West Hartford Highlights [pics]

Quaker Diner looked promising from the outside, and even more promising from the inside. According to press clippings posted on the wall, the Bassilakis family founded Quaker Diner in 1931. In the mid-80's the grandsons of the founder reacquired the property and went back into the diner business. The interior has quite a few nostalgic points, including a 1950's jukebox. The brief wait for a spot at the counter left me time to consider my astrological prospects for the day, to marvel at a working pay phone, and to wonder about the current exploits of Pee Wee Herman.











Popeye and Olive Oyl were the inspiration for my breakfast, however. The spinach, feta, and tomato omelette was light, fluffy and delicious. (On the side is a little cup of Webber's Original Old Tyme Pepper Relish.) Service was friendly and efficient in spite of the crowd, and prices were reasonable. I was warned off the home fries by one of the regulars. (Oh, for an order of Patty's old potatoes!)





Next door is Hall's Market, Est. 1935. The butcher's case is full of good-looking meats.
I purchased "Hall's Famous Spoon Roast," which the butcher said is "basically a rolled sirloin steak," for $3.99/lb. The "Butcher Boy" door is original. All that was missing was sawdust on the floor.







Quaker Diner
319 Park Rd
West Hartford, CT
Phone: (860) 232-5523

Hall's Market
331 Park Rd.
West Hartford, CT

Interesting. Wifey is from Newington. We'll have to go find and try that diner next time we're visiting her family (which will be this Christmas).

Briefly: sfogliatelle the equal of any I have eaten can be found at the family owned and operated Cerrato's (Italian) Pastry Shop in West Hartford.

Cerrato's Pastry Shop
268 Park Road
West Hartford, CT 06119
(860) 233-6783

Cerrato's Pastry Shop
255 West Elm Street
West Springfield, MA
413-781-1139

West Hartford Highlights – Part 2

There are two shopping strips in West Hartford, one on Park Avenue and one on Farmington Avenue. Each of these boasts a fine bakery, an Indian subcontinent grocery and a “European” market. (“European” appears to be the answer to the perplexing question of what to call a market that offers the foods of the former USSR and satellites.) I have already posted upthread on Cerrato’s Italian Bakery on Park Avenue. The Farmington strip wins out for me due to the larger selection and greater convenience: you can park once and walk a few steps from one market to the other. You can also pick up a bottle of wine at the adjacent liquor store.

Delicacy International Market (Since 1993) reminds me of nothing so much as Mary Poppins’ carpet bag. Deceptively small from the outside, Delicacy’s interior reveals over 8,000 grocery items of seldom seen products imported from the countries of the former Soviet Union, Easter Europe, and smoked fish, bakery items, and sausages from Russian immigrant producers in Brooklyn. The selection is truly outstanding, from dozens of brands of pickled wild mushrooms to 51 (by my count) varieties of honey. The deli case may not be as long as Zabar’s, but the offerings look as fresh. All of the foods on Walaw's wife's wish list were available there last weekend. I also scored some dried smoked shad roe, in the hope that it tastes a bit like bottarga, though the Russian fellow I asked about it said that it is something you eat while drinking beer. The Connecticut River used to be famous for its yearly shad run. Who knows, the roe smoked in Brooklyn by Russians might be real local Yankee fare.





I loved seeing the Kansas City BBQ sauce next to the Georgian tkemali (sour plum sauce) and pomegranate sauce. I've been reflecting a lot on condiments made from peppers lately, so I picked up some Georgian adjika made with blue fenugreek, an herb that grows only in mountain regions of the Caucasus and the Alps. It's hard for me to resist unusual jams and jellies. Showing exemplary restraint, I purchased only three: Cornelian Cherry (a dogwood fruit) and Mulberry from Armenia, and Serbian Quince and Walnut.



Cosmos International Market is a well-organized Indian/Pakistani/Middle Eastern market that offers shelf-stable items as well as an array of produce and dairy items. Lunch can be ordered from a steam table in the back. Here is picture of the well-spiced samosa with coriander chutney that I had. A satisfying lunch for 85 cents.



Missing the LTH Mekato's outing last Sunday was the impetus for my multiple purchases at Aby's Argentinian Bakery. Aby's has empanadas, but post-samosa, I was more interested in the Aby's Cake-like a coconut macaroon with a layer of guava below-and the apple tart with almond paste. No Lemon Pledge Alfajores here, Mhays! Instead, the alfajores at Aby's are made from the lightest of light puff pastry with cajeta. Everything I tried at Aby's was absolutely top-notch patisserie quality. I didn't try the SANDWICHS, though Aby's is the one place out of the three I've mentioned here that has tables where you can sit and enjoy your goodies.











Delicacy Market
(Russian/Central Asian/Eastern European)
774 Farmington Avenue
West Hartford, CT
860 236-7100
http://www.delicacymarket.com
Mon.-Sat. 9 AM - 8PM
Sun. 10AM - 6PM

Cosmos International Market
(Indian/Pakistani/Middle Eastern)
770 Farmington Avenue
West Hartford, CT
860-232-6600

Aby's Bakery and Confectionery
(Argentinian)
765 Farmington Avenue
West Hartford, CT
(860) 231-7773
Hours: Mon 8AM-2PM, Tue-Sat 8AM-6PM, Sun 8AM-3PM

Very nice posts. Those sweets in the last post look fantastic.

Josephine wrote: No Lemon Pledge Alfajores here, Mhays! Instead, the alfajores at Aby's are made from the lightest of light puff pastry with cajeta.

FWIW, I did a search and came up with this:

http://bp1.blogger.com/_gAuR7spDGDk/RfVlp1Pf8WI/AAAAAAAAAKk/TFi1yzGem3s/s1600-h/alfajor_dulce_de_leche.jpg

Even though the photo therein was snapped lovingly, you get the impression of what I'm talking about. The white coating isn't white chocolate but a shell of hardened, processed meringue. My teeth hurt just thinking about them. Not at all like what you're eating!

Who knew there was an Argentine bakery a couple hours' drive from Boston? One of our famous family stories is that, the night before her wedding, my mother spent all night in my Grandmother's kitchen in Watertown, MA crimping empanadas for the reception. I suppose they weren't around at the time...

Mhays wrote:

Josephine wrote: Who knew there was an Argentine bakery a couple hours' drive from Boston? One of our famous family stories is that, the night before her wedding, my mother spent all night in my Grandmother's kitchen in Watertown, MA crimping empanadas for the reception. I suppose they weren't around at the time...

Charming, Mhays. If your Mom hadn't done that, she'd have no story to tell and you would have no story to post. I love stories. Thanks.

Tangiers Market is my most recent find. Technically, it's in Hartford's West End, rather than in West Hartford, but it belongs in this thread even so, being located just a few blocks east of Delicacy, Cosmos and Aby's Bakery (mentioned above). The sign in the window reads: Tangiers Specialty Foods for All People; Middle Eastern, Greek, Bosnian, Macedonian, Armenian, Glatt Kosher, Islamic Halal, Jewish, Indian, Turkish, and More. I picked up a big jar of Queen brand preserved lemons, some pita bread, olives with orange rind, and Bulgarian kashkaval. Then I sat down at the spotless lunch counter and had a late lunch.











It turns out that the most important part of "More" is Lebanese. The family-owned grocery and lunch counter offers home cooking prepared by the mother of these two fortunate young men. I know that they are fortunate, because their mother is a fine cook and they were enthusiastic about their work. I was also fortunate on the day I ate there - or perhaps I was clever, since I took the young men's advice and ordered the Baked Stuffed Eggplant with Beef. It was served atop a mixture of rice and vermicelli. The menu at Tangiers includes Falafel, (highly praised by the two sons), as well as Vegetarian Bean Soup, Mugjaddara Lentils & Rice, Baked Kibbe & Basturma, Chicken Curry and Mediterranean Jumbo Lima Bean Stew w/Lamb over Rice. I tried the house-made baklava; its freshness was undeniable. Luckily, I did not have to share my portion. The college women pictured above were patiently helped by the owners' son, who split a tiny piece into 4 even tinier pieces for them. I only wish it had been earlier in the day. It was too late for Turkish coffee and a restful night. But no matter - I have a feeling I'll be back at Tangiers before long.

Tangiers
Specialty Foods for All People
668 Farmington Ave.
West Hartford, CT
(860) 233-8168

Mhays wrote:

Josephine wrote: No Lemon Pledge Alfajores here, Mhays! Instead, the alfajores at Aby's are made from the lightest of light puff pastry with cajeta.

...The white coating isn't white chocolate but a shell of hardened, processed meringue. My teeth hurt just thinking about them. Not at all like what you're eating!

This Christmas, my mother - forgetting that she's finally admitted our mutual loathing of the packaged version of these cookies, tried to re-gift me with an alfajores sampler. I kept one for reveiw and photography purposes: they were even worse than I remembered, probably partially because they aren't wrapped securely (as you look at these, think dry: dry like the sort of dry that sucks the moisture right off your tongue. And hard as rocks, even the filling.)
So, for those of you who have eaten only these:



Stop by a bakery somewhere (locally, Mekato's comes to mind) and try a fresh one.

I feel your pain, Mhays! The only thing in Hartford that looks like your re-gifted alfajores is the snow on the ground. Aby's Bakery was closed last Friday evening when I passed by around 7PM. No pastry for me, but it was just as well, as I had not yet had dinner.

The brothers who are proprietors of Tangiers Market were busily working together and again seemed to be enjoying themselves. They couldn't have been more charming and interested in explaining their products. If I were a much younger woman I might have invented a reason to linger over my dinner and chat. But as it is, I enjoyed an expertly seasoned kefta kebab cooked to order and wrapped in a large pita with tahini --perfect. The array of products at Tangiers Market is both well-edited and comprehensive.I noticed that Tangiers is the source in Hartford for all your hookah supplies: coal, fruit-infused tobacco, and such. (Apparently, the only hookah room in the Hartford area is at the Afghan restaurant in West Hartford center.)

Three Breakfasts That Could Have Been Better:

I continue to look for a breakfast place that I like even better than The Quaker Diner. Moe's MIdtown has quite a few fans, according the The Advocate, Hartford's free paper (it also has a following on Roadfood.) I had the potato pancakes, which were puffy golden deep-fried pillows of potato batter served with sour cream and tart applesauce. They were not bad, but sadly, they had lost the essence of potato en route to my breakfast. The scrambled eggs were reminiscent of my first kitchen efforts, cooked hard into tiny dessicated bits. Unless the corned beef hash and home fries offer more than meets the eye, I cannot imagine they would live up to their considerable reputation. So I wasn't impressed with Moe's cooking. At the risk of being called a Chicago chauvinist, Moe ain't no Patty!

Another local breakfast spot is Effie's, recommended for its corned beef hash by a couple I met while waiting in line at Quaker Diner. I'd describe Effie's as a Greek coffee shop dressed up like a 1980's tearoom: nice clean vinyl booths and a few frills. They did have kielbasa and eggs on the specials menu, but since I had no plans to chop a cord of wood on the day I visited, I decided in favor of lighter fare: the house-made corned beef hash and two eggs over easy. The hash was of the fine-grind type, and while grilled to brown, it lacked the coarse texture I prefer.

Rein's Deli, in Vernon (east, not West of Hartford) is my go-to spot for corned beef (and a convenient stop on 1-84 between east of Hartford on the way to U-Conn, Storrs or Boston). They serve Hebrew National Brand and you are not locked in to the extra-lean cut. In any case, I am not a huge fan of either their corned beef hash (too finely cut) or their omelettes, which are the greased, grilled and rolled up well-done variety. I think I'll stick with the reuben-and-eggs when it comes to breakfast. (Just joking!)

I returned to Tangiers International Market yesterday for falafel in pita, which was crunchy and tahini-sauced and everything I hoped for. And the three proprietor brothers were just as gregarious and gracious as I remembered. I took the opportunity to pick up some staples, sheep Kasseri and a big jar of Moroccan preserved lemons.

This reminds me to post on a dinner I had recently at Shish Kebab House of Afghanistan, which is located in the heart of the West Hartford shopping district. The atmosphere reminds me of what The Cheesecake Factory would look like if they adopted a Carpet-Merchant-to-the-Stars theme. There's a collossal mirrored mahogany bar that totally dominates the softly lit, burgundy-toned room. At the back, there is a collection of strategically staged carpets rolled as if for sale. (Don't ask me, they might actually be for sale.) What made me laugh, though, was the heroically sized tableau of Afghan men on galloping horses - placed directly over the enormous collection of spotlighted spirits behind the bar. So, the decor might be a bit overwrought - but I was happy because the lamb was not overdone. In fact, the "Leg of Lamb Kebab" was not leg of lamb but perfectly cooked chunks tender, flavorful lamb loin served with two sides, pumpkin puree (kadu) and spinach rice (sabzi palow). The pumpkin puree was a bit sweeter than the one I love from Kabul House in Skokie, and spice differently, but well. At $21, the lamb kebab was a bit pricey for weeknight fare, but I had a craving for lamb, as it's hard to find decent lamb at the grocery anymore. Besides, the portion was huge, enough for lunch the next day. I was comfortable there as a solo diner, and the service was attentive and friendly. I will return to Shish Kebab House of Afghanistan to try their mantoo and ashak - at least until I make it back to Kabul House in Skokie.

Upon leaving the restaurant, I noticed a flyer for an event taking place next weekend (February 28th). It's a market tour with samples at Tangiers International Market, and a cooking demonstration with lunch at Shish Kebab House of Afghanistan.

In Glastonbury, I had two good breakfasts at Ken's Corner. Patty's it ain't, but there was nothing about it that said low-level foodservice ingredients a la chain. Ken's serves made-to-order breakfasts straight up. A sweet woman who said she used to be a flight attendant "back in the good old days" told me that the local retired set eats at the Glastonbury Coffee Shop, but based on the line at the door, Ken's is clearly a local favorite. My first visit was for a breakfast sandwich, which was nothing unusual, yesterday I had a blueberry pancake and bacon which were done right. Despite a crowd, service was cordial and organized. I only wish I had had the nerve to order the lobster eggs benedict on the specials board. Call me a coward, the forenoon is just too early for such things. Besides, lobster + eggs + hollandaise = certain regret.

Shish Kebab House of Afghanistan
West Hartford Center
36 LaSalle Road
West Hartford, CT
(860) 231-8400

Ken's Corner
30 Hebron Ave Ste E
Glastonbury, CT 06033-4211
Phone: (860) 657-9811

A.C. Petersen Farms is without a doubt the coolest-looking deco building in West Hartford. Its architectural appeal had the paradoxical effect of putting me off, as I concluded the food could never live up to the panache of the buidling's exterior. Fortunately, my worry was misplaced. In fact, I discovered that A.C. Petersen offers a full menu of interesting ice cream sundaes made from their own hand packed ice cream, OK sliders, and that rarest of rare delight in our times: HAND-WHIPPED REAL WHIPPED CREAM that is very lightly sweetened. They also offer four choices of nuts: chopped mixed nuts, walnut pieces, pecan halves, and glazed pecans, a touch of class in my book.

Check out the framed piece on the farm and factory (dated 1955) that hangs on the wall. The ice cream is made off-site now, but the factory still stands behind the store. (Will edit to post the pics).

A. C. Petersen Farms
240 Park Road
West Hartford, CT
(860)233-8483