On a breezy, warm, flag snapping, wave slapping Saturday over Labor Day Weekend, we decided the weather was perfect for eating outside, and ventured to make the trek to Orient Point–a good half hour or more from Mattituck. Why this is in my wine blog is because of the wine we ordered.  Having just been to Lenz, where we liked the Chardonnay, we were pleased when we saw it on the menu of the Orient Point Restaurant.  We were sitting outside, on picnic-style benches, enjoying the lovely evening breezes, watching the gulls wheeling over the docks and boats coming and going.  We also enjoyed making the acquaintance of the “deck dog,” who very politely watched us as we ate the worth-the-trip pulled pork nachos, then lost interest until our main courses arrived.  My husband had the Frutti di Mare, the usual selection of seafood over pasta, and I had the Orient Point Fisherman’s Catch Broiled (I could also have had it fried.).  Both pretty good, though not great.  I had beautifully cooked scallops and flounder (could be local), just okay shrimp and unfortunate baked clams that might have come from a freezer.  However, the star of my dish was the garlic mashed potatoes–clearly homemade from red potatoes, with bits of skin and a lovely texture.  We also liked the zucchini bread in the bread basket.

Oh, and the wine…So when we tasted the 2008 Lenz Chardonnay, we liked it, but it did not taste the same as the wine we’d had at the vineyard.  An examination of the bottle revealed why, with the words “Restaurant Selection.”  So go ahead and order it, as it has nice tastes of citrus and star fruit, but don’t expect the same wine as at the winery.