CT coast to Ptown on Cape Cod - recommendations needed!

Hello! My husband and I will be road-tripping next month and I am looking for recommendations please from the CT coast all the way up to Ptown on Cape Cod. We love non-touristy places, but as long as the food is good, we're not that picky. I did a search on the archives and found some info on CT, but very little on Cape Cod. If I missed a thread somewhere, just let me know.

Also, if you know of any "can't miss" places to visit, I'd love to hear about them.

Thank you!

Kristi

This is not an area I know well but five years ago I did a portion of this trip with experienced guides. Hopefully Josephine, tatterdemalion and others will chime in. Two stops (out of what seemed like a hundred great ones) stood out for me.

If you have any interest in lobster rolls, it's essential to visit Lobster Landing, on the docks in Clinton CT.





You might someday have a better lobster roll but I wouldn't count on it.

Fall River MA is one of the most fascinating food towns I've been to. If I had to choose a single stop it would be Sagres, a no-nonsense Portuguese restaurant with some pretty great food.



It's been half a decade and I still think back fondly on that salt cod casserole (bacalhau à Gomes de Sá) and that dish of pork and clams (carne de porco à Alentejana). You could easily spend a couple days in Fall River, exploring the Portuguese bakeries and markets, the hot cheese sandwiches and chouriço bean dogs, and of course the chow mein sandwiches(!). Some good information here on Fall River if you search.

Thank you! Lobster Landing seems to be a favorite on several forums. Their lobster roll sound amazing!

Lobster Landing is a notable stop for a CT-style hot lobster roll. Most of these clamshacks are run by kids during the summer season and the kids at Lobster Landing are trained well in the art of plucking that claw n knuckle meat.



There are just so many clamshacks up and down the coast, and even inland, that it's impossible to get to them all which is why I always consult the Sterns who have a pretty large database covering CT.

Not far from the coast, and right off of 84 in Southbury, is Denmos Snack & Dairy Bar. If you have a belly fetish, these are easily some of the largest bellies you'll find, so big they toe that line of being too much to swallow. Plumpy brine-bursting bellies, now that I think about em, they were perhaps too much. But yet perfectly fried.



After you've had a few pounds of fried seafood and need a break, a good stopping point might be in South Kingstown, RI. The Matunuck Oyster Bar is a serene little place on the water overlooking their own pond where the oysters are farmed. They also have a vegetable farm across the way. When Ol' PIGMON and I stopped by a few year ago we had an excellent round of gin and oysters. The bellies are pretty decent but not the point.

This summer I had some fantastic bellies at The Friendly Fisherman in Eastham on the Cape. But perhaps the real highlight was the fried fish. Ask for the small side order and you'll get two big fillets for about half the cost of the plate which has three.





One of the highlights of last years shack season was without a doubt the fried shrimp at the Chatham Pier Fish Market. I'd given up on shack shrimp until I had these.

PB Boulangerie in Wellfleet is a proper French bakery and worth the wait.

But mostly, you really ought to spend a few days in Fall River & New Bedford.

Rene G wrote:Fall River MA is one of the most fascinating food towns I've been to. If I had to choose a single stop it would be Sagres, a no-nonsense Portuguese restaurant with some pretty great food.

Bad news: Sagres Restaurant was destroyed by a fire last year. It sounds like the rebuilding is underway so hopefully it will reopen in the not-too-distant future. I think there are other somewhat similar Portuguese restaurants in the area but I'm unable to recommend specific ones. It's a shame Sagres is temporarily out of business but Fall River is still well worth allotting some time for. Should you decide to stay overnight, you might want to consider the Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast.

I've spent a good deal of time in my life on Cape Cod, but this past year discovered a new fantastic and not too expensive seafood restaurant on the road to Provincetown. It's called Moby Dick's Seafood restaurant, it's in Welfleet on Route 6, about 20 minutes this side of Provincetown. It's an inexpensive alternative to the Provincetown restaurants; the food was fresh and tasty, the owners quite welcoming and friendly, it was a real find.

Moby Dick's Seafood Restaurant
3225 Route 6
Wellfleet, MA 02667
508.349.9795

http://mobydicksrestaurant.com/the-experience/

Hello Bellringr,

Having lived on the CT coast for the past 6 years I will while heartedly agree with Dene G that a stop at lobster landing is worth the trip. They are one of many seasonal spots along the shore, so make sure they are open. Also, here in CT a lobster roll is going to be warm buttered lobster in a toasted roll. If you are looking for the cold Mayo dressed variety you need to ask for a lobster salad roll. This only applies in CT.

Another suggestions along our shore for seafood would be Bills Seafood in Madison CT, especially if it is raining (lobster landing has no indoor seating) A lot of the little places on the shoreline are cashing, so keep that in mind.

Flip

My wife and I just had a terrific dinner at Moby Dick in Wellfleet (on the Cap). They are masters of anything fried (particularly the whole belly clams). Their Key Lime pie is not to be missed.

http://mobydicksrestaurant.com

3225 State Hwy Rte 6, Wellfleet
(508) 349-9795

Thanks for all the ideas!

OK now I'm sad. Moby Dick's last day open is Oct. 13. We won't be there til the week after.

Check the dates for Arnolds in Eastham. It has truly sublime fried seafood, year in, year out.

It's been 5 years, but Mac's Shack in Wellfleet was great when we went there for my parents' 50th anniversary. They're open through October 28th this year. Wellfleet is a really cute town.