Hana made sure to get her steps in before breakfast.
Author’s Note: Last weekend, our usually sleepy fur baby Hana the dachshund, decided to play rooster around 5:45am to make sure we all had a productive day. While I was hoping to have a lazy Sunday, we took her soothing whines to get up and going. A cool morning walk to Ridgevale Beach and down a few side streets worked up our appetites (and tired her out) to the point where we decided to play “restaurant roulette.” The game is comically simple; we pick up the local newspaper (in this case, the Cape Cod Chronicle) and open a random page. Which ever restaurant advertisement is read first is where we go for breakfast. (Restaurants, take note, you may want to increase your ad budgets!) Page 3 of the edition was none other than, “Where Nothing Could Be Finer Than To Eat at Sandi’s Diner.”
It often feels like the breakfast culture on the Cape is increasingly shifting to “grab and go” away from the traditional sit-down meal. The reasons are obvious; it’s fast (race to get that beach parking space); less expensive for customers (though no free re-fills of coffee!) and possibly less costly for the restaurants (less wait staff; smaller menu may mean less ingredients). Fortunately, the tourists and beach-goers are not completely succeeding at changing the breakfast landscape, as restaurants like Sandi’s Diner remain packed and enjoy a loyal following.
The patio of Sandi’s Diner may be the best seat “in” the house.
If you need a refresher, Sandi’s Diner is a downtown Chatham breakfast/lunch spot that opens at 4:30 a.m. EVERY DAY. The menu is straight-forward, one page menu with just the right amount of omelet, pancake, waffle, egg sandwich, fresh fruit options. The wait staff moves quick, even on busy mornings. The dining room, with counter service, is small and can “heat up” when full. There air conditioning is an exhaust fan. If you want a cooler, quieter seat with a charming view of Main Street, grab one of the two tables outside on the front porch. Though, the exhaust fan does blow near the table closest to the door.
The price is right on Sandi’s menu.
We only had to wait a few minutes until our table for four was ready. Always one to pair coffee with breakfast , the brew was nothing special, but that’s to be expected for a diner. However, my cup was filled every time it was half full. All of us had different food selections in mind. Ellen, the better half, went with pancakes, Mom had a fruit bowl, Dad had a muffin sandwich and I went with the Benny. The presentation was a plus, food was hot, portions were plentiful and taste was above average, especially considering the range of items ordered. The pancakes were noticeably fluffy. The price was right.
The goods.
We followed our breakfast with a slow stroll through a still deserted downtown as all the shops were just beginning to show signs of life. We turned around “Where the Sidewalk Ends,” (unfortunately they were not yet open), looped back and drove back to the house.
Astonishingly, the puppy who kicked off this day was wide-eyed and bushy tailed when we returned. We ended up getting in a second walk to the beach that morning. Thanks Hana and Sandi’s!
Author’s Note: While I don’t recall ever truly following through on a New Year’s resolution, my wife and I did create a “choose your own adventure” kind-of-game as a way of forcing us to try new things and bust out of the “routine cycle” that occurs every so often. We’ve made it a point to try “new to us” nearby and not so nearby restaurants, music venues, beaches, hiking trails, etc. The “how to” was quite simple; just write down random travel activities as they come to mind, fold-up the paper, mix it in a jar on the kitchen counter, and regularly pull “an adventure.” Though we never defined “regularly…”
Indeed, variety is the spice of life. For us, it’s not so much trying brand-new things, more of finally getting somewhere we just have not been to regardless of reason. Almost half-way though the year, we’ve discovered some amazing breweries, breath-taking (and mostly deserted) stretches of beach, met warm and friendly fellow dog owners, new trails and paddled in waters previously unknown. And in that spirit, a recent Friday of firsts became a pleasant little adventure on the Cape.
Earlier in the summer, we kept seeing signs in Chatham store windows that read, Where are the whales? We initially were confused; assumed they meant, where are the sharks, and thought little of it. The infamous sharks were cleverly located in Kate Gould park, now at Eldridge Public Library, not to mention the the Atlantic Ocean. Nope, these signs in the windows are not about the hungry, beach-closing summer visitors, but of the lovable, gentle some of which are endangered, whale.
The Scavenger Hunt Log.
The business community, specifically, the Chatham Merchants Association, created a “Where are the Whales?” Scavenger Hunt to find 35 decorated wood-shaped whales, spread across town – in stores, restaurants, theaters, even the airport. Participants (notice I didn’t say “Kids”) match the whale (number) to the listed locations, submit a completed log to the Chatham Chamber of Commerce Information Booth (and receive a prize) and, if the log book is 100% correct, are entered into a drawing for 1 of 5 grand prizes, to be announced…
A cloudy summer morning seemed a great time for a dry-land whale watch and scavenger hunt to simply be kids again. Over the course of about 2 hours, we found over half of the whales! Most are located along Main Street, the central business district, so it’s convienent for families and of course encourages physical activity between unplanned purchases. About 10 whales are not downtown so you will have to drive around if you are “in it to win it.”
While this activity may seem cute, it was actually a blast. We brought the puppy (all but one store was puppy friendly), met a lot of friendly seasonal employees, and shopped in a few stores for the first time. Quick shout out to Where the Sidewalk Ends (bookstore, cafe, generally happy place); while they made you walk upstairs to find their whale, their shelves have some cool, obscure and quirky books about Cape Cod. (They made end up providing source materials for future posts!) For all you bookworms, they even have story time at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesdays, Fancy Nancy Tea Parties and Author Literary Luncheons. I can’t believe I’d never been in that store before. The crew at Mahi Gold were also a ton of fun, particularly with the puppy. If nothing else, the whale scavenger hunt forces you to go to new places, meet new people and you never know what you might find.
Hana the Hound watching over our drafts.
All that walking left us parched so Ellen suggested being adults again by trying Devil’s Purse Brewing Company in South Dennis. My craft beer mentor “Jonesy” suggested visiting so we knew it was going to be good. The brewery set up a beer garden complete with cornhole pits, board games, picnic tables and Bob Marley on the speakers.
A seafood basket at Kream N’ Kone never disappoints.
While Devil’s Purse does not do the traditional “flight”, we ordered 5 oz “samples” including: Shiso Berry Ale (delicious on a hot summer day), Skywave #7 Saison (light option), Stonehorse Citra IPA (great balance) and Table Beer #16 (for an experimental, very complete). They also had cans of a Double-IPA Hens and Chickens for sale (it was not on tap) so I grabbed a 4-pack, along with Citra and the Table Beer #16, as their cooler was looking sparse, meaning, this stuff goes fast. If you have never been, Devil’s Purse also does growler, howler and crowler fills. For such a small operation, the brewery has an impressive number and variety of beers on tap. Even better, their beers (especially the Handline Kolsch) can be found at most lower cape restaurants.
Every Cape Cod town should have this street.
On the way back to Chatham, we “saw a sign,” checked out the neighborhood, then made a few more “whale stops” before calling off the hunt. A casual dinner at Kream N’ Kone (never disappointing) awaited us, and then, the ultimate first time experience of this summer, attending a show at the Monomoy Theatre in Chatham for the short-run of Little Shop of Horrors, one of Ellen’s favorite musicals. Once again, I was star-struck (pun intended as many of these young actors go on to Broadway), upon the realizeation that we had only just driven by this place for decades until now.
About a half-dozen shows run daily through the summer with evening performances at 8pm; Thursday matinees at 2pm.
The Monomoy Theater is so Cape Cod, you can’t make it up. Like many of the seasonal workers throughout the Cape, the company is mostly college students (Univiersty of Hartford) on summer break seeking to re-fine, if not enhance, their craft. Theatre-goers park on the lawn. Some of the company is provided housing on-site. Cast members not in the current performance sell concessions in the patio area during intermission. By concessions, I mean $1 water, ice tea, lemonade and cookies. There is not a bad seat in the house. Even the special effects are impressive for a seasonal program. We were so delighted with the experience I’m pretty sure were going to become “Friends of the Monomoy Theater” in 2019. In the end, art wins.
Beach day essentials.A friendly game of Kan-Jam on a sparsely populated stretch of Newcomb Hollow Beach.
The next day was a much anticipated beach day at Newcomb Hollow Beach in Wellfleet. The “usual beach crew,” had a strict agenda of bogey boarding, pro kadima, Kan Jam, and Waboba. Seemed another great time to be kids again!
