Things to do and places to eat in New London, Connecticut

Muddy Waters Cafe on Bank Street is a coffeehouse and so much more. A popular downtown breakfast-and-lunch spot, Muddy Waters also has outdoor-deck seating with views of New London Harbor to go along with scrumptious soups, salads and sandwiches and delicious pastries. (Pro tip: If you’re not familiar with the Love Salad, add it to your to-eat list).

– Connecticut Magazine

A little farther away from City Pier, the Washington Street Coffee House features locally roasted beans, a forest of potted plants, eclectic playlists, weird art on the walls and any kind of egg sandwich your heart desires (plus a full menu of breakfast and lunch options). 

A slice of New London with a side of hash browns, hot coffee and a quintessential diner atmosphere.

A casual diner that serves an intriguing combination of Peruvian and American dishes.

The walls of downtown New London are covered in murals, from a enormous underwater Bigfood to smaller portraits of Willie Nelson, Bob Marley and Prince. Hygienic Art, a local arts nonprofit, wrote a guide to the city’s murals: check it out here. Bonus points if you find the painting of Eugene O’Neill on the side of the parking lot kiosk at the intersection of Golden Street and Eugene O’Neill Drive. Another bonus point if you peek in the State Street door of the Crocker House apartment buildings to see the indoor mural designed by world-renowned artist Sol Lewitt.

Hygienic Art, a community group that supports a variety of arts-themed happenings in the area, is also home to an edgy, anything-goes art gallery featuring local artists. Also check out the newly constructed amphitheater next door. 

Add to your vinyl collection or just browse a huge selection of music at this locally owned record store.

This downtown museum operated by the New London Maritime Society is dedicated to “telling the stories of New London’s waterfront,” according to its website. Its offerings include lighthouse tours, artifacts relating to local lighthouses and U.S. Customs, and a permanent exhibition on New London’s role in the story of the 1839 uprising of captives from Sierra Leone on the schooner Amistad.

This one-block street features two rows of colorful historic houses built for workers in the 19th century whaling industry in New London. The houses were saved from demolition and sold to private owners in the 1970s, and later designated part of a historic district. 

A period of anti-Black violence across the United States known as “The Red Summer” came to New London one evening in May 1919, according to the city’s Black Heritage Trail website. Thousands surrounded the Hotel Bristol at 92 Bank Street, trapping dozens of Black people inside. The Associated Negro Press found the attack came after the Black sailors that frequented the hotel complained of a pattern of attacks by white sailors. A month later, a second race riot erupted on the Fort Trumbull peninsula. A plaque outside the Bristol Hotel building, which now houses a tattoo parlor, provides more information. 

Spruce up your cabin with a floral arrangement, stock up on fine wines and liquors, buy a newspaper, or just shell out for a big chunk of cheese. The Thames River Greenery has it all, and they do it with style. 

Nathan Hale (he of the “one life to lose for my country”) taught in this one-room schoolhouse from 1774 to 1775, before enlisting to fight in the Revolutionary War. The schoolhouse building itself has been moved a handful of times from its original location on State Street since then, finding its most recent home nestled next to the Water Street parking garage.

Catch a glimpse of the 115-year-old home of New London’s independent newspaper and learn about its unique trust-based ownership structure. The Day recently announced its plans to sell the building, but its publisher says it will stay in downtown New London. Check out the mini park next door, named for a former publisher. 

The nearly 150-year-old Thames Club is the oldest social club existing in Connecticut, according to its website. Actor James O’Neill, the playwright Eugene O’Neill’s father, was a well-liked member known for drinking bourbon and milk and often being willing to buy drinks for other club members. 

The Garde Arts Center was founded in 1985 to restore and operate this 1926 theater, and it remains the stage for local, regional and national theatrical and musical performances. The theater will be open for tours April 18, according to city dockmaster Barbara Neff. 

The striking building that still houses the Public Library of New London opened in 1891 thanks to an initial $65,000 gift from a New London merchant, according to the library’s website. The Romanesque building was designed by well-known architect Henry Hobson Richardson and constructed of pink granite from Worcester. 

A remnant of a controversial U.S. Supreme Court decision that allowed the destruction of a New London neighborhood through eminent domain, Susette Kelo’s ‘little pink house’ now sits quietly on Franklin Street. The case, in which Kelo was one of 14 holdouts who refused to sell their homes home for a major expansion by Pfizer pharmaceuticals, made national headlines and was made into a movie starring Catherine Keener.

This landmark includes the home of Joshua Hempsted  whose diary provided rare insight into life in colonial New London, according to Connecticut Landmarks. It was also where Hempsted enslaved Adam Jackson, who lived and farmed at the house until at least 1758. The Hempsted Houses works to educate visitors about the history of Northern slavery and its current-day implications. 

On the water near the mouth of the Thames River, Captain Scott’s Lobster Dock and Fish Market is a staple in New London’s Shaw’s Cove, serving some of Connecticut’s best lobster rolls, plus fried seafood, po’boys, tacos, chowder and clam fritters to guests from all around the region. The restaurant offers outdoor seating with picnic tables positioned along the waterfront and underneath a covered pavilion, perfect for watching the comings and goings of local boaters.

— Leeanne Griffin

You don’t have to be a member at this classic food co-op and grocery store to fill your basket with granola, kombucha and local veggies, or fill your stomach with pre-made meals cooked in-house. They also serve up coffee and pastries, as well as a candy store’s worth of bulk sweets and snacks. 

Pay next to nothing for a hamburger, tuna melt or bowl of chili at this tiny cash-only neighborhood pub that once enjoyed the company of New London’s own Eugene O’Neill. Have a pickled egg while you’re at it, and come back later in the night for a beer. Lunch is served 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

A “sugar-sand” beach, a half-mile boardwalk, a nature walk with an observation deck, a playground and a 50-meter Olympic swimming pool. It may be too cold to swim in the Sound or go down the water slide, but there’s plenty of sand and sea breeze to go around. The Southeast Regional Transit bus route #13 will take you there straight from New London’s Union Station, and bus fares are free through the end of June. 

This state park in Waterford covers 304 acres and includes Eolia, a 42-room seaside estate with formal gardens and greenhouses. The park hosts annual plant sales, lectures from horticulturalists, dinners and presentations on the lives of historic figures who once called Eolia home.

— Sarajane Sullivan

The Connecticut College Arboretum has more than 750 acres of plant collections, according to its website. The arboretum offers interactive virtual maps, including a trail map, a map of the Caroline Black Garden, a map of woody plants in the native plant collection and a Mamacoke Island Geology Tour Story Map by a Connecticut College professor. 

— Sarajane Sullivan

A New London institution since 1932, the Lyman Allyn Art Museum has long educated and delighted the public with its dense collection of more than 15,000 objects, some of which date back to ancient times.

Benedict Arnold, the traitorous American Revolutionary War general, led troops on a brutal raid on New London and Groton and took Fort Griswold. Visit a memorial to the more than 80 Americans killed in the attack as well as the Ebenezer Avery House, which sheltered the wounded after the battle. 

The only submarine museum operated by the United States Navy, the museum maintains a collection of submarine artifacts. Its centerpiece is the USS Nautilus, the world’s first nuclear submarine and one of the most celebrated subs ever to “sail” the seas.

The boyhood home of Pulitzer and Nobel prize winner Eugene O’Neill is a National Historic Landmark and overlooks the Thames River. The events that inspired O’Neill’s Long Day’s Journey Into Night took place here.

Mohegan Medicine Woman Gladys Iola Tantaquidgeon was born in 1899 on the Mohegan Reservation in Uncasville. She and her family helped create the Tantaquidgeon Indian Museum in Uncasville in 1931, which is the oldest Indigenous-run and owned museum in the U.S., according to the Mohegan Tribe website.

— Sarajane Sullivan

You won’t find dinner closer to City Pier than this. The good news is this low-key waterside spot across the street from Union Station has something for everyone: lobster rolls, French Onion soup, surf, turf and pasta. 

Watch some fútbol on the TV and dig in to some familiar Mexican dishes and a wide range of margaritas.

Located on Bank Street about a mile west of downtown, this Indian eatery was voted one of Connecticut’s best new restaurants by readers and experts in Connecticut Magazine. 

Take a stroll to the edge of downtown New London for a wide selection of sushi, Thai dishes and curries.

Friendly service and a menu featuring Northern Indian dishes and Tibetan specialties

Outdoor seating and special drinks like the lychee martini are on the menu at this popular Thai place a short walk from City Pier. Take in Bank Street on your way there and walk on the pier along the river on your way back.

Find dishes from Sri Lanka and across southeast Asia — lots of noodles, stew and curry  —  a few doors past the fire department on Bank Street.

It only opens an hour before the 8 p.m. last call for cruise passengers to return to the ship, but it’s close enough to City Pier that you can easily make it back after one beer off of the Oasis’ extensive menu. Just don’t take too long to choose. 

Catch a large selection of craft beer, hip decor, burgers and cocktails, and occasional live music at this downtown New London mainstay, a short walk down Bank Street.