Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Valentine's Day=Food, and Stamford Restaurants Do Not Disappoint

I'm sure many of you already have V-Day plans, but some of you, like me, may be leaving things until the last minute.
There are so many great restaurants, so I'll tell you the ones I might call today. These are based on good food and decent atmosphere for V-Day- tables not on top of each other, not too loud, and an interesting menu.
Stamford:
Duo
Market
g/r/a/n/d- (heads up, might have a prix fixe menu- our service was slow a couple of V-Days ago, but it's a cool place)
Dunn's Loft- (the steak, the steak!)

(I think Telluride's too woody, Chez Jean-Pierre too cramped, and Ferrante's a little too exposed- however, they're all good backups).

G'wich:
Ginger Man- fire place!
Rebecca's (if you feel like splurging- my experience there was so good I feel like weeping just remembering it)

Restaurants I know nothing about, I fear are expensive, but sound romantic:
Cava in New Canaan

My first choice, I know I am crazy:
Melting Pot in Darien. One hears terrible things about Melting Pot, but I feel like doing something different. Besides, chocolate and cheese are awesome. It's true I did not enjoy cooking my own meat, but the veggies were great. The marshmallows were stale, but the fruit was good.

Reality:
Oh what the heck I'm going to call Duo. They're probably full, but... and I'm trying to save money, but... anywhere in this area is going to cost 40 bucks for dinner, so why not spend $ 80 for my favorite place with the craziest food ever? I should probably say, craziest food in Stamford. Maybe I'll try Market because my husband hasn't been there, but I'm sure it's already full, too. Maybe I'll feel thrifty and go to Capriccio and get the good bolognese.

If you want something besides eating out, you may want to look into my Date Night suggestions

Not a paid ad, just opinion:
Don't waste your time on Russell Stover. Get See's chocolate, featured above, and in my mouth right now. Yeah, it's 8am.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was at g/r/a/n/d a few weeks ago and was told they have a brand new chef who supposedly worked at a few reputable places in NYC. If you decide to go there, definitely let us know how it was!

Anonymous said...

treid to get a table at Dunns loft but they are closed for a private party. Went there last weekend at your suggestion and OH MY GOD.....The STEAK!!!!!! And might I add...THE CRAB APPET. and ...THE CALIMARI APPETizer! That place is to die for!!!!

Stamford Talk said...

Private Party on V-Day? Odd!
I am so glad you liked the steak! How was the scene? Crowded? A band? Did you have drinks? I had a rocking cosmo when I was there.

Anonymous said...

The scene was perfect. It was mostly couples in their 30's and 40's. Fantastic acoustic guitarist/singer, Vinny, who is there most weekends. We actually ate at the bar because we went in without a reservation and they were packed. Everything looked so good, we just ate at the bar. Turns out that was the best seat in the house as Robert Dunn, the owner, ended up hanging out and talking to us all night. He is a neat guy with great vision. I cant wait to go back!

Anonymous said...

You guys have sold me on Dunn's Loft. I have to try it. I'd go for V-day on Friday, but the missus does not like steak, and taking her to a "steakhouse" (even if it has excellent non-steak options) feels a bit like the Simpsons episode where Homer buys Marge the bowling ball...

As it stands I have reservations for Market. We like Duo, but I'm still happily meandering through the phase of trying new places, especially in situations like this.

Anonymous said...

Well we ended up at The Elms in Ridgefield for V Day (don't tell Mr. Stamford, but we like the homogeneous suburbs too!) instead of Market. Market's close to home though, so we'll hit it in another time.

Did you notice the post on Chow that mentioned that the owner of Oceans 211 / Dunn's Loft is selling the restaurants this Spring?!?! All the more reason for me to rush to Dunn's as soon as possible. Want to go on a date?!? ;-)

-Mr. Z