There is a serene beauty to the Hamptons in the shoulder seasons, before the crowds arrive and the summer sunshine reflects blue skies onto whitewashed siding. In the grayer days of spring, the bright green of new growth seems to glow against cloudy skies. It’s much easier, in that light, to remember that while Hamptons is one of America’s most iconic summer playgrounds, it is also one of the country’s great agricultural regions.

A thunderstorm arrived just in time for the first course, giving us dinner and a show with a pretty epic finale — a neon pink sunset that stopped us in our tracks just before dessert.

Picture this: winding garden paths lead past bright buds of tropical flowers as seashells crunch beneath your feet. The scent of ripe citrus floats through the air, the lush canopy dampening any sounds from outside, except for maybe some quiet chittering of birdsong. Smoke tangles through the branches of a nearby banyan tree, carrying the sweet scent of charred pineapple…

We arrived at the stunning Alila Ventana Big Sur resort with plans for a dinner in the redwood grove just down the hill, a first for the property and a magical setting for Supper. But, Big Sur is a place where you listen to the land, and the land (and sky) had other ideas. The day of the Supper emerged grey and rainy, with temperatures in the 30s — not at all ideal conditions.