With Hurricane Irene on the radar and all news media advising us New Yorkers to prepare for an act of mother nature unlike anything seen in recent history, we decided to take advantage of the only day showing a sun icon on weather.com and head out east early.  With no traffic and a slight drizzle, we were amongst the few ambitious souls on the road Thursday evening seeking to enjoy one of the last few official days of Summer 2011.

As NYC was in a panic, East Hampton and Montauk locals could not have appeared less phased. And so we joined them in preparation for the storm, by enjoying the sunny blue skies and warm ocean weather.

Friday Morning, while slightly humid, was nonetheless perfect for a 38 mile bike ride to Montauk and back, including a stop at a favorite of ours, Bostwick’s Chowder House.  Well deserved, we rewarded ourselves with a dozen local oysters, a big bowl of steamers, and two Brooklyn summer ales — which made our ride back home a little more buoyant.  After a few post-ride hours on the beach, we sprinted home in order to place ourselves strategically by the phone, ready at precisely 4:15 to chance our luck for a reservation at Dave’s Grill in Montauk.  Whether it was the storm, or just our skillful dialing, we were able to secure a 9pm reservation, allowing us some time to enjoy the sunset and a few pre-dinner cocktails at Gosman’s.

A newbie to Dave’s Grill, it was a restaurant highly recommended, and rightfully so.  Snuggled among various shacks, bait shops, and boats, this husband and wife operation is the product of a couple’s true love for dining.  Starting with a several appetizers of goat cheese quesadillas and fresh buratta in their cozy outdoor lounge, we later moved indoors to enjoy a few of their signature dishes. The meat fell right off the bones of the Honey-Hoisin Spare Ribs, leaving us licking the asian bar-b-que sauce off our fingers.  For our second dish, we enjoyed the Papparedelle Lobster Brodetto.  While it was creamy, it was surprisingly light and loaded with chunks of fresh lobster.  Finally, we finished with Dave’s “Famous Thai Fish Stew” Cioppino which was bursting with flavor and abounding with fruits of the sea, leaving us dipping the grilled bread into the savory curry broth. And to top this already exquisite dinner, we ended with the decadent smaller version of The “Barbara”.

After the most perfect day out East, we were ready to take on Hurricane Irene.  With our tank full, we headed back to NYC Saturday morning, but not before picking up some essentials at Round Swamp Farm. If the power would be out, at least we would have our Picnic Chicken, and fresh out of the oven blueberry muffins. We did not end up losing power, but nonetheless fully enjoyed our favorite tastes of East Hampton back in stormy NYC.