Rates on the Steamship Authority ferries to Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket are inching their way up. Effective January 1, 2006, the new one-way rates for passengers between Woods Hole and Martha's Vineyard are $6 per adult, $3 per child. Fares for small cars (under 17 feet long) in season are up to $62 each way.
From Hyannis to Nantucket, the new one-way adult fare on the slow ferry remains $13.50. The fast ferry one-way ticket price is now up to $29, year-round. For more information, check out www.steamshipauthority.com.
Accommodations
The Best Western Tides Motel, which was at 837 Commercial Street near the Truro border, is no more. The property is being turned into an upscale condominium development.
Scott Jones and I. Kell Hicklin, the new owners of Lamberts Cove Inn (off State Road in West Tisbury; tel. 508/693-2298; www.lambertscoveinn.com) have really spruced up the place. They kept the 15-room inn's homey feel but brought the style up a few pegs. This isolated location is still very romantic, but now it also has a touch of elegance.
Dining
Falmouth hasn't had a Mexican restaurant since the Cantina closed in 2004. But this summer the owners of Ay Caramba!, the restaurant in Harwich, are opening a new location at the Falmouth Mall on Teaticket Highway.
A couple of years ago, Talk of the Town Diner (362 North Falmouth Hwy/Rt. 28A; tel. 508/563-3041) opened on North Falmouth Highway. Now Talk of the Town Restaurant (444 North Falmouth Hwy/Rt. 28A; tel. 508/563-3034) has opened less than a mile away. The new restaurant features live music and dancing on weekends and a traditional Cape Cod-style menu.
Those looking for something a little different in a dining experience may want to check out the Samba Grill, a Brazilian restaurant at 572 Main Street in Hyannis (tel. 508/775-0251). In addition to Brazilian cuisine, the menu also features a number of Middle Eastern items.
The new restaurant everyone is talking about in Hyannis is the Wianno Grille (tel. 508/778-5587) located at 380 Barnstable Road in the TJ Maxx Plaza next to the airport rotary. It's an upscale pub with a clubby feel. The main floor is a bar with cozy booths and downstairs is a more formal restaurant. There's plenty of comfort food on the menu, like scallops wrapped in bacon and Maryland-style crab cakes. For the main course, choose from options like marinated steak tips, or fish and chips. There are also soups, salads and burgers and a fabulous Sunday brunch.
Our vote for best new restaurant on Cape Cod is 902 Main (902 Main Street/Route 28; tel. 508/398-9902) in South Yarmouth. With fabulous service, an elegant atmosphere and to-die-for food, this is the place to go for fine-dining in the Mid-Cape. Entrees like filet mignon with Portobello mushrooms, rack of lamb with truffle mashed potatoes, and haddock with organic beets range from $18 to $33.
The Homeport (on North Road in Menemsha; tel. 508/645-2679), perhaps Martha's Vineyard's most famous restaurant, will be open for one more season in the summer of 2006. The owner is selling the property and many thought last summer would be its last. Be sure to get there in time for the fabulous Menemsha sunset, just the thing to accompany a heaping plate of fried clams.
The Offshore Ale Company (30 Kennebec Avenue, Oak Bluffs, Martha's Vineyard; tel. 508/693-2626; www.offshoreale.com) has new owners, but they plan to keep the classic brew house just the same.
The folks at Eat No Evil (25 Centre Street, Nantucket located with the Complete Kitchen; tel. 508/228-7988; www.eatnoevilgourmet.com) know how to make gourmet food that's good for you. There have delicious ready-made lunch and dinner specials made fresh on-site every day. Specialties include veggie lasagna, beef tenderloin, and Thai beef and noodle salad.
The biggest news on the Nantucket restaurant scene is the reopening of Chanticleer (9 New St., Siasconset; tel. 508/257-4499). The fancy French restaurant in the rose-covered cottage in 'Sconset had long been one of the island's most cherished fine-dining spots until it closed a couple years ago. Now it is being reinvented by Susan Handy and chef Jeff Worster, who have made the casual Black-Eyed Susans (10 India Street; tel. 508/325-0308) one of the island's best, and funkiest, dining choices.
The style of food at the new Chanticleer will be "modern bistro." The duo plans to freshen up the décor at Chanticleer and make the restaurant more approachable. Unlike at the old Chanticleer, jackets won't be required, but diners will likely be wearing their best casual yet elegant island attire. The new owners are shooting for an opening in mid-May and will likely stay open to Columbus Day. It will be open seven days in high season with reduced hours in the shoulder season.
Attractions
In other changes to the Falmouth Mall on Teaticket Highway, the Cinema has closed. No word yet whether a new movie theater will replace it. For now, movie fans will have to journey about seven miles to the Nickelodeon, the cinema showing mostly independent fare on Route 151 in Hatchville.
For those looking to have a massage or a manicure during their vacation, head to Bellezza Day Spa (221 Main Street; tel. 508/299-8300), the hip new spa on Main Street. With a deluxe big-city feel, this is now one of the top spas on Cape Cod.
The Cape Cod Maritime Museum has opened at 135 South Street in Hyannis. The museum will begin regular hours on March 1, 2006. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for students and seniors, free for children under 6 years old. Check out their website, www.capecodmaritimemuseum.org for more details.
When in Provincetown, visit the Provincetown Center for Coastal Studies' new Stellwagen Bank exhibit (205 Commercial Street in the Aquarium Mall; open daily 11am-7pm in season; tel. 508/487-3622), which is free and open daily in the summer. The Center for Coastal Studies has installed an interactive exhibit to give people an idea of what goes on at the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary, which is an 800-square-foot section of ocean between Provincetown and Cape Ann that is known for its diversity of marine life, including whales.
A new art gallery in Provincetown called artStrand (53 Bradford Street; tel. 508/487-1153) in the West End run by a group of 12 well-known Provincetown artists is getting a lot of attention for the high quality and diversity of its shows.
The newly renovated Provincetown Art Association and Museum (460 Commercial Street, Provincetown; tel. 508/487-1750), which has a large modern addition, is well worth a trip to the outermost town on Cape Cod. In the off-season, from October through April, the museum is open Saturday and Sunday, noon to 4pm.
The Vineyard's top nightclub, The Hot Tin Roof, has been sold. The new owner plans to change the name and add a restaurant, but also keep the big acts -- comedy, rock, reggae, latin and blues -- coming. The club's upcoming season extends from April 1, 2006 to January 15, 2007. Highlights last year included Toots and the Maytals and Jim Belushi and the Sacred Hearts. The Hot Tin Roof is located at the Martha's Vineyard Airport. For more information call tel. 508/693-1137 or check out their website, www.mvhottinroof.com.
The Vineyard's other nightclub, the Atlantic Connection, is being closed and turned into a games arcade. The restaurant next door, Seasons Bar 'n' Grill (Circuit Avenue, Oak Bluffs; tel. 508/693-7129), is getting a spiffy renovation.
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