September 2020
In This Issue:
Our readers' picks for the best casual food, beer and bars, baked goods and more from around the state
Our readers' picks for the best places to relax, get some culture, entertain the kids, watch (or play) a game and more from around the state
Our readers' picks for the best clothing, antiques, jewelry, sporting goods and more from around the state
Our readers have picked this year's "Best of Connecticut"®, but we just couldn’t stop there. Our staff and contributing writers gush about a few of their personal favorites Connecticut has to offer.
It's a Jim-dandy of a controversy: The co-founder of Friendly's restaurants donated his Somers estate to Michigan's Hillsdale College. But the way the deal was approved has left a bad taste in some residents' mouths.
This & That
When Ruth Campbell Bigelow was mixing up a blend of black tea, orange rind and sweet spices in her Manhattan kitchen in 1945, she just wanted to make a better cup of tea. She scarcely could have imagined the heights her family’s company would reach 75 years later. Today, Fairfield-based Bige…
Catching up on recent news, people and trends around Connecticut.
On a boat trip looking for seabirds off southern New Zealand, Gina Nichol kept a close eye on the boat’s captain as the seas got rough and the weather deteriorated. She was leading a tour of nature lovers from around the world, and she knew from experience that if the captain looked confiden…
How does Ramblin’ Dan Stevens manage to keep on ramblin’ during a pandemic laced with restrictions on everybody’s movements? And how does a musician make a living when so many shows keep getting canceled?
It is fortunate for vaccine science that John Franklin Enders settled on the field. He would develop the measles vaccine, and ultimately be remembered as the “Father of Modern Vaccines.”
Open just 15 hours a week with no outdoor signage, Stella’s and Mazie’s on Capitol Avenue in Hartford is truly a hidden gem. “People don’t know we’re here,” says deLinda Jagne, aka Chef Stella. “It’s kinda nice to have people look for us.” People have been looking a lot lately. Jagne says bu…
Where & When
Our top picks for events happening around the state this month.
Mystic’s Garlic Festival, which celebrates its 13th year this fall at the Olde Mistick Village, is getting back to basics.
Judith McElhone, Five Points’ founder and executive director, says the nonprofit jumped on the chance to expand.
Home & Living
You did everything right 17 or 18 years ago — right? — in shoehorning that new 529 college savings plan alongside the mortgage, budget sundries, and a little mad money besides. And if you kept up with your contribution schedule, that plan did right by you in the historic bull market of the p…
When Dawn Pettinelli was a little girl, she would trail her grandmother around her garden, marveling at the beautiful flowers she grew. But aside from planting seeds and searching for worms, she thought little about the soil that nourished those flowers. That changed when she took her first …
1. Acquacotta: Recipes and Stories from Tuscany’s Secret Silver Coast by Emiko Davies. $40, Hardi Grant Books
Connecticut is rich with architectural traditions that provide cultural continuity. Traditions are defined by a wide variety of underlying styles, including, but not limited to: Colonial, Georgian, Greek Revival, Queen Anne, Shingle and Vernacular. This award is named for the distinguished C…
Breathing, particularly nasal breathing, is having a moment. Consider, between COVID-19, the weak economy and political conflicts, we’re reminded to breathe deeply through our noses to lessen anxiety. And a new book on breathing quickly hit The New York Times bestseller list.
Eat & Drink
Tasty, filling comfort food doesn’t have to be a gut-busting guilt trip. You won’t feel any guilt digging into this slow-roasted salmon with sun-dried tomato butter over Parmesan orzo from chef Jerry Cordero of The White Horse Country Pub & Restaurant in New Preston. With its large store…
Our wine expert takes a close look at three great wines available for sale here in Connecticut.
Dogtown, an unpretentious hot dog stand on New Haven Avenue in Milford, hits it out of the park with grilled dogs, buttered buns and tantalizing toppings.
It was not the grand opening anyone envisioned.
Along with Anthony Kostelis, the longtime chef at The Whelk, Taibe has created a menu that combines the comfort-food flavor of the best Mexican cuisine with the local sourcing and high-concept food for which Taibe’s other restaurants are known.
It took three years for Carlos Mouta to transform Bishop Ladder Co., a 20,000-square-foot warehouse he owns on Park Street in Hartford, into Parkville Market, the first food hall in Connecticut. The plan never included opening in the midst of a pandemic, but his vision, aided by a bit of luc…
Open just 15 hours a week with no outdoor signage, Stella’s and Mazie’s on Capitol Avenue in Hartford is truly a hidden gem. “People don’t know we’re here,” says deLinda Jagne, aka Chef Stella. “It’s kinda nice to have people look for us.” People have been looking a lot lately. Jagne says bu…
The Last Word
Chris Cillizza is a political reporter and editor-at-large for CNN. A die-hard sports fan growing up in Marlborough, Cillizza would attend Whalers and Celtics games at the Hartford Civic Center with his father — back when the Celts played some home games at The Mall — and get dragged to a fe…
