Southampton Publick House: Still In The Driver’s Seat!

After more than 20 years at the historic 40 Bowden Square in Southampton, the Southampton Publick House is relocating to 62 Jobs Lane in Southampton, the space formerly occupied by the Driver’s Seat Restaurant.

The property at Bowden Square was sold in 2015, and Southampton Publick House owner and long-term tenant, Don Sullivan, has worked tirelessly and diligently to seamlessly relocate to the new space, while maintaining the good food, drink, atmosphere and company both locals and visitors have come to enjoy at this well-known and much appreciated local Hamptons microbrewery, restaurant and tavern.

The Bowden Square property has its history – the two buildings were erected in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s as a boardinghouse, then connected to make one large space, which was used for various restaurants throughout the 1930’s through the 1980’s. Sullivan and his two brothers, along with a partner, opened the Publick House in 1996, and quickly became known for the restaurant’s craft beers, reliable dining and continuous community involvement. Sullivan has been the sole owner for more than a decade while creating his own history, and had attempted to purchase the space numerous times over the years but to no avail.

Over the years Southampton Publick House has received numerous awards and honors for its craft brewing, and was named Top Brew Pub by Beer Advocate Magazine in 2003. Sullivan has increased the brand from not only Long Island and New York City, but has grown to national distribution in 2005 and it’s sold in more than a dozen states throughout the country. With this new move, Sullivan intends to increase the brewing capacity, and thus the production of various beers for further commercial distribution.

The restaurant will still offer good food for a reasonable price, and the new location will continue to be a venue for community oriented special events as well.

Don Sullivan has been the sole owner of the Southampton Publick House for more than a decade. (Photo: Nicole Barylski)

Sullivan took time from this busy relocation to answer a few questions for Hamptons.com:

Congratulations! Why this location on Jobs Lane at this time?

DS: Historically, this location has been part of the Village of Southampton for 40 to 50 years. We are now in an absolutely terrific location, right in the heart of the business district and shopping. This move reduces the liability carried with such an older structure that existed at Bowden Square. It is very exciting, and that reduced liability really became the determining factor.

In today’s economy, how difficult was it to find a space still within Southampton?

DS: That’s interesting because surprisingly we had about six or seven locations that we were able to consider. I thought it would be very difficult, but we narrowed it down to what works best for us and our necessary requirements, and Jobs Lane proved to be the most advantageous position.

Any new changes or plans for the future in the new location?

DS: Well the indoor dining space is smaller but the outdoor capacity is considerably larger; by perhaps two or three-fold what we had. We intend to have a smaller footprint during the off season, and will expand to a much larger footprint during the season and summer to truly utilize our outdoor space.

The Irish have a toast word that means Cheers or Good Health. So Sláinte to Sullivan and the Publick House, and to another 20 years and beyond.

The Southampton Publick House will officially re-open at its new location within the next few days, possibly even as soon as Sunday, April 24th.

Once the move is complete, The Southampton Publick House will be open seven days a week, from 11:30 a.m. to close.

For more information, call 631-283-2800 or visit www.publick.com.