Cape Cod Memorial Day Weekend

Being an east coast girl, would you believe I've never been there? But Memorial Day weekend, we are flying into Providence, R.I. and driving up to meet our friends.

Could anyone give recommendations for good groceries/specialty seafood stores that can't be missed? The plan is to cook and consume as many sea critters as humanly possible in the course of 4 days.

Thank you!

I don't know where you're staying, but I like Fancy's Farm, in East Orleans. It's a cute market with produce, deli, baked goods, flowers, etc., but I don't know if you'll find any critters to cook there. I think they have some prepared foods for picnic-type situations. Not a place I'd make a long trip to, but if you're relatively close it's nice to check out.

You might pick up an Edible Cape Cod magazine, their website has a Resources page with a huge list of markets of all sorts.

Sorry I can't tell you more--I usually leave most of the cooking to the pros when I'm on the Cape!

Fancy's Farm
199 Main St.
Orleans, MA
508/255-1949

You definitely want to check out Venda Ravioli, an incredible Italian Deli, Pasta Shop and market in the Federal Hill section of Providence.

http://www.vendaravioli.com

If you're looking for a really good seafood dinner, it is pretty hard to beat the three and a half pound baked stuffed lobster at the Venus De Milo on Grand Army Highway in Swansea, MA. Swansea is a 15 minute drive outside of Providence off of 101, the main road that goes out to the Cape.



In all honesty, this picture doesn't do this particular exercise in gluttony justice. There are days that I think that I need to return to Providence just so I can stop at the Venus and have one of these. The Venus is actually a banquet hall that operates an everyday restaurant within. It is very popular. So, you may find yourself with a bit of a wait on weekends.

http://www.venusdemilo.com

If you're inclined to head over to Martha's Vineyard one day, you might want to arrtive at the Woods Hole Ferry early and partake of the fresh seafood at Landfall Restaurant on the waterfront. The lightly fried clam bellies at landfall have a taste of the ocean that is just incredible and complex. it is also a beautiful setting right on the waterfront.

http://www.woodshole.com/landfall/index.htm

Finally, if you're not sated by the baked stuffed lobster at the Venus, you might want to consider ducking into Fall River, RI, the birthplace of Mr. Bam himself, for some truly authentic and rare (in the United States) Portugese cusine.

My limited experience in that town has led me to try (and vow to return to) a great place called Estoril restaurant. The locals convinced me to go there based upon a recommendation for Estoril's Portugese steak, a tender seasoned strip, topped with a fried egg. But, I have to admit, when I'm that close to the ocean, and in a historic fishing community, I feel obligated to eat seafood. Estoril serves an excellent portugese style paella full of fresh local seafood as well as a savory seafood pie all baked up, bubbly and topped with breadcrumb- a truly spectacular yet simple dish.

http://www.estorilrestaurant.com

I have to second the opinion of the Venus De Milo. I love that place. I had my senior prom there. *lol* ALL of the food is top notch and delicious.

Eastwind Lobster in Buzzards Bay (near the Bourne Bridge at the entrance to the Cape) is a local favorite that sells nearly every kind of seafood imaginable, though keep in mind that with the Red Tide here in New England, some items (clams, mussels, shrimp, oysters) may not be available.

Here is a link to their site:

http://www.eastwindlobster.com/

I'm resurrecting an old thread because I will be in the area in a few weeks. I will have a few days in Cape Cod, a few days around Newport, and then a drive thru Gloucester and Ipswich working my way to Lake Sunapee, NH. for a wedding. I would love any updated suggestions, from casual to formal for lunch or dinner.

I have spent part or all of every summer of my life on the outer Cape. I don't know much about the lower Cape, but if your travel brings you out to the tip, I heartily recommend:

amazing fried clams and decadent fried scallops at Arnolds in Eastham
delicious nouveau Italian seafood at Terra Luna in Truro
unbeatable lobster dinners at Moby Dicks in Wellfleet
ubiquitous and beloved rollwich sandwiches for lunch at the pond or beach, by Box Lunch (esp. Wellfleet locations)
lobster roll at Mac's Seafood on the Wellfleet Harbor
a tiny, innovative, menu changes daily place called Sol, also on the Wellfleet Harbor
tasty, ginormous burritos for people watching on the street or sunset watching over the bay at Big Daddy's in Provincetown

even if you don't have a place to cook (and grilling your own fresh fish is one of the best ways to eat on the cape), go take a look at the gorgeous fish and produce at Hatch's in Wellfleet - truly a wonderful market, and they will shuck a couple of oysters for you to slurp right there for like a buck a piece.

If you have some more parameters of cuisines etc, I can aim to be more tailored to what you're looking for. Have fun!

When I'm there (Wellfleet), we're usually yanking oysters and clams out with our hands & feet and cooking at home as opposed to dining out, but I will say that PB Boulangerie Bistro is without a doubt worth your while. I have only sampled the goods from the bakery, but they're as close to traditional Parisian boulangerie as I've found here in the US. Keep in mind it's insanely busy - so if you're going at an off-peak hour, you may want to adjust your ordering strategy.

PB Boulangerie Bistro
15 Lecount Road
South Wellfleet, MA
508.349.1600
Boulangerie hours: Weds – Sun 7AM – 7PM
Bistro hours: Weds - Sun 5PM – 11PM
http://pbboulangeriebistro.com/

I was in Wellfleet in 2009 and we had dinner at Mac's Shack which is actually a sitdown restaurant a little further off the water than the place right on the pier. http://www.macsseafood.com/macs_shack.asp I especially enjoyed the sushi.

As a fan of New England Portuguese food, let me suggest a stop at this place, which must be the same one that has been there since time immemorial. I have not been there in years, so perhaps tatterdemalion can update us on its recent quality. As with any bakery, it might be a good idea to visit early in the day. The sausage roll that I had there has stuck in my memory. Also look elsewhere around the Cape for Portuguese kale soup.

Provincetown Portuguese Bakery
299 Commercial St
Provincetown, MA 02657
(508) 487-1803

The Portuguese Bakery is still there and still going STRONG Josephine. I was in last summer and couldn't decide between the sausage roll and the malassadas (like the best donut evar!) so I got both. Ham and cheese croissants and kale soup are also worth a look.

Strongly recommend a visit while you're in PTown.

Josephine wrote:As a fan of New England Portuguese food, let me suggest a stop at this place, which must be the same one that has been there since time immemorial. I have not been there in years, so perhaps tatterdemalion can update us on its recent quality. As with any bakery, it might be a good idea to visit early in the day. The sausage roll that I had there has stuck in my memory. Also look elsewhere around the Cape for Portuguese kale soup.

Provincetown Portuguese Bakery
299 Commercial St
Provincetown, MA 02657
(508) 487-1803

I was there last labor day and it was still going strong - wonderful people, great food.

We are back from New England and had a wonderful and delicious trip. While driving around Cape Cod, we stopped for succulent oysters and clams at Mac’s shack in Wellfleet. Continuing our drive, Hyannis was our final stop where we spent a couple nights. Embargo is a pretty hip restaurant in town serving very good global style tapas. The next day, before boarding a ferry to Nantucket, we had a great lobster roll and fried clam bellies at Spanky’s, on the dock. On Nantucket, which we loved, we found a great spot call Lola 41, serving food from across the globe but really specializing in Nobu style sushi creations and other fusion seafood dishes.

In Newport we ate 2 lunches at Benjamin’s, a raw bar serving up great oysters, clams, and whole lobsters. We had 2 excellent seafood dinners at Fluke, and The Mooring.

On the way to Lake Sunapee, NH for a wedding, we made a stop in Providence at the Providence Oyster Bar, up on Federal Hill. After the wedding, we had 1 last seafood stop at Belle Isle Seafood, near Logan airport, featured by Anthony Bourdain. It is a shack accepting cash only but we had our best lobster roll featuring huge chunks of obviously freshly cooked lobster including great pieces of claw meat. Fried clam bellies were nothing special.

Just returned from a couple nights in Provincetown.

I had my first lobster roll of the trip at The Canteen. This place looks fantastic (we got takeout) and I would really like to dig deeper into their menu. Other friends had a cod banh mi, kale salad and fish & chips, and all loved them. My friends who live there say it's one of their go-to spots and I can see why.

The Canteen
225 Commercial St
Provincetown, MA 02657
(508) 487-3800

On our first night we had dinner at The Mews. Apparently it's the top-rated place in town, and what we had was tasty but forgettable. I had a fall-vegetable special salad and a scallop special. I honestly don't remember more than that. Nice wine list!

The Mews
429 Commercial St
Provincetown, MA 02657
(508) 487-1500

Lunch on the second day was on the patio at Bubala's by the Bay, which apparently is a prime spot for people watching. I had my second lobster roll of the trip, which was excellent and possibly better than The Canteen because they served it on the proper buttered, grilled roll.

Bubala's by the Bay
183 Commercial St
Provincetown, MA 02657

On our last night we went to The Red Inn for dinner and ate at the bar. The friends I was visiting are fans and plan to hold their wedding reception there sometime next year. Everyone agreed I ended up with the entree of the night--the Smoked Long Island Duck, described as "Creole Seasoned de-boned and smoked with Savory Bread Pudding with Orange Peppercorn Glaze." It was spectacular and could have fed three of us. Highly recommend.

The Red Inn
15 Commercial St
Provincetown, MA 02657
(508) 487-7334

I can also highly recommend the "brown butter, brown sugar and brownie" ice cream at The Nut House.
237 Commercial St
Provincetown, MA 02657‎
(508) 487-6888

annak wrote:amazing fried clams and decadent fried scallops at Arnolds in Eastham

oh for sure, the whole belly fried clams were amazing www.arnoldsrestaurant.com

Edited to add: when providing the URL for Arnolds, they have the following posted: Due to an electrical fire that caused significant damage, we are CLOSED for the rest of 2013. Our apologies for the inconvenience, we look forward to seeing you in 2014.

We were fortunate enough to be in Wellfleet for the oyster festival: www.wellfleetoysterfest.org This year is the weekend of Oct 19 & 20, 2013