Fire Destroys the Former 'Rick's Crabby Cowboy' in Montauk

A midnight fire destroyed the barn-like waterfront restaurant building that for years was home to Rick’s Crabby Cowboy Cafe on East Lake Drive in Montauk, the night before a new restaurant was to open in the space.

The fire broke out in what was to be known as Maison Close this summer and had fully engulfed the decades-old wooden building by the time Montauk Fire Department firefighters arrived on the scene early Friday morning, May 26, according to Edward Ecker Jr., a department spokesman.

It took the fire department more than three hours to extinguish the blaze, which was reported at 12:11 a.m. and wasn’t put out until after 4 a.m. Firefighters were called back to the scene twice more in the early morning as “hot spots” rekindled the rubble left behind, Ecker said.

Bulldozers leveled the charred remains of the structure Friday morning.

Once part of the Sea & Sky Portel — a cluster of efficiency-style cottages and a restaurant, then known as the The Flying Fish — the restaurant became Rick’s Crabby Cowboy in 1996. Owner Rick Gibbs sold the 4.6-acre property in 2021 for just under $14 million.

In its final years under Gibbs’s ownership, the family-friendly barbecue and seafood Crabby Cowboy Cafe had merged with a New York City nightlife spot to transform the building and outdoor areas surrounding it into Common Ground, a boisterous nightclub-like scene — at first as a one-time pop-up and later on a summer weekends basis.

The property was purchased in 2021 by a group of investors led by Jeremy Morton, who has also purchased the popular nightlife-centered hotel and restaurant Ruschmeyers on Second House Road, and Cyril’s Fish House on Montauk Highway, which he transformed into Morty’s Oyster Stand.

The new owners quickly brought forth plans for a sweeping redevelopment of the property, replacing the small efficiency cottages with 14 luxury condos and a stand-alone house with a pool and fitness center. The restaurant would have remained, in some form. The plan was withdrawn in early 2022 after Town Planning Board members indicated it stood no chance of wining approvals from them, and a new scheme has yet to emerge.

Morton did not respond to a request for comment this week.

Maison Close had been set to open on Friday as a summer offshoot of a restaurant and bar of the same name that opened last year in the SoHo neighborhood of Manhattan. A sister restaurant, a Mediterranean-Greek concept called Tayla, opened at Ruschmeyers over the weekend.

“Blending the most iconic aspects of New York and French culture, Maison Close Montauk transports the lively vibe dining experience that originated in SoHo to Montauk,” the press release announcing the new business reads. “The new al fresco atmosphere features dock and dine slips for boaters and a luxurious outdoor area for guests to soak up the sun and unwind into the evening.”

The release made no mention of plans for a nightlife scene.

After the fire, the business’s marketers lamented the disaster and thanked firefighters for their efforts.

“We are sorry to announce that last night a fire claimed Maison Close Montauk at 435 East Lake Drive,” the statement said. “The team is thankful that no one was hurt and for the assistance and bravery of the Montauk Fire Department. They are cooperating with authorities as they investigate the matter, and we do not have further updates at this time.”

An employee of the would-have-been restaurant, who declined to give his name, said that the Maison Close staff were being transferred to the new restaurant at Ruschmeyers and have been told that the Maison Close owners are working on a way to open at the East Lake Drive property by July, possibly employing temporary structures and food trucks.

Ecker said that there were no injuries to firefighters during the fire. Firefighters from the Amagansett Fire Department came to Montauk to assist, and the East Hampton Fire Department sent trucks to the Montauk Firehouse to stand by in case a second fire alarm came in.

The cause of the fire is being investigated by the East Hampton fire marshal’s office.