Take me back to Montauk

Notes from a brief trip to the easternmost point of Long Island

The past few weeks have been intense. Amidst other personal calamities, I’ve been trying to find a new apartment. Even with the broker fee alleviation brought by the FARE Act, it feels totally impossible. The closest I’ve come to feeling like it’s not impossible is when I’ve gone through old screenshots from other apartment search periods of my life. Seeing screenshots of tens of apartments with the one that I’d eventually settle on amidst the sea of other forgotten spaces, I’m able to remind myself it’s only totally completely impossible until the moment you find something, get approved, and move on, forgetting you were ever in such an acute state of limbo.

Anyway, in the midst of this I decided to go out to Montauk. The invite came at the perfect time: what could get my mind off of my apartment search and my various other troubles better than staring out at the ocean and eating as much seafood as I could possibly fit into a 48 hour-ish period? I still had enough time to play with before really truly needing a place to live that it didn’t feel like the most irresponsible thing in the world to get on the LIRR and escape my life for a couple nights.

Montauk proved to be exactly what I was looking for. Below, I’ve highlighted a few of my favorite finds.

Accommodations

We stayed at Daunt’s Albatross, a super cute motel that’s been owned by the same family since the ‘70s. Seeing that I’m in a state of flux, living situation-wise, I’m fantasizing a lot about what my next place will look like: what colors I will paint the walls, what sofa I will buy, what bedframe I’ll spend every night on. Redesigned by Home Studios a few years ago, the rooms are bright and beachy but dotted with pops of green and blue. Several antique accent pieces appear—something I wouldn’t expect to find in a beachside motel. I was super inspired by all of the color in the hotel room, particularly the green bathroom ceiling. The room I was staying in, the Double Deluxe, had a kitchenette that made me dream of ever in the next million years being able to reno a kitchen. I love the sharp blue backsplash and dishes, but when do I ever witness a color blue and not cling to it?

I have been traveling quite a bit in the past year, but at the Albatross was the most comfortable hotel bed I’ve slept on in a long time. I’m not the best sleeper away from home so this was a massive relief… The linens and towels were all from Parachute. I’d never tried their stuff before, but after doing so I know I’ll be placing an order from them post haste once I find a new apartment.

Best of all about Daunt’s Albatross: it was less than a five minute walk to the beach. We didn’t have the best weather after our first day, but I still started my two mornings there with a very early morning walk along the water. When I told people I was going on this trip, people kept mentioning Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and while we were short of snow on the sand, the foggy morning walk did come close as far as moodiness goes.

Food

• For my first meal in Montauk, I went straight for seafood. We went to a cafe called Joni’s and I ordered shrimp tacos. As I’d hoped for: very fresh tasting and perfectly light for a day in the sun. We went back for breakfast the next morning. Alongside my Girls rewatch I am bringing period appropriate avocado toast back into my life and the Joni’s avo toast was the first I’ve had a while that didn’t disappoint.

• Our best meal was definitely dinner at Bird On The Roof, which is located directly across from our hotel and owned by the same family. The local oysters were the highlight for me—they’re probably the best I’ve ever had—but the wagyu sando with curly fries and the charred edamame were gorgeous too. It all felt appropriate for its seaside location, but not exactly expected, and slightly elevated without feeling stuffy. My sweet spot!

• I was super impressed with the food at Navy Beach as well. My favorite thing we ate was the lobster roll starter which was a sushi hand roll instead of a bread roll and satisfied my desire for lobster without the heft of a proper lobster roll.

Activities

Especially after feeling particularly drained by the city these past few weeks, I was glad to soak in Montauk’s natural beauty as much as I could. Right after check in, we headed straight for the beach because it was our chance for some real sun before a cloudier outlook for the rest of our stay. As I mentioned, the rest of the stay was quite foggy, but I was still glad to log some hours staring at seagulls and padding through the sand.

Boat ride: On the first night we took a ride on the Mon Tiki catamaran. There was a live band playing, hors d'oeuvres, and drinks and the crew of mostly locals on board with us was particularly lively.

Shadmoor trail hike: The first morning in Montauk, we met some locals while eating at Joni’s and they recommended Shadmoor trail so we checked it out. At the start of the trail, you’re surrounded by tall trees, then it gives way to some more open fields from which you can peep some of the nearby houses, and eventually you emerge to the cliffs and can glimpse down at the ocean. There are a lot of different gorgeous landscapes packed into less than an hour and with barely any tough terrain.

Montauk Point Lighthouse: The Lighthouse is probably Montauk’s most well-known symbol, so it wouldn’t be right to make the trip out there and miss it. It was commissioned in the late 18th century by George Washington, making it one of the oldest lighthouses in the US. At the museum in the base of the lighthouse, they have all kinds of historical documents, photographs, and paraphernalia related to the lighthouse and Montauk itself. Before you make the walk upstairs, you can see a fresnel lens up close. Beyond its utility, it’s just really fascinating looking. Once upstairs, you can peek to the very top of the lighthouse and see the currently active fresnel lens as it spins and collects light to disperse.

Thank you so much to the Montauk Chamber of Commerce for having me and to Tim Monaghan for showing us around!