Tasty Travails: A Wedding, A Lobster Roll and Grilled Cheese

Ahhhh, wedddings. Who doesn't love a wedding? Other than me, for instance. I mean, getting dressed up in a suit, tie and "fancy" shoes isn't really my cup of joe. And then being forced onto the dance floor because, you know, you have to dance at a wedding...sign me up! And oh boy, that catering hall food - boring filet mignon and overcooked chicken breast...ooops, I mean paillard and pardon me - yummo!

The whole wedding schtick just isn't for me...or for Significant Eater either. After all, she and I took our vows in Las Vegas - at the county courthouse - with only our moms and dads as witnesses. Followed by a delicious meal at the late, great Jean-Louis Palladin's Napa Restaurant. And then gambling. How bad could that be?

But every once in a while, if you're lucky, you get to go to a great wedding. Something different. Something special. And this past weekend, Significant Eater and I got to do just that, partying ferociously into the night (although not as far into the night as the kids, I'm sure) at our niece Rebecca and her husband Sean's (heretofore known as Shivery McPickles and Fred Swayze and don't ask) awesome, effing Cape Cod wedding.

Of course, a wedding on the Cape means something else too...lighthouses (that's the Cape Cod Light above), lobster rolls and fried things like clams and scallops. A busy schedule only allowed for a few tastings, so let's get right to it. First stop, Eastham and...

Arnold's is a much touted place on "the boards" and the line out front stretched a good 30 people deep, but we're troopers, so we hopped in line and ordered a light lunch...

And it was disappointing, to say the least. The fried clams, big fat bellies as beautiful as they look, were a bit soggy and their breading was tasteless. I guess that's what happens when you serve hundreds of people a day - you get to rest on your laurels. The lobster roll looked great...

It just didn't deliver. Also in need of some seasoning - you've heard of salt? And resting on a bed of iceberg can't do anything but detract from the flavor of the lobster, no? Yes - it does, but it seems to be the way they make 'em on the Cape...Cape Cod, that is, because iirc, they were a bit different on Cape Ann. Anyway, onto our hotel, where the view from our room, looking out over the dunes towards Provincetown, was spectacular...

Up early the next morning, Sig Eater and I checked out P-town and then Wellfleet for lunch at Mac's at Wellfleet Harbor...

This was more like it. First of all, there's a lobster truck parked out front. Then, there was this...

Perfectly cooked lobster, nicely seasoned and dressed lightly with mayo nestled on a bed of green leaf lettuce, perhaps the best lobster roll I've tasted in a long time - and at about $12 a relative steal. And the fried scallops, up in the corner there, were a revelation. Sweet, succulent, not often ordered, but just great. Go to Mac's, skip Arnold's, and you'll be just fine.

And then...the wedding. On Cape Cod. Yes, indeed. Dress - picnic fabulous - so I got to wear short sleeves and sneaks and be really happy. Food - sausages, deviled eggs, oysters, pickles, 3 kinds of soup (including one of the best gazpachos I've ever had), 4 different grilled cheese sandwiches (of which I ate way too many lobster/bacon combos), creme puffs, cannoli, cookies, wedding cake, bourbon and beer - and need I say more?

The happy couple just moments after the big event...

The totally awesome grilled cheese wedding cake...

So I'm convinced. A wedding can be fun. The food can be wonderful. The dancing can be great and hot and sweaty. It can move even the most curmudgeonly amongst us. This wedding was all of that and more. It was families and friends coming together on a beautiful Cape Cod night. Seeing joy and love expressed in a very special way. For two people that are special to Significant Eater and me. Doesn't get much better than that, does it?

As a matter of fact, SE and I were so overjoyed by the weekend's festivities that we had to have one more delicious meal before she headed back to DC for a short work week...