Inside Stories
By AJ Carter

Feeding off a good idea for foodies

New York Restaurant Week began Hamptons Restaurant Week, which, after four years has an offspring of its own. And if you’re seeking the thread trying those events to the upcoming Long Island Restaurant Week, look no further than Steve Haweeli.

Restaurants form the bulk of the client base for Haweeli’s East Hampton - based WordHampton Public Relations, including the one bearing name of advertising executive-turned greengrocer turned restaurateur Jerry DellaFemina.

One day a few years ago, DellaFemina, who at the time also owned a Manhattan eatery, called the general manager of his Eats Hampton joint, Walter Struble. "It was January. He was experiencing a nice bump [in business] from New York Restaurant Week.… He said, 'Hey you should tell Steve to do Hamptons Restaurant Week.'"

"We became the de facto organizers," Haweeli said. "It was successful from the start. We treated it seriously and made it our baby from then on."

The week, held in late March or early April, has become a Hamptons institution and now includes tie-ins with local wineries, hotels and shops. Which only made Long Island week inevitable.

Haweeli registered the domain name for lirestaurantweek.com about a year and a half ago and began planning in earnest around the first of this year.

Using Zagat guides as a reference, WordHampton called, e-mailed or faxed requests to more than 200 Island restaurants, and so far more than 60 have lined up for the week, which runs Nov.5 to 12.

They include well-known and tony hostelries such as Mirabelle in St.James; Rein the bar-lounge at The Garden City Hotel, and The Carltun at Eisenhower Park – all of which have agreed to offer a three- course prix fixe dinner for $21.95

Why has he gotten such a good response "One thing about restaurant week is this: It’s going to get people through the doors," Haweeli said. "And any confident restaurateur will say, if only I can get people through the door, I know that our food and our service and our decor is going to win people over."

As for the customers, he said, "Foodies love it. True foodies will go to four or five restaurants in the week, because they can afford it."

And what does WordHampton get out of it especially since the $250 restaurant registration fee is being pumped entirely into advertising? "We’ll pick up a couple clients," Haweeli said. "God willing."

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