Gates opened its doors thirty-five years ago and continues to offer an array of dishes that keep this “elder statesman” on New Canaan’s Restaurant Row bustling seven days a week. The entrance is guarded by ornate gates and once you enter you are immersed into a large, open dining area with walls adorned by murals by Janet Picard, paintings and large terra cotta planters. Wander to the left and you enter the bar with a long oak bar with 12 seats and several booths. Both areas are normally filled with locals partaking of a drink after work, families enjoying dinner and regulars having a good time with friends.
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.
In terms of eating, the CTbites team of writers, photographers, and chef friends have managed to sample and savor more than most. 2014 has been a stellar year for restaurant openings as Fairfield County and the surrounding areas continue to draw great culinary talent. Instead of coming up with a top ten list ourselves, we asked the CTbites extended family to share some of their most memorable meals and dining experiences this past year.
Here are our favorite meals and restaurants of 2014.
Executive Chef Mogan Anthony of Locali restaurant in New Canaan rolled out his fall menu, inspired by the fresh autumn ingredients, and invited CTbites to stop in and sample a few of his new culinary creations.
My favorite of the Small Plates was the “Shaved Local Cauliflower.” The thinly sliced raw cauliflower was tossed with pieces of Medjool dates, cashews, and drizzled with white Balsamic. The earthiness of the crispy cauliflower was beautifully complemented by the sweetness in the dates and the slightly tart balsamic. The cashews added additional earthiness and a delightful crunch.
Fjord Fish Market has some big news for sushi lovers. Fjord Fish Market started selling sushi at their Cos Cob and New Canaan locations a few months ago, and the Westport sushi program will launch in August. You'll never have to wonder about the freshness or quality of the fish you're eating at Fjord because first and foremost Fjord is one of Fairfield County's finest fish markets. Trust us...it's good.
“The Fjord name has always been synonymous with the highest quality seafood, says Owner Jim Thistle. Adding Sushi to our product mix is a natural extension of the brand”.
Sushi at Fjord is hand rolled daily, under the guidance of a Manhattan-trained Sushi Master who has over a decade of experience. Some of the most popular items include the volcano roll—a California roll topped with baked lobster salad and spicy sauce-- and the Fjord tower, a scrumptious roll filled with Tuna, Avocado, Crabmeat, Lobster Salad and a blend of sauces.
You can be sure the fish in our sushi is of the same premium quality as all the Seafood that they sell at Fjord, where they carefully source and select only the top of the catch. All of Fjord's seafood is also free of antibiotics and colorings.
With summer in full swing there are even more reasons to shop Walter Stewart's Market, a fixture in downtown New Canaan since 1907. This family run grocer features not only outstanding customer service and a great selection of everyday needs for your family, but also local producers and hard to find specialty goods in every aisle.
Get healthy this summer with several new delicious offerings at Stewart’s prepared food grab and go salad case: Daikon Slaw with Organic Vegetables and Ginger Dressing, Sesame Salmon, Fresh Burrata over Grilled Peaches, or Summer Corn and Edamame Salad provide the perfect start to a great meal. Beat the heat with their Chilled Melon Soup and home made Gazpacho.
What better way to celebrate the conclusion of an entire month of enjoying some incredible hamburgers than announcing the 2014 CTbites' winners of the Best Restaurant Burgers of Fairfield County. More burgers challenged last year’s winners and three were successful, Olio, Mama’s Boy and Bar Sugo.
For the second year in a row, the winner is:
The Whelk– 2014 Best Restaurant Burger in Fairfield County
1 - The Whelk (Westport) – The Whelk Burger combines a blend rich flavored meat, sweet pickles, cry baby Swiss cheese, two varieties of bacon, crisped onions and onion mayo on a brioche bun. The dry aged blend of short rib, brisket and chuck from Craft Saugatuck Butchery was fantastic. The cheese covered, thick patty sat atop two different varieties of bacon that added saltiness and smokiness, while slices of sweet pickles, a slice of frisée and the onion accented mayo brought additional flavors and textures. Sitting atop the plump patty was a handful of crisped onions.
“gingerbitz” is opening its doors in what owners Andrew and Karen Zuckert call the store’s “dress rehearsal” and CTbites and Hearst Connecticut Media Group were invited for a sneak peek and sample several of Karen’s delicious creations.
Described as a bakery and café, gingerbitz is a welcome addition to New Canaan, which has yearned for a local bakery for many years. The longtime dream of New Canaan residents Andrew and Karen Zuckert, gingerbitz represents years of dedication. Karen is well known within Fairfield County for her amazing gingerbread houses that have graced many mantles, as well as featured at numerous holiday festivals. When the opportunity arose to open a bakery in town that would “broader showcase Karen’s talents,” the couple jumped at the opportunity. They painstakingly and meticulously renovated the location, developed relationships with vendors to provide organic products and Andrew embarked on his search for the perfect coffee.
May is National Burger Month and it’s that time of year again for CTbites to unveil its “Best Bar Burgers of Fairfield County.” The last twelve months brought us several suggestions to try and I tried many of these additional locations. The 2014 list included some outstanding bars and haunts that served delicious burgers, so good in fact that only one newcomer was as delicious. (See complete list below)
Not only was this an outstanding burger, but it earned my top spot as the Best Bar Burger in Fairfield County.
Bick’s Burgers & Fries – 2014 Best Bar Burger in Fairfield County
Finally…the weather has changed…the farms are beginning to produce spring vegetables… and al fresco dining is in full swing. CTbites recently posted a round-up of over forty restaurants with al fresco dining including Locali in New Canaan and many readers added their favorites.
At the northern end of Forest Avenue, aka Restaurant Row, the patio of the newest restaurant addition, Locali, opened its patio, doubled the seating and Executive Chef Mogan Anthony has completely revamped the menu. The new spring offerings include nine predetermined pizza combinations and sixteen appetizers and salads, all for sharing, plus a smattering of pastas. All of these new culinary delights combine bold flavors and textures to highlight the seasonal bounty.
Designed to educate children about healthy eating while getting them to try something new,a Pop Up Park will be created (off Elm Street) on Saturday May 17th between 9:30 – 11:30am. Kids can register for a fun food trail, and be entered into a drawing to win a special prize.
New Canaan residents Silvia Baldini, Founder / Chef Strawberry & Sage and Rachel Lampen RLPR Ltd, have volunteered their time to be the 2014 Food Revolution Ambassadors as one of four towns participating across Connecticut, as New Canaan joins Branford, Meriden, and Middletown.
There are some ingredients in this world that, when you add them to anything, they pretty much make it spectacular. Bacon, for example. It would probably make a sneaker taste good. “Air” is another ingredient. Air-a bizarre ingredient on an episode of Chopped? No. Air, as in fresh air. Eating outside. Have you noticed that when you eat a lobster roll outside on a deck overlooking the ocean, it makes you happy? Or eat a grilled burger at a picnic table on a warm summer evening? Or sip a frothy cappuccino at a sidewalk cafe? What is the common ingredient here? Fresh air. Good food combined with a hefty dose of the outdoors.
And lucky for you, we’ve put together a long list of our favorite eateries (40+) that have lovely outdoor dining spaces.
If we missed an outdoor venue you frequent, please share your find below.
After several years of immersing ourselves in the Fairfield County dining scene as partners and editors of CTbites, we had the opportunity to trade pixels for print. We are very excited to announce the launch of our book, Fairfield County Chef's Table, featuring over 50 restaurants and recipes, now available at your local book store and online.
The book, published by Globe Pequot Press, was written by Amy Kundrat (yours truly), the executive editor and partner at CTbites. The photography is by none other than CTbites founder and editor in chief Stephanie Webster. It is the culmination of the many years we have been writing about and photographing the Connecticut food scene. This two year project was a blast to work on, and we only wish we could have included 50 more of our favorite restaurants. For more information, please visit our website.
A special thank you to all the chefs, restaurant owners, farmers, friends, CTbites contributors, and CTbites readers who shared their time, expertise, and support. We hope you enjoy the book, experiment with the recipes from some of our favorite restaurants, and share it with your friends and family!
As food writers, photographers, and chefs, we have the pleasure of eating a lot of really great food. Fairfield County has experienced something of a restaurant explosion over the past year, as new chefs move in and move on, and menus expand. We've endeavored to expand our coverage beyond those borders, seeking to cover more of the state and sharing those experiences that are worth seeking out. Instead of coming up with a top ten list ourselves, we asked the CTbites extended family to share some of their most memorable meals and dining experiences this past year.
Three words to describe the outstanding cuisine that Locali Pizza Bar + Kitchen, the latest addition to New Canaan’s Restaurant Row. This twenty-eight seat restaurant / pizza bar is already making its mark on the culinary landscape of New Canaan.
Executive Chef Mogan Anthony and his team are creating vibrant flavors and textural contrasts in many of their dishes, intermingled among other selections that are pleasantly soft and mild.
The interior design, with a strong focus on organic materials, creates a cozy and inviting environment with guests choosing between table or bar seating. In full view of the dining and bar area is the beautiful, hand-crafted ceramic encased Stefano Ferrara wood-fired brick oven.
Joining Chef Mogan in the kitchen is Chef de Cuisine Ruben Liriano and Chef Antonio Legato oversees the wood burning pizza oven. Chef Mogan gained his training at the Four Seasons Hotel in Singapore and subsequently under Chef Jean Georges Vongericthen in three different locations, plus the Bedford Post and Village Social in Mt. Kisco.
There is tremendous activity in the town of New Canaan recently and CTbites wanted to give our readers an update:
Bistro Bonne Nuit closed after providing some of the best French food in Fairfield County. We wish Roe and all of the staff best of luck in their future endeavors;
Farmer’s Table will relocate to the space formerly occupied by Bistro Bonne Nuit. In addition to a larger space, the new location will allow for outdoor dining and the potential for a liquor license;
Picador restaurant has changed ownership and the new chef, Corey Falcone, is working on modifying the menu to include recipes from his Italian heritage;
Locali Pizza Bar and Kitchen is set to open at the corner of Forest and Locust in the space that formerly housed Kouzina. Chef Mogan Anderson from Village Social in Mt. Kisco is currently devising the opening menu;
The intersection of Locust Avenue and Forest Street in New Canaan will be in full restaurant mode again in a few weeks when Locali Pizza Bar and Kitchen, a tribute to Napolitano pizza and small plates, opens in the space that formally housed Kouzina. The restaurant is brainchild of Joe Bueti, whose previous restaurants include 121 in North Salem, Strega in Pleasantville and his current location in Mt. Kisco, Village Social. Bueti is teaming with business partner Anthony Legato in this new venture. Overseeing the kitchen is Chef Mogan Anthony, the current chef at Village Social, and a former participant on “Chopped.” Chef Mogan’s background includes working under Chef Jean Georges Vongericthen in three different locations and a stint at the Bedford Post under New Canaan elm restaurant’s Chef Brian Lewis. The redesign is fully in process and their aim is an inviting, more intimate atmosphere that will deliver classic food and Neapolitan dishes.
More culinary changes are occurring in New Canaan as Picador Restaurant on Elm Street was recently purchased by Ray Rivera, former Food and Beverage Manager at The Hyatt, and Leo Gaspar the owner of New Canaan’s Club Sandwich. Rivera and former owner Alan Basaran (owner of New Canaan’s Carpe Diem Restaurant) have known each other for years and a conversation eventually led to the Rivera and Gaspar purchasing the site.
The pair immediately hired Chef Corey Falcone, who was previously the chef/owner of Bella Luna, one of Stamford’s favorite Italian restaurants. This partnership culminates years of discussions between Rivera and Chef Corey who wanted to work together in a small restaurant. Rivera summed up his four year search for the perfect venue and cuisine, “I’m thrilled about our restaurant being on Elm Street in New Canaan and presenting international fare plus steaks and chops. Corey is excited to use his talents to fuse Spanish and Italian flavors and he is a master of the grill.”
Join Host Chef Brian Lewis of New Canaan's Elm restaurant for a multi-course dinner and live auction of sensational culinary lots to ensure No Kid Hungry in Connecticut and across the United States on September 30, 2013.
No child should grow up hungry in America, but one in five children struggles with hunger. Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry® Campaign is ending childhood hunger in this nation by connecting kids in need with nutritious food and teaching families how to cook healthy, affordable meals. You can help surround kids with the nutritious food they need where they live, learn and play. For more information or to support this cause and attend this event, please visit ShareOurStrength.com.
Special Guest Chefs: Carey Savona, Heirloom (New Haven, CT) Geoff Lazlo, The Whelk (Westport, CT)
Special Guest Sommelier: Jeff Barbour, New Canaan Wine Merchants (New Canaan, CT)
The makeover at 17 Elm Street in New Canaan is complete and Baldanza Natural Market & Café is now open. With an organic focus and local sourcing, owners Sandy and Angela Baldanza are offering clean, fresh dishes from local sources.
The décor is reminiscent of an old fashioned country market with 12 interior seats and 18 on the patio for guests to enjoy the cuisine on site or ask for a take-away. The display case now offers organic salads with many of the items sourced from local farmers including Riverbank, The Hickories, John Boy's, Ryder and Ceccarelli’s Farms.
The Café is currently serving both breakfast and lunch. The opening breakfast choices include eggs, pancakes, French toast, Daily frittatas, granola and freshly baked croissants. The lunch options range from hot dogs and hamburgers to a Gruyere and Grafton Cheddar sandwich, plus a kale and arugula salad with cherry tomatoes and Gruyere. Daily "Specials" may include a Sliced Strip Steak Sandwich with Grafton Cheddar, L&T. In the early evening Baldanza offers take-away dinners including a lemon scented organic half-chicken.
Stay tuned when CTbites returns to sample the cuisine.
Gates opened its doors thirty-five years ago and continues to offer an array of dishes that keep this “elder statesman” on New Canaan’s Restaurant Row bustling seven days a week. The entrance is guarded by ornate gates and once you enter you are immersed into a large, open dining area with walls adorned by murals by Janet Picard, paintings and large terra cotta planters. Wander to the left and you enter the bar with a long oak bar with 12 seats and several booths. Both areas are normally filled with locals partaking of a drink after work, families enjoying dinner and regulars having a good time with friends.
