while i don't think there are any quaint coastal new england towns that i actually dislike, mystic, connecticut is definitely one of my favorites.
i've been several times, and so had my internet friend danielle. so when we decided after almost a year of texting, a couple facetimes, and a phone call to "meet in the middle" IRL for the first time (she's in NJ) we figured we'd make an overnight trip of it and opted for mystical mystic. it ended up being the perfect choice and the weather gods blessed us, which was a bonus!
we met up around 10:30am and neither of us had eaten breakfast, so we got in the looooong line at sift bake shop because we'd heard good things. i got a massive strawberry-rhubarb croissant, danielle opted for a plain one, and we both got iced coffees, obv. i soon understood why the line was so long; the service matched the laid-back seaside lifestyle here. let's pick up the pace, people! BUT we forgot all about that when we retreated with our treats to the very euro feeling patio that was just lovely.
carbed up and caffeinated, we decided to wander a bit around the downtown and came upon this little sailor knot shop called mystic knotwork. it mainly had bracelets, but also napkin rings and other accessories. i love me a good sailor knot bracelet, and when i saw they had tie-dyed ones, it was game over.
lunch was on the patio of s&p oyster, which is not only one of my favorite restaurants in mystic, but one of my favorite restaurants, period. not only are the food and drinks are consistently wonderful, but the service is fantastic, too. we told our waiter our backstory and he's like "stop, i love that so much!" and kindly took a picture of us, hahaha. i got the crunchy buttermilk fluke —basically a fancier fish and chips — that i forgot to take a picture of, but it hit the spot!
prior to the trip, danielle and i floated the idea of getting our fortune told at a spot downtown called astrology boutique, but the prices we saw online were a little too rich for our blood. but as luck would have it, we walked by the place and they had a sign out in front advertising a $25 special. perfect! i read tarot and the cards she pulled for me didn't quite resonate (the moon, 8 of wands, 5 of wands), but she did give me some validating insights on another matter. worth iiit.
we checked into our hotel — the inn at mystic — which had certainly seen better days, but it was perfectly nice enough for an overnight stay. we had a cute little balcony that overlooked the water, where we sat and drank wine and listened to music and chatted for a bit before hitting up the happy hour at the hotel restaurant, rocks 21. if i'm being honest, we specifically had planned much of this trip around eating a crab cake, so when we saw they had an $8 happy hour special, we were all in. it was great, which made up for the margarita that was nothing to write home about. and the waitress asked if we were sisters, which was just highly amusing for many reasons.
we grabbed dinner at the mariner, where i got scallops, which were good but nothing earth-shattering. i remember having fond memories of a meal here like 12 years ago on a family trip but we ended up eating outside so it kinda took a little bit of the cozy nostalgia away, but it was too nice not to!
last time i was in mystic, my friend brianna were staying there during a trip to visit long island wine country. on our last night, we discovered this amazing outdoor bar — treehouse at oyster club — that, much as its name suggests, feels like a really cool treehouse, complete with twinkly lights and lush leaves. it's seriously one of my favorite places. and as a bonus, the drinks are actually so good!
we each got a painkiller and it was definitely, by far, the best painkiller i've ever had. it even looked incredible:
of course, no trip to mystic would be complete without a visit to the iconic mystic pizza, which 1) is insanely, surprisingly delicious and 2) is as kitschy and cute as ever. pro tip: you can eat in their dining room, but they also have a small bar/counter area where you can order by the slice. we grabbed a couple pieces of plain cheese and parked ourselves outside on a little bench area nearby to devour them.
after chatting with a silver fox dad on the street about his 1960s mustang (necessary), we walked back to our hotel at like 10pm because we're old and, uh, *relaxed* on our fortuitously secluded balcony (bucket list item "smoke a joint at a quaint yet wildly overpriced new england inn" simultaneously created and checked off). then, we sprawled out and giggled at our favorite niche youtube videos and i ate the rest of my strawberry rhubarb croissant and life was good.
the next morning, we enjoyed some of those canned la colombe oat milk lattes on our balcony and then wandered down to this bakery i found via last-minute google maps search called nana's bakery & pizza. between the aesthetic and the waterfront picnic tables and the food & drink (granola with rhubarb jam and oat milk + a vietnamese nitro cold brew for me and a coconut chia pudding + coffee milk for danielle) and the portrait of anthony bourdain above the counter, it was my vibe completely.
before hitting the road, we explored a little more of the property at the inn and walked up to the haley mansion, where they host weddings. there was an overlook with adirondack chairs that were just begging to be sat in, so we did just that as we surveyed the view — and the substances left over from friday evening's reception: an abandoned glass of whiskey, a cigar, random shards of glass, and a whole lotta cigarette butts.
all in all, a delightful day trip!
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