84 LONGISLANDPRESS.COM • AUGUST 2018
STARR BOGGS:
HAMPTONS LEGENDARY CHEF
By RUTH BASHINSKY
For Starr Boggs, the chef/proprietor
of his popular, eponymous
Westhampton restaurant, love is all
he needs to keep going after more
than 40 years in the business.
“It’s like the Kevin Costner film, For
Love of the Game,” he says. “You really
have to love it to do this business
and to do it well.”
His passion stems from his childhood
growing up on a 1,000-acre
working farm in Chesapeake,
Virginia.
“When I was a kid, everything we
ate was raised in the gardens or on
the farm,” says Boggs. “The chickens,
cows, hogs. We ate well.”
He learned at a young age how to
make sausage, scrapple, and the different
cuts of meats his family cured.
“I loved the gathering of people and
eating food,” he says. “I think that is
when my love of food started.”
Now, at age 67, Boggs draws on that
experience.
“You don’t want to be in this business
if you don’t have a passion for it,”
he says. “Everyone sees the glamour,
but it is tough work and hard to be
successful.”
Success is something Boggs has
worked tirelessly to attain. Since he
opened his restaurant 15 yearsago on
Parlato Drive, it’s been a Hamptons
destination. The menu changes daily
with the season and accommodates
a variety of palates and budgets —
gluten-free, vegetarian, and prix-fixe.
Executive Chef Frank Lucas, who
has been working with Boggs for the
last 30 years, describes him as “the
force behind everything.”
Fresh ingredients, personal service,
and a team that goes the extra
step are what Starr Boggs delivers
daily to its patrons.
“We go out of our way to get the best
products,” says Lucas. “We source
our fish and fruits and vegetables.
We don’t take shortcuts.”
And people notice. Out of the 42
restaurants in Westhampton Beach,
Starr Boggs was rated number one by
Trip Advisor.
Saturday night easily draws up to
400 patrons, says Lucas. Their Monday
Lobster Bake — a Starr Boggs tradition
that’s been going on for more
than two decades — is downright
festive. Regulars and newcomers
alike gather to listen to live music and
eat a buffet feast of seafood, salads,
duck, steaks, and sausages to their
heart’s content. The restaurant is
also known for its annual Kentucky
Derby Parties.
One of the biggest sellers for the
past 35 years that’s still going strong
is the almond-crusted flounder with
sweet potatoes, a banana, and a green
vegetable.
“Right now, the fish is unbelievable,”
says Boggs. “We have striped
bass, blackfish. They closed the fluke
season down for a couple of weeks, so
we are getting it from the surrounding
states. And, the soft-shell crabs
are coming up from my home in the
Chesapeake.”
The restaurant features two bars,
a dining area, and landscaped patio
with waterfall. It is Boggs’ sixth
location.
“It is my favorite one, and it will be
my last one,” says Boggs, who joked
that his “dance card has been pretty
much punched.”
Boggs’ culinary career on Long
Island started in 1981, when he landed
at The Inn at Quogue, and The Patio
Restaurant, which he co-owned. After
running a few other establishments,
in 1986 he launched Starr Boggs, a
small restaurant that grew when he
moved it to the beach and then to its
current location.
Boggs gets choked up reflecting on
his success.
“Right now I am as proud as my
staff as I have ever been,” he says.
“They work hard. If you don’t love
serving and making people happy,
then you don’t need to be in this
business. All my kids, the busboy
to the chef, they all love making
people happy, and I love that about
them.
“I have one of the best managers
Joshua Benedict I’ve ever had,” he
continues. “A great line chef. A great
sous chef. Between Joshua and Frank,
you have to have a lot of right arms in
this business.”
He stops for a moment to collect
himself.
“Right now it’s a happy place,” he
says. “Next year, if something happens,
if someone can’t get back, then
we have to start all over again.”
Starr Boggs is located at 6 Parlato
Drive in Westhampton Beach. They
can be reached at 631-288-3500.
PRESS BUZZ: MAIN DISH
Grilled flat iron steak sliced, crouton with onion confit, Danish blue
cheese, mashed potato
Starr Boggs, chef/owner of his self-titled restaurant, is a Westhampton
culinary institution.