Gambardella's Oyster House
Known Name(s)
Gambardella's Oyster House (Primary) Gambardella's Oyster House (Secondary)
Address
10 James St. East Haven, CT (Primary) (1959)132 Middle Town Ave. North Haven, CT (Secondary) (1960, 1961, 1962)
Establishment Type(s)
Restaurant
Physical Status
Extant
Detailed History
Cosimo Gambardella (1891-1963) and his family immigrated from Italy to the United States in 1905 and by 1910 they had established Gambardella's Oyster House, "famous for Maine lobsters and baked stuffed shrimp... [and] recommended by Duncan Hines" (presumably in Hines' Adventures in Good Eating guide). The restaurant was located at 169 Meadow Street in New Haven for many years, and Cosimo ran it with his son Frank into the 1950s. By 1959, Gambardella's had closed this original location and moved to 132 Middle Town Ave. in North Haven.
Interestingly, Gambardella's was never listed at its main address in The Green Book. Instead, an East Haven address at 10 James St., Cosimo's residence, was the first listing to appear in the single year of 1959. Then a 68-year old widower, Gambardella lived alone and brought food from the kitchen in North Haven for African American diners to pick up at his home address, an effort he perhaps original launched as a trial. During the Jim Crow Era, many restaurants, even in the Northeast, did not always readily serve Black customers, who often packed food when traveling.
The second Green Book listing for Gambardella's Oyster House lasted from 1960 to 1962 and directed African American diners to the restaurant's North Haven location at 132 Middle Town Ave. After Gambardella's Oyster House closed, the building housed other food providers; it is vacant as of 2023.
