Dan Murray, 70, Popular Owner of Fairway Restaurant in Sagaponack, Dies Unexpectedly

Dan Murray was the face of the Fairway restaurant, the popular diner at Poxabogue Golf Course that he ran for years, greeting customers as they walked in the door, refilling a coffee cup, or leaning over the counter, engaged in conversation.

Murray, who was 70, died unexpectedly at his home in Vero Beach, Florida, on December 23, just before he was to meet family members to celebrate Christmas in Montana, leaving his family and friends in shock.

“The man you saw in the restaurant was exactly who Danny was — friendly, engaging, even-handed,” said Robert Durkin, a friend of Murray’s.

Sean Kiely, a Southampton painting contractor and Fairway regular, said that often on a summer weekend, there would be line of 20 or more people outside the restaurant, waiting patiently for a table. “And not one person would leave, because Danny was out there chatting with them as if they were his best friend,” Kiely said.

Kiely added that he had a wealthy client who brought a private chef with his family when they came out to their home on the South Fork, but every weekend, the schedule was set in stone: breakfast at the Fairway.

A former restaurateur himself, Durkin said the Fairway was a well-run hub of the morning community. “It was an amazingly efficient restaurant,” he said. “They had a tiny kitchen and served inside and outside smoothly.”

Durkin pointed out that Murray saw little staff turnover. “People worked for him for a long time because he was a good person to work for,” he said.

One of those staff members is Michael Carolan, who started working for Murray as a waiter 14 years ago right after high school. After about four years, Murray took him on as partner.

“He saw potential in me,” said Carolan, who ran the business when Murray, who was stepping back from the day-to-day grind, was at his home in Florida. “He wanted this Fairway thing to continue,” Carolan said. “It’s a small, little café, but the community stands behind it.”

Carolan described Murray “as an easy guy to get along with. Our personalities just clicked.”

Murray’s daughters, Jill Draycott and Erin Murray Spencer, both worked at the Fairway, as did their mother, the late Janet (Yager) Murray. They agreed that their father was the same person at home in Water Mill as he was behind the counter.

“That was the exact same vibe he brought to our home,” said Murray Spencer. “The door was always open to all of our friends and family.”

Paul Ryan of East Hampton, another regular customer, said it didn’t matter if you hadn’t seen Murray in a year. “It was like you interrupted a story you were talking about the day before,’ he said. “We didn’t miss a beat.”

Ryan, like Durkin and Kiely, golfed often with Murray. “He was very competitive,” Ryan said. Kiely recalled that Murray liked to play for money. “He came up with the most unusual games,” he said. “I would just say, ‘Tell me how much I owe you at the end.’”

Patrick Murray said his brother went to work for an uncle’s restaurant, Myπ, a Chicago-style, deep dish pizza place, in Huntington after college before moving to the East End.

He opened the Newtown Lane Café in East Hampton Village before the Fairway. He closed the restaurant in 2010 after he could not reach a new lease with the management company Southampton Town had hired to manage the Poxabogue Golf Center, which includes a driving range and par-3 course. The restaurant was left vacant for a season before the town asked Murray to return in 2011.

Murray also ran the dining concession at Montauk Downs State Park and the Station restaurant in Water Mill for a time, his brother said.

“He was a very hard working guy, flipping eggs and pancakes,” Murray said. “But he never had any regrets.”

Murray said he tried to get his brother to modernize his business practice to no avail. “He said, ‘People want good food and conversation,’” he recalled.

Daniel H. Murray was born on September 21, 1954, in Port Washington to Robert “Red” and Barbara (Waters) Murray, who are both deceased. The family moved to Upper Montclair, New Jersey, and he attended Essex Catholic High School in Newark and St. Leo University in Florida.

Murray was preceded in death by his wife and a brother, Robert L. Murray.

He is survived by his two daughters, Jill Draycott and husband Justin of Brightwaters, New York, and Erin Murray Spencer and husband Ryan of Whitefish, Montana, as well as his granddaughter, Julie Draycott, who referred to him as Pop Pop Dan.

Murray is also survived by two brothers, Pete Murray and his wife, Ann, of Poway, California, and Patrick Murray and his wife, Meg, of Chatham, New Jersey; two sisters, Sharon Murray and her partner, Kari Kristiansen, of Rocky Point, and Cathleen Black and her husband, David, of Livingston, New Jersey; as well as many nieces and nephews.

A celebration of the Liturgy of Christian Burial was held Wednesday, January 8, at Queen of the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Bridgehampton.

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that memorial donations be made to the Western Golf Association Evans Scholars Foundation (wgaesf.org, “Memorials and Honorariums”).​​