TRUST ME! Bragging rights this summer will belong to those who actually get a reservation at “EMP Summer House.” It’s the “Hamilton” of this summer. The much hyped pop-up of Eleven Madison Park (which will be closed this summer for renovations) launched their website for reservations on May 1st and already they are booked solid through mid July (unless of course you don’t mind sitting down at 11:30 at night). Located in East Hampton at the site of the former Farmhouse, Laundry, Purple Cow, Spring Close and Moby’s… reservations are exclusively
for American Express card holders and are being done online at the EMP SUMMER HOUSE website. According to their press release, the fare will be a bit more casual than the city venue, with lobster, fried chicken, flatbread and salads on the menu. So far I’ve not had much luck getting at table after navigating the website and two hung ups with American Express. I called Monday to get information on the website from Amex and got a recording the wait time was 45 minutes – apparently Paul McCartney tickets went on sale at the same time. Membership has its privileges indeed! It’s called frustration! Anyway, thanks to me you now have the web address (a step ahead of where I was) and the knowledge that new reservations will be made available online on June 1st at 12 p.m. These available dates will be from July 15th through August 15th. I’m not sure how anyone can plan a meal that far in advance? I can barely decide what I’m doing today but I’ll tag along if you get a reservation.
Well if you’re new to the Hamptons, let me give you a little word of advice. When visiting friends, looking for homes or hooking up on Tindr make sure you double check the address. Recently, I had made plans to meet customers at a home on a certain street in Bridgehampton. While I eagerly awaited for them to arrive, they called to say they were already inside the house looking. The only problem with this story is they
were looking in the wrong house! They had the right address but on the wrong street and town! UGH! Luckily, this all happened without any incident but it could have been a tad uncomfortable if this had happened in say Texas where everyone has a gun and cites those “stand my ground” laws. Anyway, I’m here to tell you there are certain streets you need to be wary when playing Lewis or Clark on the East End. Here we go:
THE TREE STREETS: Oak –17 Streets in Southampton and 7 in East Hampton, Cedar – (including Points, Views etc.) 18 streets in Southampton and 6 in East Hampton, Pine – 23 in Southampton and 4 in East Hampton.
THE OLD FAMILY STREETS: Hildreth – (not including the stores) 9 streets in Southampton and 2 in East Hampton. Halsey –10 in Southampton and 0 in East Hampton and Gardners – 4 in Southampton and 5 in East Hampton. Luckily there is only one Widow Gavitz Lane and Downer Place in all the Hamptons.
THE WATER STREETS: Bay – 24 in Southampton including the views and 12 in East Hampton, Ocean – 9 in Southampton and 8 in East Hampton, Beach – 8 in Southampton and 7 in East Hampton.
THE LOCATIONS: Middle – 5 in Southampton and 3 in East Hampton, Northwest – 1 in Southampton and 3 in East Hampton, Main – 3 in Southampton and 5 in East Hampton.
I mentioned these streets in a blog once before but I thought it was worth reminding everyone given my recent missing customers.
So, last night I had the chance to visit the highly anticipated Wolffer Kitchen in Sag Harbor. So here’s the good news and the bad news. The good news is it’s pretty good. The bad news is it should have been better. Since it’s the first foray into food for the local vineyard, I’ll give them time to let this potentially fine dine breath. Located at 29 Main Street in the village, the restaurant opens with a series of folding doors that open up and make it a great place to dine and watch the world go by. The menu on the other hand is a little more closed with a smaller selection of options. The wine menu on the other hand is rather extensive and features of course Wolffer wines, numerous imports and this in addition to a few local vineyards including Bedell.
The service as I sat for dinner last night was on their game from start to finish. I started my dinner with a small Greek salad which was absolutely fantastic, a perfect size with a delicate blend of feta, olives and greens. Oh my god, do I now sound like a food critic? I have to stop! Anyway, for an entree I had fresh tuna grilled over pasta which was nice and light but a little too light on flavor. My dining companion (who you can figure out) had a vegetable platter with I believe some fava beans and he thought it was awesome. Perhaps the comment that I’m more “suited for heavier flavors”, i.e. bolognese is my favorite should be taken into account. So what I’m saying is I liked Wolffer Kitchen, I just wasnt’ crazy about it. Perhaps I’ll hit it up again once they get more time under their belt but I have no doubt it’s going to get better! Wolffer Kitchen is open daily at 5:30pm and takes reservations on their facebook page or by calling 
