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. The pilgrims dropped anchor here in 1620 - initially at Provincetown and then, more famously, at Plymouth. And much of what they saw has since changed little. Mile after mile of unbroken coastline is backed by high dunes and wind-lashed cliffs. Inland, these give way to idyllic ponds, cranberry bogs, quiet woods and salt marshes, and rare birds of every stripe and song fly above. When evening arrives, the diffuse, enveloping light is the stuff of artistic inspiration, having moved the likes of Edward Hopper to capture it on canvas.

The Cape is large and areas are denoted as the Upper, Mid and Lower Cape - stop for directions along the Old King's Highway, for instance, and these are the terms a local would use. The towns of Falmouth, Hyannis, Orleans and Provincetown are more sizeable ones of note. They are, and always have been, fiercely individual places, and as with any neighborhoods, the lifestyles within can vary greatly. Find artist collectives and gay parades in P-town, shopping in Hyannis or clam digging in Truro...find Kennedys, playwrights and Portuguese fishermen...there is just about every kind of person doing every kind of thing on the Cape.

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. In the past few years, the global pantry has hit the area and ingredients like miso, lemongrass and tamari are as likely to appear on menus as fried seafood. Wood-grilling is a favored technique and is practiced by everyone from roadhouse pubs to hip cafes to fine dining restaurants in 1700s homes. Past and present, Cape Cod is home to some very good and always honest cooking.