Question: What’s the first thing a Cape Cod bed and breakfast innkeeper does when there is no one at the Inn?

Answer: Why go out for breakfast, of course!

And so we found ourselves in just that situation earlier this week.

The first morning without guests is always a treat. The days leading up to Christmas, before the hubbub of the approaching holidays and the dawning of a new year, is the beginning of the quiet season at the High Pointe Inn. I always look forward to the first morning after a busy season that I can pad upstairs in my slippers to have a quiet cup of coffee and read the local paper without having to worry about guests catching me in my pajamas.

The sun shone brightly on a crystal clear December morn, and outside our kitchen window the dunes glistened in the distance. I could just make out Cape Cod Bay through the trees. Satisfied that the Inn was all decorated for the season, my Christmas cards stamped and in the mail to friends and family, and gifts ready to be wrapped awaiting me in the closet, I felt a certain satisfaction.

When Rich appeared on the scene, I suggested trying a new place for breakfast the I read about recently on Facebook. Located at the airport in Chatham, the Hanger B Eatery sounded like just our cup of tea. With only a few tables and a bevy of private planes parked on the tarmac that surrounds the hanger itself, it seemed the perfect spot for such a sparkling morning.

Chef Brian Erskine, formerly of the Chatham Bars Inn, opened the breakfast and lunch eatery in April of this year. Everything he serves is made from scratch, including biscuits, scones, donuts, and jams, and sourced locally. A proponent of the “Buy Fresh Buy Local Cape Cod” movement, chef Erskine prides himself on using only the freshest of ingredients including locally roasted coffee.

Having heard that his Eggs Benedict was a real hit, I expected Rich to go that route, but instead he chose the red flannel hash and declared it “a pleasant departure from the norm due in no small part to the fresh beets, bacon, and delicate horseradish crème fraiche”. I eyed the lemon ricotta pancakes, but in the end opted for the breakfast sandwich, which was served with roasted tomatoes, avocado, arugula, and scrambled eggs with cheese atop a grilled croissant. The roasted tomatoes made for an unexpected earthy flavor.

The setting is quite homey with a bit of a funky twist due to its location at the airport. With fewer than 10 tables and an open kitchen, we felt instantly a part of the Hanger B family, and chatted amicably with the private pilot next to us, who had flown up from Hartford especially for breakfast. That’s quite an endorsement.

We watched a number of small planes take off and land while we were there, which reminded me of a favorite Saturday morning TV show from my youth (you remember “Sky King” don‘t you?!). Cape Aerial Tours, located below the eatery at the Chatham Airport, offers two scenic flight itineraries of the lower and outer Cape for a very reasonable rate. Rich lobbied quite hard to take one of the tours after breakfast, but with gifts to wrap at home I lobbied equally as hard to save it for another day.

Secretly I wanted an excuse to come back and try the lemon ricotta pancakes as soon as possible.

Hanger B Eatery is open for breakfast and lunch, Wednesday through Sunday from 7 AM to 2 PM. 240 George Ryder Road at the Chatham Airport.

Rich and I met Doug and Dianne Langeland, publishers of Edible Cape Cod, a magazine dedicated to celebrating the abundance of local foods, on a day cruise to Nantucket a few years back. Our friend Ali scored the winning bid on the trip at a fund-raising auction and invited us, along with the Langelands, and Todd and Beth Marcus, owners of Cape Cod Beer, to join her and her partner, Tommy, aboard a classic Trumpy yacht owned and captained by director Dan Adams. It was an early September day that could not have been more beautiful…clear blue skies, warm sunshine, and smooth sailing. Doug and Dianne brought champagne, and Beth and Todd, a growler of Cape Cod beer, of course. We opted for wine.

It was a convivial group, to be sure, made even more so by the liquid refreshments. We drank champagne on the way over, and beer on the return trip. Wine accompanied lunch, which was served onboard the vessel by the ship’s crew while docked at the marina in Nantucket, after which we all dispersed for various adventures in town. The day was magical, and fast friendships were formed as a result.

We were all fairly new business owners on Cape Cod at the time. Doug and Dianne had recently launched Edible Cape Cod, and Todd and Beth started Cape Cod Beer around the same time we opened the High Pointe Inn. Tommy and Alice had just returned to the Lamb and Lion Inn after transitioning their former inn in upstate New York to its new owners. Amazingly enough, we are all still here, each successful in our own way and supportive of each other in so many ways.

For example, our good friend, Tommy Dott, author extraordinaire and fellow innkeeper who writes for Edible Cape Cod, published an article in the Spring 2010 edition of the magazine that showcases the High Pointe Inn and other B&Bs on Cape Cod who support the “Buy Fresh, Buy Local” movement. In it he describes how many of us have embraced the concept of culinary tourism and made a concerted effort to integrate all things local into our ever-expanding menu of guest services, whether it be an authentic Cape Cod adventure like shell fishing, or simply taking advantage of the local farmers’ markets held throughout the Cape during the growing season to flavor our breakfast offerings. Featured in the article is Rich’s Hangtown Fry recipe, an off-beat but delicious omelet filled with, among other things, fried oysters. It might be an acquired taste for some, but for a lover of the bivalve, it is the breakfast of champions.

Tommy was honored recently by Edible Cape Cod as a “local hero” for his contributions to the magazine, many of which shed light on the unsung heroes and humble entrepreneurs all over Cape Cod that help make it such a remarkable place to live and work, as well as visit. At the function held at the Naked Oyster and hosted by Doug and Dianne, we bumped into Beth Marcus, drinking of course, an IPA from Cape Cod Beer. We reminisced about our voyage to Nantucket that fateful day, and how far we had all come. Assembled as we were to honor our local heroes, I felt honored to be among the hardworking farmers, restauranteurs, brewers, confectioners, authors, and innkeepers that work so hard to create something honest and unadulterated for those of us who are lucky enough to live and work here on Cape Cod, and those who have the good fortune to visit.

Cape Cod Farmers' Market

I’m a homegrown girl. There’s just no two ways about it. And, as a small business owner on Cape Cod, I have always been a proponent of buying local whenever possible. To sustain our native economy, it only behooves us all to frequent local markets, support local missions, and promote local vendors. Lately, there has been a movement underfoot to “buy fresh, buy local”. That groundswell initiative extends from seasonal fruits and vegetables, to fish, meat, and poultry, and even to jams, jellies, honey, and dairy products. Recently, a new word was coined to embrace this new philosophy: localvore. (more…)