11/2/08-Perk on Main, Durham, CT

Ahh, Black Friday! On our way back from hitting the great deals at the Clinton outlets, we stopped off at Perk on Main to get some lunch. Have I mentioned that I love places that are trying to be eco-friendly? I do--I just love it. I was super impressed on how eco-friendly this place tries to be--3 different cans to separate your trash into (regular trash--things that cannot be recycled, cans and bottles and biodegradables), a program working with farmers to take the coffee grounds for composting and a community water cooler to help reduce our carbon footprint--this place gets an A+ for all of the above efforts. Now, on to the food. Tom had the Swiss Army Ciabatta--Grilled Turkey Filet, Lettuce, Tomato, Bacon, Mayo, & Swiss with a side baby field greens salad with balsamic vinaigrette. I had the Fall Classic crepe--Hot Cinnamon Spiced Apple Pie Filling with caramel. After trying eachothers dishes, we decided that we would definitely be back, maybe next time for breakfast! A very cute place with a relaxed feel, easy on the environment and our wallets too!

www.perkonmain.com

11/21/08-Max Amore, Glastonbury, CT

CT Restaurant week part 2! Colleen and I got together to catch up on things and had a lovely dinner. I started with the Classic Caesar salad--the dressing was a bit too peppery, but the homemade croutons were excellent. Col had Baby spinach, poached Bosc pears, candied walnuts, crumbled gorgonzola, Calimyrna figs, fig vinaigrette salad, which really wasn't her thing, but we're so proud of her for trying something new! We both had the Classic Chicken Parmesan, over spaghetti with peeled plum tomato sauce, fresh basil, E.V.O.O.--very tasty, haven't had good chicken parm out at a restaurant in quite some time since I make my own version at home. For dessert, Col had the warm harvest crisp and I had the creme brulee. Oh and my drink was excellent too--cranberry lemonade martini. They should have more deals like restaurant week because business was booming here! We decided we need to go out without our men more often and go to great places like this!

www.maxrestaurantgroup.com

11/20/08-Feng Asian Bistro, Hartford, CT

CT Restaurant Week! I cannot pass up this deal. Out we went tonight with Kirstin joining us (always up for an adventure!) and we had reservations at Feng. I didn't think we were ever going to make it--accident on the highway, no parking anywhere, not to mention the wind was COLD! We finally made it and were seated in a nice comfortable booth. The decor was modern and very cool, and I must mention the bathrooms because Kirstin told me to--neat sinks with rocks at the bottom, very clean. Anyway, I digress. The offer was the same for Hartford restaurant week--prefix menu, all for $20.08. Kirstin and Tom had the Sichimi Shanchi White Tuna, seared with wild ginger for their appetizer and I had Sampler Platter- crab ragoon, shrimp shumai, chicken satay, & beef dumpling. For our entree, we all tried something different--Kirstin had Sushi Sampler, assorted sushi (Chef's choice) with a spicy tuna roll--Tom had Ginger Salmon, with ten vegetable Shang Hai noodles--I had Honey Five Spiced Chicken, with wok fried rice. We all tried eachothers dishes--and YES, I tried sushi--ok, I am so not a big fan. It was an experience that I'm pretty sure I will not aquire anytime soon. But I tried it. So there :) We all had the Banana & Coconut Spring Roll, with vanilla ice cream and chocolate sauce for dessert--I didn't think that combo would be good, but it was. Everything was well received, although the portions were small (maybe just because we ordered off the restaurant week menu?) but we all left feeling very satisfied. I hope to come back sometime soon!

www.fengasianbistro.com

11/15/08-Black Bear Saloon, Hartford, CT

Laundry got done late, so we didn't exactly have a plan for dinner, so off we drove to downtown Hartford and ended up having dinner at Black Bear Saloon in Hartford (the old Coach's, I think.) Since it's a Saturday night, we got carded at the door (Tom was told to turn his hat forward! haha) and the place was pretty busy with people packed in for the UConn football game. We started with their chips and salsa then Tom ordered the "Smokey the Bear" which is a burger topped with cheddar cheese and chili--overall a salty taste but he did like it--with sweet potato fries. I had one of the specials, Chicken and pear wrap with cheese, dried cranberries, pecans tossed in a balsamic vinaigrette and put together in a spinach wrap with shoestring fries--very very good! Would definitely come back here to hang out, watch the game and have a few drinks with friends!

www.blackbearhartford.com

11/14/08--The Underground Deli, New Britain, CT

Skipped out of work a bit early before my doctor's appt. to get lunch with Jill! This place is in the plaza right next to CCSU and Jill and I had probably skipped Jarek's Theatre History class a bunch of times to get sandwiches here, so we relived the glory days and met here. Cute little deli, mostly all college students/professors who know about this place and great sandwich creations. I had the #15, the Interruption--grilled chicken, cucumbers, lettuce and cheese with honey mustard on a hard roll (I have a slight obsession with honey mustard!) with a side of their pasta salad and Jill had ham and cheese on a hard roll with a side of their potato salad--everything was excellent and pretty cheap too, just like I remembered! I gotta skip outta work more often :)

No website, located on Stanley St. next to CCSU.

11/9/08-The Counter Burger, West Hartford, CT

Tom and I took a little trip up to Blue Back Square to walk around for the afternoon and grab some lunch, so hearing that there's a new burger joint in CT, we decide to give it a try. The place is cute--small, but cute--retro feel, but with all the modern comforts. The draw of the Counter Burger is that the burger is just the way you order it--with whatever you order on it. We did the 50/50 split on the fries--half sweet potato and half regular and it was served with a horseradish mayonnaise for dipping, which def had a little kick. My burger was a 2/3 lb. ground beef on honey wheat roll with tillamook cheddar, lettuce, pickles, bacon and sweet bbq sauce (I know, so original, but I wanted a basis to compare with other burger joints)--the burger was huge, considering the 2/3 lb is the weight AFTER cooking, not before! Tom's creation was 2/3 lb. ground beef with Danish blue cheese, olives, sprouts, grilled pineapple with ginger soy glaze--sounds like a disaster, but was very tasty. These burgers are hard to eat since they are so big, so next time I would try a burger bowl instead (the burger and all the fixings on a bed of lettuce). The Counter Burger became a fast favorite with us, I'm sure we'll be back!

www.thecounterburger.com

10/31/08-Junior's @ MGM Grand at Foxwoods, Ledyard, CT

Alice Cooper on Halloween? How much better could it get? Even though this is our 3rd time seeing him together, it's a great show everytime. We drove out to the new MGM Grand at Foxwoods and Grand is a great name to describe it. A huge, beautifully designed tower and a gorgeous theatre, it was nice to finally be able to check out the place we poured so much concrete at. I was really impressed with the design and comfort of the theatre--roomy seats, behind-the-seat cupholders, carpeted floor and great view from any angle it seemed. We were running a little behind so we needed something quick to eat so we went to Junior's--this is the CT branch of the famous restaurant in the Bronx. It touted "the best cheesecake in the world" so it must be good....right? Well, the sandwiches offered were average at best and VERY overpriced--I had the grilled chicken deluxe and Tom had fresh brisket of beef. We shared the fries that came with my sandwich and those were the best part--not too crispy, not too soft, good diner fries. And the cheesecake? Not the best! Instead of a crust, it is a thin layer of white cake. Sometimes the best part of the cheesecake is the crust, so I was a bit disappointed. Tom made the comment about how it was like eating plain cream cheese (with a slight slight vanilla flavoring), so it was def not the best. Save your money and eat at the New Britain diner--good food and even better prices!

www.mgmatfoxwoods.com/dine