Finn's In Westhampton Beach Could Close Soon

Word has been circulating that the popular Irish pub Finn’s, located at 101 Old Riverhead Road in Westhampton Beach, will be shutting its doors in the near future.

But owner Michael Mancuso said on Tuesday that he is still trying to negotiate a new lease with the owners of the commercial building, EK Riverhead Partners LLC in Manhattan, and that he remains hopeful that a new accord will be reached soon, perhaps before the Westhampton Beach St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 10.

“Hopefully, we can come to a mutually acceptable agreement,” said Mr. Mancuso, explaining that the Saunders sign placed on the front lawn of his restaurant is there in case he is unable to extend his lease. He declined to say when his lease expires.

Virginia “Ginger” Bittner Andrews, the managing broker for Saunders West in Westhampton Beach and an associate broker with Saunders & Associates in Bridgehampton, confirmed Monday that the building on the west side of Old Riverhead Road is now “up for lease.” She declined to comment further on the situation.

Mr. Mancuso took over the business a few years ago and changed the name from Finn McCool’s to Finn’s, though the sign in front of the business was never altered to reflect it.

EK Riverhead Partners LLC, whose main mailing address is in Manhattan, has owned the property since 2002, according to town records. Officials at EK Riverhead Partners could not be reached for comment this week.

The property at 101 Old Riverhead Road was assessed at $739,200 in 2010, according to Westhampton Beach Village records.

Thomas Terry, the president of the Rotary Club of Westhampton, said this week that his group, which has been meeting at the Westhampton Beach restaurant every Tuesday afternoon for the past several months, was recently told that it would have to gather at another place. He added that the pending closing of the restaurant was reported in his group’s recent newsletter.

“That’s what I’ve heard through the grapevine,” Mr. Terry said when asked if Finn’s would be closing for good. He declined to say when his group was told it would have to start meeting elsewhere.

“I had to give them a head’s up just in case,” Mr. Mancuso said on Tuesday.

A representative of the Greater Westhampton Chamber of Commerce declined to comment on the status of the business, explaining that Finn’s was not currently a member of the business organization. Formerly known as Finn McCool’s and, before that, Jimmy Boylan’s Restaurant, Finn’s sits just south and west of Gabreski Airport.