What better way to blow your New Year’s diet than with a milkshake? That’s the idea behind a special event at new Hamden restaurant Roost planned in honor of National Break Your Resolutions Day, on Jan. 17. Roost customers will get a free small milkshake (one per customer) until 4 pm, when the eatery will host a grand opening party.
The latest entrant in the Eli’s Restaurant Group chain, Roost offers fast-casual chicken sandwiches in an ultramodern setting at 2308 Whitney Ave. The eatery opened in August but is celebrating its official grand opening next month.
“All of us grew up in Hamden and we wanted to bring something new to the community that brought us up,” Roost co-founder Ellis Reilly said. “So we decided to create an everyday kind of restaurant where high quality and low price meets quick and delicious.”
Cooks at Roost prepare chicken with with a combination of sous vide techniques and frying, creating a juicy filet with a crisp crust. The signature Super Chicken sandwich ($6.50) features fried bird, pickles and tangy Roost sauce on a potato bun. More of-the-moment selections include the K-Pop Chicken with napa-cabbage slaw and spicy Korean ketchup and a bahn mi sandwich with pulled pork, slaw and Kewpie mayo.
Vegetarians can opt for Roost’s grain bowl, sesame noodles and several salads. Sides range from hand-cut fries to miso sweet potatoes to sea-salted edamame. Gluten-free breading and other options are available.
In addition to four milkshake blends, local craft beers are offered along with wines by the glass.
Hamden-based Eli’s Restaurant Group was founded in 1994 with the opening of flagship Eli’s on Whitney in Hamden, then Eli’s Brick Oven Pizza and Market opened next door. In recent years, Eli’s has opened outposts of the original concept in Branford, downtown Milford and on the Post Road in Orange. Roost is the chain’s first chicken restaurant.
