Diners visit Sunset Café in Westhampton Beach for the array of organic foods, the welcoming service and the relaxing experience, according to manager Kathleen Klein.
“People love the atmosphere, nice music, and I don’t think you’ll find a friendlier staff,” Ms. Klein said in a recent interview.
The Sunset Café menu is primarily made up of organic foods and drinks. The owners, Carrie Coakley and Don Macpherson, also of Magic’s Pub in Westhampton, took over Sunset Café near the end of June last year. They wanted to open a casual café with healthy foods, and the former HeBird SheBird coffeehouse seemed like the perfect spot.
The restaurant doesn’t have a full kitchen, so baked goods are currently acquired from Peconic Baking Co. in Riverhead. The owners are “looking to start a line of organic baked goods” in the future, Ms. Klein said.
Sunset Café’s “sweet sides” come from Holey Moses Bakery and are mainly under $2, excluding cheesecake and pie. Desserts also include cannolis, muffins, assorted danishes and cookies, brownies, chocolate covered espresso beans and biscotti. Also, the café now carries Van Gogh wine- and coffee-based sorbets.
Sunset Café is open year round and meals, treats and drinks can be enjoyed in the summer on the outside patio or inside by the fireplace during the colder winter months, the manager said.
This summer, Sunset Café will feature live music and “theme parties” that management is currently in the process of scheduling, according to Ms. Klein. Singer Liza Coppella offered up some acoustic sets a few weekends ago.
Ms. Klein described the establishment as a “laid back, organic café and coffeehouse with more of an upscale feeling than most coffeehouses.” The addition of a wine and martini bar was intended to contribute to the upscale feel. Now fully operational, the bar offers organic wine, beer and a unique list of about eight martinis including everything from lychee to Godiva chocolate, all for $10. There are “wines from around the world,” Ms. Klein said, including from Italy, Australia, Argentina, Chile, California and Spain.
A glass of wine ranges from $7 to $11 and organic selections from the café’s red, white and rose wines are offered. Organic choices include a 2006 Los Cardos Malbec from Argentina, 2006 Lungarotti pinot grigio from Italy and 2007 pink Billy rosé from Australia. The bar, as well as a tapas menu, is available every Friday and Saturday night from 6 to 11 p.m.
The tapas menu includes, among others, marinated olives for $5.95, buffalo mozzarella and tomato with fresh basil and olive oil for $9.95 and a meat and cheese platter for $18.
The regular menu is available every day from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and offered until 6 p.m. Friday through Sunday. Free wireless internet is also accessible for all patrons.
The café typically offers daily soup, salad and sandwich specials. Popular sandwiches include grilled honey mustard chicken with melted swiss cheese on multi-grain health bread; smoked turkey with gouda, organic baby spinach, roasted red peppers and organic vinaigrette in a whole wheat wrap; and the Greek pita with feta cheese, cucumber, organic mixed greens, olives, onions and champagne vinaigrette. All sandwiches come with a side salad du jour and are priced from $8.45 to $19.85.
Poached organic eggs with a bagel or toast, whole wheat and honey waffles, hot oatmeal, cinnamon toast, yogurt parfait, bagels with an assortment of hand-folded flavored cream cheeses, and toasted chocolate bread with organic peanut butter are all options for breakfast. Prices range from $2.50 to $7.45.
Sunset Café is also child friendly, offering a small children’s area with games and toys. Also, a kids’ organic lunch special is on the menu for $3.75, with a choice of macaroni and cheese, peanut butter and jelly, or grilled cheese, which all come with a free rainbow cookie.
Rita Yac has worked at Sunset Café about a year and makes the popular turkey vegetable chili. Other selections of soups include the popular organic butternut squash, creamy organic tomato and other homemade soups that rotate on the menu. All soups are priced at $3.75 for a medium and $4.85 for a large serving, with the exception of the gazpacho, which costs $4.85 for a medium and $6.25 for a large.
Coffees can be hot or iced and include lattes, espresso, café au lait, a caramel macchiato and more. Extra syrup or flavoring is an extra 75 cents and all are available in regular and sugar free. Regular flavors include, among others, black currant, caramel, amaretto, tiramisu, raspberry, kiwi and peppermint. Sugar free options are vanilla, tiramisu, Irish crème, Kahlua caffe, almond and hazelnut.
Sunset Café is known for its organic coffees, but also offers teas and coffee alternatives including a chai latte, iced herbal tea, freshly squeezed juice, Pellegrino sparklers, smoothies and more. Teas cost $1.35 for a small and $2.25 for large. Twinings, Tazo and Celestial Seasonings brands are offered.
Ms. Yac noted that many patrons enjoy the smoothies, made with yogurt and choices of fruit, including banana, strawberry, peach, mango, raspberry and blackberry. The smoothies are like a “whole meal,” Ms. Yac added, and are good for dieters.
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