When Ondine Restaurant closed in 2016, no one thought it would take so long for another owner to come in and open up something new.

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Ondine Restaurant had been a fixture on the Danbury / New Fairfield line for more than 30 years, but when they closed their doors in 2016, no one thought it would stay vacant for as long as it did. If you've driven down route 37 anytime over the last few years, you could see what time and neglect did to this once pristine location.

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Now things are starting to look a whole lot better. According to newstimes.com, finally in 2019, a New Fairfield resident came forward and purchased the property.

Before committing to the deal, Joe McCluskey met with Raffaele Gallo, the owner of Gallo Riostorante and the Lantern Restaurant in Ridgefield. The two decided to go into this venture together, and so 'Rein Osteria', a new restaurant was born.

Now that the wheels were put into motion, renovations were started in 2020, and McCluskey announced that Gallo, who's been the head chef at his own restaurants, would be taken over the same role at this new establishment.

The cuisine featured would be a mix of American and Italian, which means patrons could get anything from a hamburger and fries, to seafood, antipasta, salads, specialty pasta dishes, and of course gourmet pizza. There will even be a raw bar, plus they will be a large pub area where customers can order one of a dozen tap beers and they'll get to choose from a generous selection of wines and cocktails.

The whole idea is to have a place that's perfect for a burger and fries, or a romantic dinner for two, with prices that are on par with other popular dinning locations in the area.

As far as when the restaurant will officially open, according to their website, reinosteria.com, they were shooting for a Spring 2021 opening, but the website does suggest checking back for more details.

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