Virtual Gourmet

MARIANI’S

Virtual Gourmet

April 12, 2026 NEWSLETTER

Founded in 1996

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"Still Life" (1825) by Francisco Goya

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THIS WEEK

IS BRIAN LEWIS OF THE COTTAGE STILL
IN THE TOP RANKS OF CONNECTICUT CHEFS?

NEW YORK CORNER
MISTAKES TOURISTS MAKE WHEN
EATING AROUND NEW YORK

By John Mariani

THE BISON
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
By John Mariani

NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR
The Abruzzo Wines of Ciavolich Have
Won High Praise for Italian Quality \

By John Mariani

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IS BRIAN LEWIS OF THE COTTAGE STILL
IN THE TOP RANKS OF CONNECTICUT CHEFS?

By John Mariani

Four years ago in this space I proposed that Bryan Lewis of The Cottage in Westport was perhaps the best chef in Connecticut. Since then he’s had some stiff competition around the state, including David Standbridge of The Shipwright’s Daughter in Mystic; David Di Stasi of Materia Ristorante in Bantam; Colt Taylor of The Essex in Old Saybrook and Luke Venner at The Elm in New Canaan.

Since then Lewis has opened a branch of The Cottage in Greenwich and two Japanese restaurants named OKO in Westport and Rye, New York. So it seemed a happy requisite for me to re-visit the original Cottage and assess how Lewis’s reputation is standing among his competitors. I won’t make a final assessment till I visit the others, but after my meal this week at The Cottage, Lewis demonstrates that those criteria that keep him at the top of his game are being rigorously maintained within a menu that cannily mixes cuisines without compromising them.

They key is in the ingredients themselves as well as to an intense understanding of how flavors, fats and acids contribute to a successful dish. This has always been his strength.
Lewis himself has a formidable résumé: He grew up in nearby Somers, New York, attended the Culinary Institute of America and Johnson & Wales University, then apprenticed to master chefs Jean Louis Palladin at the Watergate Hotel, Marco Pierre White at The Criterion and Mirabelle in London and Chef Eric Ripert at Le Bernardin. He was founding chef at the Bedford Post Inn in Bedford, New York, and in 2015, Lewis launched Full House Hospitality Group.

    While the menu at The Cottage has evolved and is largely similar to the one in Greenwich, certain dishes never leave and never should, starting with the wagyu brisket bao buns (right) with Napa kimchi and potato logs cooked in duck fat and served with squid ink. So, too, the maitake mushroom taco with fermented gooseberry cream, the heat of Calabrian chili and complexity of salsa macha is signature item. I’m not sure the delectable fried chicken morsels with lemon aioli gained anything from a spoonful of bland caviar on top. Among my very favorites is the shrimp fried rice topped with small sunny-side-up quail’s eggs, with a spicy scallion kimchi, crunchy- bean sprouts and favachang aîoli.
    Lightly sauteed Hudson Valley foie gras (left) gets the sweet-sour complement of rhubarb and textural contrast of smoked macadamia nuts, all to be eaten with warm Brioche toast. Silky bluefin tuna is glossed with a sunflower salsa and avocado cream.
    The menu has always had a few pasta dishes and new to me were little packets called sacchetti filled with wild nettles and sage-scented bread crumbs with Parmigiano folded into a fonduta of strong Robiola cheese (right).

    Asian flavors re-appear in spiced pekin duck breast with koji-cured “sweetheart” caraflex cabbage and served with hedgehog mushroom and burnt onion with a spiced duck jus.
    I am not prone to ordering a hamburger at fine restaurants, not least because too often the item is so gussied up as to lose its essential goodness. In Lewis’s hands, however, all the elements work to enhance, not detract, from the excellent beef used, topped with luscious Comté cheese and laced with a sriracha aioli, bacon jam and caramelized onion, sided by house pickles and very good French fries.
    Desserts show off the same entwining of flavors and textures, starting with brioche donuts with vanilla cream and preserved strawberry. The “bonfire” is an upgrade of s’mores, with a Graham cracker crumble with fior de latte, hot chocolate, and toasted marshmallow (below). The hot fudge and peanut butter sundae has a peanut butter mousse with brown butter, almonds. What’s not to love?
    The Cottage’s wine list is of a sensible size and notable for having so many fine wines under $100 that go very well for Lewis’s cuisine.
    The premises are composed of three rooms, all in a style that lives up to the restaurant’s name and well fitted to suburban Westport, so its legions of local regulars feel right at home, although I doubt any of them blast indefinable music into their dining room as has always been the sorry case here. The small bar room, with counter seating, is a tad less loud.
    So my return visit fully revived my ranking of Brian Lewis and his crew in the high ranks of Connecticut chefs who would impress people anywhere, and without the pretensions of a place like Blue Hill at Stone Barns in nearby Pocantico Hills, New York. That Lewis now has stiff competition in the state, and, by extension to New England, is all to the good for everybody to keep him on the beam and his guests consistently happy.

THE COTTAGE

256 Post Road East

Westport, Connecticut

203-557-3701

Open for dinner Sun., Tues.-Sat.; Brunch Sun.

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NEW YORK CORNER

MISTAKES TOURISTS MAKE WHEN
EATING AROUND NEW YORK

By John Mariani

Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant

    With more than 28,000 restaurants of every stripe in New York City and 6,400 in Manhattan alone, the impossibility for local residents to do more than scratch the surface of its dining scene is obvious. For those who are paying their first or fiftieth visit to the city, the options are mind-boggling. Mistakes will be made.
    There are various ways visitors can learn about any city’s best restaurants, starting with guidebooks and on-line food sites. But the reader must be aware that not all guides are up to date and all show biases, not least the Michelin Guide, which hands out its top award of three stars to just five of the most expensive restaurants––Sushi Sho, Junksing, Eleven Madison Park, Per Se and Le Bernardin––with all but the last serving extravagant tasting menus of a dozen or more courses.
    Eater.com fired most of its local reviewers and now depends more on editors’ choices. What remains of the Zagat Guides depends entirely on votes by readers who may not have dined at a restaurant in years. As for bloggers and influencers, believe whom you wish but beware of fraudulence.
    The most dependable, though sometimes out-of-date, on-line sites would be the New York Times restaurant coverage, New York Magazine and Time Out.

    Deciding on where to go depends on what you are looking for: Do you want to go to the newest and hottest, which are going to be tough to get into? The best of an ethnic cuisine, which can range from high-end Italian like Il Gattopardo and Fasano to a storefront Thai eatery like Thai Boat Noodle in Queens? What is your budget, considering that an average meal in a good restaurant of any stripe will run you at least $100 per person?
    How far will you go? Destinations in the outer boroughs can easily cost $20+ by taxi or Uber, and unless you’re familiar with the subway system, which may involve changes of trains, it will take time to get there.
    As for tourist traps, just because a restaurant is jammed with tourists does not detract from whether it is good or not. Places like the always packed Carbone in Greenwich Village cost a fortune, yet the food is no better than at scores of other Italian restaurants in the city. So, too, Peter Luger (left) in Brooklyn serves a terrific porterhouse, but so do many steakhouses in Manhattan, and a visit to Luger is going to take an investment in transportation costs plus dealing with waiters whose tableside manners are minimal.
    There are places like Sardi’s, known more for its wall of celebrity caricatures than for its food, but it’s fun and celebs do show up, and Balthazar (right), jammed breakfast, lunch and dinner, serving decent brasserie fare, but you can find it as good or better at Benoit, Le Gratin and Le Rock.
    Here are some other mistakes and misconceptions about dining out in the Big Apple:

Why bother going to chain restaurants that can be found in many U.S. cities, perhaps including your own? The original Palm steakhouse is long gone but its branches are worldwide. Virgil’s Real Barbecue can be enjoyed in Las Vegas, and there are Shake Shacks everywhere.

A good hotel concierge is invaluable, but the emphasis is on good, not one who merely recommends the same places to everyone or gets a kick-back from places he touts. Do not ask a concierge, “Where do you like to eat?” because he will just tell you the same places he tells everyone else to go. Be very specific in your request, what kind of restaurant, how far away, what is your budget, what are your dislikes. The more detailed you are in your request, the more likely he will be a good informant. He may also be able to get you into a highly popular restaurant, for which, at the end of your stay, you might want to tip him.

As for tipping, fifteen percent of the total food and beverage bill is basic in New York, with twenty percent closer to the current standard. You need not tip the maître d’ unless he has performed some special service for you, like seating you at a table you specifically request or did something for a birthday guest.

Now here’s a secret I am constantly repeating about dining out, not just in New York but anywhere. If you really, really want to go to a specific restaurant for whatever reason and find they are “fully booked,” ask about either an early hour like five o’clock, or a late hour, after nine. Or just show up. I guarantee you that most of New York’s best restaurants (at least those that do not have specifically timed seatings, say, at six PM and 9 PM) would love to have you come through the door at nine PM. Be aware, though, that many kitchens take their last order at ten, so don’t linger over cocktails.

    The other alternatives are either to eat at the bar or lounge (Le Bernardin, right), which in so many restaurants are wonderfully swank and have abbreviated menus but the same food; or at lunch, especially since lunch business has still not fully recovered from the Covid era. Unlike cities outside New York––Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas and others, where lunch is a lightweight rush with menus offering only salads, pastas and a couple of main courses––restaurants in Manhattan serve full menus, perhaps abbreviated from dinner but every bit as inclusive of the kitchen’s best efforts. At an haute cuisine place like Jean-Georges for lunch, they offer either a three course or six course meal at midday.
    As to what to wear dining out in New York, I’m distraught that standards have fallen so that guidelines are almost meaningless. There is no restaurant––zero––that requires men to wear jackets, and, shocking to report, many people wear t-shirts and hoodies to even the fanciest restaurants. A few draw the line at shorts and sandals, but I’ve seen those items, too, in the very restaurants that disdain them.
    It does not, however, hurt to dress well. Indeed, a man wearing a jacket and tie and a woman in her finery brings a luster and allure to a dining room that is very much appreciated by the management.

Personally, were I an out-of-towner coming to New York, I would definitely include at least one or two great historic restaurants, some that have been around for a century or more and still compete with the best anywhere. Places like Delmonico’s, Grand Central Oyster Bar & Restaurant, Katz’s Deli, Gallagher’s, the Russian Tea Room, Patsy’s and Keen’s are distinctly New York, with swagger and attitude to burn. And you get to be a part of it.

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THE BISON
By John Mariani

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

Katie rushed over to David’s room.
       “You okay? You look really shaken,” she said.
       “Poisonous spiders are nothing something I ran into much on the streets of New York,” he replied, mopping his face with a cold towel.
       Katie glanced at the creature crushed into the bed cover and turned away.
       “Why the hell is someone always trying to kill us?” she said, shaking her head. “We haven’t accused anybody of anything.”
       David tossed the towel on the bathroom floor and picked up the box the spider had been packed i
       “Look at this,” he said.
       Katie looked into the box. At the bottom was written the letter “V.” She turned to David and said, “Vargas?”
       David said, “It’s a pretty good guess. He sort of indicated he’d try to get to me. So this probably has nothing to do with our investigation.”
       “Are you going to call the police?” she asked.
       “Of course, I am, though I doubt they’ll get very far unless they can find Vargas’s fingerprints all over that box.”
       “So you think this is the end of it?”
       “Yeah, I do. If the thing had bitten me and killed me, he’d be very happy, but even if it didn’t, he’d know I got his message loud and clear.”
       “Please tell me you’re not going after him down here, David.”
       “The thought had occurred to me for the moment,” he said, “ but I’ve been threatened before and let it go if I thought that was the end of it. The mobsters never rub out a cop but they could make you uncomfortable, just to let you know they had their eyes on you. We do get stuff in the mail at home that’s supposed to really scare our families. For now, I think it’s better to get back to New York and pursue what we can up there. Maybe fly out to Zorroland, or whatever the hell Epstein calls it. By the way, do you know his present whereabouts?”
       Katie shook her head.
       “Well, we had a few sunny days together,” said David. “That’s something.”
       “Sort of. I didn’t get to the beach like you. Anyway, before we head back to New York should we make contact about Virginia Roberts’ whereabouts, in case she’s back in the States?”
       David agreed and said that right after he called the police about the spider incident, he’d call his friend at the T.S.A.
       “Do you think we should let Ramona and Susannah know about Vargas?” asked Katie.
        “Let me think about it. I’d prefer to keep it out of the papers down here, but somehow I think Vargas is going to brag about it, so Ramona and Susannah will hear about quickly.”
       “If he brags too much won’t the cops be all over him?”
       “Yeah, but he obviously didn’t deliver the package so it’ll be tough to pin anything on him just for shooting off his mouth.”
ut the attempt on his life, and Rush said he’d get an investigation started.
      “We might be able to shake some info out of Vargas or at least scare him into not coming near you again,” he said.
       “I wish he would,” said David, “face to face after the sun goes down.”       He then asked Rush what he might be able to find out about Roberts’s whereabouts. Rush let out a slight laugh.
       “Virginia Roberts? Do I know about her? You could say that. She’s the one who got this whole sex trafficking investigation started.”
       “She came to you?”
       “She spoke to us from Chiang Mai where she felt she was safe. She married a guy and now her last name is Giuffre.”
       David was amazed at how things were starting to overlap with Katie’s investigation.
       “So Virginia’s still in Thailand?”
       “No, as a matter of fact she’s on a flight to Miami. She should be here tomorrow morning. We have a date to meet on Tuesday afternoon. Katie care to join us?”

       David knew the news would buoy Katie into convincing Dobell there was something bigger than she had before. When David met her that afternoon in the hotel coffee shop she was duly impressed and ecstatic. She still had a few days left on Dobell’s week-long leash, and the idea of speaking to the woman who initiated the case against Epstein would blow things open, perhaps even gain her access to Epstein, this time about his accusers.
     “If I were him,” said David, “and his lawyers have anything to say about it, he won’t talk to you unless his ego is bigger than his brain or his dick.”
       “Maybe Ghislaine is the key,” said Katie. “I really suspect that beneath her British reserve, she’s a woman who’s been hurt by this monster who was formerly her lover. Now she’s a pimp. Remember in the movie A Few Good Men when Tom Cruise wants to put Jack Nicolson on the stand to drag the truth out him about those Code Red beatings that killed a Marine?”
       “Yeah, Cruise does a great imitation of Nicholson.”
       “Right, and after Demi Moore advises him against grilling Nicholson, Cruise says, ‘He wants to tell us the truth! He’s dying to tell us the truth!’”
       “Yeah, then Cruise traps him and Jack yells out, ‘You want the truth? You can’t handle the truth!’ and spills his guts.”
       “You do a pretty good Nicholson yourself.”
       “You should hear my Demi Moore.”
       “Some other time,” said Katie. “Now let’s get our questions lined up for Virginia. Will Rush let you in the room?”
    "You can't read her interview with the police because it’s an on-going investigation but you can ask her your own questions.”
       “So we don’t need to call the T.S.A.”
       “Nope. We have our girl right where we need her. Hey, would you mind very much a return visit to Joe’s, as long as we have V.I.P. treatment there courtesy of Terry?”
       Katie said she wouldn’t mind that at all.

The next day after breakfast Katie got a call from Susannah.
      “You two okay?” she asked.      “Yeah, I’m fine. I think David was really shaken up. How did you find out?”
       “Vargas told me last night. He didn’t come right out and say he set it up but said that he’d heard that David had a run in with a tarantula.”
       “Does he know David escaped and killed it?”
       “Yeah, but he seemed satisfied that David got the message. It gives me another reason to get away from Vargas.”
       “You think Vargas will try anything like that again?”
      “I don’t know, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea if the two of you left town.”
       “We were just about to until Virginia Peters showed up in Miami.”
       “Really? When? You going to see her?”
      “Yeah, this afternoon at police headquarters.”
       “Well, give her my best. We were never friends but I felt sorry for what she went through. Does Madam Sanchez know?”
       “I doubt it,” said Katie.
       “Okay, I gotta go. If you feel like it, keep me informed about Virginia.”
       “Will do. And, Susannah, try to get away from Vargas as soon as possible.”
       “I will. Soon. Gotta go.”
       Katie thought it better not to call Sanchez, at least until she interviewed Virginia Peters. She met David downstairs, checked out and drove north to Palm Beach, meeting Rush at headquarters a little early.
       “Is she here?” asked David.
       “She most certainly is. Tough girl, not someone to be intimidated. And she came without her husband. Let me introduce you.”

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NOTES FROM THE WINE CELLAR

The Abruzzo Wines of Ciavolich Have

Won High Praise for Italian Quality

By John Mariani

The region of Abruzzo, east of Rome all the way to the Adriatic, has as long a history as any in Italy for winemaking, but it’s really only in this century that its vintners have broken away from making vast amounts of undistinguished bulk wines–– the country’s fifth largest producer––to garnering praise for their distinction.

The region is now known for its red wine Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, whose Colline Teramane terroir holds the prestigious DOCG appellation; a rosé called Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo made from Montepulciano grapes; the white Trebbiano d'Abruzzo; and the white Pecorino and Passerina.

One of the leaders of these innovative wines is Ciavolich, whose ancestors came to Italy from Bulgaria in 1560 AD. Recently in New York, I had a chance to sit down and taste the wines and interview Paola Ciavolich, 48, who, after leaving a law degree behind, has been totally involved with the winery for 25 years.

Your family has had a winery since 1853. Were they part of a cooperative of farmers?

No, my family has always been an independent wine producer.

The Ciavolich family originally came from Bulgaria and settled in Abruzzo in the sixteenth century. Over time they became merchants and farmers, and in 1853 they established a winery in the village of Miglianico.

At that time the model was very different from today: many families cultivated their own vineyards and produced wine locally, often selling it in bulk to traders or exporting it to northern Italy and central Europe.

How many DOCs and DOCGs does Abruzzo now have?

Today Abruzzo has one DOCG, Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Colline Teramane, and several DOC appellations. The most important are Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC, Trebbiano d’Abruzzo DOC, Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo DOC, and Abruzzo DOC, which includes several grape varieties such as Pecorino, Passerina, and Cococciola. In recent years there has also been a growing focus on subzones and historical territories, especially areas such as Loreto Aprutino.

Can you tell me about the importance of clonal research and what aspects have you pursued toimprove grape selection?

Many of our vineyards were planted in the 1960s and 1970s and originate from massal selection rather than clonal selection. At that time vines were propagated directly from existing vineyards, which created a great deal of genetic diversity within the same variety.

When we plant new vineyards or need to replace individual vines that have died, we try to preserve this original genetic heritage. We do this by taking cuttings from the pruning wood of our own old vines, sending them to a nursery for propagation, and then replanting them in the vineyard.

This process is more complex and more expensive than purchasing commercially available clonal vines, but it allows us to preserve the biodiversity and the original character of our vineyards, rather than standardizing the plant material through clonal selection. For us this is an important way of maintaining the identity of our estate and of our territory.

The best-known producer in Abruzzo is Franceso Paolo Valentini for his long-lived Trebbiano d’Abruzzo. Was he an inspiration for Ciavolich? Do you know the family?

Francesco Paolo Valentini has certainly been one of the most important reference points for wine in Abruzzo, and particularly for Trebbiano d’Abruzzo. His wines demonstrated very clearly that this grape, when grown in the right conditions, can produce wines of remarkable depth and longevity. Yes, I know him and the family well. We are neighbors in Loreto Aprutino, and there is a long relationship of mutual respect and friendship among the producers of this area.

Together with several other wineries we are also part of a group called Custodes Laureti, which was created to protect and promote the identity of the territory of Loreto Aprutino. As part of this work we published a book called Le Contrade del Vino di Loreto Aprutino, dedicated to the historic vineyard areas of the town. I would be happy to send you a PDF copy if you are interested.

For me, Valentini represents a kind of benchmark for Trebbiano d’Abruzzo, showing the extraordinary potential that this grape can achieve in our territory.

You called your excellent Cerasuolo not really a rosé and called it “the wine of climate change.” Why?

Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo is traditionally made from Montepulciano and historically it has always been a wine with much more structure and color than most rosés. Today I sometimes describe it as a wine of the future, especially in the context of climate change. In recent vintages we are increasingly facing a situation where Montepulciano reaches sugar ripeness much earlier than phenolic ripeness. In other words, the grapes accumulate sugar quickly while the skins are still developing color and tannin.

At that stage the grapes are actually perfect for producing a great Cerasuolo: they have beautiful freshness and aromatic intensity, but they have not yet reached the heavy phenolic maturity required for a powerful red wine.

If we wait longer in the vineyard to achieve full phenolic ripeness for a structured red, the risk today is producing wines with very high alcohol levels — sometimes 15% or even more.

For this reason Cerasuolo represents a very intelligent expression of Montepulciano in a warming climate: it preserves freshness, balance, and drinkability while still expressing the character of the grape.

Your wines, not even the red Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, never go above 14% alcohol. How is this achieved?

In recent years we are increasingly facing the effects of climate change: grapes tend to accumulate sugar very quickly, often before full phenolic ripeness is reached. If one waits too long in the vineyard, the risk is producing wines with excessively high alcohol levels.

Our approach is to harvest when the grapes have reached a good balance between ripeness, acidity, and phenolic maturity, without pushing them toward extreme sugar concentration.

For us, balance is essential. Wines with moderate alcohol better express the character of our varieties and our territory, and they are also much more enjoyable at the table.

In my view, the future of wine is not in making bigger wines, but more precise and more drinkable wines.

Is it true that some Trebbianos in Abruzzo are made with Trebbiano Toscano instead? What is the difference?

Yes, historically several different Trebbiano varieties have been planted in Abruzzo, including Trebbiano Toscano.

In fact, today less than 30% of the Trebbiano vineyards in Abruzzo are planted with the true Trebbiano Abruzzese. Much of the planting that took place from the 1980s onward used Trebbiano Toscano, which was widely available in nurseries.

The situation is also complicated by the fact that “Trebbiano” is not a single grape but a family of varieties — in many ways it would be more accurate to speak of “trebbiani.” Over the centuries these grapes evolved into several distinct cultivars such as Trebbiano Toscano, Trebbiano Romagnolo, Trebbiano Abruzzese, and Bombino Bianco.

Trebbiano Abruzzese was officially recognized as a distinct variety only in 1994, after long being confused with Bombino Bianco. It is genetically different from Trebbiano Toscano and generally produces wines with greater structure, complexity, and aging potential, while Trebbiano Toscano from industrial clones tends to give lighter and more neutral wines.

For this reason there is now increasing interest among producers in identifying and preserving authentic Trebbiano Abruzzese selections, especially from older vineyards.

Why do you see a great future for Pecorino and Passerina whites?

Both grapes have characteristics that are very well suited to contemporary tastes. Pecorino naturally combines good acidity with aromatic intensity and structure, while Passerina tends to produce fresher, lighter wines with bright citrus notes.

As consumers increasingly look for distinctive regional varieties rather than international grapes, these native varieties have a strong future.

I understand you use terracotta amphoras. What do they contribute?

Amphoras allow a very gentle form of micro-oxygenation, somewhat similar to wood but without adding any flavor.

They help preserve the purity of the fruit while giving the wine texture and complexity. For certain wines they allow us to express the grape and the vintage in a very transparent way.

How do you see winemaking in Abruzzo changing in the next ten years?

I believe we will see much greater attention to territory and vineyard identity. There is a new generation of producers focusing on smaller vineyards, native varieties, and more precise winemaking. At the same time there is growing interest in historical areas such as Loreto Aprutino and in understanding the diversity within the region.

MARIANI'S VIRTUAL GOURMET NEWSLETTER is published weekly. Publisher: John Mariani. Editor: Walter Bagley. Contributing Writers: Christopher Mariani, Misha Mariani, John A. Curtas, Gerry Dawes, Geoff Kalish. Contributing Photographer: Galina Dargery. Technical Advisor: Gerry McLoughlin.