I’m always amazed at how few restaurants are on the water in Connecticut, a coastal New England state — something I realized while writing for Yankee Travel Guide. And so, when visiting friends in Connecticut, I picked my first dining stop at Shell and Bones on the water in New Haven.

Their bloody Mary cocktail is almost a meal ($19) garnished with chorizo, shrimp, bacon, cornichons and olives. I also shared their grilled Baja fish tacos (3 for $19) with cabbage pico de gallo and tomatillos.

Another night, we headed to The Stand in Branford one evening for open-air dining and music. There, I indulged in their crispy fried coconut shrimp with Thai chili sauce ($12 for 5), while my friend had the Seared Ahi tuna wrap Seared Ahi served with chunky cole slaw, guac, cheddar Jack cheese with wasabi aioli ($18)

After a visit to Yale Art Gallery’s free highlights tour, where we saw and discussed various works of art in depth, we stopped at Zinc, a place I frequented when I lived in the area. I loved the crispy rice topped with tuna amuse-bouche and their pricey but tasty duck breast ($40) with confit duck,  topped with scallions and pickled ginger, pus black sesame bao buns and peanut sauce.

 

Shell and Bones
New Haven
100 S Water St,
New Haven, CT 06519
(203) 787-3466
shellandbones.com

Zinc
New Haven
964 Chapel Street
New Haven, CT
(203) 624-0507
zincnewhaven.com

The Stand Branford
Branford
196 S Montowese St
Branford, CT 06405
(203) 433-4728
thestandbranford.com