One of my favorite shows growing up was The Twilight Zone. Most episodes included Rod Serling’s famous, “Imagine, if you will…” and his describing a “fifth dimension” between reality and imagination. I sometimes think of those days, a simpler time when life moved more slowly, where information was absorbed from the three-dimensional surroundings versus the two-dimensional computer screen, where families viewed eating out as a bonus, not as a Plan B because everyone was too tired to cook and when every meal was not measured by its TikTok and Instagram potential. Sometimes a restaurant is a place to bring family, outside the Internet measurements, outside the stars, likes and looks, and just serve simple fare at reasonable prices.

When I find a restaurant that brings that sense of peace, it deserves a call-out, not for its Michelin quality preparation and plating, but for its giving back to a different subset of America, the people that do not care if there is WIFI in the dining area, look forward to seeing what the blackboard specials for the night might bring to their table, and not looking for the computer-generated bill with three high-percentage tip recommendations.

Such a place is Charcoal Chef in Woodbury.

Imagine if you will…driving on a country road in central Connecticut, several miles north of a small town, which is several miles north of another small town that happens to be near an exit off I-84. You see a big sign (I almost feel that Huckleberry Finn had something to do with it) announcing CHARCOAL BROILED HOT DOGS HAMBURGERS SEA FOOD. Then you see the building, a simple side-of-the-road single-story building reminiscent of the 1950s, but with solar panels adorning the roof. You pull into the parking lot. They know their clientele, every parking spot immediately adjacent to the front doors is reserved for Blue Placard vehicles. There is plenty of parking surrounding the front entrances for others.

The real throwback occurs once you enter. The interior is large, seating almost 100 people on copy-paste chairs decorated in 1950s Mad Men décor, numerous shelves filled with items purchased from other side-of-the-road shops, plus a counter overlooking the kitchen that seats an additional nine guests on round swivel black vinyl NJ dine-style stools.

What also separates Charcoal Chef from other restaurants is its namesake charcoal-fired grill. While the rest of the open kitchen is standard, the chef can utilize a three-foot-by-three-foot brick base grill, which is filled with charcoal and topped with grates. This unusual addition allows the kitchen to give the food a little backyard smokey goodness.

I chose a small table where I could view the surroundings. My waitress (she would probably be upset if I used any other description than what she has heard for the last umpteen years) brought the advertisement-laden paper placemat, a well-used menu and asked for my drink order. Once I requested a hot dog, a BBQ burger (medium-rare) and French fries, she brought the water, fork and steak knife, plus an assortment of condiments, which have been used by a lot of other guests. I first noticed the Red Gold ketchup, never heard of. It was reminiscent of the Heinz squeeze bottle, with one difference, the words “For every bottle purchased, Red Gold donates to Folds of Honor, to educate, and support the families of our fallen heroes.” Love the thought and, BTW, it was just as good as Heinz.

Onto the food.

The BBQ burger was a bacon-cheeseburger (BBQ on the side for me) and was freshly ground meat and formed on site, it still had that freshly compacted texture. The cheese was basic American, with a few rashers of bacon, and two concentric onion rings, all in a decent bun. While I was asked for a requested doneness, I guess they all come out the same, cooked. Add a little salt and ketchup and you feel like you were eating at a Sunday church BBQ, as I said earlier, a simpler place.

The hot dog arrived on a toasted NE-style bun. It jutted out of both sides of the bun, approaching a true foot-long. It had a few good grill marks. I could see it was not all beef, but when I bit into it, it had a good “snap,” and the porky-spiciness was actually pretty good. It was one of the better dogs I have eaten in a while. I added a little mustard and relish, and I really enjoyed this simple dog.

After each bite I looked at the other patrons, nobody, and I mean nobody, was on their phone, none were googling, no children with headsets watching videos, only people chatting, people reading a newspaper (yes, the one in print), people giggling. My server was standing at her station working on a paper Sudoku while resting between taking orders and bringing food.

When I asked for the check, I sorta knew what to expect. It was hand-written, my hot dog, BBQ burger and French fries earned, in total, eight letters, 3 each for the hot dog and burger, with the French fries garnering a two-spot. The total for my meal did not reach $20, barely the same price as some appetizers and salads at other places.

As I left, I took notice of the whiteboard specials, the Bronzino dinner was $28 with some Street Corn Chowder (I just paid double that in FL). But what really caught my eye were the ice cream flavors, they started with a traditional Butter Pecan but swerved immediately to the left with Extra Large Cookies, Hot Honey (go figure), Bourbon Oatmeal, and Tony’s Cakes. Huh? These flavors were like the solar panels on the roof, between reality and imagination.

While Charcoal Chef will not make my go-to rotation for its cuisine, my time there was memorable, the staff was incredibly friendly, the food was pretty OK, but the enjoyable part was the peace and feeling of a different time, when a restaurant was there for a family gathering to enjoy the meal. For that…“thanks for the memories.”

Denmo’s Snack and Dairy is located on south Main Street in Southbury and has been serving the area for over forty years. I heard mixed feedback about the food, but I kept reading a few positive anecdotes on their hot dogs, and given its proximity and my build-up of internal curiosity I decided to drive to check out the burgers, dogs and fries. While it was an not extraordinary experience, it was a decent visit. There was nothing wrong with the food, per se, but there was nothing good about it either. It was basic burgers and dogs with a couple of bright spots.

When I arrived, I saw the chalk board menu with lots of additional items from the on-line menu. I first noticed a significant difference. While the website still touts the “foot long” dog, the chalk board eliminated any reference to a quantifiable dimension, but now stated “long.” I ordered with relish, mustard and sauerkraut (this is “the works” less the raw onion). I also ordered a single cheeseburger with fried onions and a side of fries.

The dog – The chalkboard is correct, the foot-long is gone. The dog juts a bit from both ends of the roll, so my guess would be a 10”. The roll is a New England meets Texas toast that has been nicely griddled on the exterior. The mustard, relish and mustard were nicely applied. The dog, itself was split and there was a bit of a char. On first bit I was non-impressed. There was nothing to speak of on the flavor from. No smokiness, no saltiness, no pop, no nothing. It was a mildly bland dog. The mustard was not Gulden’s but some run of the mill variety and I would guess the somewhat tasteless relish and kraut were as well. There was nothing bad, just nothing good.

The burger – I have to commend Denmo’s on the preparation. The meat was loosely formed into the patty and even given it’s 4-ounce pre-cooked weight, they were able to have a tinge of pink in the center. Likewise, the cheese was nicely melted. The taste was, or should I say tasteless, aspect, of the burger was its downfall. Again, nothing bad, just nothing to really like. Now here is my one “I liked” and it was the grilled onions. They were very flavorful, soft and the highlight of the visit.

The fries – if you want to talk about zero love, think these out of the freezer, into the oil, fries. No seasoning, no nothing. My guess is some middle schoolers were assigned to the frier and they were tik-tok’ing. And Denmo’s did not help by offering the cheapest ketchup packets their purveyor could sell them.

Overall, I checked the box, went to Denmo’s, tried their burger, dog and fries and can move on. While others may enjoy the treats, I will probably not place on my return list.