Top Rated Shopping in Stratford

This funky (and popular with the Yale crowd) bookstore offers an expansive selection for all ages and tastes, plus a fun adjoining cafe to grab a bite or drink and to further enjoy the literary experience. The store faces busy Chapel Street and if you are lucky enough to grab a place by the window, you can add people watching to the experience. Close to the Yale University Art Gallery and other Yale attractions, Atticus is a great place for the bookish as well as the hungry tourist.

Wave is a gallery and boutique shop located in Downtown New Haven. Wave specializes in beautiful jewelry and handmade crafts, gifts and other decor items. The friendly staff is happy to help you with anything from picking out that perfect pair of earrings to match your outfit to finding the perfect gift for your friend's wedding.

With more than 200 hundred stores in the United States and Canada, Ten Thousand Villages brings fine quality handicrafts from all over the world to New Haven. Beautiful handmade crafts and textiles, toys and home accessories fill the small boutique run by volunteers of this non-profit operation. The proceeds from these purchases assist third world crafts people in many ways including income to pay for food, clothing, housing, health care and education for their families. This is a perfect place to pick out a unique gift for a special person (or yourself!) while making a difference in the lives of third world artisans.

This shop is a true piece of New Haven history, and it is worth a stop inside regardless of your smoking habits. Conveniently located across the street from the Shubert Theatre, past customers include Vincent Price, Olivia de Havilland and Rex Harrison. Two employees from the 1950s still work here; one an expert in pipe repair and the other a specialist in mixing tobaccos. The shop offers a walk-in humidor, cigar lounge and cafe, plus everything from hand-blended tobaccos and handcrafted pipes to music boxes, writing instruments and chess sets.

Redefine your sense of style as you shop from Raggs. This spacious store is known for offering a range of stylish garments for men and women. Whether you are looking for a casual t-shirt or you want to buy a sleek dress, Raggs is sure to have something for every taste. Operating since 1984, this store is one of the best clothing shops in town and houses internationally acclaimed brands lie Hugo Boss, Colmar, Theory and more. Besides, you can opt for a tailor-made for yourself. In addition to clothing, the store offers a range of accessories to give your wardrobe a complete makeover.

You will find yourself staring in a daze at the large assortment of sweets inside this cozy shop. After you pick up some bulk candies and some hand dipped chocolates wrapped in pretty papers, try the soda fountain. Here, smoothies, authentic New York egg creams, milk shakes and malts can be whipped up with Double Rainbow ice cream, all the way from San Francisco. Don't forget to ask about its seasonal ice cream flavors.