Abigayle's opens at Preston House in Riverhead

Patricia and James Mangiacapre are betting on their understanding of the Riverhead dining scene to make their two-week-old restaurant, Abigayle’s, a success. 

"You have to listen to what local people want; you have to provide real hospitality," Patricia said. "It’s not ‘the trick’ to success; it’s the reality of the situation."

The couple has taken on a location that looks eminently promising, but has proved a challenge to its predecessors. The restaurant, across from the Long Island Aquarium and adjacent to the Preston Hotel, opened in 2018. (All three properties are owned by the Petrocelli family.) Ambitious and expensive, Preston House employed four well-credentialed chefs during its four-year tenure; none stayed more than two years.

Next up was Myles on Main, which opened in June 2024. More casual and affordable, it lacked a local touch: It was operated by American Resort Management, a national hospitality company specializing in resorts and water parks. And it closed last fall.

The Mangiacapres, by contrast, own The Watershed, an inn-restaurant-bar that opened in 2020 in Jamesport.

"When we opened in Jamesport," Patricia said, "we thought we’d be doing a lot of breakfast. But we allowed the surrounding area to speak to us and it said, ‘We want a place to eat dinner and sit at the bar.’ "

In Riverhead, James said, the goal is "to be approachable but interesting." The New American menu, from chef José Tocay (formerly of Friar’s Head golf club in Baiting Hollow and The Trattoria in St. James), certainly bears that out. At dinner, starters ($14 to $24) include roasted cauliflower with capers, pine nuts and tahini; bone marrow with Espelette pepper, mesclun and radish; fried Peconic Gold oysters with succotash. Mains ($34 to $62) include pan-seared duck with glazed carrots and celery-root puree; seafood paella, grilled sausage "wheel" with confit tomatoes and long-hot peppers; filet mignon with roasted garlic butter, broccolini and potato puree. Among the four pastas ($24 to $32) are bucatini all’Amatriciana and baked rigatoni with lemon ricotta and fresh mozzarella.

At lunch, dinner mains get swapped out for handhelds ($16 to $32) such as the fish sandwich with green apple and rémoulade; grilled cheese with bacon and tomato jam on brioche; smash cheeseburger with sriracha aioli on an English muffin.

Abigayle’s takes up residence in the gracious 19th century home that is connected, invisibly at the back, to the modern hotel. The Mangiacapres engaged Jamesport architect designer-vintage-boutique Lumber + Salt to double down on the approachable-but-interesting theme. The main floor is divided into a dining room and bar; there are also tables on the shaded porch and on the lawn in front of the building.

It’s fitting that there is dog-friendly seating at a restaurant named for a dog: Abigayle is the Mangiacapre’s Yorkshire terrier. "She’s always with us," Patricia said. "And you can see a drawing of her on the cocktail menu."

Abigayle’s, 428 E. Main St., Riverhead, 631-775-1550, Instagram: @abigaylesattheprestonhouse. Open Thursday noon to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday noon to 10 p.m., Sunday and Monday noon to 9 p.m.