lunch. caseus, new haven.

Our old friend Mike Belinkie was in town this week and we hosted him at our house last night.  It was so nice to reminisce about 'the good old days' over dinner and wine.  I had to get him back to New Haven today, giving me, Mike & C a great excuse to head out for lunch.  I wanted to highlight something delicious but non-touristy for Mike and thought immediately of Caseus.

Just north of city center, you'll find Caseus on the corner of Trumbull and Whitney streets.  Part bistro, part cheese shop, this spot will not wow you with it's decor, but it's homey, warm and inviting nonetheless.  The restaurant space is NOT big, so make sure you make a reservation whether you go for lunch or for dinner.  Either meal, you will not be disappointed.  We arrived just before 1pm on a Thursday and the place was packed with diners, mostly hip looking twenty somethings and Yale employees.  We did not have a reservation, but waited patiently for a table to open up about ten minutes later.  There were several other parties waiting for tables behind us.

Once seated, we tackled the lunch menu.  With so many choices to choose from, Mike and I decided to share both the house special Mac & Cheese (Mike added kobe beef hot dogs to his) and their special Corned Beef Hash, with a side of pommes frites.   We rounded out our lunch with the house bread plate (which costs extra, bread is not part of the deal at Caseus.)  Breads are locally made and the butter flavor is always different - today is was peanut butter and jelly butter, interesting!  Service was friendly but not quick, so if you go, plan a leisurely lunch.  Everything came out at once and we dove right in.

The Mac & Cheese, which was recently highlighted on the Cooking Channel's Unique Eats show, was cheesy, decadent and very rich.  How could it NOT be with all those cheeses! Made with at least six different cheeses, it's a wonderful marriage of flavors.  I especially loved how it was topped with bread crumbs and the added flavor of the sausage to give it all an extra punch.  My corned beef hash, with (I think) duck eggs was a refined version of your usual diner fare, with almost crunchy corned beef and savory onions and potatoes.  It was good, but a little on the greasy side.  The eggs, too, were a bit over cooked for my liking.  I would have liked to see them a little runnier to mix into the hash.  Both dishes were served with a small side salad.  We ordered C a side of pommes frites - a perfect blend of peanut-oil fried potatoes, served bistro style in paper to soak up any extra grease.  We helped C out and dipped them in both the ketchup and mayo served along side.  Four breads, most whole grain rolls, were served with their unique peanut butter and jelly butter.  I'm not sure how they captured the taste of the orginial sandwich in butter, but they did!  The warm rolls helped melt the butter to make for a bite that any kid would long for at lunchtime.  We nearly finished everything on the table and walked away satisfied.

Caseus is not a diet-food destination, but a great place for a lively and hearty meal.  This is comfort food at it's best.  Just don't forget to make a reservation, unless you want to hang out with the Yale professors also waiting for tables or go shopping in their cheese shop, also in the same location.

Caseus Fromagerie & Bistro
93 Whitney Avenue
New Haven, CT 06510-1236
(203) 624-3373

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dinner. the ginger man, norwalk.

If you haven't been down to Norwalk, namely SONO in awhile, well, hurry up!  Beautiful Washington Street is lined with fun restaurants, specialty shops and nightlife to make for a great afternoon or night out.  We were there to see a friend in concert, but decided to have a quick bite to eat before the show.  I wanted to try something new, but needed it to be kid-friendly with K&C in tow, so after a little research we ended up at The Ginger Man. 

Walking in, you quickly feel at home with the wood floors, wood paneling and beautiful copper accented bar.  The beer lover in you will froth (pun intended) at the mouth as you gaze over the 50+ (yes, that's right) beers on tap.  Bar on the left, restaurant on the right, this space looks like a great destination for happy hour and a comfortable space (probably on the loud side on a Thursday-Saturday night) for a bite to eat.  We were seated on the bar side because they were expecting a large group for a beer party.  (Sounded like fun!)

Service was casual, not rushed.  The kids menu kept my little ones happy with standard chicken, burger and pasta choices.  All or most come with fries and vegetables are available but optional.  The dinner menu had plenty to offer and a good variety for casual pub-type fare, most options in the $12-$15 range.  In addition to the regular menu, they also had several specials that seemed to be holiday themed for St. Patrick's Day, including a stout burger and mussels & cockels in a stout broth.  I always have a hard time saying no to mussels, so I went for that dish.  Although on the appetizer menu, I was assured that it would be large enough as a main dish. 

To get into the spirit of my upcoming trip to Germany, I ordered a Hofbrau Hefe Weisse, which came out in a tall, thin half-liter glass.  It was light, slightly sweet and a wonderful start to my meal.  The kids ate the chicken fingers and the pasta with noodles.  Both were very large for kid-size meals and were not finished.  My mussels & cockels were large enough, but I craved more.  The broth was delicious, made with stout, tomatoes, garlic, bacon and shallots.  The dish was served with two large pieces of peasant bread, which was great for soaking up the extra broth.  I ended up using some of C's fries to lap up broth as well.  I really enjoyed the dish, and my hunger was satisfied.  My only complaint was that the dish could have been a little bigger.

There is a dessert menu, but we didn't have time to try any.   Coconut bread pudding sounds pretty good, though!  I'd give this a place a try and would certainly come back!  A good destination for grown-ups, beer lovers and kids.

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