South Windsor Restaurant Employee A Finalist for Statewide Award

CONNECTICUT — The Connecticut Restaurant Association (CRA) has announced its finalists for the 2023 CRAZIES Awards Gala, which recognizes excellence in the Connecticut hospitality industry, and an employee at a popular South Windsor eatery is a finalist in one of the award categories.

The gala will be held at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Ledyard on Dec. 4, and is presented by Sysco, LLC. Last year’s CRAZIES gala brought more than 1,200 guests together and generated more than 20,000 online public votes for award winners, according to event organizers.

Erind Qazimi of Mill on the River in South Windsor is one of five finalists in the Server of the Year category.

The CRAZIES selection process began in August with an online public nomination process and state-wide chef panel. Subsequently, nearly 40 food writers, critics, bloggers, and social media influencers held multiple meetings to finalize the list of honorees and nominees for 2023. The nominees for Restaurateur of the Year and CT Hospitality Hall of Fame were brought to the CRA Board of Directors, where the overall award winners were selected in each of these two categories.

New for 2023, the CRAZIES is expanding the category of Restaurant of the Year by adding finalists from each of the eight counties in the state. The top restaurant from each county will receive a CRAZY for best restaurant, and then one restaurant from the eight county winners will be selected as the overall Connecticut Restaurant of the Year.

The public can now vote online through the end of November for each category. The full list of categories, honorees and nominations can be found below.

Honorees

Restaurateurs of the Year

• Tony Pham and Rich Reyes – Mecha Noodle Bar

Hospitality Hall of Fame

• Pellicci’s Ristorante | Stamford
• Shady Glen Restaurant & Ice Cream Parlor | Manchester

Finalists

Vendor of the Year

• Box 8 Creative | New Haven
• Earth’s Palate Farm | Warren
• Litchfield Distillery | Litchfield
• Seacoast Mushrooms | Mystic

Caterer of the Year

• Café Louise | West Hartford
• CT Cocktail Car | New Haven
• The Eatery | Wallingford
• ONTHEMARC | Norwalk
• The Tasty Yolk | Stratford

Server of the Year

• Erin Harrington – Engine Room | Mystic
• Melanie Pabon – The Cottage | Westport
• Erind Qazimi – Mill on the River | South Windsor
• Nina Smith – Vinted | West Hartford
• Meghan Zampedri – Fair Haven Oyster | New Haven

Bartender of the Year

• Shannon Ciralli – Market Place Kitchen & Bar | Avon
• Frank Dean – 1928 Cocktail Club | Branford
• Ryan Pelletier – West Street Grill | Litchfield
• Sam Reyes – Mariposa | Danbury
• Victoria Tenzyk – The Mariner | Mystic

Pastry Chef of the Year

• Franck Iglesias – Foxwoods Resort Casino | Mashantucket
• Melissa Knaeur – The Benjamin | Ridgefield
• Jessica Spivey – Oyster Club | Mystic
• Whang Suh – Hen & Heifer | Guilford
• Kim Hoang Wood – le Banh Patisserie | Simsbury

Chef of the Year

• David DiStasi – Materia Ristorante | Bantam
• Macarena Ludena – Coracora | West Hartford
• David Standridge – The Shipwright’s Daughter | Mystic
• Jeff Taibe – Taproot | Norwalk
• Colt Taylor – The Essex | Old Saybrook

People's Choice

• Elm Street Diner | Stamford
• Garden Catering | Multiple Locations
• J. Timothy’s Taverne | Plainville
• Rein’s Deli | Vernon
• Willimantic Brew Pub | Willimantic

Restaurant Newcomer

• 29 Markle Ct | Bridgeport
• Esh | Fairfield
• Fire by Forge | Hartford
• Hachiroko | New Haven
• Trigo Wood Fired Pizza | Willimantic

Hartford County Restaurant of the Year

• The Charles | Wethersfield
• Coracora | West Hartford
• Union Kitchen | West Hartford

Tolland County Restaurant of the Year

• Camille’s Wood Fired Pizza | Tolland
• Sichuan Pepper | Vernon
• Trattoria de Lepri | Ellington

Litchfield County Restaurant of the Year

• Arethusa al tavolo | Bantam
• At the Corner | Litchfield
• Materia Ristorante | Bantam

Fairfield County Restaurant of the Year

• Good Old Days | Newtown
• L’Ostal | Darien
• Taproot | Norwalk

New Haven County Restaurant of the Year

• Hindsight BBQ | Waterbury
• Strega | Milford
• Tavern on State | New Haven

Middlesex County Restaurant of the Year

• The Essex | Old Saybrook
• Grano Arso | Chester
• Osa | Middletown

Windham County Restaurant of the Year

• 85 Main | Putnam
• Elizabeth’s Farmhouse | Putnam
• Stone Row Kitchen & Bar | Willimantic

New London County Restaurant of the Year

• La Belle Aurore | Niantic
• Port of Call | Mystic
• Via Emilia | Mystic