Mama's Fish House

One mom-and-pop place that hasn’t vanished is the thirty-three-year-old Mama’s Fish House, a landmark restaurant with an outrageous setting right on the beach. Founded by the Christenson family as a little beach haunt, Mama’s is now run by Karen Christenson Marshall, who has turned it into a giant surf shack, albeit one with food so good, guests staying elsewhere on the island regularly make the trek to eat there. At the helm is Perry Bateman, who has been with the restaurant seventeen years and whose specialty is a coconut ono cooked Polynesian style.

There is always a catch of the day, named after whichever fisherman brings it in, an incentive for them to offer Mama’s a sort of first-refusal right. Asking for a table with an ocean view is a must. The restaurant overlooks a prime windsurfing site, so entertaining water action is invariably happening only yards away. For happy hour, make the rowdy bar scene and indulge in drinks such as the Scorpion: four rums, the juices of tropical fruits, and exotic toppings. If you can’t get enough of Mama’s, you can always rent one of the Christensons’ four retro-Hawaiian-style beachside cottages, with flat-screen televisions and other upscale amenities.)