…the Weekend in review.
Don’t let the title fool you, North-Forks didn’t start reviewing movies.
We did have a fantastically happy accident while going to one, however.
We were going to see “I Was Bored and Hoped for Better” at the great Mattituck Movies. For us, movies aren’t so much planned events but rather impulse excursions. Subsequently we are always looking for places to eat beforehand. Pizza always fits the bill, but as hard as it is for me to say, one can have too much pizza. We had stopped to visit our friends at Sparkling Pointe beforehand (Celebrating Friday), and they offered a dinner recommendation: CJ’s American Grill.
If you’ve been to the Mattituck Movies, you may or may not know CJ’s. Well, Mattituck Cinemas is located in a corner of a large strip mall on the corner of Route 25 and Factory Avenue in Mattituck. In the center of the strip is a gap, a hallway if you will, and about half-way down you’ll find CJ’s.
It’s a comfortably sized restaurant, with friendly service and a menu that ranges from burgers and sandwiches to duck and steak. Most notable, however, is their wine list, or should I say wall. You see, owners Chris, Joann, and Sal believe in our local wine region and so they rotate a selection of bottles on their wall for you to pick. Each bottle, regardless of cost to them, is $25. In several examples, that’s less than buying it yourself. To further sweeten the deal, in addition to their regular specials, they offer a free glass of wine, beer, or a kid’s dessert with your movie stub.
CJ’s isn’t just a restaurant, but a front for their catering operations, East End Events Catering. Which brings us back to Sparkling Pointe.
On Saturday we attended Sparkling Pointe’s “Post Holiday Party”, a wine-club member’s-only event that was catered by, you guessed it, East End Events Catering. Full disclosure, in case you haven’t already guessed, we’re wine club members at Sparkling Pointe (and several other wineries). There were suggested pairings, but sparkling wine just seems to go remarkably well with anything. There were four food stations: Seafood with gigantic peeled shrimp, raw tuna, crème fresh, and caviar; Cheese; Pasta with two different types of pasta in different sauces; Steak with filet mignon with truffled garlic potatoes and asparagus.
CJ’s American Grill is definitely worth looking into, you may have already eaten their food at a winery event, and Sparkling Pointe, well, if you haven’t gone already, what are you waiting for? Every day is a day worth celebrating with some bubbly!
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