A Greenport hotel will soon welcome a cocktail and tapas eatery on its ground floor.
The Commodore is the latest venture by Eagle Point Hotel Partners and executive chef Stephan Bogardus and is set to open within the Harborfront Inn later this month.
The menu will focus on crafted cocktails, a raw bar menu and Northern Mediterranean-style tapas.
Erik Warner, co-founder of Eagle Point, said he envisions it as a place where visitors to the village can pop in and enjoy some light eats and a cocktail without having to invest their time into a full meal.
“Some nice background music, great tapas, small bites, cocktails that are paired to the tapas, wine and beer … and then you keep on rolling down the street,” he said of the concept.
Though some menu items, like an heirloom tomato gazpacho, torta, Basque cheesecake and Crema Catalana are undoubtedly Spanish-influenced, there will be plenty of nods to the North Fork, too.
“We’re creating these little bites that are a reflection of the North Fork,” Warner said.
Some menu items include a piece of local sea bass in a summer herb sauce, chilled crab salad, local oysters and a selection of cured meats and cheeses.
Beverage director Mishi Torgove is also at work on a cocktail menu that will pair seamlessly with the tapas. One rum-based drink, Warner explained, will fuse clarified strawberry juice, sherry, lime, saltwater and cava and be finished with fine black pepper and is meant to be paired with a crab dish.
In addition to the craft cocktails, the wine list will feature selections from the North Fork, France and Spain.
Warner hopes the Commodore adds another fluid experience across both hospitality properties — he also owns the Sound View Inn and Halyard on the North Road — and also the Greenport community at large.
He envisions being able to have the doors and windows open on the first floor to drive that community feeling.
“The objective was to share in the village experience,” Warner said. “It’s meant to be enough to keep you going, tease the palate.”
Warner said it will also serve as a place for guests of the hotel to enjoy welcome bites or to indulge in a nightcap.
“It’s just almost like that living-room experience,” he said.
Warner’s hospitality group purchased the 35-room Harborfront Inn in 2019 for $9.5 million and said establishing an eatery there was always a goal.
“When COVID came crashing down, we took our foot off the gas,” he said. “We’re coming out of COVID-19, we want to be experiencing more — and together.”
Light renovations, cleaning and equipment installation is underway at the Commodore, which will have a laid-back coastal vibe in line with the rest of the property. It will offer bar and cafe-style seating for up to 45 people.
They are aiming for a Father’s Day weekend opening.
