09/14/10 Veteran restaurateur opens Red Lulu

Jody Pennette is bringing his own version of Mexican cuisine to Washington Street in South Norwalk.

The owner of cb5 Restaurant Group has opened Red Lulu, sister restaurant to Lolita Cocina & Tequila Bar in the Byram section of Greenwich, at 128 Washington St., the former site of Ocean Drive.

Pennette was attracted to the district that has become a vibrant center of nightlife and fine dining, saying that he was seeking added exposure north and east of greater Stamford and he acted quickly.

"Lolita just worked. Sure, some of it may have been perceived as over the top, but they kept coming. Requests to open another Lolita soon followed. I enjoy the challenge of changing the environment. This (5,000-square-foot space) had really good bones. The project was a total of seven weeks from getting the building permit," said Pennette, no stranger to opening restaurants. He has created 130 of them.

With seating for 120, the restaurant, open seven days a week starting at 5 p.m., offers an alternative to the typical fare at area Mexican restaurants, he said.

"The traditional Mexican model in Fairfield County is blurred with Tex-Mex and a lot of cheese," said Pennette, adding that executive chef Juan Reyes, who led the kitchen at Lolita and is from Mexico City, offers selections such as barbequed pork ribs with spicy Mexican coffee bean, chocolate, sesame and orange glaze; garlic shrimp or spicy chicken flautas; tacos with blackened grouper, adobo chicken, pulled pork, baja shrimp, rib-eye and brisket; and swordfish campechana with lump crab salsa and smoked chiles.

Although Red Lulu is in the middle of one of coastal Fairfield County's nightlife districts, Pennette said it is first and foremost a restaurant.

http://www.greenwichtime.com/default/article/Veteran-restaurateur-opens-Red-Lulu-662028.php