Beef and Ale Pie Derby Ct
'Lost Restaurants' reminder of Fairfield eateries from the past
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I always have been at home in restaurants.
It began during the 1970s with trips to my grandfather's place, Risoli's Steakhouse in Harrison, N.Y., where I would sneak behind the bar to fool around with the soda gun or gobble up maraschino cherries until I was high on sugar.
As a child growing up in Fairfield, there were family celebrations and holidays spent at Dogwoods (later Sidetracks) and the Golden House in Westport, and weekend afternoons at the Center in downtown Fairfield and the Villanova in the Southport section of Fairfield, where my father's softball team would gather after games.
As a teen, I lolled about at Howard Johnson's, lingering over cheap bowls of ice cream and coffee refills so that I could justify occupying the booth. I only hope I left a decent tip. Not long after, I began waitressing at Friendly's in Southport, after an unsuccessful attempt at the Pie Plate. When I was legal, I'd hang out at Al's Place and the Lemon Tree Lounge in Southport. I wish I had made it to Ottavio's (for the "Candy Man" alone), but I managed to visit the Driftwood Lounge before it closed, a young person's bucket-list item. One might say it was the kind of bar that time forgot, but time did catch up with it, as well as the other restaurants mentioned here.
Restaurants are more than the building or décor. They become beloved because of who is in the kitchen or behind the bar, setting down your meal or sitting in the seat beside you. Patti Woods, a fellow 1988 Fairfield High School alum, recently wrote "The Lost Restaurants of Fairfield" (Arcadia Publishing, $21.99). My stroll down memory lane began with her advice: "This is just a start. Your personal stories and memories complete the picture. Use this book as a tool. Ask your friends what they remember, what their favorite restaurant was and what dish they really wish they could have just one more time. You might be surprised just how long the conversation lasts."
Here are a few excerpts:
The apple (pie)
in the town's eyes
With its yellow and brown décor; big, shiny globe light bulbs and glass display cases, the Pie Plate restaurant (operated by former baker and owner Art Green) was the place to get dessert from the early 1970s through the early 1990s. Set in a strip mall near "The Circle," the Pie Plate was more than just pies. The large menu offered diners everything from soup and sandwiches to full meals. But of course, it was the pie that attracted people.
"We were always busy," said Beth Herde, a waitress at the Pie Plate from 1977 to 1980. "I can remember times when the line was out the door."
On the regular menu, there was apple, of course, and other fruit pies such as blueberry, peach, strawberry rhubarb, apricot, pineapple and cherry. For a short time in the summer, fresh strawberry pies were available. .... Then there were the cream and custard pies: banana, banana fudge, chocolate, black bottom, pineapple, coconut, apple, blueberry and cherry. Then there were the "prize pies"— pecan, mince, pumpkin, cream cheese with fruit, lemon meringue, chocolate nut chiffon, strawberry chiffon and coconut custard. Pie was served by the slice, and for an extra 20 cents, you could have your pie in true New England style and add a slice of Swiss or cheddar cheese. "People really liked the Dutch apple pie," said Herde.
Glitz and glamour
On May 27, 1963, what had once been a supermarket ... reopened as the town's ritziest banquet hall — Ottavio's, named after (owner Otto) Veglio's father. After a remodeling job that cost over $100,000, the former grocery store (where Circle Diner sits today) was converted into a 12,000-foot red-carpeted facility with accommodations for up to 700 diners.
Ottavio's was decked out in a Mediterranean theme, and fold away partitions divided the dining area into four separate rooms. Each meal would start with hors d'oeuvres, followed by manicotti or antipasto, sherbet and an entrée: lobster tails, surf and turf, roast beef, prime rib, filet mignon, boneless stuffed chicken, poulet au champagne, chicken Francaise, veal Milanase, veal Francaise or veal cordon bleu. "We did everything New York style," said Veglio. "Fairfield never saw a Venetian table until I brought it in." In addition to a spread of desserts, another option for parties was the Candy Man — a waiter who would offer lemon ice and a cart full of candy while Sammy Davis Jr.'s "The Candy Man" played over the speakers.
The end of an era
Fairfield's downtown had two working-class neighborhood bars that achieved local legendary status (before both closing in 2006). Al's Place had been a bar since 1935. The Driftwood opened in 1967.
(The Driftwood) was far from fancy. The wood-paneled room had a bar and a few tables. A coat rack was available to hang your jacket, and photos and beer signs lined the walls. Behind the bar, bottles were lined up, along with American flags and a sign that said, "I can only please one person per day. Today is not your day. Tomorrow doesn't look good either." If you wanted a beer or a Canadian Club and water, this might be your place. A glass of wine or a fancy martini? You'd best move along.
Behind the bar, Millie Larsen poured drinks from day one. In the 1950s, she worked down the street as a bartender at Rudy's (now Geronimo Tequila Bar and Southwest Grill). She settled into the Driftwood, where her regular patrons called her "Mom." On Sundays, she would cook a buffet, which she would serve up for free to patrons so they wouldn't drink on empty stomachs. It was the kind of place where, instead of playing pool or darts, you'd sit and shoot the breeze.
"One of the things that made this such a good bar was that we did not have that many fist fights," she was quoted as saying in the Connecticut Post. "I mean, there were a few, but there was always somebody here who'd break it up."
Reprinted with permission from "The Lost Restaurants of Fairfield," by Patti Woods. www.arcadiapublishing.com.
chennessy@hearstmediact.com;
Twitter: @xtinahennessy
Source: https://www.ctpost.com/living/article/Lost-Restaurants-reminder-of-Fairfield-6815663.php
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