Paul Sieloff's Lament (on Off-Season Restaurants)

This year Todd Barry, of Moby Dick's, in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce, is organizing Wellfleet's first Restaurant Week June 4-10. Local eating establishments will offer a special menu and lowered prices. Sounds like a fun way of attracting gourmets on a budget to Wellfleet!

While I was checking in a couple yesterday evening, the guests, from England, started asking about dinner options. I had to admit most of the restaurants in town are still closed. Then I started called around to find these folks a place to eat and discovered you had better not be too picky, on Tuesdays, at dinnertime, in the off-season. The Bookstore was closed. Wicked Oyster was closed. Even Wellfleet Pizza was closed. The Lighthouse phone offered up a busy signal, a hopeful sign. Still, the Brits sat before me, wringing their hands with the desire to eat soon, not wait on a possible broken phone line. So, I extended the search, in the hope they might not need to journey up to Eastham. Fortunately, the new owner at the Italian restaurant on Route 6, formerly D'Italia's and now Falcone's, answered on the fifth ring and said staff was serving dinner until ten of eight. Off the couple went with smiles on their faces. The survey left me scratching my head. I couldn't help but recall Town Administrator Paul Sieloff's lament to the Economic Development Committee last fall. He was right. Eating out, in Wellfleet, during the off-season, can be downright challenging. Better not be too hungry Monday or Tuesday night!

All of our restaurants will be open by Memorial Day. And, there's a Wanted: Fulltime Dishwasher sign posted on the door at PB BoulangerieBistro, which means the restaurant side will open shortly. (The bakery always has a line, rain or shine. Five hundred loaves of bread flew out of there on opening day. Boris, Philippe, Valerie and Dorian have been so overwhelmed by their success that they have decided to take a day off. Can you guess which one? MONDAY!!)

Have you been able to participate in Restaurant Week in another town or city? Will you try to make it to the Outer Cape this June for Wellfleet's first annual Restaurant Week?