OCTOBER 2021 • LONGISLANDPRESS.COM 85
THE BUOY BAR
GENERATIONS IN THE MAKING
BY ALAN KRAWITZ
The Buoy Bar, known for its great
seafood and creative cocktails, didn’t
happen quickly. It was more than 90
years in the making, having evolved
slowly from its humble beginnings as
Scotty’s Fishing Station.
“Scotty’s Fishing Station started it all
back in 1929,” says Jeane Magan, general
manager of The Buoy Bar and part of the
fi ve-generations-long family business.
She says that Scotty’s was more of a
marina, where people could pick up
bait/tackle and rent boats.
“As time went on, Scotty’s slowly evolved
and focused more and more on food and
beverages,” Magan recalls. She adds
that as late as 1999, when The Buoy
Bar got its unoffi cial start, “We were
still renting out a few skiff s.” But a few
short years later, the skiff s went, and
the venue’s food became the focus.
In fact, the main Buoy Bar kitchen is also the
former engine room, where engines were
stored as part of Scotty’s Fishing Station.
Magan says that while she continues to
manage the bar, her parents Roberta
and Tom Doheny are still involved in the
business, as are Magan’s four brothers.
“We are a real family-type establishment;
everyone works at the bar either
on a part-time or full-time basis,” she
explains.
Her brother Andrew now runs Scotty’s,
which is adjacent to The Buoy Bar and
still is a go-to destination for fuel, bait,
and tackle as well as a similar yet more
streamlined seafood menu.
“Scotty’s menu is a mini-Buoy Bar
menu but more kid friendly,” says
Magan, adding that they also have a
full bar and concession-style menu
featuring quesadillas, pizza, and
tacos. “Scotty’s has a smaller menu
but just as good.”
In The Buoy Bar kitchen is Magan’s
brother, Matthew, who creates and
executes a seasonal menu full of fresh
seafood, such as steamers in whitewine
basil broth, mussels in marinara
or buffalo sauces, or a house special,
lobster pizza, described as a gigantic
lobster roll, pizza style.
“It’s a thick-crust pizza with fresh arugula,
lobster cream sauce, and lots of
lobster meat,” Magan says.
Matt was originally just supposed to
help out in the kitchen but he quickly
leaned into the head chef spot.
“Matt reads cooking magazines and
does lots of food-related research. He
does a great job,” she says.
Other customer favorite dishes
include a crab cake-bacon-grilled
cheese sandwich in addition to an
always-fresh fish of the day such as
swordfish, striped bass, flounder,
salmon, and scallops.
Asked about how the bar managed
during Covid, Magan said they had
to transform to do takeout.
She says they were initially closed for
a short time but then had a difficult
conversion. Megan explained that
they had nothing ready to do takeout.
“Our bartenders became drivers because
they needed work.”
She says that during the summer of
2020, they offered service to boats,
which helped because they didn’t
have enough room inside the bar to
properly distance tables.
“We did our full menu for boats in the
summer and then for winter, we used
igloos, heaters, and globes, since the
winter restrictions allowed us only
four tables inside. We survived.”
She added that they had to buy all the
little things, from to-go condiments
like ketchup and mustard to salt and
pepper packages. “Takeout kept all
our people employed and kept us in
business.”
She says that food costs across the
board have all risen due to the pandemic.
“A case of chicken wings is
more, scallops, cups, straws, gloves
... everything has gone up in price.”
However, she also says that businesswise,
they are almost back to
pre-pandemic levels, noting that they
are “very weather dependent.”
Looking ahead, plans are in place to
expand the bar’s kitchen to better
serve customers.
“We’re a total family business that
basically evolved from serving burgers
out of Scotty’s to what we are now … a
full-blown restaurant.”
The Buoy Bar Waterfront Grill is located
at 72 Bayside Dr. in Point Lookout. It can
be reached at 516-432-3975 Visit at buoybarli.
com.
MAIN DISH
L to R: Matthew Doheny, Jeane Magan, Thomas Doheny, Roberta Doheny, and Andrew Doheny. (Photo by Jennifer Uihlein)
Photo by Jennifer Uihlein
/LONGISLANDPRESS.COM
