Magic Fountain, Long Island

At first glance, Magic Fountain looks like a terrible road side ice cream stop, which will serve sickly sweet, overly processed ice cream. The next time you drive past you might read the sign and see that it lists flavors like avocado, vegan pomberri, and kulfi, and realize that this may not be your average, suburban ice cream parlor after all. The next next time you drive past, it's late, you've been out for a swanky dinner, you skipped dessert, and all of a sudden, there is nothing you want more in the world than a giant waffle cone piled high with peanut butter fudge and s'mores ice cream.  

So that's what we did. After a fancy dinner at North Fork Table & Inn, Papa missed the turning back to our Airbnb, and we rather fortunately ended up on Magic Fountain's front steps. Obviously, we make the most of the wrong turn and go inside to order our waffle cone filled with peanut butter fudge and s'mores ice cream. We were handed an ice cream as big as my head, and ate it sitting on the bench outside, in front of the hilarious ice cream wall painting, racing the summer heat to devour our sweet, salty, nutty, creamy dessert before it all melted onto the sidewalk. 

It turns out, thanks to some post-visit research, that Magic Fountain is considered to be the best ice cream on the North Fork, according to various not-always-trustworthy websites. I can vouch for its magical tastiness.

Magic Fountain, 9825 Main Road, Mattituck, NY 11952

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North Fork Food Truck, Long Island

Our lunch on Shelter Island had succeeded in getting all of us totally hooked on this upmarket food truck scene. So the next day, we hunted down North Fork Table & Inn's food truck, aptly named North Fork Food Truck.

I can't believe that there's a more perfect food truck to be found anywhere. Well, the setting could be improved (let's move it from a parking lot to the beach), and maybe it would be parked next to an ice cream truck serving me dessert, but apart from that, this food truck was totally wonderful.

As we were eating with my family, none of us were allowed to order the same thing (every meal counts as work, don't ya know), so we managed to sample a significant amount of the menu. All the rolls and sandwiches and fries on our table got some incredibly vigorous nods of approval, had to pose for many a photo (for work purposes, obvs), and led to a long discussion about how exactly you go about creating such a perfect lobster roll.

Between us we devoured a lobster roll (yes, I have expensive taste), pulled pork with jalapeño pickles, pork banh mì, a totally magical black bean burger that would have convinced all meat-eaters that being vegetarian can be delicious, and a side of fries with chipotle aioli. If we'd stayed longer, we'd have returned multiple times. After a breakfast of lemon and ricotta pancakes, of course. But alas, work beckoned (and American holiday allowance is truly disastrous), so the second opportunity to spend an hour devouring all the lobster rolls and black bean burgers possible will have to wait until our next trip to this dreamy, inspiring, and peaceful fork of Long Island.

North Fork Food Truck, 57225 Main Road, Southold, NY 11971

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Four and Twenty Blackbirds, Orient Village

I genuinely jumped for joy when B, doing his research the day before we left for Long Island, told me there was a Four and Twenty Blackbirds outlet a few miles from our AirBnb on the North Fork. So after our morning run to Bailie beach, our lemon and ricotta pancakes, and a walk and sunbathe at the stunning Orient State Park, we set off on a hunt for a slice of pie.

Four and Twenty Blackbirds is one of our all time favorite New York locations, serving the most wonderful pies, and, as Coop would say, a "damn fine cup of coffee". Typically we eat our way through the perfect fruit pie at Gownus, but this Orient location really trumps Brooklyn when it comes to location. 

Orient Village is one of the most picturesque places I have ever visited. The white houses with carefully colored shutters line the silent streets and elegant coast line. A few shops selling baskets (which I obviously couldn't resist buying), art, gifts, aprons, and houses are dotted down the main street. The locals travel around on upright bicycles with baskets on the front, or, if not, they have a golf buggy for the same purpose parked in their drive. The only sounds are the gentle chatter if friendly neighbors and retired friends, waves crashing on the sore, and seagulls flying overhead. We looked into buying a house there and then, but, sadly, (and somewhat unsurprisingly), they're rather out of our budget. I'll try again in a few years time.

So this slice of pie was enjoyed not with a view of the pungent Gowanus canal, but gazing out at my dream home (obviously being set opposite Four and Twenty Blackbirds is a requirement for every dream home). Rhubarb crumble pie was tart, and just sweet enough, the coffee was iced and strong, and papa's salted caramel apple pie was as perfect as that particular pie always, always is. It took a lot of self-control and lobster rolls to resist stopping at the slightly-out-of-the-way pie shop every afternoon. 

Four and Twenty Blackbirds in Orient is only open during the summer months, so make sure you hurry to get there before the season's up.

Four and Twenty Blackbirds, 1010 Village Lane, Orient, NY 11957

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Love Lane Kitchen, North Fork

Apologies for yet another ginormous silence. Things have been busy in these parts. A crazy week of work and work events ended with a long weekend (four days - probably known as a proper vacation in this country), with maman and papa out on the North Fork of Long Island. Then there were a couple of days back in the city, filled with ice cream and post-work drinks, and then maman and papa caught us up back in NYC and we've had another wonderful (and long) weekend of sun, blue skies, and so, so much food. Anyway, there's my excuse for the extended lack of words written on this little space of the internet, but fret not, I'm back.

We rented an adorable house on AirBnb for our stay on Long Island. It was tucked away in Mattituck, on a goose-filled inlet, and only a two mile jog/cycle ride/drive from the beach. And it was less than a mile to the best pancakes I've tasted since we moved to the U S of A. These said pancakes can be found at Love Lane Kitchen.

Before we arrived at North Fork we only had to do five minutes of research to discover that Love Lane Kitchen's lemon and ricotta pancakes were made of magical unicorn substances. So, after a slow jog to the beach and back, our main priority on our first North Fork morning was to get ourselves in front of a couple of plates of those pancakes.

Accompanied by iced coffees, fresh juices (from The Giving Room in Southold, just down the road), and limitless coffee, maman and I tucked into the fluffiest, lightest, zestiest, lemon and ricotta pancakes, covered in maple syrup, extra berries, and in my case (because I'm the greediest) a few knobs of butter. We obviously went back for more, later in the trip, and for some reason I didn't beg for the recipe. I fear that when I'm on my deathbed, this will be one of my biggest life regrets. 

While maman and I worked our way through all of our pancakes, papa limited himself to eggs with kale and avocado (too much raw kale for anybody's liking), and B went all out and had cheesecake stuffed French toast. I'm pretty sure I don't need to tell you that cheesecake-stuffed French toast is a wondrous meal which everyone should be treated to regularly, especially when on holiday/vacation.

If you ever stay anywhere on the North Fork don't drive by the pancakes. Your trip will be 100 times better if you stop for a serving (or four) of them.

Love Lane Kitchen, 240 Love Lane, Mattituck, NY 11952

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