Juniper Disco

You know how I always say you have to look up? Tiny’s in Ptown is a perfect example of what you’ll miss if you don’t. 

Located upstairs on a second floor deck on Commercial Street, the place is easy to miss. Tiny’s focuses on local food (most ingredients are purchased within 150 miles) and has some amazing healthy and unique options for any foodie.

Plus it has a view of the water and of the street traffic below, which, if you know Ptown, is the best show on earth.

I had their lobster dog — house made lobster sausage sauteed in brown butter and topped with a dill slaw. It was delicious! And the fries were just perfect!

I also had the most refreshing basil and pink grapefruit soda made from fresh squeezed juice, basil syrup, and a splash of soda. 

I plan to return many times this summer so I can try other things on their wonderful menu! And remember to look up. You never know what you’ll find.

The summer season is so short here. Which is why I gambled on the weather forecast this past weekend and went to the Cape anyway. My schedule allowed me to leave Thursday night, just before the rainy bits of tropical storm Andrea were to arrive in the area.

The trip over was relatively smooth — a good omen for sure. We went to the Mayflower when I landed (hee! hee!). I had the most scrumptious broiled scrod with a completely non-virtuous baked potato on the side. Nothing like setting the right tone for the weekend right off the bat.

It rained all day on Friday. We made the most of it — napping, reading, enjoying the quiet time and the sounds of the rain on the wooden shingles lulling us into a cozy and calm state. 

And my mom made me Rice Kripsie treats! (I shared with Tipper — see the Vine.)

The next day, the clouds were gone by mid-day and a bright blue sky took over. I grabbed my camera and went out for a walk.

How fun was that? When I got back to the house, we decided to pile in the car and take a short road trip to the Head of the Meadow Beach in Truro where there were reports of a large tidal pool forming this year.

That’s the edge of the pool. It is enormous and cuts the beach in half!

We then drove over to Ballston Beach where there had been a major breach in March (incredible video here). They brought in tons of sand, forming a large dune barrier.

And then we went to PJ’s in Wellfleet for jumbo lobster rolls!

We hurried back to Ptown to get a seat on the benches outside Town Hall for the last Ptown Prom ever (the school is closing.) The last 8 grads were joined by alum and we clapped and cheered in true Ptown fashion as everyone walked up the steps in their fancy garb.

And Sunday was a Top Ten day! Bright, blue sky, cool breeze, warm sun. Perfect. Tipper and I went for a long walk at Herring Cove. Here’s a Vine I took at this exact spot. You can see Race Point Lighthouse in the distance.

And then I grabbed my camera again and walked around town. I had a wonderful lunch at Tiny’s and even tried their lobster hot dog (more on that later this week.)

As the sun shone on my face and the breeze cooled me down, I kept congratulating myself for making such a good decision.

And to cap off the weekend, I even got a window seat on the boat home.

Sometimes I pinch myself that I get to live here in this city where I get to go to Ptown as often as I want. Life is good, friends! And ignore those weather forecasts.

A few things on my calendar this month …

Paella Class — Yep! I’m finally learning to make paella!

Provincetown International Film Festival — I’ve already selected my 20 films for this year! There are some great documentaries. I Am Divine for you John Waters fans, Running from Crazy about the Hemingways, and Built on Narrowland about the Bauhas-inspired houses in Wellfleet are a few on my must-see list.

Taste of Cambridge — Cambridge has some great restaurants and here, you get to sample them all!

Chefs in Shorts — One giant outdoor barbecue in the city!

Odyssey Dinner Cruise — You may remember we took my niece on this to celebrate her birthday last year. We’re going again, this time with the Mr.’s new company.

Bruno Mars — I hear he puts on a great show! 

I think by now, you all know the drill. We open the summer every year with dinner at Front Street in Ptown. Somehow we always end up with an early reservation and then we stay for several hours — eating, drinking, eating, drinking. 

The menu changes every few weeks so my dining companions decided to check out the menu board before venturing in.

We had a cozy booth near the bar.

I started the evening with a Dirty Shirley.

We then launched into the feast with fried zucchini blossoms!

And burrata with proscuitto, tomato, and basil.

For my entree, I ordered the short ribs with manchego mac and cheese.

N had the tea-smoked duck.

The Mr. had a giant steak (au poivre)!

My mom had the chicken piccata.

For some reason, we all decided we needed our own desserts. Mom’s was the best, hands down! Toasted coconut ice cream. Tasted like pure cream!

The Mr. ordered the key lime pie.

N and I had sorbet — she had the triple berry version and I had GUAVA!

And we then rolled home, stuffed to the gills, and fully satisfied that we had initiated the beginning of Summer 2013 in the proper fashion!

Memorial Day Weekend, I just don’t know what to say. Two days of cold and one day of awesome. Well, we’re lemon drop people (lemons, lemon drops, you know) and managed to have a terrific time! Here’s how we spent our time…

Drinking the first spicy mango martini at the Chart House before the boat. (It’s off-menu, by the way, but they’ll make you one if you ask.) Sharing the experience with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece who were in town for the Sox game.

Observing the glow of the monument on our first night.

Snuggling with my soulmate, Tipper Marie McGee.

Loving the pink flamingos on the library lawn.

Dashing through the rain to the South African restaurant, Karoo, for some awesome peri peri wings and monkey ribs — and fascinating husk people.

Checking out new places in town, like Frank-N-Fries. (LOVE the name!)

Shivering in the bar at Pepe’s while gazing over the harbor. Here’s my Vine of the experience!

Laughing at the Ptown bar rules!

Wanting to steal the turquoise owl in this outdoor garden.

Admiring this gorgeous tree.

Loving the new bright Tim-scapes shop location.

Photographing a time-tested Ptown tradition.

Enjoying a brief moment of sun and warmth on the deck at the Aqua Bar. (Here’s a Vine, too!)

Enjoying new foods from the new Brazilian food place, Uma Loucura. 

Laughing at more bar rules!

Trying to stay warm on the deck of the Aqua Bar.

Reminiscing about all the time I spent in this space when it was my mom’s store. It’s now Connie’s Bakery and they did a great redesign this year!

Loving the little touches around town!

Swimming through a rainbow. (OK, that was just me. The Mr. went around it.)

Resisting the urge to buy these lobster plates.

Gazing at the windows of the art galleries.

Wanting a grey shingle house so I can have a bright red door like that, too!

Discovering a new-to-us bar at the Waterford on the second floor.

Wondering where the hell our sunny warm weather is.

Sipping prosecco on a giant lobster coaster.

Grilling in pants and long sleeves.

Shivering in my coverup at the pool at 10am. Until things got better … see the Vine!

Swooning for the 10 millionth time over this view.

Wondering how you get your photo on the pier. And if I’ll look like that when I’m 80 with all the time I spend in the sun.

Not believing it was time to go home.

So, SUMMER, I think you are here but I am not quite sure. Perhaps those 90 degree temperatures this weekend will help convince me!

This Memorial Day Weekend has been COLD. Like 40 degrees cold. It’s left the Mr. and I with lots of time to walk around Provincetown, bundled up in sweaters and jackets. (Today is supposed to be really sunny and 68!)

This town just sings with quaint New England-y clapboard buildings with white trim. You can really miss it, though, with all that sparkly, glittery life around. I forget how awesome Ptown can look to fresh to eyes and I tried to remember what it was like to be new to this town as we walked around Saturday and Sunday.

This is the drag queen-free, clapboard version of the town. Happy Memorial Day!

Some of the randomness on my mind lately …

Beyond the Candelabra -- Guessing pretty much everyone will be watching this tonight. Cannot wait to see Matt Damon! And the costumes! And the sets! You may want to read this helpful Liberace primer on Vulture beforehand.

Ghost — Attention, Early Adopters and people angry about Yahoo taking over tumblr! There are still two days to get in on the Kickstarter campaign for this platform that everyone is calling the future of blogging. 

Wicked Road Trip — Massachusetts friends and visitors! Check out this Instagram contest: take a photo of something you did on a MA road trip and win “a great summer prize!”

Fandor — You know how much I love film festivals? You can watch all those films you couldn’t quite figure out how to work into your festival schedule here. For $10/month. AND you get 14 days free before you have to commit.

Penelope — “If Aaron Sorkin’s version of Mark Zuckerberg had a daughter with Felicity, she’d be the neurotic and meandering Harvard freshman Penelope.” — Daily Candy. SOLD! (Note: While I haven’t seen Harvard insignia on waffles, I have had ice cream bars with the big H on it.)

(photo: Lindsey Tramuta, Lost in Cheeseland)

The story behind this photo in this blog post! -- I follow the Lost in Cheeseland blog and completely fell in love with this particular story of these dogs in Paris. That German Shepherd is apparently something else!

Building Provincetown — Now that we’re back in the swing of things for summer (I’m writing from Ptown right now), I have to share this awesome site that details the history of almost every building in town. Start with the “highlights” section — I plan to check all those out this summer! The one in the picture is at the end of our street.

For more like this, see last week’s Random.

I wasn’t going to do a Summer List this year. Life’s been creating enough drama for me without having to go look for it. But summer is sacrosanct in this household and my ideas for the season just started flowing as Memorial Day Weekend grows closer on the calendar.

Mostly I want to embrace each day — the warm temperatures and the long daylight hours, wear every item in my extensive and ever-growing summer wardrobe, get my feet sandy, and eat lots of lobster. There are a few other things I’d also like to do …

1. do a bunch of fun things on my Boston Undone list (DONE: 1. visit new wing of the Gardner Museum; 2. see the Samurai exhibit at the MFA; 3. see the new shell pediment on St. Paul’s; 4. eat an Australian meat pie at Cuppa Coffee; 5. lunch at 75 at Liberty Wharf; 6. have a beer or 3 at Harpoon’s Brew Hall)
2. make lots of sorbet (lemon basil)
3. play bocce
4. make coconut butter
5. replant my palm tree
6. make boozy slushies in our ice cream machine
7. collect and dispose of entangled balloon debris from the wrack line on Herring Cove Beach
8. chase fireflies
9. go swimming, swimming, swimming and water aerobics-ing 
10. make my own salt from saltwater
11. drink Dirty Shirleys and Pimm’s Cups all summer
12. do the Historic Provincetown walking tour
13. see a movie at the Wellfleet Drive-in
14. finally go to Drag Brunch at Victor’s
15. schedule the annual family barhop around the Monkey Bar
16. create a new summer photo series (Already working on this one. It’s going to be awesome!)
17. watch the Perseids shower in August
18. make a sandcastle
19. work on my e-book
20. trips (besides the weekly treks to Ptown): spend the weekend in Old Orchard Beach, Maine; attend the PGA Championship in Rochester with friends; attend the Martha Beck workshop at Kripalu in the Berkshires
21. find the perfect set of tortoise shell highball glasses
22. read, read, read
23. wear every pair of sandals and flip flops I own (um, it’s a lot — I won’t tell you the exact number but it’s more than 30 but less than 50!)
24. build a fire on the beach
25. go on a moon walk during a full moon
26. take naps
27. wear lots of red, white, and blue striped nautical outfits
28. buy beach plum jam at the Briar Lane Jams stand
29. try the fish tacos at the Sunbird food truck in Wellfleet
30. eat at these Cape restaurants: Devon’s Deep Dive, Sal’s Place, John’s Footlong, PB Boulangerie, and Cafe Edwidge
31. eat a lobster dog at Tiny’s
32. take the Ptown Trolley Tour
33. visit the Frost Ice Bar
34. enjoy Rat Pack Monday at the Boston Harbor Hotel
35. launch new web site!

If you are curious, here are my lists from previous years. You may notice a few repeats on there that I can’t seem to accomplish. Until THIS year!

• Summer 2012 List 
• Summer 2011 Lists: new and traditions

The last images from the summer, from our annual last meal at The Lobster Pot …

I’ve been dragging my feet. I don’t really want to post my last summer-themed topics. Sigh. Here goes …

Last weekend was Summer Extension Weekend, which is filled with rituals we’ve developed to close out the season. One of the most important ones is cheering on the swimmers who participate in the Swim for Life. And this year was the 25th anniversary so there were lots of swimmers and lots of cheerleaders to help us with our closing weekend. Some scenes form the morning …

They added flags to help the swimmers know where to go when they reach land. Definitely helpful! I’ve seem them come ashore up and down the coastline.

This is my friend, JR, who had a friend swimming again this year.

The drum section leading the cheers.

So great to see so many people participating (with the landmark Pilgrim Monument in the background.)

Gorgeous blue sky day!

This instagrammed photo is my best shot of the actual swimmers. It was such a low tide that they hit sand far out into the harbor. JR and I thought they should have to sprint to the waterline. This is a sporty event! Run!

Towards the end of the pack, the kayakers who guide the swimmers start to land on shore.

And the surest sign of the end of the Swim  …

The Mr. and I crossed off an item on his Life List recently: watching a sunset and sunrise over water in the same day. I don’t think there are many places where you can do this as easily as you can in Ptown, which sits on a sandbar in the middle of the ocean.

We had set the alarm for 5:00 am the night before and were pretty efficient about grabbing clothes and some coffee before jumping in Black Beauty for the short ride to Head of the Meadow beach. When we arrived, there were a few other people there and a handful of seals out in the water (so cute! and so scary these days with those Great Whites swimming about in our waters).

I decided the best thing to do was to climb the empty lifeguard chair and watch from there. I had always secretly wanted to sit in one. As it turned out, it was super buggy up there and we decided to walk around instead. So I did something else I always wanted to do: a Baywatch-style dismount. Mistake. My back went into a spasm and I spent the next two weeks not able to bend. Here we are sitting on the top of the chair in the dark before my sports injury ..

When the sky started to lighten up, it looked like this. Puffy and pink.

And THEN! a red dot of a sun appeared above the horizon! We thought it would appear over to the right in the center of the streaks so we were shocked that it popped up where it did.

So pretty! And totally worth getting up in the dark and the hobbling I had to do for weeks afterwards.

On the way home, we saw a group of turkeys! So wild. (Heh! Heh!)

For the sunset, we picked up pizza and sandwiches from Twisted Sister and drove over to Herring Cove. A couple of things about this photo: 1) The cooler was my grandfather’s. They don’t make them like this anymore! 2) You can see that Tipper is laying in the sand rather than on the blanket that we brought for her. She clearly gets by on her looks.

There are always a lot of people here for the sunset, many of them doing exactly what we were doing. Some only there for the grand finale. Others with beach fires set up for the long haul.

It was a pretty sunset. Not super dramatic, but nice.

There was some cloud coverage preventing us from seeing the sun actually go over the edge, but the aftermath was quite lovely.

I’m so glad we took the time to do this. Such a simple thing.

This is my 500th post! In a world where 95,000 blogs are started every day (most quickly abandoned or not regularly maintained), it’s a miracle I’ve gotten this far. Since I started my little blog in December 2010, Juniper Disco has grown to be read in over 25 countries. How crazy is that? I have big plans for the next 500 and I hope you’ll come along for the ride. Thank you all so much for reading!

Remember where we left off with this in July? The dahlias have continued to grow and bloom all summer. I’ll miss the surprises waiting for me every weekend and seeing which blooms popped up over the week. So incredibly amazing! Our neighbors have started a Provincetown Dahlia Show, which will be at Seashore Point, September 29 and 30. If you are in Ptown that weekend, you should check it out.

July 20, 2012

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This week, I’ll be closing out the summer slowly on Juniper Disco. (I don’t care that it was 68 degrees yesterday, those flip flops are not going anywhere!) The summer-to-fall transition is the hardest for me, so give me some time. I’ll get there. But if one more person tells me how much they love this cool weather …

As I’ve been walking around this summer looking for shapes, I’ve noticed the diverse signage for all the galleries. (I’ve also noticed signs in general, as you well know.) Here are a few of my favorite art gallery signs …

Lobster sliders, Harbor Hotel pool, Provincetown

Lobster truffle mac and cheese, Front Street, Provincetown

Curried coconut lobster chowder, Frappo 66, Provincetown

Lobster tips, The Tip Tap Room, Boston

Lobster rolls, PJ’s, Wellfleet

Fourth of July lobster roll, Clubs at Charles River Park, Boston

Lobster bisque, Odyssey dinner cruise, Boston

Lobster grilled cheese, Hot L, Provincetown

Lobster carnage, Moby Dick’s, Wellfleet

Lobster roll, Moby Dick’s, Wellfleet

Fried lobster tails, The Mayflower, Provincetown

Lobster rangoons, The Coffee Pot, Provincetown

Warm Maine lobster with caramelized summer corn, Eastern Standard, Boston

Lobster roll, Governor Bradford, Provincetown

Surf and Turf Burger, Local 186, Provincetown

Ptown is filled with incredible restaurants, but there is only one steak house, Vorelli’s. To send off the summer in style, we decided we needed something substantial. Like meat.

While we were waiting for the fourth person in our party in front of the restaurant, a woman came outside, looking for some fresh air. She started chatting with us and we eventually learned that her name was Terry and her last name was on the sign. She graciously escorted us inside and gave us a few of her recommendations on which of her steaks was the best. (Ribeye, if you are curious.)

As we perused the menu, I quickly spotted the Prosecco Royale on the cocktail menu. The ingredients are two of my favorites, prosecco and St. Germain. It was a perfect light summery cocktail.

The red drinkers at the table ordered a bottle of Red Truck — excuse the blurry picture, please. I love that label. And the font.

Our new friend, Terry, also arranged for orders of their famous garlic bread and bruschetta to be sent over to our table. How nice is that?

We all ordered steaks, of course. The Mr. and I had NY strip (mine with truffle butter), N had a ribeye, and mom had a filet. All were really tasty and the sauce was fantastic.

The Mr. and I saw an item on the dessert menu when we looked it up online. Made with pineapple, walnuts, and a butter cream cheese frosting, “Mom’s Cake”  is created by one of the moms in the restaurant. Such a wonderful treat and not at all what you normally have at a steak house!

It was a wonderful evening, made even better by a gracious host and great dining companions!