The Best Way to Make Friends... Share a Table

When we set out for dinner, I had two thoughts in mind... "on the water" and, well, "good food". Our first stop was based on a recommendation from our concierge... the Crab Shell. He said everyone loved it, and it was near the hotel. So we went... and we left. (think Richard Dawson saying, "Survey says, " and that big "X" flashing and hearing the "eennnt" sound) Don't get me wrong, it was a cool place... just not what I was looking for.

Luckily, I remembered a webpage for what looked like a great spot in Rowayton, the neatest town I've encountered to date on the Long Island Sound/Nichols Pond/Five Mile River. (the locals will surely correct my geography)

"The Restaurant" at Rowayton Seafood looked like the perfect place...

Of course, we were dressed down... way down... like, let's just shuck crabs in the back yard dressed down... or, we just drove in from Jersey and did not know we were going to "dinner"dressed down... but when I called, the hostess said, "Come on over!"

Surely enough, when we pulled into the drive of this early 1900's converted house, it was much less intimidating than the website led me to believe... warm, cozy, no... like a good friend's house on a summer evening... that's what it felt like. I met a cool couple, S and K, who were waiting. I never knew that the statement, "OK, your husband is wearing shorts, too," could be an icebreaker, but there is something about an inviting eating space that makes everyone so approachable!

We didn't have reservations... but the hostess penciled in the number "2" and my name on her book and invited us to the bar for a drink... as if she was going to pour a tall glass of whatever was refreshing. Before we could make our way over to the bar, my soon-to-be "friend girl" invited us to the table she and her hubby were seated at (which was for four)... how kind!

What a great time... recalling dishes from our favorite restaurants in the world, sharing "handed down" family recipes, noting destinations to keep in our mental maps, listing the "how to's" of raising kids to be good global citizens, confirming that I am not the only one on the planet who talks to their parents everyday... and on and on.

When all was said and done, it was a very good evening. It's funny, the food was "way better" than I can articulate (think Tuna Sashimi Flatbread...cheers to Executive Chef Chris North), but even for me, Ms. Foodie herself, the cuisine was on the "back burner". The sweet experience of chatting with new friends over the cool river breeze... that was truly the Pièce de résistance.