House of 1833

It seems like you can’t swing a dead cat in New England without hitting a B&B. And for good reason; those states up in the right-hand corner of the map of the US have lots of fun getaways where one might need to a place to sleep and would want to do it in style. And what better style is there than a historic house with tons of antiques, the best home cooking in the world (sorry, Mom) and a resident friendly dog? That’s where the House of 1833 comes in.


Built in 1833 (hence the name) by banker Elias Brown and located in Mystic, CT, this is the place where you go to turn off your phone and computer and pretend like you’re made of millions and used to living in refined style. The owners, Robert and Evan, are the nicest people you’d ever want to meet. Robert, who is the picture of a quiet, weathered old New Englander with his knit sweaters and white beard, cooks the most delicious food you’ve ever had. He also happens to be related to Elias Brown. Evan is the front-of-the-house guy. Chatty, gracious, ready to get you whatever you want before you know you want it. He welcomes you with warm chocolate chip cookies and glasses of port. On our first visit it was near our anniversary and on the second visit it was Marvin’s birthday. Both times there was a banner hanging up and a small cake with a candle on it waiting for us in our room. It was such a sweet surprise!


Their home is literally your home, and they want you to enjoy it. The entire place is chock-a-block with antiques and Evan can tell you something cool about each one (my favorite is a mirror in one of the parlors from when the house served as a dressmaker’s studio and was used by Jackie Bouvier when she did her clothes shopping). There are books and games and pictures to look at…you could spend an entire day inside and not see it all.








Behind the house is a full-size in-ground pool and a tennis court surrounded by gardens. There’s plenty of places to sit and enjoy the surroundings. You may see the resident dog, Buddy, hanging out with his girlfriend from next door, Amber. If you’re lucky he’ll be up for some play time with his rope toy.






You won’t be sorry when it’s time to retire to your room for the evening. Most of the rooms have jacuzzis and they all have fireplaces. There are more antiques, and the beds…oh my god the beds. The first time Marvin and I stayed there we had the Veranda Room, which has a 19th century bronze and tole king size bed. I have never slept in anything so luxurious in my life. On our second visit we stayed in the Peach Room which has a 19th century hand-carved Chinese canopy bed. You can watch the flat panel TV or read one of the many book left around or, if you’re doing it right, you’ve got some company for the jacuzzi.

In the morning you will treat your mouth to the best homemade breakfast you’ve ever had. Ever. Let me say this again: THE BEST HOMEMADE BREAKFAST YOU’VE EVER HAD. There’s fresh fruit, a fresh-baked pastry (on our last visit it was one of my favorites, bread pudding, and Evan gave us the leftovers to take home!), a made-to-order item of the day along with your choice of breakfast meat and “House of 1833 Potatoes.” If you leave hungry it’s your own damn fault.


In the front room of the house is a book where you can write a little note to Evan and Robert about your visit. There are pages upon pages upon pages of glowing, effusive thank-yous for the wonderful visits. They are all honestly come by and absolutely deserved.





Photos of the House of 1833; the front parlor; the back parlor; the garden, pool, and tennis court; Amber and Buddy; and the bronze and tole bed courtesy yourFAVORITEmartian

Rocket! Yeah!*

In Philly, we've got food trucks. Shiny silver boxes with wheels where you can make a quick stop on the way to work for a greasy egg sandwich, or a quick stop on your lunch break for a greasy cheesesteak. I can't dog Philly too much for having what are universally referred to as roach coaches; they're everywhere and they all serve pretty much the same thing: grease. With a side of grease. The hour you'll spend in the bathroom later is free of charge.

But I'm proud to announce that Connecticut is leading the way in the food truck revolution. The town of Torrington, CT is home base to the most wondrous of mobile food establishments: Rocket Fine Street Food. Rocket takes the idea of standing in line on a street corner and waiting for some grub to atmospheric heights of deliciousness and style. First of all, there's the Rocket itself. No tiny silver box, this truck means business:

And lest you think it's all style and no substance, belly up to the window where the lovely Patricia will take your order. How about some organic tomato soup? That's right - I said organic! Rocket uses fresh, locally sourced ingredients whenever possible with no hormones, antibiotics, or high-fructose corn syrup. That means your green chili cheeseburger wasn't pulled from a freezer and zapped in a microwave. Would you like a side of frites with that? Yes, you would. But don't take my word for it, feast your eyes:





There are staple menu items and as well as a rotating list of other goodies, depending on what's in season and what chef Joe feels like cooking. Beef tacos, mac n' cheese, grilled cheese; as well as dessert items like homemade cupcakes and cookies. You can even order homemade loaves of crusty bread. I'm going to stop since I'm making myself hungry but if you can handle it there's more great stuff on the "Food Porn" section of Rocket's site. And, bless their hearts, you can even call ahead and place your order so you don't have to stand outside in the cold during these damned New England winters.

But there's something cooler than just great food at work with Rocket; there's fellowship, too. While you're waiting for your order you run into friends, or make new ones. You tell those new to the Rocket what the best thing on the menu is (which, really, is everything) and have some fun preparing them for how much they're gonna love it. And if you're standing at the Rocket, chances are you're already at some fun community event like a street fair or an art show. It's a chance to slow down, talk to your neighbor, and participate in your community. That is a mission I'm totally willing to sign up for.



*Sorry, Def Leppard.
Rocket truck photo courtesy yourFAVORITEmartian
Rocket food photos courtesy 60b Photography

The Little Things: Flowers

The Little Things is a series of posts in which I will talk about things that may not be exclusive to Connecticut but which make me like living here nonetheless.

Over the past few days I've noticed hydrangeas blooming everywhere in our town. On people's lawns, outside of town buildings; it seems I can't go anywhere without seeing them (the flowers pictured are outside of the local public library). They range in color form blue to purple and they have a delicious scent, too. It just makes me happy to see and smell them all over the place.

Suck it, Niagra Falls!: Kent Falls State Park

If you're like me, you think hiking was invented as a form of torture. But trust me, you'll want to do this one. Kent Falls State Park is, oddly enough, home to Kent Falls, an incredibly beautiful 250 ft waterfall. You can sit in quiet contemplation at the bottom of the falls in a nicely-designed amphitheater-type area, or you can climb a steep stairway up the side of the falls to the top. There are "rest stops" along the way that give you great views of the falls. I guarantee a bajillion guys have proposed here.

Several hundred feet away from the top of the falls is a public road, where I assume the state park ends. On the other side of the road is someone's house. What do you have to have done right in a past life to get to live at the top of a waterfall?!?

There's an expanse of green lawn leading from the parking lot to the bottom of the falls so it's perfect for a picnic or a Kennedy-style game of touch football. There's also a covered bridge that serves as a fabulous jumping off point for one of grandpa's "olden days" stories. Bring your own grub, as there's nothing immediately around the park. Have some cash on hand, too, since there's a fee to park in the lot (hey, a hardworking waterfall's gotta pay the bills somehow).

If you continue on down the road, you'll eventually hit the charming town of Kent. My fiance Marvin and I originally hit Kent because we needed some food and an ATM for the parking fee at the falls. We were in and out, but came back for a closer look after hiking the falls.

It's a cute little place with, from what we could see, nice shops and a restaurant/inn along the main street. We got our lunch from the Fife n' Drum Restaurant and Inn. I don't remember what we had, but it was tasty. We stumbled upon the local library's book sale, and made some pleasant conversation with the locals.

One of the best things about the town is that they have their own Belgian chocolatier! Belgique Chocolatier is no joke! When you walk into the shop you feel like you're in Europe. We tried their homemade ice cream (awesome!) and got some chocolate bars for the road.

I'm sure there's a bunch more quaint New England-y type stuff in Kent that we didn't see, but it looks like the perfect place to enjoy a weekend getaway to stay in one of the inns, walk around the town, and eat more chocolate.


Kent Falls photo courtesy yourFAVORITEmartian.

Mi casa es su casa!*

Two years ago I moved from Philadelphia, where I was born and raised, to Connecticut, where I wasn't. I moved to be with the guy who next year will become my husband, so it's not like I had much of a choice (the heart wants what the heart wants yadda yadda yadda). It's tough going from the concrete hustle and bustle of the 5th largest city in the US (not to mention the 2nd dirtiest) to a suburban wonderland where the librarian stumbled over my ethnic last name when I applied for a library card (true story).

In an effort to learn to love the place I'm calling home for who-knows-how-long I'm going to tell you about all the awesome things I've discovered about Connecticut. Sure the state has annoying aspects (I'm looking at you, bottle deposit) but it's also got some hella cool things about it, too (Riding shotgun with an open container? Totally legal!) The natives speak a foreign language (What the hell's a tag sale? Or a package store for that matter!) but they can also be incredibly enlightened (Same-sex marriage! You can buy beer at the supermarket!**).

You might call this an unofficial guide to the Constitution State or the pet project of a woman with too much time on her hands but, at least for now, I call it home.


*Counting college, I took Spanish for four years. That's about all I remember.
**Judging from my examples you might think that I like to drink a lot. Not true. But when you come from as alcoholically backward a state as Pennsylvania you're really amazed when you find out it's not like that everywhere.