Live Music, Cold Beer, Burgers, Sandwiches, Apps and a Prime Location in Downtown Sayville…Is Five Points Cafe Worth the Trip?
Long Island is infamous for its indecipherable strip malls, leaving many restaurants feeling interchangeable and forgettable. Five Points Cafe is nestled in the heart of charming Sayville, offering a refreshing alternative. Forget the generic facades and bland suburban feel, here, you’ll find simple American food served in a vibrant, upbeat and picturesque downtown setting.
Why Five Points Cafe?
As long-time residents of Long Island’s South Shore in Suffolk County, we’ve patronized Five Points Cafe many times before writing our first restaurant review as a “Foodie.” Nestled on the corner of Five Points in downtown Sayville for over a decade (since around 2011), it’s always been a reliable choice for a burger, sandwich, or a beer in a pleasant setting, especially during the outdoor dining season. Live music was an added perk.
It had been awhile since we last visited this local business, and seeing they now accepted our new Foodie card, we decided to stop by for an early Friday evening dinner.
Five Points Cafe-Background
A mainstay in downtown Sayville Long Island since 2011, Five Points Cafe offers a welcoming, local vibe. They serve reasonably priced casual fare, perfect for locals and travelers catching the ferry to or from Fire Island. Their website emphasizes the use of fresh meat for their “best burger” and local produce whenever possible.
Prices are fair and portions are typical for similar restaurants. The atmosphere is upbeat and casual, with music that leans towards an elevator music for boomers and older millennials genre. Live music itself tends to be acoustic featuring familiar tunes to all. Stepping inside, you’ll notice a small bar nestled between rustic brick walls. The tables, light fixtures, and bar are crafted from dark, classic wood, creating a warm and inviting space reminiscent of an old Irish pub.
Despite its cozy size, the restaurant feels spacious thanks to the large glass doors and windows. Boasting a sprawling patio, Five Points Cafe offers outdoor seating that surpasses most patio seating options on Long Island, especially for a small local restaurant. The patio is surrounded by charming brickwork and landscaping, creating an inviting atmosphere. A portion of the patio is enclosed for comfortable off-season dining.
Prepare to be impressed by the extensive menu! You’ll find all the classic appetizers you crave, alongside nine enticing salad options. Burger lovers will be satisfied with thirteen delicious choices, including a monthly special and a “build-your-own” option. Craving something different? Dive into their selection of twelve sandwiches and seven wraps. For a small local restaurant, the variety of options is quite extensive.
Reservations? Seating is a bit limited when it is too cold to use the entire patio. The vibe is fun, definitely not romantic. A small variety of draft beer is available, featuring both national and local brews as well as bottled. Non alcoholic options include soda and milk shakes. They have a Happy Hour from 4-7 pm Monday – Friday, except Thursday 4-9 pm. Hours are Sunday-Thursday 11:30-9 pm and Friday/Saturday 11:30-10pm. The restaurant is located in downtown Sayville at 1 Main Street, Sayville.
Restaurant Review: Five Points Cafe
Nestled on Long Island’s south shore, you’ll find this restaurant in the heart of Sayville. It’s located at the Five Points intersection, where Main Street, Railroad (Lakeland) Avenue, Gillette Avenue, and Middle Road all meet. Don’t worry about parking, there’s a convenient lot behind the restaurant.
Step inside and you’ll be greeted by a warm, rustic atmosphere, reminiscent of a classic tavern or old Irish pub. If you prefer outdoor dining, soak up the fresh air on the charming brick patio overlooking Main Street. The staff here are friendly and happy to help you with anything you need.
The Food
We first visited this restaurant on a Friday during Lent, so we opted for their non-meat options. While this might not showcase their specialty burgers, we planned to return for a full experience before writing this review.
We started with the grilled shrimp salad. The shrimp were a good size, marinated for extra flavor, and grilled to perfection. They were served on a bed of mixed greens with tomatoes, cucumbers, roasted red peppers, and goat cheese. The balsamic dressing came on the side, which is a nice touch – you can dress the salad to your liking! This was a great option for a healthier start to our dinner.
For our main course, we went for the crabby patty and the ahi tuna tacos. The tacos featured three nicely sized tortillas full of rare ahi tuna coated in sesame seeds. Topped with fresh shredded cabbage (not a creamy slaw), a sweet mango salsa, and cucumber wasabi dressing with a subtle kick, they are a definite crowd-pleaser.
However, as self-proclaimed “loud food” lovers, we crave a bit more zip. A touch more wasabi heat or a bolder mango salsa would have been perfect. Perhaps additional red onion, jalapeño, cilantro, or a squeeze of lime would up the flavor to our expectations.
Our second entrée was the crabby patty. Crafting crab cakes that hit the mark can be a challenging feat for most restaurants. A truly delectable crab cake is generously packed with fresh lump crab meat and boasts a commendable thickness. This crabby patty, with its burger-like shape, brings a creative twist to the traditional crab cake form. While it might be considered unconventional, we feel that there are plenty of other enticing options on the menu to explore.
This place is all about the burgers and fun setting! For our second visit we had the Classic Cheeseburger and the Avocado Caprese Chicken sandwich. We have had burgers from Five Points for many years. The burgers are thick and generous, probably around a third of a pound. While the buns tend to be a bit breadier than we prefer, there is plenty of meat inside. Both the burgers and sandwiches came with traditional fries, but you have the option to modify to waffle or sweet potato fries, or swap for a soup or salad. The price point for each is wallet friendly, and with live music, quite a bargain.
The cheeseburger arrived cooked as requested. It came with a side of fries, cole slaw, lettuce, tomato and pickle. The burger was served on a large bun (brioche?) and topped with a slice of American cheese. A slice of a more flavorful cheddar in place of the “plain Jane” American cheese would be a welcome improvement. Overall, the cheese burger was typical of what you would expect from a local pub.
The Avocado Chicken Caprese sandwich arrived on a hefty ciabatta bun. Inside, a grilled chicken breast was topped with fresh mozzerella, sliced tomato and avocado then finished with a balsamic glaze. The generously sized chicken breast filled most of the bun, was juicy and had a terrific grilled taste but was mildly seasoned. An Italian marinade would have added a nice pop of flavor. The avocado was well ripened and while we noted the balsamic glaze within the sandwich, it wasn’t as prominent as expected.h
Overall, the dishes we sampled were all acceptable, and went well with the tap beer and live acoustic music consisting of classic Beatles and similar genre music we all enjoy. Result, we both had a truly enjoyable experience.
Five Points Cafe Restaurant Review
Five Points Cafe Overall Score: 2.8
Casual, Local Bar/Restaurant category:
- Cost (May 2024): Appetizers $8-$15, salads $15-$18, burgers $16-$18, sandwiches and wraps $10-$19 and classic entrees $15-$18
- Sample dishes: Grilled shrimp salad, ahi tuna tacos, crabby patty, burger classic cheeseburger and Avocado chicken caprese sandwich
- Pro’s: The location. Prices are reasonable, nothing over $20 menu is rare these days. Guinness on tap.
- Con’s: Extensive menu for a place this size. Don’t venture too far outside their specialty.
- Bonus tips: Take advantage of the outdoor seating when weather is good! Call to confirm when live music is available.
If you find yourself on the south shore of central Suffolk county on Long Island and in the mood for a burger, you can do a lot worse than visiting Five Points Cafe. The burgers are decent, the ambiance is extremely pleasant, especially on the patio during the summer and who can complain about live music. All this for a very reasonable price. This is worth a try if you are on your way to or from the Fire Island ferry and looking for a fun downtown atmosphere with live music and decent food.
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