This week had a little bit of everything — leftovers that earned their second life, a carbonara lunch in the city, a backyard cookout with the in-laws, a pizza night with old friends, and a Saturday lunch in Fairfield that delivered every single thing it promised. Some weeks lean heavily on one big meal. This one was more like a rotation, each day pulling its own weight, with food acting like the thread holding everything together.
Monday: Penne Alla Vodka, Take Two
Monday started with one of those small kitchen victories that makes the whole week feel a little easier — a fridge full of penne alla vodka left over from Sunday.
There is something specifically wonderful about vodka sauce on day two. The pasta has had time to sit in the sauce. The flavors round out. The sharpness softens. The whole thing somehow tastes more like itself. I will always argue that certain dishes are actually better the next day, and vodka sauce is near the top of the list.
It was the kind of Monday lunch that doesn’t try to compete with anything. Just warmth, comfort, and a reminder that effort earlier in the week pays you back later.
Tuesday: Carbonara at Eataly
Tuesday meant a midweek trip into the city, and that almost always means a stop at Eataly.
I went with the carbonara, which is one of those dishes I trust Eataly to do right. Guanciale, eggs, pecorino, black pepper. No cream, no shortcuts, nothing pretending to be carbonara that isn’t actually carbonara. The pasta was glossy, the sauce clung to it the way it should, and the pepper hit cleanly without overwhelming anything.
Eataly is a place I never get tired of. Even when I’m walking through quickly, there is something about the energy — the marble counters, the cheese cases, the bread, the hum of people moving from one station to another — that makes lunch feel like a small event. A bowl of carbonara at the counter is one of those workday rituals I genuinely look forward to.
Wednesday: In-Laws, Skirt Steak from Shaggy Coos, and a Lemony Salad
Wednesday turned into a proper at-home dinner with the in-laws, which is the kind of evening I always enjoy cooking for.
The centerpiece was skirt steak from Shaggy Coos Farm — a place we’ve come to rely on for the kind of meat that does most of the work for you. Skirt steak is one of those cuts that rewards good sourcing. Cooked hot and fast, sliced thin against the grain, served with a little salt and rest time, and you have something that tastes like it had a lot more done to it than it actually did.
Alongside the steak, I baked a few potatoes — nothing fancy, just oven, salt, butter, time — and made a simple arugula salad with a lemon dressing. Olive oil, lemon, salt, pepper, a little Dijon. The peppery bite of arugula against the bright acidity of lemon is one of those combinations that never gets old, and it cuts beautifully through the richness of a steak dinner.
It was the kind of meal that comes together easily when the ingredients are good. No reinventing the wheel. Just a good cut of meat, a sharp salad, a hot oven, and people you like sitting at the table.
📍 Shaggy Coos Farm | 53 Center Rd, Easton, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thursday: A Lunch Lesson at Brookfield Place, Then a Burger at Home
Thursday gave me one of those small commuter regrets that I’ll be filing away for next week.
I headed out of the office and took a right toward Dos Toros Taqueria at Brookfield Place — a Chicken Ancho bowl with rice and beans, which is exactly the kind of fast, fresh, Mission-style lunch that has earned my trust over the years. The chicken had a little smoke and warmth to it, the beans were creamy, and the whole thing came together quickly and cleanly. Not complicated, but consistent — and consistency at lunch is its own kind of luxury.
The lesson came on the way back. If I had taken a left instead of a right, I would have walked straight into Smorgasburg in the Oculus plaza between Fulton and Church. The smell alone was worth the detour I didn’t take — open-air, smoky, layered, the kind of scent trail that pulls you in before you even know what you’re looking at. Smorgasburg has been one of New York’s best food experiences for years, with dozens of vendors rotating through global street food, and the World Trade Center location is right in the middle of my workday. Now I know it’s there. Now it goes on the list.
📍 Dos Toros Taqueria | 225 Liberty St Ste 242, New York, NY ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
By dinner I was back home, and we kept it simple — a Shaggy Coos burger and a beef hot dog. There is a real pleasure in cooking off good meat on a weeknight without trying to dress it up. A burger from a farm you trust doesn’t need much. Salt, heat, a bun, done.
Friday: Good Old Days Pizza Comes to Us
Friday turned into one of the better pizza nights we’ve had in a while, and we didn’t even have to leave the house.
Friends came over and brought pies from Good Old Days Pizza in Newtown — a place I’ve been wanting to try for ages. They’ve earned a reputation for both thin and crispy round pies and Detroit-inspired squares, with that crispy frico edge of cheese baked along the sides of the pan. We ended up with three pies, and every one of them had something to say.
The French Onion was rich and savory, exactly the kind of pizza that makes you stop talking for a second when you take the first bite. The Heat of the Moment — red sauce, mozzarella, soppressata, hot honey, and bomba calabrese — was the showstopper of the night. Sweet, spicy, salty, layered, with that slow heat from the calabrese that lingers in the best possible way. And the White Lightning, with roasted garlic, ricotta, and basil, brought the calm to balance the storm. Bright, creamy, fragrant, and exactly what a white pie should be.
Good pizza with good friends in your own kitchen is hard to beat. No reservations, no waiting, no rush — just a counter full of pies, plenty of drinks, and the kind of easy conversation that only happens when nobody’s checking their watch.
📍 Good Old Days Pizza | 19 Main St, Newtown, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Saturday: Errands, Steak Frites, and Onion Rings That Stole the Show
Saturday took us down to Fairfield for errands, and somewhere between the third and fourth stop, lunch suddenly felt non-negotiable.
We ended up at Martel Bistro & Bar on the Post Road, and it turned into one of those meals where you walk out wondering why you don’t go more often. Martel has that French-inspired bistro feel that does very well in Fairfield — a little intimate, a little lively, with a menu that knows exactly what it is.
My wife and I both ordered the steak frites, and it was excellent. A good cut, cooked properly, with a stack of crisp fries and the kind of unfussy plate that makes you remember why this dish has been a bistro staple forever. There’s a reason steak frites doesn’t really need updating. When the steak is good and the fries are crisp, it just works.
My daughter went with the PLT — pancetta, arugula, tomato, and mozzarella — which is essentially a BLT that took an Italian vacation and came back better for it. The pancetta added that deeper, richer salt-and-fat character that bacon can’t quite replicate, and the arugula and mozzarella brought everything into balance.
But the real surprise of the meal was the side of onion rings. Tall, golden, crisp without being heavy, and the kind that actually stay together when you bite into them — none of that whole-onion-pulling-out disaster. They were so good that we kept reaching for them long after the rest of the food was gone.
Reviewers often describe Martel as a consistent neighborhood bistro with a loyal following, and that matched the feel of the room exactly. Good service, busy bar, and food that earns the regulars it clearly has.
📍 Martel Bistro & Bar | 2316 Post Rd, Fairfield, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Sunday: Cavatelli, Broccoli, Sausage, and a Family Afternoon
Sunday closed the week the way Sundays should — with family stopping by and food that didn’t ask anyone to think too hard about it.
We ordered takeout from Romanacci in Fairfield, the Ricci brothers’ Post Road spot that has quickly become a go-to for casual Italian. I went with the cavatelli with broccoli and sausage, which is one of those classic combinations that almost never lets you down. The cavatelli had that satisfying chew, the broccoli was cooked to the point of falling apart in the best way, and the sausage brought enough fat and seasoning to tie everything together. Garlicky, hearty, and exactly what I wanted.
The family went in on a few pies, and Romanacci’s pizzas hold their own — proper crust, good sauce, generous toppings, and that slightly more refined Italian-cafe sensibility that the Ricci brothers bring to all their spots.
A late Sunday lunch with kids around the table is one of those things that doesn’t need to be elaborate to feel meaningful. Italian food, good company, no rush, no plan beyond eating together. That’s the version of Sunday I’ll always show up for.
📍 Romanacci | 116 Post Rd, Fairfield, CT ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Closing Reflection
This week wasn’t built around any one big meal. It was built around the rhythm of small, good ones.
Vodka sauce leftovers on a Monday. Carbonara at Eataly on a Tuesday. Skirt steak with the in-laws on Wednesday. A bowl in the city followed by a burger at home. Three pies from Good Old Days with old friends. Steak frites and onion rings on a Saturday afternoon. Cavatelli with broccoli and sausage on a Sunday with family.
That’s what I keep coming back to with this series — not the spectacle of food, but the rhythm of it. The way the table just keeps showing up, week after week, in big ways and small ways, holding the days together.
This week ate well. And more importantly, it lived well.