Exploring Southeast Connecticut’s Culinary Scene

If there’s one known tourist destination in the state of Connecticut, it’s the coastal town of Mystic. Whether for the seaport museum commemorating its maritime heritage, the aquarium’s sea lions and beluga whales, or the charming downtown, dense with boutiques and anchored by a bascule bridge that is celebrating its 100th anniversary, about 1.5 million out-of-towners visit annually, according to the Greater Mystic Chamber of Commerce.

But these days, people are descending on the town of not quite 5,000 people for a more specific reason: food. In fact, there’s a whole stretch of southeastern Connecticut that’s having a culinary resurgence.

The area has long been associated with weathered shacks serving clam strips and lobster rolls. Today you’re as likely to find barbecue monkfish cheeks and empanadas stuffed with local squid, perhaps served with a hibiscus margarita or orange pét-nat. The transformation is profound.

It began with a bakery

You could say a bakery was the tipping point. In 2016, Adam Young, who was executive pastry chef at the luxury resort Ocean House in Watch Hill, R. I., opened his French-inspired bakery, Sift Bake Shop, in Mystic. It drew the attention of a local crowd for its 81-layer croissants and sticky buns submerged in toffee sauce. Then Mr. Young landed on Food Network’s “Best Baker in America” in 2017. He won in 2018. Craziness ensued.

“It used to be like Disney,” Mr. Young says of the early days. “You would stand in line outside for 30 minutes and then get through the door, and there would be another line inside.”

In time, Mr. Young and his team reimagined the space and process within the clapboard building on Water Street to be more efficient. They also added a rooftop bar, and opened Young Buns Doughnuts around the corner on Mystic’s main drag. Though the waits at Sift Bake Shop are now shorter, lines of eager guests still arrive daily.

Not that croissants alone put Mystic on the map. When Dan Meiser and James Wayman opened Oyster Club, a restaurant devoted to local seafood and products on Water Street in 2012, it awakened a desire for sophisticated food. While there were many restaurant options then, none were necessarily destinations.

“We saw an opportunity to take advantage of the amazing agriculture and fish from the area and create a restaurant that was part of the regional, even national, conversation,” Mr. Meiser explains.