Rowdy Hall Salmon BLT Debuts, Springs Food Pantry Fundraiser & More from the East End 'Food Seen'

Springs Food Pantry is hosting its second annual summer fundraiser on Saturday, July 8, 4–7 p.m. at Corbett Estate in East Hampton. Enjoy wine by Wölffer Estate, special draft beer from Springs Brewery, small bites from Silver Spoon Specialties and mocktails by Cocktails & Dreams as you tour the beautiful gardens of the estate.

The grounds of the Leiber Collection will be open to stroll through as well, although the museum itself will be closed. There will be live music and a raffle with prizes from local restaurants, and entertainment and wellness venues. Advance tickets are $150 while tickets at the door cost $175. All proceeds benefit Spring Food Pantry’s mission to feed our neighbors in need.

Bostwick’s on the Harbor has introduced a happy hour schedule Mondays through Fridays, 5–6:30 p.m. at the bar and lounge only. Drink specials include $6 draft beers, $10 select house wines and $12 specialty cocktails including Bostwick’s Breeze, Lily Pond Lemonade, Grapefruit Nirvana, Pearfect Mule, Margarita and Blood Orange Margarita. Sunset bar bites — such as shrimp cocktail, Peconic oysters on the half shell, yellowfin tuna poke, chicken potstickers and truffle parmesan fries — will also be available. Get your fill of the three S’s: seafood, spirits and sunsets.

Chenza’s Twisted Tacos is now up and running in Mattituck. Building off the success of the Chenza’s Cruzin Cuisine food truck, the owners have opened a permanent location (where Mattitaco dwelled) focused on making the ideal taco. They’ve come awfully close; we love the BBQ pulled pork and Italian chicken with melted cheese. Other tacos are inspired by international cuisine and there are non-taco menu items such as quesadillas, empanadas, burritos and more.

Sagaponack Farm Distillery released their very first bourbon this past winter — 94 proof and 47% alcohol by volume. The estate-grown, small batch bourbon is 76% Silvermine corn, 16% malted rye, 8% malted barley and aged over four years. It is a worthy addition to the distillery’s impressive liquor offerings. Favorites include the cucumber vodka, barrel finished gin and single spud red spirit (works wonders in a Manhattan).

This spring, Canoe Place Inn was named as one of the best new hotels of 2023 by Travel and Leisure. The “It List” accentuates 100 hotels and resorts that left the publication’s editors and contributors impressed.

The beautiful East End landmark presents luxury accommodations, regionally-inspired dining and a gorgeously renovated grand ballroom and pavilion. The coastal Mediterranean flavors of the inn’s restaurant, Good Ground Tavern, are available daily throughout the summer for lunch and dinner. Menu highlights include the Long Island fluke crudo, baked crab dip, olive oil poached black bass and prime hanger steak with chimichurri grilled over cherry wood. 

Did You Know?

Captain Josiah Foster founded Foster Farms in Sagaponack in 1870. Today, siblings Dean and Marilee Foster are the sixth generation to work this land. Marilee’s Farmstand farms 30 acres of vegetables and 200 acres of potatoes and small grains there. What makes Marilee’s and Sagaponack Farm Distillery’s stuff so good? They point to the Sagaponack dirt. Bridgehampton loam is “identified as some of the most productive farmland in the country, it is the proverbial furrow in which almost any seed will grow.”

In 2020, 347 new families joined Springs Food Pantry to receive complimentary groceries. This year already, 103 local families have joined.

According to El Turco’s website, the richness of Turkish cuisine is based on several factors, such as “the variety of products cultivated on the lands of Asia and Anatola, numerous cultural interactions in history, the palace kitchens of Seljuk and Ottoman Empires and geographical conditions.” Turkish breakfasts are healthy, with dishes featuring a lot of greens, tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers along with feta cheese, egg, olives, honey and cream of milk. But don’t leave the premises of El Turco, located on 44 Three Mile Harbor Road in East Hampton, without trying their divine baklava!

Bits & Bites:

Rowdy Hall has spruced up their menu for the summer. Say “Hello” to Townline BBQ crispy pork belly, butternut squash lasagna and fried chicken, all available as dinner entrees. Lunch dishes include salmon BLT, tuna melt and artichoke, leek and feta quiche.

Fini Pizza in Amagansett opened its doors to customers two weeks ago. Pizza pies and slices, Caesar salad and Italian ices made the menu.

Claudio’s in Greenport has launched two weekday drink specials: Martini Mondays, where an expanded $16 martini menu will be offered from 5 –9 p.m., and Whiskey Wine-Down Wednesdays, featuring $20 half-dozen oysters and a glass of Jefferson Whiskey, a whiskey cocktail or Hampton Water Rosé.

Fireside Fridays are back at Suhru Wines in Cutchogue. Enjoy a glass of wine by the backside bonfires every Friday afternoon/evening from 4–7 p.m. Suhru Wines is also hosting a Palate Training 101 course for $75 per person on July 16. There will be two 90-minute classes, one starting at noon and the other at 2:30 p.m, where you will “become a detective for the day” as you sample three different types of wine. Just like lifting weights builds stronger muscles, tasting wine builds savvy taste buds.

Food Quote:

“I love watermelons, but I believe you’ve got to kill it to eat it.” –U.S. Marine Corps Sergeant R. Lee Ermey