Mattituck: Dinner at The Old Mill Inn

I’ve always enjoyed the location of The Old Mill Inn, a former grist mill that sits on the banks of Mattituck Inlet, but I’ve never had a meal there that quite measured up to the lovely setting. I missed the tenure of chef Brady Duhame, who arrived last year, was honored with a “local hero” award from “Edible East End” in April, left in May. Saul Flores is the chef now.

On a recent weekday night, I was among the restaurant’s few diners, though there was a lively crowd at the bar. I started with a healthy pile of arugula surrounded by wedges of local yellow tomato and topped with shredded duck confit and a scoop of farmer cheese. All the salad needed was an assertive vinaigrette to bring it together, but the “grapefruit dressing” in evidence seemed to contain neither lemon juice, vinegar — nor oil; it just tasted like juice.

Linguine with local clams in a spicy tomato sauce featured a dozen plump, juicy clams and well-cooked pasta, but there must have been a pound of pasta in the bowl. I have an extremely healthy appetite (perhaps too healthy) for pasta, but this defeated even me. I ate my clams with as much pasta as I could manage and barely made a dent.

The Old Mill Inn is at 5775 West Mill Rd., Mattituck, 631-298-8080.