I took a little hiatus after some personal travel and work overlapped leaving me with limited bandwidth but we are back with some mandatory reading post fourth of July. Hope everyone had a good share house opening weekend. With the holiday weekend behind us and the social scene returning to a relative normal, here are the club options in Montauk and whether I think they are worth it or not. To add some credibility, I have been coming out to Montauk with friends and family since 1997. Before Surf Lodge, when Bounce was Sloppy Tuna and John’s was the only pancake house.
Surf Lodge
The best option in my opinion for clubs / buying tables in Montauk. I fucking hate that I am typing this sentence but the vibes are actually incredibly here. Awesome DJs and top talent right on the water. Can’t ask for much more than that.
Best Time: Fridays 5pm - Sunset, Saturdays & Sundays 3pm - Sunset with Sundays being arguably the best.
Getting In: Unfortunately, the only way to ensure getting in is buying a table which is expensive. Like $400 - $500 per person expensive and you most likely still want to go out after sunset. I don’t advocate doing this every weekend but definitely worth it once or twice for the experience. Table reservations are run through Sycamore Hospitality so email/DM them to organize. MAKE SURE YOU RESERVE A TABLE ON THE DECK AND HAVE DECK BRACELETS. The deck tables/bracelets are slightly more expensive but this is not something to cheap out on. I love seeing people cheap out for the beach table, which may save ~$50 per person, only to realize you are literally sitting behind the stage wall, you need a deck bracelet to even stand by the stage and will be sitting alone in the dark as the sun goes down.
Game Plan: Order a bottle of tequila and a magnum bottle of rose in each round. Tequila for the people paying for the table. Rose for the girls; the magnum bottle might as well be a moth lamp for chicks. Also, rose per glass is much cheaper than tequila so you can keep doling out drinks to Becky and Christina without breaking the bank (all in relative terms here; in a normal world a ~$600 magnum bottle of rose is not cheap). Once you are getting close to the minimum, chicken tender tower to close it out. @walksauce42_ has been going viral on IG Reels/Tik Tok clowning on interns going to Surf Lodge but the chicken tendies are that good. Since you already spent a lot of money here, best case is to meet people and host/get invited to a house party to close out the night.
** This reel is painfully accurate. Fortunately, you know better now.
Bounce Beach
One of the few dedicated clubs that is open late night, however, I would not advocate for late night partying here. The main tables are all in the basement. Do you want to pay hundreds of dollars to drink in a sweaty basement? Probably not. The VIP tables are upstairs and, similar to Surf Lodge, requires a different bracelet. If you do get upstairs, you’ll see it is better than downstairs but still painfully average. A combination of noise complaints and someone falling off the roof deck and dying (selfish) has resulted in said roof deck being closed at night. Taking all that into consideration, I would only recommend coming here Thursday nights or during the day on weekends.
Best Time: Thursdays 11pm - Late, Weekends 4pm - however long you last
Getting In: At both of these times, bottle service isn’t required to get in which removes most of the hassle. Just show up, potentially wait in a small line and then go enjoy.
Game Plan: Get a few bar seats at the horseshoe bar upstairs, order a few rounds for the crew and then, when the liquid confidence hits, have at it. Girls are always waiting around Bounce for their shot at Tyler Cameron (part owner of the bar btw), and when they realize he’s not coming, they will settle for you.
Montauk Beach House
Project 91 hosts Saturday day parties a few weekends each summer here which have a similar, but more chill, atmosphere to Surf Lodge and much cheaper. You will not see the Chainsmokers here but the non-music talent is still up to par.
Best Time: Whenever Project 91 is hosting
Getting In: As I mentioned, it is not as packed so getting in is usually easier. Just be sure to have your bracelets and/or table squared away in advance. There is no tiered bracelet system here so nothing to watch out for there
Game Plan: You have the play book already from the other two spots mentioned; its just a matter of what personnel you have on the field. Small, agile crew? Run game from the bar. Larger crew with deep pockets? Table with tequila and rose (might as well be a cheat code).
Honorable Mentions
Common Ground East - Moved to East Hampton so no longer qualifies. Common Ground x Ruschmeyers was peak Montauk party scene though. I also have not been yet so cannot, in good faith, provide any insight here.
Talya - New restaurant occupying the Ruschmeyers building. Marketed at as a restaurant that maybe turns into a party? I don’t know and don’t see myself going there.
Grey Lady - Not sure if it’s open this summer (hopefully not). This place was reserved for the first-time Montauk kooks who showed up Friday with nothing planned and turned to this place as a last resort. There’s a reason why they still have tables available at 5pm on Friday. Might have something to do with the fact that the staff would spray fabreeze inside to cover up the low tide smell that would roll in.
Unknown Entertainment Group - There was a group similar to Sycamore Hospitality that would do events at restaurants around town like Best Pizza, La Fin and Tauk Trails End. The Fire Marshall definitely wasn’t a fan of these restaurants-turned-clubs which may be why I haven’t hear of anything this summer but something to keep an eye out for.
Montauk has a learning curve but these guides will help you get up to speed and avoid being the subject of a Kook Hampton reel / Tik Tok. Enjoy the weekend and happy hunting.
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