Photo at left: Michelle Greenfield, chef at Allium Eatery, was a finalist for the “Chef of the Year” award from the Connecticut Restaurant Association this year. Right: Brian Lewis, the chef whose restaurant, The Cottage, was a finalist “Best Fairfield County Restaurant of the Year.”

By Gretchen Webster

WESTPORT — Two local restaurants were finalists at the Connecticut Restaurant Association annual awards ceremony Monday at Foxwoods Casino — Michelle Greenfield of Allium Eatery, 54 Railroad Place, was nominated for “Chef of the Year,” and The Cottage, 265 Post Rad East, was nominated as “Best Fairfield County Restaurant of the Year.” 

Although neither of the Westport restaurants won top honors in their categories, a Fairfield County restaurant, Bar Rosina’s in Greenwich, not only was selected as the best restaurant in Fairfield County, it was crowned 2024 Connecticut Restaurant of the Year.

In addition to Bar Rosina’s and The Cottage, the other finalists in the Fairfield County category for Best Restaurant were Esh in Fairfield and Elm in New Canaan.

Copp’s Island Oysters, “a fourth-generation, family-owned and operated shellfish farm in Norwalk,” owned by Norm Bloom & Son, won Vendor of the Year.

The association’s awards, called the “Crazies” awards celebrate “the exceptional talents of the Connecticut hospitality community,” and are presented in 10 categories in addition to naming Restaurant of the Year winners in each of the state’s counties.

The interior of Allium Eatery, left, on Railroad Place, and of The Cottage, right, on Post Road East.

The Cottage opened in 2015 with chef and owner Brian Lewis at the helm. Asemifinalist in the James Beard Foundation awards for Best Chef in the Northeast in both 2018 and 2022, he is a graduate of the Culinary institute of America and Johnson and Wales University with a degree in food service management.

Before opening The Cottage, Lewis worked under well-known chefs in both New York and on the West Coast.

The Cottage offers American cooking “rooted in tradition and inspired by the seasons,” according to its website, in a casual atmosphere and is well-known n Westport for its patio dining.

Greenfield opened Allium Eatery in 2021 on Railroad Place in Saugatuck, across from the train station. Her restaurant offers “a modern American menu with French undertones,” and the chef’s rotisserie chicken has become a specialty of Allium Eatery, according to CTBites, with different components depending on the season and availability of fresh ingredients.

Greenfield attended the Culinary Institute of America, and was sous chef under Chef Bernard Bouissou of Bernard’s Restaurant in Ridgefield, and chef at the Schoolhouse at Cannondale in Wilton before opening Allium Eatery.

Other Fairfield County winners of Crazies, in addition to Bar Rosina’s, and Copp’s Island, include Athithi in Wilton as Restaurant Newcomer; AMG Catering & Events, also in in Wilton, for Caterer of the Year; Melissa Knauer at the Benjamin in Ridgefield for Pastry Chef of the Year; and Grigg Street Pizza, Greenwich for the People’s Choice Award.

David Standridge of the Shipwright’s Daughter Restaurant in Mystic won the Best Chef of the Year.

Freelance writer Gretchen Webster, a Fairfield County journalist for many years, was editor of the Fairfield Minuteman and has taught journalism at New York and Southern Connecticut State universities.

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