2007-01-25 Dining With Albert

Cafe Little Europa

01/25/2007 - Here are three suggestions for relaxing lunches during the hectic Holiday Season. The food in each of these restaurants is as good as, if not better, than homemade. The prices for lunch will fit almost everyone's budget. No fast food served here! Buon appetito from Albert. More Dining 2007-Jan-25 Pancho’s Tacos 2007-Jan-25 Franco Ristorante 2007-Jan-25 Nobe 2007-Jan-25 Izumi 2007-Jan-25 Insieme Ristorante More... Extras e-mail this article link to a friend letter to the editor about this article print this article facebook twitter digg it share Larger | Smaller Café Little Europa. A very plain and unassuming exterior belies this cozy spot, quite like one might find while driving in Bavaria. There are 5 to 6 tables and a large fieldstone fireplace in the main room. Manuela, the new owner and chef, was born in Germany and the menu reflects this. For lunch, she always serves two hot dishes at $9.95, as well as her regular sandwich and salad menu. Swedish Meatballs and Hungarian Goulash were featured on this day. Short on time, I ordered a Roast Beef Sandwich on a baguette ($7.95) with a spicy horseradish dressing. The roast beef was rare, fresh, and tender and served with a complimentary side order of fresh, homemade potato salad. I enjoyed it very much. Open for lunch Tuesday to Friday and dinner on Friday and Saturday only. Call ahead to see what specials are on the menu. With a soft drink, my bill was $10.02 before tip. Check out the coupons in the Pennysaver for this welcome new addition to the local dining scene. 57 Federal Road, Brookfield. 203-740-2547. Rudy's Gourmet. To the right of the take-out counter, there is a cozy dining room with landscape paintings, yellow pastel walls, and about ten tables. Daily lunch specials are usually a soup, quiche, and four sandwiches or wraps. Both the Roast Beef Wrap with Horseradish Mayo ($7) and the Turkey Wrap ($7) came with sizable portions of the main ingredients and were tasty and nicely spiced. The Butternut Squash Bisque with Green Salad ($7) came with a fresh mix of greens and a tomato vinaigrette dressing. The soup was deliciously nutty and perfect for the autumn season. My Corned Beef Reuben ($7.50) was just right for me. The corned beef was lean and the Swiss cheese, sauerkraut and Russian dressing made the sandwich moist without being overbearing. The wraps and sandwiches came with a small portion of fresh, homemade macaroni salad and a pickle. Four of us shared a huge portion of decadent Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding ($5). After two cappuccino's ($2.50 each), the bill for four was $42.29 before tip. 68 Stony Hill Road, Bethel, 203-743-4442. The Inn at Newtown. This is a much larger place than the two above, but they offer a terrific sandwich menu for lunch and dinner. Karen and I sat in the Pub Room, which overlooks beautiful Newtown center. Karen had the Bacon Pannini ($8.99) with applewood bacon, a choice of cheddar, gruyere, or American cheese, chipotle mayo, and sliced tomato on a pannini grilled bun. This is an upscale version of a BLT. The chipotle mayo gives it a nice zing. I had the Burger ($10.49) and it was great. This was no fast food burger, but rather a fresh 8 oz. portion of angus beef grilled to my liking, served on a Kaiser roll with cheddar cheese, fried matchstick onions, lettuce and tomato. I needed four large napkins because it was so juicy! Put this on your list for great burgers! Both meals came with a large portion of French fries. With a glass of wine and a soft drink, the bill for two was $31.52 before tip. 19 Main Street, Newtown. 203-270-1876.