Just some tidbits of food and restaurant knowledge I picked up this week:
- A fundraiser was held for Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd at the Connecticut Science Center today. Vice President Joe Biden attended (but Dodd did not.) The menu? Veggie wraps, ham and brie sandwiches. The cost per plate? FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS.
- Got a sushi recommendation from Courant rock critic Eric Danton, who visited Sushi Palace in Hamden last night for their all-you-can-eat special. Yes, apparently for $17.95 on weeknights ($19.95 weekends) you can stuff yourself silly with sashimi, nigiri, special rolls, tempura and more. I have to point out that I asked twice for the restaurant’s ‘given name’ after he would only refer to it as “<Expletive> Yeah!”
- Restaurants I found on Twitter this week: Grilled Cheese to Go in Milford, Griff’s Chicken Shack in Hamden. Social media is DELICIOUS.
Area restaurant reviews:
Happy weekend, everyone. We’re sampling some new restaurants this weekend, so look for new posts early next week.
It's mocking me even now.
Hoo boy. I’ve met my spice match, in the form of a blackened catfish fillet at Chef Wayne’s Big Mamou in Springfield.
I just want to make it clear that I’m not a total wimp when it comes to heat. I’m somewhere in the middle between my Irish ancestors, for whom cracked black pepper is exotic and scary, and people who enjoy food that makes them sweat as they consume it, like a certain spouse of mine. But that blackening spice kicked me hard in the taste buds.
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In-n-Out Burger in Irvine, Calif.
After my colleague Sandy shared her Sonic Drive-In experience with Fun With Carbs yesterday, she and I got to talking about chains she’d like to visit in the near future. On her list: In-n-Out, White Castle, Chick-Fil-A, Pinkberry, Qdoba, Chipotle and A&W.
I’m sure at this point, my South-dwelling friends are scratching their heads. But none of these chains are in Connecticut. A few of them haven’t even entered New England.
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Five Guys is opening soon in Enfield, CT. (flickr.com)
Interesting predictions piece in Nation’s Restaurant News about dining trends in 2010. Menu trends analysts at Mintel outlined five predictions for industry trends in the coming year. The bottom line? A return to basics, a focus on quality food and drink instead of price-cutting.
The five predictions: a return to simplicity (the article mentions the ‘white-hot better-burger movement’ exhibited by quick-service chains like Five Guys) ; menus featuring locally-sourced ingredients and produce; healthful, lower-calorie choices; the introduction of more retail products from restaurant chains; and ‘regional ethnic’ foods (for example, restaurants serving entrees from the Tuscan region of Italy or North Carolina barbecue.)
Restaurants have obviously had a tough couple of years due to economic downturn, and despite a flurry of promotions like prix-fixe multi-course meals and 2 for 1 deals, the industry’s still hurting. Just today I saw news of a local closing: Hops Restaurant and Brewery in Newington, the last Connecticut outpost of the chain. (There was one in Manchester until recently, too.) For those of us who adore dining out, let’s hope 2010 is happier and healthier for restaurateurs.
Amazing Tuna, or American Tango?
This was meant to be a straightforward blog entry/review of our Saturday night visit to Osaka in Northampton. Osaka is hands-down one of the best sushi restaurants in the area, and it’s always a treat to eat there. But through one small misstep, my husband and I were served a sushi roll that contained each of our most reviled foods. What are the odds?
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Just some tidbits of food and restaurant knowledge I picked up this week:
Leeanne Griffin is a freelance writer and food enthusiast.