Trinity Restaurant

Now this place is no joke!!! This had to be the best place I have been so far. Every dish was delicious !!! From the linguini shrimp to the lamb shank without forgetting the bolognese pasta !! We also had oven roasted artichoke (amazingly delicious) and Tuscan soup that was full of flavors but light at the same time.
The staff was super friendly. It is a family owned business I believe and everything was so authentic. Unfortunately we are from out of state. But we will definitely be back

I love this treasure! I’ve been for lunch several times. My favorite menu item is the salmon filet sandwich, which is amazing! Keep a sharp eye out for the corner location, which can be easy to overlook. Street parking is easy. Very warm and gracious family run business. Delicious food.

We had a group of fourteen for lunch recently at this restaurant and we all enjoyed the experience. Off the beaten path but easy to get to, lovely inside and family run, with parking allowed on both sides of the street outside the front door. I can see how Trinity students would fill the place on the weekend but we had the restaurant almost to ourself on a Wednesday at noon during the week. I shared the arugula salad and the Eggplant Parmesan with a friend, both of which were very good and the perfect quantity of food for lunch.

I loved this small, family owned restaurant! You could tell it was a family operation, as the server mentioned something about her grandmother doing the cooking and also roaming around cleaning things up. I had a vodka sauce with chicken and it was extremely comforting and perfectly made. My partner had the lamb and it was fork-​tender.
The physical space is lovely inside but a bit difficult to find. It is in what appears to be a residential area. Trust your GPS and you’ll be OK!

Trin Restaurant is consistently good. I’ve been coming here for four years now and have actually never, ever been disappointed. They’re really making a name for themselves too– the New York Times recently blessed them with a raving review… a nice nod for a neighborhood eatery.
The most charming and redeeming quality about Trin Rest is the fact that it’s family run and owned. They’ll always make you feel welcome and at home.
Trinity Restaurant is also a small establishment. It can’t hold more than 100 people at a time and if you come on the weekend without a reservation, you gotta be willing to wait.
Once you are seated, however, prepare to be wowed. Their bread knots are warmed to perfection and soft enough to make your cashmere sweater jealous. A few stars on the menu are:
–Butternut Squash Ravioli
–Artichokes with Goat Cheese
–Spaghetti Pesto
–Pizza Margherita
I wish I could love Trinity Restaurant’s calamari. I really do. But sadly, it has never impressed me. In fact, it’s the reason I’m knocking off a star. It seriously is the ONLY lackluster item on the menu. It’s chewy and bland… kind of tastes like it’s been frozen. So unfortunate, but you guys know how I feel about my calamari.
All in all, however, Trinity Restaurant is a super solid, scrumptious, satisfying place to take your friends, family, or bae. A double thumbs up!

This was one of the strangest restaurants that I have been to in Hartford. Although there was technically free parking across the street, the parking spaces were tiny meaning your car was halfway into the road (didn’t seem safe but car was fine). I drove by the restaurant twice (it was easy to miss) and the surrounding neighborhood wasn’t great. Inside, it was filled with Trinity college students enjoying the BYOB (even though they had a wine menu). The college students were going all out– beer, wine, hard liquor, mixers, etc. At least the corkage fee was cheap ($ 3)
Even though it claims to be Italian, Greek and Mediterranean, the menu was 100% Italian. which was dissapointing. The calamari were just OK, nothing special. The bread was very good. I have to admit that the butternut squash ravioli was REALLY good, however I never seen SO MUCH brown butter sauce on a dish. I didn’t end up ordering much else since I had expected a much more diverse menu.

This is one other Hartford gem. People should FLOCK here! Amazing food. Good service. Good prices. It’s a tucked away place on Zion behind the rocks, and should be PACKED every night. Q

Our family of four visiting Hartford from Northern California enjoyed such a lovely meal at Trinity Restaurant. Sweet neighborhood spot, warm and friendly service and delicious food. The mussels in garlicky tomato sauce, fresh caprese salad and cannoli were our favorites.

Trinity Restaurant is really a hidden treasure! I have been two times recently with my boyfriend who has a friend that highly recommended it. It’s tucked away neatly on Zion street, across from Trinity College. While the outside is modest with a small outdoor seating area, the inside is quaint and clean with a warm friendly staff. The food is incredible from the appetizers to the desserts! You will not be disappointed! PS — you can BYOB (wine or beer)!

OMG, I love this place so much. I live 2 hours away but make sure to come here when I pass through Hartford.
The atmosphere is simple but elegant, European style, very clean, welcoming. The servers are always nice and attentive. They are around when you want them, but they make you feel comfortable to linger over your meal and conversation. That’s another lovely Mediterranean cultural touch. The Albanian owner is warm, hospitable, and soulful.
Ok, let’s start with the coffee. Perfect.
Today’s appetizer: baked marinated artichoke hearts with goat cheese. Maybe a little touch of kashkaval or cheddar as well. OMG, hot, delicious, perfectly balanced vegetable-​ness with cheese-​ness. Good amount for two.
Today’s shared pasta: spinach manicotti. Wonderful fresh marinara sauce, lots of tender spinach, homemade fluffy ricotta, seasoned with black pepper and something aromatic. Tender flavorful pasta.
Today’s shared salad: mustard salmon salad. Generous piece of salmon perfectly charred on the edge. OMG! Lovely assortment of roasted vegetables as well as tasty tomatoes, purple olives, cucumbers. Hard boiled egg was more food than I could handle, eating this with all the other offerings. The salad was perfectly dressed with a freshly made lemon vinaigrette.
Guess I forgot to mention the bread knots. Chewy, fresh, just so homey, served with herbed olive oil. But don’t get distracted by this.
Two hungry people left completely satisfied for $ 41 including two coffees.
I love this place. When I finally do get to come here, I worry that I have built it up in my mind. But then the food comes and I am delirious with pleasure.

As a former regular at Timothy’s restaurant, I was happy to see that the space was occupied by a new restaurant, and after hearing a couple good things from other food lovers, my wife and I made the trip to what is admittedly NOT Hartford’s nicest neighborhood with high hopes for a great dinner. Sorry, Trinity restaurant– I had every intention of loving you but I just couldn’t do it. First of all, our server must have NEVER worked in a restaurant before. She served our appetizers and entrees simultaneously, and brought our check without even asking if we wanted dessert or coffee. Parts of each entrée that were advertised on the menu were conspicuously missing, and brought over on separate plates as an afterthought when we pointed out their absence. My bolognese was ok, my wife’s swordfish a little better, but still thin and slightly too well done. We did like the Tuscan bean soup. Our 9 year old had a cheese pizza which I thought was on the quality level of a frozen box pizza.
The space is nice, and maybe this was just a bad night, but I left missing Timothy’s even more than I did before. It takes something better than average to lure us into this part of the city, and «better than average» wasn’t happening at Trinity that night.

I went to school at Trinity College nearby and I loved this little restaurant then and I love it now. Every time I come back to the school I make sure to visit this place and get the spicy chicken Gorgonzola. Amazing.

Have returned many times since first review. Lots of upgrades to the atmosphere, which wasn’t so bad to start with. Recently went on a summer Saturday night with party of 10 or so and they knocked it out of the park. Everyone loved the food and the charm of the family run establishment.

I had found this place in my search for local BYOBs and decided to give it a try. It’s located right next to Trinity, but we had a little trouble finding it as there’s no sign that I could see with the name of the restaurant. There is some street parking right out front. As we approached the establishment we were greeting by a friendly man, and we were seated quickly once inside.
We visited on a Monday night and it was very quiet; I think there was only one other group there during the entire duration of our meal. However, the space is pretty nice (I added a few pictures of the interior), and has room for a good number of people to sit comfortably.
The server, who I believe may have been one of the owners, was really sweet. It seemed she was the only one there so it wasn’t super fast service, but we were not in a hurry and the family feel was nice. If there had been more patrons, they definitely would have needed more help to keep things moving quickly enough, and I’m assuming they bring in more help during busier times of the year. We had brought our own wine since Trinity Restaurant’s Facebook and Unilocal pages say that they are a BYOB, but I noticed they did have a pretty good wine list. I asked the waitress, and she said they do both (my favorite answer). She brought us two wine glasses.
I order the arugula and spinach salad (it had another name that’s escaping me). It had a huge piling of fresh greens with a very tasty dressing and four thin slices of cheese (see picture). I always enjoy fresh greens, especially the slightly spicy kick of arugula, so I was pleased.
We did have a smidge of bad luck with entrees, initially ordering 2 that were not available at the time (the scallops dish, which looked great in the picture on the wall, and the osso buco, which sounded amazing). She clearly felt bad and apologized for not having them, and explained that the osso buco is always available in the fall, but in the off-​season (I’m assuming it’s off-​season because college is out, and Trinity students and families likely make up a good portion of their clientele), they can’t make huge batches of it, as it takes a long time to make, and they would end up with large quantities being wasted. She said that regulars will call ahead of time to order the osso buco, which I thought was a great tip. I totally understand the reasoning and agree that this should be more of a seasonal item (but I do think it would be helpful for them to indicate this on the menu).
I ended up ordering the garlic shrimp linguine (it may have been called something slightly different) and my date ordered the seafood paella. The paella was fantastic (it does come with a lot of peas, just fyi); the seafood was cooked just right and the broth was really good. The shrimp linguine was good as well.
My favorite part of the whole experience, though, was unexpected. We had already paid and were ready to leave when the waitress brought out a crème brûlée for us to share, on the house. We had told her it was our first visit, and I think she wanted to make a good first impression. It worked! I would not have ordered the crème brûlée (I was really full from all of the salad and pasta!), but I am so glad I had the chance to try it. It was fantastic! The custard was rich and creamy, the perfect texture and sweetness with a hint of vanilla. The top was torched just right– it shattered like thin glass under the spoon and had a delicious, sweet caramelized taste.
After thinking about it, it makes sense that a place called Trinity Restaurant, situated next to Trinity College, would have a great Crème Brûlée… since it’s rumored that the first crème brûlée originated at a Trinity College in Cambridge, England!
No matter the reason, the food and overall experience were good, but I would go back there just for the crème brûlée.

I love this place. My recommendation: the arugula salad with grilled chicken.

Been here twice and have already fallen for it. Great pizza with fresh authentic ingredients, super-​nice owners, and awesome ambiance. I’m going to become a regular.

I went here with a group of friends on a busy Saturday night. Yes, it was the night of the blizzard. However, this is no excuse for overbooking a restaurant that has two waitresses to the point where our table of 8 sat for TWO HOURS before we got WATER, and that was only after we requested it. I will never be going back to Trinity Restaurant.

Just when I was just starting to think I had discovered all there is to find in this section of Hartford, I was pleasantly surprised to end up here.
This. Place. Is. Awesome. Here’s the bottom line: We enjoyed our experience here so much on Friday night that I went back Saturday night and brought two additional friends. If anything, the second meal was even better.
How many places are that impressionable? Now, stop reading and go get dinner!
Top 5 Reasons to Go Here
1) The staff are so friendly and work hard to make sure everything is perfect. Honestly, the family-​run atmosphere is the best part of this place.
2) Food is amazing! My party and I have now tried a dozen things on the menu and each was delicious. The pacing between courses was perfect too, which is always a bonus.
3) Recently remodeled after the name change, this place has the feel of a cozy home but is also spacious to fit big parties. A really unique atmosphere.
4) BYOB. Enough said.
5) A diamond in the rough. The neighborhood leaves a lot to be desired, but this place is the gem it needs. I appreciate it that much more for being a fun, delicious place despite the area. I’m a local and having a go-​to place near by is a real treat. Obviously, most of the diners are from Trinity College, so brace yourself for some youthful banter.

$ 17.01 including tax for 1 dinner entrée, butternut squash ravioli.
What I got:
— 7 ravioli, one without filling, covered in so much oil it was seeping through the paper bag within the 5 minutes it took me to drive home, 5 mini rolls, slice of lemon.
For that price you better believe I ate the lemon too.
Honestly at a whopping 17 $ I would have expected to have enough food to have leftovers for the next day, but no.
I would skip unless I were being treated.

For years, I had been a regular at this restaurant’s predecessor, Timothy’s, whenever I would be in town. (Full disclosure: As a Trinity graduate, I have always been partial to a homey, hip, no-​nonsense restaurant succeeding in this neighborhood.) Timothy’s was great, but like any place, it had its faults. I recall the bread was to die for and the dishes were generally pretty good, but most people went to Timothy’s more for the vibe and the experience than for the overall menu.
Recently, I went to Trinity Restaurant after a several-​year absence from Hartford, not knowing what to expect. I was floored: This restaurant managed to preserve the «vibe» of the old Timothy’s, while elevating the cuisine to a whole new level… I would characterize the menu as gourmet Mediterranean, but without any strong ethnic coloration, like Greek or Italian. (I believe the owners are Albanian, which explains the reason). There are some very solid meat and fish dishes on the menu. I sampled several; all were gourmet-​quality, well-​presented, and reasonably priced. I even tried the pizza, which was excellent! The kicker: the place is BYOB, making the experience a real tour-​de-​force.
If you can get past my minor bias of being a Trinity alum, take my advice and go for it!