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Hold on to your fedora—another “hipster” restaurant is coming to Montauk.
In 2012, the New York Times Style Section detailed the droves of 20-somethings with “artisanal tattoos” and “a bespoke, frontiersman beard” flocking to the Surf Lodge, Navy Beach and Montauk Beach House. But Rob Hirsch, the co-owner and operator of The Harbor Raw Bar and Lounge, said he thinks there is a serious lack of Brooklyn past the Napeague stretch.
“What’s missing out there is a lounge, not a club, but somewhere with a late-night menu, a fun vibe … like Williamsburg meets the Hamptons,” said Mr. Hirsch of his reason for opening the restaurant.
The Harbor, set to open on Thursday, May 22, is situated on West Lake Drive in Montauk, in the Cross Eyed Clam’s old location. The restaurant will feature a small-plate menu with meals made with locally grown produce and locally caught seafood. The kitchen and raw bar will run under the direction of Pierre Rougey, former instructor of the French Culinary Institute, and former chef at Barrique Wine Bar in Babylon.
Among the small plates made for sharing are the kung pao mussels, made with black sesame, scallions, and honey-glazed fried calamari; surf n’ turf tacos with short ribs and fried flounder in flour tortillas; and the drunken lobster, whole-split and flambéed in whiskey-tarragon sauce and served with lobster whipped potatoes.
The raw bar, which will be open all-day come June, includes East Coast oysters, Long Island steamers, and Montauk fluke crudo.
“We want the food to be a bit more edgy,” said Mr. Hirsch. “We’re looking to have fun with the small-plate menu, which doesn’t really exist anywhere else in the Hamptons.”
The bar will be headed by a “mixology team” led by Moses LaBoy, previously of Le Colonial and Ginny’s Supper Club in Manhattan, and Red Rooster in Harlem. “It’s old-fashioned drinks with new twists, as well as some new cocktails that no one’s ever heard of,” he said. Mr. Hirsch could not comment on what, specifically will be served.
The Harbor will also feature a late-night menu, said Mr. Hirsch, serving food well past midnight. The menu will include “munchies” like lobster grilled cheese, prosciutto spring rolls and short-rib sliders.
“We’re also having live entertainment,” said Mr. Hirsch. “We have Ken Morsche, a local East Hampton guy playing guitar a few evenings, and a bunch of DJs, one in-house and some booked from Manhattan and Brooklyn.”
From opening day until June 22, the raw bar will open for dinner and lunch on Saturday and Sunday, from 4 p.m. to close; lunch will be served Saturday and Sunday only, from noon to 4 p.m.; and dinner will be served from 5 p.m. to close. After June 22, lunch will be served every day from noon to 4 p.m., and the raw bar will be open daily from noon to close. The dinner schedule will remain the same.
For more information, visit theharbormtk.com or call (631) 668-8260.
Erica Thompson on May 19, 2014