Cultivating an underwater crop is done with a firm but careful hand. Mother Nature is feminine, ruling this roost, controlling the elements that ebb and flow in this aquatic ecosystem. It’s the nurturing part that draws women into oyster farming. Aquaculture is not just a man’s game anymore, at least not on the East End, where the seasoned veterans and new farmers have chosen to make growing oysters their career.
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When you live on an island, rising sea levels are a concern, especially for farmers that cultivate crops both on land and in the sea. They are responsible for the food we eat and wine we drink. Rising temperatures also pose a threat to a region known for its wine harvest, vast produce offerings, and shellfisheries that drive the local economy and tourism. The local maritime climate has long defined agriculture and aquaculture. With the dangers of climate change looming over the coastal landscape, farmers share what the future holds for the East End.
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For a purist, there is little that needs to — or should — be done to a whole grilled fish. Simplicity in its preparation brings forth its natural flavor, with the duty of a chef being to take such a product and do as little as possible to alter it. Preparing for the opening of Anker — a modern, elevated seafood restaurant set back from Greenport Harbor — Green Hill Group partner and executive chef Wolfgang Ban shares how he aims to exemplify all of the beauty of the North Fork, on and off the plate.
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Baskets of fried clams and Peconic Bay scallops, steamed lobsters with lemon, and no-fuss burgers with classic toppings and fries populated the traditional menu of Greenport’s once short list of restaurants. A decade ago, few places, if any, were open in the veritable offseason. By the time the Chowder Pot Pub closed its harborside doors after more than three decades of serving this conventional local fare, Greenport’s dining landscape had begun to slowly change as new and young chefs found their place, offering their own interpretations of seaside culture through creative plates. Flavorful, smoky broths replaced white wine and garlic in steamed mussels. Organic and biodynamic greens became main ingredients, and fish found a new home in everything from tacos to pâté. The Frisky Oyster was the first restaurant in recent memory to offer fine dining in the village, bringing an almost-Hamptons vibe to a fisherman’s town. Seafood-inspired small plates, elevated dining experiences, gastropubs and specialty coffee shops and cuisine found their way east, shifting Greenport out of its storied sleepy seaside town paradigm into a full-fledged dining destination. Its evolution has been fast-tracked as several new restaurants ready to open their doors this summer season.
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David Benthal Photo
An almost ethereal early morning on the farm, unearthing the day’s ingredients into a wheelbarrow—this is how Kyle Romeo and Amanda Falcone imagine their days will begin when they open Barrow Food House in Aquebogue. A concept that merges farm fare with an elevated mom-and-pop atmosphere, the husband and wife team are crossing the experiences of being at someone’s home—their home—with a restaurant. The name is symbolic of hard work, a notion not lost on the chefs who have served as the contractors, tilers, designers, painters, and every other role as they work to finish the space focused on updated counter service.
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The gears, technology, and moving parts that make digital art is what interested Jeremy Garretson. Photography had been a college elective, but that had its own gears, too. It was standing in the middle of the abandoned Pilgrim State Hospital behind the lens of a film camera that first piqued his interest in photography. This moment led Garretson to where he stands today, inside his newly opened studio gallery in Greenport, sharing how his subjects grew from abandoned buildings to landscapes and the evolution of his work as an artist.
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Sitting in the upstairs loft of the former Salamander’s space in Greenport, chef Jennie Werts takes a break from renovations to discuss her new restaurant opening, Ellen’s on Front. It takes less than a minute for the topic of fried chicken to come up.
“There will be fried chicken,” she laughs, answering the burning question yet to be asked. It’s somewhat serendipitous that the space Werts and her brother Andrew have acquired was known for its fried chicken, also a staple at her Jennie’s at Drossos popup outside of the village.
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