Winfield Street Coffee just released a new menu! There are so many new and delicious offerings, like the “Break my Heart” bowl which has seared salmon, sweet potato, pickled red onion, avocado, and Chimichurri all over white rice. There is also the new “Return of the Mac” side dish, a super cheesy macaroni with chives and bacon bits – for all of the macaroni and cheese lovers. These two are just the beginning of the tasty selections they’ve introduced to their new menu.
We can definitely attest that the “Break my Heart” bowl and “Return of the Mac” were indeed super delicious. Another one of our favorites was the Roasted Root Burrito (which also comes in a bowl) and it comes with beets, sweet potato, avocado, curry, hummus, pickled onion, spinach, quinoa, pumpkin seeds, and white balsamic vinegar. Their side of “Crispy Potatoes?” Definitely crispy and totally addicting. Those come from their catering menu which is perfect for any style occasion! There is a little something for everyone.
They offer gluten free wraps and breads. Also, many items can be made vegetarian or vegan so be sure to ask your barista.
Not only do they have an amazing food and drink menu, they also have a very cool story.
Breno Donatti immigrated to the US when he was eighteen years old and got a job washing dishes at a legendary pizza joint in Greenwich. He worked from 9:00 AM to 11:00 PM every day. The job and the restaurant business fascinated him. Breno worked from sunup to sundown and couldn’t get enough of it, he fell in love with American culture. I learned to prep chicken, meatballs, sauce, pizza dough and graduated to prep cook. Watching the hard working people he teamed with, both the owners and staff, shaped his work ethic for who he is today.
Winfield wasn’t yet a thought back then, but he certainly already knew, as he was washing a pile of dishes at this hole-in-the-wall bewildering pizza joint, that counted regulars as Brendan Frasier, Anthony Hopkins, and multiple other actors and CEOs, that he was going to own his own restaurant in this country.
After five years of marriage, his wife got pregnant, and he knew he needed to make a decision. He had worked enough, saved enough, learned enough, and failed enough. Well, it turns out he hadn’t failed or learned enough yet, but I thought it was time to strike on his own.
Winfield Delicatessen had been there since 1925 and was on its fourth owner. The current operator at the time had had enough of the business and wanted to sell it. This neighborhood deli was nested in East Norwalk, on Winfield Street, and was very low-key, but with a steady stream of regular customers and a great reputation. It was perfect for an ambitious young new father that wanted to spend evenings with his young family. It needed a fresh coat of paint, some love, and affection, but the bones were good and it allowed Breno an income to support his family. It was September 13th, 2015, 33 days after his wife gave birth to his first son, that Breno sold his first subs at the original Winfield Street Deli.
“Serving coffee is exciting, but it is a very innate human characteristic to strive for more. And I knew that our “more”, as a company, would be to reach out to our local communities and integrate people that perhaps didn’t have other opportunities. We use our resources to donate meals to local shelters, and we open our space to artists, creatives and entrepreneurs to showcase their art or business. This is part of what Winfield is. ” — Breno Donatti
About six months after Breno took over Winfield Deli, an operator of a nearby coffee shop at the Westport train station reached out to Breno and asked him if he wanted to take over his business. It had great early morning traffic and Breno could make breakfast sandwiches at the deli and bring over, two miles down the road to the coffee shop. He researched the best international and national coffee roasters and settled on Counter Culture Coffee for their focus on their coffee shop partners through training, maintenance support, and quality. He thought if he was going to serve coffee, he needed to learn and focus on it. On February 1st, 2016, the historic Norwalk hole in the wall known as Winfield Deli transitioned to Winfield Street Coffee. Later that year, he decided to expand again and took over the also legendary Art’s Delicatessen in Westport, near the bridge, after the operator at the time couldn’t run it anymore. November 4th, 2016, a little over a year after starting Winfield, they were opening their third location.
After having weathered COVID during 2020, they have emerged stronger than ever and now have their Westport and Stamford location, as well as two stores in Naples (South and North), and four locations in New York and are currently in the process of opening another one! The New York locations are, 72nd St NYC (Opening Soon), 86th St NYC (Q Line Subway), 96th St NYC (Q Line Subway), Rye, and Croton-On-Hudson.
Winfield Coffee recognized that the pandemic had brought tragedy all over the country and our communities, Connecticut and New York had been especially affected. As the Winfield team planned their reopening, their number one question was: “How can they leverage their resources and add value to our communities?” With that in mind, they decided to set a bold goal to donate 10,000 meals in 2020 to families in need in Stamford, Croton, Westport, Norwalk and Bridgeport areas.
To make that goal a reality, we need your help! For every check of $20 or higher, they committed to donating one meal. The average cost of the meals at the time was $5.77 and it consisted of one sandwich or grain bowl plus a chocolate cookie. That meant almost 30% of your purchase at Winfield went towards donating meals! Their main partners were Inspirica Housing, DOMUS Kids, and Pacific House.
To make sure they involved the rest of the restaurant community, every month they purchased meals from a different restaurant or cafe in our cities besides making the meals themselves, so that other folks in the hospitality industry benefited from this program and got the opportunity to cook for the needy.
Breno’s wife is his number one supporter. She put her career on a hiatus so he could focus on building the Winfield brand. He is also especially grateful for the Criscuolo family, who owned the Greenwich pizza joint and gave him his first job in America. Breno attended Norwalk Community College (NCC) and The University of Connecticut (UCONN), where he learned things that opened many doors for him. He has great staff and managers, who work hard to keep bringing that mission and that concept to fruition every day. Breno also gives a lot of thanks to his current investors that believed in the brand he described to them and committed to it financially.
For for more information about Winfield Coffee you can visit their website at winfieldcoffee.com!
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