Food, flowing water infuse Waterfall Restaurant experience

BY DIRK PERREFORT
Hearst Connecticut Media

For decades the Padanaram Brook gurgled hidden behind stockade fences and businesses near Danbury’s downtown.

But when local entrepreneur Elmer Palma began refurbishing a restaurant in the area, he decided to make the brook, and a cascading waterfall behind the building, a central feature of the new restaurant. The Waterfall Restaurant, which was more than 15 months under development, opened its doors this month at 30 Padanaram Road.

“The way he renovated the place, it’s just unbelievable,” said Del Ryan, who was having dinner recently with his wife, Judy, and their friend Sandy Scalzo. “It’s already our third time here.”

The restaurant has several unique dining areas, including the sangria lounge on the second floor, where the restaurant’s own homemade sangria is available, as well as a full bar accented by a gas fireplace.

But the main attraction is the waterfall room, which has large glass windows overlooking the brook. The concrete floor was also hand-painted to look like a water scene, complete with fish.

“It feels like you’re walking on water,” Scalzo said. “It’s so creative, I just love it.”

The area surrounding the waterfall was landscaped as part of the project, and exterior lighting was installed to highlight the feature during evening hours.

“The brook is such a great piece of natural beauty, but nobody ever knew it was there,” said Debra Faillia, a designer with her own firm, Debra Faillia Design in Wilton. “We decided to put in a lot of glass windows so everybody could finally see it and enjoy this beautiful natural setting.”

When designing the restaurant, Faillia said she wanted to create an experience for the customers.

“I think of going out to eat as a festive experience,” she said. “It’s one of the few times in your life when you can actually slow down and concentrate on the people around you.”

Both Palma and Faillia noted that the second phase of the project, which is still in the works, includes a deck with outdoor seating that will stretch out over the brook.

Palma said the building needed significant structural repairs and a great deal of renovation before the restaurant project could move forward. Palma originally purchased the property, next to Elmer’s Diner, which he also owns, for the parking.

“But then I decided that we should also do something with the building,” he said. “I wanted to do something that was a little different.”

The menu offers customers a variety of options, including entrees featuring fresh local fish and seafood, American bistro offerings, Mexican specialties and Mediterranean tapas.

“I wanted to offer our customers an enjoyable atmosphere with good food,” Palma said. “I hope everyone enjoys what we’ve created.”

Hearst Connecticut Media includes four daily newspapers: Connecticut Post, Greenwich Time, The Advocate (Stamford) and The News Times (Danbury.) See newstimes.com for more from this reporter.