New on Nantucket: The Best Hotel, Restaurants, and Shops

Nantucket

has long conjured snapshots of the quintessential American summer: a picture-perfect harbor town, weathered shingled cottages overgrown with roses, ultra-fresh seafood and over 80 miles of pristine, windswept beach. While the island remains beloved for its classic summer rituals and low key historic charm, it has also evolved into a locus for sophisticated lodging, chic shopping and world-class dining. With a gorgeous new hotel, restaurant debuts and stylish boutique openings, the charming isle once again beckons travelers this summer. 

Contact Indagare for assistance planning a vacation to Nantucket.

The Stunning New Greydon House Debuts in Town

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="620"] Courtesy Tim Williams[/caption]

Occupying a prime location on Broad Street, the highly anticipated Greydon House opened at the end of 2016 to much fanfare–and rightly so. The boutique retreat stylishly pays homage to Nantucket’s rich whaling and maritime trade heritage, in both its history and design. The elegant, white clapboard mansion, built in 1850 for a seafaring commander, was seamlessly melded with a new Second Empire addition to create the 17-room hotel and its fine dining restaurant. New York design firm Roman and Williams brilliantly composed the common spaces to echo a ship captain’s quarters with a sophisticated flair: a mix of abstract and vintage art, lacquered antiques and a mélange of global curios are perfectly arrayed throughout the hotel. Each of the 17 chambers feels airy, fresh and nautical with mahogany headboards, Dutch artwork and special touches like bamboo furniture and intricate Portuguese-tiled showers.

Related: First Look: Greydon House

Celebrated Chefs Put Down Roots at New Restaurants

Several renowned chefs have long flocked to this tiny isle 30 miles out to sea. This year, the dining scene continues to get better with famed chefs taking the helm at classic institutions. The eponymous fine-dining restaurant at Greydon House has drawn much acclaim and is overseen by Michelin-starred chef Marcus Ware, formerly of New York’s Aureole. The atmospheric dining rooms, reminiscent of a seafarer's study, feature inspired gastronomy that focuses on the freshest local ingredients with delicious options like pan-seared halibut and Hamachi crudo.

The Club Car, the beloved shingled restaurant attached to a train car–turned-bar at the base of Main Street, was purchased by chefs from Straight Wharf and unveiled an updated, contemporary look and revamped menu. Instead of the traditional old-world dining room with white tablecloths and flickering lanterns, the restaurant now channels a California vibe with light-blue leather banquettes and whimsical bulb lighting.

Just a few blocks away on cobblestoned India Street, Company of the Cauldron, cherished for its romantic, wood-beamed dining room, harp music and three-course prix fixe, has been purchased by Joseph Keller, who opened and ran French Laundry and Per Se with his brother, Thomas. He wants to retain the traditional feel of the intimate Nantucket restaurant but will imbue the menu with his signature farm-to-table flair. The team behind another island institution, glamorous Galley Beach, have opened a wine and raw bar in town, After House. The menu highlights local oysters and seafood tapas, as well as an extensive wine list, in a cozily outfitted space tucked underneath a Broad Street cottage.

On the water, the casual beachside eatery at Jetties Beach has been reimagined into Sandbar, a full-fledged restaurant with picnic tables in the sand for long Champagne lunches under orange Veuve Clicquot umbrellas. And on Thursdays from July 6 to August 24, the Nantucket Hotel, in collaboration with ReMain Nantucket, will host Supper Club, an evening extravaganza of dinner and dancing with live band entertainment in the hotel ballroom.

Related: Stylish Summer Escapes

Peruse Stylish Finds at the Island’s Newest Boutiques

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="620"] Courtesy 28 Centre Pointe[/caption]

Nantucket these days is a shopper’s paradise with well-curated shops dotting the town’s charming, cobblestoned lanes, and this summer sees the addition of two new stores. For homewares and beautiful jewelry, 28 Centre Pointe carries a fine selection of chic Oomph furniture, beach bags fashioned out of sails, Culti candles and ASHA jewelry in a delightful beach-inspired shop on Centre Street. A favorite pop-up from last summer, Skinny Dip (which has just opened a permanent Charleston outpost), has returned to its tiny storefront on Old South Wharf. While Beauty by the Sea, a favorite beauty counter for upscale essentials, has closed, Follain on South Beach Street stocks a curated selection of organic skincare and make-up.

Related: Jill Kargman’s Nantucket

Jet to the island via seaplane from NYC and the Hamptons

now operate seaplanes directly between the Manhattan Seaport and Nantucket airport with outgoing flights on Thursdays and Fridays and inbound flights Sunday afternoon and Monday mornings. Tailwind will also run scheduled aviation between East Hampton and Nantucket airports. Private charters are available as well.

Contact Indagare for assistance planning a vacation to Nantucket.