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DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20260919T150000
DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20260919T190000
DTSTAMP:20260913T011836Z
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UID:10007553-1789830000-1789844400@thectbeacon.com
SUMMARY:First Wilcox Lobster Boil Brings a New England Feast to Historic Charlestown Tavern
DESCRIPTION:First Wilcox Lobster Boil brings Maine lobster and steamers\, locally harvested oysters and clams\, live music and all the traditional fixings to Caf Bar at the Wilcox on Saturday\, September 19\, as the historic Charlestown tavern starts what organizers hope will become a new end-of-summer tradition. \nThe boil runs from 3 to 7 p.m. on the Wilcox patio\, weather permitting. Tickets are $85 and include the seafood feast plus a complimentary glass of wine or Narragansett beer. \nAnd this is a serious seafood spread. \nCaf Bar’s menu calls for Maine lobster and steamers\, oysters from nearby Quonochontaug and Ninigret ponds\, clams\, corn on the cob\, red potatoes\, sausage and the other fixings associated with a traditional New England lobster boil. \nThere will also be live music and a sweet treat to finish the afternoon. \nLobster From Maine\, Oysters From Right Down the Road\nThe menu gives the meal a nice combination of northern New England and very local South County seafood. \nThe lobsters and steamers are coming from Maine\, while the oysters are being sourced from Quonnie and Ninigret ponds. \nThose two salt ponds are part of what makes the southern Rhode Island coast particularly well suited to shellfish aquaculture. \n“Quonnie” is the local shorthand for Quonochontaug Pond\, the coastal lagoon stretching behind the barrier beach between Charlestown and Westerly. Ninigret Pond lies immediately to its east. \nBoth are protected from the open Atlantic by barrier beaches while remaining connected to Block Island Sound through breachways. That exchange of salt water creates the kind of environment in which oysters can thrive. \nAnd Caf Bar has an especially close connection to the local product. \nQuonnie Oyster Is Part of the Wilcox\nThe Wilcox isn’t occupied by Caf Bar alone. \nThe historic property now brings several businesses together under one roof\, including Caf Bar\, Bend Yoga Studio\, The Venue at the Wilcox and Quonnie Oyster. \nThat makes the local oysters more than a generic Rhode Island flourish added to the menu. \nShellfish is part of what the property does. \nIt’s difficult to get much more South County than eating oysters grown in the nearby salt ponds while sitting outside a tavern that has been welcoming people along the Old Post Road for more than two centuries. \nWhat Comes With the $85 Ticket\nThe ticket covers a complete lobster-boil meal rather than simply admission to the event. \nThe published menu includes: \n\nMaine lobster and steamers\nNinigret and Quonnie oysters and clams\nCorn on the cob\nRed potatoes\nSausage and traditional boil fixings\nA sweet treat\nOne complimentary glass of wine or Narragansett beer\nLive music\n\nThe event itself lasts four hours\, from 3 to 7 p.m.\, giving it more of a leisurely afternoon gathering than a timed dinner-seating feel. \nTickets are limited\, and Caf Bar’s current ticket page lists September 14 at 6 p.m. as the end of advance ticket sales. \nThe New England Lobster Boil Is More Than Lobster\nThe genius of a traditional lobster boil is that most of dinner can be cooked together. \nLobsters and shellfish provide the centerpiece\, but corn\, potatoes and sausage turn it into a complete meal. Depending on the particular New England tradition\, onions and other vegetables can join the pot as well. \nThe ingredients don’t all require the same cooking time\, so they’re typically added in stages. \nWhat eventually emerges is less a carefully plated restaurant entrée than a pile of summer. \nLobster. \nClams. \nCorn. \nPotatoes. \nButter. \nNapkins. \nLots of napkins. \nThe meal is inherently communal\, messy and informal\, which is probably why the lobster boil has survived as a New England summer ritual. \nThe Tradition Goes Back Much Further Than the Modern Lobster Dinner\nLong before lobster became an expensive delicacy\, Indigenous people along the New England coast were harvesting and cooking shellfish. \nThe Narragansett and other Indigenous peoples of the region cooked seafood using heated stones and seaweed\, traditions that helped shape later New England clambakes. \nLobster itself had a very different reputation in colonial New England. \nIt was extraordinarily abundant. \nSo abundant\, in fact\, that it wasn’t initially regarded as luxury food. Lobster could be eaten by working people\, used as fertilizer and fed to animals. \nIts status changed dramatically as transportation and preservation improved during the 19th century. Lobster could reach diners farther inland\, demand increased\, and what had once been commonplace became desirable. \nToday\, a whole lobster is practically shorthand for a New England summer celebration. \nThe Wilcox Has Been Feeding Travelers for a Very Long Time\nThe setting has considerably more history than the event. \nThe building at 5153 Old Post Road is historically known as both the Joseph Stanton House and Wilcox Tavern. \nThe house dates to the early 18th century. Charlestown’s historic-property records place its establishment around 1730\, while National Register documentation identifies it as an important surviving example of 18th-century vernacular architecture. \nIt was associated first with the prominent Stanton family. \nJoseph Stanton Jr.\, who was born there\, went on to become a Revolutionary War officer\, delegate to the Confederation Congress and one of Rhode Island’s first United States senators. \nThen came the Wilcoxes. \nEdward Wilcox Saw Opportunity on the Old Post Road\nIn 1811\, Edward Wilcox purchased the Stanton property. \nIts location mattered. \nThe Old Post Road was an important overland route through southern Rhode Island\, carrying travelers between population centers including New York and Boston. \nWilcox recognized the value of serving those travelers and began operating a tavern at the property. \nThat hospitality function became part of the building’s identity for generations. \nThe National Register of Historic Places specifically recognizes the Wilcox Tavern not only for its architecture and connection to the Stanton and Wilcox families\, but also for its long role as a place of public gathering and a landmark to travelers along the Post Road. \nMore than 200 years after Edward Wilcox began welcoming travelers\, people are still gathering there for food and drink. \nOn September 19\, they’re just adding a lot of lobster. \nThe Building Even Played a Role During World War II\nThe Wilcox property’s history didn’t stop with stagecoach-era travelers. \nDuring World War II\, the building was used to house U.S. Navy officers connected with the nearby Charlestown Naval Auxiliary Air Station. \nThe former air station occupied what is now largely Ninigret Park and the Ninigret National Wildlife Refuge. \nThat means the Wilcox has moved through several versions of Charlestown history: colonial home\, roadside tavern\, wartime lodging\, restaurant and now a multi-use community and hospitality property. \nCaf Bar is the newest chapter. \nCaf Bar Has Given the Old Tavern Another Life\nCaf Bar operates two Rhode Island locations\, with its original cafe in Wakefield and the second location at the Wilcox. \nThe Charlestown operation is intentionally different. \nBy day\, it functions as a cafe serving coffee and food. \nBy evening\, the historic building shifts toward a full bar\, cocktails\, small plates\, live music and special events. \nThe property has multiple rooms and fireplaces inside\, while warmer weather brings events onto the patio. \nFriday nights throughout the season already feature live music. \nThe lobster boil expands that programming into a ticketed Saturday event and\, if the “first” in First Wilcox Lobster Boil works as intended\, the beginning of something recurring. \nA Narragansett Beer Makes Sense Here\nGuests can choose a complimentary glass of wine or Narragansett beer with the meal. \nNarragansett Brewing’s Rhode Island history stretches back to 1890\, when the original brewery began in Cranston. \nThe brand eventually became one of New England’s dominant regional beers before declining under later ownership. It was revived as a Rhode Island company in the 2000s and eventually returned brewing operations to its home state. \nPairing Narragansett with lobster\, steamers and Rhode Island oysters isn’t particularly complicated culinary theory. \nIt just makes geographic sense. \nSummer Isn’t Quite Finished Yet\nThe event is being billed as an End of Summer Wilcox Lobster Boil\, and September 19 lands almost perfectly for it. \nThe autumnal equinox is only days away. \nSouth County’s enormous July and August beach crowds have diminished. \nBut the ocean is still relatively warm\, the coastal restaurants and businesses haven’t disappeared for winter\, and a good September afternoon can feel every bit like summer without peak-season traffic. \nThat’s the sweet spot the Wilcox is aiming for. \nOne more outdoor gathering. \nOne more lobster. \nOne more afternoon of live music and cold drinks. \nThen fall can have its turn. \nDetails\nEvent: First Wilcox Lobster Boil\nOfficial Listing: End of Summer Wilcox Lobster Boil\nDate: Saturday\, September 19\, 2026\nTime: 3–7 p.m.\nVenue: Caf Bar at the Wilcox\nAddress: 5153 Old Post Road\, Charlestown\, RI 02813\nLocation: Wilcox patio\, weather permitting\nTickets: $85\nTicket Sales End: Monday\, September 14 at 6 p.m.\, according to the current ticket page\nMenu: Maine lobster and steamers; Quonnie and Ninigret oysters and clams; corn on the cob; red potatoes; sausage; traditional boil fixings; and a sweet treat\nIncluded Beverage: Complimentary glass of wine or Narragansett beer\nEntertainment: Live music\nSetting: Historic Wilcox Tavern/Joseph Stanton House\nTickets: Limited; advance purchase is required through Caf Bar’s event page \nMore information is available at the Event Website link below. \nTo purchase tickets\, click the Event Ticketing link below. \n  \n  \nFeatured image is an artistic representation inspired by the event and may not depict the actual people\, location\, or activities shown.
URL:https://thectbeacon.com/event/first-wilcox-lobster-boil-brings-a-new-england-feast-to-historic-charlestown-tavern/
LOCATION:Caf Bar\, 5153 Old Post Road\, Charlestown\, RI\, 02813\, United States
CATEGORIES:Caf Bar + Venue
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