Just got back from my off season visit to The Hamptons on L.I. and wanted to do a trip report. First of all, let me say that even in the off season The Hamptons are great. It was not overly crowded, everything was accessible, and most of the restaurants we had set our sights on were open, some on curtailed schedules.
Let me start with our only downer of the week: Southampton Publick House. After a walk thru the lovely town we ended up there and the food was mediocre. The Southampton beer made up for it somewhat. And, what’s with those crackers and butter everyone was munching on? Things went uphill from that point. On the way out of Southampton stopped at Tate’s Bake Shop and bought some of their cookies to snack on during our stay. They are good.
We stayed at The Bridgehampton Inn which is owned by the folks behind Loaves & Fishes. It is a lovely place right next door to their Loaves & Fishes Cookshop. It came with a fine breakfast each morning, with most of the food and table top utensils coming from the L&F catalog.
We had our first dinner at The 1770 House Restaurant & Inn in East Hampton, practically around the corner from Ina Garten’s home. We chose their Pub Room, which was cozy. Food was exceptional! Stand outs were the Short Ribs and individually sized Meat Loaf. The house Cheesecake was a winner, and the service was fine, too.
Went out to Montauk the following day and hung around the Lighthouse for a while. It was so soothing. I had been curious about the multi-million dollar renovation and expansion going on at Gurney’s Montauk Resort so we dropped in. And it was a jaw dropper! What a change from what I recall years ago. The buzz: It was taken over by a high powered restaurant group that owns spots in the City, and Chef/Restaurateur Scott Conant is involved. The main dining room has been totally modernized and redesigned but was only open for dinner, so we opted for their casual eatery called Tillie’s. It was wonderful, sporting a view of the deck and ocean and top notch kitchen. Notable dishes: Beet Salad, Avocado Tartine and my hearty Dagwood Turkey Club. We wanted to go light that evening, so we decided to try Mercado, the Mexican restaurant just outside of town in Bridgehampton. The Mexican Street Corn and Beef Nachos hit the spot. Nothing fancy, though.
Dinner on our final night was at iconic Nick & Toni’s in East Hampton. This bustling restaurant has been drawing in The Hamptons crowd for 27 years, we were told. The evening we were there it was quite busy. They are part of a larger group now that owns the local BBQ restaurant and another Nick & Toni’s in Manhattan. Well, it turned out to be a wonderful experience. The service staff was right on to help it along. Outstanding dishes: those popular Zucchini Chips, Cod Filet, Roast Pork Cassoulet, side of Brussels Sprouts, and their house Chocolate Tiramisu. Tried a specialty beer from Maine that I must share with you: it is named ‘Peeper’ and was very refreshing.
During our stay we visited one ‘Irish’ Tavern twice: Rowdy Hall in East Hampton. It was so friendly and comfortable. They surprised us with a complementary Irish Whiskey Cake. We found out later that it was owned by the same group behind Nick & Toni’s.
On our way out we made one final food stop at Loaves & Fishes Cookshop for some of their delicious Scones, Country Pate, Cornichons, and Orange Marmalade to take home…we’ll be back!
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