Flora in Westhampton Beach Unveils New Menu Items For Fall
Flora, the Westhampton Beach spot in the Rooted Hospitality restaurant group that includes East End faves like Cowfish and Rumba, has a new fall menu. The standalone restaurant is in a location on the edge of town off one of the two roundabouts that bookend Westhampton’s downtown. It’s a place that feels accessible and very much a part of a village that has been growing in popularity for years yet still a little disconnected from the bustle of Main Street.
At Flora, you step into a country house vibe, surrounded by flower accents and craft birdhouses. A handmade trellis hangs from the ceiling alongside starburst chandeliers. The interior is light and airy and the day we went in to check out the new fall items on the menu it was one of those unusually warm October days so the patio was packed with people enjoying the last few afternoons you can comfortably dine outside.
Emma Gonzales, the general manager at Flora outlined the fall food items added to the menu.
New appetizers include crispy brussels sprouts, duck confit, burrata and cider little neck clams. A pecan crusted salmon, sweet potato gnocchi with pasta made from scratch, harvest chicken and braised short rib have been added to the entree menu along with a butternut toastie in the handheld section. For dessert they offer a pistachio oil cake. Walnuts, fig, pumpkin seed, butternut squash and maple flavor abounds among their new offerings.
We went for lunch and opted for the butternut toastie (more on that later) and started with the crispy brussel sprouts, which were as crispy as advertised and very tasty. The crisped brussels were made with a maple bacon vinaigrette adding a sweet flavor to the caramelized red onion and aged Reggiano cheese mixed in.
The butternut toastie is butternut squash on toasted ciabatta with pumpkin seed pesto, herbed goat cheese, caramelized shallot, and arugula. It was a savory handheld, a perfect blending of fall flavors. Very crunchy and extra delightful when dipped in the sweet honey au poivre.
For dessert we didn’t go with the new fall addition. You’d understand if you heard the delicious rumors we did about their flower pot dessert, a layering of French vanilla ice cream, cookies, caramel, Nutella mousse, and Oreo crumbles. It’s big enough to dig into it with a friend to share. Or don’t. We didn’t.
Also new to the menu were drink items including a Montauk Maple bourbon, which we had before lunch. The drink includes Redemption bourbon, house sour, maple syrup, black walnut bitters and cinnamon sugar.
Flora (like Fauna, its sister restaurant that took over the legendary Starr Boggs spot last year) presents a little bit of a reprieve from the Main Street of Westhampton Beach, which has experienced a renaissance of sorts. It offers that Hamptons vibe but without having to battle the traffic too deep into the South Fork. You’ll want to go for lunch because the quaint and cozy atmosphere is so inviting on a sunny afternoon but don’t sleep on them for dinner because the entrees match anything else you will find in town. (And that dessert!)
The season in Westhampton Beach has been extending into fall for a while now and Flora’s new autumn menu items are worth stopping in for when you visit.
Location: Flora, 149 Main St, Westhampton Beach, www.florawhb.com.
