What was once an Italian restaurant, and then a restaurant called the Gastro Pub, is now called simply Jobs Lane Ristorante, and it’s back to being Italian.
The decor is the same. What’s cool about the location is that large sliding doors open out to the street, allowing diners to eat in an open-air environment inside and also enjoy the lovely scene of Southampton outside.
On a whim, we randomly went for lunch there thinking it was still the Gastro Pub and were looking to get a burger and fries. When we got the menu at our table I was shocked. “Isn’t this place the gastro pub?”
“No we are back to being Italian. It’s the same owners though,” the waiter told me.
I looked at the menu and got slightly annoyed. Nearly everything was over $40 including the apps. I was looking to have a sensibly priced lunch and immediately was turned off and mentioned to the waitress if this was indeed the lunch menu.
“Yes it is, but our plates are large and highly shareable. You can split a dish if you’d like.”
She talked me into staying, and I’m glad that we did. My wife and I shared the prosciutto, arugula and pecorino pizza which was literally one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had in my life. The ingredients were so beautiful and so fresh, and the pizza was more than enough for my wife and me to share.
We were having lunch with another couple who opted for the Inverno salad, which came out on a very large plate – mesclun greens, diced apple, pear, craisins, pignoli, guanciale and gorgonzola. The salad, priced at $30, suddenly seemed like a great option for me. And they also got the speck brie sandwich, which was smoked prosciutto and brie with baby arugula on an absolutely beautiful rosemary focaccia bread.
“Wait a second! You guys ordered a sandwich? That thing is huge! I didn’t see that on the menu.”
“It’s under Panino. It was just $32.”
I suddenly feel in love with this place. Nothing beats sensational Italian food. But to get that kind of fantastically made sandwich, easily enough for two people, for $32, in a setting that is as luxurious as this particular restaurant, made me feel like this wasn’t just a place for people that were from out of town. This place is for everybody out here.
The food was just so good. Stupid good. Some of the best Italian food you can get out here, made by a chef/owner, who CLEARLY cares about what he puts on a plate.
I strongly recommend you add Jobs Lane Ristorante to your list of go-to spots in the Hamptons. You won’t regret it.
