18th-Century Hotel with Original Farmhouse and Award-Winning Restaurants

In 1751, a wealthy resident of Stony Brook, Long Island, built a white clapboard farmhouse across from the town harbor. The house would go on to assume various identities, serving alternately as a women's social center and a tearoom. Two centuries after its construction, a local philanthropist, Ward Melville, turned the homestead into a sophisticated country hotel. The 18th-century heritage of Three Village Inn is still fully evident in its exposed beams and antiques, and in 2009, the hotel was augmented with two award-winning restaurants.

Situated in the oldest part of the inn is the four-star Restaurant Mirabelle, which infuses French-bistro classics with New American flair. A James Beard finalist in 2010, chef Guy Reuge executes artful presentations of foie gras du jour and his signature duck Mirabelle—a pairing of seared duck breast and duck-leg confit. Next door, Mirabelle Tavern serves upscale bar fare alongside pints of locally brewed Blue Point Ale, and it also is the setting for guests' complimentary country breakfast.

Three cottages were added to the estate in the early 1900s; one of these was the Townsend Cottage, which hosts signature suite 22. Here, guests can sidle up by a gas-burning fireplace to melt ice packs and use them as throw pillows. An exposed-beam ceiling and a four-post bed lend to the colonial feel of the signature suite, located in the original farmhouse. In Woodhull Cottage suite 12, large windows offer views of the sailboat-dotted harbor, and natural light pours in over a whitewashed guest room.

Stony Brook, Long Island: Quaint Seaside Village with Historical Shopping Center

Quaint boutiques and white clapboard municipal buildings line the streets of Stony Brook, which resides about 50 miles east of Manhattan on the leafy north shore of Long Island. Though the town has a rich colonial past, it went underwent a transformation in 1939 led by Ward Melville, the proprietor of Three Village Inn. This renaissance produced Stony Brook University, one of the top research universities in the country.

The town transformation also helped produce the nation's first planned shopping center, known as Harbor Crescent. Located just across from the inn, the colonial-style shopping promenade is grouped around a Federalist-style post office adorned with a mechanical eagle that has flapped its wings every hour on the hour since 1941.

The Ward Melville Heritage Organization oversees the Stony Brook Grist Mill, which was built in 1751 and gives a glimpse into the town's history. In addition, the organization helps put on wetland pontoon cruises and can help visitors replace their car tires with wheels from covered wagons.