Food and Travel – Special Blog Post

The Creative Eats team has set out again to travel and experience the happening food scene in Bantam, CT. Picture rolling green hills, hiking trails, lakes, and picturesque farms. Doesn’t that sound tranquil? Read on for more details!

We set our sites on one farm in particular – Arethusa Farm. On this visit, we had the pleasure of dining at Arethusa a Mano which is an open and airy barn-like designed cafe with a knowledgeable and friendly staff. The menu offers the most delicious dairy inspired options. We enjoyed freshly baked hand shaped bagels with Arethusa Farm cream cheese, butter, and smoked salmon. The rolled bagel texture was soft and chewy and the addition of the tangy Arethusa cream cheese and salted butter was, simply put, amazing. We also indulged in an egg sandwich made with 2 eggs over easy, a trio of Arethusa cheeses, and bacon, served on a house made Pain au Lait roll. To complement the savory breakfast sandwiches we shared deliciously light and fluffy rhubarb and chocolate babka muffins. If you’re a chocolate aficionado, be sure to order a cup of hot chocolate made with Valrhona chocolate.

A quick walk across the street takes you to their dairy shop where offerings were plentiful. We chose to take home a sampling of the trio of cheeses that were used to create our egg sandwich: Crybaby Swiss, Europa Gouda, and Bella Bantam. And of course, we couldn’t resist a container of salted butter. Next time, we’ll be sure to try one of their homemade waffle cones and ice cream.

Our next stop, only a short distance away, was Bantam Breads. A super small space filled with a variety of artisanal hearth style breads and made from scratch pastries, you could immediately take in the delicious fragrance of all of the baked goods. One of the first things you notice are the rows of freshly baked breads. Some of the various options include a Kalamata Olive Sourdough, Polenta Ciabatta, and Roasted Potato Bread. Turn the corner and you’ll find a double layer of crostatas, rustic pastries filled with different types of fruit. Choices include peach, raspberry, peach blueberry, strawberry rhubarb, mixed berry, and sour cherry. Even though we wanted to sample each one, we chose the strawberry rhubarb and peach raspberry. Both were equally delicious and we’re already looking forward to the next visit to try the other choices.

If you visit, be sure to mention you read about them here at The Creative Eats’ page!

Also, look for an upcoming blog post featuring some of the delicious dairy products from Arethusa Farms.