Kream ‘n Kone has some outside seating that overlooks the Swan River in West Dennis. Looks like some marshy area too. We didn’t sit outside when we went to eat there, but I did walk around a bit and take some photos of the view. Right as I was standing outside some kayakers went by. It was nice, aside from the poison ivy.
Tags:cape cod·kayak·kream n kone·marsh·poison ivy·swan river·west dennis
A lot of places on the Cape serve fried seafood. We had a bit, but in general tried to eat other things. The food we grilled at home was pretty healthy. Turkey burgers, lots of grilled vegetables. And then almost every day for lunch we had multigrain lavash filled with leftover vegetables.
One night, just one.. and one where we didn’t have to show up in bikinis on the beach the next day… we had to go all out. Usually Cooke’s is the go-to place for fried seafood for us. I even have one of their menus from when I last visited Cape Cod in 2002. This trip we kept hearing that a place called Kream ‘n Kone was really good and well-known for their fried seafood. Lo and behold when we arrived we saw that they claim to be “The Finest Fried Seafood Anywhere.”
Here’s the drill: You order at a counter. If you got chowder or soup you get that right away. You get cups for the self-serve soda right away. Condiments are self serve. For the rest you are given a number and you take it to your seat. The waitress then brings it to your table. We didn’t have time to even start digging into our clam chowder before our piles of fried food arrived, so the service is FAST. The chowder was good, but we’re sticking with The Skipper as the best chowder we had on the trip.
Kream ‘n Kone offers “plates” which include your choice of fried haddock, sole, flounder, shrimp, scallops, clams (whole, with bellies), clam strips, calamari or oysters and French fries and onion rings. Jessica got the fried clam strips plate. Julie and I split a 3-way plate of whole clams, scallops and shrimp. Man, were we overwhelmed when the food showed up! Seafood with stacks and stacks of French fries and onion rings. We knew ahead of time that we’d never finish the food, maybe not even half, and so we tried to just eat til we were satisfied. It was so delicious, though. You could tell that the oil they used was fresh. They must change it often. We also got sides of coleslaw and curly fries. I thought I could sub out curly fries for regular fries, but had to get them as a side instead.
Jessica’s plate after she was finished eating looked like a normal portion at any other restaurant. After we were done eating we had loads of food left so we took it home to Jessica’s grandfather who loved it.
Tags:cape cod·clam·clam chowder·cookes·french fries·kream n kone·lavash·onion rings·scallop·shrimp·the skipper·west dennis
Rummikub, South Yarmouth, Cape Cod
Rummikub, South Yarmouth, Cape Cod
Our last day at the beach was last Friday. For lunch we headed to our now favorite restaurant, The Skipper, and got our now favorite clam chowder. This was our 3rd visit to The Skipper in just over a week (visit 1, visit 2). Julie got the lobster roll, I got a crab roll and Jess had a hankering for ribs, so that’s what she got. It was all great. I love The Skipper and loved that it was right across the street from “our beach.”
Oh, I almost forgot. On the way to the beach I got stung by a bee. I barely even saw it and for sure didn’t recognize to get away from it. My hand just like hit it and it stung the padded part of my palm just down from my thumb. I could see the stinger and it hurt really bad. Attached to the stinger was part of the bee’s body and it was moving. I kind of freaked because I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold still enough to remove the stinger. Luckily Julie heard my yelling and ran over, pulled the stinger out and saved the day. My brother and my niece are allergic to bees, so I was scared for a few minutes.. but then I was eating clam chowder and my face hadn’t swollen up or anything so I figured I was fine. And I was. I just held ice in my hand for a while at the restaurant. My hand was tender for a few days, but that’s about it.
After lunch we went back to the beach. We didn’t want to leave it!! The next day we had to drive back to Jersey and we wanted to prolong the beach time. We spread out our towels and blanket and played Rummikub, Jess’s favorite game of all time. I can remember playing this game on the beach at the Cape in 2002, when New York got 20″ of snow in 2003, and even during the blackout in New York that same year. I won the first game with that 7. Jess, the sore loser that she is, then had to cancel our second game … saying she had something in her eye or something and she had to leave. Just kidding.. her eye really was messed up. At least it was a real reason to make us leave the beach or we might have been there all night!
Tags:bee·bee sting·cape cod·clam chowder·crab·jessica·julie·lobster·ribs·rummikub·south yarmouth·the skipper·yarmouth
Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod
Michaela & Jessica :: Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod
Rachelle, Julie, Jessica :: Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod
Crab Cakes, Haddock, Clams Linguine, Scrod :: Marshside, East Dennis, Cape Cod
After going to Eden, Michaela came over to our house and we spent the day at the beach (what else is new!?). Then we went home and got ready and went out for dinner at Marshside in East Dennis. I heard that not too long ago they totally brought down the whole restaurant and rebuilt it. It’s really pretty. Big decks outside (too bad there wasn’t any outdoor seating) and inside was kind of a modern rustic, if such thing exists. There were many, many windows through which you could see the marsh, hence the name Marshside. All of the windows kind of made it so that the marsh was very much a part of the decor of the restaurant.
Michaela and I shared a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc and Julie and Jess shared a red wine at the bar while we waited to be seated at a table. We shared dinner appetizers. I ordered the crab cakes (of course), Michaela got the Cesar salad, Jess got the clam chowder, and Julie got seafood stew. The crab cakes were so much better than I’d had a few days earlier at Skippy’s Pier 1. The clam chowder was really good. Definitely better than Skippy’s but we still favored The Skipper’s chowdah. In hindsight, we really did not enjoy Skippy’s, which is a shame because Jess’s aunt Mau, who we stayed with my last trip to the Cape, works there.. but she’s a bartender.. nothing to do with the food.
Jess and Michaela both got Scrod entrees, I got the haddock and Julie got clams linguine. To be honest, I found the dinner we had at Colombo’s to be more memorable as far as how the food tasted. I know haddock is kind of a bland fish, but the way this was prepared.. if you didn’t take a bite right on the sauce, there was no flavor at all. However, the mashed potatoes were delicious. Jess really enjoyed the scrod and we applauded her for ordering it. She had never really liked fish, but is trying to expand her horizons because a lot of it is mental. I think Michaela and Julie enjoyed their food, too.
Tags:cape cod·clam·clam chowder·crab cakes·east dennis·haddock·jessica·julie·linguine·marsh·marshside·michaela·sauvignon blanc·scrod·seafood·seafood stew·wine
Note: rachelleb.com is not affiliated with Eden Hand Arts.
Eden Hand Arts, Dennis, Cape Cod
The first time I’d heard of jewelry from Eden is when Jess’s aunt Sally was over saying she had to bring in her daughter Michaela’s bracelet to get a new size. As she spoke about the place I realized what a cult following it has to those who live and frequently visit Cape Cod. And I realized how odd Eden is when she told the story of how she has a pair of earrings and lost one. She went to the store to buy another and they were so particular about them that they wouldn’t sell her the a replacement for the lost earring without seeing the one she still had first. Apparently, the earrings were of fish – herrings – and the eyes face each other, if worn properly. Therefore, they didn’t want to sell her the wrong one and since she didn’t have the other with her, they refused the sale. Picky, some would say, but really they are just very, very strict about what goes out of the shop and how it is worn.
Eden Hand Arts, Dennis, Cape Cod
We were intrigued by Sally’s stories and by stories we heard in the following days. It seemed that all of Jess’s family had jewelry from Eden, or a story at least. Jess even had their “Cape Cod Screwball” bracelet, which is their original and most well-known piece. Julie and I decided we had to see the place. The Eden showroom is actually located in a tiny little cabin in Dennis – kind of hidden away. There’s no parking aside from the driveway of the house next to the cabin. I assume this is the house the owners live in. If you park on the road they’ll come out and tell you to move it or get towed. We barely squeezed into a parking space in the driveway. Next we walked over to the store area and there was a line. Never mind the fact that they’d just opened 10 minutes ago. There was a line already. It didn’t seem long, but since the store is really just a tiny cabin with 2-3 people working in it, and they give individual attention to each person that walks through the door, it actually took a while to make it in.
Eden Hand Arts, Dennis, Cape Cod
Other Eden oddities: You can’t enter the store until you’re asked to come in. They’re only open from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and only on four days of the week. Cash and checks only, no credit or debit cards. They won’t mail anything anywhere. You can bring a wrist measurement and buy a bracelet, but you can’t bring a neck measurement and buy a “neck wire,” which I think is a hard, shaped necklace. They must get a lot of people making fakes because they have signs up about how this store is the only place you can buy their merchandise. It’s not in other stores, it’s not online, it’s not called anything else.
Eden Hand Arts, Dennis, Cape Cod
So, when we finally got into Eden, our party – Jess, Julie and I – is taken care of by the sweetest grandmother-ish woman. We were not rushed, hence the line, and she let us look at and try on anything we wanted. There was no pressure to buy, the jewelry sells itself. Eden stands behind the jewelry they make. A woman came in with a broken bracelet and they replaced it. Just like that. They asked her a few lifestyle questions so they could maybe determine how it was damaged, but she was in and out with a completely new bracelet in 10 minutes flat.
Julie’s Eden bracelet and herring ring
Julie’s Eden herring ring
So, what did we get? Jess got a sterling silver Cape Cod open bracelet to be worn with her other sterling silver Cape Cod bracelet, which she had at home. Julie got the classic Cape Cod bracelet (single ball, like the one Jess had at home) in two-tone gold and sterling silver. She also got a sterling silver herring ring. And me? I got the two-toned 16″ necklace and a pair of two-toned earrings. Also, just like everything else, after you’ve been to Eden and bought some things, you start to notice everyone has them. At least everyone on the Cape.
Jessica’s Eden bracelet
Rachelle’s Eden necklace and earrings
Tags:aunt sally·bracelet·cape cod·dennis·earring·eden·eden hand arts·herring·jessica·jewelry·julie·michaela·necklace