ZINC New Haven

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

A New Haven Landmark Since 1999

ZINC has been a fixture on Chapel Street, directly across from the historic New Haven Green, for over two decades. Founded in 1999 by Denise Appel and Donna Curran, the restaurant built its reputation on a clear and consistent philosophy: locally driven cuisine with global inspiration. Since 2022, local entrepreneur and philanthropist Alexander Clark has carried that legacy forward, preserving what made ZINC distinctive while setting new standards for the years ahead.

The kitchen is led by Executive Chef Joe Roberto, supported by Sous Chef Rodrigo Bautista and Junior Sous Chef Thomas Small — a team whose menu reflects the restaurant's founding ethos with genuine range.

Globally Inspired American Cooking

The menu reads as a confident tour of global flavors grounded in American produce and technique. Shareable plates lean into Middle Eastern and Mexican traditions — Lebanese hummus with homemade pita, muhammara with pomegranate syrup and toasted walnuts, Veracruz guacamole with heirloom corn chips. Medium plates push further: Vietnamese charcoal chicken over rice vermicelli with nuoc cham, Jamaican jerk shrimp with pineapple-mango salsa and crispy sweet plantains, crispy octopus with Moroccan chermoula.

Larger plates bring the same global American sensibility to the main event — pan-seared snapper zarandeado with guajillo chile aioli, grass-fed prime teres major with toum and shoug grilled vegetables, and oven-roasted organic salmon with chermoula and quinoa. Fresh orecchiette con cime di rapa rounds out the options for those drawn to something more rooted in Italian tradition.

Desserts are carefully composed: a Valrhona chocolate and coffee hazelnut ganache tart, a Sicilian pistachio almond cake with homemade cardamom ice cream, and a Valrhona Kit-Kat bar with fresh raspberries — each offered with a suggested wine or cocktail pairing.

The Wine List and the Room

ZINC has earned the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence, recognizing its list as among the most outstanding in the world — a distinction the restaurant has held across its storied history. The wine program is serious without being intimidating, and the room carries the same balance: a downtown address with validated parking, outdoor seating, and a happy hour Tuesday through Friday that keeps the space lively well before dinner service begins.

For private events, the team — including Special Events and Hospitality Managers Emily Dokas and David Pollock — handles both intimate gatherings and larger celebrations. It is the kind of place that has earned its place in a city's dining life not through novelty, but through consistency and care.