Pepe’s Wharf – Provincetown

When we were in Provincetown last weekend, it poured all afternoon Saturday. Apparently Boston only got hit with a glancing blow, but out on the Cape it was a full-on thunderstorm. We rode it out for a while in a bar, but when the rain showed no signs of stopping, Yue and I parted ways with our friends to go back to our respective guest houses to rest up, and agreed to meet up again later that evening for dinner. We had made reservations at our friends’ favorite place in Provincetown: Pepe’s Wharf. Though the rain hadn’t let up by the time our reservation rolled around, we braved the storm (for the three hundred or so feet from our front door to Pepe’s) for a relaxed evening of elevated seafood fare.

We had already been to Pepe’s on Friday night for drinks, and the view from the bar is incredible. Situated on their second level, it looks out over Provincetown harbor (like most restaurants do, admittedly), and has a small standing-room-only area behind the bar for those who want to take their drinks en plen air. The dining room itself is on the lower level, decorated in the soft blues and whites that so many of Provincetown’s resident artists use in their paintings.

The menu is, naturally, heavy on the seafood. We started off with an order of oysters Rockafeller, which I had never tried before. The oysters are baked with a mixture of spinach and Parmesan cheese, making a light and flaky crust on top. The texture and taste were a far cry from the salty, slippery oysters I’m used to, but it was certainly a welcome change.

Yue continued her weekend-long lobster binge with a lobster pizza. It was good, naturally, but pretty heavy, and being the thoughtful boyfriend that I am, I kindly offered to help her with it when it became clear it was too much for her to eat on her own. I opted for a seafood puttanesca, a sort of frutti di mare with local scallops,  mussells and shrimp all tossed into a spaghetti and served with a slightly spicy tomato and olive sauce. The portion size was just the right size to fill up without leaving me feeling overstuffed.

By the time we had finished our meals, the rain had cleared up, so we retired to the upstairs bar for a round of drinks, and to watch the lightning flash over the Cape as the storm moved on.

Ross’s Grill – Provincetown

For our first night in Provincetown (and after a brief siesta to get out of the midday heat), Yue and I met up with our friend’s at Ross’s Grill in the heart of Provincetown’s main drag. Ross’s is located on the second level of a multi-tiered open air shopping complex and looks out over the harbor. We were fortunate enough to get a table right by the windows, and we had a great view while we ate.

We started things off with a round of drinks (we did quite a lot of drinking this past weekend), and put in an order for the raw bar. We each had a few oysters and shrimp apiece, most likely pulled out of the bay just a few hours prior. Growing up in Rhode Island, I’ve always been a bit spoiled when it comes to seafood. I’m not big on fish, but I do love shellfish, and living where I did (and presently do) means that I have access to very fresh fish, and all of the shellfish I had while out on the Cape was amazing. I think it probably has something to do with the water quality, but the flavors were very robust, and the portions were huge.

For our main courses, Yue chose a seafood paella. The picture doesn’t really do it justice, and it’s a little hard to see the various mussels, lobster, and scallops in the risotto, which was itself very well prepared. I went with a roasted duck with a citrus glaze. I think I’ve mentioned here before that I like to get duck when I see it on the menu, because it’s not something I have terribly often, and it diversifies my usual repertoire of pork, beef, and chicken. It was savory and a bit gamey, and actually paired fairly well with the oysters I had earlier.

In all, Ross’s was a great first stop on a night out. We had a hearty, filling meal, and then proceeded up and down Commerical Street to a variety of different bars, the highlight of which we returned to for dinner on Saturday. But that’s another story for a different post, so stay tuned.

Patio – Provincetown

Over the weekend, Yue and I took the ferry across the harbor to visit two friends who were vacationing in Provincetown. I haven’t been to the Cape since I was a kid, and never to Provincetown, but our friends make an annual pilgrimage, and Yue and I are looking to make our weekend getaway an annual affair as well. We disembarked from the ferry around 11 on Friday morning after having woken up rather early to catch the first boat over. We were met at the pier, and after dropping our bags off at our AirBnB, we decided to grab an early lunch.

Patio is located on Provincetown’s main drag of Commercial Street, and a quick right turn off the ferry will take you there. Yue had eaten here when she visited last year, and was dying to try the lobster carbonara again. I personally wasn’t in the mood for something so heavy so early in the day, so I opted for a chicken panini instead, though I did indulge in a midday cocktail, which isn’t something I normally do. But in my defense, I was officially on vacation, not to mention that I haven’t had a single day off since our NOLA trip in the spring. I’ve probably mentioned here before that I’m big on whiskey (in cocktails and straight up), and this one was a blend of blackberry puree, lemonade and bourbon, which now that I think about it wouldn’t be out of place in the French Quarter. But it was just the thing for a warm afternoon in a beach-side town too.

We were sitting outside on, well, the patio, underneath a canopy of two-toned umbrellas and on comfortable padded benches. Patio is great for people-watching, especially for people just arriving in town. It’s a great way to take the pulse of Provincetown and get an early taste of the local flavor.

The panini I ordered was packed with chicken, avocado, and roasted red peppers, and unfortunately due to the nature of a panini the pictures we have taken don’t really show the colorful insides. It was a very summer-y meal, and the peppers added a bit of zest to an otherwise simple dish. The lobster carbonara was also quite good, made with freshly caught Cape lobster, but as I said, it was a little heavy for my tastes so early in the day.

This was not our only trip to Patio; it was good enough that we came back once a day for each of our three days in town, enough so that the hostess could recognize us as we walked by. It will be the only time we write it up, however, but this isn’t the end of our Cape vacation for you readers. We have a few more posts queued throughout the week, so stay tuned for that!