Historic Good Ground Tavern Delivers Upscale Dining in Hampton Bays

Chef Ülfet Ralph was living the big sky life as executive chef at a five-star Wyoming ranch when she was tapped for a similar position at Good Ground Tavern, an upscale dining spot that opened late last summer inside the newly redeveloped — and much talked about — Canoe Place Inn in Hamptons Bays.

“This opportunity came, and I went to see the property and I fell in love and I said, ‘OK, I’m ready to get back to the coast,’” says the Turkey-born Ralph, who now lives in East Hampton. “When I started last April, about a year ago, everything was still under construction, and I said, hopefully this place is going be ready, so I was very anxious about it.”

The construction was caused by the longtime redevelopment of the nearly 6-acre Canoe Place Inn, located on Shinnecock Canal, that was headed by Rechler Equity Partners. Good Ground Tavern eventually did get itself up and running and, according to Ralph, had a strong off-season between weekends and holidays, which was a good litmus test for summer 2023.

Leading the inn’s culinary revival, Ralph is a veteran of luxury hospitality leader Relais & Chateau, meaning her background is in high-end fine dining. But her menu at Good Ground Tavern will be accessible, she says, and the food will largely be influenced by Mediterranean cuisine. Her style is very “health-conscious” and, by design, she does not use very many ingredients in her dishes.

“I believe in five or less ingredients per plate is the way to go because you have to champion the ingredients. This is the vision,” she says. “Our style is a little different than what everyone is serving around here. All the food around is familiar, Italian or French and people know what they’re getting. But we’ve been trying to sneak in little things to adventure out, introducing people little by little to some little more modern techniques, something a little unfamiliar.”

For example, she’s making crab cakes with sauce gribische instead of a traditional remoulade. “It’s very zesty and it just goes so well with seafood. People are like, ‘What is sauce gribische?’ It’s actually very simple, more lemony, zesty; that’s what we’re trying to do,” Ralph says.

Another feature of her cooking is to poach a fish in olive oil. “It makes it so nice and tender because, like halibut, you can easily overcook it,” she says.

She is also incorporating techniques she learned from her mother growing up near the Aegean Sea in Turkey. One, for example, involves skinning and tenderizing octopus. She also brines fish before the cooking process to enhance the sea-flavor.

“I think people love Good Ground Tavern because we’re not overly priced, because we want to welcome everyone. Like this is their home, the same gathering place it was in the past,” Ralph shares.

Famously, Canoe Place is on the site of the oldest inn in the U.S. Despite several structure fires, a long period of dormancy, and some hiccups along the way to its revival, the history of Canoe Place Inn remains a point of pride for the hamlet, and rightfully so. ​

The property dates back to the early 17th century and has hosted (in various buildings) the likes of Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt, Cary Grant, Lucille Ball, Albert Einstein and Babe Ruth. British officers even used it for shelter during the Revolutionary War.

At various times in its history it has also been home to a dance hall, a speakeasy and, most recently, a nightclub, until it closed in the early 2000s.

Good Ground Tavern at Canoe Place Inn & Cottages is located at 239 East Montauk Highway, Hampton Bays. For more information, visit canoeplace.com/dining.