The Saltwater Grille, located on Long Island Sound, in Stamford, Connecticut is a sleeper of a restaurant featuring innovative cuisine by Executive Chef Pasquale Pascarella complemented by an excellent staff. Add a sunset over the water and its close proximity to New York City place this New American Bistro restaurant on the "hot list:" arrive by boat or by car, but do arrive.

Executive Chef Pasquale "Pat" Pascarella adds an inventiveness to his menu that he changes almost daily at The Saltwater Grille, striking a perfect balance for diners seeking well executed rustic Italian cuisine and housemade pasta, as well as seafood and meat, and those who like their dining to be more adventurous. Although young, this talented chef, a part owner of The Saltwater Grille, and a graduate of the prestigious French Culinary Institute, who honed his craft at notable restaurants including Mario Batali's Esca and Babbo in New York City, he is a fresh face on the Stamford, Connecticut culinary scene. 

Executive Chef Pasquale "Pat" Pascarella

The Saltwater Grille with its waterside location makes it a favorite in the summer months where diners often arrive by boat to enjoy cocktails and dinner on the wide deck or indoors at the attractive bi-level restaurant. During the winter months, it is a wonderful place to come for dinner and relax and watch the sunset over the water through the long wall of windows. 

The Saltwater Grille

Edward and I had dinner at the restaurant in March 2010, where we enjoyed a spectacular sunset as a sort of pre-amuse of the evening. The restaurant features an open concept with tiered dining providing wonderful water views, live plants line the wood planters, tables are dressed with beige linens and chocolate brown napkins and white votive candles in glass holders, and low background music plus the occasional sound of the cocktail shaker at the long wood bar complete the ambience. 

The amuse bouche that the chef creates sets the table so to speak, for what is to come, whetting the diner's palate for the evening's fare. When Executive Chef Pasquale "Pat" Pascarella sent us salmon tartar cornettes as the amuse bouche, our palates eagerly looked forward to the rest of the 11-course tasting menu.

The amuse was salmon tartar, which was minced and laced with tiny diced scallions and served in a brique pastry cone studded with black sesame seeds and filled with crème fraiche that was wrapped in a white linen napkin. When Greg, the maitre d' hotel approached the table bearing the salmon cornettes, I immediately thought of the ice cream treat called a drumstick, and with that memory in mind, I set to eat my salmon cornette, first savoring the salmon the way that I would eat the chocolate layer of the drumstick, followed by the crème fraiche, which would be the ice cream layer, and then enjoying each bite of the cone. Paired with PlumpJack 2006, Chardonnay Reserve, Napa Valley, California that was tank and barrel aged with its fruit forward nose of pears and green apple with pear and vanilla on the palate, this was a wonderful introduction to Chef Pasquale's vision. 

 
Greg Macialek, General Manager

The tasting continued with cream of English green pea soup with fava bean puree foam, morel mushrooms, and spring onion flowers that was the essence of spring with its lovely light "new spring green" enhanced with earthy, textural morel mushrooms, and attractive white bell spring onion flowers. Beautifully presented in a large white bowl with recessed center, the soup was vibrant with a great mélange of flavors that paired well with the Nadia 2006, from Santa Barbara County, California, which displayed floral noses with slate and minerals on the palate and a nice crisp finish. 

English Green Pea Soup 

We continued with baby radicchio salad with green grapes, sunflower seeds, and goat cheese, which was another well-executed course. The flavors worked well together with the slightly bitter radicchio complemented by the sweetness of the green grapes, the smooth and creamy goat cheese, and the textural element of the sunflower seeds. This course was paired with Sequoia Grove 2005, from Napa Valley, California, which was a very aromatic wine with deep black fruit and cassis on the nose and rich fruit on the palate. 

Baby Radicchio Salad 

Next came another spring dish, slices of rabbit with crispy skin accompanied with sliced pickled baby beets on a dollop of sweet beet puree, tiny mushrooms, pea shoots, and droplets of balsamic that was attractively presented on a rectangular white plate, which Chef Pasquale had used like an artist's canvas. This course was well paired with Talbott 2005, Case Pinot Noir, 14.7% alcohol from Monterey County, California, which was a delightful Burgundian-style Pinot Noir with its aromatic nose of fruit, spice, and floral notes of rose and lavender, with cherry and spice on the palate. 

Sliced Rabbit 

A course of quail, foie gras foam, peppercress, and toasted walnuts followed, paired with Meiomi 2008 Belle Glos, Pinot Noir, 13.9% alcohol, from Sonoma County, California. The quail was beautiful, glazed and golden, presented on a sweet beet puree bed, accompanied by a salad of peppercress that was lightly dressed and tossed with toasted walnuts that was complemented by the strawberry and cherry notes of the wine. 

Quail with Foie Gras Foam

Chef Pasquale learned how to make pasta from watching his grandmother as a child as well as working at Mario Batalli's restaurants, ESCA and Babbo, and his housemade pappardelle with tuna meatballs, and fresh mascarpone in a rich tomato sauce with pancetta was perfect. Edward grew up with his mother making tuna meatballs and Chef Pasquale's interpretation was a lovely memory for him. The pasta was perfectly cooked al dente bathed in a hearty tomato and mascarpone sauce that was flavored with pancetta. This course was paired with Mongris Collio 2007, Pinot Grigio, from Italy with apple, pear, and citrus notes and a rich mouthfeel. 

Pappardelle with Tuna Meatballs 

Another pasta dish followed, which Chef Pasquale called truffle overload, and I called sensational; housemade tagliatelle tossed with truffle butter and truffle oil and a generous amount of black truffle that Chef shaved tableside made this dish truly outstanding. This course was well paired with Jermann 2006, Pinot Grigio, from Italy. 

Tagliatelle - Truffle Overload 

The tasting continued with a layered dish of pumpkin ravioli, sautéed spinach, and striped bass in a saffron vanilla sauce that was garnished with a nasturtium flower and leaf, which added a peppery spiciness to the well presented and very tasty course, which was well paired with Cadence "Bel Canto" 2005, 14.4% alcohol from Washington State that was made from a blend of 50% Cabernet Franc, 42% Merlot, and 8% Petit Verdot that elicited rich black cherry and plum notes on the palate. 

Striped Bass with Pumpkin Ravioli

Continuing the tasting menu, there was a course of sweetbreads with spring onions, nettles, and couscous with bacon. Chef Pasquale worked the palate with his flavors and his exciting use of ingredients combining large pearl couscous and nettles, something that although familiar on European menus, is not often seen in the United States, added an unexpected, but totally welcome element to this course, which was served with Landmark Damaris Reserve 2006, Chardonnay, from Sonoma County, California that exhibited apricot, orange peel, toasted oak, and a rich minerality on the palate. 

 
Sweetbreads, Spring Onions, Nettles, and Couscous 

For the cheese course, Pastry Chef Ralph Day, took a different approach, preparing a goat cheese "cake" laced with black pepper, with a layer of fig jam, crowned with pink lemons, and garnished with stewed blueberries. Chef Pasquale and Pastry Chef Ralph Day like to experiment with molecular cooking and the fig jam utilized agar agar to firm, and was then put in a robot coupe to create an almost granitée consistency. I really enjoyed the savory and sweet balance at work in this dish, with salty and sweet elements melding harmoniously. This course was well paired with Kunde 2006, Cabernet Sauvignon, 13.8% alcohol from Sonoma Valley, California made from a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot, 3% Malbec, 2% Syrah, and 1% Petit Verdot. 

Executive Pastry Chef Ralph Day

For the finale to our tasting menu, Chef Pasquale explained the dessert as a play on a creamsicle with tangerine semi-freddo, kumquat foam, almond brittle two ways, and spun sugar, which we had spoken about earlier in the evening. As someone who loves creating as well as eating desserts, this course was beautiful and took a light approach, which was much needed after a multi-course tasting, with its rich and buttery crunchy almond brittle, refreshing tangerine semi-freddo, powdered almond brittle sprinkled on the plate, and exotic kumquat foam. Paired with Barton & Guestier 2005, Sauternes, from Bordeaux, France, it was the perfect ending to our tasting menu. 

The Saltwater Grille Dining Room

During the winter months, The Saltwater Grille is open for dinner Friday from 5:00pm until 10:00 pm, Saturday from 5:00 pm until 10:30pm, and on Sunday for Brunch from 11:00 am until 3:00 pm. During the summer months, The Saltwater Grille is open 7 days and serves lunch and dinner as well as Sunday Brunch. 

The Saltwater Grille Lounge

Read Chefs' Recipes section where Executive Chef Pasquale Pascarella and Executive Pastry Chef Ralph Day each share a delicious taste of The Saltwater Grille. 

The Saltwater Grille
183 Harbor Drive
Stamford, Connecticut 06902
United States
Telephone:    +1-203-391-6500
Fax:               +1-203-391-6504
Website:       www.SaltwaterGrille.net 

Read other articles on Stamford, Connecticut and the surrounding area in the Destinations, Hotels and Resorts, Restaurants, Chefs' Recipes, and Arts sections.  

© March 2010. Luxury Experience. www.LuxuryExperience.com All rights reserved.