For the food, we started with the delicious Jo’s Wicked Good Chowda’ – a three cup sampler of Manhattan, New England, and Rhode Island Clear. All of their chowders are gluten-free and free of additives! It is hard to find quality soups without the addition of flour as a thickener, but these babies are fresh and packed with all of the flavor that would be found in any authentic, east-coast restaurant. For my entrée I had the New England Boiled Dinner. Served in a large bowl of mussels, steamers, lobster, linguica, potatoes, steamed corn, and in a light broth laced with seaweed, the boiled dinner is literally what I dream of at night. It smells fresh, tastes delicious, and the corn is just as sweet and juicy as if straight from Jersey. Now for dessert… The Indian Pudding is a classic New England cornmeal and molasses pudding topped with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. The pudding is rich with a syrupy molasses flavor, and is served warm with a scoop of chilled homemade vanilla ice cream creating a nice contrast. This comforting dish was the perfect end to an already seemingly perfect meal. If you’re too full from your deconstructed lobster roll or French fries (cross-contamination does apply) that is no problem. Their homemade ice creams and sorbets, such as mint chip and peanut butter ribbon, are available a la carte and are gluten-free! (*Ask for daily selections as they change and may not be all GF!) Other NOBREAD orders I had my eye on included the lobster by the pound and the Grilled Catch of the Day.
Casual-chic seafood restaurants are few and far between in Los Angeles; they’re either stuffy and fancy or some fast-casual grill shack. Thankfully, Connie and Ted’s gets it and their classy New England-esque décor has quality food to match. I will be going back here plenty this summer, for a little taste of the East Coast on the West Coast.