The Barnyard to pour its last beer in Hampton Bays this summer

The outdoor venue opened in 2023 on the iconic Boardy Barn property

The Barnyard in Hampton Bays has announced that Summer 2026 will be its last, ending a run that, when combined with its predecessor, spans more than 55 years of Hamptons summer tradition at the same storied address on Montauk Highway.

“It is with a heavy heart that we announce that Summer 2026 will be the final season of The Barnyard in Hampton Bays,” operators wrote in an Instagram post. “The countdown has begun. Let’s all make this final Summer one for the record books.”

The venue will remain open on Sundays starting at 2 p.m. and on select Friday nights through its final event, set for Sept. 6.

The closure is tied to plans to redevelop the 2.6-acre property at 270 W. Montauk Highway into a 68-room boutique hotel with a restaurant, pool and bar.

The Barnyard opened in 2023 after the property was sold in May 2022 — the year following the Boardy Barn’s final summer. Co-owner and primary operator Carl Johanson, a Westhampton native who spent his own Sunday afternoons at the Boardy Barn as a young adult, set out to preserve the spirit of the original venue while modernizing the experience.

The bar top was renovated, tap lines were expanded to 48 and food trucks were added, along with backyard games and family-friendly programming.

“You walk in here on a Sunday, you’re gonna feel like you’re right back where you were years ago,” Johanson said during the venue’s inaugural season. “We’re keeping all the bones the same, but just modifying it so it’s a little bit better, a little cleaner.”

The red-and-white tent on Montauk Highway that served as the backdrop for both venues carries roots stretching back more than half a century.

Mickey Shields and Tony Galgano opened the Boardy Barn’s doors on April 16, 1970, and over the following five decades, it grew into one of Long Island’s most recognizable summer institutions. Drawing roughly 2,000 patrons each Sunday, the venue became celebrated for its cheap beer, upbeat atmosphere, and later on its signature smiley-face stickers.

The Boardy Barn poured its last beer in the summer of 2021. Co-founder Tony Galgano died that November at age 78. The property was sold in May 2022, with surviving co-owner Mickey Shields retaining the Boardy Barn trademark and brand name.

In their closing announcement, the site’s current operators credited the community for making the run possible.

“It’s been an honor to carry on the same spirit over the last few years and we are incredibly grateful for all the love and support that helped make it possible,” they wrote.

The Boardy Barn brand, meanwhile, continues in a different form. The official Boardy Barn now operates at pop-up locations, with events scheduled on Sundays this summer at Blue Point Brewing Company in Patchogue and one event scheduled for July 26 at Flynn’s Fire Island in Ocean Beach.

_{Top: Kevin Redding photo}