Barefoot in the Square — Checking In with Kate Diament
The Strict Inn is back!! BTS & deets on this summer's very special merch & matcha collab with Montauk General Store. & we're Checking In with the founder, Kate, on her Hampton's strict essentials!
Welcome to my new series where we interview creatives & expanders who inspire me and share a little bit about the magic of their favorite places!!!!!! & we’re trying out audio for the first time!
I’m trying to make an intentional effort to surround myself with expanders, collaborate with other creatives that inspire me, and push myself out of my comfort zone, and just DO THINGS. Not think about doing them, dreaming about them for years, but just fucking doing it. Seeing how it goes and learning from it. As I’ve teased a little bit, I’m working on something new in the travel space and I’m so excited for you guys to get your hands on it and try it out. With that, I’m excited to make The Strict List even more editorial, sharing my voice (literally and through writing a little bit more). What started as a casual post-shoot dinner in the Amagansett Square with Kate turned into a 30 min voice recording that has inspired me to potentially start a podcast, or just share some of my longer-form thoughts with you. And we’re gonna start NOW!
Today we’re going to get into it with a true dear friend of mine, Kate Diament of Montauk General Store. We tell the story about how we met later on, so I’ll spare you for now, but let’s just say Kate makes the strictest matcha and merch (ever?) and I feel so lucky to get the opportunity to collaborate with the incredible brand she’s built (again!!) this summer. Some of you might remember The Strict Inn from last summer, our imaginary hotel and imaginary general store. Now, Kate has opened her incredible real life general store in Montauk and I’ve been practically every day I’ve been Out East. I am so proud of her, equally not surprised but also continuously blown away by how she keeps one-upping herself. She is the best host, sweetest friend, most creative photographer, designer, and of course makes the meanest matcha in the game.
The second season of The Strict Inn is opening this Friday July 3rd and Saturday July 4th at The Montauk General Store at 805 Montauk Highway!
Come by for Mango Sticky Rice matcha on Friday and Banana Creme matcha on Saturday and strict (red, white, and blue) special edition limited STGS x MGS merch !!!!
To curate this collection, we wanted to make pieces that would go with you all summer long, the good stuff that stays in your carryon that you never unpack one weekend after the next.
Speaking of the carryon, my ride or die personal item — The Strict Inn Tote — genuinely has been my go-to for every trip this past year. You guys keep asking about it and we knew we had to bring a few back.
Another favorite from last summer was the baby tee. We decided to bring it back with a fun new graphic — a vintage inn key inspired by our imaginary one by the beach.
New this year are two very special pieces, the first being the perfect little burgundy mesh shorts with baby blue writing. This is a favorite color combo of mine and pairs so well with the whole collection. You can dress it up with a little frilly top or throw it on over you bikini and head to the beach. I literally live in mesh shorts all summer when it’s so hot and they pack so well.
Ok, now it’s time to talk about my favorite piece…THE KNIT! This summer, Kate has been doing the coolest knits, all handmade in New York. When she asked if I’d be interested in making one for our collab it was an easy yes. We picked the perfect baby blue and bright Strictly red Pantone for the trim. We wanted it to feel like the perfect vintage varsity crew you found but in a 3/4 length sleeve (a slight french girl wink). It’s the best thing to throw at the beach or to dinner on a chilly night Out East, or over your shoulders on Euro Summer. We finished it off with a small special custom patch on the outside. We are so in love and I’ve already been wearing it non-stop. It’s so cozy.
Now that we know what matcha you’ll be drinking and what you’ll be wearing this weekend, let’s get into my interview with Kate to go a little deeper into her story and her recs for the strictest adventure in The Hamptons. Oh! And if you want our full guide from last summer you can read all about it here:
Barefoot in the Square — Checking In with Kate (of Montauk General Store)
Recorded live in Amagansett Square
Listen to the (first!) voice memo here (for a lot of extra tangents, giggles, & good stuff) !!!
The Origin Story
Denna: Hey Kate, thank you so much for joining today’s edition of The Strict List [editors note – midway through this recording I decided I needed to start a new series and potentially a new podcast, new branding to come]. We’re sitting in gorgeous, beautiful Amagansett Square, where some of the beginnings of Montauk General really began.
Kate: It absolutely began right here, in that store—only a stone’s throw away. Well, it was Noah first. Noah —that’s where I worked, and I got my first garments in when I was working there.
Denna: Do we want to tell the story of when we met?
Kate: Sure, you tell it.
Denna: Well, I—as a chronically online person—came across Kate’s production and the most stunning matcha I’d ever seen in my life. I think my first impression was actually a sweatshirt I still own, the one with the surf postcard on the back. That’s what I saw, and I thought, I need that. I was instantly addicted.
Kate: I don’t know how it came across your feed, but I’m glad it did.
Denna: I think I was going out east the same weekend you were doing a pop-up at the Padel place. You were in a silver Airstream. We got the matcha and we were both blown away—bought merch, got the OG Montauk Country Mart hat and sweatshirt that day. Met you, fell in love instantly.
Then that following fall I saw you at literally every brand event there was—everyone wanted Montauk General Store there. We just became friends because I’d hang out at the matcha bar every time, come to every pop-up you had— The rest is history. And last summer we did our first popup together… The Strict Inn!
Kate: We did. I reached out, we were at “Do Not Feed the Alligators,” and we just plotted. And a lot of it didn’t happen but a good amount of it did, and it was really well received. The concept feels well developed even though it feels like it’s always so last minute.
Denna: It’s so funny, something about us is we’ll have an idea almost a full calendar year ahead—we were probably plotting this last time we did it, in the dead of winter, picking a date, and somehow we ended up pushing the weekend. But it always comes together beautifully in the end, and honestly the story feels even more cohesive now.
Kate: Agreed. And here we are—at Doubles.
Post Shoot Din at Doubles
Denna: What did you get? What did I get?
Kate: You got the Market Crunchy Green Salad with chicken—crispy rice on top, incredible sauce. My mom’s favorite, and I love it too.
Denna: We actually did Soul Cycle together this morning, unplanned—Sue taught, she’s amazing, great playlist.
Anyway—we’re barefoot in the square. So what’s your order here normally?
Kate: Jerk chicken over rice with avocado is my typical order, but today I also got bites of my mom’s Market Crunchy Greens because you need some greens with it. The burgers are great here too—they even have a gluten-free bun now.
Denna: I’m a massive burger connoisseur.
The Strictest Day
Denna: Ok, can you take me through an ideal day out east?
Kate: This is genuinely one of my ideal days.
We woke up—Julia’s visiting—headed to the store, got two matchas. I get a classic maple matcha with almond milk, no sweet cream. I’m trying to be dairy-free, though I might break that this weekend for the banana cream matcha we’re working on. Then we took our matchas to the Marram—
Denna: I’ve never been, I need to check it out.
Kate: You should come Wednesday morning—So you go to Mostrador. They have great breakfast, pastries, you sit and look at the ocean. I did some computer work, Julia jumped in the ocean, hung out at the beach, then went back to the store, worked, then did our photo shoot, and now we’re finishing the day with Doubles in the square. Literally an ideal day for me.
Denna: Barefoot in the square—”BF in the SQ.”
Denna: My question for you…if we wanted a sweet treat, where are we getting that? I have mint ice cream from Balsam Farms in the fridge, but otherwise—not Van Leeuwen, that’s not going to slide for me, though in a pinch I will.
Kate: My obsession…at the store we actually sell baking mix—Kneed Love Bakery at home cookie mix. I make them at home, two or three batches a week.
Denna: What a perfect day!
Kate: Well that was just today. But most days are perfect. Beach, ocean, good food, store, matcha, photoshoot, being creative.
Denna: I thought of like 15 ideas, and was still thinking of more on the drive. Something we talked about was the idea of being an “expander”—Kate is an expander for me. I love being around creative people.
Kate: I feel the same about you.
For Montauk First-Timers
Denna: If someone’s coming to Montauk or the Hamptons for the first time, what are three places they have to go?
