Oh, The Places They'll Go

New England’s tastemakers don’t need to jet to Rome or Bora Bora to get away; there’s cool enough right in their own backyard. Five local personalities dish on their favorite spots.

By Blythe Copeland

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Ben Hasty, chef

Dunaway Restaurant at Strawbery Banke, 66 Marcy St., Portsmouth, NH, 603-373-6112, dunawayrestaurant.com.

Running the perpetually packed Dunaway doesn’t allow this Iron Chef alum much down time. Even on rare nights off, when he hits the Press Room or Ristorante Massimo, the 23-year-old has to press palms with the many foodies in town. When it’s time for a holiday, however, he grabs his backpack and skateboard and spends the day roving New England.

Do you get to travel much? I try to take a day trip at least once a week.

A little breather from your legions of fans. Where do you go? Mom and Dad’s farm in South Berwick. We raise beef, veal, pork, and chickens, and have a large vegetable garden to support the restaurant. There’s no cable and little cell-phone reception. It’s a total escape.

What about when you need to escape your family? Portland is beautiful. My girlfriend and I can at least have a conversation without everyone we know interrupting. I love the sushi at Fuji. Freeport also has a lot going on. We go to Wolfe’s Neck Park and walk along Casco Bay.

Christian Schlebach, owner of Re-Sails, 400 Thames St., Newport, RI, 401-849-8622, resails.com.

Last summer, Schlebach, a former Olympic sailor, kite surfed from Newport to Nantucket—50 miles over open water. The South Africa native runs his recycled sail clothing and bag business, Re-Sails, year-round—customers include James Taylor and Laird Hamilton—but he’s always looking forward to his next trip.

Are you one of those adrenaline junkies who’s always chasing the next wave? I usually go to a place for the conditions, like a good wind. My friends and I take our dinghies to a spot on Rhode Island Sound near the tip of Little Compton for kite surfing.