New Haven Register (New Haven, CT)
7 new restaurants to try this October
A look at some new and interesting places on the Connecticut dining scene.
Appetit Bistro South Norwalk
Six years after opening his Appétit Bistro in Port Chester, Edwin Montoya debuted a second location in early September, bringing French cuisine to South Norwalk’s Washington Street Historic District. The menu combines classic French dishes and others with Mediterranean influences, with standouts like escargot en croute, duck à l’orange, hanger steak frites with peppercorn sauce and Italian-inspired chicken scarpariello.
136 Washington Ave., 203354-7344, appetitbistro.com.
Rosina’s Greenwich
Coby Blount and Jared Falco, who met and became friends at Fortina, opened Rosina’s in August with a menu of Italian specialties: fresh pastas, pizzas, appetizers and comforting entrees like veal Milanese and dry-aged ribeye. Blount and Falco said they aim to create a “fun, inclusive experience” with their food and drink.
230 Mill St., 203-681-2376, rosinasrestaurant.com.
Lobstercraft West Hartford
LobsterCraft opened its newest location in West Hartford in early September, following an April opening in Greenwich as the lobster roll brand continues its rapid growth. It’s the restaurant’s first location outside of Fairfield County, and a new Fairfield store is also under construction at 1814 Post Road. The hot buttered “coastal” roll is Lobstercraft’s flagship, but the menu also features creative preparations: the “Heat Wave, with lobster tossed in spicy serrano and habanero pepperinfused butter, a BLT with crispy bacon and garlic aioli
LobsterCraft
and the “California” with wasabi soy sauce, cucumber and avocado.
981 Farmington Ave., 860310-2973, lobstercraft.com.
Craftbird Sandos and Tenders Newington
Eric Stagl’s popular Craftbird food truck now has a storefront. The Newington restaurant, which opened in mid-September, features a menu of creative fried chicken sandwiches, tenders and wings, and sides like hand-cut potato wedges, crispy Brussels, street corn salad, biscuits and truffle mac and cheese bites.
1044 Main St., 860-528-4898, craftbirdct.com.
Caribou BBQ Middletown
Elaine Wilson, who came to the United States from Jamaica in 2000, opened the South Main Street barbecue restaurant with her husband, Valen, in early July. The menu features smoked meat sandwiches and meat by the pound, with options like brisket, pulled pork, pulled and Jamaican jerk chicken, and entrees like smoked salmon, shrimp and grits and sauteed jerk shrimp.
650 South Main St., 860358-9680, facebook.com/caribousmokehouse.
Tomato Joe’s Rocky Hill
Tomato Joe’s, from the team behind New Haven’s Elm City Social and Olives and Oil,
opened in September with a menu of New Haven-style specialty pizzas, calzones, pastas, “old school” grinders, burgers and entrees like eggplant and chicken parmesan, chicken piccata and pork scarpariello.
1625 Silas Deane Highway, 860- 552-6000, tomatojoes.com.
Fuego Picante West Hartford
Four years after launching his Fuego Picante food truck, chef-owner Omar Bello opened a storefront on Park Road in September, in the space that most recently housed Pachanga Empanadas. The new restaurant, specializing in scratch-made Mexican fare, features tacos on corn tortillas, quesadillas, tortas, burritos and burrito bowls, and nachos. 280 Park Road, 860- 965-1807, facebook.com/fuegopicantefoodtruck.