Roadfood_ Revised Edition - Jane Stern [1]
No one can deny the soulless homogenization of the American road in recent decades; the blight of corporate sameness surely does endanger these distinctive eateries. It is heartbreaking to see a one-of-a-kind favorite driven out of business when the monotonous franchises come to town. But we are not glum about Roadfood’s future. An appreciation of regional food, local farms, sustainable foodways, and quirky town cafés has grown tremendously in recent years. More and more of us have come to realize that food isn’t just something to eat. It can be an essential and very delicious part of who we are.
We are optimistic about the future of good eats because we have seen so many old restaurants passed on to new generations who treasure the legacy, as well as brand-new ones that honor food as soul sustenance. Whenever we hit the road, we are armed with more good tips and suggestions from readers than time and appetite will allow us to sample. At the Web site Roadfood.com a burgeoning community of passionate eaters has come together to share their knowledge, enthusiasm, and experience, and to help one another savor this country’s best food. Please join us there, where users are welcome to post reviews, to participate in discussion forums about all good-eats topics, and to partake of the best recipes from Roadfood restaurants all around the country. If you have a particular restaurant you want to review or recommend or if you have a comment on one that we have recommended, please visit Roadfood.com and let the world know or get in touch with us directly at jane&michael@ roadfood.com.
Until then, we hope to see you at the lunch counter or in a diner booth or parked at the drive-in somewhere down the road!
Notes about Using This Book
If you are planning a special trip to any restaurant in this book, please call ahead to make certain it is open and is serving what you want to eat. Hours of operation change over the course of the year and proprietors sometimes go fishing. Our notation of BLD, meaning breakfast, lunch, and dinner, can mean different times in different places. For instance, many heartland restaurants do serve dinner, but dinner hour can end as early as seven o’clock. Also, some specialties are seasonal. (When calling, be aware that telephone area codes are changing all the time.)
The vast majority of Roadfood restaurants require no reservations and are come-as-you-are. A few pricier ones do require a reservation. We’ve made note of which ones get insanely crowded and what you can do about it. But again, if in doubt, please call ahead.
Our approximate cost guide is as follows:
$ = one full meal is under $10
$$ = one full meal is between $10 and $30
$$$ = one full meal is over $30
We welcome tips for inclusion in future editions, comments, and even complaints. Please address any such correspondence to us c/o Broadway Books, 1745 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Or contact us via our interactive Web site: www.roadfood.com.
Connecticut
Abbott’s Lobster in the Rough
117 Pearl St.
860–536–7719
Noank, CT
LD May to Labor Day, then weekends through mid-Oct | $$
Hugely crowded on nice summer evenings, Abbott’s specializes in warm-weather shore dinners. Start with bracing, steel-gray chowder (milkless), then littlenecks on the half shell and/or steamers or mussels by the bucket with broth and butter for dripping. If you arrive with a big appetite, you will need to eat many hors d’oeuvres because the lobsters, cooked to order, can take a while. They are beauties, available in whatever size you need. If you don’t have the energy to crack, pick, suck, and pluck your way through a whole one, this is a grand place to have a hot lobster roll—hunks of pink sweet meat bathed in butter, sandwiched inside a warm bun. Cold lobster salad rolls are also available, as are hot and cold crab rolls.
Abbott’s is one of the prettiest places in Connecticut to dine al fresco. Seating is at bare wooden tables, either in the open or under tents. Civilized sorts actually bring their own tablecloths as well