A quick getaway: Mystic, CT

Stamford, CT is what I know best. I was born and raised here. I left for a few years for college but returned shortly after I finished my undergrad. With that said, I am always itching to get out of this little Fairfield County bubble and will utilize any chance I get for a road trip. I feel like Stamford (or a majority of lower Fairfield county) is the city of go, go, go and we forget to take a second to breathe sometimes.

I somehow convinced one of my friends to take a day trip with me to Mystic, CT and also somehow convinced him to do it on the hottest day of the year (it was 99 degrees when we went!!) To be honest, I don’t think the weather was that bad. Ok, I admit. Maybe the one-too-many Fishers Island Lemonade and the ice cream helped cool me down and forget about the temperature…

Ah. Doesn’t this view just bring you some peace and serenity?

First on the list: Engine Room. If you are planning on coming here, I highly recommend you to make a reservation. They seemed to be consistently busy throughout our visit. Plus, you can make a reservation right online, so no human interaction needed.

After a long 1.5 hours of stop-and-go traffic from Stratford (our meeting point), a cold beverage was needed ASAP. What does the job better than Fishers Island Lemonade? Probably a dangerous call considering how easily these bad boys go down.

Things we ate:

  • Carolina hush puppies (with a rosemary, lemon, maple butter): These light and fluffy corn balls came with the best dipping sauce ever. It was salty and creamy, will a hint of tartness. We pretty much licked the little sauce cup clean.
  • Beer battered onion rings: This is the only tower I’d like to climb. I probably could have eaten 10 servings of these, but it’s better that we just shared it.
  • Nashville hot chicken sandwich (with a side of old bay macaroni salad): WOWIE. Perfection on a plate. The pickles. The chicken. THE MACARONI SALAD. (Sorry, that was aggressive. — I’ve been on a macaroni salad kick lately so I felt that it needed some emphasis) So many flavors at once, it was like a fiesta in my mouth. This was a little messy to eat, so cue the knife and fork.
  • Hush puppies
  • Beer battered onion rings
  • Nashville hot chicken sandwich

A few food babies later, we did a little walking around town and stopped in some shops. The town made me forget that I was still in Connecticut. For some reason, I kept thinking we were in the Cape. Mostly likely due to the nautical views and decor.

Next on the list: Sift Bake Shop. I just stopped here to get a few things to-go and to split with my sister (you’re welcome, Emily). I picked up an oatmeal raisin cookie, a chocolate chip walnut sea salt cookie, and a 4-way brownie (dulce, milk, dark, and white chocolate in a brownie). I haven’t eaten it yet, but I will report back on the taste.

Last and final stop – Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream. This was a nice way to cope with the heat. I got a scoop of Kahlua mocha fudge on a sugar cone. As we were eating our ice cream, we saw the drawbridge go up. This was pretty fascinating to see since it is hard to come across nowadays.

I kept flip flopping on whether or not I wanted to come here due to weather, but I’m really glad I went. It was a nice way to disconnect from my busy life and to really enjoy good company, good food, and the beautiful state that I live in.

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