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🐝 The Appellation Association

🐝 The Appellation Association

After Hours Dinner, Living Breathing Art Show, Claudio’s Is Back

Thomas Loncar
April 24, 2026

Together With Tim O’Keefe

Good Morning, North Fork! If you like being in the loop, reading this helps.

In today’s North Fork Buzz:

After Hours Dinner
Living Breathing Art Show
Claudio’s Is Back

Ready, Set, Go!

The Lowdown

After Hours Dinner 🍷

On Mattituck’s Love Lane, the Village Cheese Shop has long been known as the place for great cheese, the shop stocks around 100 cheeses in peak season, from local Catapano chèvre to its over the top truffle Brie.

A few times each year, after the counters close and Love Lane clears out, the shop shifts into its second life. Owner Michael Affatato hosts “The Appellation Association” dinners for just 12 guests, built around eight rare French wines and a multi-course meal from chef Jess Kalish, a French Culinary Institute alum whose past clients reportedly include Billy Joel.

Tickets run $280, with wine, dinner and tip included. Recent menus have featured smoked salmon tartines, squash and mushroom toasts, lamb meatballs, and filet mignon, all designed to hold their own next to serious French pours.

Get the full story 👉 North Fork Sun

Living Breathing Art Show 🎨

Out on Grand Avenue in Mattituck, Landcraft Garden Foundation is working with a simple idea: if plants can be art, why not add actual art to the mix?

That thinking took shape in 2021, when Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone teamed up with founders Dennis Schrader and Bill Smith to launch Sculpture in the Garden, a seasonal program that places large scale works directly into the landscape.

Since then, the gardens have doubled as an outdoor gallery. Artists like Ned Smyth, Sam Moyer, Eddie Martinez, Virginia Overton, Jorge Pardo, and Sara Sze have all left their mark.

And it doesn’t stop at sculpture. The foundation layers in poetry readings, yoga, workshops, and visiting performers, from dance companies to well known garden designers.

Get the full story 👉 Northforker

Claudio’s Is Back 🍹

Claudio’s opening weekend is doing a little more than just kicking off the season, it’s hitting reset.

Starting April 24–26, the longtime harbor staple is ditching last summer’s concepts (Charlie Boy and Common Country East) and leaning back into what people actually come for: seafood, drinks, and that front row seat to the water.

The biggest shake-up: Saylor Beach House, taking over the former Crabby Jerry’s space. The new concept leans Mediterranean beach club, lighter plates, open air dining, and a clear emphasis on golden hour drinks. It officially joins the lineup Memorial Day weekend.

Get the full story 👉 Northforker

Photo of the Week

📸 submitted by Will Clark

Tag @NorthForkBuzz or email us at [email protected] to get your photos in The Buzz!

Foodie Friday 🍽

There are certain smells that just stop you in your tracks. Fresh coffee. A grill getting going in the summer. And banana bread coming out of the oven.

It’s the kind of thing that instantly makes a house feel like a home. No occasion needed, no fancy plating required. Just slice, maybe a little butter if you’re feeling bold, and suddenly everything is right for a few minutes.

We’ve got another edition of our Community Recipe Feature, and this one comes from Peggy Grigonis, who’s been working on something we can all get behind: taking classic comfort foods and giving them a healthier twist without losing what makes them great in the first place.

Enter: banana bread, but with a little upgrade.

Gluten Free High Protein Banana Bread

This isn’t one of those “healthy” recipes that feels like a compromise. It’s still soft, still rich, still exactly what you want with your morning coffee or as a mid-afternoon “I deserve this” snack. The difference? A little extra protein, gluten-free flour, and ingredients that let you feel slightly more responsible while still going back for a second slice.

Here’s how Peggy makes it:

What You’ll Need

½ cup plain whole milk yogurt (adds a little protein and keeps things soft and tender)
1 cup mashed bananas (about 3 ripe ones, the spottier, the better)
¼ cup ghee, softened
2 organic eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon Himalayan pink salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ cup organic cane sugar
1 ¾ cups gluten-free flour (1:1 blend)
Large walnuts (for the top, don’t skip these, they’re doing important work)

How to Make It

Start by whisking together the flour, baking soda, and salt in one bowl. Easy win to get things going.

In another bowl, mix the yogurt, mashed bananas, ghee, eggs, vanilla extract, and sugar until everything comes together into a smooth, slightly golden mixture that already smells like you’re on the right track.

Now combine the two. Add the dry ingredients into the wet and gently mix until just incorporated. This is not the time to go full arm workout, easy does it.

Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan and smooth out the top. Then place those walnuts right on top like you’ve done this before.

Bake at 350°F for 45–55 minutes. Start checking around 45 minutes with a toothpick — if it comes out clean, you’re in business.

Let it cool for about 10 minutes (arguably the toughest step), then transfer to a wire rack, or cut into it a little early and deal with the consequences later.

Huge thanks to Peggy Grigonis for this week’s Community Recipe Feature. Proof that comfort food can evolve a little without losing its soul.

Nothing in this section is sponsored. They’re just fun things you need to know. I’ll always let you know when something is sponsored

A Quick Reminder: We Want Your Recipes

Just a reminder that we’re opening up this Foodie Friday space to you, we’d love to start highlighting your go to dishes in upcoming Foodie Fridays. Have a recipe you swear by? Send it over. We especially want to hear if you’re using local ingredients!

How to submit:
Email us at [email protected] with:

The recipe (ingredients + steps)
A photo (even an iPhone pic is perfect)
Your name
Optional but encouraged: a short story - when you make it, who you make it for, or why it’s special
Bonus points if you tell us which local purveyors you hit up for the ingredients

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THANKS!

Thanks for reading the North Fork Buzz today. Like what you read? Send it to someone who loves Banana Bread.

Tom Loncar- Publisher
Nicole Loncar- Editor + Partnerships