Restaurant Review: A Fabulous Lunch at Winslow’s Tavern on Cape Cod

On what could only be called a Chamber of Commerce day here on Cape Cod last week, Rich and I ventured down Cape to a restaurant we haven’t been to before, but for sure will be back to soon. As Innkeepers, we always keep an eye out for new or new to us restaurants that we can recommend to our guests. So having read a rave review of Winslow’s Tavern in Wellfleet recently, we set off to give it a go ourselves.

It was a gin-clear early fall day, and the drive to Wellfleet was delightfully traffic-free. In just over half an hour we were wending our way down Main St. with the sun at our backs and a refreshingly crisp breeze on our faces. The restaurant sports a lovely terrace right on Main Street for outside dining, but we opted to eat inside at a table for two right by a bright sun-filled window. The tables are draped in white linen and the wide-pine floors and buttery walls reflected the sunlight giving the room a warm glow.

Their lunch menu is extensive which, when combined with the separate list of “special offerings“, made choosing an entrée and starter a bit complex. Eventually I settled on the panzanella salad to start. A mixture of heirloom tomatoes, fresh burrata cheese, and herbed croutons, the salad came dressed with a bacon jam vinaigrette. Yes, I said bacon jam. If you’ve never encountered this condiment, let me tell you it was divine. As Rich would say, it would even be great served on cotton balls. Winslow’s offers its homemade version at the local farmer’s market, so of course we had to have a jar to take home. Or two. Or three.

Rich’s fig salad was equally as good. Roasted black mission figs stuffed with gorgonzola were served over baby arugula and crispy prosciutto di parma that had been lightly dressed with truffle oil. Double yum. We each chose the grilled local sea scallop roll for our entrée. The scallops were perfectly grilled and served with a lemon dill aioli and crispy herbed French fries.

With not much room left for dessert we were still tempted by the frozen passion fruit mousse.  Served with a key lime fluid gel, coconut streusel and raspberry cake, it was beautiful to look at, refreshingly light, and the perfect way to end a fabulous lunch.

In addition to serving lunch and dinner seasonally, Winslow’s Tavern offers an oyster happy hour from 3 to 5 PM, a late night bar menu, and evening entertainment. Located on Main Street in Wellfleet, MA, you can preview their menu offerings online. Winslow’s will be closing for the season in mid-October, but we have a stash of their bacon jam at the High Pointe Inn. Rich will be experimenting with it all winter and I’m sure it will end up in one of his breakfast specials soon.