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Category: Connecticut (Page 2 of 4)

We like to split an embarrassingly large lobster during our first visit each spring to Abbott's. This one was, yikes, 6 pounds!

?It’s the Most♪Wonderful Time♫Of the Year!

May 9, 2016 / / 0 Comments

No, not THAT time of the year — we’re talking about opening day at Abbott’s Lobster in the Rough, in Noank CT. Hot steamers, clear chowder, hot lobster rolls and, best of all, steamed lobsters dunked in melted butter, enjoyed in the bright sunshine at a picnic table by the water, with a six-pack of cold microbrew from Universal Package Store up the street — it all began this past Friday. For those of us who do not live near the lobster shacks along the coast of Maine, Abbott’s is the best way we know of to usher in the spring and summer days. Here’s a look at this year’s opening day:

First Gentleman Candidate Pops into Pepe’s of New Haven

April 22, 2016 / / 0 Comments

The Clintons are pushing hard for the food savvy vote. Earlier this week, presidential candidate Hillary Clinton joined Stephen Colbert for a meal at New York’s famed Carnegie Deli. Yesterday, her husband and possible future First Gentleman, Bill, showed up at the home of the best pizza on earth, Pepe’s Pizzeria Napoletana, in New Haven, CT, the city where he and Hillary first met. He shook hands and gabbed, and even got close enough to some Pepe’s pies to appreciate their alluring scent. His current ascetic eating plan, however, apparently wouldn’t allow him to dine, as he departed without a bite. While we admire the former president’s willpower, surely a slice of founder Frank Pepe’s favorite pie, topped with tomatoes but no cheese, would have fit into his vegan diet!

French toast with blueberries at Newtown, CT's Blue Colony Diner

Challah and Matzoh Ball Soup

January 18, 2016 / / 0 Comments

You probably don’t expect to find superlative challah and matzoh ball soup at a Connecticut diner, but here it is at the Blue Colony in Newtown. The Fairfield Daily Voice is running daily profiles all this week of the five diners that are finalists in their reader poll to determine Fairfield County’s best diner. Today’s look at the Blue Colony also praises the Reuben, giant cookies, and Belgian waffles, as well as the attentive, longtime waitstaff. Voting will run through the 25th.

“Pizza, A Love Story” – Movie About New Haven Pizza Due Out in 2016

January 17, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Last year we had Deli Man, a movie about Jewish delis, and Famous Nathan, a film about the founding of Nathan’s in Coney Island, NY. In production for release this year is Pizza, A Love Story, which will tell the story of pizza in New Haven, CT, focusing on the big three: Pepe’s, Sally’s, and Modern. We’re excited! Have a look at the first trailer (is that actual footage of Frank Pepe kneading the dough??? Sure looks like him!): Continue reading

A half-sausage pie at Sally's. Perfectly round pies in New Haven? Not likely.

More on the Potential Sale of Sally’s Apizza in New Haven CT

January 16, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Sally’s Apizza of New Haven is for sale, sort of. We wrote a bit about the subject last month because New Haven pizza fascinates us and, although we’ve never dined at Sally’s (we’re Pepe’s white clam fanatics), we recognize that it holds a significance in the story of American pizza almost equal to that of Pepe’s. Well, the Sally’s drama has made it to the pages of The New York Times and, while there’s very little substantive information in the story that we did not already know (save for the fact that a judge has freed Sally’s owners to find a new buyer if they choose), Sally’s current state of affairs is summed up nicely. Continue reading

"All Baking Done On Premises" proclaims Newtown's Blue Colony Diner.

Vote for Fairfield County CT’s Best Diner

January 15, 2016 / / 0 Comments

Do you love the 24-hour 2007 diner Elmer’s in Danbury? Or are you a regular at Westport’s Sherwood Diner? Maybe your diner is the 1921 Orem’s of Wilton (one of our favorites)? Or is it the 1973 Blue Colony in Newtown (another favorite of ours)? If you are like 39% of the Fairfield Daily Voice’s poll respondents, your favorite Fairfield diner is the Monroe Diner of Monroe, currently the poll leader. Those five diners are the finalists. If you have an opinion on the subject, head over to the poll website and register your preference. One vote per day is permitted. The Daily Voice will be running profiles of all five diners next week.

Tamarack farms Lamb Burger topped with fresh baby arugula, smoked feta, fire roasted red peppers, and pickled red onions - from Worthy Burger, named the source of the best burger in Vermont

Top Burger in Every State

January 9, 2016 / / 4 Comments

Hubcap burgers at Cotham’s in Arkansas… the original burger on toast at Louis’ Lunch in Connecticut… thin, crisp-edged burgers at The Workingman’s Friend in Indiana…green chile cheeseburgers at the Buckhorn Tavern in New Mexico… these are four of the 51 burgers selected as the best in each state by Business Insider. The selections are apparently a research and compilation job, in which most of the burgers were named in a previous local media poll or competition. Nonetheless, it’s a mouthwatering project to peruse for American burger lovers.

A fresh tomato pie at Sally's - Wooster Street pizzas rarely emerge from the oven in any shape resembling a circle.

Sally’s Apizza of New Haven CT Being Sold

December 6, 2015 / / 2 Comments

When discussion turns to the greatest American pizzerias, New Haven, Connecticut, without fail, is part of the mix. In particular, Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana is often cited (including by us) as the source for the country’s finest pizza. Frank Pepe founded the pizzeria in 1925. In 1938, with Frank’s blessing, his nephew Salvatore Consiglio opened Sally’s Apizza a few doors down Wooster Street. There are many folks who, today, claim that Sally’s pies are superior to Pepe’s. We can’t say as we’ve never been to Sally’s, not out of some wacky sense of loyalty to Pepe’s but because we love Pepe’s so much that we could never bring ourselves to miss a rare opportunity to enjoy a Pepe’s white clam pie while passing through New Haven. Continue reading

Briny, salty, garlicky, juicy, oily, toasty, chewy... Pepe's New Haven, CT white clam pizza is the perfect food!

Pepe’s Pizza Makes Boston Debut 12/16

December 2, 2015 / / 0 Comments

It sometimes seemed like it would never really happen, but all doubts have been erased: Pepe’s will be bringing their incomparable New Haven pizza to Boston in two weeks. The Mall at Chestnut Hill opening is scheduled for December 16th. The oven will be identical to the New Haven original but word is there will be new toppings and salads. The char will remain. If it’s a success, there could be further Pepe’s openings in the Boston area. For you first-time Boston visitors, here’s some advice: no matter what else you get, order a white clam pie!

No pasteurization, no UV sterilization - Cider Hill Farm's fresh-pressed cider is the real thing.

A Jug of Cider, a Loaf of Bread–and Thou

November 6, 2015 / / 0 Comments

For us, there is nothing as seasonally evocative — not eggnog, not strawberry shortcake, not ripe fresh-from-the-tree peaches — as cold, crisp, and fragrant fresh-pressed apple cider. The cider presses have been operating for weeks now but the apples that make up the autumn elixir are always changing, depending on what the trees are offering. Right now, cider is at its best. As Cider Hill Farm of Amesbury, Massachusetts says, “October and November ciders pick up the fruitiest, deepest, and most complex flavors.” Continue reading

Milford Oyster Festival, Milford CT, August 14th and 15th 2015

August 13, 2015 / / 0 Comments

The 41st annual Milford Oyster Festival, in Connecticut, begins Friday night (known as Oyster Eve) with four events: Party-All-Eve (live music, oysters, beer), Sail-All-Eve (schooner cruises), Ride-All-Eve (carnival rides), and Stroll-All-Eve (sidewalk sale). Saturday’s Food Courts at Fowler Field and Lisman Landing will offer a wide selection, including foot long hot dogs, lobster rolls, crab cakes, corn on the cob, clam chowder, fried clams, fried oysters, fried shrimp, fresh clams, fried dough, crab rolls, and grinders. Continue reading

Timothy’s of Bridgeport CT Named Best Ice Cream

June 29, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Timothy’s Ice Cream, founded in 1982  in Bridgeport, Connecticut by Timothy Larkin, was named the best ice cream in Fairfield County by readers of the Daily Voice of Wilton. Their best-selling flavor is French vanilla but our personal favorite is Black Rock (named for their Bridgeport neighborhood), which laces that vanilla with chocolate-covered almonds. Saugatuck Sweets of Westport finished second.

A glorious white clam pie as served at Pepe's Fairfield, CT location

Pepe’s Pizza Expansion News

June 11, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Eater spoke with Gary Bimonte of Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana (originally of New Haven, CT). If you are a pizza fanatic who swears by Pepe’s pies (we are and we do!), it’s required reading. Some key points: the current expansion to eight restaurants was spurred on by the fact that Frank Pepe has seven grandchildren, and one store won’t support seven families. They hope to open a new store every 18 months, reaching a total of 20-30 restaurants in the northeast (not, in our view, the “massive expansion” of the Eater headline, but significant). They’ll focus on college towns, with three to five total in the Boston region.

This is a 3 to 4 pound lobster, split to share, at Abbott's Lobster in the Rough of Noank CT.

Abbott’s Sets 18 Pound Lobster Free

June 6, 2015 / / 0 Comments

We like to go to Abbott’s Lobster in the Rough of Noank, CT once each spring, get a giant lobster, and share it. We’ve gone as large as the 5- to 6-pound range, which is A LOT of lobster, probably too much for two hungry lobster lovers. But 18 pounds?! A lobster that large, they say, is probably about 40 years old. It’s quite a sight, and something about a lobster that large seems to make some folks a little sympathetic to its plight (Bruce = sympathy, Sue = dinner time!). Abbott’s, as they do each year, released an 18-pounder into the Long Island Sound on Wednesday. A video of this amazing creature follows: Continue reading

At the counter in S&S Dugout

Fire Closes S&S Dugout of Southport CT

May 21, 2015 / / 0 Comments

A fire that may have started in a dishwasher on Tuesday evening has closed the 1950s-era sandwich stalwart S&S Dugout, of Southport, Connecticut, until repairs can be completed. If not for the quick actions of area residents and local firefighters, the damage could have been much more serious. As it is, the second floor apartments above S&S had to be evacuated. S&S Dugout is an old-fashioned urban dive in the best sense of the word, famous for their roast beef sandwiches.

Shad Derby Festival, Windsor CT, Month of May 2015

May 9, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Each year in Windsor, CT (a little bit north of Hartford) shad (the state fish of Connecticut) swim up the Connecticut and Farmington Rivers to lay their eggs in fresh water (similar to salmon). The people of Windsor observe this biological fact with their own annual event, the springtime Shad Derby Festival. The festival is really a series of sponsored events spread throughout the month of May (this year, from the 1st through the 16th). Some of the events that have already taken place include the Fishing Tournament, the Shad Derby Gala, and the Coronation Ball. Continue reading

The "La Forino" Grinder Ring serves 15 to 18 people.

Perrotti Pizza Dynasty Continues in CT

May 8, 2015 / / 0 Comments

In 1962, Nicola Perrotti opened P&M Lunch in Oakville CT. It was here that Nicola perfected his pizza recipe. Uncle Nick’s nephew, Bill, opened Perrotti’s Pizza in 1988, in Middlebury, using Nick’s recipes and his own. Bill Perrotti achieved a national reputation for his quality pizzas. Bill sold his pizzeria in 2011 to pursue other paths in life, and an era of Perrotti pizza supremacy seemingly came to a close. Continue reading

Connecticut's Colony Grill is known for their hot oil pizza.

Hot Oil Pies Coming to Norwalk CT

May 8, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Colony Grill, begun in Stamford, Connecticut in 1935, has achieved a measure of fame for their hot oil-topped thin-crust bar pizzas. They’ve announced the future opening of a fourth location, at 515 West Avenue in Norwalk, for this summer. It’s going into a new major development called Waypointe. The three existing Colony Grills can be found in Stamford, Fairfield, and Milford.

Rich Farm's Snicker's ice cream

Rich Farm Ice Cream of Oxford CT Opens Today!

March 14, 2015 / / 0 Comments

For those of us who reside in the northeastern United States, it seemed as if it might never arrive but, finally, there are hopeful signs of spring’s imminent arrival! Here’s one of them: today, about a half hour after this post goes up, Rich Farm Ice Cream of Oxford, CT opens for the season. We love all kinds of ice cream in all kinds of settings but we have to say that our favorite setting of all is homemade ice cream eaten on the grounds of a dairy farm. And that’s exactly what you’ll find at Rich Farm.

Hebron Maple Festival, Hebron CT, March 21st through 22nd 2015

March 9, 2015 / / 0 Comments

As soon as late winter days see above-freezing temperatures (and as long as overnight temps drop below freezing) sugar maple sap is flowing and trees are tapped in maple sugaring country. That’s also when the regional maple festivals begin to pop up. This year’s 25th annual Hebron Maple Festival in Connecticut has been postponed from this coming weekend to March 21st and 22nd, because of heavy snow in the area. When that weekend arrives you’ll get the opportunity to immerse yourself in all things maple. Continue reading

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