A visit to Montauk and Amber Waves Farm

One of our favorite things to do when traveling is to sample the local delicacies (food) and visit the local farmers markets. And even though I have frequented the East End of Long Island (aka The Hamptons) for over 40 years, I had never eaten at the world famous Lobster Roll restaurant (aka LUNCH, though no one calls it that) or visited the fabulous Montauk Farmers Market or climbed to the top of the Montauk Point Lighthouse, one of the oldest lighthouses in the United States!

Until last week. And if or when you find yourselves on the East End of Long Island, in East Hampton, Amagansett, or Montauk, I highly recommend you do the same.

Here are some highlights of our recent visit, starting with the world famous Lobster Roll Restaurant, where we dined on succulent lobsters and drank Montauk OffLand IPA (or at least I did). Delish.

Thursday morning, my stepfather, the teenager, and I headed to the Montauk Farmers Market, a wonderful place where you can not only find the freshest vegetables and fruit but artisinal foods and drinks, such as Miss Lady Small Batch Root Beer (and Cream Soda)...

(We bought a bottle of each.)

And delicious fruit preserves from Josephine's Feast, in unusual flavors, such as Hand Foraged Wild Beach Plum Preserves (which won a Good Food award), Thick Cut Blood Orange Marmalade (amazing), Strawberry and Rhubarb Preserves, and Organic Pear Preserves (scented with ginger and fennel seed).

And you can't have jam without bread, right?

Fortunately, just a few feet away was Carissa's Breads, made and run by our friend Carissa. Her breads are amazing -- made with local ingredients and lots of love.

We tried her stout bread, which is made with the Montauk Brewing Company's Guardsman Stout. And from personal experience I can tell you, the stout bread is excellent, very flavorful (a bit like if you crossed rye with pumpernickel), especially with Mecox Bay Dairy cheese (wasn't able to snap a good photo, but their raw cheeses were delicious) or the Thick Cut Blood Orange Marmalade from Josephine's Feast.

We then headed over to the Amagansett Sea Salt booth, where we chatted with the owner, Steven, and the teenager sampled many of his locally farmed salts. (I do not like the taste of salt, so I take the teenager's word for it when she said the Amagansett sea salts she tasted were excellent.)

And, of course, there were lots of farmers selling vegetables and fruit, particularly tomatoes. There were tomatoes EVERYWHERE!

After depleting nearly all my cash at the Montauk Farmers Market (we also bought some delicious garlic-infused olive oil and some mango plums), we headed to the Montauk Point Lighthouse, one of the oldest lighthouses in the United States, dating back to George Washington's presidency, and well worth a visit.

The views from the top were breathtaking.

On our last full day, we paid a visit to Amber Waves Farm in Amagansett, run by our friends Katie Baldwin and Amanda Merrow, the two hardest working women we know.

Visiting Amber Waves Farm is one of my favorite things about visiting Amagansett (along with late-afternoon beach walks and lunch at the Hampton Chutney Company).

Looking at these photographs of flowers, heirloom tomatoes, purple peppers, and eggplant, that I took at Amber Waves, I think you'll understand why.

(Tell me that white eggplant does not resemble the Grinch.)

And what better way to end the day than a long walk on the beach?

Until next time...