Smokey Joe's on Darien/Stamford border closing?

[ChefBoyAreMe]

I heard thru the grapevine that Jimmy-whoever, formerly of Jimmy's Seaside in the Cove in Stamford is taking over the space and opening a seafood place. Anyone else hear this?

[Johnct]

Back to the OP. All I have to say is "Please close the place and replace it with something... anything decent...." I have an office in the buildings nearby and we are in desperate need of a restaurant within walking distance.

[louuuuu]

Ding dong, Smoky's ain't dead.
New Sign up: Boathouse.
Then "Smokey Joes in back."
Obviously top floor will be the new seafooder. Basement remains as SJ.
Too bad.

[Johnct]

Oh well.... I can dream..........

[poppy]

well, someone should at least go check it out....

[louuuuu]

In all fairness, you're right Poppy. But if you've ever been to Jimmy's Seaside much less Smokey Joes, the prospects aren't too promising. The best that could be said about Jimmys was the music was loud and local and the place was sort of near the Sound ( a lot closer than Boathouse.)

Since 211 left, we really do need a good local fish place, beside Mitchells, which is utimately another chain at the Town Center, with no ties to Stamford or local waters.

[poppy]

yes louuuuu, wouldn't it be great to be able to enjoy a plate of whole belly fried clams, fried in clean oil so they were golden colored and a cold beer (or iced tea for jfood). why is it that one must wait for a trip to cape cod to find something so simply made.

[jfood]

Thanks for the iced tea order (sometimes jfood goes wild and gets iced coffee).

There are fried clams on the coast from Branford to New London that are good (the drive on 95 will kill you though in the summer). In a pich try SONO seafood for fried clams. It ain't cape cod, but it is close. Avoid the shack next to Harbor Lights on the other side of the harbor, though.

BTW - Jfood was speaking with the guys at New Wave and they have whole bellies if you want to try at home.

[poppy]

respecfully disagree about sono seafood. that is why i made reference to clean oil and golden colored wholebellies. btw, i'm an iced tea man myself until the evening hours.

[jfood]

guess it depends on the time of day. yes, they are not Clam Shack quality

[jfood]

Wow...the wasteland of food in Darien just keeps increasing

[adamclyde]

at least this one you can claim the badness is on the stamford side... :)

[jfood]

good point...jfood drove by this area last night on the way home from the train station, he always gets confused around there.

[poppy]

but frankly, i never hear much mention on this borad of darien spots. a little 1020 but nothing to make me go there.

[jfood]

only thing worth going to in Darien is Coromandel in Good Wives and steve h (jfood thinks) recommends Rory's for a burger. 1020 is not on jfood's approved list.

Good Foods is the best caterer in the area and makes some great cakes as well.

[Scotty100]

The Darien Cheese shop is also worthy of a visit. Superb selection from owners who are very respected in the business.

[jfood]

Cheese Shop is Very Worthy

[ChefBoyAreMe]

Actually, at Rory's, I'd reco a Bloody Mary, NE clam chowder with a splash of sherry on top, and the open pastrami rueben.

Gourmet? No, but good pub food.

1020 is what it is...go for drinks, a plate of oysters, and to socialize.

I'd also add worth a visit in Darien , right by Rory's, Matsuri. Some ding it for not being "authentic" sushi, but the quality of the fish is very good, and the cuts generous, unlike many places where the fish doesn't even cover the rice.

[Scotty100]

Lack of authenticity aside, Matsuri is downright awful. The quality is not good at all and cannot be covered up by being excessively generous in portion size.

[ChefBoyAreMe]

I beg to disagree, but I suppose that's why Chowhound is here, for a range of opinions. While perhaps not up to high end NYC standards, it is superior to Plum Tree in NC, and comparable to Kazu in SoNo and Kotobuki in Stmaford. And I'm pretty particular, eat sashimi, not sushi, so there is no hiding poor quality fish.

[Scotty100]

The people of Darien badly need the town leaders to wake up and attract new restaurants and businesses to open...they're still stuck in that 50s New England ivy-league dreamland where that sort of thing is just "too common" for the old money inhabitants.

Mind you, we are getting a whole foods in the next 2 months and a brooks brothers opened up last year...progress!!

[poppy]

i think you're getting some version of new canaan's cava in a few months.

[adamclyde]

But, at least as a culinary wasteland, it's sandwiched closely by 2 good food towns (Stamford, Norwalk). Add New Canaan and you can claim it's sandwiched by 2 1/4 good food towns.

[poppy]

i pick on new canaan too (its fun) but its not that bad. actually drove thru there yesterday and had a great lunch at rosie. delicious gumbo and their new paninni. cost a few shekels though.

[jfood]

Yeah, it is a little pricey but really good and more importantly they have people who understand what a shekel (sic) is.

[jfood]

C'mon A, carve out the ethnic places in nwk and stm and nc has much better restaurants. It deserve a full credit, not a 1/4.

[adamclyde]

but why carve them out? It's part of the whole package. New Canaan has none of them. got some other places, which are fine. But Norwalk and Stamford have more of a spectrum. Regardless, it really doesn't matter because the goodies in all three places are within a 10-15 minute proximity. Makes for a happy camper.

[jfood]

"but why carve them out?"...because jfood would like a full vote. Hey everyone else is giving away votes, why can't jfood ask for one. :-)

[LW1]

the only "ethnic" food new canaan is missing is carribbean. we have the best chinese food in the country i'm told. decent indian, thai. great italian and french. good burger place and if it was ever open, lemon grass has some nice wraps.
stamford does not have anything i would trade for. i would like a steak house (not a morton's, more like a Martin's Tavern in DC if anyone has been there). Sono has a couple of good places that we frequent, but i'm good with new canaan's variety.

[adamclyde]

the "only" ethnic missing in NC is Carribbean??? You are missing entire continents in your list methinks. NC has good American and European (though I think only French and Italian, right?). I personally don't think of it as a place to ever go for Asian (Ching's is the lone Asian worth a 5 minute drive, not more) and certainly not South Asian (esp when far better is had around the corner).

And it's completely missing in absolutely anything Mexican/Central /South American, Middle Eastern, or Central American. And, as you mentioned, Caribbean too.

Again, that is sincerely not a knock on New Canaan or Darien, for that matter. Both are lovely towns with close proximity to great foods. Just keeping everything in perspective in terms of where the good food actually exists.

[britton]

"stamford does not have anything i would trade for"

For a small town, NC has great eats, but Stamford does boast a greater diversity and also such standouts as

Napa
Colony.
Brasitas
Tawa
Barcelona
Duo
and the tuna pizza at g/r/a/n/d

And all you Darien trashers, don't forget the dogs at Costco.

[adamclyde]

ah, yes. But Costco is in Norwalk!

[louuuuu]

I would also submit El Charrito, but then, I suppose, there goes the hood.

[jfood]

1. Costco is in Norwalk
2. Have you eaten one of their dogs recently, they have gone waaaay downhill.

[jfood]

LW, jfood is a big home-town NC fan but let's be real, NC is only missing Caribbean? We have good Asian (jfood likes Sushi 25 better than Chings) great French (BBN), great sandwiches (Rosies, Tonys, PQ), great non-red sauce italian (Aloi, Sole) decent Indian (Thali) and a decent burger (CSE). But where is any cuisine south of the Texas-Mexican border (please do not bring up TM swill) or Middle Eastern (none), or Jewish (Brueggers? blech), or real Chinese (irrespective of the recent award) or Spanish or Thai (where is there any Thai in NC other than some Pad Tai at S25). How about a real bakery, none since Ritz left.

We also do not need a steak place since BBN's Frites is outstanding, and Jfood shudders at the thought of a Morton's (even with the CEO a resident) or Martin's Tavern. Even in the mid-70's that place was out of date.

And jfood can give a list of places from STM and NWK he would love to invite to our town.

We have great food in NC but let's not be myopic.

[LW1]

i actually ate at Martin's Tavern over the holidays while my parents were taking care of the kids. great crab app and nice steak. plus good drinks at a decent price. anyway, that's for another board.
i was half kidding with that post, and i do love middle eastern food. myrna's in stamford is very good and i believe their new market and restaurant is finally open.

[jfood]

It will be interesting to see how the first new hot dog in town fares when filling station opens.

[LW1]

i've been wondering/hoping that this place will be a decent addition. also, has anyone ever eaten at chicken joe's? opening on elm street soon. looks like a lot of fried chicken in various forms, but the paper did mention a fried brownie as well. they have a location in greenwich as well.

[jfood]

take a look at the menu on line. Looks like the number of sandwiches are a bad HS math project to prove 8-factorial. Not holding too much hope if their claim to fame is the high school special. probably a made it myself redux. Oh boy, can;t wait for the smell of the grease in town.

[rich51]

chicken joe's and garden catering are very similiar and at one time (i think) connected. granted won't win any healthy eating awards , but both are actually very good. the high school special is a good treat and somewhat addictive, just the right amount of grease and seasoning to make it a rare treat

[adamclyde]

OK, jfood I'll give you a 3/4 vote, lest you feel disenfranchised. :-)

[poppy]

give him the whole enchilada.

[discounteggroll]

oh...I see what you did there =)

[discounteggroll]

on a side note...any posting on when el Charrito is opening back up?

[adamclyde]

"1st of MArch, rain or shine" according to their facebook page.

And Louuuu, yes, as for Mexican, El Charrito is among the top in FF County. Glad they are in Stamford.

[jfood]

Given what jfood just wrote about missing cuisines, he'll take the 3/4 vote, thank you kindly and run.

[stevel]

I know I'm in the minority but I can't get excited by the restaurants in Fairfield County. I still wind up going into NY 3 or 4 times a month to eat.

[lillydaisy]

i'm in that minority too, stevel. The caliber of restaurants just stays the same here except for a small handfull. Too many mediocre, overpriced places. In NY you can get anything, anytime- most of it great AND even delivered!

[sibeats]

1020 not worth going to...very mediocre meal...

[stevel]

It's good for drinks and bar food

[jfood]

Are you kidding...jfood had a great meal the last time he went to 1020, but it was a PB&J sandwich when he got home.

[steve h.]

Rory's in Darien makes a pretty good burger. Their soups/chowders/bisques, as CBAM points out, can be pretty good, too.
jfood always gets a full vote.

[jfood]

almost went to rorys today but mickey's little hand was only on the 10.

[steve h.]

check out the bar for some good people watching. note the burgees on the bar ceiling, the characters on the stools and the cars in the lot. the day's specials are posted as you walk in.

the burgers are good. the beef-to-bun ratio is a little off: sometimes the juices shred the overwhelmed little guys but that's a minor quibble. go in with the proper curiosity (a cat trait?) and you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Park in back of Trader Joe's. It will save you a lot of grief.

Edited to add: Try to get there right at noon. Failing that, shoot for 2 p.m. or so.

[poppy]

i believe it is in conjunction with rather than in place of....