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Cape Cod & the Islands

Cape Cod Look at a map of New England and Cape Cod is sure to draw your gaze. Like a dancer's hand, it unfurls with elongated grace into the brackish waters of the Atlantic. It is, and always has been, a fiercely individual place, and the lifestyles within can vary greatly - there is just about every kind of person doing every kind of thing on the Cape, and this come one, come all enthusiasm for life has seeped into the dining scene. There is an emphasis on locally-grown produce, and chefs are spoiled by dozens of varieties of oysters, just-dug clams, lobsters and fish arriving just hours out of nearby waters. Past and present, Cape Cod is home to some very good and always honest cooking.

Martha’s Vineyard Martha's Vineyard has a history whose quirky jumble of religion, hard work and diversity echoes that of America as a whole. It is also a curious fusion of the well-preserved past and the fast-moving present. Edgartown has long been known for the grand mansions built by the captains of the whaling industry, yet many of these homes are now occupied by modern-day captains of industry. The Grange in Tisbury is a centuries-old agricultural hall that has recently been converted into an arts and community center. And dining is another of these ambitious pursuits, where the currents of past and present, year-round and visitor collide at all points. Pan-Asian cafes, cheery farmer's markets, wine bars and Brazilian eateries co-exist, and their forms range from the Ralph Lauren-ish charms of clapboard inns to urbane wood-floored bistros down Oak Bluffs way.

Nantucket This island's vigorous sense of self and history is hardly matched in all of America. Fast food chains and traffic lights are verboten, and bike paths are among the busiest thoroughfares. Like the roses which creep over many of the clapboard homes, proud locals have made Nantucket a delight to inhabit through dedicated preservation and detailing. Industries like whaling, fishing and trading have all boomed and busted here, and now tourism has positioned island restaurateurs at the rudder of taste-making with the understated aesthetic of Nantucket architecture as inspiration. Nantucket is the only place in the country that is a town, a county and an island, and it is a great dining destination in any of those categories.

- Rob McKeown