…Eric and I left for Nantucket to start our week of wedding fun! Although the week leading up to our wedding was filled with many to-do lists (it was a destination wedding that we planned without the help of a planner) and was at times stressful, I will always look back on it as one of the best weeks of my life. My family decided to turn it into their summer vacation, so we rented a house on the island big enough to fit us, my mom, sister, brother-in-law, three aunts, one uncle, two cousins and a handful of friends who ended up staying with us for a couple of nights. It was crowded, loud and a little crazy, but I loved it.
Nantucket isn’t the easiest place to get to, unless you live in the Boston area or own a private plane. For the rest of us, we either have to take a flight to Boston then a small plan to the island OR drive several hours (six from Philly) to Hyannis and then a ferry over. Once you step foot on the island, however, all worries, traveling woes float away. It’s pretty difficult not to relax – the air is clean and crisp, people are friendly, and everywhere you look is beautiful…
Downtown is absolutely lovely – full of beautiful homes and bed and breakfasts, good restaurants and bars and charming boutiques (did you know there are no chains on the island – except for one: Ralph Lauren). But my favorite area of the island has to be ‘Sconset. It is as quintessentially Nantucket as you can get. Think small streets, wood shingled cottages, cute overload. There’s also a “downtown” area and it consists of exactly five buildings: post office, real estate office, mini market, restaurant and wine shop. These pictures don’t do it justice…
And a must visit while in ‘Sconset is the Chanticleer. I might be a bit biased since we had our wedding here – but I think its the most beautiful restaurant on the island…
Doesn’t it look like a fairytale? It’s even more gorgeous in person. And the food is great! We really couldn’t have picked a more perfect place for our wedding.
What makes Nantucket not just a picturesque little town, but a fantastic place to holiday are the restaurants. There are many to choose from and many I need to try, but these have been my favorites so far (besides the Chanticleer of course!):
1. Galley Beach Eric and I celebrated our engagement here, so it will always be a special place for me. Putting that aside, the food was amazing, space beautiful, and being right on the beach, you can’t beat the view.
2. Black Eyed Susan’s This is a sister restaurant of the Chanticleer, so you know the food is going to be good. Eric loved the dish he had there so much that we requested it as one of our entree options at the wedding. While the Chanticleer is more refined and a bit more dressy/formal, Blacked Eyed Susan’s is casual and cozy. The space is small, tables are tight, but I absolutely loved it.
3. American Seasons First off, this restaurant is adorable. But more importantly, the food is amazing. One of the most memorable things I ate on the island was the pig head we had here. It may sound a little scary, but give it a try – you’ll thank me later.
And you can’t leave without a visit to the brewery – Cisco Brewers. For $20, you can go on a tour where you get to try beers, wines, vodkas (they make all three). It’s so much fun and almost impossible to not leave slightly tipsy…or a lot tipsy.
Those are a few of my favorite things on the island. There aren’t many places out there that are exactly what you expect, but Nantucket is one of them. It is as charming, quaint and beautiful as you would imagine. And I can’t wait to go back.
*thanks to Eric and Shannon Seidel for the photos!
homephilly.wordpress.com 