It's Cape Cod in the summer time.  Every place is open, and every taste in food is available, from family-friendly to high end cuisine, fast food to ethnic to seafood and steaks, and everything in between.  It's been pretty hot and humid lately, and I've heard so many people note that they prefer a casual, laid back spot for a cold drink and an easy meal in this weather, so I thought I'd spend a few days on the outer Cape making random stops for a bite to eat and some quick notes to share with you.  These aren't so much reviews as they are observations, and I made a point to seek out family-friendly spots.  A friend of mine recently suggested I write a column on good spots for grandparents to bring their wards, places where children were welcomed and Grandpa's budget wouldn't take a beating.  
    I started in Wellfleet because the traffic was just too much to make it any further north into Provincetown.  In a future column I will get there . . . it just didn't work out during the past week.  Moby Dick's, on Route 6, is a busy spot.  Casual in the extreme, and very well organized and managed by the experienced and business-smart Barry family, this is a fun spot with a United Nations floor staff (from all over Europe, as well as locals).  Lobster rolls with generous portions of fresh lobster meat; fried scallop rolls; crabcake sandwiches; individual clam bakes with lobster, steamers, corn on the cob; and plenty for the kids to eat, too.  It's clean, relaxed, and just what you would expect in a summer on Cape Cod joint, and reasonably priced for the quality of the food.  I enjoyed very much a cup of seafood gumbo and a crabcake sandwich, washed down with a root beer.  So far, off to a good start.
    On the harbor in Wellfleet, you'll find one of my favorite outer Cape places, Mac's Seafood.  Originally just a little shack on the beach, it's grown leaps and bounds, and now includes a fish market, and an ice cream window.  It's self-serve at the window, and the picnic tables are on the sand, and bathing suit is the appropriate fashion.  Fried seafoods, of course, abound on the menu.  Sushi, both maki and nagiri, is a big seller, too, though.  Many of the offerings are somewhat unique to Mac's, and have originated from the snacks the staff would prepare for themselves to get through the day.  From my experience in professional kitchens, a lot of terrific food ideas come about in the very same way.  A  spicy tuna roll (maki sushi) was a terrific starter, and I followed that with a grilled scallop burrito that was about the best seafood "thing" of any kind I've had so far this season.  If you go to Mac's, and you should, make sure you try this one.  Obviously, on the beach with tables in the sand is just the place to take the kids and grand kids, so keep Mac's on your list.  Finish your meal off with some ice cream and you will come to learn what eating on Cape Cod in the summer time is supposed to be.
    Onward, then, toward the lower Cape, and I find myself in Orleans.  I'm driving down Route 28, also known as South Orleans Road, that will take you into Chatham, but I'm hungry again and can't wait that long.  I look to my right and see a sign atop The Yardarm that announces the Local Home of the Boston Red Sox.  I happen to have my Red Sox cap on, a recent purchase on Yawkey Way while attending a ballgame with my daughter, and so it's a natural for a stop.  I have to be honest with you, though, and tell you that I eat at The Yardarm all the time.  John and Jane Sully, the owners, are friends, and terrific people, and they run a good show there.  The Yardarm, also, is casual in the extreme, and because it's summer on Cape Cod, it is rockin' every night there.  On this occasion, I am having a struggle choosing between the fish 'n chips and the cheeseburger.  The portions are overly generous and one leaves The Yardarm hungry only by choice.  I could go with the fish, fried scrod perfectly steamed inside the batter coating, that comes with cole slaw and french fries; or the half-pound cheeseburger, the best on the outer Cape, with fries, or maybe they would substitute the wonderful onion strings for the fries.  Either way, I can't lose.  I go with the fish 'n chips, but start off with a cup of the very good, very thick seafood chowder.  I'm sated, well satisfied, and well served by an always friendly floor staff.  The Yardarm is also kid and grand kid friendly, and both for the quality and quantity of the food, it's as good a bargain as you will find on the lower Cape.
    I can't eat any more at the moment, so we'll end here for now.  My hunt for kid and grand kid friendly spots, casual and relaxed dining venues that epitomize summer on Cape Cod dining, will continue, so please return for the next leg of the trip as I work my way around the elbow of Chatham and head west.  I've no formal ratings this time around, but I nonetheless recommend these three spots heartily to you.  Take pictures while you're at each one, too, for that dead of winter night when you want to remember all the good times you had during your summer on Cape Cod.