City: New Haven, CT

Category: Restaurants

Telephone: (203) 777-3116

Address: 116 Crown St.

Description: The green onyx bar is the first thing you’ll notice when you step into this old hotel on Crown Street. You can eat in a fiberglass pod constructed by a local shipbuilder (cooler than it sounds) or at more traditional tables in the back. But the food and drink is what should have your full attention here, because this fairly new restaurant is breaking ground in New Haven. They have small plates like Scotch eggs, roasted bone marrow, hush puppies, and charcuterie (including a seasonal acorn-fed Berkshire pork trio that will make you a born-again pork lover). Larger plates include small pizzas and sandwiches like the John D. Rockefeller with pork belly. They cure their own pickles here, a sure sign that they care about the craft. 116 Crown also sports a huge selection of creative original cocktails, which you can have with dinner or drink at their ultracool bar. If you’re stuffed after dinner, try their spiked hot chocolate, a beautiful and tasty concoction. And if you want to know how to make a great drink, they run cocktail classes, which are really social events where everyone learns to mix.