A few months ago, one of the Boating Facebook groups I follow mentioned something about Tall Ships and Fireworks in Newport on June 5th.

We really love Newport, but haven’t spent much time there in years, so that was all it took to get me to book a couple of nights.

Mrs. Horne’s sister Paula joined us…

left Onset Thursday morning around 9:30. Buzzards Bay was a little choppy, but the seas really flattened after we passed Cuttyhunk.

The Newport Yachting Center has become my favorite Marina in Newport, but it was sold out, so we stayed at the Newport Harbor Hotel and Marina.

We were assigned to A8, which is the outermost spot on their straight dock. They had us tie up bow-in, which provided a nice view of the harbor.

The Moorings

Paula couldn’t remember the last time she was in Newport, so we had to start with lunch at one of the most iconic spots!

The meal was solid as usual, but they no longer served the fritters. Bag O’Donuts style. That’s probably a good idea, the aioli was smeared on the bottom of the bowl and there wasn’t enough (it’s wonderful). We requested more and it really completed the meal. Note to self: Next time order extra up front.

Back on Bowens Wharf, summer had indeed broken out!

Despite the stiff breeze from the south, the Skydeck was open for business!

Congratulations Tom

Tom, our former Dockmaster at Safe Harbor Onset Bay, invited us to dinner in Newport to celebrate his high school graduation.

His parent, Dan and Leesel recently moved to Newport, and their Viking, Javelin, was a few boats down from us at the marina.

This seemed like a perfect occasion to host our first cocktail party of the season.

We’d chatted with Tommy’s parents many times when they were in Onset, but never at length until Thursday night. They are delightful people with great life stories.

Our one-hour cocktail party ended up being nearly two, but fortunately, Lucia let us push out our dinner reservations.

Mrs. Horne and Paula shared a salad and shrimp pasta.

Every time I dine at Lucia’s I notice the Bruschetta on the menu. Thanks to the snacks at the cocktail party, I wasn’t that hungry, so it felt like the right time to try one…

It’s totally mouthwarming and 100% Italian. The meat and cheese were very high quality and briny tapenade provided a memorable finish.

Friday – Jubilee Day

The brisk winds completely died out by Friday morning and summer temperatures make the back decks very inviting.

I was struck by the beautiful old mahogany yacht Mazurka as she left Bowens wharf entoute to Newport Shipyard.

The Smokehouse

We had an excellent server at The Moorings. She encouraged me to join the Newport Restaurant Group Rewards Program and highly recommended the Smokehouse, which is also owned by the Moorings.

I have walked past the Smokehouse at least 100 times and considered trying it, but never did until Friday.

The property is very hip and inviting…

We sat at the bar which had a refreshing sea breeze flowing through on what had become a warm summer day.

I wanted to check out their smokehouse chops, but the girls went more traditional.

Our lunches we decent, but the perfect atmosphere was what made it work.

As we were discussing pluses and minuses, a lovely young lady came by to ask us “How is everything?”

As a rule, I never complain about a meal unless it’s a total disaster and our meal was fine, just not really great. But, if a manager or owner asks, I assume they want to know!

So we took her through the minor issues we had with our meals and then we asked “What are your best dishes?”

Denise immediately said “Smoked Wings and Brisket – we make it fresh ever day,”

Then she started talking to our server about adjusting our bill and I said “No, our lunch was fine, but would it be possible to get us a taste of your brisket?”

She returned a few minutes later with a full 8-ounce portion.

Brisket is something I love, but seldom order because it’s so easy to screw up. And overdone brisket is inedible.

This was the best brisket I ever had! Mrs. Horne isn’t a big fan of smoked meats, but I’ll try to get her back to The Smokehouse for the Smoked Wings and Brisket.

After lunch, I shopped for a graduation gift for Tommy and stopped at Kaffeology.

It was excellent and I found Tommy the perfect gift!

Jubilee Friday

The tall ships we hoped to see never materialized. We heard there were 10-20 sailboats in the outer harbor, but we couldn’t see them from our boat.

We were surrounded by classic 12 Meter Racing Sailboats. Mrs. Horne had struck up a friendship with the crews of Westerly and American Eagle.

Both boats were docked off our stern.

They were returning from a day of racing when we returned from shopping. Mrs. Horne went over to ask her newest best friends if they had won and they had not.

She discovered that the storied 12 Meter Intrepid had won, took a bottle of Prosecco over to them, and congratulated the crew.

While talking with the crew, Mrs. Horne recognized our old friend Breezy from Block Island on the crew,

I caught up on Breezy’s incredible life and learned that she was on the Intrepid as a disabled veteran, as were many of the crew.

Breezy had twisted her hip in the service and was unable to walk properly. After years of traditional medical care, she was cured by a Physiopediast – an advanced form of physical therapy.

One of Breezy’s ventures is a video production company and she is working with the Intrepid Crew on a 12-part documentary to raise awareness for Physiopedia as an alternative treatment path for disabled veterans.

Graduation Dinner At 22 Bowen’s

We were honored to be included in Tommy’s graduation party at 22 Bowen’s. Dan had secured one of the best tables – it sat inside the restaurant, but still open to waterfront.

Dinner was excellent as usual…

After a wonderful dinner, we returned to Amazing Grace for the 250th Jubilee Fireworks Show.

It was a great show and the bow-in tie at the marina gave us perfect seating.

As we headed home Saturday morning, we passed another Maritimo. Turns out it was Captain Chris who will be meeting up with us in Nantucket.

We also passed two tall ships heading north.

It was a spectacular three days and a great welcome of the summer season.

Next Up: Nantucket Week