From October 10th through the 16th, the Connecticut Restaurant Association brings you the Fourth Annual Connecticut Restaurant Week. With almost 100 participating eateries, there is bound to be one near you. Offers vary, but the majority of the restaurants are offering generous three-course prix-fixe menus. Check the offers out on this site or at ctrestaurant.org. With intriguing menus like these, you may find yourself tempted to mobilize the troops and head to parts unknown and unexplored.
If you haven’t visited Backstage in Torrington, that would be a great place to start.
Located next to the Warner Theatre and with theater offerings of its own as Backstage Live using the Nancy Marine Studio Theatre located behind the restaurant,
this is a wonderful place to dine before or after enjoying a musical (or other) performance.
But with its motto of “Eat Drink Live,” Backstage more than stands on its own as the best restaurant in Torrington and one of the better casual fine dining destinations in Litchfield County. After you are welcomed by the hostess, Nicki,
you can choose from one of several dining areas, including the comfortable booths in the friendly bar area
or more private dining rooms like this one.
Even on a Monday night, most of the seats at the bar disappeared,
with some people taking their meals there
and others approaching the televisions to cheer on their playoff baseball teams.
Our waitress Stephanie
presented us with a regular menu
and a Restaurant Week menu.
But our first order of business was—beer! Backstage is one of Connecticut’s better destinations for beer lovers, with special events,
a couple of dozen craft beers on tap and a roster of eclectic bottled beers reaching almost into the triple digits.
Overseen by bar manager Chris Verrilli,
it’s truly a beer lover’s paradise. My buddy and I couldn’t resist exploration via Backstage’s generous and inexpensive beer flights. From left to right, his included a (Victory) Storm King Stout, a Brooklyn Pilsner, a (Stone) Oaked Arrogant Bastard Ale and a Harpoon Leviathan.
From left to right, mine included a (Harpoon) UFO Raspberry Hefeweizen, a Brooklyn Brown Ale, an Ommegang Rare Vos and an (Otter Creek) Stovepipe Porter.
Later, I enjoyed a bottle of (Clipper Seas) Loose Cannon Heavy Seas.
Anyone who knows his or her artisan beers must surely be experiencing a little dry mouth upon hearing this lineup. And that selection barely scratches the surface of Backstage’s offerings.
And anyone who knows his or her food will surely be salivating at the lineup on Backstage’s Restaurant Week menu, courtesy of executive chef Keith Bisciotti.
We were started off with house-baked rolls and butter.
The appetizers included a delicious butternut cider bisque accented with smoked ancho chili powder and fresh sage,
an incredible salad of mixed baby greens, dried figs, spiced pecans and Chèvre in a chai tea vinaigrette,
and a delicate sesame-seared yellowfin tuna carpaccio with tamari glaze, seaweed salad and crisp pappadam.
The Restaurant Week entrées were every bit as spectacular. Baked rigatoni with housemade Italian sausage, roasted red pepper, arugula and Gruyère cheese in a pumpkin sage cream sauce was incredibly satisfying.
Delightful cedar plank-roasted salmon came with braised green lentils, steamed greens, butternut squash purée and Styrian pumpkin seed oil.
Best of all was marinated skirt steak in a Gorgonzola demi-glace with rosemary mashed potatoes and roasted root vegetables.
The flavor packed into this dish was unbelievable.
The desserts were also pretty special. We enjoyed warm apple pecan crisp with rosemary cider gelato
and pumpkin crème brûlée with biscotti.
My buddy couldn’t resist augmenting the desserts with a chocolate raspberry truffle martini.
Behind this remarkable restaurant/beer palace/music venue, from left to right, are general manager Jago Protz, director of operations Bob DeZinno, restaurant manager Margaret Madden, and owner Keith Mahler.
Keep in mind that Backstage has interesting spaces for private events, including an upstairs area where students from Naugatuck Valley Community College’s hospitality management program were meeting and eating.
Backstage, 84 Main Street, Torrington, 860-489-8900
www.backstageeatdrinklive.com