On Chapel Street, in New Haven, Connecticut, opposite the Old Campus: from the time of glaciation, cultivated by the Quinnipiac; in 1614, charted by a Dutch explorer; in 1638, colonized by the Puritans; throughout the American Revolution, home of the signer, Roger Sherman, his second wife Rebecca Prescott-Sherman, their fifteen children, and the family store; in 1860, industrialist Gaius Fenn Warner's Italianate villa, by Henry Austin; in 1880, Marshal Peter R. Carll's Opera House; in 1884, the Republican League; in 1887, the Hyperion; in 1903, the Union League addition, by Richard Williams; in 1926, the Roger Sherman Theater; beginning in 1976, a tradition of French fine dining, that continues today. While the Roger Sherman house is no longer standing, it holds up all right.
"Tables, covered with butcher paper in traditional brasserie fashion, are comfortably spaced for privacy, and banquettes invite discreet cuddling. The service is appropriately reserved but not stiff, and the room is lively but contained."
"A little Jean-Michel, Jacques, Robin, Jean-Pierre. The meal, it is delicious. But at this point, it doesn’t matter. Robin, another out-of-place American woman who fell headfirst into a French enclave, said it herself: 'You’re only as successful as the people working around you.'"
"CHAPEL STREET in New Haven is at the center of a booming downtown. Some people say that the economic vibrancy is being driven by nearby Yale University, but city officials say that energy is coming from other sources, such as new offices and apartments."
"A painting of a pheasant hangs above the coat closet. The molded ceiling, large glass windows and red-veined marble exemplify traditional refinement. Even the structure of the Union League Cafe reinforces the aura of tradition that defines the New Haven landmark. Carved above the fireplace is an inscription reading, 'This club house stands on the… Continue reading ‘Tradition’ lives on at Union League, by Rachel Engler
They met at the movie theater—his movie theater. Years later they starred in their own production (their Big Fat Vietnamese-Jewish Wedding?) with an eclectic, adoring supporting cast and a happy ending. The happy ending took place Sunday afternoon and evening at the downtown Union League Cafe, where over 100 well-wishers witnessed the marriage of Westville’s… Continue reading A Union League Union, by Paul Bass
"A Connecticut-based photographer will present the culmination of 13 years of visits to Iowa in his first book, 'Iowa: Echoes of a Vanishing Landscape,' at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, at the Davenport Public Library's Eastern Avenue Branch. David Ottenstein, 57, traveled tens of thousands of miles and produced roughly 50,000 photographs, choosing 89 black-and-white portraits of… Continue reading Portrait of a Vanishing Landscape, by Jonathan Turner
"The demolition of the Hyperion Theater was the turning point in the work of New Haven photographer David Ottenstein. In 1998 the old downtown concert hall, which in its opulent days had showcased everything from the music of Charles Ives to the Floradora two-act comedy, was collapsing and due to be razed. Architect Richard Turlington… Continue reading New Haven Photographer David Ottenstein documents a disappearing era, by Michael Harvey
"I first recall being introduced to Jacques Pépin in late 1992. He came for dinner at the elegant Robert Henry’s restaurant in New Haven, where I was maître d’. Robert Henry’s was from a bygone era, owned by the matriarch Jo McKenzie; a white glove establishment with porcelain-dome service and very haute French cuisine that… Continue reading The creative genius of Jacques Pépin, by Robert Rabine