The Coastal Town People Are Calling The 'New' Hamptons & 3 Places To See There

Julia Roberts is suddenly on Instagram, and also made an appearance at the previews for the Broadway version of Pretty Woman last week, wearing a Lavern & Shirley t-shirt no less (wonder if some poor assistant had to go cray crazy looking for that online or what?). Nods to the late Garry Marshall aside (the man behind that hit 70's tv show and the movie that made Ms Roberts a household name), I was at Mystic Pizza in Ct recently and couldn't help but think of Julia. After all, the movie of the same name - about a small coastal, tourist-y town pizza parlor and the three young women working there - put her on the map pre-Woman. The really good news is that people are still flocking there, snapping photos of the sign outside and eating pizza which for the record, really does live up to the hype. If you're looking for a few other reasons to take a mini road trip over to Mystic this month and beyond, it just so happens that I have a few spots to add to your sightseeing itinerary.

Spicer Mansion

A boutique hotel by the same ppl behind resorts like the Ocean House in Watch Hill and the Weekapaug Inn? Spicer Mansion is everything you'd expect and more. The meticulously restored former sea captain's house (circa late 1800's) is an eight bedroom oasis tucked away on a picturesque side street that's quite literally a few minutes walk from the town. (They also have bikes and a BMW at the disposal of their guests who's rather ride in style to their destination.) I had lunch - including a mocktail and a vegetarian version of one of their pastas - on the Veuve Clicquot umbrella-ed patio not long ago, and it was lovely! I feel like it would also be a perfect place for a September weekend when the weather is still pretty mild and many of the other out-of-towners have headed back whence they came.

Sift Bake Shop

Most of the scones I've had run the gamut from meh to rock city, and no, I'm not talking about Detroit. The one I devoured at Sift the other day is hands down the best one I've ever had in my whole entire life. So, suffices to say that the bakery does in fact live up to the ballyhoo and buildup (including but not limited to their winning 'Best Baker In America' from the Food Network earlier back in June). And as with the Spicer Mansion, there's a Watch Hill connection - this season they opened their very first outpost in WH, which I'll bet dollars to donuts (didn't see any of those, but everything else in the Mystic shop looked scrumptious and there were lines when I arrived) it's doing crazy great business.

Photo Credits: Sift at Watch Hill and all Spicer Mansion photos courtesy of their respective Instagram accounts