So it’s been a while since you’ve been back on the North Fork.
Well don’t worry, we’ve been here the whole time keeping tabs on what’s new.
Whether it’s a new restaurant, shopping, an event concept at a winery or beyond, there’s lots to talk about since last fall.
This list is sure to feature something for everyone looking for the next great time out on the North Fork.
EAT
Get your BBQ on in Mattituck
Sweet and savory have always been a great combination, and Meat’s Meat BBQ in Mattituck takes the concept to a whole new level. Owner Larry Mondello, known for his popular food truck and catering service of the same name, has opened a brick-and-mortar hub for his business at the former North Fork Doughnut Co. space (NoFoDoCo moved to Love Lane). Meat’s Meat offers meat by the pound, a full carving station, prepared dishes and custom desserts. READ MORE
Southold Social is sure to be a hit
The former Caci North Fork building in Southold is the upcoming home to a new chef with a familiar and highly regarded name. James Beard award-winning chef François Payard is set to open Southold Social, a new bistro at the site. Payard, who has been working at nearby Southold General as a pastry chef since last year, is opening the new space in a collaboration with North Fork restaurateur Adam Lovett, who will co-own and operate the new concept. Lovett is already known as an owner and operator of both A Lure in Southold and A Mano in Mattituck. The new bistro has promised to use local ingredients and embrace the North Fork’s maritime culture and its status as a wine region. READ MORE
New brunch option in Greenport
The Gallery Café, a new restaurant concept by Chef Cheo Avila and Chef de Cuisine Ryan Barth-Dwyer, has opened at the Gallery Hotel. Avila, who is known for being the head chef of Kon-Tiki in the same space, now manages both the restaurant and the hotel and wanted to offer a more robust breakfast and lunch menu to both hotel guests and greater Greenport. READ MORE
Sandwiches are back at 8 Hands Farm
When 8 Hands Farm in Cutchogue reopened for the season, it reintroduced a tasty addition to its repertoire. Every weekend, 8 Hands will offer two to three special sandwiches as part of a new pop-up series highlighting produce and meats sourced from on-site. The farm, which used to have a popular food truck, has been prototyping different sandwiches. The first two are a banh mi sandwich with barbecued char siu-style pork, liver paté, pickled vegetables, spicy mayo, cucumber, peanuts and cilantro, and a hoagie-style sandwich with herb-roasted pork loin, broccoli rabe, pecorino with gruyere and dijonnaise. Everything is sourced on the farm and both sandwiches feature a sourdough potato bun, made in-house. The husband and wife team behind the food truck are also behind these sandwiches. READ MORE
More of a good thing at Braun’s
Armed with the skills she developed working with Rooted Hospitality Group’s restaurants Cowfish, Rumba and Flora on the South Fork, Chef Terri Novak brought her game to Braun’s Kitchen in Cutchogue, where she launched a menu with a new look last fall. Throughout her restaurant career, Novak’s go-to supplier for fish was Braun Seafood, owned and operated by three generations of the Homan family in Cutchogue. She’d grown friendly with most of the staff over the years. When third generation family member Cody Homan had a vision for elevating the menu of Braun’s Grill while keeping white tablecloths off the picnic tables, he knew that Novak was the right person to make it happen. READ MORE
For oyster lovers
You may have tried Little Ram oysters at Frisky Oyster or one of your other favorite places to dine. Or perhaps you’ve driven by their roadside stand in Southold and grabbed yourself a couple dozen to take home with you. But now the popular shellfish company has a brand new location at The Shoals. READ MORE
Insatiable Eats opened in Riverhead
For the North Fork crowd, there’s nothing quite like Insatiable Eats Creative Kitchen, the new venture by caterer and restaurateur Chef Marco Barrila and wife Sheila, which opened last fall in Riverhead. Between the authentic Sicilian pizza, the coffee bar featuring imported beans from Barrila’s hometown of Messina, the gourmet marketplace with imported panettone, chocolate and other fine foods and a buffet of hot Italian dishes, Insatiable Eats Creative Kitchen is an Italian food lover’s dream. READ MORE
Always something new from the Lucha crew
Marc LaMaina just brought a bold splash of color to Riverhead. The latest brainchild from the North Fork restaurateur, Luchacubano is a true evolution of the ever-growing “Lucharitos” brand, a slick, colorful restaurant with a Cuban-inspired menu that feels quite unlike anything else in the community. It’s inside the freshly renovated building that previously was home to Sunny’s and for decades was the Riverhead Diner & Grill. READ MORE
Opened last fall at Indian Island
Kenny’s on the Green is a welcoming New American restaurant from, among others, former Sunny’s chef-owner Jim Liszanckie. The menu, which includes a range of items from burgers to a charcuterie board and steaks, is designed to be eclectic and offer something for everyone. READ MORE
A new café at one farm stand
The Breitenbach brothers have found a simple way to share farm-fresh ingredients with hungry customers through the Greenhouse Café, slated to open soon at their eponymous farm stand. The simple menu will consist of paninis and soups using their vegetables, fancy and grilled PB&J sandwiches (there are a whopping 20 jam options), veggies and dips, apple cider donuts as well as freshly squeezed lemonade with in-season berries and locally roasted coffee. READ MORE
New food options at this distillery
You can now grab a bite to pair with cocktails at Montauk Distilling Co. in Riverhead. Local chef Justin Ranghell has launched a food menu at the distillery as their first-ever executive chef. If you have a sweet tooth on the East End, you may recognize Ranghell as the man behind Papi’s Pastries, an Instagram-based dessert business he launched out of his apartment kitchen last year. READ MORE
Montauk restaurant coming to Southold
Elbow East, the longtime Southold restaurant across from Kenney’s Beach, has been sold to the owners of 668 The Gig Shack in Montauk. “The Shack,” as it’s commonly referred to, is a popular beachy restaurant owned by the Gardell family in Montauk. Chef Gray Gardell-Gross serves up a seafood-focused menu that includes tuna tartare tacos, fish “Montacos” and East End staples like a lobster roll. READ MORE
Coming soon to Wading River
The new owners of the former Michael Anthony’s Food Bar space are opening Watermark of Wading River, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner beginning next month. It’s from the former owner of Munday’s in Huntington, Cosmo Parrella, who sold his Huntington business after 20 years in 2019. READ MORE
Indoor farmers market stays open
The East End Food Market, the winter farmer’s market in Riverhead, is now open year-round. The market has seen tremendous success since moving Main Road in Riverhead last November. To accommodate the interest and enthusiasm from the community, the market is now open Wednesdays and Fridays from 3 to 7 p.m. READ MORE
New cheese shop planned for Cutchogue
Paige Pfeifer, owner of The Cheese Patch wine bar in Patchogue, is planning to open The French Picnic this summer next to Karen’s Country Deli on Main Road. The concept is to provide ways to fill up your North Fork picnic basket with delicious wines, cheeses and other provisions. The Cheese Patch has been open for 10 years and Pfeifer wanted to have a small but elegant space on the North Fork. She plans to feature and highlight both local and other wines at The French Picnic, as well as gourmet cheeses, which will all be paired in the baskets. READ MORE
Black Sheep Bagels now in two spots
The bagel drought in Cutchogue will soon be over. Chris Conlan, owner of Black Sheep Bagels in Jamesport, recently signed a lease for a second location in the former Scoops & Grinds along Main Road. Renovations are already underway at the new location adjacent to Braun Seafood. READ MORE
O’Mally’s now a Señor Taco
Señor Taco Mexican Grill, which has locations in Mt. Sinai, Holbrook, Nesconset and Wading River, is now open on Route 48 in Southold. O’Mally’s, which had been under the ownership of Jimmy Kokotas for seven years, closed late last year. READ MORE
A new cupcake truck to look out for
Debra Underwood of Riverhead is taking her home baking business on the road. She recently unveiled her truck, the Red Velvet Cupcakery, to serve up sweets across the East End. Underwood said it’s been a “labor of love” to bring her vision to life in the converted Chevrolet P-20 truck, which she has been working to revamp for nearly four years with her childhood friend, Donna Bugdin. The women teamed up to transform the vehicle, installing a new engine, gave the truck a fresh paint job and applied graphics designed by Underwood’s daughter, Kristina, and printed by Wedel Signs in Riverhead. READ MORE
New name for this mainstay
Jamesport Manor Inn has returned with a new look, new menu, new name and an interesting nod to the property’s storied past. Now known as The Dimon Estate, the restaurant’s reworking is the brainchild of Chris Kar and Emily Hammond. Kar wanted to make the menu more accessible, while Hammond focused on mining the history of the building and the surrounding property, which was owned by the shipbuilding Dimon family for 200 years. READ MORE
DRINK
RGNY welcomes a new winemaker
RGNY in Riverhead has welcomed new winemaker Jonathan G. Bomberg to the staff. Bomberg is originally from Wisconsin and worked in the California wine industry and plans to continue the work Lilia Perez started. They’re also working on some exciting new additions to the wine selection, like a sparkling Cabernet Franc rosé. READ MORE
Ev&Em Vineyards officially opens in Laurel
This new vineyard, in the former Laurel Lake space, is the creation of TV personality Dan Abrams and is formally launching this summer. Abrams has enlisted Laurel Lake founder and winemaker Juan Sepulveda to create a selection of new wines. One thing we’re particularly interested in is Ev&Em’s E2 label of “entry level” wines, which are designed to be more accessible to the wine taster.
Corey Creek Tap Room’s Small Batch Series includes wine aged on seashells
Corey Creek Tap Room’s Small Batch Series of experimental wines will soon include a wine aged on seashells. Assistant winemaker Marin Brennan is aging a stainless-steel fermented chardonnay on seashells sourced from local beaches and plans to call it “Coquillage,” the French word for shellfish. While the wine isn’t quite ready for tasting yet, there are other interesting Small Batch Series wines ready to try, like the 100% malbec and syrah rosés. READ MORE
North Fork Brewing Co. introduces a homemade ginger ale
There’s a new soft drink at North Fork Brewing Co. in Riverhead. Co-owner Ian Van Bourgondien has prepared a ginger ale using ginger root from Schmitt’s Farm and lemons from Van Bourgondien’s farm in Peconic. You can also try the ginger ale spiked, of course. READ MORE
Top Hops Half Pint is coming to the North Fork
A craft beer truck is headed out east. Top Hops, a Manhattan craft beer shop and tasting room, has prepared two vintage Piaggio Ape Classics to house a selection of tap beers at private events, festivals and other events this summer. There are a number of options if you want to rent the truck, including a Long Island craft beer selection and even mead. READ MORE
LIVE
More touchGOODS
Also in downtown Southold, touchGOODS, a furniture and lighting home goods shop, has expanded its footprint taking over the adjoining space that was home to Complement the Chef. In the new space, touchGOODS has expanded its offerings becoming a one-stop shop for your home with a curated selection of bedding, cookware, dinner, glassware, linens, and cleaning items. Visit at 53740 Main Rd., Southold. Current hours are 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday – Friday, 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Sunday. READ MORE
White Flower Farmhouse expansion
Lori Guyer’s wildly popular White Flower Farmhouse has expanded this year opening White Flower along with local floral designer Nathaniel Savage just across the street in the Old Ye Olde Party Shoppe space. The newly opened shop features curated vintage and new garden and outdoor living items, and florals including fresh-cut stems, potted plants, dried bunches and branches, and more. Visit 53850 Main St., Southold. Current hours are Friday and Saturday from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. – 4 p.m., Monday hours are available by appointment. READ MORE
New to Greenport
Brand new to the retail scene is The ARC Room, a lifestyle concept store with unique, curated collections of women’s wear, accessories, and jewelry. Featured brands include Sara Cristina, Mystique Sandals, Gachon Pothier, Dragon Diffusion, and more. Visit at 407 Main St., Greenport.
Day at the Beacheeky
Beacheeky, a department store devoted to all things surf and sand that came onto the scene last year in Southold’s Feather Hill has moved across the street into Einstein Square. The new more walkable location stocks boutique-style clothing as well as ‘fan favorite’ gifts like locally made pillows, signs, picture frames, and a large selection of jewelry such as handcrafted beach glass jewelry. Beachwear and accessories are a mainstay in the shop but through the seasons you’ll also find cozy sweaters, jeans, hoodies, and more. Visit at 54100 Main Rd., Southold. Current hours are Monday – Saturday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and on Sundays from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. READ MORE
A new home for In the Attic Too
In the Attic Too has found a new home in Mattituck at the NoFo Center which includes the recently relocated Basso, and wine and tapas destination. The antique shop, which features beautifully refinished vintage furniture also stocks one-of-a-kind antiques and uniques, soaps and candles, and other handmade items from local artisans. Visit at 10200 Main Rd., Mattituck Fridays from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. READ MORE
Finally arrived at Tanger
Tanger Outlet goers were delighted to see Crate & Barrel open their first New York outlet at the Riverhead outlet center earlier this year. The location offers everything from furniture to kitchenware across 15,000-square feet of space. READ MORE
BREATHE
Horton’s Flower Farm, Riverhead
Last year, Claudette Gross and her family quietly opened this small U-pick flower farm on the northern end of Horton Avenue with just a handful of rows. This year, she’s planted nearly 20 rows of sunflowers, consmos, zinnias, aster and more that will start to bloom when she opens next month. You’ll want to visit the flower farm, snip your own bouquets and, of course, snap some photos for Instagram. Claudette, who happens to be a full-time photographer, plans to offer sessions and has definitely curated a cool experience with vintage-inspired photo ops along the way. You can read more about the U-pick farm, and the art of flower farming, in our upcoming June issue of northforker magazine.
Sculptures at Landcraft Garden, Mattituck
If you haven’t visited the quiet oasis that is Landcraft Garden, add this to your bucket list immediately. Since 1992, partners Dennis Schrader and Bill Smith have been cultivating this horticultural paradise on 17 acres of land surrounding their 1840s farmhouse. The grounds are breathtaking, winding through a pollinator path, pool garden, English roses, Mediterranean garden and labyrinth. This year’s outdoor sculpture exhibition kicks off June 4. You’ll find works by Eddie Martinez and Sam Moyer, a married couple that contributed 14 of their sculptures that feature stone, concrete and found items from North Fork beaches. READ MORE
Duryea’s opens beach club in Orient Point
Duryea’s new beach club seems like the idyllic spot to lounge on the beach while not actually being at “the beach” this summer. You can relax in comfortable shaded chairs near the water’s edge or hang with up to 10 of your friends on chic loungers while enjoying the raw bar, cold beverage or ice cream on the beach. READ MORE
Easy afternoons at The Commodore Club
The Commodore Club – a members club with priority access to Sound View Hotel and Harborfront Inn amenities and special events. Memberships will consist of four levels: Captain, Skipper & Crew, Skipper & First Mate, and Stowaway. The Commodore Club memberships include access and seating at the Harborfront Inn’s pool overlooking the Peconic Bay, Sound View’s seaside pool, and the quarter-mile of pebbled beach. Summer goals will be met with member priority seating at the award-winning Halyard restaurant. Family fun while at the pool or after dinner, members receive special discounts at Jack Shack and the Piano Bar. Additionally, members will get priority seating and tickets to all signature activations and events, created by Eagle Point Hotel Partner’s cultural platform, Kulture Collective. Other fun on-property activities include ballroom dancing, painting classes, and fireside chats with special guests. Each tier will come with a specific number of guests passes for the year, designated hours to meeting spaces, and direct access to parking.
The Settees at Sound View
These customizable modular beach settees will allow everyone to beach in the best way possible, while creating or continuing their beach rituals. In-room menus will be available for guests to choose from a choice of set-ups, such as a romantic moment for two, to an extended family set-up. There will be a food and beverage offering along with the settees, which were designed by Geoffrey Walsky of Iconic Modern Home.
Dances in the Park Greenport returns
This iconic summer tradition lines up with Fourth of July this year. Is there a better way to celebrate? The concert starts at 7:30 and will kick off the weekly Monday night series, which runs through Aug. 29. Remember to bring a lawn blanket or chairs and get their early to secure a spot on the grass! READ MORE
Shakespeare returns to Mitchell (and other) parks
This is one of my favorite traditions. Nothing beats a live production of a Shakespeare play and this year, Northeast Stage will present “The Taming of the Shrew,” the iconic story that serves as the inspiration behind adaptations like “Kiss Me, Kate,” the musical and “10 Things I Hate About You.” Performances begin July 31 at East End Arts Council in Riverhead and other stops include Train Park in Terryville on Aug. 3 and the Shorefront Park bandshell in Patchogue Aug. 4. The tour will conclude in Greenport’s Mitchell Park on Friday, August 5 through Sunday, August 7 at 7 p.m. Performances are free, just bring a chair or blanket!
Splish Splash debuts new ride
Beat the summer heat by riding the Hyperlight slide at this Calverton water park. If you’ve been to the park, you’ll notice that the former ‘Abyss’ ride was reimagined to be an all-sensory experience with new lighting and sound effects. Also new for 2022, the park announced that it will be going cashless. Starting May 28 (opening day), only credit, debit or mobile payments will be accepted. READ MORE
Alive on 25 returns on a new day
The popular Alive on 25 street festival returns to Riverhead on Fridays instead of Thursdays this year. It’s the perfect way to start any weekend and the first event on July 1 will feature a car show and fireworks. Other dates include July 15, 23, 29 and Aug. 12. Reflextions, the annual light and art show held in Grangebel Park, will also be presented on July 23 and Aug. 12. READ MORE
Celebrate Pride
Celebrate Pride and inclusivity across the North Fork from a wine and floral installation fundraiser event at RGNY to party with a Euphoria themed makeup station at Terra Vite or a golf outing hosted by North Fork Women. READ MORE
