A Special Menu On A Special Day At Sandra’s

Bourbon ribs and shrimp po’ boys were on the menu — and customers visited from all across Connecticut — as Sandra’s Next Generation in the Hill celebrated Juneteenth with a special lineup of meals and an especially busy day.

That was the scene at the family-owned restaurant at 636 Congress Ave. on Thursday, Juneteenth, a now-federal holiday marking the emancipation of enslaved African Americans in Galveston, Tex. on June 19, 1865, two months after the end of the Civil War and two years after the Emancipation Proclamation.

To celebrate the holiday, Sandra’s put out a special menu and the restaurant was part the Arts & Ideas festival’s Juneteenth restaurant week.

One of the restaurant’s most popular items is the fried chicken, according to owner Sandra Pittman. The chicken is first washed thoroughly, then coated in garlic and Pittman’s own seasoning before being marinated for 48 hours. Then the chicken is coated in breading and fried. 

Pittman said the restaurant started in 1989 at her mother’s house in Edgewood. Her mother cooked not only for her six children, but also for the neighborhood. This inspired Pittman to start selling dinners for $5. Those dinners were then sold at churches and other local businesses before she started a restaurant with her husband Miguel at their current location in the Hill in 1993. Sandra’s has been going strong for the past three decades. 

Before the pandemic, co-owner Miguel Pittman decided to remove the indoor seating and emphasize delivery services and takeout options. This proved well for the restaurant, as Miguel said they saw a 300 percent increase in business during the pandemic.

Andre Cuvilie, a chef at Sandra’s, is originally from Jamaica. He said that being a chef at the restaurant was one of his first jobs, and he feels like he is part of a family there.

“For me, it’s a blessing working here,” Cuvilie, who’s been working at Sandra’s for 10 years, said on Thursday.

Pittman said she is selective with who she hires, as her employees must be passionate about their work. She gives people second chances, saying she does not focus on her employees’ pasts, but rather on who they are in the present. Pittman also mentioned that she loves Juneteenth because people from different states such as New York, New Jersey, and Massachusetts, come to try her food on the holiday. 

Shandrea Pittman, Sandra’s daughter and the manager of the restaurant, said now that Juneteenth is a federally recognized holiday, she hopes more people will be aware of it. 

“Our mission [at Sandra’s] is to provide good Southern food that makes you feel your mom or grandma has prepared the food, makes you feel it from the soul,” Shandrea said.

Togi Kuttamberoor and Blake Thorkelson were two of the customers who visited Sandra’s in person on Thursday for the first time. They said they had tried Sandra’s before, but had only used delivery services like UberEats. Kuttamberoor was introduced to the restaurant by his coworkers, and said his go-to is the baked chicken.

Pittman explained that she wants to send a message through her food. ​”Food is love, food is a language,” she said. ​“This is how we come together.”