Some weeks hand you a challenge before the coffee is even brewed. This one started with water in places water should never be, and somewhere between the shop vac and the cleanup crew – a.k.a. me, it still managed to deliver one of the best restaurant nights in recent memory. There was a roast beef sandwich in Easton, a full Barcelona spread of charcuterie and tapas with an Argentinian wine that genuinely stopped me mid-sip, a burger and an IPA while watching Duke nearly lose, March Madness wings at my old Sandy Hook spot, nachos with my daughter, and a Sunday orecchiette that sent the week out exactly right. This one had range.
Monday: Chicken & Potato Skillet Hash to Start the Week Right
Monday was a home cooking night, and the kind that reminds you why simple, one-pan meals are worth having in your rotation.
I put together a Chicken and Potato Skillet Hash with Broccoli and Parmesan — nothing complicated, but deeply satisfying in the way that a well-seasoned pan and a little patience can produce. Crispy potatoes, tender chicken, broccoli with some char on it, and a good hit of Parmesan over the top. It’s the kind of meal that doesn’t require a story, it just requires a fork.
There’s something grounding about starting a week with a meal you made yourself. It sets a tone. The week ahead had no idea what was coming.
Tuesday: The Basement Had Other Plans
Tuesday did not go as planned.
I woke up to a flooded basement, which is a very specific kind of bad morning — the kind where your to-do list evaporates and gets replaced with one item: deal with this. So that’s what Tuesday was. Shop vac, calls, cleanup, the whole miserable process. There’s not a lot to say about it except that it happened and it took over the day entirely.
Some weeks test you before they reward you. This was the test.
Wednesday: Greiser’s for Lunch, Then Barcelona for a Night That Delivered
Wednesday was still cleanup mode in the morning, but by lunch I needed to come up for air — and Greiser’s Coffee & Market in Easton was exactly the right place for it.
If you haven’t been, Greiser’s is one of those spots that feels genuinely out of time — a 220-year-old building in the heart of Easton, the kind of place where locals actually know each other and the food is made with care. I grabbed a roast beef sandwich and it was fabulous. Not fancy, not trying to be. Just a really well-made sandwich that hit every note. Sometimes that’s all you need.
📍 Greiser’s Coffee & Market | 299 Center Rd, Easton, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Then came the evening — and the week shifted completely.
We headed to Barcelona Wine Bar in Fairfield, and from the minute we sat down, the basement felt very far away. We started with charcuterie, and this board was doing serious work:
- Drunken Goat — Murcia, Spain. Semi-soft goat’s milk, aged two months, soaked in red wine. It’s as good as it sounds.
- Soria Chorizo — California. Smoky, garlicky, pimentón-forward pork sausage.
- Aged Manchego — Castilla-La Mancha, Spain. Firm sheep’s milk, aged six months. Buttery, nutty, complex — the classic for a reason.
Then the tapas came, and they kept coming:
- Artichokes with saffron and Aleppo pepper
- Burrata with figs, walnuts, Serrano, and balsamic
- Stuffed Piquillo Peppers — rice and spiced beef
- Gnocchi with venison and mushrooms
- Spiced Beef Empanadas with red pepper sauce
- Albondigas — spiced meatballs in jamón-tomato sauce
My wife had the sangria. I tried to order a beer but the taps were having a rough night, so I pivoted to my Barcelona staple — the Bourbon Spice Rack: Four Roses Bourbon, Cardamaro, maple syrup, lemon, cardamom and lavender bitters. It’s one of those cocktails that makes you wonder why you’d ever drink anything else.
Then we moved to wine — a 2023 Quieto Gran Corte from Mendoza, Argentina. I’ll say it plainly: excellent. Bold, layered, exactly what a night like this called for.
Barcelona earns its reputation over and over. Reviewers consistently rank it among the best in Fairfield, and nights like Wednesday are exactly why. It’s one of those places that turns a hard week around.
📍 Barcelona Wine Bar | 4180 Black Rock Turnpike, Fairfield, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thursday: Burgers, Basketball, and a Fuzzy Baby Ducks IPA
Thursday called for something uncomplicated, and Sitting Duck Tavern delivered exactly that.
We headed to Sitting Duck Tavern and I grabbed a burger. It hit the spot — the way a well-made tavern burger does when you’re not overthinking it and you’re just hungry. A Fuzzy Baby Ducks IPA to wash it down, and the night had everything it needed.
Then the real entertainment kicked in: we watched Duke nearly lose to Siena. I’ll be honest — I’m not a Duke fan, but credit where it’s due, Siena made it a genuinely good game. March Madness has a way of doing that. You sit down expecting a blowout and suddenly you’re invested in a team you’ve never thought about before.
That’s the beauty of this time of year.
📍 Sitting Duck Tavern | 4244 Madison Ave, Trumbull, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Friday: Cover 2, Old Friends, and the Best Wings Around
Friday was a trip back — and I mean that both literally and emotionally.
I made my way to Cover 2 in Sandy Hook — my old town, the place we just moved from — to meet some friends and catch March Madness. Walking into Cover 2 still feels like walking into a place that knows you. There’s a comfort in that. A familiarity that doesn’t require explanation.
And the wings. Cover 2 wings are probably some of the best around — full stop. Crispy, well-seasoned, the kind that make you forget you’re watching a basketball game for a minute because you’re too focused on what’s in your hand. We watched the games, laughed with friends, and I was reminded again why some places become part of your history.
Moving away from a town doesn’t mean leaving it behind. Sometimes it just means you have a great reason to go back.
📍 Cover 2 Sports Cafe | 100 Church Hill Rd, Sandy Hook, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Saturday: Daughter Day, Nachos & More Basketball
Saturday was one of those days that didn’t need to be anything more than what it was.
My daughter came over to hang out and watch more basketball games, which meant the agenda was simple: snacks, games, good company. I made nachos with beef and some solid margaritas to go with them. Nothing elaborate. Just the kind of food that works when you’re camped out on the couch for a round of March Madness with someone you love spending time with.
Those are often the days that become the ones you remember — not because anything extraordinary happened, but because nothing had to.
Sunday: Yard Work, Then Orecchiette That Ended the Week Perfectly
Sunday started outside. Leaves, sticks, the first real push to get the yard in order — the kind of seasonal reset that feels necessary and satisfying in equal measure. There’s something about working outdoors that clears the head in a way nothing else quite does. You’re tired at the end, but the right kind of tired.
And then the reward.
I cooked orecchiette with sausage and broccoli in a garlic butter sauce — and I added a few Calabrian peppers to kick it up a notch. If you’ve never cooked with Calabrian chilies, start. They bring a fruity, medium heat that plays beautifully with rich, buttery pasta and the sweetness of Italian sausage. The broccoli gives it texture and some earthiness to balance everything out.
Opened a bottle of Frescobaldi Chianti to go alongside, and that was it. The week was officially over. Not with drama — with dinner and a glass of wine and the kind of quiet satisfaction that only a good Sunday meal can produce.
Sometimes the best way to close a chapter is around the table.
Closing Reflection
This week started in the worst possible way — water where it shouldn’t be, days lost to cleanup, the kind of disruption that throws everything off. And somehow, it still delivered.
A sandwich in my new hometown, Easton. Drunken Goat and Argentinian wine at Barcelona. A tavern burger and a basketball game. Wings at my old haunt with old friends. Nachos with my daughter. Orecchiette on a Sunday.
That’s the thing about food and the rhythm of a week — it finds its way back to you. Even when the basement floods. Even when Tuesday is a total loss. The table is still there, and eventually you get back to it.
This week got back to it in a big way.