tacos – Hamptons Chatter

“Tacos Fold, Traffic Flips, and Gurney’s Gets gigi-fied: Just Another Week in the Hamptons”

April 18, 2025

Just a few short seasons ago, El Taco Bar in Sag Harbor salsa’d onto the scene with a flurry of fanfare, promising handmade tortillas, curated cocktails, and “authentic Mexican cuisine” courtesy of Chef Laurent Tourondel. But now? The only thing sizzling is the rumor mill. Despite signs on the door boldly declaring they’ll be back this spring, brown paper over the windows tells a different story—the first clue that a makeover is clearly underway. And spoiler alert: it’s not a fresh coat of lime paint. Word on the street is that El Taco is folding faster than a soft-shell tortilla and making way for an revamped —LT Burger (not sure if they’re actually keeping the name). Yep, they’re shelving the tacos and tequila and going back to burgers and fries. It’s a full circle moment, or should we say a full patty comeback. Apparently, they couldn’t taco the pressure. Forgive me while I add one final comment on this makeover, maybe add some smiles to the staff and management.

More food news: Gurney’s Montauk is shaking things up this summer with the debut of not one, but two new dining spots. Coming early summer 2025, they’ll unveil gigi’s montauk—yes, all lowercase, because it’s casual but make it fancy. Billed as their new flagship, gigi’s promises New-American fare where “coastal charm meets seasonal innovation” and menus inspired by the sea and local ingredients. Meanwhile, a more laid-back café called Dune will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner—perfect for post-beach bites or a pre-spa latte. But while Gurney’s is riding the rebranding wave, it’s hard to ignore the fact that Scarpetta, once their culinary crown jewel, has since taken up very stylish residence at the Maidstone Inn in East Hampton. Will gigi’s make the same splash? Or is it just another tide rolling in? Time—and reservations—will tell.

Get ready, Hamptons commuters—traffic on County Road 39 is about to get a major remix. Starting Monday, April 21, and running for two weeks, Southampton Town is rolling out a bold traffic experiment. From 4 to 7 p.m. on weekdays, key intersections between North Main Street and Sunrise Highway will be switching things up: think blinking yellows, steady greens, and absolutely no left turns. That’s right—cross traffic and left turns at Sandy Hollow, Magee, and Tuckahoe Roads are getting the red light (literally), all in the name of easing the eastbound crawl. Police will be out in full force—on the ground and in the air, thanks to drones—making sure no one pulls a sneaky U-turn. If you live on a side street, brace yourself: you’ll need to plan alternate routes and make peace with the right turn. The hope? A smoother, faster commute. The reality? We’ll see and it’s ONLY APRIL!

EAST HAMPTON VILLAGE NEW RULES FOR LANDLORDS… PLUS GOOD DEALS AND CHEAP EATS.

February 10, 2023February 3, 2023

So are you an East Hampton Village landlord? If the answer is yes, then you’ll want to pay close attention to the new rules and regulations that have been put in place for renting out your property. It’s not quite as daunting as it sounds; with a bit of preparation, you can be ready to comply with the new regulations in no time. Soooooo what are these new regulations? The village of East Hampton has released a Landlord-Tenant Rental Application that all landlords will need to complete in order to legally rent out their property. The application requires landlords to submit documentation such as a copy of the executed lease, floorplans, deed, recent tax bill and proof of trash removal. The orignal version of this measure orignially included a request for a 23 and Me report and proof of average Wordle score. Luckily, those were omitted. The actual added measures may seem like bureaucratic overkill; however, it’s important to remember that regulations like these are designed with the safety and security of tenants and residents in mind.

If you want more information and the form click here for the application and regulations!

Finally, yes it’s Long Island Restaurant Week again. AGAIN. I swear I just wrote about this a week ago so I’m not going to go over it again but here is the link for more details. This current Restaurant Week runs through this Sunday.

So restaurant week aside, I always love details on some good cheap grub. Here are two geat deals that I think are worth sharing. Coche Comedor in Amagansett is currently pouring flights of margaritas and serving pork belly tacos 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐘 $𝟏𝟓. Enjoy every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m. in the bar area only! 🌮 So head to Coche Comedor and taco walk on the wild side.

Also, The 1770 House Restaurant & Inn in East Hampton is serving a winter $55 two-course prix fixe dinner menu in the main dining room and downstairs Tavern. Take that restaurant week! The Tavern Burger and Ina Garten’s favorite Meatloaf are part of the special offer and also available on the regular tavern menu. Also included is the highly caloric and very addicting Sticky Toffee cake. You can get more details by clicking here.

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IS THE BUOY A BUST?? PLUS, HAPPY AS A CLAM IN EAST HAMPTON.

May 5, 2018May 5, 2018

After floating gossip it seems, Bagel Buoy in Sag Harbor is no longer sunk.
The Village staple shuttered it’s doors or rather the lox were changed earlier this week. A “notice of closure” was posted on the door and that had lips flapping all over town.

While I am not a huge fan of Bagel Buoy and the surly staff it’s always sad to see this sort of thing happen. Rumor has it a deal is in the works to bring Goldberg’s Bagels to the Bay Street location. If you take a look at what they’ve done with the nightmare that was “Twice Upon a Bagel” in Wainscott, we can all rest easy knowing we’ll still have a good place to nosh! But the story isn’t over yet, apparently the buoy was bobbing with business earlier today. So grab your popcorn this battle of the bagels has apparently just begun.

Meanwhile, the site of the former “Service Station” (loved the salads and sandwiches) has reopened as the Quiet Clam 2.0 earlier this week.

While I haven’t been in yet, my spies say it’s actually worth a visit. The menu is a throw back to when the establishment was “The Quiet Clam” before it was “Nichol’s” back in the last century. Yes, they have clams on the menu along with burgers, pizzas and more. I promise I’ll have more to come. But from what I’ve been hearing on social media the place will be getting a thumbs up.

UPDATE: I went in and it was “meh.” Right now there is no liquor license so it’s BYOB. The lunch menu was limited and there were NO clams but the dinner version seems a bit more promising. I’ll have to go back when they get their act together.

Finally, in case you missed it EMP House reservations went on lin

e earlier this week via an American Express website. Well if you snooze you lose and I apparently snoozed. After going live at 9am, by noon the only slots left available were at 5 pm or 10 pm. While this might not pose a problem if you’re 25 or 85 years old, the rest of us younger side of middle age folks (no comments from the peanut gallery) are S.O.L. While there still be walk-ins available for the picnic tables in the back, my attention is more focused on something called the “Taco Experience” for $95 – $125 per person. I’m just hoping that tequila is included with that number! Hahahahhahhhahhaahhhhahah. I know it’s the Hamptons!

MY HOLIDAY GIFT TO YOU! PLUS HARVEY AND THE HAMPTONS!

December 21, 2017December 21, 2017

A321_Frontier__Airlines-680x365_c — This is what a plane looks like. flyfrontier.com

I know the weather outside is getting more and more frightful. In fact, the thought of shoveling driveways, cold wet feet and darkness at 3:30pm has you completely depressed and overwhelmed. I know! I know… I feel you! But before you call the doctor to “up” your daily dosage of “vitamin Z” (zoloft), read this blog. It will bring you comfort and joy. DISCLAIMER: please don’t go off your meds folks, while I’m a joy for my family and at least 2 of my friends, my suggestions here are not meant to be any sort of medical diagnosis so put down the phone. Jacoby & Myers have more important lawsuits pending.

Ok, so what’s my advice to put sunshine back in your life? Go visit flyfrontier.com and book yourself a flight to the sunshine state for as little as $35 dollars! Yes, you heard that right. For about the same cost as taking the jitney to midtown, you can instead haul you butts to Islip Airport (the easiest airport on the planet) hop on a plane and be in West Palm Beach, Miami or Ft. Myers in about 3 hours. So, the ride is about the same amount of time as a jitney as well. I will tell you the flights are no frills and you must pay for any additional baggage (checked, carry-on and emotional). In fact, while I was writing this I just got a quote for a flight from Islip to West Palm in January

for $108 round trip! Now, that doesn’t include taxes or my baggage from growing up as the youngest of 6 in suburban New Jersey. From what I gathered, these rates will likely go up in the not too distant future but in the meantime stop complaining about the weather!

If you’re not lucky enough to have the time or ability to hop on a flight to Florida and are instead heading to the Hamptons, you’re not alone. I call it the “Hurricane Harvey.” Because, for the first time ever, I had multiple rental inquiries for the week between Christmas and New Years! I’m not sure why Mr. Weinstein’s exploits have convinced peopl

e to “staycation” this holiday season but it’s kind of weird considering we also had a hurricane of the same name wipe out more than a few resorts in the Caribbean. Word to the wise here, if you’re planning on being out here the week between the holidays and want to go out to eat, MAKE RESERVATIONS! It’s going to be crowded. It’s traditionally a busy week but a few of my restaurant buddies have said reservations are up over last year.

Speaking of eating out. I mean really eating out. Like outside …. in the cold…

OUTSIDE. You might have noticed a food truck recently on the grounds of the Milk Pail in Water Mill. For those of you not brave enough to stop, I’ve done some snooping for you and discovered it’s a taco truck. It’s called AJI Authentic Mexican Food. Ok, they have more than tacos and the food is pretty good. The hours seem to have a lot to do with if the weather is good and traffic wasn’t too heavy. So if you’re driving east, see the truck and have a hankering for a good taco, burrito or nachos stop by. It’s not the best you’ll ever have but it won’t disappoint and it’s kinda fun!