Back in my 20s, I spent many summers in East Hampton, NY having the good fortune of having a best friend with a house on Three Mile Harbour. I fondly remember escaping there for a few weeks after taking the Bar Exam in the summer of 1992. Those mornings, when we would make a daily sojourn to the Barefoot Contessa for yogurt loaf (thinking we were eating healthy!), before Ina Garten was INA GARTEN, are some of my favorite memories.
The Hamptons, especially East Hampton, have always been synonymous with wealth and celebrity. It is a summer escape from the heat of the City for many New Yorkers. At that time, Montauk was the last frontier of the south shore of Long Island and we never ventured out there. It was largely undeveloped and had a much more casual, chill vibe than the other Hampton villages. That vibe remains today, but Montauk has become a hotspot in its own right.
OUR STAY AT GURNEY’S MONTAUK RESORT AND SEAWATER SPA
We recently enjoyed a long weekend at Gurney’s in Montauk. Gurney’s first opened in 1926 and was a rustic, no frills beach hotel and spa for many years. In 2013, under new ownership, Gurneys began its transformation into the five star, luxury resort it is today. You will not find any other 5 star beachfront hotel in the Hamptons like it. The beach it sits on is massive and uncrowded. You could walk a mile and not see anyone once you leave the hotel’s grounds. It is peppered with multi-million dollar houses and retains the natural beauty for which Montauk has always been known.
For the most part, we loved our stay at Gurney’s. There are a variety of rooms to choose from and it seems like almost each one has some sort of view of the ocean (some better and more direct than others). We stayed in a Superior Ocean View One Bedroom Suite. And this was a real ocean view, not a sliver of water you have to crane your neck to see. It was expansive and stunning, best enjoyed from the two beautiful chaise loungers outside the sliding glass doors surrounded by lush greenery. The rooms were large, the bathroom tiny and the decor, unfortunately, lacking. It was as if they started decorating in great style and then stopped before they finished.
I won’t bore you with the details, but there was one maintenance issue that I had to continuously ask them to address and they didn’t and then couldn’t. I had to come up with a solution, but at the rates being charged, that simply shouldn’t happen. Oh, and the spa was closed for renovations. Other than that, we found the staff to be extraordinarily nice and helpful. Would we return? In a New York minute.
(I should note that since returning and filling out the emailed survey Gurney sends, they did apologize and issue a small credit to our account. Fill out the survey!)
DINING
As usual, food is always one of the main components of a good trip for us. The Hamptons did not disappoint.
Dopo la Spi
aggia (Sag Harbor)
Translated, this means “after the beach” and I can think of no better place to relax and eat a sumptuous Italian meal than Dopo. With two locations, one in Sag Harbor and one in East Hampton, Dopo is a culinary leader in the Hamptons. The pastas are incredible- cooked perfectly and so flavorful. Our rigatoni ala vodka with sausage which might sound a tad pedestrian, was one of the best dishes of our entire weekend. The Sag Harbor location takes reservations while the East Hampton one does not.
Duryea’s
There’s no need to fly to Greece if you can grab a table at Duryea’s. This no reservation Montauk hot spot immediately transports you to Santorini, as you sit under a white sail canopy with the bay and hills as a perfect backdrop. For the most part, the menu is family style and the food is plentiful. Don’t miss their legendary Lobster Cobb. It could easily feed 3, and is the best I’ve ever had. Google describes Duryea’s as a “self-serve eatery” which connotes something entirely different from what it is. Yes, you order and prepay at a counter, but the food (and prices!) are 5 star and there are servers all around you to make sure you have everything you could wish for, including that magnum of Whispering Angel you didn’t know you wanted.
il Buco al Mare
We are big fans of the il Buco restaurants in Manhattan and couldn’t wait to try this one. When we first sat down, we were a little disappointed that none of their famous pastas were on the menu. We were with a large party and unsure of what to order so we decided to try quite a few dishes and boy were we glad we did. Pasta? Who needs pasta? The focaccia is gigantic and the perfect combination of chewy and crunchy. The vegetable dishes were out of this world, each offering a surprise sauce that elevated it to new heights. The staff couldn’t have been nicer. They didn’t even seem to mind when we slapped their hands away every time they tried to take the sauce from the roasted clams from the table.
Showfish
Yes, Showfish, not Snowfish (I kept having to double check this). Showfish, on the renovated Montauk Yacht Club, is the anchor restaurant for the Gurney’s sister hotel on Star Island (about 15 minutes from the main resort). It sits beautifully on the marina, where you can watch the boats go by or dock your own for a phenomenal meal. This was the fanciest of our meals, not stuffy by any means, but white tablecloths and top notch service. The main dining room, open air and gorgeous, had a DJ spinning all of our vintage favorites. The bar is built at the base of the lighthouse and the food is remarkable. The bone in tuna, big enough for 3, if not 4, was a standout. Shout out to Emma, the food and beverage manager, who spent the evening making sure every table was happy. Do not miss this place.
While East Hampton is all about private parties behind those fancy high hedges, Montauk feels more accessible, where locals and visitors gather together to dine and dance under the stars at places like La Fin. If you’re ready to trade your Louboutins for flip flops, come here for dinner and be ready to dance to live yacht rock by the water. Paradise. Our Saturday night at Gurneys on the beach included more dancing when the outdoor bar came alive with a great band and a DJ to follow. Stephen Talkhouse, one of the smallest nightclubs in the world, which has hosted the likes of Paul Mccartney and the Rolling Stones, still offers live performances in nearby Amagansett.
THINGS TO DO
The Hamptons have no shortage of activities to please any luxurious traveler. There is surfing for the adventurous, wine tastings, polo matches, museums and paths to bike and hike. My preference is to do nothing but sit on a gorgeous beach and read a wonderful book, and maybe throw in a bit of shopping. While I didn’t love the shopping in Montauk, East Hampton has some great spots.
We were lucky to escape our rain-laden summer for a few sunny days in beautiful Montauk. It was worth the 3(!) ferries over and now that I’ve ventured beyond Amagansett, I can’t wait to return.
