Local Joints

One of the rules my wife and I try to follow when it comes to eating out is: No chain restaurants. Yes, they can be convenient when you're traveling and don't know what to expect, or have kids, but in general, I think they miss the mark when it comes to quality of food and service. Give me a local place where the chefs are usually also the owners -- the food always seems to be better prepared and the service more attentive.

Case in point: We recently had a great meal at Mangiare Buono on River Road in Shelton, a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant that specializes in Northern Italian cuisine. The owner and chef, Bobby, is straight out of The Bronx ("fuhgeddaboutit"), and brings with him an Arthur Avenue pedigree (and an unmistakable accent). It's in an unassuming strip mall, but what the restaurant lacks in atmosphere, it more than makes up for on the plate and around the tables. The menu is reasonable, not a book, with many Italian standards, but Bobby likes to experiment, too. For example, the night we went, he had a special with a pork chop stuff with prosciutto and spinach that was cooked to perfection and delicious.

Portions are decent, the food is great, reasonably priced, and the service was very good. Bobby's wife/partner runs the front of the house (what there is of it) and is very friendly in a "Noo Yawkey" kind-of-way. Water glasses are constantly filled, plates are quickly removed and everything is taken care of. Make sure to make reservations before you go (203.922.0935) -- there's no more than a dozen tables in the place.

Anyway, I'd rather dine at a place like this that flies under the radar rather than the latest T.G.I. McScratchy's (to coin a chain from "The Simpsons"). So, any other local joints out there you care to share?

Burgers Out of the Gate

There'll be a whole state worth of food and drink to cover on this blog, but why not start off with hamburgers--or cheeseburgers, to be exact? I recently went on a minitour of newish burger joints for a story in the Sept. issue of Connecticut Magazine, and I'd really like to recommend the top two places I found. The best was Burger Bar & Bistro in South Norwalk, which served an absolutely sublime, juicy, fresh, hand-formed organic burger with good cheddar on a sturdy bun. $7. Also, Plan B Burger Bar & Tavern in West Hartford served a cheeseburger that was fresh and juicy, and it also had a good, lively bar scene going on--and many, many beers on tap and in bottles. My question: Are there any other NEW burger spots out there that Connecticut's very on-top-of-things foodies community needs to know about? Post your best bets here.