Something New/Restaurant Week!

I'm trying something new today here on my blog. I want to do regular features, so you can come to expect a regular post on certain days. I figure Thursdays are a good day to feature a restaurant so you might plan your weekend with a new place in mind! What do you think? I will start to plan the other days in the weeks to follow, so keep checking in. 

Today, I'd like to recommend a small place in the village of Patchogue. PeraBell is a cozy, little gem that is quickly becoming my favorite new place to eat. There's not too many tables here so plan accordingly. It definitely has a pub like feel. There is a bar and a few high tables in the front, and a handful of tables in a small room in back. I guess that's not for everyone, but I like the intimate, albeit noisy feel of a pub. They always have a grat selection of specials and their regular menu is fantastic. More than pub food, that's for sure. My favorite is the wedge salad. So big and full of goodies, you really don't need much more than that....but....I can't resist getting dinner too. I usually eat a few bites and take the rest home for lunch the next day. Everything is delicious, but my standouts are the pistachio encrusted tilapia and the mac and cheese. My husband loves the thai mussels (well, I do too!) You can make a reservation through OpenTable.

PeraBell is now open for lunch and from what their website says they are open 7 days a week! 

UPDATE! I forgot to mention that next week in Restaurant Week on Long Island!!! YAY!

Farmers Market

Westhampton Beach has a farmers market that goes until December! We finally got around to getting there. Although it was the last week in October, there was a good selection of items to choose from. We had some great cheese but I don't remember the name of the company. Sang Lee  Farms was there in a big way. Sang Lee Farm is an organic farm located in Mattituck. They supply many of the restaurants on Long Island organic produce. They have a fabulous selection of organic vegetables and also offer their homemade dressings. Davis Farms was there with a nice variety of Apples so we picked up a few. We are big apple lovers in this house. There were local honey producers, bakeries, fudge and some pasta. We also brought home some pickles soaked in mustard....actually really tasty....I think I will be back next week for more! I'm sure in the summer months, the number of vendors is larger but I thought there was enough to make it worth it. The market is located in the parking lot of the Historical Society on Mill Rd, Saturdays from 9 to 12.

Goblins

For the last few years, the Chamber of Commerce has been sponsoring a March of the Goblins parade through Main St. It is a nice, safe way to have the children trick or treat. The merchants in town all hand out candy and some have even gone out of their way to set up haunted storefronts. Main Street is closed down for a few hours and chaos ensues...

Wrapping it up....

I'm not telling who this is!

Fall

I Love Fall!!!

Weekend/Farm

Judging by the parking lot, not many know about this wonderful free resource. Cornell Cooperative has a working farm located in Yapank. Sunday we went to the farm to see the animals. It was a beautiful day and we pretty much had the place to ourselves. Many of the animals have been rescued or are older and are very sweet and happy to see you! You can buy food at the visitors center for $2 a bag. I suggest buying a few as there is a lot of animals and they will want to see want you bring them. The pigs are the best...I never realized how much they act like dogs! There were a group of young pigs that were so playful, I could have watched them all day. They were so adorable, play fighting with each other and when the worker started hosing down their pen, they all started to bite the hose and shake it just like a puppy would! The farm has a lot of different areas to see, we spent alot more time there than I thought we would. There is a new play area for children built with logs and wood from fallen trees. A very nice touch and shows how you can repurpose natural resources. Even though this season is wrapping up, they still have a few activities planned for the coming weeks. Go Here to see what they have to offer.

 Very happy to see us

 How can you resist those ears!!

Scary

Hey everybody! This weekend starts the annual haunted festivities here on the Island. Over the years there have been so many new places popping up. The Spooky Walk, presented by the Paquatuk Squaws to help raise money for Camp Paquatuck is always one of the best. A long walk through the woods in the dark is scary enough, but throw in physco clowns and pirate ghosts, and you're sure to be shaken up.

Zone 7

Another advantage to living on Long Island is the gardening zone. Living so close to the water has a warming effect on our climate. By trade, I am a Garden Designer and have had the pleaseure of working in some of the most beautiful gardens. We are rich with resources...you would not believe how many growers there are on this Island! Many of them are growing very unique and specialized plant material and a lot are turning to Native species.  I plan on featuring many of these growers on this blog along with great nurseries and gardens that I've designed! There is a load of resources out there of great people doing great things for our environment. 

Weekend

Pumpkin Time

When you have a sixteen year old, they're not apt to want to go pumpkin picking with you anymore. So its nice to borrow your friends two year old. Always a good time.

Also, when you have a sixteen year old, they tend to not have a wide taste range. We went to a family birthday party at Big Daddy's in Massapequa on Saturday and there was absolutely nothing on the menu a teenager wants to eat. Big Daddy's is a Cajan restaurant and everything here is spicy. They had burgers, but with jalapeno cheese and nothing but sweet potato fries. No regular fries. You cannot have a burger (without cheese) and not have fries.....so, a trip to All American on the way home was in order...

 Big Daddy's

 I had a shrimp and crawfish dish in a poblano cream sauce...good stuff

YUM, yes please

Weekend/Hidden Jewels

This weekend we were invited to join relatives and friends to the North Fork for ---wait for it---more wine tasting! Long Island has become a great destination for wine..more and more small vineyards are popping up and the product is fantastic! My husband and I have been visiting and became members at some of the most popular wineries, but didn't really do any research...we just would stop at places we thought looked good..I know, great criteria. Well, to my great delight, this weekend we discovered a few places and now I don't know if we can go back to our old ways. These wineries are intimate, fun and most important...Not Crowded!  No limos and bridal parties here...what a joy. 

Our first stop was Sherwood House Winery in Mattituck. 

These tasting rooms are really just small sheds with picnic tables and tents...adorable. It was a beautiful day, the sun was warm and the staff was so friendly and attentive. We chose the Owner's Flight tasting which started with a light and delicious Blanc de Blanc and ended with a spectacular Bordeaux blend called Sherwood Manor that blew everyone away...definitely took some of that home!

I believe this was the Cabernet Franc, one of our last tastings at Sherwood house.

Our next stop was Shinn Estate Vineyards. Actually, you could just walk through the vineyards from Sherwood House. They are on adjoining properties. Shinn is a sustainable farm that practices organic methods. Find out more about Shinn here.

 Shinn Estate Vineyards tasting room

From there it was a race to One Woman Vineyards as it was almost closing time...One woman is open until 6pm, so we had a few minutes to enjoy a few glasses as the sun set on the day. 

We tried the wonderful 2007 Estate Chardonnay, which we had to purchase. Highly recommended!

 One Woman Winery

The North Fork in the Autumn is really becoming the best part of Long Island...there is loads to do and something for every age. Along Sound Ave. and Route 25, there are numerous pumpkin farms, corn mazes and farmstands. Great restaurants and lots of wineries! 

We ended the night with dinner at Bayview Inn. Ehh. Mediocre at best.

Work

I had to work all weekend so, no adventures for me. It was homecoming weekend though, and the home teams won all their games!!

Have a Wonderful Weekend!

Grapes ready for harvest

Have a wonderful weekend...The above photo is at Macari Vineyard in Mattituck. My Favorite wine this year is the Early Wine, a light, fruity Chardonnay. Perfect for summer afternoons!

Butterflies!

A few weeks ago, we were riding down Burma Rd (the interior road along fire island) and came upon a swarm of monarchs! I've never seen this before and was shocked at how many there were. They were concentrated in a very small area of pine trees, in about 30 feet. Does anyone know about this? Are they there every year? I guess they were passing through on their way south because a week later they were all gone.

Weekend

This is the only photo I managed to take... : P

I guess I was expecting more 'Maritime' in the Maritime Festival in Greenport.
Was more of a craft/street fair. We ended up going on Sunday afternoon so maybe they did more nautical things on Sat.? Ehh...The Chowder was good! The photo above is the renovated carousel by the marina.

'Hurricane' Earl

Rough surf at Moriches Inlet

Part of Outerbeach we've never driven through before, it is usually closed to vehicles...
wondering why it was open with such rough seas......

Surfer contemplating the waves...he decided not to risk it after about 10 minutes of staring at the ocean, smart guy.

So after all the worrying and preparation that the news told us we should be doing, about all we got from hurricane Earl was some rough seas. It made for a nice trip to the beach, so I wasn't complaining. We have a busy weekend ahead, Oktoberfest at Camp Paquatuck on Friday night, my son is playing with his band at Mulcahy's Pub on Saturday and Maritime Festival in Greenport on Sunday. Our wedding anniversary is on Monday, so while in Greenport we are going to have a nice celebratory dinner at Noah's. YUM!

Back to it!

calm before the storm

Hi all! I have been enjoying a really beautiful summer....I was camera-less for many, many months and probably missed some really great shots. :( But I have a new p&s and am trying to make up for that. I have really learned how to relax this summer and have been enjoying every minute of it! I really never took advantage of the ocean like I did this year. I have to say, it was fabulous. We are kinda in a drought in the northeast, so my gardens at home have been suffering, but the beach days have certainly made up for it! We have also been taking advantage of the many offerings here on Long Island...wineries, beautiful seaside villages, great restaurants, concerts and events. I promise a lot of posts from now on!
Melodie

Harbor Seals

I don't know when they started showing up, but we actually have Harbor Seals visiting the great south bay. Apparently they stay here until March. These photos are not that great as I am only using a point and shoot. Someday soon I hope to upgrade my camera and get back to some serious photography!