Colony Diner and Restaurant (Wallingford, CT)

September 23, 2018 By Hollie in Diners Tags: cinnamon bun, cinnamon roll, connecticut, Diner, food, Pancakes, restaurant, review 2 Comments

Coming home from the trip to New England, we decided to stop at one last diner in the Northeast: The Colony Diner and Restaurant. It’s located close off the highway, so it seemed like the perfect stop.

Atmosphere: B
When we arrived at the Colony Diner, it was packed. We had to wait for a table for about 15 minutes which wasn’t a big deal. The front has minimal wait space which made it awkward for both the people waiting and the people eating in surrounding booths.

The Colony Diner has plenty of tables, booths, and even a full-length bar. It would blend right in with any diner in NJ.

Coffee: A
The coffee was good, but there was nothing to write home about. What impressed me the most was the waitresses bringing out bottomless refills. It was nearly every 5 minutes a different waitress came around asking if we needed more coffee.

Food: A
The Colony Diner has everything you want in a diner. There are plenty of breakfast, lunch, and dinner options. There were a few specials, but nothing spoke to me. There were so many unique pancake items that you don’t often see that I wanted to try the “cinnamon bun pancakes”.

The cinnamon bun pancakes were essentially pancakes with cinnamon and frosting on top. What made the cinnamon bun, was the toppings but they were great. The pancakes themselves were huge, and I have no complaints.

Service: B
Our primary waitress didn’t come over much. She was friendly, but there was a point we could have used more water and napkins. We did, however, get plenty of coffee. The staff we interacted with were all friendly.

Cost: $$
For the pancakes and coffee, it was $14. It’s a little more for pancakes than I was expecting but they were good, and I was full all the way home.

Overall Summary/Thoughts:
I liked the Colony Diner and Restaurant, and I would definitely go back. They had plenty of options that I would love to try more of!

Atmosphere: B
Coffee: A
Food: A
Service: B
Cost: $10-25
Overall: A

You Can See All Diner Reviews Here:

Questions for you:
Where are your favorite pancakes from?
Do you like cinnamon buns?

Bridgeport Flyer Diner (Mildford, CT)

August 5, 2018 By Hollie in Diners Tags: bread pudding, connecticut, Diner, dinner, food, Prime Rib, review

Over the last few months, I’ve been to Connecticut far more than ever! That includes going to a couple of new diners too! Recently I was in the Bridgeport and Milford area and decided to stop at the Bridgeport Flyer Diner. I was hungry, and it was close.

Atmosphere: A
When I arrived around dinner time, it wasn’t too crowded. The outside is that of many diners. It’s modern but clean. There is nothing unusual or that stands out, minus the sign that says “busses welcome.”

When I went in, the waitress motioned to sit anywhere I pleased, and I got a fun locals vibe from it. I chose a booth since they are my preference.

Coffee: B
There was nothing unique or unusual about the coffee, but it was good. The waitress refilled it a few times.

Food: A
The Bridgeport Flyer Diner has many options whether you want all day breakfast, lunch, or dinner. There was almost a full page of specials which caught my eye. I decided to order the prime rib which came with salad, vegetable, and dessert.

Since I was hungry, I also ordered the Mezze platter which was a Mediterranian platter with chicken, gyro, olives, tomatoes, salad, hummus, pita bread, and feta. In short, I ordered way too much food but had no regrets. Very few mezze platters include chicken and gyro, so it was a nice treat. The appetizer itself was great, and so much food. It could easily be a meal for someone.

My prime rib was cooked perfectly. I couldn’t have asked for better prime rib and was a thick cut, cooked medium rare. I was pleased. I chose French fries and carrots for my sides but was rather full for the fries.

Dessert: B
Since my meal came with dessert, I ordered the bread pudding. It was decent bread pudding, not my favorite but not my least. It was good, and I would order it again.

Service: A
The waitress was one of the most friendly of any diner waitress I’ve had. She was friendly, attentive, and seemed to know every local that stopped by.

Cost: $
For my prime rib, coffee, and mezze platter, it was about $35. It was enough for 3 people.

Overall Thoughts/Would I Come back:
I liked the Bridgeport Flyer Diner, and I would definitely go back if the opportunity presents itself.

Atmosphere: A
Coffee: B
Food: A
Dessert: B
Service: A
Cost: $10-20

Overall: A

You can see all diner reviews here,

Questions for you:

Do you like prime rib?

Are you a local anywhere?

Parthenon Diner (Branford, CT)

July 15, 2018 By Hollie in Diners Tags: beets, connecticut, Diner, food, restaurant, review, salad

On the way home from Rhode Island last month, we decided to stop at the Parthenon Diner in Branford, CT. It was an easy stop less than half a mile from the highway, so it made sense. After eating out all weekend, we wanted something easy, simple, and light. I didn’t do much of any research and saw the Parthenon Diner was right off the highway.

Atmosphere: B
When we arrived, we saw it was reviewed as one of the top diners in CT. The atmosphere is big with plenty of space. There is nothing out of the ordinary, but it does have plenty of room, so you never feel as though you’re sitting on top of anyone.

Coffee: B
The coffee was good, and I have no complaints. It was definitely stereotypical diner coffee and slightly burnt.

Food: B
There are plenty of options at the Parthenon Diner. One thing, I appreciated was the number of specials. When you eat out for several days in a row, saving money at restaurants seems like a bigger deal. I ordered the beet and goat cheese salad with steak off of the specials menu. There were plenty of beets and goat cheese, but it could have used a few more greens. The steak was that of normal diners. It tasted as if it had been frozen and recooked. It wasn’t bad though, and I would order it again.

Service: C
Our waitress took a while to come to our table, and we quickly realized it was because she was on her smoke break. She was friendly but definitely smelled very strongly of cigarettes. From what I can gather based on timing, she went on a smoke break a couple of times.

Cost: $
For my salad and coffee, the coast was $15.

Overall Thoughts/Summary:
I liked the Parthenon Diner and would go back. It’s an easy stop right off of 95.

Atmosphere; B
Coffee: B
Food: B
Service: C
Cost: $10-20
Overall: B

You Can See All Diner Reviews Here.

Questions for you:
Do you ever order off of the specials menu?
Do you like beets?

Hiking Indian Wells State Park (Connecticut)

July 11, 2018 By Hollie in hiking Tags: connecticut, hike, hiking, swimming, waterfall

While in Connecticut last month, we decided to take a nice hike at Indian Wells State Park. It’s not a rigorous hike but a pleasant hour or two walk around the park. It’s family-friendly, and right along the water with a beach if you want to swim or boat. The hike itself was about 2-3 miles, and we went to the lookout point as well as the waterfalls. A few people were swimming in the waterfall, so I didn’t take many photos as that might have been a little awkward.

If you hike about a mile, you’ll reach a small overlook which was a beautiful spot to relax. We spent a few minutes looking out and then hiked to the “main attraction” of the waterfall.

The free-flowing waterfall has a deep pool at the base that we saw many people jumping into. We did as we weren’t interested in swimming at all. If I were to go swimming in the area, it would probably be at the waterfall because it’s not far from the beach and entrance and a more secluded area.

The hike itself was quiet, and we didn’t see a lot of people throughout the couple hours we were out there. Here are a few photos from the adventure.

The hikes all start with climbing a short but well-maintained series of steps.

View from the look point into Connecticut

Into the Creek

In all, it was a great walk, and I would definitely go back. It’s a short and easy hike if you’re looking for something to do with kids or a dog. Of any of the parks, it’s one of the most family friendly we have been too.

Here are other hikes I’ve done this Spring and Summer:

Hiking Turkey Swamp in Freehold
Exploring Cattus Island in Toms River
Exploring Hartshorne Park in the Highlands
Hiking to the Cape May Lighthouse
Hiking Bear Mountain in a Downpour
Hiking through Belleplain State Forest

You can see all hikes I’ve done here.

Questions for you:

Have you ever swam near a waterfall? Do you prefer going to a beach, pool, or lake? Or none LOL.

What is a fun hike local to you?

Flying to Bridgeport, CT

May 29, 2018 By Hollie in flying, new jersey Tags: connecticut, flying, new jersey, new york city, pilot 8 Comments

As many people know, my husband is a pilot in the Air Force. He also has his private’s license, so we are able to rent planes and fly to various places. Due to being busy, life, and other interests we haven’t gone anywhere too exciting in a few months. Last year was my first time going through the Hudson Corridor (around NYC). We like flying there and it’s usually scenic.

The weather looked good last Saturday so we decided to fly back up to Connecticut. We chose Bridgeport since it would be scenic and there was a lot going on around the airport.

We took off from Princeton Airport. Tim’s been taking lessons to be an instructor there (so he can teach people how to fly…).

The morning of, we realized the Mets were playing which means certain parts of the Hudon, New York, and New Jersey Air Space are closed. This is the same for any major sporting event. When Trump plays golf in NJ, it essentially shuts down half of the state for private flying. If you cross the airspace, you run the risk of getting escorted out by F18s.

We were able to fly around NYC going up, but coming back we had to stay clear and flew down through Western NJ. It ended up being a cool flight because we were actually above Newark Jets approaching. It’s kind of crazy to look down and see a massive 737.

Here are a few photos:

Taking off from Princeton Airport

Flying over the Verrazano Bridge into NYC…who has started a marathon there?

Down into Connecticut:

Coming back home. On multiple occasions, we were about a mile away from 737s and other jets (which in flying world will cause your plane to beep: “traffic traffic”.

This was definitely one of my favorite views of the night.

View this post on Instagram

One of my favorite photos of the short trip landing back in NJ.

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on May 25, 2018 at 7:05pm PDT

It was definitely one of the more scenic flights. We are hoping to fly to Block Island this summer as well as Montauk but we will see how schedules go.

FueledByLOLZ

Running and Laughing through the Garden State

Tag Archives: connecticut

Colony Diner and Restaurant (Wallingford, CT)