Gastronomy Tour Puts The Grand In Grand Avenue

Enchiladas, ceviche, plantains, and pastries were served up with a side of history, as the Grand Avenue Gastronomy Tour returned as part of the International Festival of Arts and Ideas Saturday. Twenty participants, led by Lee Cruz of the Chatham Square Neighborhood Association, ate their way down and around Fair Haven while also learning about the neighborhood itself: past, present, and future.

Beginning on the corner of Grand and Front Street at the edge of Quinnipiac River Park, Cruz set the tone of the afternoon with his joyful and expressive explanation of the history of not only the park and the bridge beside it, but the settling of the land itself. He then informed the group that they would be dining at Mexican, Peruvian, Dominican, and Puerto Rican restaurants, along with an Italian bakery.

As we made our way down Grand toward our first stop, Cruz pointed out a variety of landmarks, including the community garden managed by Gather New Haven, the former Strong School that is slated to be redeveloped for businesses and housing, and bus stops that each had been decorated by different artists.

Crux noted the diversity of the area, mentioning that it had been an ​“immigrant landing place” throughout its history, and showed the group his own home.

“I literally live in this neighborhood,” he said with a smile and pride. He mentioned later that he had lived in Fair Haven on and off since 1983, ​“on both sides of the river.”

Soon we arrived at the first stop, Salsa’s Authentic Mexican Restaurant, located at 99 Grand Ave. A selection of items from the menu was set up inside for us, where we could make our plates and then enjoy them at the outside tables. Chicken enchiladas, flautas, quesadillas, and mole — and all the toppings for them — were available along with pineapple juice and horchata, a milk-based drink made with rice, cinnamon and vanilla. The sweet and refreshing drinks were an apropos accompaniment to the fresh and perfectly seasoned food, which was spicy enough to leave a gentle hum in my mouth that lingered as we made our way toward our next destination. 

After a few brief stops to point out landmarks, such as the Fair Haven K‑8 school — which, according to Cruz, had a stage that was a stop for vaudeville acts in the 1930s — and the C‑Town supermarket where Cruz recommended everyone visit for their varied fruit and produce section, we arrived at J&J Restaurant at 244 Grand. The sign above it said Spanish and American food; Cruz noted that the restaurant specialized in Dominican food. A seemingly endless number of steam trays behind the counter were filled with a variety of delicacies, from sopa de pollo (which Cruz said was ​“the best”) to fish filets to pernil. That pork dish was one of the menu items that our group was able to partake of, along with roasted chicken, sweet plantains, arroz con gandules, and mixed vegetables. 

As we stood outside cleaning off our plates, a couple of us agreed that these may have been the best plaintains we had ever had. Many went back for seconds of everything because everything was simply exquisite. The meat was melt-in-your-mouth madness, and as I grabbed one more scoop of rice and a couple more chunks of pernil, I had to keep in mind that we still had two more restaurants and a bakery to go.

El Coqui Spanish Restaurant, at 286 Grand Ave., was next on our list. Cruz noted that they specialized in Puerto Rican food. Here we were offered a variety of dishes that included pasteles and mofongo — which Cruz said were both made with green banana — chicharron, which was a crispier type of pork, and, to my delight, more plantains and arroz con gandules. The plantains were savorier here, and the pasteles and mofongo also had a savory bite to them as well. The insanely crispy pieces of pork were ridiculous; I could have eaten a ridiculous amount of them and not been embarrassed in the least. I tried to be prudent with my servings here, knowing we had two more stops, but man, was it tough. 

It was here that Cruz also extolled the virtues of malta, the popular malt beverage, and opened a few bottles for all of us to try. I had never had it before. Cruz mentioned that if you liked darker beers, you would probably like it. I do, and I did. It had the richness of an imperial stout but without the alcohol, and its thick but refreshing sweetness balanced well with the menu. 

We had a bit of a rest from eating as Cruz pointed out and discussed more landmarks, including the former Columbus School, now the Family Academy of Multilingual Exploration (aka FAME).

We stopped at La Molienda Restaurant and Bar at 113 Grand Ave., which was dark, warm, and welcoming. We made our way into the dining room where a variety of delightful dishes waited for us: a mixed seafood ceviche, mussels covered in onion, tomatoes, and cilantro, and Chinese Peruvian fried rice with veggies and eggs. They were as beautiful as they were delicious. The freshness and the flavors were the perfect way to end the tour. 

Since there was also a bar there, Cruz mentioned we could partake if we so desired (i.e., it was not included in the tour package), noting that they made a fantastic pisco sour. I am here to confirm that Cruz was correct: the pisco sour, floating in a gigantic globe-like glass, was indeed fantastic. I sipped mine slowly, ruminating on the variety of dishes we had tasted and the sites we had seen. Cruz spoke to everyone about his commitment to this neighborhood and its people as the festivities began to wind down.

“I care about my neighborhood,” he said, and told of the many tours he has given, not only for Arts and Ideas, but for groups from a large variety of backgrounds and programs to teach people about the happenings in this area, its people, its history, and its hope for the future.

“What’s going on here is, people are living here. We want this neighborhood to succeed. This is a good, tight neighborhood. We love our community.”

He encouraged people to come back to these restaurants, though if the chats I was involved in and overheard with others rang true, he had already created a host of returning visitors.

“If you enjoyed yourself, tell your friends, bring your friends,” he said.

As the restaurant emptied out, Cruz and I chatted more about the history of the area and his love for it and its people — a population of 19,000 that are 62 percent Latino and 38 percent a mixture of African American, African, Caribbean, Italian, and Polish. An absolute font of knowledge, Cruz said he learned about the community from reading and researching, but mostly from talking to the elders of the neighborhood. The whole event reminded me so much of my parents, especially my father, who not only loved to eat, but loved to tell me and anyone who would listen about a multitude of New Haven and Fair Haven landmarks anytime we drove by them or they were brought up in conversation. He and Cruz would have been fast friends.

Later that night I savored my toasted almond square on my couch after a short nap, during which I dreamed about rice and plantains, sharing them and a pisco sour with someone I love. I woke up smiling.

Another gastronomy tour of Grand Avenue is scheduled for Saturday, June 25. Please visit the Arts and Ideas website for more information. Please visit the websites of the above restaurants (linked in the article) for locations, hours of operation, and their menus.