What’s New on Nantucket This Summer?
Get ready, Nantucket! Summer 2026 is bringing a fresh wave of island energy, with new restaurants, reimagined local staples, and beloved favorites finding new homes. From morning coffee and donuts downtown to refreshed dinner spots and familiar gathering places, there’s plenty to explore this season.
We’re wishing all of these businesses a successful season ahead!
Know of something we missed? We’d love to hear about it. Drop us a note at aleks@fishernantucket.com
Café 22
22 Federal Street
Café 22 has officially opened at 22 Federal Street, bringing new year-round life to the former Corner Table space. Led by longtime island restaurateur Jonas Baker, the café offers fresh donuts, breakfast sandwiches, salads, pastries, snacks, and specialty drinks including matcha, golden milk lattes, and Vietnamese coffee.
Located inside the Nantucket Culinary Center, Café 22 is designed to be more than a grab-and-go stop. The three-story space includes indoor seating, a courtyard patio, and upstairs space for cooking classes, private events, and culinary programming. It’s a welcome addition for locals, visitors, and anyone looking for a relaxed downtown gathering place.
A Sailor’s Valentine by Tuckernuck
23 Centre Street
Tuckernuck opened a new Nantucket store, A Sailor’s Valentine, at 23 Centre Street for the 2026 season. The boutique brings classic, colorful, and vacation-ready style to downtown Nantucket with a curated selection of women’s clothing, accessories, home décor, and seasonal pieces inspired by coastal living and summer entertaining.
The Sailor’s Valentime name and interior décor is a nod to the rare 19th-century keepsakes made by sailors aboard navy and whaling ships. The shallow octagonal wooden boxes open to reveal intricate shell mosaics arranged in geometric and maritime-inspired designs like hearts, anchors, and flowers. Often personalized with names or sentimental messages, they were traditionally given as tokens of love and remembrance to family and friends after long voyages at sea.
Julia Amory
28B Easy Street
Julia Amory has opened a new Nantucket store at 28B Easy Street, bringing the lifestyle brand’s colorful, polished resortwear and home pieces to the island. The brand features apparel, dresses, tops, sets, accessories, table linens, dinner napkins, and other elevated essentials designed with classic silhouettes, bold colors, and playful patterns.
The Nantucket location opened in April 2026 and joins Julia Amory’s other storefronts in Palm Beach, Charleston, and Southampton. For shoppers looking for summer wardrobe pieces, vacation-ready styles, or home accents, the new Easy Street boutique is a fresh addition to downtown Nantucket’s retail scene.
The Fairgrounds
27 Fairgrounds Road
A longtime Nantucket favorite is entering a new chapter. The Fairgrounds, formerly Faregrounds Restaurant and Pudley’s Pub, is now under new ownership, with Ethan and Alexis Devine taking the reins from longtime owners Bill and Kim Puder. The goal is to preserve the restaurant’s community-first spirit while giving the island staple a thoughtful refresh.
The restaurant has been a gathering place for island families, fundraisers, sports banquets, celebrations, and casual meals for decades. The Devines have expressed their intention to continue that legacy, keeping the focus on locals, regulars, community groups, and family-friendly hospitality.
The Downyflake at The Fairgrounds
27 Fairgrounds Road
One of the biggest pieces of Nantucket food news for 2026 is the return of The Downyflake. After closing its Sparks Avenue location in 2024, the beloved island institution is expected to reopen inside The Fairgrounds.
The initial plan is for The Downyflake to offer donuts, coffee, and breakfast sandwiches from a counter, with the possibility of expanding into full breakfast service in The Fairgrounds’ banquet hall. The team is targeting a late June opening, with the eventual concept running breakfast from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m. before The Fairgrounds transitions into lunch and dinner service.
Nantucket Fun
Bounce House Rentals on Nantucket
Nantucket Fun brings colorful, modern bounce house rentals to the island for birthday parties, family gatherings, summer events, and kid-friendly celebrations. The business offers safe, inflatable entertainment options designed to make party planning easier for families hosting events on Nantucket.
From backyard birthdays to seasonal get-togethers, Nantucket Fun adds a playful new option for families looking to keep kids entertained during island celebrations.
The Petite Boutique by Steplane
29 Centre Street
Steplane, home of The Original Nantucket Tartan™, has opened The Petite Boutique at 29 Centre Street. The boutique brings Steplane’s signature Nantucket-inspired style to a downtown storefront, featuring pieces from its market of clothing, fine jewelry, homeware, and custom embroidery and embossing.
Now open for the 2026 season, The Petite Boutique adds another locally rooted shopping stop to Centre Street, offering a curated way to discover Steplane’s distinctive Nantucket Tartan designs and island-inspired gifts.
Bloom Bar
9 South Water Street
Bloom Bar, which began as a weekend pop-up on the patio of The Boarding House in 2025, is moving into its own permanent location at 9 South Water Street. The new space is expected to bring both dinner service and a café-style, fast-casual morning option to downtown Nantucket.
Owner Dylan Cavaliere is a familiar face in the island restaurant scene, with experience at Cru, Dune, Ventuno, Straight Wharf, and The Brotherhood of Thieves. The new Bloom Bar location will take over the former Misogi Noodle Bar space, continuing the evolution of this well-known South Water Street corner.
Dairy Boy
14 Federal Street
Nantucket Flagship Store
Dairy Boy, the American lifestyle brand founded by Paige Lorenze, is opening its Nantucket flagship store for Memorial Day Weekend 2026. The brand is known for modern American essentials, including apparel, accessories, home goods, and everyday pieces inspired by heritage style and relaxed coastal living.
The Nantucket opening also coincides with Dairy Boy’s new Shell & Sail collection, described by the brand as a “love letter to Nantucket” and available on island for the first time. With its mix of classic New England inspiration and easy summer pieces, Dairy Boy adds another fresh retail stop to Nantucket’s 2026 shopping scene.
The Island Blend
149 Orange Street
theislandblendnantucket.smartonlineorder.com
The former Shangri-La Kitchen space on Orange Street is being reimagined as The Island Blend, a new Mediterranean-inspired restaurant from Milan Basnet of Easy Street Restaurant and his partner, Anil Thapa.
The concept will focus on Mediterranean flavors while also keeping pizza and sushi on the menu, creating what Basnet described as a “blend” of flavors. The team has been renovating the interior to create a brighter, airier, more refreshing space.
As always, Nantucket’s small business landscape continues to evolve with the season. We’ll keep updating this list as more openings, pop-ups, relocations, and new island experiences are announced.
Have a tip about a new Nantucket business? Send it our way at aleks@fishernantucket.com
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