Chicken-salad sandwiches, buttermilk pie, boutique shopping - it's a potent combination for Westhampton and already a hot spot just two weeks after launching. The Shops at 5807 feature a range of specialty vendors selling fashions, furniture, gifts, art and accessories at 5807 Patterson Ave.

Bev Gibbens has opened Huckleberries Tearoom within the building, offering two rooms with table service and a menu that changes every other week. Furnishings in the garden room are vintage white-painted cupboards and chairs as well as linen tablecloths; in the patio room, retro pink-metal tables and a picket fence lend a casual air.

Manager Teri Soignoli says she's surprised by "the mad lunch rushes. Everybody knows our chicken salad and they love our desserts, and we're busy already." Savannah cake, devil's food with cream-cheese icing, pies and carrot cake are on the changing lineup, which also features sandwiches and sides.

Gibbens operated another tearoom on Lakeside Avenue as part of Huckleberries, her home-accessories business, but she's in the process of closing that location because rents grew out of reach.

The Patterson Avenue tearooms are available for private parties - "and can you believe we've already booked nine parties for the holidays?" Gibbens asks, still reeling from the fast changes in her business plan. Luncheon is served 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday through Saturday. 261-3733.

Source: Style Weekly