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Ocean Beach’s newest restaurant is the ultimate “last resort” — in name only.
The Last Resort has just waded into the thick of its first Fire Island summer at 310 Bay Walk in Ocean Beach — taking over the former Taco Beach spot that had opened in 2021.
The seasonal eatery is the brainchild of longtime Fire Island lover Justin Seltzer, his wife Shannon, and their business partner Jon Randazzo.
“I’ve been coming out here with my family since 1994,” said Seltzer, who got married on Fire Island and eventually decided to make it home year-round. “We’re young, don’t have a lot of money, and we put everything into this.”
It all started in January, when Randazzo approached the couple about teaming up on a new restaurant. The group quickly got to work in February — gutting the space, redoing everything from the ceiling to the brickwork.
They opened May 2.
“We made it feel very homey,” Seltzer said.
With a background in the restaurant business, Seltzer brought in a familiar face to lead the kitchen: Keoni Silva, a chef he worked with at the former Castaway Bar and Grill.
Silva now oversees a menu Seltzer describes as “elevated bar food: American fusion with a local vibe.”
That includes mussels over fries in a white wine sauce, lamb chops with pomegranate demi-glace and tzatziki, and a raw bar. There’s also a house-made Philly cheesesteak and the OBO — short for Ocean Beach Onion, a Fire Island take on the blooming onion.
“There were things we wanted to offer like mussels, lamb chops, a raw bar, and he’s taking it to the next level,” Seltzer said of Silva.
The Last Resort will be open seasonally through mid-November.
“The restaurant is a place designed by people who live out here and is kind of a beacon of the life of people out here,” Seltzer said. “So come in for the food but stay for the vibes.”
— photos courtesy of Justin Seltzer
