connecticut restaurants

The James Beard Foundation has announced the semifinalists for its 2023 Restaurant and Chef Awards and one Connecticut restaurant is in the running for Outstanding Restaurant and two Connecticut chefs are regional semifinalists for best chef.   Cora Cora in West Hartford is a semifinalist for Outstanding Restaurant, which honors a “restaurant that demonstrates consistent excellence in food, atmosphere, hospitality,…

Due to record highs in inflation, restaurants are raising their prices to keep up with rising food costs, between one and two dollars. Menu prices have increased 7.4% in the past year.

Customers are seeing restaurant menu prices go up this summer season amid inflation challenges. “I mean, you come to the restaurant and you see the prices going up two to three dollars maybe, and it has an effect on everything,” Fiaz Ashraf said. Ahead of the busy dining out season, Zohara Mediterranean Kitchen in West Hartford increased the price of…

Lawmakers voted to allow another year of outdoor dining and the governor is expected to sign it. Many restaurant owners are happy about it and hope outdoor dining will become a permanent part of the dining experience.

Two brothers who saw success with their restaurant, Somos, in New Haven, during the pandemic, are now opening a new location in Shelton.

The Connecticut Restaurant Association says as many as 18,000 restaurant workers are in danger of losing their jobs due to the ongoing pandemic.

With COVID-19 infection rates climbing in Connecticut, many restaurants are making adjustments to try and keep outdoor dining going during the winter months.

With some major Connecticut companies keeping employees working from home, restaurants that rely on that lunchtime customer base are struggling.

Hartford restaurants are rethinking ways to attract Hartford customers after many businesses in downtown remain in a hybrid work model.

The owner of Carbones in Hartford says he has closed the doors to that location because so many big companies in the city are keeping their employees from home, cutting into his usual customer base.

The owner of Caloroso, in Shelton, has decided to take sales tax relief money raised next week and give it to 10 employees who worked for the restaurant through the entire pandemic.

The state will offer restaurants a week to allow them to keep sales tax on customers’ bills rather than have to remit it to the state.

Penny Lane Pub reopened this week after having to close for several days because of COVID-19 cases among its staff.

With small business Saturday around the corner, state leaders are hoping to see some support for local dining too.

After learning Tap & Vine in Wallingford announced it would close its doors for good due to staffing issues, other restaurants in town put out the call to help cover shifts until the owner can hire the employees he needs.

A Wallingford restaurant owner stressed by the staffing shortage warned customers Sunday would be his last day if he couldn’t hire more people. But so-called competitors are stepping up to help the Tape & Vine.

Connecticut restaurants are continuing to struggle through the pandemic, and with winter on the way to cut down outdoor dining options, the Connecticut Restaurant Association warns that some tough decisions may be ahead.

Tap & Vine in Wallingford is planning to close Sunday if the restaurant cannot find enough help to fill two positions it needs to staff before then. The restaurant posted on Facebook that it has been hit hard by the labor shortage. “The community has been great,” Hector Samuel, the owner of Tap & Vine, said. “Everybody has been doing…

he group Eat In Connecticut has started a new #BEKINDtoRestaurants campaign, reminding people to just be kind to restaurants as they grapple with pandemic supply chain issues and labor shortages.