Buoy One Riverhead

Perfect service and amazing seafood with delicious specials!!

This is really painful as, for years, Buoy One was my favorite restaurant on Long Island. We would alternate between the Riverhead and Westhampton locations and the quality was superb regardless of which location. I was saddened to see that the Westhampton location closed as it was the nicer atmosphere of the two. But we went to the Riverhead location the other night and had a dismal experience. First and foremost, there was no AC. So we were seated outside, under umbrellas which kept half of us in the shade and the other half baking in the sun. We went early as advised by the restaurant on the phone and were seated and ordering by 4:30. After two people ordered scallops, we were informed by the server that they had just sold out…at 4:30. To keep cooler and hydrated in the heat, we asked for some ice for the drinks and were told that they were out of ice. When the shrimp arrived, and they consistently had THE BEST shrimp I’ve ever had in my life…they not only looked anemic but they hadn’t been cleaned thoroughly so the poorly deveined or smeared “veining” was visible through the breading on the fried shrimp. Not the most appetizing image. I found myself removing the breading and deveining the shrimp before eating them only to find that they were over cooked and tough. People who know my affection for Buoy One watched me and asked if they’ve “slipped”. Now this could have been an off night. But I’m not going to be rushing back to find out. And this is a restaurant at which I’ve traveled from Pennsylvania to dine…because it was THAT good. The owner is a dynamic and capable woman and I can only assume that this happened outside of her purview. I don’t know if it’s changed hands or what precipitated the closure of the other location but I don’t think it bodes well for the future. So this is a sad review for me. If you don’t have AC, buy some awnings so that none of your guests have to bake in the sun. If your ice machine breaks, send the bus person to 7-11 and buy ten bags of ice. And don’t, under any circumstances, let your amazing menu items drop in prep care or quality. UPDATE: So I emailed Lorraine as requested. She responded by blaming the mistakes on her staff and the heat. She offered me a $100 gift card to take the review down. 6 hours later, she emailed me again saying that North Forker magazine rated them the best seafood on the North Fork and that my review wouldn't matter. So I've refused the gift card and I'm leaving the review up because apparently it doesn't matter and I don't like the idea of being paid off to remove what was our actual experience. She's lost me as a loyal customer. Caveat emptor.

I went in earlier today to dine in and I had the most amazing waitress! I believe her name was Drea and she did a fantastic job for the poor conditions she works in. It was very hot outside as it is summer and not only was I having a hard time sitting there with no fan, no ac but i can only imagine what Drea and other waitresses have to go through on a daily basis. It’s illegal to be up and running as a business if your employees cannot perform their job correctly and having no ac makes their job 10x harder. Drea performed her job very professionally and efficiently under the conditions she is in however if she were to have AC i’m sure it would make her job a little easier. Get an AC or get shut down.

Took my dad to Buoy One for Father’s Day dinner and we had the best experience. We loved everything we ate, my dad especially enjoyed the Old Bay Flounder special. Our server Matthew was great as well, we really enjoyed the overall vibe of the restaurant and will definitely be back soon!

I LOVE THIS PLACE. just because. great oysters. low key vibe! : :