Carmen Anthony Steakhouse - New Haven

Carmen Anthony Vacalebre grew up Connecticut and always wanted to be in the restaurant business. Learning everything about hamburgers from his stint with McDonald's, he then became a franchisee for Arby's and also opened ME-MA's in Waterbury. In May 1996, his dream finally became a reality when he opened Carmen Anthony Steakhouse. His total commitment to quality and his attention to detail soon made his restaurant popular and won him awards from critics and customers.

Encouraged by his success, he went on to open a second, and then a third restaurant, this time called Carmen Anthony Fishhouse in Woodbury and then Avon and followed this by opening a branch at Wethersfield. All this happened in a short span of four years and in June 2004, he opened the second steakhouse and the company's fifth outlet as Carmen Anthony's Steakhouse in New Haven, and there has been no looking back since.

This new steakhouse is on the first floor of the prestigious One Audubon Building, has three dining rooms, the Audubon, State and City and can accommodate two hundred and fifty six guests. The elegant bar has floor to ceiling concave windows that overlook the bustling area. A very popular feature of all the Carmen Anthony outlets is the exclusive wine lockers offered to discerning customers. They also take pride in offering the best steaks, sea food and grills, accompanied by a full selection of grappa, scotch, bourbon and cognac. Year after year, all Carmen Anthony wine lists are awarded the prestigious 'Award of Excellence' by Wine Spectator Magazine.

In the New Haven steak house too, the Carmen Anthony staff take great pride in serving the county's best thick Angus steaks and chops and fresh seafood, including live Maine lobsters. One cannot miss their award winning potato encrusted crab cake with its special remoulade sauce or their signature colorful salad. Vegetarians love their fresh Portobello mushrooms stuffed with spinach, artichoke hearts, and roasted red peppers in a gorgonzola cream sauce and topped with Ritz cracker crumbs. The clam chowder they serve has been voted the best in Connecticut.

The choice of mains is mindboggling, not just in variety but also in the treatment. Diners can choose from a range of regular as well as specialty steaks, cooked to perfection - rare to well done. Other choices are the boneless chicken breasts, breaded and sautéed with homemade garlic butter, served with the chef's selection of fresh vegetables and potato, or the Maine lobster meat in a spicy red sauce over linguine.

For those who like to balance the elements, there is the interesting land and sea platter offering eight ounce filet mignon and cold water lobster tail. The side dishes, predominantly potato or vegetable based, complement the mains and the combination of lobster, sausage and Black Angus beef filling with the pretty name of surf, turf and oink mini sandwiches captures the imagination.

In a steakhouse, desserts may not always get the attention they deserve, but the sweets there hold their own. The Carmello Anthony torte, the white chocolate cheesecake and the key lime pie certainly clamour for attention while a healthy option is to look the other way, and settle for a choice of coffee and herbal tea.