Winter on Cape Cod

I am a summer girl. I love everything about those hot, sticky months – flip flops, sundresses, lounging on the beach, sun brewed iced tea, and best of all loads of business. The downside is that I have to forgo all that lounging on the beach for working ten hour days seven days a week, so I generally save any soaking in the sun for vacations during the winter. Living in a seaside village with seventy miles of shoreline, you would think that I’d feel nothing but jealous and resentful of our guests who get to take advantage of it all. And while some days, there’s nothing more I want to do than exchange my apron for a bathing suit and tube of sunscreen, for the most part, I relish the hustle and bustle of running a busy inn all summer long. Plus, come winter, I get to enjoy the Cape in many ways summer guests miss out on.

Take for example, Lighthouse Beach, just 1.5 miles down the street. I took my daughter there just the other day and we had the entire beach to ourselves and even glimpsed a couple ocean effect snowflakes blowing through the sunny sky and down the sandy shoreline that seemed to stretch for miles. Or, how about the fact that, despite some restaurants closing for the season, the ones that remain open aren’t trying to flip a table three times in one night, so leisurely meals without reservations are always an option. And then there’s the much appreciated ability to make a left hand turn – an impossibility when the narrow Cape Cod streets are jammed with traffic in the summer.

People always ask how I survive the quiet, uneventful Cape Cod winters. Those who know me well are surprised at the ease with which I shed my fondness for New York and Boston for a home on a street whereas we are the only year round residents. Perhaps after the hectic summer, I long for a peaceful reprieve and Chatham in the winter fits the bill perfectly. But I think it’s more than that. I have grown to love the intimacy of a small town where the dry cleaner and fish market owner know me by name. I have even gone so far as to suggest to guests that winter is, indeed, the best time to visit the Cape. What could be better than strolling down Chatham’s Main Street without tripping over hundreds of people, stopping at the Squire for a big bowl of calm chowder, and retiring to Lady Mariah for a soak in the giant whirlpool tub and a warm fire with a bottle of wine and a good book…and all for lower winter rates?

Stress Free and Budget Friendly Weddings

James and I were married almost eight years ago at the Captain Linnell House on a beautiful spring day in May. I wore a vintage dress I had found at a second hand store and carried black magic roses. James wore a rented tux and carried a small flask of whisky to calm his nerves (just kidding). His dad performed the ceremony in front of the gazebo under a 150-foot linden tree which is no longer there. Afterwards, we ate raw oysters, drank champagne, and danced to Frank Sinatra after my mom (who also happened to be my maid of honor) gave a speech that rivaled “I Have a Dream.” Looking back, I wouldn’t change a thing. Except for maybe the number of guests (and the electric slide which somehow managed to sneak into the DJ’s repertoire even though I had specifically requested no cheesy group dances). It wasn’t a huge wedding – 150 people tops. And I’m glad I got to share the day with each and every person who was there. The thing is, by the time we were done making the rounds and ensuring we had greeted and chatted with all our guests, we were left with little time to actually enjoy the reception we had taken so long to plan.

Our wedding was followed several years later by my brother Max’s who spontaneously married a girl he met in New Zealand. I didn’t make the trip for his very small and brief wedding, but my parents said the setting in a public garden was just beautiful and completely stress-free. Not long after that, my other brother Alan, married a German girl in Australia. James and I happened to be the only guests at their backyard wedding and afterwards we celebrated at a nearby winery where we enjoyed a leisurely lunch, several bottles of wine, and a view of the vineyards that stretched for miles.

When we became innkeepers, I decided to design an elopement package so we could provide a venue for mini, stress-free weddings like my brothers’. The package was a huge success and to date we have probably shared over three dozen weddings with couples in all different circumstances from all over the world. I’ve had brides get married in everything from jeans and boots to elaborate wedding gowns, but the one thing all couples seem to share is a strong desire to enjoy a stress-free wedding. If this sounds like you, read on for the top five reasons to elope at the Captain’s House Inn:

1. You’re not concerned with little details and don’t know the difference between and orchid and a calla lily, nor do you care. (Don’t worry, if you do care, you can choose your flower type and color.)
2. You believe that anything that takes a year and a half to plan and a year’s salary to afford is bound to be a tad anticlimactic.
3. You are pregnant and don’t have the time or energy to plan an elaborate affair. All you’re really interested in is celebrating your official union with a lot of wedding cake and plenty of ice cream.
4. Swimming laps in the ocean in sub zero weather sounds more appealing to you than being the center of attention for 150 people.
5. To you, the perfect wedding means sharing it with only the most important people in your lives.

If any of this sounds familiar, contact us for more details about the possibility of sharing your stress-free wedding day with us.

Captains House Inn Banana Macadamia Nut Pancakes with Orange Butter and Praline Sauce

Ingredients for Pancakes:
3 Cups All Purpose Flour
5 Tbsp Sugar
2 ¼ Tsp Baking Powder
¾ Tsp Baking Soda
¼ Tsp Salt
1 ½ Cups Buttermilk, well shaken
4 ½ Tbs Butter, melted
3 Large Eggs
1 ½ Tsp Vanilla
2 Banana, Large and ripe

Topping:
¾ Cup Macadamia Nuts, roasted and chopped

Ingredients for Orange Butter:
½ stick Butter, Softened
½ Tsp Orange Zest, finely grated
1 Tsp Fresh Orange Juice
1/8 Tsp Salt

Ingredients for Praline Sauce:
1 Cup Sugar
1 Cup Brown Sugar
2 ½ Cups Heavy Cream
2 Tbsp Corn Syrup
4 Tbsp Butter

Ingredients for Tuille:
½ Pound Flour
½ Pound Confectionary Sugar
¾ Cup Egg Whites
1-2 Tbsp Milk

Method (for pancakes):
1. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Whisk together the buttermilk, 2 Tbsp melted butter, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl until smooth. Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture and whisk until combined. Cut banana into pieces and fold into the batter along with the nuts, (batter will be very thick).
2. Use the griddle and working in batches of 3, pour ¼ cup measure into the hot griddle and cook until bubbles appear on the surface and undersides are golden brown, 1-2 minutes.
3. Flip pancakes with a spatula and cook until golden brown and cooked through, 1-2 minutes more.
4. Serve with orange butter, praline sauce, powdered sugar, and mint.

Method (for orange butter):
1. Stir all the ingredients in a small bowl until well combined.
2. Roll into a cylinder shape to be able to cut discs from to serve on top of the pancakes.

Method (for Praline sauce):
1. Boil first five ingredients for 8-12 minutes until sugars have dissolved, stirring with a rubber spatula.
2. Add butter

Method (for Tuille):
1. Sift flour and confectionary sugar into mixing bowl. Add egg whites and milk. Beat until smooth.
2. Pour batter into a squeeze bottle and pour into favorite shapes onto Silpat panliner.
3. Bake until brown. Remove and “bend” into shapes. Let cool and store in airtight container.

Putting it Together:

Day Before:
1. Make and store tuille.
2. Make praline sauce and store in double broiler.
3. Toast macadamia nuts and chop when cool.

Day Of:
1. Heat praline sauce in double broiler over water.
2. Make pancake batter and cook pancakes.
3. Pour praline sauce onto a warm plate and stack pancakes and a slice of orange butter in layers.
4. Drizzle top with more praline sauce and a dab of orange butter and sprinkle with toasted macadamia nuts.
5. Add tuille, mint, and sliced bananas. Dust with confectionary sugar and garnish with a strawberry fan.

The Logic Behind Inn Policies Part Three

Policy Explanation #3: Hindsight is 20/20 When It Comes to Group Reservations

I’ll never forget one of my biggest rookie mistakes in this business. We were preparing for our first summer season at our original bed and breakfast, the Carriage House, and the bookings were starting to pour in. Every time we filled another week, we did a victory dance and celebrated with a fairly cheap bottle of champagne (we had just blown all our money on the inn). So when we got a call from a family who wanted us to host their family reunion for a week in July meaning they would book all six rooms, we were ecstatic. In fact, I think I offered them something like a 15% discount and waived all third person in the room fees to ensure they would book with us. At first glance, this may seem like a fantastic booking – it did to me. But as a veteran of the business, I can now admit that taking this booking was actually a mistake. A big one.

Don’t get me wrong – the family was pleasant enough. But when booking a group who’s going to reserve the entire inn, the business logistics are a nightmare. First off, all six rooms are going to check in and out on the same day. This means that in order to maximize occupancy, we needed to find six guests who would all be checking out on the group’s check-in day and another six guests who were looking to check in on the group’s check out day. Not only is it highly unlikely that this will happen, but if it does, think of the housekeeping involved. With six guestrooms, we employed one housekeeper who would single-handedly have to flip all six rooms between the hours of check out and check in (a four hour window). At an hour a room, this is mathematically impossible and the end result is an unhappy guest on my doorstep at 3:00 expecting his room to be ready and it’s not. Also, consider breakfast – a group booking typically implies group activities, which means everyone meets up for breakfast at 8:30 before heading off to Nantucket for the day. So, instead of six rooms coming in at staggered times during our breakfast window, we had all six rooms sitting down at once while I frantically raced around fetching drinks and taking orders and James tried to cook 30 flapjacks on a griddle the size of a Monopoly box and refrained from cursing too loudly.

That said, if the group had wanted to book a week in say, March, one of our slowest months, I’d break out a bottle of champagne (a slightly higher end one these days) and celebrate the booking. But in the height of the busy season, when rooms can be filled with individual reservations that are staggered, my advice to all you aspiring innkeepers out there is – go that route.

A New (But Old) Restaurant Discovery

As innkeepers, one of the hardest parts of the job is testing out all the restaurants in the area to determine the best to recommend. I’m being sarcastic, of course. There’s nothing we love more than to put our food critic hats on and see how eateries in the area stack up. After living here for five years, we certainly have our favorites and, as creatures of habit, rarely venture off our old stand-bys in search of something new. But after hearing the rave review from our trusted cohorts in the dining analysis practice (my in-laws), we abandoned our comfort zone and booked a table at the Old Yarmouth Inn.

I have to admit, my expectations weren’t high. As much as I trust my in-laws on restaurant advice, I felt like if I hadn’t yet discovered this landmark, which, according to their website has been around since pre-Revolutionary War days, it couldn’t possibly be anything to write home about. I was wrong. Set in a sprawling historic inn, the restaurant’s many smaller dining rooms feel cozy despite the 200 seats actually there. With wood paneled walls and a roaring fireplace, the tavern was our pick on the cold winter night we dined. Our waitress was friendly and helpful, yet unobtrusive and the menu was extensive, yet not overwhelming, allowing us to select from tavern or dining room fare. Also unexpected was an impressive wine list which has received the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence for seven years running and offers more than 18 wines by the glass and 115 from the wine cellar.

To start, we enjoyed carpaccio of beef with shaved Asiago and capers. While not the best we’ve ever had, it was certainly tasty and about what we expected from a casual, traditional eatery. For our entrees, I decided on honey mustard glazed salmon with cucumber, caper, and mango compote. I asked for the salmon cooked rare, as is my preference, and the chef delivered (often, I find this request gets overlooked). James opted for a braised short rib beef stew which was served piping hot and was out of this world – he went so far as to claim that it was the most tender beef he had ever had. For James, this was a bold statement. While we were too full for a third course, the dessert menu was tempting as was the three course $19.95 prix fixe menu offered in the winter at lunch daily, all night Sunday through Thursday, and 4:30-6:00pm on Friday and Saturday.

While a bit of a drive from the inn (30 minutes without traffic), we didn’t hesitate to add it to our recommendations list – especially since it is open 364 days a year and exuded a Cape Cod ambiance unrivaled by many other local spots.