Best Dining in Connecticut | 2015 Editors’ Choice Awards

Hungry? The Nutmeg State offers plenty of restaurant options for hungry residents and visitors alike. Here are our picks for the best food & dining in Connecticut for 2015.

BEST SUSHI MIYA’S SUSHI, New Haven Don’t expect tuna: This is futuristic sushi for the adventurous! Chef Bun Lai is so passionate about sustainability that he maintains his own seaweed and shellfish beds and trains his team to dive and fish. Do your part to rid the world of pests by selecting from the invasive-species menu. Ordering Kanibaba, a dish made with Asian shore crabs, is the tastiest thing you can do to clean up Long Island Sound. Sushi rolls: from $3. 68 Howe St. 203-777-9760; miyassushi.com BEST FLATBREADS QUERCIBELLA, New Hartford Chef Carl Rynecki is reinventing flatbread pizzas at this convivial little out-of-the-way eatery. The only thing more enticing than sampling his delectably quirky, farm-to-table-inspired topping combos, such as Marwin Farm duck sausage, d’Anjou pear, cranberry, goat cheese, arugula, and candied pecans, is perusing the enormous list of specialty and locally sourced ingredients and inventing your own wood-grilled sensation. Flatbreads: from $14. 280D Main St. 860-238-4261; quercibella.com BEST BAR FOOD ENGINE ROOM, Mystic Want bacon-fat caramel popcorn with that “BIG stack” double cheeseburger with smoky secret sauce? That’s an easy decision compared with choosing from 50+ rare and wide-ranging bottled and draft beers. The team that catapulted Mystic’s Oyster Club to acclaim has transformed the riverside Lathrop Marine Engine factory into the home of grown-up happy meals. Entrées: from $12. 14 Holmes St. 860-415-8117; engineroomct.com BEST HIDDEN LOBSTER SHACK LOBSTER LANDING, Clinton Situated down a narrow drive, this marina-side shack is tricky to find. Don’t bother searching online; they don’t have a website. What they do have—headlining a menu board that typically features only three items—is toasted sub rolls loaded with a quarter-pound of freshly shelled, lemon-spritzed, butter-slathered lobster. A heated tent extends the season through December. Lobster rolls: $16. 152 Commerce St. 860-669-2005 BEST BIG-CITY DINING IN COW COUNTRY ARETHUSA AL TAVOLO, Litchfield Arethusa Farm owners and Manolo Blahnik execs George Malkemus and Anthony Yurgaitis added a restaurant to their agrarian empire in 2013. Chef Dan Magill styles dishes such as Foraged Mushrooms & Arethusa Camembert Ravioli with primo ingredients, including dairy delights from Arethusa’s famously pampered cows. Service is extraordinary; the vibe unpretentious. You’ll wish that every meal of your life ended as blissfully with a shot glass of milk and a cookie. Entrées: from $25. 828 Bantam Road. 860-567-0043; arethusaaltavolo.com BEST LOCAVORE EXPERIENCE COMMUNITY TABLE, Washington Yes, that’s a beehive out back: Taste the honey in a Bee’s Knees cocktail as you’re indoctrinated into the practice of mindful dining. Chef Joel Viehland sources raw materials from a who’s who of local, ethical growers, foragers, and producers. The black-walnut tables were made from trees cut down in the back yard and the hand soaps in the restrooms are made by the pastry chef. Entrées: from $24. 223 Litchfield Turnpike. 860-868-9354; communitytablect.com BEST CUPCAKES HARDCORE SWEET CUPCAKES, Watertown He plays guitar in a hardcore punk band and rocks at rolling fondant. She went from baking for their kids’ parties to inventing decadent grown-up treats like Drunk Jack Balls (beer-fudge and pumpkin-ale cake truffles). Since winning Cupcake Wars in 2013, Jeremy and Nicole Braddock’s edgy, irreverent sweets have been all the rage. 20 Main St. 860-417-6660; hardcoresweetcupcakes.com BEST SPORTS BAR BOBBY V’S RESTAURANT & SPORTS BAR, Windsor Locks Connecticut native and former Major League Baseball manager Bobby Valentine’s latest venture isn’t fandom central just because the largest of its 70+ indoor and outdoor TVs is 17 feet wide. Culinary Institute of America–trained chef Jordan Stein hits a home run with filet mignon sliders and nachos grande enough to be a meal. Entrées: from $9. 11 Schoephoester Road. 860-627-5808; bobbyvsrestaurant.com BEST MEATLESS CAFÉ THE MUSICAL FOREST CAFÉ, North Haven Think meatless dining isn’t satisfying? Try the vegan-bacon mac-and-cheese panini at this tiny tiki bar inside the Music Center of North Haven. When owner Mark Minotti’s serious illness responded positively to a macrobiotic diet, he decided to share his newfound knowledge. Burgers, Philly cheesesteak, and Costa Rican empanadas are all on the menu, as are vegan baked goods. Minotti handmakes all of the “meats.” Lunches: from $6.95. 473 Washington Ave. 203-234-8865; musiccenternorth.com/Stagetime-Cafe.html

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