The fourth annual Connecticut Restaurant Week kicks off Oct. 10 and runs through Oct. 16 with 75 restaurants, more than last year.
Nicole Griffin, the state restaurant association’s executive director, said the price continues to be set by the year, with member restaurants offering entrees, three-course meals or even special bottles of wine for $20.11. “The possibilities are endless what the restaurants are going to do,” Griffin said.
“The event is growing,” she said during an interview, and it’s important for restaurants to get patrons through the door, even at a discount. “Restaurants are not immune to the economy,” Griffin added.
Phil Barnett, the owner of the Hartford Restaurant Group which owns all six Wood-n-Tap restaurants as well as Agave Grill and TD Homer’s Grill, said “Restaurant Week is so much fun to participate in not only because it’s a great way to bring people into your restaurant, it allows us the opportunity to showcase really great food. It also is so important that we highlight the incredible restaurants statewide here in Connecticut.”
The Connecticut Restaurant Association is a not-for-profit trade association that operates on behalf of the industry on a statewide level. It has more than 600 members.
One thing Restaurant Week does not do is highlight how big the industry is in Connecticut. Griffin said when associate businesses like grease removal firms and linen companies are included, more than 155,000 people are employed by the restaurant industry in Connecticut. She said the economic impact of the industry in terms of dollars is not known by her.
“Our members find Restaurant Week really successful,” Griffin said, adding that smaller versions are held in cities like Hartford and New Haven. “Diners come for the deals but keep returning to the restaurants. It’s a great opportunity to go out and try something new,” she said.
Restaurant Week is going to be promoted through traditional radio, television and newspapers advertising and non-traditional media like Facebook and Twitter. Complete menu offerings by the participating restaurants will be available at www.ctrestaurant.org.
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Ballo opens at Mohegan Sun
Speaking of restaurants, John J. Tunney III, known for his high-profile, dining establishments in New York, Connecticut, Las Vegas and Atlantic City, opened a 16,000 square foot restaurant at Mohegan Sun on Sept. 22.
Ballo Italian Restaurant and Social Club is Tunney’s 12th restaurant and his latest after receiving three consecutive New York Times “excellent” reviews for his current properties.
BALLO at Mohegan Sun was inspired by San Galgano — a Gothic abbey built in the 12th century and located in the hills of Tuscany. “San Galgano represents all that is spectacular about Italy — the history, the passion, the fortitude of the country. What better place to experience the food of Italy than in a place that replicates their mastery,” said Tunney in a news release.
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New bags from Bolton firm
HDS Medallion, which is based in Bolton, has created the HDS Medallion Distinctive CarryAll Bags as an alternative to the unattractive, asexual, colorless bags widely available.
“As a result of two years of product testing and evaluation, we found women cherish their carryall bags as a daily solution to help bring back their dignity, sense of style and fun while delivering all the function they are used to in a purse,” said Carol Rady, vice president and co-founder of HDS Medallion.
The new bags provide women with an attractive, useful accessory to beautify the steel medicinal look of any mobility device while offering familiar purse-like functionality and a healthy psychological lift in spirits, the company said.
For more information, visit the online store at www.hdsmedallion.com.
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Furniture venture opens
Furniture industry veteran Paul Greenbaum has launched Ceja International, an importer of Italian marble tables and accent furniture. It is based in Woodbridge.
A third-generation retailer, Greenbaum made a name or himself at the award-winning Wayside Furniture, and later at Breuners, at the time, the largest high-end retail chain in the country. Most recently, Greenbaum served as vice president of sales and marketing for Excelsior Designs, a purveyor of high-end, contemporary Italian case goods.
“The product line brings a natural element to the design process with the inherent beauty that stone provides,” Greenbaum says. “Ideally suited for today’s eclectic living environments, all marble tops feature either polyester matte, polyester satin or polyester high-gloss finish applications which provide a durable surface for entertaining or display.”
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KeyLynx serves business
KeyLynx Technologies and KeyLynx Surplus Store have opened at Sophia’s Plaza at the intersection of Routes 5 and 140 in East Windsor. KeyLynx Technologies offers electronics for business applications while KeyLynx Surplus Store sells office furniture. For more information on either KeyLynx operation, call 860-654-0042 or log onto www.keylynx.com.
