present day Vietnam. Wherever any culture goes, their food follows, blending with local flavors and traditions to become part of the overall human mosaic. Pot-au-feu (steaming pot), a soup or stew made from meats and vegetables in a bone marrow broth, is a staple in every corner of France. Locals adapted this bone broth pot using available ingredients – lemongrass, Thai basil, beef tendons, and more – and feu became phở.
Since April of 2024, a new restaurant by the name of Rye Bird, located in the longtime former home of Isla in Fairfield, teased a tasty, affordable, neighborhood restaurant concept. Operated by Post Road Hospitality, Rye Bird officially cracked open its doors on October 19 after hosting some patio preview parties prior to its grand opening. Rye Bird’s founder and president Frank Klein hopes it’ll catch on as the “next neighborhood joint” for a bunch of reasons.
Most Connecticut residents who were unfamiliar with Hugh Mangum before he and his family started making donuts in Wilton four years ago, may be oblivious to a few tidbits. Mangum, you see, isn’t only a French Culinary Institute graduate who worked under Jean-Georges Vongerichten, but he’s the founder of the popular Mighty Quinn’s BBQ. Now that his family’s donut shop, Rise Doughnuts, has gone from a pop up to its own physical location, paired with the fact that the Mangums reside in Wilton, the time to open another Mighty Quinn’s in nearby Norwalk in the former Bobby Q’s and the short lived Lechon Smokehouse space at The Waypointe.
The DORO Restaurant Group has covered French brasserie fare, Mediterranean and Middle Eastern and upscale northern Italian cuisine with its three West Hartford Center restaurants. For its newest concept, the group has planted a flag in a new town, with a southern Italian red-sauce menu friendly to families.
The new spot features casual Italian dishes, including pizzas, housemade pastas and its own takes on classics like chicken parmesan, lasagna and veal Milanese. Scott Miller, DORO’s chief operating officer and partner alongside CEO Dorjan Puka, said Casadoro’s cuisine is “a crowd-pleaser menu.”
Veteran restaurateur Jody Pennette is no stranger to opening restaurants and bars all over the world, but his latest, Music & Industry in South Norwalk is different from the rest. This one, you see, is his, and his alone. “This is the 505th one I’ve opened, and it’s the only one I own,” he says. “I’m like a songwriter versus being a singer—I’m creating things for other people to perform. I size them up to see what I can do for them and try to deliver something that’s going to be a market worthy story.”
The uber popular Tasty Yolk has opened their third third location in Branford this week at 539 Main Street. For those not yet familiar with The Tasty Yolk experience, Chef Felitto (Food Network Chopped Champion), his wife Allison McHale, and partner, Michael Bertanza, have created the gold standard for to-go breakfast and lunch comfort food, primarily sandwiches and wraps (and then there is that loaded potato and the buttermilk pancakes with citrus mascarpone and crumbled bacon…drool). These are not just ANY Bacon, Egg & Cheese sammies.
Iconic…, best of…, like none other…, you gotta go to. When it comes to the superlatives, Ted’s Restaurant in Meriden has received more than its fair share for its steamed hamburger. Yup, the burgers are steamed. After close to 1,000 Connecticut burger notches on my belt, I almost feel like apologizing for not previously trying this historical Connecticut landmark. The steamed cheeseburger, also referred to as a "steamer" or "cheeseburg,” is believed to have been invented at a restaurant called "Jack's Lunch" in Middletown, Connecticut, in the 1930s. Others dispute this claim, stating that the steamed burger’s origin is none other than Ted’s Restaurant in Meriden. Regardless of its origin, Ted’s has received too many awards to mention, and on a warm, summer afternoon, I decided to visit.
Anyone in this state that follows the Connecticut Restaurant Association’s CRAzies Awards might have noticed a perennial nominee out of Windham County, specifically in the borough of Willimantic, not far from the campus of Eastern State Connecticut University, by the name of Stone Row Kitchen + Bar.
Now almost three years old, Michelle Greenfield’s Allium Eatery started out, as she puts it, “small.” Her restaurant, inside, is also small. Put a dozen people in there and it feels full. When the weather cooperates, Allium can take some walk ins for patio dining, otherwise you have a choice between either the 5:30 seating or the 7:30. n this case of “small,” small is good, and Greenfield’s restaurant is one of the hottest tickets in town.
No website, just social media, and they’re more active on Instagram, FYI. And chances are, when a table does wiggle free from a prior reservation on busier nights, it’s a given that someone will see their Instagram story announcement and snatch it right up.
Now almost three years old, Magic 5 Pie Co. has had no problem with repeat diners. But the people have to first find it before they can return.
Tucked away in the parking lot of the East Norwalk Metro-North Station, even longtime Norwalkers won’t even see it from the usual slow crawl of East Avenue traffic. You’ll have to go all the way in the back. Or you can plug in “Magic 5 Pie Co.” in Google Maps for an assist.
“Lots of people still don’t know we’re in Norwalk,” says Shawn Longyear, who along with Chris Hickey, Andrey Cortes, and Christopher Rasile, are also all co-owners of The Spread and El Segundo just across the bridge in South Norwalk. “But once they find us, they come back.”
On the heels of their quarter century anniversary, Bailey’s Backyard, and its original and forever owner, Sal Bagliavio have a sequel. And no, it’s not following in the exact footsteps of Bailey’s—one of Connecticut O.G. farm-to-table restaurants. Ristorante numéro dos for Bagliavio and chef/partner Forrest Pasternack, who returned to Bailey’s recently, are entering the world of tacos with Taco Dia—because every day is taco day, not just Tuesdays.
If you’re at least a little familiar with Bailey’s, Bagliavio and Pasternack entering the realm of Mexican cuisine isn’t that shocking. Bailey’s is very New American, and if you’ve eaten there, Mexican pops up on the menu frequently, and especially on their Wednesday night Market Table tasting menu.
Last month, Greenwich welcomed to the area Constantino’s Pasta Bowls, a family-owned and operated fast-casual restaurant with a unique take on Italian cuisine. Robyn Bordes and her husband, Michael, are also the owners of the beloved Constantino’s Pizza and Ice Cream on Putnam Ave and Love You a Latte (located right next to Constantino’s Pasta Bowls).
Robyn Bordes has worked in the food industry since she was 13 years old, starting as a waitress and eventually working her way up to restaurant business owner. She purchased the popular Villaggio’s Italiano Restaurant in Hartsdale and owned it for several years until she decided to sell it in 2020. In 2022, Bordes and her husband brought their expertise to Greenwich and opened Constantino’s Pizza and Ice Cream, which had previously been the location of Stateline Deli. Now, just two years later, the couple decided to expand their empire by bringing a new style of Italian food to the Greenwich community.
“One of the things we hear all the time is, ‘We had no idea you were here!’ And once they’re here, they always come back.” For over 20 years, Ridgefielders and those way further out knew exactly where to find Sarah and Bernard Bouissou.
I recently had the opportunity to dine at The Naan in Westport. Located on the Post Road (near Whole Foods) the restaurant is easily missed if you’re not looking for it -- You’ll want to keep your eyes peeled open for this one.
I’ve eaten at my fair share of Indian restaurants over the years. To be quite honest, all of it has been very good. Many places have been delicious, quite a few have been excellent, and a handful have been exceptional. The Naan fits into the latter category. Chef Prashant focuses on the cuisine of his hometown region of Punjab, and with 25 years of experience up his chef’s sleeves, his proficiency is evident in each and every bite.
From “a uniquely American, French inspired restaurant and bar” to “a uniquely American, globally inspired restaurant and bar.”
For The Benjamin—which opened just before last summer in the former Bernard’s Restaurant and Sarah’s Wine Bar space—and owners Rob Moss and Dave Studwell of Washington Prime and B.J. Lawless of B.J. Ryan’s, B.J. Ryan’s East, and BanC House, they knew that a year later they’d have to switch up the restaurant’s philosophy. Call it a pivot if you want, but according to Studwell, it wasn’t just one thing that needed changing.
“I’d like to say it was one thing,” he says. “Honestly, we were high on French, but not everyone wants caviar, foie gras, and smoked trout all the time. Ridgefield is a family driven town and we didn’t realize that.”
Trattoria A’Vucchella is the epitome of a hidden gem. Open for a tick over a decade, directly across the street from The Bijou Theater in Downtown Bridgeport, it might be one of the city’s best kept secrets if you’re not a local, and if you didn’t somehow discover it naturally.
“It’s a tough location, but we have a loyal following,” says co-owner Pasquale De Martino. “They all found us organically, and once they find us, they come back and from all over. I love the community here.”
Martino—who opened the restaurant back in 2014 with Jennifer Galletti and Thomas Bepko—was formerly the owner of a limoncello factory for 10 years in his birthplace of Sorrento, Italy before selling it and eventually getting into the villa renting business in Italy with Galletti.
The year was 1888. The Civil War was twenty-three years in the past and the Model A was fifteen years in the future, the Statue of Liberty and Washington Monuments were recently dedicated, the US population stood at 50 million, the Standard Oil Company and AT&T were new companies, the Brooklyn Bridge was opened, and newly created Coca Cola was the talk of the south.
In the small town of Matteawan, NY, overlooking the Hudson River, Oven Number 312 was manufactured by the Dutchess Tool Company and sold to F Duhrkop of Meriden, CT. Until the late 1930s, the oven-baked bread at the Pratt Street location, and in 1938 the Verdolini family, forced to relocate its downtown business to Pratt Street, started baking pizza. In 1946, the business was sold to Tony Pascucci who changed the name to the Little Rendezvous. Over seventy-five years later, under the tutelage of its seventh owner, Steve Chehotsky, the Little Rendezvous is now producing one of the best, if not the best, pizza in CT, in one of the state’s longest, continuous-running coal ovens.
The word “ferocity” is used to describe the small, but mighty, wildcat. While the cat is native to Africa and Eurasia, the name “Wildcat” has been floating around Hamden and it has nothing to do with an animal, but rather, a cocktail bar that’s hoping to capture you with its ferocity.
Both from Pawling, NY, Kris ended up in Connecticut working for the Barteca Restaurant Group and Shane, though he was originally pursuing a possible career as a lawyer, found himself bartending in New York City instead. Wildcat is brought to you by twin brothers, Kris and Shane McGowan, whose names you’ve definitely heard before as they’ve been in the industry near and far for well over a decade after they graduated college.
“I opened the West Hartford bartaco and it was a great learning experience to be somewhere that was sort of becoming corporate at the time,” Kris says. “Then I got the hell away from there because I didn’t want anything to do with corporate. It was a good structure, system, and rule that I learned a lot about. I started as a bartender, then moved up to bar manager, assistant general manager, and helped open Westport (bartaco) to train new managers.”
Sara Oberhammer recalls the day she got her driver’s license at 16. The first thing she did was cruise around her hometown of Bethel to apply to jobs in the hospitality industry. She even quit high school softball so she could waitress.
In February of 2024, just a mere three-minute walk away from where she got her foot in door at Greenwood’s Grille & Ale House, Oberhammer, who’s mostly been a bartender later in her restaurant career, now has a spot of her very own. And it has nothing to do with mixing cocktails, pouring drafts, or serving pub food.
