A round-up of openings, closings, and other news about West Hartford businesses.

Business Buzz is sponsored by NBT Bank, and we are very thankful for their support!

By Ronni Newton (Wonder information contributed by Roz Green)

It’s Monday – and this is a return-to-reality-for-me edition of Business Buzz.

Today is my first day back from spending two weeks on Nantucket – where I did do some work but also was very grateful to be able to step back from most of the day-to-day coverage of West Hartford and spend at least a bit of time at the beach every day – much of that sitting in a chair reading a novel – along with plenty of beach walks, running, and biking. At least part of every day was a beach day, and while it was fairly hot and humid on many of the days, I consider that great beach weather!

It was also great to be able to take a hiatus from this column last week, particularly since there really was very little business news to share.

Thank you to Roz Green who wrote this week’s featured blurb on Wonder, as well as Maddie O’Connell, Melissa Cole, Paul Palmer, and Mia Jaworski (who just returned to town after spending nearly a year in Spain), for their fabulous contributions over the past few weeks!

The past two weeks have included wonderful family time not only with Ted’s mom, but also at the beginning of our vacation with our daughter Katie and her husband Matt and their two young children, and later during the vacation with Ted’s brother and his wife and our nephew and his girlfriend. While newlyweds Sam and Kate weren’t able to join us, we saw Kate’s parents almost every day, as well as their other kids and extended family members.

Millie had a great time running on the beach and chasing seagulls as well as keeping the yard [somewhat] free of deer and bunnies, and also was content to dig a hole in the sand behind one of our chairs and just hang out with us on the beach.

Most of our vacation dining was done at home (or picnic lunches on the beach), but we did go out for a few fairly casual dinners, stopped at Cisco Brewers for a beer toward the end of a long bike ride, and ate plenty of doughnuts from the Nantucket Bake Shop (my reward for a long run) as well as from the recently reopened and relocated Downyflake.

Look for construction updates to return in next week’s column. And while I am not at all ready for summer to end, look for back-to-school coverage coming soon, too.

No trolls while I was away, and thank you to all who comment with your full names, and avoid making personal attacks! Please note that it has been our policy for several years that full names be used when commenting directly on the site – with the exception of those commenters who were grandfathered when they commented prior to the policy being updated. Please comply or your comment will not be published.

If you are a long term, regular advertiser on We-Ha.com and have a 60 to 75 word submission for a future Business Buzz please send to Bob Carr at [email protected]. You can also contact Bob if you are interested in becoming a sponsor of a section of the site.

If you have information to share about local businesses, please provide details in the comments or email Ronni Newton at [email protected].

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Here’s this week’s Buzz:

• Wonder is a new restaurant that just had its grand opening in Blue Back Square on Aug. 13, and it has everything you can ever imagine, literally. Wonder offers over 40 different menu options, and if you can’t decide between pizza or tacos, get both! Located at 91 Memorial Road in West Hartford (a portion of the former West Elm space), Wonder offers a flexible family-friendly option for dining out. Guests can order dishes from 20+ restaurants and cuisines in a single order, available for dine-in, pickup, or delivery. They can also choose from dishes inspired by world-renowned chefs such as Bobby Flay, Marcus Samuelson, and Michael Symon. They also serve customer favorites and award winning restaurants such as Tejas Barbecue and Magnolia Bakery. Their goal is to satisfy every craving without compromise, and the Wonder team is excited to provide that service for the townspeople of West Hartford. When I attended their grand opening with my mother, I ordered a Mediterranean bowl, and my mother ordered a chicken quesadilla. Both were outstanding and it was shocking to the both of us that two different types of cuisines were made in the same kitchen. Wonder is truly a picky-eaters dream, and I would definitely recommend it to the families who always struggle picking a place to eat for dinner. Everyone is destined to leave with their belly full and a smile on their face. This is Wonder’s 11th location in Connecticut, with more to come. Wonder is open daily from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. Details and the link for online ordering can be found on their website. (Photos and write-up contributed by Roz Green, who attended the grand opening last week.)

• Quite a few ribbon cuttings were held while I was away, starting on Aug. 7 with Bliss Match & Beyond (981 Farmington Avenue), which I visited before I left for vacation and featured in the Aug. 3 column.

• There were two ribbon cuttings on Aug. 12, with the first of the day at Cara (71 Raymond Road, inside Spaces) – a business described by the Chamber of Commerce as “a domain-specific AI platform purpose-built for insurance agencies and brokerages, accelerating sales, automating servicing, and scaling operations with a 24/7 digital workforce.

• Later on Aug. 12, the Chamber of Commerce and town officials celebrated Wonder, which is featured above, but here’s the official ribbon-cutting photo.

• The final ribbon-cutting held over the past two weeks was Saturday, Aug. 15 at Ramp Fitness (635 New Park Avenue), and included an Open House. Congratulations to owner Becky Hoisl Johnston on the official opening! You can read all about the new fitness facility “where everyone works out” here.

• Congratulations to Sonny Chen! The West Hartford resident who is owner and co-founder of Black Bamboo (my favorite Chinese restaurant in the area) and co-founder of Pokeworks and owner of other local businesses is a member of the Hartford Business Journal “40 Under Forty” Class of 2026. Sonny, 37, founded Black Bamboo in 2010, and moved to the new location at 766 Farmington Avenue two years ago. The full write-up about Sonny, and the complete list of honorees, can be found here.

• Have you started watching the new season of Ted Lasso? I had already watched the first episode before receiving the following in an email from West Hartford resident Suzanne McKenzie, founder and owner of ABLE MADE. “Some exciting news that a main character, Keeley Jones, wore our ABLE MADE Ren Soccer Love Tee on the majority of the first episode of Ted Lasso new season 4, it aired this past week. So exciting!” A link to the entire Soccer Love collection can be found here, and McKenzie noted that sales help make their Ucal McKenzie Breakaway Foundation Soccer & Health Camps affordable ($0-99 for a full week of camp) for city-youth in Hartford, Boston, and NYC.

• Sunday, Aug. 16 began Connecticut’s Sales Tax Free Week, which for the first time since 2015 has a $300 per-item threshold (it has been $100) for qualifying clothing and footwear just in time for back-to-school shopping. Sales tax-free week runs through Saturday, Aug. 22. The exemption applies to each item – not the total purchase. And in addition, Connecticut is no longer collecting sales taxes on nonelectronic school supplies. This change, which went into effect on July 1, 2026, means that sales taxes no longer apply to items such as pens, pencils, crayons, notebooks, paper, folders, binders, lunch boxes, and more. This sales tax elimination applies every day of the year moving forward, in perpetuity. Exempting non-electronic school supplies from the sales tax is expected to save consumers approximately $6 million per year, according to the governor’s office. “These sales tax reductions will help give consumers some extra savings, especially as the busy back-to-school season begins,” Gov. Ned Lamont said in a press release. “I encourage everyone to take advantage of these savings and, as always, support our state’s many locally owned small businesses.” Also in the news release, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said, “Connecticut families can save millions of dollars in total for kids’ back-to-school shopping, and this year, there’s even more savings in store. During Sales Tax-Free Week, parents and caregivers can save on needed clothing and everyday footwear items to help their kids kick off the school year with confidence. I hope our residents will take advantage of these savings and shop at their local small businesses, allowing those dollars to be reinvested in their communities.” Connecticut Revenue Services Commissioner Mark Boughton added, “Your budget will go a bit further during Sales Tax-Free Week this year with our new exemptions and increased dollar threshold,”  “It’s a win-win for Connecticut residents and local businesses.” The legislation eliminating sales taxes from nonelectronic school supplies was included in Public Act 26-76. The legislation expanding Sales Tax-Free Week was included in Public Act 26-68. For detailed information on Sales Tax–Free Week, including a list of individual items that are exempt or taxable, visit the webpage on the state website.

• I’ll be checking out all of the progress on the construction in West Hartford Center, Animal Control, and the former UConn campus area this coming week, but here are some photos shared with me of the restriping of Farmington Avenue and the nearly-completed two-way bike lane that’s a direct connection to the Trout Brook Trail which should be completed in time for Center Streets on Aug. 30. There’s a raised platform to accommodate the bus stop, too..

• Click here to listen to the latest episode of On The Scene featuring hosts Tom Hickey and Bob Carr who welcome the Connecticut Forum Executive Director, Mana Zarinejad, for an engaging look at the organization’s 35th season and its role in bringing people together. The conversation previews appearances by Trevor Noah, Andrew Ross Sorkin, Chris Hayes, Samantha Power, and David Miliband, along with timely discussions about the economy, journalism, humanitarian action, and the future of our communities. All “On the Scene” podcasts can be found on the bottom of the We-Ha.com homepage.
• ICYMI, in a unique marketing campaign by personal injury law firm Trantolo & Trantolo, temporary messages were stenciled on sidewalks in West Hartford and Hartford last week, leading to a firestorm of reaction on social media. Read the full story here.
• ICYMI, the WeHa Artists Emporium ART STOP is coming up on Aug. 29. Complete details can be found here.
• Did you know …

Remember, if you have any business news to share, add it in the comments section below or email Ronni Newton at [email protected].

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