Downtown Hartford officially has a new restaurant.
Former Hot Tomato’s manager Jimmy Cosgrove opened Salute Feb. 28 in the former Dulce restaurant space on Trumbull Street.
Cosgrove and his partners took over the lease on Dulce — located next door to Vito’s By The Park — in September. Since then, they have been making major changes to the 100-plus seat interior.
The Italian-style eatery is open for lunch from 11:30 a.m. until 4 p.m., and dinner will be served until 10 p.m. The restaurant will keep its doors open later on weekends and for Happy Hour Monday through Friday, Cosgrove said.
The location is ideal to serve clientele living in local apartments and working in downtown businesses, said Cosgrove, who spent 13 years as a manager at Hot Tomato’s. He’s been in the business for 30.
Many former Hot Tomato’s employees now work at the restaurant, Cosgrove said.
One of the goals of the restaurant is to be a little more price friendly than the competition, Cosgrove said, referring to his plan to serve larger portions.
“The goal is to show people downtown that we are here to support them,” he said.
Big ticket items on the menu include pasta dishes, five types of steak and seafood. GREG BORDONARO
