News

There’s One Place Like Home: Chef Luis

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Over the past decade, give or take a couple of rounds of musical chairs on the New Canaan dining scene, Chef Luis has created a restaurant that’s more than the sum of its parts. It’s a game-day go-to, a fixture on the local shortlist for lunches with friends and date nights, and a dog-friendly outdoor patio in warm weather. Just don’t call it Mexican. Owner & head chef Luis Lopez will always crank out a dependable list of greatest Tex-Mex hits, like perfectly-turned pork shoulder Al Pastor and skirt steak fajitas. His La Americana Burger is decidedly one of the town’s very best.

Business

Chef Luis To Reopen As Soon As Friday; Classic Menu Items Returning

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Luis Lopez, one of New Canaan’s best-loved chefs, is set to reopen his eponymous restaurant in the heart of the downtown. ‘Chef Luis’ and many of the popular Nuevo Latino menu items that made it a go-to destination for food-lovers, could be back as early as Friday, Lopez said. “I’m very excited, a little nervous because I am concerned about the health of the community,” he told NewCanaanite.com. “So I am trying to make sure we doing everything required and possible to protect everybody.”

The restaurant at 129 Elm St. will focus on takeout to start and is awaiting approval of a liquor permit.

Business

‘Chef Luis’ Restaurant To Reopen on Elm Street

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One of New Canaan’s most beloved local chefs is preparing to reopen his restaurant in the heart of the downtown. Luis Lopez, owner of Chef Luis on Elm Street, said the restaurant is on track to open in its former space in the coming months. “I’m excited,” Lopez said Monday afternoon amid racks of glassware near the bar inside 129 Elm St. “I’m ready to go back and do my thing.”

Chef Luis left his eponymous restaurant in the summer of 2017 and it closed soon after, bookending a successful 10-year run. The commercial space—located opposite Francos Wine Merchants—has been occupied since then by two food service establishments.

Business

‘Come Home to Gates’: Chef Luis Lopez Returns to New Canaan

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A favorite chef among local diners, Luis Lopez, on Monday returned to New Canaan to start his new job running the kitchen at Gates. Formerly of his popular ‘Chef Luis’ restaurant on Elm Street—which changed names and hands following his departure more than one year ago, and finally closed—Lopez said he is “thankful for the opportunity.” “I feel like I never left. All my customers and friends came to see me when I went to Ridgefield,” Lopez said, referring to his most recent position. “New Canaan is my home.”

Asked how he felt about cheffing at Gates, Lopez said, “I am excited.

Around Town

Did You Hear … ?

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Chef Luis Lopez, known locally for his eponymous restaurant on Elm Street, has been seen cooking in the open kitchen at Spiga on Main. ***

After school Wednesday, a man was seen trying to enter cars in a New Canaan High School parking lot, according to a communication from NCHS Principal Bill Egan. “We do not believe he was successful, nor do we anticipate his return,” Egan said in an email. “However, please make sure you lock your cars on campus. I would keep them locked before and after school.