SoNo Restaurant Week 2014: Classics and New Digs Like Local, Johnny Utah’s, Quartino, and Mama’s Boy

June 8-13, 2014

SoNo Restaurant Week is back from June 8-13 and this year, there’s some fresh meat (literally and metaphorically speaking) as well as some of your favorite spots to check out.  First, let’s go through the new spots like Quartino Trattoria Vineria which has taken over where Bacchus used to be, Johnny Utah’s which has taken over Black Bear and is putting a lil’ bit a country into SoNo, Sweet Lucy Lynn’s which was John Dough’s and Archie Moore’s, and Local Kitchen & Beer Bar (30 brews on tap) which is a reboot of NOLA and a sister restaurant to the Fairfield location.

Harbor Brew Fest 2014 Exclusive Details: Food Trucks, Pricing, On Sale Date

This could be you, here. Stick with us and we’ll tell you how to win two tix!

9/20: mark it down!

Some of CT’s best breweries will be on hand!

Thou desireth roll of lobster? Quench thy famishment.

September 20, 2014…that’s the official date of the Harbor Brew Fest at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport.  In terms of brewfests, this happens to be one of our favorites.  And, this year promises to be even better with even more beer options and 12 13 14 (count ’em, 12 13 14) food trucks!  You’ll want to save the date now—we’ll wait for you to put it on the calendar now—because this will be an awesome way to spend September 20, 2014.

Lost + Found Bazaar to Raise Money for Trackside Teen Center Ain’t So Bizzare

There’s nothing too crazy or bizarre going on at the Lost and Found parking lot on May 18 from noon-5 pm.  Well, maybe crazy good food, crafts, clothes, and accessories.  It’s all put together to help raise some money for the Trackside Teen Center in Wilton.  Here’s more about what TTC is all about, right from their site:

“Acting as a hub within the community of teen activity – designed by teens and for teens – Trackside provides ample opportunity for teens to engage in healthy alternative activities. From open hours and afterschool activities to weekend events, Trackside supports Wilton teens in developmental tasks by providing them a place within the community, other than home and school, where they can be involved in healthy socialization and gain experience in participating as a citizen in a productive manner.”

Admission is free and here’s what you can check out:

Food and Bubbles

Little Pub will be on hand, offering up some of their best dishes for you to nom away on during the bazaar.  Spiked Seltzer, which we wrote about yesterday, will be there giving you samples of their bubbly, refreshing, all-natural, adult beverages.  Also, Dough & Co. from Rowayton will be there with some cookies, lots of baked goodies, and more.  Plus, you’ll be able to purchase things like popcorn, water, and other snacks.

Games

The Lost and Found Bazaar has plenty of fun for kids and big kids of all ages.  There will be face painting, hourly Cake Walks with prizes provided by Dough & Co., chances for kids to Go Fish! for prizes, and our favorite game of all time…cornhole!

Shopping

Of course you’ll find Lost and Found at the Lost and Found Bazaar.  They’ll be featuring some classically cool refurbished and repurposed vintage and antique furnishings and accessories, as well as some upcycled and handmade products.  You can also check out the Coast to Coast Mobile Vintage Shop that will have a selection of men and women’s vintage clothing.  Third up is Bella & Co. that will have a variety of jewelry, accessories, and signage.  The fourth shop that you can check out is Vagabond’s Daughter who is offering hand-dyed scarves, throws, and pillows.  And, last of all, is Lizzie, Izzie + James who will have a selection of handmade felt children’s hair and head accesories…including crowns.  Yeah, ditch those Burger King crowns and go with these #FTW!

 

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Lost and Found Bazaar

5/18/14 from noon to 5 pm

Cost:  free

Lost and Found Parking Lot

Crossways Plaza

300 Danbury Road

Wilton, CT

 

15 Food Trucks Roll into Orange Fairgrounds for RBS Food Truck Festival

Update:  due to the threat of storms, the Food Truck Festival is postponed until May 23, 4-8 pm.  Please spread the word and tell your friends about the new date.  

One of the key benefits of the weather getting nicer (theoretically, look at it outside, bleh) is that it’s food truck season.  Of course, in our minds, any season is food truck season, but we can be realistic and say that a good majority of trux go into hibernation.  Well, shake off those sleepy heads because Race Brook School has put together a monster food truck festival for May 16 23 from 4-8 PM.  

Ditch your fancy restaurant plans and, instead, take a bunch of your friends over to the Orange Fairgrounds.  10% of all sales are being given directly to the Race Brook School that Alex from the newly launched The Buzz Truck (in attendance) went to!

This is seriously the best way to kick off a beautiful weekend with…

PopShop Market Taking Over New Haven w/ Food Trucks + Shops

Lots o’ food trucks!

PopShop Market is back for some more awesomeness here in 2014 and their biggest and baddest spot ever:  The Shops at Yale!  This one day free event on 4/27/14 from 11-4 pm is a continuation of a series of events that PopShop Market has held in Fairfield and New Haven Counties, featuring an excellent variety of personally curated vendors.  

Not only will you be able to find whatever you need to get ready for spring, there will also be a ton of food options from some of CT’s best food trucks  for you to make your own lunch/brunch.  And, who doesn’t like to get a bit saucy during the day?  Of course ya do, it’s the weekend and you’ve earned it.  So, get ready for PopShop’s Signature BarCar that will feature spring-inspired cocktails and a CT brewery.  Details on this haven’t been revealed yet, so make sure to like them on FB and follow them on Twitter to get first dibs on the info.    

5th Annual Hops + Grapes, Toasts + Tastes to Benefit Leukemia + Lymphoma Society at Chelsea Piers

We hope that you can help us to kick off the weekend on Friday, 4/25/14, from 7:30-10:30 at the 5th Annual Hops & Grapes, Toasts & Tastes at Chelsea Piers in Stamford!  This will be our third year going and our second year as one of the proud media sponsors, along with 95.9 Fox and Star 99.9.  A VIP ticket is $100 and that includes a VIP gift bag, a raffle ticket, and a LLS Wristband, you can also buy a pair of VIP tix for $175.  The other option for attendance is a General Admission ticket that gets you a gift bag and costs $75 or get a pair of tix for $125.  

So, look…there’s a reason why we keep coming back:  there’s always great food, a great variety of drinks, lots of chances to win wicked good auction and raffle items, great people, and most importantly you get to make a big difference and raise some major money for Leukemia and Lymphoma research.  These two branches of blood cancers kill tens of thousands of lives each year, taking a person every 10 minutes.  So you can see how every donation and every dollar helps to fight and gets us closer to extraordinary breakthroughs.  

Now, back to the Hops & Grapes, Toasts & Tastes fundraising event…although the list of restaurants, bakeries, caterers, breweries, and vendors is still growing, here’s the most current list:

Merci Beaucoup: Marc Penvenne of Méli-Mélo Relaunches Versailles in Greenwich

Now that we’ve been around Greenwich for over a year, we can just scrape ourselves out of bed on a lazy Sunday and head over to one of our favorite breakfast spots, Méli-Mélo.  Despite the annoyance of finding a spot and the sometimes long lines, it’s all worth it at the end when you’re devouring some killer crepes.  If you’ve been to this Greenwich Ave. mainstay and hotspot, chances are that you’ve seen and talked with owner Marc Penvenne.  He’s always making the rounds, helping seat people, and making sure that everything runs smoothly.

Well, he’s been a bit busier as of late.  That’s because he has brought Versailles back to life, breathing new life to the closed (Easter, 2013) landmark restaurant that’s been around since 1980.  It’s kind of ironic, huh?  Marc came to Greenwich from France and began as a manager at Versailles, left to open Méli-Mélo (right across the street), and now owns Versailles.  Quite the full circle.

Casting Call: Bake Your Way onto Network TV

A major TV network is now looking for a bakery shop assistant for a NYC area bakery run by a celebrity owner.  Whether you’re the manager of a bakery, work at the counter, dream of opening your own bakery, or even have your Baking and Pastry Arts degree, this just might be the gig for you.  The shoot dates, right now, will be around late March into April.  

Bethel Restaurant Week 2014 features 24 restaurants with lots of great deals

Clear your calendars for the third installment of Bethel Restaurant Week, this year running from February 23 through March 1.  Like other restaurant weeks, you’ll be served a three course lunch or dinner at set price decided by the restaurant, but this one’s a bit different.  You’ll actually be able to get breakfast at some of these places, that’s an option that’s not usually offered, and there are lots of deals like BOGOs and discounts.   And, another exciting thing for us about Bethel Restaurant Week is the amazing selection of places that our friends and readers have told us about that we need to try STAT.  So, here’s a nice little guide for you.

Starting off, there are  4 basic price levels for Lunch/Dinner:  $5/$10, $10/15, $15/$25, or $20/$35.  Without further ado, fine gents and ladies, here are the restaurants with links to their Restaurant Week menus (some haven’t been updated yet).

Best of the Gold Coast 2014 Voting Is Now Open…Plus, Win Big!

Now open for their 10th year of voting, Moffly Media’s Best of the Gold Coast contest is ready for your votes!  Just login or register if you’re a n00b then you’re ready to pick your favorites in tons of food categories and other categories such as clothing, jewelry, things to do, education, fitness, beauty, bridal, home, kids, pets, music, retail services, and automotive.  Once you get your votes in you can then enter their contest, too, to be one of 5 winners who will win two VIP tix to the Best of the Gold Coast party (we had a blast last year) on July 24? from 7-10 pm at the Hilton Stamford.  Plus, you’ll also win dinner for two one of five previous winners:  Bartaco of Darien or Fairfield, EOS of Stamford, Dinosaur Bar-b-que of Stamford, Rowayton Seafood of Rowayton, or Harvest Wine Bar of Greenwich.