Patrons of the village of Mamaroneck hit the dusty trail on Sunday, May 1 for the 10th annual Taste of Mamaroneck Wine Trail, an event held by the Chamber of Commerce to promote local businesses. The trail included 19 stops along and around Mamaroneck Avenue, where participants sampled different wines and signature dishes. According to the chamber’s administrator, Pam Moran, despite the day’s cool and rainy weather, the event brought out approximately 300 people.
“Considering the weather, it was very well-attended and we did not have bad reviews of any of the trolley stops,” Moran said. She added that approximately 200 people preregistered for the event, while another 100 or so showed up at Harbor Island Park to register the day of.
A large crowd gathered near the park’s entrance at 12:30 p.m. to wait for the trolley to take them along the trail, where the Chamber of Commerce passed out wristbands and complimentary umbrellas to the half-soaked patrons standing in the rain. Once on the trolley, people shook out their umbrellas and got warm as they headed toward the wine trail. Clare Santora, of Pelham, told the Review that this was her fifth time attending the wine trail.
“There are all different types of food, and you get to try many different types of things,” she said. Santora added that normally, she and her friends walk from stop to stop, but because of the rain, they decided to take the trolley for the first time. Although the event is a great way to spend a day with friends, it also benefits restaurateurs in Mamaroneck.
Richie Becker, owner of 360 American Grille on Mamaroneck Avenue, said that his restaurant has been participating in the wine trail since the restaurant’s opening four years ago.
“We get some of our best customers from [the wine trail] every year,” said Becker, adding that he loves the event. For the day’s event, his restaurant showcased dishes of Brussels sprouts with gorgonzola, smoked brisket and a southwestern salad: a mix of lettuce, black beans, roasted corn, cheese, peppers, onions and cranberries with a cranberry blush vinaigrette.
“[The event] brings people in to see the friendly village of Mamaroneck,” Becker said. He added that hopefully, the event introduces people to the many restaurants on Mamaroneck Avenue, and brings them back again in the future.
Jim Mulcahy, of Larchmont, said that this kind of event is exactly how merchants get more customers.
“They’re displaying their wares for us, obviously so that we will come back again,” he said. Mulcahy has been a professional in the produce business for more than 40 years, and has been attending the wine trail for the last five years with a large group of friends whom he has known for nearly 50 years. “We’re still hanging tough,” he laughed. His crew of people was the liveliest of the bunch, filling the small entryway of the Smokehouse Tailgate Grill, anew restaurant on Mamaroneck Avenue.
The Smokehouse, as it is known colloquially, made its debut on the wine trail this year. Co-owner of the restaurant, Mike Hofer, told the Review that in New Rochelle, where their other storefront is located, there aren’t as many community events like the wine trail.
“Events like these are one of the reasons we wanted to open in Mamaroneck,” Hofer said.
