Welcome To Connecticut

Stony Creek Brewery in Branford is in the middle of a reboot. They have a gorgeous new brewery, an eye catching new logo, a new brewmaster and an impressive flight of brand new beers. Ken sits down with brewmaster Andy Schwartz to discuss the challenges that come with restarting a brewery, the issues they may encounter with their older beers still being on the market, the inspiration for their new offerings and more. This episode is brought to you by The Taste of Westport, taking place May 7th at the Westport Inn. Visit TasteofWestport.com for details. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com).

Adam Richman, best known as the host of the Travel Channel program Man vs Food, sits down with Ken this week. Adam went to school at Yale, so he and Ken talk about some of the best places to eat in New Haven, and in Connecticut as a whole. Ken and Adam also discuss his time filming Man vs Food, as well as his brand new show, Man Finds Food. This episode is brought to you by Mellow Web Design. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com)

Chef Plum has appeared on Guy’s Grocery Games, The Taste and countless other food related television programs. He’s also the mind behind the extremely popular Dinner Underground series of pop-up restaurants. Plum made his way to the home office with a six pack of beer and two bags of assorted alcohol, and he and Ken sat back and had an insanely fun conversation about a wide array of topics. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com).

When you think of trendy restaurants, Ansonia is not normally the town that comes to mind, but Crave has changed that. Crave has been bringing a really unique, innovative and tasty dining experience to Ansonia for the last few years. The owner of Crave, Libby Meissner, sits down with Ken to discuss the challenges in opening up a restaurant, the initial reaction to opening up, dealing with criticism and much more. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com).

This is the very first live episode of the Welcome To Connecticut Podcast, and it celebrates the one year anniversary of the show. This episode was recorded live at Two Roads Brewery in Stratford, CT on March 4th, 2015 and we called it The Connecticut Beer Summit. The show featured a panel discussion about Connecticut Beer, with 5 breweries participating in the conversation; Two Roads Brewing, Half Full Brewery, Black Hog Brewing, Shebeen Brewing and OEC Brewing. This episode is brought to you by Uber. Sign up at Uber.com using the promo code KenCT and get $25 off your first ride. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com).

Barry Labendz left his corporate job in New York because he wanted to follow his passion of opening up a brewery, and after several years of planning and hard work he’s done just that. Kent Falls Brewing is ready to launch in Kent, CT and it will be the very first farm brewery in the state. Barry sits down with Ken to discuss farm brewing, the challenges he faced getting this concept off the ground and more. This episode is brought to you by Uber. Sign up at Uber.com using the promo code KenCT and get $25 off your first ride. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com).

Originally from Milford CT, Christy Carlson Romano is best known for her role as Ren Stevens on the popular Disney Channel show Even Stevens. Christy sits down with Ken to talk about life as a child star, the struggles many actresses face when trying to grow outside of the Disney bubble, her future ambitions to direct and more. This episode is brought to you by Uber. Sign up at Uber.com using the promo code KenCT and get $25 off your first ride. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com).

Yes, that’s right, everyone’s favorite principal sits down with Ken for a fun conversation. Dennis Haskins spent over a decade playing Mr. Belding in the Saved By The Bell universe and he talks to Ken about the entire experience; how he got the job, working with the kids, the fear of being pigeon-holed as one character and more. This episode is brought to you by Uber. Sign up at Uber.com using the promo code KenCT and get $25 off your first ride. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com)

Sarah Barrios is a 20 year old singer/songwriter from Torrington, CT. In 2014 she won the Best New Act Award at the New England Music Awards, and she’s been going strong ever since. She sits down with Ken in the home office to talk about her musical inspirations, her writing process, her career aspirations and more. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com. Welcome To Connecticut’s theme music is “Catch The Ball” by The McLovins (TheMcLovins.com)

For close to 30 years the Connecticut Gay Men’s Chorus has been putting on unique and entertaining performances in the Nutmeg State. Ken sits down with Greg McMahan from the chorus to discuss the genesis of the ensemble, how the chorus evolved as social acceptance towards the LGBT community has grown over the years and much more. This episode is brought to you by Mellow Web Design, Two Roads Brewing, DSCT.tv and OmNomCT.com. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com.

Dan and Darcy had an idea during a blizzard, that idea was to create a brewery for easy drinking beers in Connecticut. Through hard work and determination, they turned this tiny little idea into a reality, and eventually DuVig Brewing was born. Ken talks to Dan and Darcy about session beers, the inspiration behind their brewery and so much more. This episode is brought to you by Mellow Web Design, OmNomCT.com and DSCT.tv. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com

Jim Keenan is the man behind the extremely popular Chowdafest events, which have become a Super Bowl Sunday tradition in the state for the last few years. This year, Jim is bringing Chilifest to Connecticut on Super Bowl Sunday. Jim sits down with Ken to discuss the organization, execution and marketing behind events like this … and a whole lot more. This episode is brought to you by Mellow Web Design, OmNomCT.com and PWInsider.com. You can get more information about Welcome To Connecticut at WelcomeCT.com.