ChefBoyAreMe's Profile
Any update on Dinosaur BBQ in Stamford?
Please keep us in the loop when there is something to update, especially regarding expected opening dates, etc.
Any update on Dinosaur BBQ in Stamford?
Hope its ready by the time Syracuse basketball season rolls around...lot's of alum in the area, and i suspect it will be the gathering spot for games!
I also heard Bobby-Q is opening in downtown Stamford at the former Hula Hanks location, so there could be a BBQ war in town.
Any update on Dinosaur BBQ in Stamford?
Haven't heard anything, doesn't look like much going on down in the area around Fairway where I heard it was going in. Sent an inquiry on their site, and got no response.
Originally, as I recall, plan was for late summer, but I'm starting to wonder if plans have changed, given the silence since October:
http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/Dinosaur-Bar-B-Que-comes-to-Stamford-s-South-End-2213758.php
warped Calphalon
Just send the pan back, keep the old lids. they'll replace the pan and lid, and then, you have 2 lids, even if you don't like the new one!
Of course, the real solution I've found is to replace with All-Clad over time. Haven't had one warp yet.
BBQ in CT
Staring next summer, southern CT should have some of the best BBQ in the north east, when Syracuse's Dinosaur BBQ opens a branch in Stamford, down near Fairway market.
Dino is well respected and highly rated on a national basis
Thai (kaffir) lime leaves in southern Fairfield couty, CT?
Anyone know of a source. Penzey's doesn't carry. Negative on Patel's in Norwalk, too. Anyone have any other suggestions?
Arthur Ave open Sat 12/31/11?
Looking to head down tomorrow, Sat, 12/31/11, but want to make sure it will be a typical Sat scene (main market open, all stores, restuarants), and not more like a typical Sunday, where most places are closed, and those that are open are only open until midday. Anyone know? Any confirmation either way appreciated.
CBAM
Help (re)locating a restaurant for dinner tonight
Yup, definitely the place. Thanks, both!
Help (re)locating a restaurant for dinner tonight
Yes, that was it...my memory on the direction was apparently not perfect, but just checked the site, and that was definately the place.
Now, I see some mixed reviews. As it was a few years ago (maybe as much as 8-10), has the quality slipped, or is it still pretty good?
Help (re)locating a restaurant for dinner tonight
Several years ago, I had a great seafood meal at a place in Toronto, but can't remember the name or address. I'll list what I can recall, maybe a local Toronto hound can identify it?:
1. We were staying at the Four Seasons, just north of Queen's Park and walked there. I recall it being only a few blocks, and I think we went south and west
2. Place was Yugoslavian (I can't recall more specifically if it was Slovenian, Croatian, etc)
3. I recall it being fairly small, with 2 floors. Sort of the Toronto equivalent of a NY brownstone, maybe? Upstairs, where we sat, I recall the room being a bit red and "bordello-ish"
4. The specialty was whole, fresh fish, brought out on a platter, and when you selected, they would grill whole. Very simple preparation.
Any bells ringing for anyone?
Prime Dry Aged Beef In Fairfield County?
Costco has prime, but not dry aged...no way.
Prime Dry Aged Beef In Fairfield County?
They dry age Choice??? That seems like a waste. I have to double check, I just assumed that if they were going to go thru the effort of aging, and putting it in a display case that it would be Prime.
Prime Dry Aged Beef In Fairfield County?
In addition to Fairway in Stamford, both Palmer's and Whole Foods in Darien have it
Barcelona Tapas Recs: need some suggestions pls.
The Sunday special I know about is 1/2 price bottles of wine, at least at the Stamford location.
Care D'Azur (Myrna's), Darien
Opened Monday. First meal last night. Topline: Very good, nice addition to Darien dining, if a bit 'spendy'
Showed up last night around 7:30, restaurant was 1/2 full, able to get a table right away. Very nice, helpful wait staff. Layout is similar to when it was Cozi up front, but kitchen is closed off from dining space, except thru hallway connecting front and back rooms/doors). Given the lack of hype, and announcement (I, as a semi-obsessive, didn't even know it had opened, and I suspect most people don't proactively stalk openings), the place was pretty busy.
Wife and I each had apps, entrees, and split a bottle of wine and dessert.
Apps: Nice list of choices, from mezzas, to more traditional apps. We had the vegetarian dolmas (stuffed grape leaves), and the lamb sausages, both with tzatziki sauce. Both excellent. Dolmas were among the best I've had, and the sausages were tender and very tasty--about the size of mini "pig in a blanket" type dogs, but clearly hand made (different sizes), and with a great middle eastern spiced lamb flavor. Need to go back and try the ceviche next time, but avoided because of wife's allergies to scallops, which limits sharing potential
Entrees: Bouillabaisse for me, Salmon with lentils and haricot for her. I didn't try the salmon, but wife noted it was perfectly cooked...not too rare, not dried out. Vegetables were great, nice texture, again, not under of over cooked. Bouillabaisse was very good as well. A finger depth of broth at the bottom of the bowl, with a nice assortment of vegetables (broccoli, pearl onions, etc., accompanied by 4 properly cooked mussels (plump, overcooked into "mussel-raisins"), a piece of halibut, a piece of tilapia, and 2 nice sized scallops. Delicious, though I could live without the tilapia, and its occasionally muddy flavor. Price range from low to high $20's
Next time, with the ceviche app, going for the lamb kebobs, which smelled great every time another order was walked into the room(they also have chicken, shrimp, and the ground beef, the name of which escapes me right now-kibbe?)
Wine: Price range from mid-$30s to $60's, with a few higher. Had a nice Beaujolais that paired well with the entrees. A bit tough to find a good bottle for under 50, but the Beaujolais was $39, and pretty nice.
Dessert: Split a crepe, with Nutella and bananas, which had a small side of berry coulis. Delicious crepe, crispy and rich, and quite large...looked to be the size of a dinner napkin, folded over. Not certain it was Nutella, looked more like melted dark chocolate. Of note, they also offer crepe entrees, which are probably worth checking out.
All in all worth checking out, and we will be back...I'd call the level of quality on par with Scena, which is also excellent.
I think she'll do much better in Darien than here Greenwich effort, given the smaller scale of the place. Quality is very high, service is excellent. My only concern is cost...our dinner was $115 or so, and people will have to view it as "special enough" to go there for a full meal, vs. traveling further. But then again, people travel from 3 towns away to visit 1020, and view that as worth the drive, so hopefully, she'll draw from beyond just Darien.
Plus, we get Casa Villa in her old space, just over in Stamford, so its a double win!
Now...what about the rumored Italian place on the Post Road, opposite the train station? Any details on that, anyone?
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Casa Villa Restaurant
182 W Main St, Stamford, CT 06902
Cooking Classes in RI
2 words for you...
Johnson
Wales
http://www.jwu.edu/content.aspx?id=17882#fbid=upUvcrcpmSb
Patel Bros Indian supermarket/Norwalk
Anyone been? Just read about it in CTBites. Just opened in the space formerly occupied by Best Buy. Sounds like a must visit.
Casa Villa, East Stamford (Former Myrna's space)
Went for the first time on Friday night. Overall, I'd say excellent, especially when you consider the general state of sit-down Mexican dining in the area. But not just because of that..overall very, very good.
Took my daughter (11), and a friend of her's.
Drinks: I had a nice margarita, Don Julio plata (no Centennario, unfortunately) , Cointreu, and fresh lime juice (all their margie's are fresh lime (++). Asked for up, no salt...the drink had quite a bit of ice still in it, so could have been strained better, but delicous, nonetheless. Girls had virgin coladas, and enjoyed.
Chips/Dips: good, fresh chips, salsa was very good, quite spicy (too much for the girls, but good for me). also had a nice guac platter. Good flavor, smoothly pureed (I'd prefer a bit courser, but no real complaint here.
Girls ordered 2 shrimp tacos each on flour tortillas (gringas...). Initially came out with two sauces on top, one on each taco, one red, one green. As soon as the waitress (different from the guy who took out order) saw the girls, she mentioned that the salsas would likely be too spicy for them, and asked if we'd like a redo. Girls said yest, and they re-did, no complaints, with a milder salsa. Shrimp was very tasty and tender, not overcooked. And cheap...$3 per taco, I think.
I had a platter, 3 tacos, in proper, doubled corn tortillas, rice, refried beans. Had one carnitas, one al pastor, one adobado. . That's the rank order....carnitas were good, but not as flavorful as the other two, while the adobado was delicious, best of the 3. Toppings the appropriate cilantro and onions, plus lime wedges. Rice and beans were fine as well.
They wanted to serve us dessert, but we had to run.
Ambiance: Clean, nicely styled room, not overdone faux-mex. Nice mid-level dining area, not overly fancy, no where near dive-y. Nice mix of families and singles, primarily gringos at the time. Staff was very nice, attentive, and happy to see us. I hope they keep it up, and don't wind up gringo-fying the menu, either...we definitely don't need another "cheesy beans and hot sauce" type place. .. keep it real.
All in all, a great place. Definitely on the go-to list, and my top choice for a sit down Mexican lunch or dinner in the area.
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Casa Villa Restaurant
182 W Main St, Stamford, CT 06902
Help me like couscous, please.
My understanding is fideo is specific to the shape of the pasta, being, as you say, vermicelli-like (I think the derivation has a literal meaning somehow related to the shape, much like vermicelli is specifically referring to "little worms"; Vermi{say "worm" as if you had a German accent/"verm", and you hear it, plus the diminutive -elli, combined) I'm not sure a "paella", made with Israeli couscous could be accurately refereed to as fideos
Help me like couscous, please.
Israeli couscous makes a shockingly good, fast "faux-ella" (fake paella). Treat it just like rice. quick brown some boneless thighs cut up into 1 inch pieces, along with some chorizo. Set aside Wipe pan, make sofrito, toast couscous, add the saffron "tea", a splash of wine, and then add the chicken and chorizo back in. Add some chicken broth as it starts to dry up, as needed. the couscous will cook in about 8 mins, so after about 4 mins, toss in some frozen peas, and maybe some thawed shrimp, and finish. (don't forget the pimenton in the sofrito, and as a shake or 2 towards the end.
45 mins, start to finish, max. Midweek paella! One pot meal. And I actually find I prefer it to rice.
what's the best northeast corridor city for food (outside of NY)?
I think you are in the wrong corridor!
What is with the Olive Oil?
Couple this with the fact that "Italian" olive oils need not be made from Italian olives. All "Italian olive oil" means is the oil was made in Italy. The olives can come from anywhere. In truth, there aren't enough olives in all of Italy to produce the amount of olive oil that is "Italian".
Darien, CT New Restaurants
From south to north:
Scena opened this summer, next to the movie theater. I'd say it is very good, but not excellent. Wood fired pizza, wine, somewhat "creative Italian. Same owners as Cava in New Caanan.
Next to the Bagel place, Myrna, who ran Myrna's Mediterranean in Stamford closed there, and is opening a more upscale place in the space formerly leased by Cozi.
Some development on the corner opposite the train station. Rumored Italian, possibly named Bricco or something like that, I think I heard. There were rumors of Batali/Bastianich involvement, but I don't believe those have or will pan out.
Burgers Shakes and Fries open across from Starbucks. Great Burgers, beer, nothing fancy.
The formerCentro I beleive has re-opened or will be reopening as something else, but haven't been or heard anything about it.
Chipoltle closer to the Norwalk border. If you've had one chipotle, you've had them all, but a nice option for a burrito or taco, clean, quality, tasty, as long as you aren't a stickler for south-of-the-border authenticity.
On the other end of town, the Boathouse (or something), above Smokey Joe's BBQ. Basic fish, steamed or fried kind of a place, with BBQ from downstairs too. Haven't been, so don't know, but haven't heard raves from anywhere, and wouldn't have huge expectations.
Then there are all the extant places, from Coromandel, LTK, Matsuri, Ole Mole, Rory's, etc.
New Canaan area restaurant for small anniversary party
I was not at Harvest before about 4-6 months ago, but I would say it is excellent, and one of my top places in FFC.
Good news about Cava...I haven't been in years, and since reading your reviews awhile back about several misfires, and a statement to the effect of "I wouldn't go back for a free meal", I've had it on my no-go list.
I'd also have to say that the OP might then do well to check our Scena in Darien, by the same owners. My experience thus far has been very good, they have a nice space, and given they are looking for outside space (I assume this celebration is happening in several months, not soon), they do have nice outside space in front and around the side towards the movie theater.
New Canaan area restaurant for small anniversary party
Wait....jfood talking up Cava, and talking down Harvest???
Who are you, and what happened to the real jfood?
What's your favorite jared tomato sauce?
If you can find it, Alessi is head and shoulders above all others. Practically as good as home made. Imported from Sicily:
http://www.vigo-alessi.com/products/i...
Ingredients: Sicilian Pear-Shaped Tomatoes, Alessi Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Onion, Garlic, Alessi Sea Salt, Basil
That's it...real stuff.
If you can't find Alessi, look at the ingredients on the brands in store. First, avoid any sauce which lists tomato paste or puree as a main ingredient. Also check the oil...if it says canola or anything, there is probably no olive oil in it. Spices, too, look for basil, specifically, and stay away from dried spices. Finally, if it is an ingredient you can't identify, or wouldn't have in your own kitchen, its probably junk. Just for kicks, pick up a jar of Ragu or Prego, and compare the ingredient list to the one above (I'd post the ingredients myself, but interestingly, neither brand website seems to include this info...make ya go hmmm...
It might be tough to find a good one, but if you can find one with a simple, normal ingredient list, that's the one I'd go with...
Birds-eye chilis in/near Greenwich?
I've seen both dried red ones, and fresh green ones at Shop-Rite Commerce Park on the Greenwich/Stamford border.
The fresh ones were in the produce section, sometimes near the lemongrass and ginger, sometimes in the same aisle as the other peppers (red bell, jalapeno, serrano, Cubanelle, etc.) They were in a package, from Melissa's:
http://www.melissas.com/Products/Products/Thai-Chiles.aspx
The dried, red version is in the ethnic food aisle, packaged in cellophane. (hanging about mid-aisle, on the left if you are heading towards the back of the store.
CBAM
Need restaurant in Stamford area for BDAY party
There are lots of great places. however, it would be helpful, and get more responses if you could be more specific about what you are looking for, price range, etc. Otherwise, there are lot's of posts about Stamford restaurants:
http://www.chow.com/search?query=stamford&board_name=Southern+New+England&from_date=1+year+ago&search_board_id=83&type=Topic
