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Months after the tenant-owner of the Princess Diner was sentenced to jail for scheming to defraud and failing to pay his employees, new tenants are slated to move into the diner in June, bringing with them a new name—and a good reputation.
On Tuesday, an email blast announced the planned opening of the Silver Lining Diner at the old Princess Diner spot, where County Road 39 meets Montauk Highway in Water Mill.
Marc and Eric Miller, who owned Bay Kitchen Bar in East Hampton, made the announcement, saying, “Great news!! We’re moving to a new home!!! Team BKB is thrilled to announce the upcoming opening of Silver Lining Diner.”
In the announcement, the Millers thanked their loyal following from the Bay Kitchen Bar for their kindness and laughter, and said they “look forward to more in the future.” They also said they plan to be open sometime in June.
The new owners did not return calls and emails seeking their plans for the Silver Lining Diner.
The property is, and has been, owned by the Charos family since the 1960s—the same family that owned the Hampton Bays Diner property until 2017.
Workers were seen gutting the building at the beginning of April, sparking curiosity about what the iconic building’s future plans were.
Multiple attempts to reach out to members of the Charos family for the past two weeks, seeking information about the renovations, were not returned.
In December, Richard Bivona, the owner of the Princess Diner business, was sentenced to six months in jail for failing to pay 23 employees a collective $132,011 in wages.
Between August and December 2016, Mr. Bivona and John Kalogeras—who sold the diner to Mr. Bivona in August 2016 and stayed on as a manager to operate the restaurant, located near the intersection of County Road 39 and Montauk Highway just outside Southampton Village—failed to pay 15 employees a total of $88,428. Additionally, the two men did not pay eight other employees their collected wages of $43,583 between January 2017 and February 2018.
Greg Wehner on Apr 10, 2019