OUTrageous Restaurants – Outside Dining in The Litchfield Hills

Come by boat, car or sea plane to Candlewood Lake's only waterfront restaurant, Down the Hatch in Brookfield, is where you will feel like you are on vacation the minute you arrive. Take in the beautiful views and grab a cool tasty drink on their huge outdoor patio bar. Their extensive menu offers casual fare, fresh seafood and a kids' menu to delight all who come ashore.

Take a step back in time to the days when Drive-In restaurants were the rage, and order up a Dagwood Burger and a root beer float at the Sycamore Grill in Bethel, one of the few remaining “Car Hop” joints in the state. This popular, award-winning restaurant has been around since 1948 and still features Classic Car shows every Saturday night from May until September.

If you are in the mood for fresh seafood or Italian specialties with a unique twist, East Street Eatery, with an outside patio overlooking the beautiful public Farmingbury Hills Golf Course in Wolcott is the perfect place. They also feature an enticing Grill Menu for lunch offering classic pub fare and a fully stocked bar with rotating taps, seasonal cocktails and their own signature Sangria recipes.

Founded in 2007, Saltwater Grille in Litchfield is an award-winning destination for seafood lovers in northwest Connecticut which embodies traditional Midwestern hospitality and warmth with an affection for good food. What makes it so special? Its charming atmosphere in historic Litchfield; a diverse menu that features something for everyone; a great bar scene and happy hour; an impressive selection of craft beers, scotches, bourbons and wines, and a large, dog-friendly outdoor patio.

West Street Grill in Litchfield is one of America’s first great regional restaurants, serving creative modern cuisine to a discerning clientele in a gorgeous atmosphere featuring al fresco dining overlooking the historic Litchfield Green. Located in historic and scenic Litchfield, visitors come from across Connecticut, the Berkshires and metropolitan New York City to enjoy a menu of French- and Italian-inspired bistro and trattoria fare grounded in classical, modern, regional and rustic traditions.

Arethusa al Tavolo in Bantam has been a celebrated addition to the growing northwestern Connecticut culinary scene and a destination for local diners and. The Farm is now home to approximately 350 dairy cows, including some Grand Champion Show Cows. The milk, cream, yogurt, ice cream, butter and cheese from these cows is on showcase at the restaurant, which prides itself on exclusively using the farm’s dairy products, and for procuring only the finest ingredients for its daily menu.

Sitting high above the northern shore of Lake Waramaug, the Hopkins Inn in Warren has welcomed travelers since 1847, where guests enjoy expansive views of the lake, the Berkshire foothills, and neighboring vineyards. The celebrated restaurant is renowned for its contemporary Austrian cuisine, with many recent additions that are distinctly American in flavor.

Boasting four patios, three dining rooms, a river with a waterfall and too many awards to mention (but here are a few from Connecticut Magazine’s 2021 poll: Best Outside Dining, Best Fireside Dining, Best Brunch, Best Lunch, Best Traditional American). What more can we say about The White Horse in New Preston?

“It’s not fast food, it’s GREAT food!” West Shore Seafood’s operating principle is simple: provide the freshest, gourmet quality seafood in a relaxed Cape Cod-style environment in Morris. Starting out as a tiny kitchen in a small portion of their building serving a handful of outdoor tables with just a few staff members, today they occupy the entire building, offering the same quality and atmosphere with more elbow room.

In the coming-together of romantic setting and divine cuisine, Executive Chef Chris Eddy of The Restaurant at Winvian Farm in Morris creates fresh, spontaneous and imaginative farm-to-table menus on one hundred thirteen acres of heaven on earth, a lighthearted oasis of peace, comfort and Five-Diamond Fine Dining in the Litchfield Hills, where fires are bright, sleep tranquil, and the mind is free to play. How does that sound?