Open Now: Martha’s Vineyard Lunch Spots

Open Now: Martha’s Vineyard Lunch Spots

April 2, 2019

Martha’s Vineyard restaurants offer every kind of lunch experience, from a multi-course meal with wine to a quick burger and fries. Summer, of course, is when the options are widest and outdoor dining spots draw crowds. But from fall through spring, there are still plenty of places to find your midday meal—without the long wait for a table.

It’s only during the off-season that you’ll find the Food Truck—actually two trucks, one near the airport and one in Menemsha—serving weekday burgers, falafel wraps, lemon-rosemary fries, chili and other sustaining dishes to go. Open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Food Truck posts its menus on Facebook and takes orders by text or phone at 774-563-4498 (Menemsha, outside the Home Port) or 508-560-5883 (Airport Business Park).

If you’d rather have freshly-cooked fish for lunch, head to Menemsha Fish Market to grab a counter stool (if your group is small) or order take-out. Owner Stanley Larsen and his crew are always happy to hand out samples of the clam chowder, lobster bisque or their house specialty, “Half and Half,” mixing the chunkiness of chowder with the silkiness of bisque. Choose your seafood lunch from the menu, and someone in sea boots will fix it for you on the spot. On warm days, you can eat right outside on “Squid Row.”

The best lunch bargain on Martha’s Vineyard is probably at the MV Hospital Café in Oak Bluffs, where you can get a hot entrée with two side dishes and a drink for well under $6 —and there’s no meal tax added. With wellness always on the menu, the café serves antibiotic-free chicken and trans-fat-free fries along with its burgers, pizzas and daily specials. Boxed sandwiches and salads are also available. Lunch is served from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Another under-the-radar weekday lunch spot is the Y Café at the YMCA of MV, also in Oak Bluffs. Daily soups, grab-and-go sandwiches and salads, custom smoothies, espresso drinks and frozen y0gurt are all available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday.

More Island restaurants are opening weekly for the 2019 season. Please see our Restaurant Guide for listings.

Text by Louisa Hufstader
Photo of rosemary sea salt fries from The Food Truck: Susie Middleton

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