Enter New Jersey hotelier Curtis Bashaw. Specializing in adaptive re-use projects, including the chic transformation of several landmark hotels in Cape May, N.J., Bashaw, who is gay, first frequented the Hamptons in the late 80s. “Red Bar had just opened in Southampton, creating buzz as a major step forward for the local scene,” recalls Bashaw of the enduring hotspot. Needless to say, the Hamptons are very different today, including once sleepy Sag Harbor, where Bashaw faced challenges in reviving Baron’s Cove.
“Rocco’s upset many people, and in a small resort destination, you have to manage the differing expectations of local stakeholders,” he says. “The key is to tread lightly, understanding that heritage properties do not exist in a vacuum, but in the context of their legacy,” continues Bashaw. “That means finding the right balance between past and present, keeping it timeless and classic and not too ‘of the moment,’ while also meeting customer preferences of today.”
Chef Guy Reuge
Following a comprehensive two-year overhaul, the new Baron’s Cove was unveiled last Memorial Day. With interior decorating from Bashaw’s sister Colleen, the fetching property features 67 updated rooms, new lobby bar, and second-level restaurant with outdoor terrace, where, like Steinbeck, Truman Capote and other stars before them, guests can bask in the harbor
sunsets. “The property has been warmly received by both locals and regulars from long ago,” reports Bashaw. “It’s gratifying to have successfully channeled the venue’s vibe as a convivial gathering spot.”
The bar and restaurant, naturally, are focal areas. “Think of classic New England lobster shack meets yacht club,” says Executive Chef Matty Boudreau. “Like the original Baron’s Cove, this is a place for everybody, from lovers to families.”
The Boston native, who began his culinary career as a kid selling hot dogs outside Fenway Park, keeps breezy on the plate. “Our seafood-driven menu is all about local sourcing and close supplier relationships,” says Boudreau, with fish stew, buffalo oysters, and duck breast among his signature items. “My relationships include Crescent Duck and Montauk Pearls— real East Enders, who pull oysters from the ocean in all weathers.”
For produce, it’s Satur Farms in Cutchogue, where the owner, along with wife Paulette, is Eberhard Müller, former executive chef at Manhattan temples Le Bernardin, Lutece and Bayard’s. “Having a chefminded purveyor literally in the field is a major advantage,” says Boudreau, whose background includes working with Le Bernardin’s current chef, Eric Ripert, at the Standard Hotel in Miami.
Baron’s Cove’s literary light is also back on—author, oenophile, and regular customer Jay McInerney, of Bright Lights, Big City fame, created the wine list.
Boudreau and his crew have spent most of the last 15 years on the East End, joining Baron’s Cove after five years at Long Island’s crown jewel Vine Street Café (41 South Ferry Road, Garden City, Tel: 631-749-3210. www.vinestreetcafe.com) on Shelter Island.
Another chef on the move is Ari Nieminen. With a Manhattan fine dining résumé that includes Café des Artistes, Water’s Edge, the restaurant at the five-star Four Seasons Hotel, and four years with Guy Reuge at Mirabelle, the Finnish native and CIA graduate is the new Executive Chef at the Garden City Hotel’s Polo Steakhouse (45 Seventh Street, New York, Tel: 516-747-3000. www.gardencityhotel.com)
Opened in 1874, the hotel, a Preferred Pride member, was once Long Island’s premier venue for galas and major events. Guests have included Charles Lindbergh, who stayed here before making his trans- Atlantic flight in 1927. Now in its fourth incarnation, Long Island’s only full-service luxury property, with a $30 million upgrade in 2014, opened Polo Steakhouse in 2013.
Just 15 minutes from Manhattan by train (steps from the hotel), this handsome, clubby restaurant features hand-laid mahogany herringbone floors, deep-cabernet textiles, Ferrari-red chairs, and private wine room. The USDA prime beef, dry-aged for 28 days, sizzles in signature plates like the porterhouse for two and bone-in rib eye.
For Nieminen, accustomed to “going outside of the mold while sticking to the classics” in his time with Reuge and other appointments, putting his brand on Polo is about “honoring steak techniques” with different ingredients. When we spoke, he had just prepared a roasted grouper with brown butter, thyme, and garlic. “My focus is on enhancing the menu with intelligently selected seafood, as pristine as our beef, while tweaking the cooking and presentation,” Nieminen says.
From Stony Brook–native Eric Lomando’s celebrated French Mediterranean menu at Kitchen A Bistro in St. James (404 North Country Road, Tel: 631-862-0151. www.kitchenabistro.com) to the restaurant and speakeasy at the beguiling Jedediah Hawkins Inn (400 South Jamesport Avenue, Tel: 631-722-2900. www.jedediahhawkinsinn.com) in Jamesport, Long Island’s culinary map extends in all directions.
Hamptonites flock to Nick & Toni’s (136 North Main Street, East Hampton, Tel: 631-324-3550. www.nickandtonis.com), where CIA-trained Executive Chef Joseph Realmuto, another champion of local sourcing, harvests from the restaurant’s one-acre organic garden for his winning Italian menu. Realmuto also launched three casual Hamptons’ spots: Rowdy Hall, a French bistro and pub; Mexican takeout-joint La Fondita; and Texas-style Townline BBQ.
Scrimshaw fish soup
As Guy Reuge noted, Long Island’s days of envying New York City are over. The recognition is there: native Long Islander Noah Schwartz has earned “Best Chefs America” honors the last four consecutive years for the seafood-inspired small plates at his celebrated year-round restaurant Noah’s (136 Front Street, Tel: 631-477-6720. www.chefnoahs.com) in Greenport.
Yet, Long Island chefs are still without a culinary Oscar: the James Beard award. The late Gerry Hayden of Southold’s North Fork Table & Inn (57225 Main Road, Southold, Tel: 631-765-0177. www.nofoti.com) came close as a three-time finalist. The next hope is three-time semif inalist Reuge himself, who is a 2016 semif inalist for Best Chef, Northeast. Whatever the results, Long Island has definitely arrived as a culinary destination.
Try a variety of the Long Island recipes at home. Click here.
