12 Connecticut Foods and Drinks Nutmeggers Will Defend to Anyone From Out of State

Tell someone from Maine that a Connecticut lobster roll should come out hot, and see how the conversation goes.

That’s just the start of what Nutmeggers will argue about.

Here are the Connecticut foods and drinks Nutmeggers will defend to anyone from out of state.

1. New Haven Apizza

New Haven apizza, pronounced ah-beets, is baked in a coal-fired brick oven.

The style dates to the 1920s, when Frank Pepe opened his first pizzeria on Wooster Street.

His nephew Sal Consiglio opened Sally’s on the same street.

Modern Apizza joined them in the 1930s.

Many locals stay loyal to just one of those shops, and you’ll hear about it if you disagree.

Choose carefully.

2. White Clam Pie

A white clam pie is made with olive oil, garlic, oregano, grated cheese and freshly shucked clams.

It’s a short ingredient list.

Frank Pepe’s says its founder introduced the pie in 1964.

Frank Pepe served Rhode Island clams on the half-shell as an appetizer while guests waited for their pizzas.

If you’re new to it, order one and see if you agree.

3. Hot Lobster Rolls

If you order lobster rolls in Connecticut, they come out hot and buttery, while Maine serves them cold.

Perry’s, a Milford restaurant, claims the lobster roll as its invention, and legend dates it to 1927.

Historians caution that no single restaurant or person can take full credit.

If you want a lobster roll at the water, the state’s tourism office lists Abbott’s Lobster in the Rough in Noank.

Abbott’s has been serving lobster at its waterfront setting since 1947.

Bring napkins.

4. Louis’ Lunch Burgers

Louis’ Lunch in New Haven says the first hamburger sandwich came out of its kitchen around 1900.

The burgers still come between two slices of toast, so there’s no bun.

You won’t find condiments because the Lassen family holds firm on not offering any.

So don’t ask for ketchup.

Cheese, tomato and onion are the only garnishes the restaurant calls acceptable.

The kitchen cooks on cast-iron grills dating back to 1898.

A 2000 Congressional Record entry says the Library of Congress named the restaurant a Connecticut Legacy.

5. Foxon Park Sodas

Foxon Park’s Gassosa is a lemon-lime soda the company calls its signature.

If you want something beyond lemon-lime, the East Haven company makes nearly 20 varieties, including ginger beer, Iron Brew and White Birch.

That’s a lot of flavors.

Italian immigrant Matteo Naclerio founded Foxon Park in 1922, first selling bottled spring water.

He switched to soda in 1929.

6. Avery’s Sodas

Avery’s packages its small-batch soda only in glass bottles.

The New Britain company has crafted soda since 1904.

You can choose from birch beer, black cherry, cola, cream soda, grape, root beer and golden ginger ale.

The full list runs longer.

7. Hummel Bros. Hot Dogs

Hummel Bros. hot dogs stay in the smokehouse for an hour and 15 minutes.

The company has made hot dogs in New Haven since 1933.

That’s when German immigrant brothers William and Robert Hummel bought a sausage factory on Congress Avenue.

Rawley’s Drive-In in Fairfield has been around since 1947.

At Rawley’s, the Hummel hot dog called “The Works” comes with mustard, relish, sauerkraut and bacon.

It’s deep-fried.

Rawley’s closes on Sundays, so you’ll want to plan your trip for another day.

8. Blackie’s Hot Dogs

Blackie’s Hot Dog Stand in Cheshire keeps its menu short.

That means you can order hot dogs, burgers and ice cream.

The stand dates to 1928.

Blackie’s serves a homemade hot pepper relish.

You can wash it down with white birch soda on tap.

9. B.F. Clyde’s Cider

B.F. Clyde’s Cider Mill in Mystic is billed as the oldest steam-powered cider mill in the United States.

Benjamin F. Clyde began producing and selling cider in Mystic in 1881.

The American Society of Mechanical Engineers named it a National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark in 1994.

Cider and cider doughnuts come only in the fall, usually for about three months.

Your window is short.

If you’re planning a visit, the mill typically stays open through November.

10. Eastern Oysters

Eastern oysters have been Connecticut’s state shellfish since 1989.

In the 1890s, the state had the largest fleet of oyster steamers in the world.

Connecticut oyster production peaked in 1911 at nearly 25 million pounds of oyster meats.

Then came the crash.

Warming water and parasites destroyed 80 to 90 percent of the state’s oysters in 1997 and 1998.

Oyster farmers keep managed beds in the Mystic area, New Haven, Bridgeport and Norwalk.

If you live along the shore, your oysters may come from nearby water.

11. Pepperidge Farm Bread

Pepperidge Farm’s first product was stone ground whole wheat bread that Margaret Rudkin baked for her son.

The company got its start in 1937 in Rudkin’s kitchen.

Rudkin lived in Fairfield, Connecticut, on a property called Pepperidge Farm.

The company opened a new bakery in Norwalk on July 4, 1947.

That was Independence Day.

Goldfish crackers came in 1962, after Rudkin found the snack on a trip to Switzerland.

If you’ve ever opened a bag of Goldfish, you’ve met a company that started in a Fairfield kitchen.

12. Steamed Cheeseburgers

At Ted's, the patty and cheese cook in a specially designed steamer.

It's not a typo.

Middletown claims the distinction of inventing the steamed cheeseburger, or so the story goes.

Ted's Restaurant opened in Meriden in 1959.