CT Food News, Vol. 28: Deals, Dinners, Dirt Wings, Wine Tastings, CT Beer News + More

It’s the cheeziest

Sometimes putting this list of events, deals, and news together isn’t too tough. There might be a few things going on to share, but then there are times when there is so much going on . . . so much that it becomes almost overwhelming! Well, this is one of those weeks! There’s an incredible amount of news and things to look forward to here in Fairfield County and the CT. Always fresh, always new, always nomworthy: here’s OmNomCT’s weekly Food News . . .

Props, Deals, and News

Not for the faint of heart: Farmington High School students recently boycotted the food that they are being served for lunch. People tend to forget that teenagers actually DO have paletes and DO care about the food they eat.

J. Timothy’s in Plainville was named as one of the top 21 Chicken Wing Joints in the country. People would sell their children for their Dirt Wings . . . and the beer culture at this spot is out of control awesome. Congrats!

When you check into Jax & Co in Norwalk on any social media account, tag them, and get 5% off any day, every day. When you’re there, check out “The Monster,” which has three eggs, house bacon, tasso, sausage, white cheddar, Monterey Jack, charred onions, and chilies, served on a ciabatta for just $7.

Garden Catering Fairfield Celebrates w/ Deals, Donations, and Your Shot at Specials for a Year. Yes, a Year.

Damn, love those Specials! Pic from Chris Ramirez

Garden Catering fiends (we’ll call you Specialites henceforth), we’ve got some great news to share. Garden Catering Fairfield has been around for 5 years now and they’ve got some great deals this week as well as some other things going on like a special donation day and your shot at getting Specials for a Year! 

10/27: “Old School” Special prices with $6 Specials allllllll day!

CT Beer + Food News, Vol. 21: Openings, Updates, Fundraisers, Deals, Beer Dinners + More

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

We hope you’ve all been having a great week…well, it’s about to get even better.  Look at all these great events, openings, and beer-related goodness going on in the 203 and the rest of the state!  As always, let us know if we can add anything or feature an event that you love. 

Events

The Norwalk Open Door Shelter’s kitchen was recently renovated and they need your help restocking the kitchen (well, they could always use your help with that).  Donate to them by bringing donations or helping out online.

OmNomCT has entered the Stamford Chili Contest on 11/2 from 11-3 pm at Stamford Museum & Nature Center. Do you think you’ve got the beans to go toe-to-toe with us and other home cooks from the area?  If so, write Joe Gonzalez at stamfordchilicookoff@yahoo.com.  Even if you’re not participating, come down…more info coming soon.

9/18 Check out 850 Degrees Wood Fired Pizza from 7-10 today to help raise money for Bully Breed Rescue.  Also, there will be $5 pints of Black Hog! The Ridgefield restaurant will be donating 15% of all profits to Bully Breed of New Canaan who not only rescue pit bulls, but also help to find them new homes.

7 Local Chefs Compete in 4th Annual Connecticut Chefs Challenge to Benefit The Optimus Foundation

Food competition shows are fun to watch on TV, no doubt. There’s lots of excitement, panic, stressful situations, and lots of smack talk going down.  But, you miss out on a key component:  interaction. You can’t talk with the chefs, (even though you might be yelling at the TV and telling them to not cook the pork for any longer, they can’t actually hear you) and you certainly can’t taste all the awesome food that they are making.

Well, you’ve got your chance as the Connecticut Chefs Challenge returns for another year at Lincoln Culinary Institute in Shelton. This year there are seven CT chefs who are vying to win the title of “Best in Show.” The fun begins at 5:30 with a cocktail reception where you’ll learn about The Optimus Foundation (they construct and maintain medical facilities in Fairfield County for communities in need) who this event benefits and you’ll get to down some great small bites to help prep you for the contest.  

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:

Eat for Equity Stamford Paints it Pink with October Feast

Eat for Equity is back with a very special meal on October 19.  Not only are they celebrating their one year anniversary, but they are doing their darndest to help Paint Stamford Pink.  Yes, the items on Saturday’s menu are pink in some ways, so there’s a literal interpretation, but there’s also the deeper meaning of what pink symbolizes.  All the money raised with the dinner ($15-$20 donations are suggested) from 7-10 that night will be donated to Stamford Hospital’s Carl & Dorothy Bennett Cancer Center and the Paint The Town Pink campaign.  

While the food has been generously provided by local restaurants and markets such as Saugatuck Craft Butchery and Grade A, Eat for Equity is run by a great group of local volunteers who want to make a difference in the community.  If you’d like to help out at this meal or any Eat for Equity event as a volunteer or greeter, then please e-mail stamford@eatforequity.org.  Make sure to reserve your spot by October 11 by simply confirming here.  For more information about Eat for Equity, please check out our original post and their website.  Here’s the pinktastic menu:

Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza in Darien Hosts Fundraiser for Stamford Fire Safety Foundation

We were staying at a hotel, visiting Kristien’s family for Christmas.  Our everyday routine ensued when we woke up:  Kristien hits the shower and gets ready.  Dan plays Angry Birds and other video games on the iPad, Dan takes a quick shower, Dan gets ready, then Dan plays more video games while Kristien keeps getting ready.  But, Christmas of 2011 was nothing like an everyday experience.  We saw friend’s posts on Facebook about a horrible fire that had broken out, ripping the family apart and destroying the Badger’s house on Shippan Avenue in Stamford.  We felt helpless being so far away and we were heartbroken hearing more about this tragically fatal event as the day went on.

And, it’s with horrible accidents like this that the Stamford Fire Safety Foundation was created.  Their mission is to provide smoke and CO2 detectors to people in Stamford so that people have faster reaction times during emergencies.  Here are some startling facts and statistics from UL:

Local Beer, Restaurants, + More @ A Novel Affair Fundraiser for The Ferguson Library

If you didn’t know, Dan teaches middle school English.  So, it’s no surprise that he values reading, literacy, and the pursuit of knowledge. Hey, life isn’t about just food.  Also, we both value libraries. They educate, they bring the community together, and they move the world ahead. That being said, we are all aware of the money crisis throughout America and we know that libraries often end up on the chopping block. And, being former Stamford residents, we have seen hours cut and worse, but we have also seen people work together to keep the local library system going. For example, local businesses such as Citizens Bank and Pitney Bowes have sponsored Sunday hours at The Ferguson Library.

The three bbq sauces at Bar Q BBQ and Saloon

And, another major source of funds comes from The Ferguson Library’s annual fundraiser, A Novel Affair. This year the food, drinks, music, fun, and auctions are going down on Thursday, 4/25, starting at 6 pm. Tickets are $125 and can be purchased here.  Let’s share with you some of the amazing things that you can look forward to:

Drinks

• Open bar
  

  Conor Horrigan at Half Full Brewery

• Wine and beer tastings from BevMax
• Beer tasting from Charter Oak Brewing Company of New Canaan
• Beer tasting from Half Full Brewery of Stamford
• Beer tasting from Southport Brewing Company of Connecticut

Noms (that’s food in our language) 

Spring Has Sprung Dinner w/ Eat for Equity Stamford + Rebuilding Together Fairfield County

Since we told you about Eat for Equity back in September, they have held three wildly successful dinners.  And, after holding three events, Eat for Equity chapters become formally recognized by the organization and become official.  Now they are official…congratulations Meg, RJ, and everybody else who has worked so hard to make Eat for Equity Stamford so successful.

After having these three great dinners, they are back for some more fun-filled action on April 6 from 7-10 at the Parallel 41 apartments, 1340 Washington Boulevard in Stamford.  100% of the money being donated will be going to Rebuilding Together Fairfield County.  They are a nonprofit volunteer organization that works with local groups to preserve and revitalize homes and communities in Fairfield County.  All of the repairs and work done on the homes comes at no cost to the families.  Eat for Equity notes, “All work is done with them, not for them.”  This furthers Eat for Equity’s mission of giving everybody in the local community a fair shot and evening the playing ground.

Now, onto the meal itself.  The menu just cries out SPRING, especially with lots of fresh local veggies!  Ah, what better way to welcome in the warmer seasons than having a great meal, meeting new people, and catching up with old friends?  We can’t wait!  As always, you must be 21 or older to attend and don’t need to bring food with you…but if you’d like to bring some beer and wine you’d be the best EVER.  Also, there is no charge to take part in the dinner, but if you could muster up $15-20 for a donation, that would rock.  So, make sure you get your tickets by visiting here (you don’t need to print them out), bring a check or cash with you for the donation, then munch away on all this great food:

Music and NOLA Soul Food @ BlackRock Rocks Mardi Gras 2013

Update:  because of Winter Storm Nemo, this event has been postponed until April 6.  Check out the Pardi Gras new details here. 

N’awlins is calling, mon cherie!

N’awlins…in Black Rock, Connecticut, actually.  You know, that bustling place right between Fairfield and Bridgeport.  Black Rock is probably one of the strongest communities that we have ever seen.  They have so many great things going on to bring everybody together such as Black Rock Day (we were food party judges one year) and their fun Christmas time celebrations that bring out Santa on a fire truck.  You’ll also be really glad to know that there’s the 8th Annual BlackRock Rocks Mardi Gras party and fundraiser!  We’re talking 23 different bands at three different local spots, lots of drink specials, and NOLA soul food favorites such as gumbo, cornbread, and jambalaya.  Oui, oui.

Mardi Gras starts on 2/9 at noon and goes until last call…you need that much time to listen to all that music, no doubt…wow.  For admission to all venues and performances, adults pay just $25 for a wristband.  If you’d like to only pay $20, stop by Acoustic Café through 2/2.  12-20 year olds are welcome, too, and only cost $5 but after 8:30 you’ll need to drop them off with the baby sitter.  Kids 12 or younger enter for free.  While tickets aren’t really expensive when you consider how many great bands you’ll see, you’ll be very happy to know that your money will help to benefit Kids Empowered by Your Support.   K.E.Y.S. gives music instruction to underserved students who live in Bridgeport, CT.

Here are some other reasons to go: