Cheers to the winners of the 2024 Readers’ Choice Best Of the North Fork!

We love how engaged our local community is. All year long, we get emails, phone calls, texts, social media messages and in-person requests and comments about our content — what you like, what you’d like to see (and not like to see!) and: When, oh when, are we going to post your ultimate weigh-in on who’s captured your hearts in our annual Best Of the North Fork.

We asked; you answered. Thanks to all of you who took the time to tell us who your favorites are for Best of the North Fork 2024. There were surprises, shoo-ins, struggles to the end and even a bunch of new people, places and businesses making it into the roster of choices. And we were just as excited as you to see what everyone had to say.

Thousands of readers cast their votes from the long list of Best Of winners compiled by our staff. Over 30 Eat, Drink, Live and Breathe picks won your hearts once again this year. But as much as you people appear to admire consistency, you also embrace change.

We added 16 new categories to our Best Of and you voted enthusiastically, if not competitively! One new category, Best History Center, was a neck-and-neck tie between the Shelter Island Historical Society and the Southold History Museum. There were some close calls and surprises, too, like Lauren Lombardi beating Francois Payard by a breadcrumb for Best Chef (put those knives down, chefs!), A Lure nosing out Porto Bello for Best Waterfront Dining and, in a total nail-biter for Best Clothing Store, Salt & Sea getting the gussied-up nod by one single vote over Kessie. (See? Your vote does matter!)

And some winners got all the love by a landslide: in our classic categories, it was Ammirati’s for the win as Best Deli; Magic Fountain for Best Ice Cream & Frozen Treats and NoFoDoCo for Best Sweets & Treats (seriously, have you had those damn doughnuts — they are so good!). In new categories this year, Sang Lee picked up a far-and-away win for Best CSA and Southold Hardware seems to be everyone’s choice for Best Hardware Store.

Here are the 58 Readers’ Choice picks for Northforker’s Best of the North Fork 2024.

EAT

Best Breakfast and Brunch Spot — Love Lane Kitchen, Mattituck

Best Italian Food — Il Giardino, Aquebogue

Best Bagel — Goldberg’s, multiple locations

Best Asian Cuisine — Stirling Sake, Greenport

Best Mexican and Latin Food — Lucharitos, Greenport

Best Waterfront Dining — A Lure Chowder House & Oysteria, Southold

Best Special Occasion Restaurant — North Fork Table & Inn, Southold

Best Dock and Dine — Claudio’s Waterfront, Greenport

Best Date Spot — The Frisky Oyster, Greenport

Best Family Restaurant — Hellenic Snack Bar & Restaurant, East Marion

Best Seafood Spot — Southold Fish Market, Southold

Best CSA — Sang Lee Farms, Peconic

Best Farm Stand — Country View Farm Stand, Southold

Best Luncheonette — The Cutchogue Diner, Cutchogue

Best Deli — Ammirati’s of Love Lane, Mattituck

Best Ice Cream & Frozen Treats — Magic Fountain Ice Cream, Mattituck

Best Sweets and Treats — North Fork Doughnut Co., Mattituck

Best Burger — Barrow Food House, Aquebogue

Best Gourmet Pizza — 1943 Pizza Bar, Greenport

Best Lobster Roll — Southold Fish Market, Southold

Best Wings — Legends, New Suffolk

Best Chef — Lauren Lombardi, Lauren Lombardi Events and Lombardi’s Love Lane Market, Mattituck

Best Pie — Briermere Farms, Riverhead

Best Mainstay — Hellenic Snack Bar & Restaurant, East Marion

Best Takeout Spot — Southold Fish Market, Southold

DRINK

Best Brewery — Greenport Harbor Brewing Company, Greenport and Peconic

Best Distillery — One Woman, Southold

Best Happy Hour — First and South Bar & Restaurant, Greenport

Best Cocktail Spot — Brix & Rye, Greenport

Best Sports Bar — Legends Restaurant, New Suffolk

Best Tea and Coffee House — North Fork Roasting Company, Southold

Best Tasting Room — Croteaux Vineyards, Southold

Best Winery — Macari Vineyards, Mattituck

Best Winemaker — Alie Shaper, Chronicle Wines

Best Wine Club — Macari Vineyards, Mattituck

Best Wine Shop — Vintage Mattituck, Mattituck

LIVE

Best B&B — Sannino Vineyard Bed & Breakfast, Cutchogue

Best Hotel — The Menhaden, Greenport

Best Clothing Store — Salt & Sea, Greenport

Best Home Decor Shop — White Flower Farmhouse & White Flower, Southold

Best Nursery and Garden Center — Trimble’s of Corchaug Nursery, Cutchogue

Best Florist — North Fork Flower Farm, Southold

Best Hardware Store — Southold ACE Hardware, Southold

Best Gift Shop — Arni Paperie, Southold

BREATHE

Best Barber — Haircutters of Love Lane, Mattituck

Best Salon — Cassandra Mari Salon, Mattituck

Best Spa — The Spa & Salon at East Wind, Wading River

Best Yoga & Pilates Studio — The Giving Room, Southold

Best Gym and Fitness Studio — North Fork Wellness Center, Cutchogue

Best Live Music Space — Greenport Harbor Brewing Company, Greenport

Best Local Band or Performer — Gene Casey and the Lone Sharks

Best Marina — Strong’s Water Club, Mattituck

Best Kids’ Activity — Long Island Aquarium, Riverhead

Best Hiking Trail — Hallock State Park Preserve, Riverhead

Best Park — Orient Beach State Park, Orient

Best Main Drag — Front Street, Greenport

Best History Center — Shelter Island Historical Society, Shelter Island; Southold Historical Museum, Southold

Best Local Landmark — Horton Point Lighthouse, Southold