Restaurants in Wallingford

Eddie Rivera’s trip to Puerto Rico, during which he ate everything the island had to offer, convinced the entrepreneur to bring Puerto Rican cuisine back to Bridgeport. Thus, El Flamboyan Restaurant & Lounge was born, a brick, moody eatery reminiscent of those Eddie dined in while visiting bustling San Juan. Twin lobsters with two sides highlight a menu of island delicacies, from empanadas stuffed with crab or octopus to plantain mofongo mashed with roasted pork shoulder. Nightly special events include live DJs on weekends, and Thursday-night karaoke, when guests can emulate the chirpings of Puerto Rico’s iconic coquí frog.

Christian and Antonio Setaro’s parents immigrated to the United States from Salerno, Italy, in the 1970s and opened Antonio’s Twin Oaks, an Italian eatery known for its homestyle cooking. Growing up around the kitchen, the brothers developed a liking for cooking that ultimately led to the opening of their own Italian eatery, The Original Antonio’s in Woodbridge. Later, they added locations in Beacon Falls and Ansonia.

At each restaurant, pasta headlines the menu. Shreds of romano cheese dust orders of homemade cheese ravioli, pappardelle with duck ragu, and rigatoni with plum tomatoes and italian sausage. Cheese also bubbles atop specialty pizzas and accentuates entrees built around shrimp, salmon, chicken, veal, or pork chops. The drink menu lists a bevy of dessert drinks, beer, martinis, and wine, nine of which are available by glass or cupped hands.

The menus at Sakimura's two locations change regularly in order to incorporate the freshest seasonal ingredients and the chefs’ newest culinary muses. The Simsbury location is known to intermingle traditional Japanese flavors with contemporary flourishes, with specials taking forms such as foie gras with sweet miso sauce. Both locales’ sushi chefs also invent their own creative rolls, such as a deep-fried Godzilla roll and an Out of Control roll filled with shrimp tempura and topped with seared pepper tuna.

Diners seeking a hot dinner can gather around hibachi grills and watch as chefs sear their choice of shrimp, chicken, scallops, filet mignon, or any number of other gourmet ingredients. The hibachi rooms' smokeless grills and modern yet warm decor combine to create a pleasant dining experience.

Glowing sconces line the crimson and cream walls inside Namaste India, where traditional Indian dishes adorn linen-topped tables and fill the air with spiced aromas. Marinated lamb, chicken, and seafood slumber inside a clay tandoor oven until they're mildly smoky and tender throughout, while other proteins and vegetables steep in rich curry sauces, aptly scooped up with fresh-baked naan bread or ladled over delicate basmati rice. Patrons can wash down meals with sweet, salted, or mango-flavored lassi drinks, or snatch a classic dessert such as gulab jamun—deep-fried milk dumplings that are soaked in syrup and delivered to tables via an air gun.

A neon-lit façade shelters an intimate sidewalk patio where patrons chat on warm summer days over fresh seafood, salads, pastas, and meaty Italian specialties. Diners get their fill of bruschetta and mussels any time of year within Aziago's casual interior, which boasts golden-yellow walls, italian-vintage-style posters, and a hardwood bar overlooking a flat-screen TV. Main dishes, such as veal parmesan and ravioli, float to tables on clouds of house-made marinara, and forks cut effortlessly into juicy steak and pork-chop dishes. The promise of Cheesecake Factory desserts leads young ones to gobble their kiddie-sized pastas, and a quick-serve café brings paninis and wraps to the lunchtime masses. Aziago's also hosts private parties and delivers catered feasts to groups too large to sit at double-decker tables.

Luen Hop Chinese Restaurant fills pint- and quart-size cartons with takeout staples including soft lo mein noodles, fried rice, and well-sauced cuts of seared pork, chicken, and beef. Roasted duck—a house specialty—complements mixed vegetables with its crisp skin and tender meat, and tofu and chicken surrender to sweet and spicy sauces during General Tso's good-cop-bad-cop routine.