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Golf on Cape Cod - The 19th Hole
Dining after the round: Seeking sustenance after a tough day on the course
Nothing beats an appetite that’s worked up by playing 18 holes on one of the Cape’s exceptional courses. So head to one of these exceptional restaurants when it’s time to dine. Sometimes you need a big, fat burger while taking in a sporting event on a flat-screen TV, and sometimes you’re looking for tuna sashimi while sipping an exquisite Cabernet. We recommend some of each…a little downtown and a little uptown, so to speak. Uptown: Housed in a beautifully preserved Federal-style home built in 1790 and believed to have originally been a post office, the Regatta of Cotuit has both a spacious Tap Room with a handful of tables and roomy bar and several more intimate, more formal dining rooms. The Tap Room offers a more casual take on the restaurant’s outstanding cuisine with selections such as Cotuit oyster shooters drizzled with Champagne, crispy Georges Bank scallops served with risotto, and gourmet pizzettas. Chef Heather Allen kicks it up a notch with the full menu, available throughout the restaurant, showing off her passion for food with offerings that include lobster and scallop strudel and ricotta gnocchi as appetizers, as well as signature entrees such as the lacquered duck and herb-crusted tenderloin of Dakota buffalo. Dinner only, Tuesday through Sunday. Reservations are accepted. 4631 Route 28, Cotuit. 508-4218-5715. Take a hiatus after your day at Hyannis Golf Club: Downtown: Calling the Wianno Grille “downtown” may be doing it a bit of a disservice. A recent massive renovation to a former pub has created an unusual hybrid of comfortable bar, granite topped and flanked by flat screens, and swanky but casual dining area. The walls are covered with lush, richly textured linen and contrasted by lots of wood detail painted a creamy white. The menu includes “small plate”—smaller portions and appetizers like slow-roasted baby back ribs, stuffed quahogs and Portuguese fried calamari with spicy banana peppers and linguica. Available all day, sandwiches feature shaved hot pastrami, roast beef with Swiss and bacon and lobster salad. Cedar plank-roasted scrod and a crispy onion-topped sirloin round out the full-fledged entrees. Serving lunch and dinner year round. Reservations accepted. 380 Barnstable Rd., Hyannis. 508-778-5587. Uptown: The Roadhouse Café is one of those places that seem to have figured it out. Figured out how to offer an exceptional menu in beautiful surroundings without being too stick-in-the-mud about it. Figured out how to offer a widely varied menu without its seeming oddly disjointed. Not many places can get away with offering tuna sashimi and classic Italian and have both be done equally well (as opposed to “well done,” which would be a mistake for tuna), and figured out how to keep tap beer chilly and presented in a frosted mug while offering more than 20 thoughtfully selected wines by the glass served up in Riedel stemware. Generous portions, thick steaks and veal chops, efficient and personable service, Chicago-style bar, several dining rooms chock-full of antiques, and live jazz on Monday nights. Could it get any better? Open daily for dinner year round. Reservations recommended. 488 South St., Hyannis. 508-775-2386. Downtown: Not what you’d expect to find tucked in next to a supermarket and a bank, Ardeo Mediterranean Taverna offers a couple of big dining rooms and really big bar frequently filled with people out looking for a good time. Expect the unexpected on the menu, too, where a wide variety of traditional Middle Eastern offerings like falafel and stuffed grape leaves are contrasted by more traditional chicken wings and steamed mussels. There are a handful of wood stone pizzas and then there’s the entrees. Lots of pastas, the Ardeo parmesans: chicken, veal or eggplant, and several chicken and fish dishes. Reservations accepted for parties of six or more. Sister properties in both Hyannis and at the The Club at Yarmouthport complex. 23V White’s Path, South Yarmouth. 508-760-1500. Uptown: All shiny and new with a nod to old-world European dining, Abbicci in Yarmouth Port underwent a massive renovation last year, taking the historic antique down to the bare bones and building it back up to a brilliant example of “big-city chic meets Cape Cod.” Crisp white walls and a clean neutral palate are complemented by abstract artwork and stunning glass hanging light fixtures. Abbicci is open for both lunch and dinner with the extensive tapas menu available both in the bar and in the multiple dining rooms. Many of the pasta dishes, and entrees as well, may be ordered as half portions, providing diners with the more European style of dining on many small courses. The restaurant is known for cutting-edge Italian cuisine, especially the handmade pasta that’s created daily. Other highlights to the menu include rack of lamb, the “lollipop” chops on the tapas menu and roasted rack on the dinner menu, Barnstable Harbor oyster and Hudson Valley fois gras. Reservations are suggested. 43 Main St., Yarmouth Port. 508-362-3501. The Dennis-Yarmouth area has a handful of courses, Dennis Pines and Dennis Highlands on the north side and Blue Rock and Bass River on the south side, so we’ve selected restaurants on both the north and the south sides. Downtown: For more than two decades, Clancy’s has been the place to be in Dennisport. A great big place with great big views of Swan River, this place rocks on summer evenings and rolls along pretty well in the off-season too. The lounge has a rectangular bar with tons of stools and most of the dining rooms make the most of that view with large plate-glass windows. The menu is massive, as are the portions. Clancy’s is open daily year-round, serving through the day from 11:30 a.m. until 10 p.m., so if you’re coming off the course at 3 p.m., getting your hands on a big burger or a pile of fish & chips is no problem. Lots of appetizers, salads and sandwiches are available all day and then dinner selections are added after 5 p.m. The chicken Kari Anne and steak Lucifer are a couple of popular choices. No reservations. 8 Upper County Rd., Dennisport. 508-394-6661. Cape Cod National on Route 39 in Brewster and Captains Course on Freeman’s Way in Brewster are just up the road from each other and kind of in the middle of nowhere, so we went with a couple of pubs and a couple of swankier places, all a short drive from either course: Downtown: Another longtime Cape institution, the 400 East, so named because it’s east of its sister restaurant, The 400, is located in a small mall in East Harwich, but manages not to have that mall-restaurant feel. Lots of polished wood and booths keep the two dining areas cozy, and lots of people keep it fun. Great burgers, grilled pizzas, pub-ish appetizers like wings and steak teriyaki tips, an unexpected offering of creative meal-sized salads and plenty of pasta dishes, grilled steaks and full entrees really work in a menu that offers something for everyone. Lunch and dinner, seven days, year-round. No reservations. Corner of Routes 137 and 39, East Harwich. 508-432-1800. Uptown: A great combination of easy atmosphere and eclectic cuisine can be found at Mahoney’s Atlantic Bar & Grill. Cocktails are available from 4 p.m., served up at the fabulous bar, a mile-long glistening slab of wood set in a long narrow room with a handful of tables and huge helping of character. Dinner is served from 5 p.m. either at the bar or in the separate dining room with its original painted tin ceiling, Mission-style lighting fixtures and lustrous wood everywhere. This menu has got everything from blackened tuna sashimi to savory skewers of beef, chicken and shrimp for appetizers and entrees ranging from filet mignon with sauce Bordelaise to pan-roasted lobster and “the Steaming Bowl,” Mahoney’s take on bouillabaisse. No reservations. 28 Main St., Orleans. 508-255-5505. Downtown: The Yardarm, an eating and drinking pub, has served lunch and dinner year round for 35 years under the same ownership. Known for fish & chips, prime rib and chowder, as well as fun pub atmosphere, both locals and seasonal visitors appreciate the hearty portions, reasonably priced menu and extensive “white board” specials. The fish is brought in daily, and the steaks and prime rib cannot be beat. Enjoy the popular Sunday brunch served from noon ’til 3 p.m. So before or after golf, stop in and enjoy the local color at the bar and the local flavors of fresh Cape Cod seafood. Allow for a few cheers from sports fans who find the fun pub atmosphere very enjoyable for watching the games. For great food, fun times and friendship, go to the Yardarm. Route 28, Orleans. 508-255-4840. Uptown: Tucked away in sleepy East Orleans, the Nauset Beach Club is a haven of fine dining, offering a menu laden with authentic northern Italian cuisine and an award-winning wine list served in intimate dining rooms warmed with deep terra Downtown: Truly a Cape Cod institution is the Chatham Squire. Two distinct areas, the bar side and the dining room, offer two distinct experiences, both of the raucous, good-time style. The bar side includes one massive bar and lots of tables, nothing fancy and nothing much has changed over the decades. Lots of beers on draft served in a proper pint and lots of good food. Don’t miss the specials sheet tucked in between the condiments…it’s half the daily menu. The dining room side also has a small bar in addition to a couple of dozen tables. The menu is the same and the noise level is pretty similar on a busy summer day, but this is the tamer side of the Squire. Great chowder and burgers, the blue plate special at lunch is usually a good bet…filling and tasty. Look for fishcakes on the specials list. They make a frequent appearance, and they’re not to be missed. No reservations. 487 Main St., Chatham. 508-945-1111. Uptown: In a town known for its big bucks and high style, it’s nice to know there is a restaurant tucked away that turns out exceptional food without the exceptional attitude. Vining’s Bistro is the epitome of unpretentious elegance. The small lounge is just off the main dining room filled with tables arranged around the open kitchen. The creativity with the menu is really out of the ordinary with appetizers like Chatham littleneck and mussel roast with a house-made chorizo or a warm lobster taco. Unexpected entrees include the Bangkok Clay Pot with a mix of fresh seafood simmered in a curry coconut sauce and a rib eye with grilled portabella and a cabernet-truffle sauce. Vining’s is a fast-paced place to enjoy great food without all the pomp and circumstance. No reservations. 595 Main St., Chatham. 508-945-5033. After playing 18 at the Outer Cape’s scenic Chequessett Yacht and Country Club, shoot over to one of these great finds. Downtown: One of those rare places that pulls off serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, and pulls it off well, is the Bookstore & Restaurant. If a late-morning tee time is on the schedule, fuel up with their Bookstore Special: poached eggs on English muffin with spinach, mushrooms and hollandaise. Lots of omelets, steak and eggs, and breakfast sandwiches are some other morning options. The lunch and dinner menus are both big on seafood: oyster stew, raw bar, clams casino, steamers, oysters Rockefeller. And that’s just a few of the appetizers. The Bookstore offers plenty of fried seafood selections, Italian classics and a handful of sandwiches such as a seafood Reuben or French Dip. Lobster salad is a specialty. The dinner menu has some of the sandwiches, all of the fried dishes and then a bunch of entrees, again heavy on the seafood, such as the Portuguese stew, the fish pot and the fruits of the sea. All are a mixture of fish; each has its own flavor. Great water views. No reservations. 50 Kendrick Ave., Wellfleet. 508-349-3154.
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cotta hues strikingly contrasted by black and beige linens and chairs. What it isn’t is a stuffy, stick-in-the-mud kind of place. Elegant food and gracious service make for an exceptional evening without the attitude. The menu changes seasonally, making the most of locally available ingredients, and features appetizers such as the “ostriche,” roasted local oysters with preserved lemon, herbs and olive oil and “pomodoro e formaggio,” crisply sautéed tomato and goat cheese as appetizers. Equally authentic entrees include a range of pasta dishes, such as a classic Bolognese or linguine with white clam sauce, and several fish and meat dishes. Serving dinner only, seven nights a week, year round. Reservations suggested. 222 Main St., East Orleans. 508-255-8547.
Uptown: This one is a bit of a haul from the course, but with a reputation for great food that’s been heralded in several national publications, it’s worth the trip. Finely J.P.’s used to garner all of its praise strictly for the food. Up until last year, the restaurant was housed in a ranch. All that changed when John Pontius knocked down the building and constructed a split-level building that’s filled with poured concrete surfaces and lots of cedar and mahogany. The new digs are worthy of the delicious food the chef/owner has been putting out since 1991. Signature appetizers include the baked oysters Bienville and the blackened beef with charred pepper relish. Perhaps the most renowned of the entrees is the Wellfleet paella, J.P.’s take on the classic. Also popular are the salmon with ginger and soy and the medallions of pork with Granny Smith apples and chevre. No reservations. 554 Route 6, Wellfleet. 508-349-7500.