It’s been a year since I started writing Not Bread Alone. Since then, I’ve had a great time sharing my enthusiasm for food and eating.  I’ve been surprised by the range of topics that have presented themselves for discussion and excited by the many stories that have asked to be told. The response from you, the readers, has been gratifying.

Restaurants are the places to start in exploring the local food world. There are more exciting and intriguing opportunities to eat than any one person can visit. Just keeping up with the new ones is a full time job – nice work if you can get it!  I like to stay in touch with past favorites, too, which stretches the list of restaurant options like a long string of mozzarella.  None the less, restaurants are key to the local food scene – some cutting edge and innovative, others focused on tradition and excellence.  I try to get to as many as I can.

This year we’ve eaten delicious, creative, beautifully presented food at restaurants from Greenwich to Bridgeport (mostly in Norwalk), as well as around the region and across the country.  French, Spanish, Italian, Asian, American food (in its many variations) and others have been represented.  Some establishments have been ambitious and priced accordingly; others are family places – moderately priced and user friendly.  Décor ranges from new and stylish to simple and functional.  At every restaurant the staff was friendly, competent, caring and hard working.  Not all places have made it into print, but they still may.

Beverages, for me, are an integral part of the dining experience, occupying a prominent place in NBA (the column, not the basketball league). Wines are endlessly fascinating: delicious in and of themselves; cultural ambassadors from their place of origin; and examples of the winemaker’s skill. Craft beer, the hot category right now, is very diverse and can be made anywhere, as you may have noticed, even right here. Breweries with their own pubs are great places to visit to sample the brews and see where they’re made.

Early on, readers asked me to be more specific with beverages, especially wines – naming the ones I’m talking about and suggesting places to buy them. I’m trying to do better at that.

The rich cultural diversity of our area shows up in the fascinating array of local food markets that carry ethnic specialties. I’ve begun exploring these and will continue the hunt.  So far, I’ve found a local source for the delicious comforts from home of just about every European country. Next I’ll be moving on to Asia and the Pacific rim, then the rest of the Americas.

Although Fairfield County is not known for food production, it’s surprising how much is going on here.  I’ve been able to meet local fishermen, farmers, bakers and artisanal producers, learning about their skills and (most importantly) tasting the end results. I am increasingly impressed with how much good stuff we have so close to home.

Bringing home food stories from road trips up and down the east coast has been a great pleasure, too. I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about Georgia peaches, Virginia bakeries, the New York Fancy Food Show and Southern cafeterias.  Food trips within Connecticut like the Wine Trail or The Food Lover’s Guide to Connecticut have widened my awareness of the good things to eat and drink in our state.

I’ve indulged in discussions of some of my favorite foods, like roast chicken, macaroni and cheese, oysters, chicken soup, Connecticut shad, cheese, succotash and chocolate chip cookies.  This also involved a certain amount of tasting. Yum!

As a matter of fact, all this trying and tasting in service to readers has put on a few pounds. If this trend doesn’t come under control, I may have to write about shopping for clothes the next size up.

The generous folks in the food business have been more than kind in sharing their time, expertise, experience and knowledge on a broad range of subjects. They’re a nice bunch of people. I encourage you to chat them up when you can. I haven’t found anyone who wasn’t thrilled to be asked about their food, culture, traditions, and sources.

I’ve had lots of emails (notbreadalonefw@gmail.com) with feedback, suggestions, comments and related stories. Even more readers hav e stopped me in the supermarket aisles and around town to chat about something in the column.  Thanks again for reading and getting in touch!