Best Pizza Shop on Main Street ‘Permanently Closed’

The Detroit-style pizza shop that opened in the former Vicolo space about one year ago has closed. Best Pizza Shop is “permanently closed,” according to its Google listing. Though no notice has been posted to the business’s door, website or social media channels since Jan. 1, Best Pizza Shop is not taking online orders and its space appeared vacant Tuesday during regular business hours. Its owner, John Parlatore, did not immediately respond to requests for information sent by phone and email.

‘A More Flavorful Life’: Spice & Tea Exchange on Track for Spring Opening on Main Street

The Robinsons fell in love with The Spice & Tea Exchange long before they planned a New Canaan franchise. John Robinson, known to locals as the friendly face of Stewart’s Wine & Spirits for 26 years, had entered the Newport, R.I. store in the summer of 2017 while attending the annual folk festival there. 

“One of my friends said, ‘You’ve got to check this place out—you love cooking, they’ve got everything, spices, and teas, and everything you could ever imagine,’ ” he recalled. “I walked in and I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ ”

Pam Robinson visited the same store in May of 2021. She recalled, “It was just completely overwhelming, in a good way. The smells, the vibrancy, the colors, it just welcomed you all in.

Who Knew: Time to Try the Donuts!

‘Who Knew?’ is sponsored by Walter Stewart’s Market. Scientists recently suggested that the universe is shaped like a donut, not the pancake shape we all believed it to be for decades. Light waves leftover from the Big Bang, once thought to run parallel, were observed converging. While we wait for further evidence to determine what carb we most closely resemble, we can’t sit idle. If the universe is but a donut, who am I not to chase that shape down a highly caloric, Homer Simpson-style rabbit hole of dough, glaze, and filling?

Asian Fusion To-Go: ‘Teriyaki East’ Planned for Downtown New Canaan

A new Asian fusion restaurant is planned for the former New Canaan Pizza space off of East Avenue. Teriyaki East is about three weeks away from opening, according to owner Rafael Marin. “It’s basically a hibachi to-go—we’re not cooking in front of the people, but it’s the same concept,” Marin told NewCanaanite.com. “

“It’s authentic Asian fusion cuisine, made from scratch,” said Marin, a Venezuela native and chef for 30 years. “Nothing frozen.

‘I Still Pinch Myself’: Optometry Practice and Eyewear Boutique ‘Look New Canaan’ Opens on Forest Street

Dr. Jennifer Stewart had owned an optometry practice in Norwalk for a dozen years when she sold it in 2022 and for about 18 months focused on industry work—speaking, consulting, writing and virtual presentations—as well as on her two young boys, now eight and 11 years old. “I wanted to be a room mom and go on field trips,” Stewart recalled with a smile Wednesday morning from the comfortable, modern and welcoming retail floor of her brand-new optometry practice on Forest Street. “So I did that and I wasn’t sure what I’d do, and then I started to miss patient care,” she said. “I started to miss all my patients and being in an office. I teach practice management and I teach business.