Above: The Cabana bar at Prime: American Kitchen & Bar
It’s not just the weather that makes Stamford’s al fresco dining scene so hot. Thanks to the popular StreEATeries program, sidewalk seating spills out onto the streets, transforming our urban landscape into a culinary carnival. And that’s just the beginning. Down by the shore, a water taxi shuttles between the bustling boardwalks and inviting patios of Harbor Landing and Point that serve up feasts for the eyes—and the belly. Lush garden terraces beckon weekend brunchers to the back roads of North Stamford and south near the beach in Shippan. And for those craving a taste of the high life, rooftop venues offer sunset views that wow.
Hungry yet? Good, because we’ve curated a tasty selection of outdoor restaurants that capture the essence of Stamford’s diverse culinary landscape. From sizzling American grills to vibrant Latin fusion, zesty Mexican flavors to classic French fare, there’s something to satisfy all kinds of cravings. Live music fills the fresh air at larger venues, setting the stage for impromptu dancing.
July and August are prime time to order up the perfect sides of sun and sunset. Sure, the official outdoor dining season runs from Memorial to Labor Day, but that doesn’t stop us seeking fresh environs even on briskier nights through the fall. With restaurants rolling out retractable windows and firing up heat lamps on cooler evenings, there’s no excuse not to savor stepping out.
1 // The Americano
The newest restaurant from the owners of Kouzina and Tomato Tomato, The Americano has 50 outdoor seats extending onto Main Street. Guests share the burrata plate with prosciutto and heirloom tomatoes, while the chef steams mussels in butter-wine sauce, and jazzes up the Caesar with romaine and kale, crisp apples and a parmesan frico. Entrees range from Italian pastas to steaks. The Salmon Poele, served with basil beurre blanc and tomato caper relish, is trending. On a recent Sunday afternoon, the eight-ounce brasserie burger, topped with house pickles, apple wood bacon and melting rich brie, landed on loads of tables. Everybody looked pleased. The drinks menu focuses on craft cocktails starting with the spot’s namesake, a blend of Campari, sweet vermouth and club soda. Vodka-based Raspberry Thyme is for lovers of sweet drinks, as are the “zero proof” mocktails, including a Mango Mule sweetened with honey syrup. Pretty-as-a-picture cocktails in hues of mango, raspberry and passion fruit deserve a spot on your ’gram grid.
261 Main St. // @theamericanobar
2 // Brennan’s by the Beach
A skipping stone’s throw from West Beach, this cozy pub has been around forever, and during the past 11 years it’s been female-owned (Eamir O’Neill Carpenter) and run by an enthusiastic staff. In spring and summer, the fresh air and shelter of a shady old tree draws regulars from the bar to the fenced-in patio, which seats around 40. Customers aren’t the only ones raving about the warm buttered lobster roll—staff members come in on their day off and pay full price for it. Seasonal specials include littlenecks steamed in white wine and garlic. Burgers are served on a choice of Portuguese, pretzel or potato rolls. Rotating drafts of craft beers vie with spring cocktails like the blueberry lemon drop martini. Weekday happy hour runs from four to six p.m., featuring bar bites like potato skins and Philly Cheese egg rolls. The most ordered dish at weekend brunch is the spicy chorizo bowl, but crab cake eggs benny are a fave, too. Brennan’s patio has another draw, a summer occupant: Oscar the turtle, Brennan’s mascot. Kids love to watch him chomp on lettuce.
82 Iroquois Rd. // @brennans_shippan
3 // Chez Vous
Bedford Street is filled with many outdoor cafes, busy places with aisles of seats. It’s a fun scene, but for those looking for a setting more intime, Chez Vous is that charming bistro in the stone building on the corner of Bedford and Spring. It has just eight tables seating 12 beneath the awning, but the open accordion doors bring the outdoors into the Provencal-hued dining room. American French chef-owner Erik James Erlichson has decades of experience cooking classical French cuisine, and he changes Chez Vous’s menu with the seasons. The classics remain, reminding guests of their visits to Europe: escargot a la Bourguignonne, homemade terrine de foie gras, and sole meuniére, steak frites, warm French lentils, and salads of fresh organic greens with poached eggs and lardons. This is the occasion to enjoy a glass (or bottle) of French wine. Ask your server for suggestions.
188 Bedford St. // @chez_vous_bistro
4 // Cilantro
Cilantro’s rooftop patio is a hidden gem in the middle of downtown. Up a flight of stairs from busy Atlantic Street, the patio seats 66, and is outfitted with umbrellas, greenery and heat lamps for early and late season unpredictable weather. The Latin-fusion restaurant has had a devoted following since it opened in 2015, serving vibrant dishes inspired by classics from South and Central America and the Caribbean. Pollo saltado is a lighter version of the homey Peruvian-Chinese mash-up and swaps French fries for fried sweet plantain. The chef embraces flavor, sautéing gambas with ajillo in white wine sauce, and poaching them for a zesty Costa Rican ceviche. The paella and ropa vieja are also favorites. The bartender mixes up rosé sangrias with peach and raspberry juices, and he shakes the house margarita with tequila reposado. Happy hour features beef skewers, croquettas and guacamole. The friendly staff are at the ready for your night out.
60 Atlantic St // @cilantros1
5 // Crab Shell
No wonder Crab Shell at Harbor Landing has been around for 30 years: waterside location, family-friendly casual vibe, and a crowd-pleasing menu of classic seafood, grilled, roasted, baked and fried. Crab Shell serves lunch and dinner at The Shack, a tented dockside bar and patio, where guests can start with a choice of New England or Crab Shell’s Red Clam Chowder. Friends share orders of hot spiced “peel and eat” shrimp with a cold brew on draft or a bottle of Bud. Rum cocktails—three-rum punch, mojitos, dark ‘n stormies and dockside frozen cocktails—are specialties. Grilled salmon and swordfish are guest favorites, plain or with a choice of indulgent buttery sauces. For vegetarians, the stir-fry vegetables are seasoned in pineapple teriyaki sauce. Of course, there are filets and sirloins. With bands playing dance music Thursday through Sunday nights, Crab Shell is an instant summer party. P.S.: There’s plenty of parking and 11 boat slips ready to be reserved.
46 Southfield Ave. // @the_crab_shell
6 // Farmhouse at the Crossroads
A drive through the winding back roads of North Stamford, past green woods and crumbling stone walls, to an old red tavern feels like a mini-vacation, especially when you enter the long fenced garden with tables for 120 guests. Water and fire features, a gazebo and live music make summer evenings feel like an event. The local landmark got an interior rehab when new owners Victor Kapiti and Tony Vesta took over a couple of years ago, and the expansive menu reaches across Italy with house pastas and pizzas; it touches on Asian with spring rolls and shrimp and noodle salad, and lands on updated contemporary classics like Maine Mussels with citrus sea salt and steak frites with smoked pepper butter. Our favorite strawberry-arugula salad is sweet and bitter, with paper-thin slices of fennel, cubes of cucumber, scattered with hazelnuts and crumbled goat cheese. Squash blossoms are stuffed with vegan ricotta and tofu. Seared branzino, perched on a bed of cauliflower-fennel puree, is surrounded by green olives, scallions and tomatoes in a white white lemon-caper sauce. Brunch standouts include cattleman’s eggs, a version of shakshuka with braised brisket. Can’t choose among the four Bloodys—Mary, Mario, Mia, Mariah? You can try a flight. (We’re partial to the Mia with horseradish-infused vodka, clamato and pickle juice with a celery salt rim.)
299 Long Ridge Rd. // @farmhouseatthecrossroads
7 // Mexicue
Cinco de Mayo is akin to the Super Bowl at Harbor Point star Mexicue, the Mexican, Tex-Mex and American South blend. That’s when crowds pack the downstairs patio for tacos filled with Cajun shrimp and mango salsa, Nashville hot chicken, or masa-encrusted cod with cabbage slaw and pickled onions. The vibe on the patio, which seats 34, is relaxed, family- and dog-friendly. But you can really lift your spirits at another of Mexicue’s outdoor seating spaces, a more intimate rooftop terrace that seats 24. It’s low key, with killer views of the sun setting over the city. Mexicue’s relaxed funky vibe shines through in the colorful chairs up-cycled from discarded automobiles. The bar offers a large selection of good sipping tequilas and mescals. “Margs” are the most popular summer drink, and the spicy smoky margarita is a standout, hitting every note: fruity, smoky, sweet and spicy. Mexicue has locations in New York City and in Westport as well.
15 Harbor Point Rd. // @mexicue
8 // Prime: American Kitchen & Bar
Unabashedly upscale, Prime, a glass-walled steakhouse featuring sushi and seafood, has waterfront seating for 16 along the boardwalk that feels like being dockside at a yacht club and a tented cabana bar seating 50, all with views of pleasure craft against the backdrop of Harbor Point. Inside the restaurant, retractable windows on the harbor side allow the 60 indoor guests to feel like they’re just about dining al fresco, too. The most popular summer cocktails are the Babylon Express, a refreshing blend of cucumber vodka, pineapple and lime juice, and the jalapeño margarita. Espresso martini, surprise, knows no season. While the scent of grilling dry-aged steaks wafts through the fresh air, guests slurp oysters on the half-shell and bite into the sushi fav Stamford Landing Roll. Those with fewer dollars for discretionary spending can enjoy the two-course weekday Power Lunch ($29) The trip across Long Island Sound to Huntington LI, takes 35 minutes—where boaters can try out the other Prime.
78 Southfield Ave. // @primestamford
9 // Table 104
Table 104’s sunny brick patio is a beloved outdoor dining spot on Long Ridge. Shaded by overhead canvas sails and decorated with pots of flowers, it seats up to 50. The contemporary Italian menu presents pastas and Neapolitan pizzas. Vegetarian verde pizza is layered with arugula pesto and seasonal vegetables like asparagus, cauliflower and leeks. Other favorites for the season include pasta tossed with clams, mussels and calamari steamed in wine sauce, and seared salmon with warm lentil salad, vegetables and tapenade. An Aperol spritz or a glass of Prosecco are drinks that taste especially delish in summer. And for the table, a bottle of Tuscan (Sienna to be precise) Vernaccia di San Gimignano Cavaliere feels right with any dish. Sharing a board of imported sopressata, prosciutto San Daniele, truffle pecorino and local mozzarella, with grissini (Italian breadsticks) and signature house-blistered red grapes is a perfect way to spend time with loved ones. The expanded brunch menu includes prosciutto and goat cheese frittatas, eggs Benedict and banana-blueberry pancakes. Open for lunch and dinner seven days a week.
299 Long Ridge Rd. // @table104_osteriabar
10 // The Wheel at the Village
On a canal across from a salt marsh, The Wheel’s spacious patio seats up to 100 at dining tables, high tops and in a relaxed lounge grouping. The New American menu ranges across pizzas, pastas, burgers, raw bar, seafood and salads, and entrees like grilled halibut and flat iron steak—everyone in your group can find something to enjoy. We like to share a bowl of whipped eggplant sprinkled with sesame seeds (hinting at the tahini inside the dip) and warm, puffy pita breads. The Seafood Tower makes a grand statement: oysters, tuna tartare, shrimp cocktail and smoked swordfish dip. We’re also partial to the zesty shrimp ceviche. Weekend brunch features banana buttermilk bread, crab and avocado toast, and vegetarian salad bowls of quinoa and kale with avocado, soy-marinated egg, pickled mushrooms and sweet, earthy beets. DIY mimosas bring out the mixologists at the table as guests choose from a selection of fresh juices. The Wheel has three retractable garage doors that bring the outdoors into the industrial chic setting of solid wood floor and glitzy chandeliers. Bands play Wednesdays and Thursdays in the evenings. Up to 11 boats can dock in front of The Wheel at Star Point Marina.
4 Star Point // @thevillagewheel
Five Outdoor Bars in Stamford
Cheers to the outer limits
1 Beer Garden at Shippan Landing
2 Sign of the Whale
3 Third Place by Half Full
4 Tiernan’s
5 Tigin Irish Pub
Not sated yet? Stamford has loads more en plein air options around town.
Follow us on Instagram @stamfordmag for updates throughout the summer.
Photographs: contributed by restaurants