Oasis

In soft tones of oyster and white, Oasis seems designed for the Hamptonsrush, but also comfortably apart from it. The mood is more easygoing, the staff friendly, the pace unhurried. All of which means, it should become a hot destination.

You may start with an aromatic, subtle, inviting chowder of roasted shrimp, corn, clams and cilantro. Richer, and almost like a soup, is the smoked lobster with "truffle leek" and potatoes in a tarragon-accented cream. Very lush, delicately smoky.

Chiles and marinated onions jump-start the shrimp ceviche cocktail. Curried vegetable relish is the foil for fried oysters.

The "East End bouillabaisseas" does sport a quartet of toasts, slathered with mild rouille, the rust-colored sauce that spurs the real thing. Ample cuts of finfish and shellfish, some overcooked, populate the dish.

Better is the baked halibut, paired with crab and chive mashed potatoes, completed with a star anise-Port reduction.

Surf-and-turf receives redefinition, courtesy of a complementary combo of roast monkfish and braised short ribs. The grilled rib-eye steak shows up juicy and good. Cherry-rhubarb chutney is the diverting foil for thick, grilled pork chops.

For dessert: grilled pear with riesling and ginger ice cream; a trio of cremes brulee. You'll linger, for your own pleasure and to brace yourself for what's ahead. An oasis is like that.  --Peter M. Gianotti