A Change of Eatery

Over the past year, a grand transformation has taken place. My lifelong burger ambivalence has unexpectedly evolved into a full blown devotion.

I’m a convert, a burger advocate, and I’m gearing up for a lifelong love affair.

Luckily, this area is brimming with excellent burger eateries- some are known for their innovative recipes and gourmet artisan burgers, while others have won the hearts and taste buds of loyal customers for decades. It’s time for a series of posts to pay homage to our favorite American comfort food. Over the next week, I’ll be exploring and summarizing some great local choices for that perfect burger.

Corey’s Catsup & Mustard

Though I’ve lived in Manchester for less than two years, I have an inordinate amount of town pride—if only for our eateries. Corey’s Catsup & Mustard, one of my favorite local spots, is a popular burger bar on Main Street- and it’s popular for good reason. This lively spot has great energy, awesome burgers, and a host of other delicious dishes with creative & catchy names. C&M offers a selection of tasty appetizers, fries in six flavors (plain, spicy Cajun, garlic-parmesan, cool ranch, sweet potato & sea salt and vinegar), salads, sandwiches and, of course, world class burgers.

Special shout out to my delightful Rodeo Burger, a glorious concoction oozing with BBQ sauce, fried shoestring onions, bacon, cheddar and ranch dressing. Warm pretzel bun optional.

Just a slab of heaven in a cute little burger suit.

Since I’ve been to this restaurant quite a few times, I like to show it off to area newbies. Last week, my parents came to visit and I took them to Catsup & Mustard while experiencing a great surge of Manchester pride. After ordering and devouring “Oh Burger, You Devil” (crushed red pepper seared burger with jack cheese, jalapeño burger relish, chopped lettuce, tomato, bacon and sriracha mayo on hard roll), my dad declared it to be the best burger he’s ever eaten. And he’s had his share.

So there you have it. Flavor, flavor, flavor.

Some perks besides the food: Thursday karaoke and live music most Friday and Saturday nights, creative décor, a full bar, sports games in the background, and a wonderful staff. It’s the perfect place to come, eat, and unwind with friends any night of the week.

Menu & events schedule available at http://catsupandmustard.com/index.html

I’m a sucker for good jazz and great food…so I thought this excerpt was worth sharing.

Posted on the Greater Hartford Arts Council website:

Love Jazz?
There’s lots of it in Greater Hartford!

ARCH STREET TAVERN – Hartford Jazz Orchestra with vocalist Bobbi Rogers every Monday, 8pm.  Hartford. archstreettavern.com

BLACK-EYED SALLY’S** Hartford Jazz Society sponsors the Monday Night Jazz Jam, every Monday evening, 8pm-11pm. Experienced jazz musicians Steve Davis, Nat Reeves and friends perform 8-9pm, then their students join and jam. An exciting opportunity for both. hartfordjazzsociety.com   350 Asylum St, Hartford. 278-RIBS (7427). blackeyedsallys.com

DULCE SUPPER CLUB An infusion of acoustic, live jazz, social compliments and food. Become part of the Supper Club every Thursday, Friday and Saturday evening beginning at 8pm. 100 Trumbull St, Hartford. 756-0988, dulcerestaurant.com

FIREBOX** Wednesday is jazz night with Ed Fast and friends, 8-11pm. In the bar, no cover. Arrive by 7pm if you want to get a seat. 539 Broad St, Hartford. 246-1222, fireboxrestaurant.com

NEW BRITAIN MUSEUM OF AMERICAN ART** Various artists perform on the First Friday of every month, 5:30pm-8pm. 56 Lexington St, New Britain. 229-0257, nbmaa.org

THE RUSSELL** Live Jazz every Friday 5-8pm;Sunday Jazz Brunch every Sunday, 11am-4pm. 103 Pratt St, Hartford. 727-4014, therussellct.com

THE RUSSELL AT THE WADSWORTH ATHENEUM** Sunday Jazz Brunch every Sunday noon-3pm. 600 Main St, Hartford. Hugh Russell, proprietor. Café: 838-4042. wadsworthatheneum.org

SPRIS RESTAURANT** Every Thursday 6:30-9:30pm. No cover. 10 Constitution Plaza, Hartford. Call for artists. 247-7747, sprishartford.com

STUDIO @ BILLINGS FORGE** 563-565 Broad Street, Hartford. Check for artists at studio.billingsforgeworks.org

SZECHUAN TOKYO Every Thursday, 7:30pm-10:30pm; Friday, 8pm-11pm. 1245 New Britain Ave, West Hartford. 561-0180, asianfusion.net

TISANE EURO ASIAN CAFE Every Wednesday night at 9pm. 537 Farmington Avenue, Hartford. Call for artists, 523-5417.

**Discounts on dining and arts organization admission with Greater Hartford Arts Council’s Let*s GO Arts! card, yours with a $50 tax-deductible pledge to the United Arts Campaign. Check LetsGoArts.org for updated list of discounts.

(http://www.letsgoarts.org/Page.aspx?pid=233)

Here’s the scoop du jour:

This Saturday, Red Rock Tavern in downtown Hartford will be hosting a dinner fundraiser to benefit the victims of Haiti’s devastating earthquake. The cost is $20 and proceeds will go to Haitian Ministries, a Connecticut based organization (http://www.haitianministries.org/).

Located on Capitol Avenue in Hartford, Red Rock Tavern is an area favorite with a great pub-like atmosphere. The restaurant has been family owned since 1933 and serves hearty, home cooked food at affordable prices.

Stop by on Saturday- eat a good meal and show your support.

January 30th : 2 p.m. – 8 p.m.

The Red Rock Tavern will also donate a percentage of bar sales during this event.

For more details, contact the restaurant at (860) 256-4527

I’ve been wanting to try Agave Grille for a few months, so I was excited to finally stop by this corner cantina with some friends on Friday night. When we arrived, the popular downtown restaurant was packed and its vibrant bar scene was already in full swing. Once seated, we ordered some drinks while perusing the dinner menu- and even though Agave is celebrated for its extensive tequila selection and killer margaritas, I opted for the white sangria and it was truly the best I’ve ever had.

But listen: If you take nothing else from this post, please try to remember this one delightful, glorious magic word:

Guacamole… Agave’s signature tableside guacamole.

This wonderful concoction was whipped up right in front of us. And so, entirely mesmerized, we observed the process until I was on the edge of my seat in tortuous anticipation of attacking the finished product. Needless to say, it was delicious, astoundingly fresh, and balanced with light flavors of cilantro and lime.

The menu offered an eclectic mix of Mexican favorites and unique signature recipes. I sampled the 3 course Taste of Hartford fixed menu, which was just fantastic. It included a winter salad comprised of baby spinach tossed in a warm bacon-mustard vinaigrette with diced apples, crispy jicama sticks, bacon lardoons, and topped with a poached egg- I was initially apprehensive of this unlikely flavor combination…but somehow the medley of tastes made complete sense at first bite.

Chicken Empanizato was served as the second course: Corn meal crusted chicken breast topped with a tomatillo avocado salsa served with arroz verde and roasted butternut squash. Again, this impressive flavor combo was so much more than the sum of its parts, and the butternut squash surprisingly made the meal complete.

I was a bit underwhelmed by the pineapple sorbet offered for dessert– not because I don’t love every sorbet imaginable (I do), but because it was drenched in a saccharine raspberry sauce that was painfully sugary.

Among my dining companions, other winning dishes included the chicken adobo enchiladas, vegetarian chili, and sugar cane skewered shrimp salad (Grilled sugar cane skewered shrimp over a salad of avocadoes, tomato, peppers, red onion and mixed greens, tossed with a tangy tomato vinaigrette).

The salad was gorgeous. You just can’t go wrong with those ingredients.

At our entire table, the spread’s only slight disappointments included the habanero pulled pork taco as well as the Coctel de Camarron. This latter dish, gulf shrimp served in a spicy tomato sangrita with avocado and red onion, tasted like someone snuck a cup of splenda into the sangrita.

I would certainly return to Agave, and I intend to come back. Creative dishes, great atmosphere, plentiful seating, and good service. And did I mention guacamole? Some of the menu’s dishes crept towards the expensive side of the spectrum (minus my Taste of Hartford deal) but the food is worth it. A very delicious experience, indeed. All in all, a pretty solid weekend.

Check out what’s happening in the Hartford art scene these days!

Head over to Real Artways in Hartford this Thursday night for their monthly Creative Cocktail Hour. The event takes place every Third Thursday from 6-10 for an evening of conversation, music, art and entertainment—as well as a cash bar. I made it to last month’s gathering and, after wandering through the incredible main art gallery, heard Wally Lamb (one of my favorite CT authors) read from his newest book Wishin’ & Hopin’. If you’ve never been to Real Artways, I suggest you check it out soon- it’s an awesome contemporary arts center in Hartford complete with multiple exhibits, a coffeehouse and a cinema with screenings of critically acclaimed domestic and foreign films.

During tomorrow night’s Creative Cocktail Hour, live music will be performed by The Rogerio Boccato Percussion Trio: featuring Rogerio Boccato (percussion), Kris Allen (saxophone), and Nando Michelin (piano), with Daniel Boccato, artist. According to The Real Artways website, artist Daniel Boccato will accompany the musical performance by “creating a visual atmosphere with projections that will enhance the whole experience and also speak back to the musicians, crafting a two-way dialogue between art and music.”

Could be captivating, bizarre, interesting- or all of the above.

 I’m in.

 Cost: $10 or $5 for members. www.realartways.org. Even if you don’t come by tomorrow, be sure to check out their art gallery & calendar of upcoming events, films, and performances.

After work today, I visited Tisane Euro Asian Café in Hartford to check out their happy hour specials. As an eatery, Tisane is known to wear many hats- and does so quite successfully. It’s a teahouse, martini bar, café and restaurant rolled into one with an inviting ambiance and impressive menu of unique fusion cuisine.

So, if you’ve grown weary of the same bar bites and cheap drafts, check out the weekday happy hour specials at Tisane. Selected martinis and appetizers are $5 each from 4-6 on weekdays (with martinis 4-close on Mondays). My table ordered some savory treats from the happy hour menu, including fried calamari, brie fondue, and sweet & sour tofu, as well as a few entrees from the main menu. Each of these dishes had an interesting twist: the calamari blended with citrus marinated cucumbers and a smoked chili aioli, while the brie fondue was infused with mushroom and artichoke and served with garlic pita chips. The sweet & sour tofu (flash fried with kimchee and peanut crunch) was definitely more on the sweet side- still tasty but I found the sauce to be slightly overpowering. All in all, a very nice spread.

From the happy hour drink list, I tried the tangy plum sake martini which featured the perfect balance of plum sake, svedka berry, pineapple and cranberry.  It’s great to know that happy hour martini selections change weekly, as Tisane has an extensive cocktail list with signature tea infused “mar-tea-nis”- including creative elixirs with plum oolong, vanilla lemongrass and hibiscus teas. Since Tisane is a teahouse above all else, they have an amazing loose leaf tea list (actually an entire bible of teas), which deserves a post all to itself.

Overall, I’m impressed by the atmosphere and layout every time I visit Tisane. It’s rare to find a place where you can meet up with friends for a round of cocktails, quietly enjoy a book over tea/coffee, catch up on emails, or stop by for a delicious meal or dessert. It’s just a very comfortable & inviting setting, no matter what your mood or purpose happens to be. Tonight, some employees even ignited the small outdoor firepit- and its aroma filtered into the cafe to make the air smell like late October. Perfect.

So pay them a visit if you find yourself in the neighborhood- it’s worth checking out.

Menu, prices, and contact info available at: www.mytisane.com