Food

New restaurants, new menus, a Wolffer dinner, happy hours, and more

Do we really need another expensive Upper East Side Italian restaurant in our midst? More importantly, do we need a restaurant that (inexplicably) charges far more here for the same food that it serves at its Madison Avenue location? More even than the 1770 House, Nick and Toni’s, or Bell and Anchor?

Bel Mare in the old Michael's in Springs, new pizza on the stretch, a new market on Race Lane, new specials and more

For the record: If the reason some people are grumpy cats about Ed's Lobster Bar is that they miss the old Bay Burger, would it make them feel better to know that Joe Tremblay, an owner of the old joint, tried their lobster roll and loved it? I read that on the internet.

A New Carissa’s 

Carissa’s Bakery on Newtown Lane in East Hampton Village has opened a sister store at 221 Pantigo Road, also in East Hampton, that includes a bake shop and an adjacent cafe. The new spot will offer the same selection of breads, pastries, cakes, pies, soups, and sandwiches as the one in the village. Both are open daily from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., with breakfast service offered in the Pantigo Road cafe and lunch and dinner service to follow soon.

Farm Dinner

Showfish’s menu illustrates Chef Blutstein’s exuberant adoration of local fish and farms. Interestingly enough, his name is not on the menu but the names of over 13 farmers, fishermen, and cheesemakers are.

Amber Waves Farm in Amagansett will hold a pizza-making class Friday from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. The cost is $40. Tickets can be purchased on the farm’s website.

Have some Little Nipper signature cocktails, and break lumpia together, even better.

Bostwick's on the Harbor, Drinks for a cause, an award-winning cracker, and much more

Here is what I have learned from organizing a party long distance: Find your venue first if you can. Decide on a firm budget but be prepared to be flexible. Compile the guest list and pray that they will respond in a timely manner. Or at all.

Fancy picnic baskets, Southampton's Cheese Shoppe gets a rebrand, a Hamptons chef dinner benefit, and dinner at Wolffer

Strawberry season this year has been wonderful despite the rain. So far I have sampled berries from Open Minded Organics in Bridgehampton (no spray!), Pike’s in Sagaponack, and from the Mattituck Strawberry Festival.

Father's Day specials, a new butcher in East Hampton, and a new restaurant in Water Mill.

The season for asparagus won’t last much longer out here, so consider some of these cooking methods that you haven’t tried before. Or do as the northern Europeans do to celebrate the first harbingers of spring, build a whole meal around asparagus.

Have you ever tasted freshly picked asparagus? I mean, picked within hours of being hand harvested? It is remarkably sweet. Asparagus is similar to corn in that, once picked, it will use its sugars to survive.

Some of you may believe that French cuisine is the most complex. Many think the multi-layered pastries of Vienna are the height of refined cookery. But until you have tasted the mysterious and complicated mole sauces of Mexico, you have no idea how complex and refined a dish can be.

Levain Bakery’s chocolate chip walnut cookies should probably come with a warning label: These cookies are known by the State of New York to be highly addictive. Huge and gooey and packed with chocolate chips just this side of melting, they have been named to just about every best cookie list in New York, which helps to explain the famously long lines outside of Levain’s 74th Street and Amsterdam Avenue locations.

New in Montauk

The owners of Pulcinella, a pizzeria and restaurant in Massapequa, have opened Pulcinella East on Edgemere Street in Montauk. The menu features pasta dishes such as pappardelle Bolognese for $29, and spaghetti with clams for $38, as well as chicken, veal, and seafood entrees.

There seem to be new cafes and restaurants popping up everywhere you turn, and they are often intermeshed with the movement in local, sustainable farming that has grown up here.

Rosé has become the quintessential wine of summer, but there was a time when no self-respecting oenophile would have sullied a spit bucket with the stuff.

Summer means pop-up and seasonal restaurants and chefs from New York City on the South Fork.

Paola’s, the Italian restaurant taking over the space formerly occupied by EMP Summer House on Pantigo Road in East Hampton, will open by Memorial Day weekend, Stefano Marracino, the owner, said on Friday.

Mother's Day Specials from all over, the East Hampton Farmers Market returns, Duryea's is back, and more

New restaurants, season openings, Candace Hill Montgomery at Almond, Cinco de Mayo, and more

For those looking forward to a summer filled with fresh produce from an East End farm, now is the time to sign up for a community-supported agriculture program, or C.S.A.

“Cook Like a Pro” is the 11th cookbook by Ina Garten (the Barefoot Contessa). “The Loaves and Fishes Cookbook” by Anna Pump with Gen LeRoy was Anna’s first cookbook of four, published in 1985 and recently reissued. The third book here is Gwyneth Paltrow’s fourth book, “The Clean Plate.”

Need some cooking shortcuts on those stay in and watch Netflix evenings? Here are some easy recipes and half-hacks to help.

Dockside is back; Perry Burns workshop/dinner; a wine and books pairing, and more

When is the last time you had a vegetable puree? I’m not talking about mashed potatoes; I’m talking about carrots, celery root, beets, and cauliflower.

A Hawaiian pop-up restaurant; Oscar party at Rowdy; Snout to Tail dinner at Almond, and more