The region’s emerging dining and winery scene is an excellent alternative to the blingy enclave of the Hamptons across the water.
LessPerched a stone’s throw from Kenney’s Beach, Arden Gardell’s aptly themed beachy seafood spot is the laid-back sibling to 668 The Gig Shack, his family’s seafood restaurant in Montauk. The menu at this casual bungalow, helmed by Ryan Barth-Dwyer, specializes in New American seaside plates from spicy tuna tartare taquitos to monkfish tikka masala. Fruit-forward cocktails reign, like a strawberry riff on a classic jungle bird, spiked with rum, Campari, lime juice and brown sugar.
Every little town could use a Salumeria Sarto, the charming, month-old Italian food market and 16-seat osteria in the heart of Greenport. It boasts the same kind of rustic charm—aged oak floors, distressed farm tables and a vintage black and gold Berkel meat slicer that’s both aesthetic and functional—that owners Dulcinea Benson and chef Frank DeCarlo infused into Peasant, the Italian restaurant they used to own in SoHo.
With walls of framed fish and ocean, the aquatic focus of Minnow is loud and clear; the message is pushed by co-owner Andrea Tese, a committed maritime conservationist and chef Jose Avila. He fires line-caught fish alongside local produce for such dishes as sherry-laced roasted carrots and grilled black sea bass with salsa verde. Options like organic Rhubarb Gin Fizzes stock the drinks list. There are scenic eating options both inside and out on the spacious patio.
In May, Erdem expanded to Greenport, taking over an original craftsman-style space on Main Street. The light interior refresh included a new whitewashed interior with palm trees. The Mediterranean restaurant, helmed by Turkish chef Emre Yesil, boasts a Mykonos-inspired seafood menu. Tzatziki is served with fried pita chips, and the fish—from swordfish to branzino—is simply grilled. They’re served alongside such cocktails as No Fo Passion, which mixes tequila, passionfruit purée and agave.
Chef Dan Kluger is on a roll. On the heels of launching his New American spot Greywind in Hudson Yards, the chef is now exporting Washington Squares, his Grandma-style pan pizza pop up, to the North Fork. Kluger’s square pies will be available at Mattituck’s Macari Vineyards’ tasting room every weekend through the summer. On offer: a mix of classic and seasonal slices and pies, from the “O.G.,” a chili-laced riff on the margherita to Kluger’s iteration of Greek spanikopita flipped into a pizza.
Fans of the crème brûlée challah French toast at 75 Main in Southampton will be pleased to know that it’s now available in Greenport. Earlier this month, Hamptons restaurateur Zach Erdem opened Zey, a 10-room, beach-themed boutique hotel, with a cozy ground floor all-day eatery that’s near Zerdem (below). Café 75 shares other dishes with 75 Main, like honey-balsamic-roasted salmon and feta-flecked watermelon salad. On a sunny day, the prime seats are the outdoor bistro tables.