Restaurant Coming To Former Magic's Pub Building

A restaurant is planned for the former Magic’s Pub building in Westhampton Beach. One of the owners, Lance Farlow, said in an interview that he’s in search of a tenant to bring life back to the once-favorite watering hole.

“I am from Brooklyn but when I used to work in Westhampton, I used to rent a house out there when I was 20-something and I used to go to Magic’s,” Mr. Farlow said. “Everyone went to Magic’s. We want to stabilize it and make it all nice again, and keep a restaurant there year-round. I am thinking a family-friendly restaurant that serves burgers, and chicken tenders for the kids, like Magic’s used to.”

It was “good news,” Mr. Farlow, who has a home in Quogue, said when the Suffolk County Department of Health Services granted him a variance for restaurant use at the property on Main Street on September 14. Mr. Farlow said renovations of the restaurant space, as well as the upstairs apartment and office, including a new facade, will begin in the coming days.

“It was very painful to get the approval,” Mr. Farlow said. “There was a pre-existing wet use, but because there is no sewer systems we needed an approval from the [county], and we lost the grandfathered use because the property was vacant for more than two years.”

Westhampton Beach officials do plan to outfit Main Street with a sewer system. With any luck, Mr. Farlow said the sewer will be installed in the near future.

Mayor Maria Moore said the new owners—as well as other restaurants in the area—will be able to increase their available seating at that time.

“The new owners will be required to connect to the sewer system, as will all the other property owners in the service area,” Ms. Moore said. “The closing of Magic’s Pub was a great disappointment to many in the village, and we are looking forward to having that location operational again.”

Magic’s Pub closed abruptly in December 2010 after the State Liquor Authority decided not to renew its liquor license when the agency found out owner Donald MacPherson was arrested in March 2009, while he was accused of playing a principal role in a $82 million mortgage fraud scheme. The property fell into foreclosure while Mr. MacPherson awaited trial and was eventually incarcerated.

Mr. Farlow, under a limited liability company with two other partners, bought the property in March 2017 for $2.2 million.