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October 25, 2006
A smokin' menu for any season at Cookhouse
ByStephanie Janucik
Now that the weather has turned cool, bringing us into my favorite season of fall, food seems to regain its appeal.
While burgers, salads and fresh fruit consume the warmer months, autumn brings back the comfort food we all know so well: chicken soup, apple pie, spaghetti; really, anything warm and filling. Many have a hard time letting go of the summer; it's exciting when it begins and it's gone before we know it.
The seasons may keep on changing, but the Cookhouse (636 West Main St., Branford, 488-4300) menu remains the same: absolutely delicious and a slight reminder of summer barbecue. (For those of you farther from Branford, you can also visit locations in Darien, New Milford and East Hartford.) On a recent weeknight, my boyfriend and I met another couple at the Cookhouse to try its slow-cooked meals.
We walked into a subtle country-dining extravaganza and took a seat in the bar area. (The dining rooms don't offer television and baseball was airing.) The sweet smell of country cooking was everywhere. I couldn't wait to open the menu to see what all of the fuss I'd been hearing was about.
The first Cookhouse restaurant started in an old red barn in New Milford in 1997, and the food, as I learned, all comes from family recipes from all around the South, including Louisiana, Georgia, the Carolinas, Alabama, Texas and Mississippi. For you health-conscious diners, the Cookhouse can accommodate any of your dietary restrictions and no trans fats are used.
We adorned our table with appetizers, such as Cookhouse wings ($8.99), beer-battered onion rings ($4.99) and Cajun popcorn shrimp ($7.99), all scrumptious. We may have ordered a bit more than we could eat (the portions are generous), but who would complain about taking home leftovers?
The next (and final) course was our main meal. I didn't order anything from the menu's "comfort food" section; that will be for the cold months to come. Instead, we chose the slow-smoked barbecue entrees. I feasted on the chicken platter (apple cider brined, slow cooked and basted with a seasoned chicken glaze, $14.99), while the others indulged in the pulled pork platter ($16.99) and beef brisket platter ($17.99). In addition, we chose two sides from a long list. Let's just say between the four of us we could have fed 12 and left full and happy.
We were too stuffed for dessert, but for those with a sweet tooth, I've heard the strawberry shortcake ($4.99) and the root beer float ($3.99) are fabulous. Specialty coffees are also available. Besides the delicious country food, the service was satisfactory and the bill wasn't awful.
So now that summer is a memory, think about barbecuing inside — at a Cookhouse near you.
How often do you Get Out? If you've got an idea or story you'd like to share, contact us at getout@ctpost.com. Check out the Get Out blogs at http://forum.connpost.com.
Posted by Bustraan on 8:31 PM | Comments (7638)
October 18, 2006
Shelton cider mill, orchard fits the fall bill
By Stephanie Janucik
That crisp time of year is here once again, when pump-kins peek out
of supermarket windows, the smell of wood burning trails through the
air and fall foliage makes our world a little more beautiful.
At the slightest hint of fall, I take out the calendar and schedule
the activities: harvest fairs, corn mazes, Halloween parties, pumpkin
picking and, my most preferred, apple picking. I make it all a big
to-do, really, and I give my friends a lot of credit for entertaining
me every year.
Traditionally, we all prepare ourselves for a long ride to an orchard
in Guilford (everyone usually gets an invitation via e-mail) and hike
around all day, picking our apples. This year, however, was a little
different.
I decided to go back to school this fall and I was afraid I wasn't
going to have enough time to go apple picking at an orchard almost 45
minutes away, and I was almost dev-astated at the thought of breaking
the tradition.
As someone who grew up in Shelton, I should have known better. While
online research-ing orchards, I came across Beardsley's Cider Mill
and Or-chard (278 Leavenworth Road, Shelton; 926-1098). I'm ashamed
to admit that I never even knew it was there, espe-cially considering
it's been around since 1849.
So on a recent Saturday' my dedicated friends and I met at the
orchard in the White Hills section of Shelton to pick our apples
($1.15 a pound). On weekends through early No-vember, from 10 a.m. to
5 p.m., you can pick your own apples from the orchard's many dwarf
and semi-dwarf trees (10-to-14 feet tall for ef-fortless picking).
These trees date to the 1920s and are still being harvested today.
I checked Beardsley's Web site beforehand
(www.beardsleyscidermill.com) to see what kinds of apples were being
picked and came home with Jonagolds for bak-ing and Macouns for
eating. Liberty and Mutsu were also available.
It turned out great that Beardsley's orchard is smaller than what I'm
used to. I didn't have to hike for miles to find the apples I wanted.
A friendly man on a tractor came by as we were picking, telling us to
help ourselves to the blooming plum tree as well.
When my apple bags were full, we stopped in the cider mill. While
pumpkins, mums and country signs drew us in, fresh apple cider,
pumpkin and cider donuts and other rare kinds of apples adorned the
walls on the inside, where samples of apple cider and various jams
were available.
And for those of you not into baking, Beardsley's Cider Mill offers
frozen apple, blueberry and pecan pies, among others.
So next year, when this time of year comes around and I have a little
extra time, I'll still plan to visit Beardsley's. Until then, I'll
enjoy this crisp weather with my homemade apple pie and caramel
apples.
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to share, contact us at getout@ctpost.com.
Check out the Get Out blogs at http://forum.connpost.com.
Posted by Bustraan on 9:14 PM | Comments (47)
October 6, 2006
'Comedy Club' serves up laughs in Stratford
MICHAEL DUNHAM
On a recent Friday evening, I sat and listened to a comedian named Talent muse about the unseasonably warm temperatures.
He made it painfully clear that those of us who get paid bi-weekly might not have any money in our pockets this week to go out, have some fun and take advantage of the weather. It hit home (it was not my pay week), so for me, laughter was the best medicine. Before I proceed, I must take you back a decade. Matt Kearney, a local resident, promoter and connoisseur of standup comedy, was frustrated by the lack of comedy venues in the area. He frequented New York City clubs with the idea of bringing top-level comedy to Connecticut.
Eventually he met Troy Harris, a.k.a. Talent, one of the hosts of New York City's 98.7 KISS-FM Wake-Up Club. The connection was established that was the genesis for what would become Trump-Tight Entertainment.
Trump-Tight debuted in Bridgeport at the former Bar 45 (now Tito's) on Barnum Avenue. The monthly show played at various area venues, including the Ramada Inn in Stratford, before moving in June to Oronoque Country Club in Stratford.
The "It's Just Comedy Caf" is billed as Connecticut's longest-running urban comedy show and features comedians who are vets of the game with appearances on shows on Comedy Central and BET, among others. The emcee is Talent, a man with a solid body of work. In addition to his radio show, he has an upcoming Showtime cable program called "White Boyz in the Hood," a standup show featuring talented caucasian comics with sort of a "reverse crossover" effect. After briefly chatting with Talent before a recent Oronoque show, I returned to my table to feel a buzz, a vibe in the air, that screamed, "It's time to laugh, let's do this!" I ran into some guys I'd known for ages — Kenneth Vereen, Bobby Washington and Michael Jordan (no, not the arrogant one) — and we settled in for some laughs.
The first comedian to take the stage was Malik S. from Miami. He had a funny take on gas prices and how they've affected drive-by shootings, as well as long-distance relationships (Bridgeport-New Haven). And he riffed about beautiful women not paying for anything.
K-DUB, from Atlanta, developed a bold and bawdy rapport with a lady in the audience, describing her ample assets. She should be commended for being real cool about it.
She wasn't the only target. Big Jeff Velez, from my old stomping grounds in the South End of Bridgeport, took some good-natured abuse, all 6-feet-7-inches of him. Darryl Damn, also from Atlanta, elaborated on not-so-pretty women, urging those possessors of inner beauty to "pull it out!" On his way off stage, Darryl made the mistake of referring to the audience as "Jersey," in his thank-yous. The road is long, and tough.
Kyle Grooms, one of HBO's original "DefJam" comedians and the show's closing act, made fun of himself, creating a routine based solely on the glasses on his face. My favorite bit was his reference to prison as a "gated community."
I applaud Trump-Tight, Talent and Matt Kearney for bringing quality entertainment to the area. We do need to laugh more. The next "It's Just Comedy Caf" show at Oronoque Country Club in Stratford is Oct. 13. Doors open at 10 p.m. with showtime at 11 p.m. Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 at the door, and can be obtained by calling Matt Kearney at 502-3168. A buffet is available for $7.99. For more information e-mail him at trumptight_ent@yahoo.com.
How often do you Get Out? If you've got an idea or story you'd like to share, contact us at getout@ctpost.com.
Posted by getout on 2:53 PM | Comments (2808)
