19 Responses for "Stamford Has No Identity"

1. Stamford Talk February 10th, 2008 at 8:39 pm 1

   Mr. Stamford, Chinny chin up! Your feelings about Stamford echo those in my darkest days. This is why I started Stamford Talk: I knew there had to be more to this place, and there is.

   You forgot so many great things about Stamford: more restaurants in a central location (if you don’t mind walking two blocks from Bedford to Main), Cove Island Beach, the diverse population… Stamford has a different kind of class.

   Stamford gets a bad rap because it’s a more complicated city than any of the others you mention- in fact, G’wich, NC and Darien are all towns. I like the variety and challenge that come with a city.

2. Mr. Stamford February 11th, 2008 at 7:39 pm 2

   Stamford Talk - Point taken, a “city” does come with more baggage…however I can also think of a lot of other similarly sized cities around the country that have more going for it. I think Stamford will get there, it will just take time…like 15-20 years. The commercial area needs to catch up in value to the residential areas.

3. Stamford Talk February 12th, 2008 at 8:38 am 3

   I wonder what it is about Stamford that makes it different- it must be the history of it being a lower-tax area than NYC, so it attracted big business? And that big business was out of place with the more traditional working-class nature of the town, creating some of the odd-ness of today?

   Obviously there are great cities elsewhere in the country, but in CT, especially the lower FC, I think Stamford’s a great place. Not perfect, and hey, I’d love a $ 3 million dollar house in Greenwich…

4. Zobot February 13th, 2008 at 12:17 am 4

   I think it’s hard for a city to have an identity. Stamford has wealth…our North Stamford colleagues in the 06903 zip code are, on average, the wealthiest folks in Fairfield County. We have good restaurants. We have a nice beach park (though I’d agree that most of Stamford’s beaches are not so nice)…but we have more crime, higher taxes, and more industry.

   The only thing that defines Stamford is that it’s a city, and it has all the complexities that come along with that…

   Stamford’s existence as a “cityburb” for NYC only serves to complicate the matter.

5. Stamford Talk February 13th, 2008 at 9:21 am 5

   Mr. S, just wrote about this discussion over at Stamford Talk!

6. Mr. Stamford February 13th, 2008 at 9:28 am 6

   I almost feel that Stamford has so many different things going for it that it really does not excel in any one area.

7. Mr. Reality February 13th, 2008 at 1:10 pm 7

   Mr. Stamford, please move out of Stamford if all you’re going to do is bitch, moan, and not sample the amazing restaurants downtown.

   So your problem is it is “too diverse”…well, you sound like exactly like someone I know living a charmed existence in North Stamford. What’s the code on your alarm system again?

   Not having an identity is some kind of problem…why? Cities become weak when they are known for just one thing. Now I’m sorry this isn’t a caucasian’s paradise with a catchy slogan and plenty of room for your shiny BMW, but that’s reality. So grow up!

8. Mr. Stamford February 13th, 2008 at 4:45 pm 8

   Umm..I have sampled most downtown restaurants and think they suck. I believe Stamford’s best places to eat are not downtown but either near the water or around Springdale/Glenbrook.

9. Stamford Talk February 13th, 2008 at 5:45 pm 9

   Do you mean Saltwater Grille? Food was good but service spotty both times I was there. That was within the first few months of their opening, though.
   What about the Springdale ones… do you mean Fireside and the Italian one across the street? Any restaurant recs. appreciated.

10. Mr. Stamford February 13th, 2008 at 7:12 pm 10

    I like the Crab Shell (http://www.crabshell.com/) and also an Italian place on hope st near the CVS. I need to look up the name…I alway forget.

11. Zobot February 13th, 2008 at 8:31 pm 11

    All the restaurants downtown suck? That seems pretty harsh.

    I’m not going to say Stamford is the same as Manattan, but I think there are a plenty of decent restaurants downtown.

    What sort of restaurants do you like and what restaurants have you tried that you’ve been disappointed with?

    I still have sticker shock at many restaurants, but I’ve come to begrudgingly accept that prices here are just a ton higher (for everything) than they were when I lived in metro Boston.

12. Zobot February 13th, 2008 at 8:33 pm 12

    By the way, if you like Italian, you should definitely check out Villa Italia. It’s in the plaza on East Main next to all the new construction.

    It’s the kind of nondescript place that I’d never stop at if someone didn’t recommend, but it’s really excellent food and very friendly service.

13. East Sider February 13th, 2008 at 11:39 pm 13

    You don’t know much if you think Stamford has no identity! The great thing about Stamford is that it has many identities…a patchwork quilt of identities.

    I, too, am not a great fan of the new restaurants in downtown Stamford. They’re too trendy, too corporate. Most of them have no local or down-home feel.

    What I love about Stamford are all the old-school bars and longtime restaurants in town. They’re not pretentious, not trendy — but they’ve got really great food and friendly service. They’ve all got real personalities.

    Down in Shippan, you’ve got Fiddler’s Green — great bartenders, good food, darts, pool, great jukebox. And Brennan’s has awesome live music.

    In the Cove, you’ve got Jimmy Seaside’s.

    In Glenbrook, there’s Burns’ Tavern, the best damn dive bar in all of Stamford. Also Nick’s Pizza, which delivers free and has great new york style pies, even with wheat crust, great calzones, and old-school traditional family-style Italian. If you eat there, try the pizza bread and meatballs. In Springdale, Fireside’s great.

    Down by the water, there’s a fantastic barbecue place across the street from Holly Pond, near Giovannis II, which has been there forever and always delivers a good meal.

    Up north, Giovanni’s way up on Long Ridge Road is a Stamford institution, as is Long Ridge Tavern.

    You’re not a Stamforder if you’ve never been to Pellicci’s on the West Side, the best all around and oldest family-owned restaurant in Stamford. The Pellicci family have been in business since the 30’s or 40’s, I think…and you still get greeted by a family member when you go in.

    But the greatest Stamford food/drink institution is the timeless, classic, and one-of a kind Colony Grill on the East Side.

    Until you can appreciate the beauty of Fort Stamford up North, the farmlands and the hills on the New York border, Stamford Museum and Nature Center, Springdale, Shippan, Waterside, the East Side, Glenbrook, the Cove, the West Side, and downtown, you’re missing out on the great diversity of our hometown!

14. Stamford Talk February 14th, 2008 at 6:24 am 14

    I’ll put Villa Italia on my list.

    I hear you on the sticker shock. The only place I can eat at for under twenty bucks is pretty much Capriccio, but even then two people often run just over 20$.

    I have not loved the food at Crabshell, but it’s a pretty locale. Mr. S., try Saltwater Grille.

15. Doc February 14th, 2008 at 3:11 pm 15

    Mr. Stamford. The restaurant near CVS is Quatro Pasi, which does have a good reputation. Have to disagree about Crabshell, which is a great place to grab a drink during happy hour in the summer, but the food is nothing to write home about.

16. Stamford Talk February 14th, 2008 at 3:21 pm 16

    Eastsider,
    Somehow, I didn’t see your above post before I commented; glad I just saw it. I love your restaurant recs AND comments about Stamford’s identity.
    What nights does Brennan’s have music, and what kind? I’d like to check that out.
    Keep commenting on these blogs, bc you have great info and opinions!

17. Mr. Stamford February 14th, 2008 at 6:52 pm 17

    Yes! Quatro Pasi is very good.

    I can see why some people may think the food at Crabshell is not stellar, but the atmosphere makes up for it.

18. Jeff Herz February 17th, 2008 at 11:00 pm 18

    How about the city does not care about education, when the board of education is more interested in saving money than they are about improving educational standards.

19. StationStops.com March 9th, 2008 at 10:38 am 19

    I don’t think it helped when we found out that Dunder-Mifflin had a branch in Stamford.

    That brought it into the leagues of such towns as Slough and Scranton.