Around Town

PHOTOS: Thousands Attend First ‘Caffeine & Carburetors’ of 2023

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Droves of car enthusiasts hit downtown New Canaan on Sunday for the first Caffeine & Carburetors show of 2023. Classic and specialty autos lined Pine and Elm Streets, and abutting lots, for three hours on a clear, crisp morning. C&C founder Doug Zumbach, a town resident and owner of the eponymous coffee shop at Pine and Grove Streets, estimated 1,500 show cars and an additional 1,500 spectator cars. Police, Zumbach’s volunteers and members of the New Canaan Community Emergency Response Team, or “CERT,” helped direct pedestrians and drivers to ensure safety. “The weather cleared out for us,” Zumbach said as attendees ogled and photographed the antique and high-end cars and motorcycles parked along Pine Street.

Business

Zumbach’s Plans Second Coffee Shop on Burtis Avenue

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New Canaan’s best-established and locally owned coffee shop is planning to open a second location downtown. 

Zumbach’s Gourmet Coffee, a hub of activity at the corner of Pine and Grove Streets, is planning to open a shop on Burtis Avenue, according to an application submitted to Planning & Zoning. “Doug has leased a space at the above referenced address where he plans to open a second coffee shop location offering an expanded selection of handmade coffees including cold-brew as well as nitro-brew coffees,” Paul Tully of Imian Partners LLC, representing the property owner, said in an April 14 letter to Town Assistant Planner/Zoning Inspector Sarah Carey. Tully referred to New Canaan’s Doug Zumbach, owner of the eponymous coffee shop that also founded the popular car show “Caffeine & Carburetors.”

The commercial building at 22 Burtis Ave. is located in the Business A
Zone. Under the New Canaan Zoning Regulations, site plan approval is required from the Planning & Zoning Commission.

Government

Parks & Rec Approves Oct. 22 ‘Caffeine & Carburetors’ Car Show in Waveny

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Parks officials last week approved the use of Waveny for a popular specialty and classic car show this coming fall. Caffeine & Carburetors will be held Sunday, Oct. 22 in the park following a unanimous vote by the Parks & Recreation Commission at its regular meeting, held Feb. 8 in Lapham Community Center and via videoconference. 

Referring to last October’s C&C in Waveny, Chair George Benington said, “I should note that the feedback from everybody there, especially the police, was that it was a much better organized event than in years previous, and that traffic flow both in and out worked a lot more smoothly.”

In addition to Benington, Commission Secretary Francesca Segalas and members Steve Haberstroh, Hank Green, Doug Murphy, Keith Richey, Timothy Klimpl, Gene Goodman and Jake Granito voted in favor. 

Launched by New Canaan’s Doug Zumbach outside his eponymous coffee shop at Pine and Grove Streets in 2008, the show quickly began drawing crowds from about a dozen vehicles to 50 and more, outgrowing that small area. In 2023, C&C will run three shows, according to its website—on May 21 and Sept.

Around Town

PHOTOS: Final ‘Caffeine & Carburetors’ of 2022 Held in Waveny 

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An estimated 1,300 auto enthusiasts descended on Waveny Park on a crisp, overcast morning Sunday for the final 2022 installment of an increasingly popular car show. Launched by New Canaan’s Doug Zumbach at his eponymous coffee shop on Pine and Grove Streets, Caffeine & Carburetors features hundreds of classic and specialty autos, drawing gearheads from the community, region and beyond. Zumbach said more than 30 volunteers helped with parking and directing attendees. “CERT [the Community Emergency Response Team] is here helping us, I think we have five New Canaan Police on hand,” Zumbach said. “Well-staffed, well-organized and I think people are having fun.”

Attendees holding cameras, pushing baby strollers and clutching dog leashes roamed through much of the park around the main house for three hours in the morning, leaning over open hoods, visiting vendor booths and getting food from one of three food trucks parked near the Orchard Field for the increasingly popular event. 

Brian Sahai, branch manager at New Canaan’s Bankwell, a longtime sponsor of Caffeine & Carburetors, said, “This is a wonderful event that puts a nice spotlight on a community we all love.”

Around Town

PHOTOS: ‘Caffeine & Carburetors’ Opens 2022 Season Downtown

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Thousands of car enthusiasts came to downtown New Canaan on Sunday morning for the 2022 debut of a popular auto show founded by town resident Doug Zumbach. Launched as a small gathering of specialty and classic car lovers on Pine Street, by Zumbach’s eponymous coffee shop, Caffeine & Carburetors has evolved into a regional even multi-state draw for New Canaan, held four times per year—on Pine and Elm Streets downtown and in Waveny. “The turnout is wonderful,” Zumbach said on a crisp and clear spring morning near the intersection of Pine and Park Streets as throngs of people walked the pedestrian-only areas to look at the cars, many of them wearing babybjorns, pushing strollers or gripping leashes. “Big shoutout to all of my volunteers,” he said. “Thank you [First Selectman] Kevin Moynihan, [Moynihan staffer] Tucker [Murphy] for helping, [Highway Superintendent] Mosey [Saccary], [Public Works Director] Tiger Mann, the Police Department.