If you’ve driven past 268 Quinnipiac Ave., you may have spotted a red “Get Stuffed” food truck parked beside a small white building with red umbrellas out front. That’s CT Chowder Co., a North Haven takeout spot that ladles out six kinds of chowder and bisque, stuffs cheese inside its burgers and serves hot buttered lobster rolls.
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Chef Steve Allegra runs the place. He’s the same cook behind the Get Stuffed food truck, and the front window still says so: “From the Owners of ‘Get Stuffed’ Food Truck.” Here’s how a food truck became a North Haven storefront, what regulars say about it on Google and what to order on your first visit.
From a food truck to Quinnipiac Avenue
The truck came first, and the menu followed it inside. The Get Stuffed website still lists the dishes that built the following: cheese-stuffed burgers, a lobster roll poached in sherry butter, and a Connecticut clam chowder the truck calls “A MUST TRY!!!” Its booking page sends event requests to the same email address CT Chowder Co. uses today. The truck books events of at least 70 guests, with a $100 deposit and a $75 or $100 travel fee depending on distance from North Haven, according to the restaurant’s food truck page.
State business records show how the pieces fit together. They list Allegra as the principal of CT Chowder Co. LLC, registered at 268 Quinnipiac Ave. in January 2020, and of Get Stuffed Food Truck LLC, registered that June. Both were dissolved on Dec. 29, 2021, the same day Chef Steven James LLC was registered. That company, also listing Allegra, is active and uses the same address and the restaurant’s email. When the Quinnipiac Chamber of Commerce welcomed CT Chowder Co. as a member, its post pictured Allegra as the owner and summed up the menu as “signature clam chowders to fresh salads, seafood, burgers and sandwiches.”
The chef’s name turns up on the menu, too. The Stuffie Skins are described as “overstuffed skins with Chef Steve’s ‘almost famous’ seafood stuffing.”
Inside the shop
It’s a counter-service room. You order at a counter lined with a deli case, and a chalkboard in the corner lists the day’s specials. Most people take their food home, and on nice days some sit at the red-umbrella picnic tables out front. Google reviewers mention plenty of free parking, and several put the cost at $10 to $20 a person.
According to the “New Hours” posted on its website, CT Chowder Co. is open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, and it’s closed Sunday and Monday. You can call ahead at 203-498-2469 (the number spells 498-CHOW) or order ahead through the Clover app. Its Clover rewards program takes 10% off an order once you’ve earned 200 points. The restaurant has also told customers on Instagram that it delivers through DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats.
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The chowder that made the name
Chowder is the reason most people come in. The menu lists six kinds: New England, CT, Manhattan, Rhode Island, corn, and a lobster bisque “loaded with lobster.” Every chowder is made with bacon and every one is gluten-free, the menu says. A small 8-ounce New England or CT clam chowder is $8.50, a 16-ounce large is $13.50 and a 32-ounce extra-large is $25. The lobster bisque starts at $15.75. For $4.25 more, any of them comes in a warm, toasted bread bowl.
The house specialty is the CT Clam Chowder, which the menu marks “AWARD WINNING!” It’s made with clams, onions, potatoes and bacon in a tomato cream broth. The restaurant’s website shows a New Haven Register “Best of New Haven 2024” winner badge under the line “Winner of Best Chowder.”
What North Haven regulars say
CT Chowder Co. has a 4.6-star average from about 224 Google reviews. Clam chowder, lobster roll and lobster bisque are the dishes reviewers mention most.
“CT Chowder Co. has become a special part of our family traditions,” Koko wrote. “My mom absolutely loves their New England Clam Chowder, and bringing her a bowl is always guaranteed to make her smile.” When the chowder sold out one night, Koko picked up the lobster bisque for her mother instead: “She couldn’t stop raving about how flavorful and delicious it was.”
Robert kept his review short: “Clam chowder was excellent. Fully loaded with clams. Lobster grilled cheese was awesome.”
Samantha went through the menu. “Staff is so sweet and wonderful. Really made us feel welcome on our visit,” she wrote. “The stuffed skins are huge, the stuffed fish and chips are amazing, and the lobster roll was peak.” Her verdict: “Worth going out of the way for.”
What to order
These are the dishes reviewers mention most, plus one combo from the specials board.
A chowder in a bread bowl. Start with the CT Clam Chowder if you’ve never tried it, or go with the New England that Koko’s mom loves. Add the toasted bread bowl for $4.25.
Hot Buttery CT Lobster Roll. Fresh lobster is poached in sherry butter and served on a grilled torpedo roll. It comes with a lemon slice, a side of hot butter and coleslaw. It comes in 4- or 6-ounce sizes at market price.
The Get Stuffed Burger. This one came over from the truck. The patty is stuffed with what the menu calls “our secret blend of cheeses” and topped with lettuce, red onion, pickles and Boom sauce, for $11.50. The Bourbon Bacon Burger ($14.75) adds house-made bourbon bacon jam, smoked gouda and bourbon pickles. The Surf & Turf ($25) piles lobster on top.
Whatever’s on the board. The specials change all the time and get posted on the restaurant’s Instagram and Facebook. The board the restaurant posted on Instagram on Sept. 29 included a “Roll & Bowl” that pairs a 4-ounce lobster roll with an 8-ounce chowder (New England, CT, Rhode Island, Manhattan or corn). It also had a crab cake sandwich, fish tacos, BBQ pulled pork and chicken Marsala and chicken parm dinners.
There’s a secret menu
Yes, really. The bottom of the online menu says “shhhh!!!! we started a secret menu…” It lists a CT Seafood Roll (shrimp, scallops and lobster in hot sherry butter), a Lazy Man’s Lobster, and The G.O.A.T., a $12.50 stuffed burger with gouda, caramelized onions, arugula and “TOMato jam,” named “in honor of the greatest quarterback.. the G.O.A.T. TOM BRADY!!!” For bigger appetites, there’s the Seafood Bomb: lobster, shrimp, scallops and seafood stuffing in a bread bowl, topped with lobster bisque.
Before you go
- Where: 268 Quinnipiac Ave., Suite 1, North Haven
- Hours: Tues.–Wed. 11 a.m.–7 p.m.; Thurs.–Sat. 11 a.m.–8 p.m.; closed Sun. and Mon.
- Order: 203-498-2469, the Clover app, or DoorDash, Grubhub and Uber Eats
- Specials: Posted on the restaurant’s Instagram and Facebook pages
- Food truck: Email ctchowderco@gmail.com with your date, time, location and guest count (70-guest minimum)
- Online: ctchowderco.com
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