At the start of the pandemic, Jess Dato of East Meadow, adopted her dog Hazel. Now Dato can’t imagine her life without her furry companion. Newsday Steve Langford has more.


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Adopting a pandemic puppy, 1 year later

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Get a sneak peek inside the 2026 Fun Book with guides to apple picking, hidden shops, fall hikes, winter holiday activities and so much more.

Fall Fun Book guides

Discover a variety of apples ripe for picking across Long Island's charming orchards.

Where to go apple picking

Explore our interactive guide to weekend fun, including family-friendly events, concerts, festivals and more.

Things to do this weekend

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More than 115 eateries are participating in this season's promotion.

Long Island Restaurant Week deals start at $25

Neighborhood slice shop closing after 8 years

The coffee and bakery shop will open in time for the holidays.

Popular village sweet shop will open new LI cafe

Like its older sibling, beer, wine, cocktail and happy hour deals abound.

LI sports bar opens 'more elevated' 2nd location

The eatery and its adjacent business have been purchased by new owners.

LI village restaurant closes after 40 years; will reopen as Italian seafood eatery

The name has not yet been completely crystalized but for now we're going to call these rib-eye tacos, or "slap" tacos, although residents of Mexico City apparently refer to them as "boujee tacos."

What's a 'slap' taco? 3 LI spots to try NYC's trend

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The first spot has been a regular on Newsday's Best Pizza list since its opening in 2023.

Top pizzeria opening 2nd LI location next week

Making udon with her grandmother shaped the owner's understanding of food.

Tiny ramen noodle factory adds takeout udon

The bivalves were everywhere in evidence, but there was also a wide array of other seafood: lobster nachos, jumbo fried shrimp, fried clams, calamari, crawfish, among others. The event continues Sunday.

A massive turnout for Oyster Fest despite Saturday's chill

Take a scenic drive to Greenport for dining pleasures, whether you're in the mood for a plateful of local oysters, a bowl of restorative ramen — or something in between.

Go on a small-town LI food crawl

There's four restaurants know the ways of eggplant and tofu, but they also have great food in general, meatless or not.

LI eateries with standout vegetarian dishes

Ditch is planning to open its third Long Island restaurant, replacing Kings Park community staple Relish.

Ditch to replace Relish in Kings Park

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Liberty Water has applied to raise rates in three of the areas it serves on Long Island. NewsdayTV's Andrew Ehinger reports.

Liberty seeks water rate hikes of $21-$28 a month for some Nassau customers

Make the jump to light speed on this week's LI Works. NewsdayTV's Ken Buffa meets with a member of The 501st Legion, Empire City Garrison.

LI Works: Explore the dark side of the Force with Ken

The report identified over half a million hateful posts on X between January 2025 and June 2026, with monthly growth of 75%. NewsdayTV's Andrew Ehinger reports.

Anti-South Asian rhetoric surging on some social media platforms, report says

NewsdayTV's Doug Geed goes inside Critterville Farm Sanctuary to meet the rescued animals finding a second chance and the local passion that keeps it all going.

Out East: Critterville in Riverhead

NewsdayTV's Macy Egeland talks to Andrea McCade, founder of The Social Mom Club LI, about how new moms can connect with others.

Working Moms: Making mom friends

NewsdayTV's Ken Buffa visits Co-Owner, Dough & Co. Pizza to try the Apple Bay Pizza, which is exclusive to their Oyster Bay location.

Trendy Bites: An apple pie ... pizza?

Video of two Suffolk police officers joining a group of teens playing soccer goes viral. NewsdayTV's Shari Einhorn has more.

Chance encounter turns into viral video

High school athletes striving to play sports in college might want to look at niche sports that give them a better chance. NewsdayTV's Jared Valluzzi reports.

Niche sports might get you a leg up to play at college level

NewsdayTV's Carissa Kellman explores the historic and festive charm of Sleepy Hollow during a fall day trip.

A hauntingly good time in Sleepy Hollow

NewsdayTV's Andi Berlin tried some new martini combinations at Beacon in Long Beach.

Design your own martini at this Long Beach speakeasy

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NewsdayTV's Elisa DiStefano has your look at what to know ahead of the 2026 Oyster Festival.

What to expect at this year's Oyster Fest

From a Halloween party at the LI Aquarium to Paul Reiser comedy show, check out all the fun things to do and explore this weekend.

What's up on LI this weekend

Katherine Schiro talks about self love, body positivity and motherhood.

Best of both worlds? This Nashville singer/songwriter went viral for her song about Long Island

Med school or content creator? How this Long Islander's career change led to a six figure business

How this Long Islander's career change led to a six figure business

Tasty and trendy: How this Commack native turned food content into a thriving business

How this Commack native turned food content into a thriving business

At 4 years old, they met at a pool in Orlando, Florida, quickly realizing they were from the same town, going to the same nursery school.

Joe Hegyes and Andrew Muscarella talk about growing up on Long Island, pop culture and, more.

The road to motherhood for Angelina Cammareri was a challenging one, but hasn't stopped her from instilling confidence in her kids and others.

Pregnancy loss lead this LI mom to co-owning a business built around teaching confidence

Season 3, Episode 2 with Michael Calobrisi and Ana Richardson

Meet the creator couple preserving Long Island's hidden history and local things to do

The 22-year-old content creator from Westbury claims these spots are supposedly the BEST on Long Island.

These spots on Long Island are SUPPOSEDLY the BEST

'It's like a bloody mary mixed with a martini'

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