At some point or another, we’ve covered most of the fine dining Wallingford has to offer with a few exceptions, Art of Table (“focused on bringing people together to dine in a communal fashion and to enjoy the bounties of the table”) and Elemental @ Gasworks (“an eclectic culinary adventure”) being the most egregious omissions.
Truth is, with Baby Z now fully locomotive, eating out is dropping off our schedule. So we turn to you, Wallyhood readers: who can provide a review of these restaurants for us?
Refined palate not required.
I’m in! I was going to eat there this summer anyways..
Those are my favorite restaurants in the hood!
Elemental – lots of attitude. It’s best to just sit down and let them feed you rather than worry about a menu. If you get the wine with the meal, be careful as the pours are generous. If you finish every glass you will need a cab even if you are walking. Meals are a fixed price and no tipping. You either love it or hate it. Next door is the wine bar with smaller plates. They have over 300 different bottles and you are welcome to choose any of them to have by the glass ($8/glass no matter what you choose so there are some real bargains if you know what to look for). They are also more chill next door (“same food, less attitude”). Beware, Elemental fills up early and there is no waiting list (a request to be put on one will be met with a chill stare). Better to go with a hope to get in Elemental but a plan to go next door if they are full.
Art of the Table – great food, very relaxed. Like eating at a good friend’s house. One seating, and likely you will eat at a communal table. Great, fresh food and Dustin is about the most chilled out chef you will ever meet (gourmet brownies?) He does a lot of wine and beer themed dinners. Reservations are important and thankfully, Art of the Table takes them. Mondays they do small plates and glasses of wine (perfect for stopping in for a bite without the need to do a full dinner). I wish I had the time to go here more often.