ALAMY, LEN HOLSBORG/ALAMY, JENNY ACHESON/AXIOM/PHOTOGRAPHS: READ MCKENDREE, WENDY CONNETT/AGEFOTOSTOCK, LAUREN ZEID/4CORNERS
RIGHT ABOUT NOW, thousands of New Yorkers are escaping the sticky summer heat of Manhattan for the fresher surrounds of Long Island. Near its eastern end, this 120-mile-long island splits into two: the Atlantic-facing branch is home to the high-price-tag resorts of the Hamptons, but the North Fork – which looks out across Long Island Sound towards Connecticut – offers more low-key pleasures.
The renovation last year of the Sound View fits right in with the North Fork ambience. This former motel runs in a long line between the coast road and a skinny beach. Now in its first full summer season since its overhaul, it sports a clean, uncluttered look that feels rightly maritime, without going overboard on the nautical décor.
The hotel’s Halyard restaurant has a changing menu of American holiday staples, from lobster mac ‘n’ cheese to fried chicken and sweetcorn. The poolside Jack’s Shack, meanwhile, recalls the beach kiosk that the Sound View’s founder set up back in 1935.
The nearby town of Greenport has plenty more spots to plate up on seafood amid its clapboard houses and preserved 1920s fairground carousel. North Fork’s rural side shows in its roadside produce stands; you can also pick your own or take cooking classes at Sang Lee Farms. And it’s a miniature wine region too, with decades-old firms like Lenz and Pugliese joined by the newer Kontokosta Winery.